God of all beings, a lot of us feel less safe than
we did a few days ago and a few days ago we weren’t feeling that secure to
begin with. Help us draw upon you, our Divine Source, when what we have just
isn’t enough to get through the day.
A lot of us are grieving.
Actually, all of us are grieving: lost friends, lost kin, lost
homes, lost income, lost connection to others, lost health. Help us
not also lose hope. We can lose a lot and still survive, but not that.
A lot of us are so angry. Angry
that our inherent worth and dignity seems up for debate by those who have never
had their worth and dignity questioned in courts of law. Angry that love of
power seems to trump love of neighbor. Repurpose our anger into righteous
action, Lord.
(Personal note: My fear is
turning to anger and I am afraid that my anger can turn so easily to hate and
hate is the thing I say I am against. Turn me away from hate. My heart can’t
take that kind of brittleness because I need it to give and to receive love.
Remind me that my heart is spoken for.)
A lot of us are ashamed of how
numb we feel, but honestly we’ve run out of emotional bandwidth and the system
needs to re-boot before it comes back on-line. Give us rest and
self-compassion.
A lot of us are joyous and feel
like we have to shield that joy from others, lest it seem like we are callous
toward those who are hurting. Help us see and celebrate what good there is in
our lives and the lives of those around us.
I don't think you created us to
be able to metabolize such a constant stream of bad news everyday, Lord. But I
do know that you created us to metabolize cookies. And for that I give you
thanks and praise. They are helping. But they are not enough.
So if you could show up right
now, that would be great. And if you are already showing up, give us new eyes
to notice you.
Amen.
-Nadia Bolz Weber, Sunday Prayers, 9.20.20
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