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Posts from the ‘prayer’ Category

Aug 10

Amen, Bookends of this Day

“The Amen of nature is always a flower.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Amen by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

“When I forget that the whole world
is holy, even the tiny dark bugs
that slip through window screens
and flock and stick to kitchen lights,
even the charred black remains of forest,
even the river as it floods bright red,
even when my cheeks are tear-stained
and my body tightens with fear,
that is when a kind letter from a stranger
arrives in the mail, or the rabbit will stand
on his back legs to nibble on mint,
or the meadow will blaze with the day’s
last slant of sunlight and my heart opens
so wide that inside the fear rises praise.”

Amen
Hello and Good-bye, everything in between
Start and end this day
Amen
Bookends, woven through the story too
Praise, gratitude, joy
Amen
Curiosity, inquiry, attention
Fresh day
Possibilities and imagination
Beauty and light
Amen
Blooming in brilliant color
Awaiting for our senses to arrive
To join the celebration of the present moment
Amen

“Nature is the one song of praise that never stops singing.” – Richard Rohr

Jul 4

Sky Open, Light Cast

“I need a song that will keep sky open in my mind. If I think behind me, I might break. If I think forward, I lose now.”― Joy Harjo, Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings: Poems

“To pray you open your whole self
To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon
To one whole voice that is you
And know there is more
That you can’t see, can’t hear
Can’t know except in moments
Steadly growing, and in languages
That aren’t always sound but other
Circles of motion.
Like eagle that Sunday morning
Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky
In wind, swept our hearts clean
With sacred wings.
We see you, see ourselves and know
That we must take the utmost care
And kindness in all things.
Breathe in, knowing we are made of
All this, and breathe, knowing
We are truly blessed because we
Were born, and die soon within a
True circle of motion,
Like eagle rounding out the morning
Inside us.
We pray that it will be done
In beauty.
In beauty.”
― Joy Harjo

Freedom
Peace
Kindness
Hope
Generosity
Faith
Trust
Seeds
Grace
Light
Steadfastness
Fidelity
Fresh meaning
Love
Keep the sky open in my mind and heart
Amen
Prayer for this day and each day

“Bless the poets, the workers for justice,
the dancers of ceremony, the singers of heartache,
the visionaries, all makers and carriers of fresh
meaning—We will all make it through,
despite politics and wars, despite failures
and misunderstandings. There is only love.”
― Joy Harjo, Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings: Poems

Sep 28

Knots to Bows

The Knot Prayer, Author Unknown

“Dear God,

Please untie the knots that are in my mind, my heart, and my life.
Remove the have nots, can nots, and the do nots.
Erase the will nots, the may nots, and might nots
that may find a home in my heart.
Release me from the could nots, would nots,
and should nots that obstruct my life.
And most of all, Dear God, I ask, You remove from my mind, my heart,
And my life, all of the am nots that I have allowed to hold me back.
Especially the thought that I am not good enough.

Amen”

Remove, erase, release to open, soften and take hold.
Unravel, unwind, untangle to loosen, lighten, receive.
Softened edges.
Knots to bows.

May 19

Number 23

“Be patient with everyone, but above all with yourself…do not be disheartened by your imperfections, but always rise up with fresh courage.”― St. Frances de Sales

Psalm 23 – The LORD Is My Shepherd

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.”

When the grinding, speed, doing, overdoing, list checking come up short, empty, flat.
Again and again.
Rest, long pause, quiet.
A soft whisper.
An invitation.
A command.
A welcoming.
Green pastures.
Still waters.
Soul restored.
Cup overflowing.
Again and again.
You cannot outrun yourself.
Home calls.
Answer the call.
Still small voice. Listen.
Restored and renewed.
Made new.
Again and again.

“People will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own souls. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.”― Carl Jung, Psychology and Alchemy

Mar 26

2 Comments

UPrising

“To clasp the hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world.”― Karl Barth

“The best way to start praying, therefore, is actually to stop praying. To pause. To be still. To put down your prayer list and surrender your own personal agenda. To stop talking at God long enough to focus on the wonder of who he actually is. To ‘be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him’.”― Pete Greig, How to Pray: A Simple Guide for Normal People

Reflection to see what is without fiction, attachment or noise.
Pause to rest, to reorder, reframe, reset.
Stillness to be in awe and wonder.
To be filled and renewed, prepared to carry on with fervor and vigor.
A peace that passes understanding.
A joy detached from circumstances and worries, rooted in gratitude.
The power of prayer to change self rather than everyone and everything else.
An uprising, rooting, transformation.

“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.”― Karl Barth

Aug 18

To Be Here Now

“Prayer can be a rhythm that helps us make sense in times of senselessness, not offering solutions, but speaking to and from the mystery of humanity.”― Pádraig Ó Tuama, Daily Prayer with the Corrymeela Community

“To be human is to be in the imagination of God, and the imagination is the source of integrity as well as cracks. To be born is to be born into a story of possibility, a story of failure, a story of imagination and the failure of imagination. To be born is to be born with the possibility of courage. Hello to courage.”― Pádraig Ó Tuama, In the Shelter: Finding a Home in the World

May you be fully human this day, everyday
Flaws, cracks and all, beauty too
Giving others the same grace and mercy too
It has been and is offered to all without condition or reserve
Change nothing but thoughts that keep you stuck in the past, fearful of the future
The work of love, a high calling in ordinary days
Holy ground we walk daily
Feel your feet on this ground
To be here now
Say hello to courage.

“May we find our foundation in the work of Love; demanding, tiring, true and human and holy.”― Pádraig Ó Tuama, Daily Prayer with the Corrymeela Community

Jan 21

Within Time

“Meditation is not about what’s happening, it is about how we’re relating to what’s happening.”
― Sharon Salzberg, Real Happiness at Work: Meditations for Accomplishment, Achievement, and Peace

“Order us, that we may stand within time holding your hand. That we may know we are enough, not because what we make of these hours, but because within these hours – with you – we are being made.”― Micha Boyett

More is here, unnoticed.
Enough, more than enough overflowing.
Ease, woven in slowing.
Delight, in the rising of the sun.
Brilliance, in the color and curve of a flower.
Joy, in a smile that breaks into laughter.
All of it, prayer.
When we recognize what already is present for our savoring.
An invitation and welcoming, the messy and beauty.
A returning to wonder, a response of praise and awe.
We are being made, written, painted, created each day.
Witness the work of the Author, Artist, Creator.

“Prayer is not an act I perform, words I recite, a behavior I strive to maintain. It is a returning. It is a broken life finding healing, a misplaced soul recognizing home.”― Micha Boyett, Found: A Story of Questions, Grace & Everyday Prayer

Jun 2

Wide, Sweet Spaces

“Where do we begin? Begin with the heart.” – Julian of Norwich

“Where do we begin? Begin with the heart.” – Julian of Norwich

“Lord, let not our souls be busy inns that have no room for thee or thine,
But quiet homes of prayer and praise, where thou mayest find fit company,
Where the needful cares of life are wisely ordered and put away,
And wide, sweet spaces kept for thee; where holy thoughts pass up and down
And fervent longings watch and wait thy coming.”― Julian of Norwich

Beyond the noise
Beneath the surface
Around the corner
Under your feet
Above your head
Surrounding you
Holding you
Carrying you
Go there
Right next to, around and in you
Start with the heart
Journey with and to the soul
Returning, undeterred, home
Fullness, light, hope, joy, peace, love
Spend time each day here
Choose to stay longer
Make room at the inn
Then move into the world from this place
Newness of spirit
Sight to vision
Wide, sweet spaces

“The fullness of joy is to behold God in everything.
God is the ground, the substance,
the teaching, the teacher,
the purpose, and the reward for which every soul labors.” – Julian of Norwich

Apr 30

Greet It All

“Never forget the three powerful resources you always have available to you: love, prayer, and forgiveness.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

“Neither I nor the poets I love have found the keys to the kingdom of prayer and we cannot force God to stumble over us where we sit. But I know that it’s a good idea to sit anyway. So every morning, I sit — I kneel, waiting, making friends with the habit of listening, hoping that I’m being listened to. There, I greet God in my own disorder. I say hello to my chaos, my unmade decisions, my unmade bed, my desire and my trouble. I say hello to distraction and privilege, I greet the day and I greet my beloved and bewildering Jesus. I recognize and greet my burdens, my luck, my controlled and uncontrollable story. I greet my untold stories, my unfolding story, my unloved body, my own body. I greet the things I think will happen and I say hello to everything I do not know about the day. I greet my own small world and I hope that I can meet the bigger world that day. I greet my story and hope that I can forget my story during the day, and hope that I can hear some stories, and greet some surprising stories during the long day ahead. I greet God, and I greet the God who is more God than the God I greet.

Hello to you all, I say, as the sun rises above
the chimneys of North Belfast. Hello.”
– Pádraig Ó Tuama, In the Shelter

Life, in all of its messiness, beauty, contradictions, joy, struggle;
In ordinary days, in rain, in sun;
In celebration, in milestones, in transitions;
May we see our blessings amidst our burdens;
May our thoughts, words and actions lift and shine light more often than not;
May we greet it all and be held in prayer as it all unfolds;
Greet it all.
Hello.

Apr 5

A Doorway

“Prayer is how we press our hands into the invisible and find the hand of Christ reaching back.” — James K. A. Smith

Attention
Awe
Thanks
Awareness
Meditation
Reflection
Noticing
Acknowledging
Gratitude
Joy
Laughter
Flowers
Sky
Light
Conversation
Connection
All prayer, praise and reverence.
Pause, patch a few words together.
Followed by silence so another voice may speak.

Praying by Mary Oliver

“It doesn’t have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch

a few words together and don’t try
to make them elaborate, this isn’t
a contest but the doorway

into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak.”

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