FCCR-ACE Prayer Blog

Congregationalists Learning to Pray

Dear God

My Aunt S called and was blue,,,,down,,,,sad,,,,

It seems that her small town of 250 folks in downstate Illinois was touched by the funeral for a young man (33) who died in Iraq recently. This is the first funeral they have had in this war although the folks in Oakland Illinois have seen soldiers’ funerals from other wars. She was surprised by how moved she was after all this time as the memories of so many similar Vietnam funerals came back to her.

Auntie S’ memories made me curious about his young widow with 3 sons. How did this grieving woman feel about all the flags and children and townsfolk turned out as she laid her husband in the cemetary? Did she appreciate the patriotism that was on display or did she resent the intrusion into her grief?

So God my prayer today is that you can be with the flag wavers and the widows alike as we struggle to sort through the grief we encounter as this war continues to drag on. Let us not forget in the financial woes of the moment the eternal sacrafices (justified or not) that so many folk have been asked to make.

Amen

In the wake of a momentous political election, I pray that we will
enter a new age of compassion. Let all of us, leaders and followers,
be thoughtful and caring. May we all have a renewed sense of
responsibility to each other and to the world. Let us endure
approaching troubles with hope and in community.
Amen

I need a little de-stressing right about now.
Maybe you do too.
The Bible quote I mentioned in my last prayer
can be used as a meditation.

“Be still and know that I am God”

Try quieting yourself (centering)
Repeat the sentence.
Ponder its meaning for a few moments.
Next, do the “Bingo” game thing and
Repeat the sentence less the last word.
Ponder again how the emphasis has changed.
Repeat until only one word remains.

This never ceases to provide me with a
powerful perspective on my relationship
with God.

Amen

Today I am not writing, instead sharing a prayer…it strikes me as a prayer appropriate to people of every age in every place, from now until forever. May you blessed in the praying. Love, gay

The only dream worth having … is to dream that you will live while you’re alive and die only when you’re dead … To love. To be loved. To never forget your own insignificance. To never get used to the unspeakable violence and vulgar disparity of life around you. To seek joy in the saddest places. To pursue beauty to its lair. To never simplify what is complicated or to complicate what is simple. To respect strength, never power. Above all, to watch. To try and understand. To never look away. And never, never to forget.

— Arundhati Roy
From her book, The Algebra of Infinite Justice

Dear, dear God,
the calendar suggests it is my turn to share a prayer again today,
and while I am not feeling well,
being drawn away from thinking about that to thinking about you
is a blessing in and of itself.
You are the one thing in my life that is unchanging,
and for that I give you endless thanks and praise.
So much of life – the weather, our living conditions,
our relationships, our faithfulness –
frequently wavers.
But you, in your love and your reaching out to us,
do not.

Thank you for being our anchor, guardian, and guide
through all our days.

Amen