leadinginworship

Holding the Baby

The night God took a deep breath

for all that must be saved,

even the stars outshone themselves

and hillsides gloried with angelic music,

the good, good, good news bouncing down

like boulders, shaking the foundations royally,

announcing the advent of a ruler born

for all who must be saved.

It was the bloody same way

we all arrive on the scene

through the mother of all labour and sweat,

the pain stretching out like tidal waves

for all that must be made flesh.

Love is now newborn, if not exactly

recognizable except to those who know

all must be saved from ourselves and evil

occupying armies whose tramping boots

are aimed exactly here by the bouncing baby news

that will throw even kings from their thrones.

Mary and Joseph and all of us are left

holding the baby,

Is this sensible God?

Jesus doesn’t answer.

He just suckles and sleeps

and wakes to a new day.

 

A New Year prayer of thanks

For every closed mind

that has creaked open just a crack;

For every call to arms

that was not heeded;

For every homemade bomb

that was not left in the shopping mall;

For every generous gift

that made the difference between life and death;

For every time past mistakes

have given us pause;

For every estranged family member

who took a deep breath and went home;

For every sudden decision

to say the encouraging word after all;

For every small action taken

to heal our harms to Mother Earth;

For every time someone actually went back

and said thank you thank you

to one who made a difference in their life;

these things rest on our mind at the end of the year.

God of every blessing, for your protection

and all the good of this past year,

accept our heartfelt and humble thanks,

scraps falling from the feast of love.

Prayer for the Scientific Method

Thank you for human ingenuity, God,

for our ability to think and reason

and figure things out.

On this landmark day when a vaccine

to prevent the spread of ebola is announced,

I give thanks for science researchers everywhere.

Thank you for people who toil away

year after year in laboratories,

hypothesizing and testing,

and re-hypothesizing and re-testing.

The result is a world largely free from small-pox,

free from epidemics of polio,

free from the scourge of mumps, measles, tetanus,

and scores more diseases.

Thank you for countries rich enough

to devote money to universal health-care,

and for the doctors and nurses

who give and track vaccines.

In a world where some of our worst enemies

are unseen to the naked eye,

I give thanks for the long lifespan

afforded in this time and this place.

God of hope, we ask that an HIV vaccine

could be found this year.

You know each of the 25 million people lost to AIDS

in the last thirty-five years…

thank you for equipping researchers

with perseverance, insight

and the resources they need to do their work.

 

Winter Solstice Prayer for the Northern Hemisphere

God of Winter

even at mid-day today the winter solstice sun

crouched low over the southern horizon.

Low noon, and the day is short.

Darkness sits with us early and late,

lingering longer the further north we go.

Bundled against the cold,

the lack of light weighs on us,

and we are plagued with dark worries

in these troubled times.

And yet, you order this big old earth.

Sailing through space it tips only so far,

but no further from the sun.

Thank you for solar power and centripetal forces

which grip us, warm us, and give us life.

Thank you for reminders when we become too

self-absorbed with our own importance:

the world is spinning as it should

without any help from us.

God of the distant Spring,

be with us in this cold season.

Be our light when all other lights fail;

we live and move and have our being

in your love.

A Prayer for Family Gatherings

Jesus, you grew up in a family

that did not always understand,

who questioned you and no doubt squabbled;

hear our prayer for family gatherings this year.

Thank you for families that get along,

showing unconditional love and support:

families that are flexible and adaptive,

that can stand any storm.

Bless all who are travelling to gatherings

that they can’t wait to get to.

And then there are other families,

where tension, suspicion and judgement

vie for power with love and acceptance.

Sentences begin with “You always…”

“I never…” and “Not this again….”

Bless those who are travelling to gatherings

with shields up, heads down,

not sure if they will find a home at all.

And then there are those who are not travelling:

they can’t afford the expense,

or there is no home to go to,

or home is so toxic it’s healthier to stay away.

Bless those who are working to create

new networks of caring and support.

God of hope, send angels down this year

to give good tidings of great joy

right in the midst of real-world family dynamics;

the good, the sad, and the ugly.

Let us be these messengers of hope,

improbable emissaries of a newborn king,

astounded witnesses

to family Christmas miracles.

 

A prayer for times like these

For a world where lies are accepted at face value;

hear our prayer, God of truth.

For a world where racism in high places is tolerated;

hear our prayer, God of the oppressed.

For a world where people with disabilities are mocked;

hear our prayer, God of the disadvantaged.

For a world where the rich hold the reins of power;

hear our prayer, God of the poor.

For a world where men violate women with impunity;

hear our prayer, God of the downtrodden.

For a world where the earth is ignored and neglected;

hear our prayer, God of the voiceless.

For a world where nations interfere in enemies’ elections;

hear our prayer, God of the disenfranchised.

For a world where the church is charmed by false gods;

hear our prayer, God of the lost.

For a world where free speech is threatened;

hear our prayer, God of the silenced.

For a world where hatred is growing by leaps and bounds;

hear our prayer, God of the vulnerable.

For a world where dissent is dangerous and necessary,

hear our prayer, God of those who suffer for righteousness’ sake.

God of hope, we turn to you for vision and courage

as we strive to be faithful in word and deed,

followers of Christ in times like these.

All I Want for Christmas: A Prayer List as I Go to the Mall

This Christmas I would like…

the clear conviction

that beauty is for beholding

and that I don’t have to own

everything that gives me pleasure.

I want to have joy in gift-giving,

seeking to delight those I love.

I would like protection from over purchasing:

and reminders that more gifts

don’t always bring more delight.

I would like contentment this year,

and freedom from envy as I look at things

that I cannot afford to buy.

I would like mindfulness for Christmas,

so that as I shop I can be present to those I meet.

In busy, bustling, boisterous aisles,

I want the ability to touch people gently

with my eyes, not my elbows.

Please give me kind words

to share with store employees

who are often overworked and underpaid.

I would like lots of perspective this year,

to know how fortunate I am,

and also heaps of mercy for those who are less fortunate.

If it’s not too much trouble,

can you give me a sign, maybe a star, this year

that would orient me to the search I’m really on,

the search for a treasure,

something for a wise woman to carry

as she journeys to the birth

of a newborn Saviour.

Going Home for Christmas: A Prayer for the Dying [for Mimi]

Immanuel,
thank you that you are God with us
even in our final good-byes.
Thank you for the ebbing of life,
which is as holy as its birth,
even with all the indignities
that infirmities bring.
Thank you for loved ones gathered,
for memories shared and savoured,
and for quiet vigils,
sweeter than all words,
where all we do is breathe.

And at the stillest moment of all,
as we slip from time and space,
you catch us,
gathering up all of who we are,
our great loves and sorrows,
our deep hopes and dreams.
You move with us from a present
that was always a gift
into a future as mysterious
and as lovely
as the first star
of morning.

Message from the Manger

We love you in the manger, Jesus.

Your little hands and feet,

your soft breathing,

your eyes closed in sleep.

You may be a revolutionary,

but we like our revolutionaries in diapers.

Forgive us, Lord,

for preferring a Saviour that doesn’t talk;

a Saviour that has no words of judgement

for our callousness to the suffering of others,

whose arms aren’t tossing over tables,

whose feet aren’t leading us to Jerusalem.

 

In this advent season,

where the world around us

is convulsing with violence and bigotry,

give us ears to hear

the unspoken message from the manger.

A Middle Eastern baby with dark skin

is threatened with violence

and becomes a refugee.

God with us,

now and forevermore.

A prayer for when I am self-destructive

Lord, I am an instrument of your peace.

Where there is self-hatred, let me sow love;

where there is negative self-talk, kindness;

where there is loathing of my body, acceptance;

where there is nursing of old injuries, release;

where there is envy of others, gratefulness;

where there is perfectionism, humanness.

 

O Divine Mother, grant that I may not so much seek

to be self-hurting, as self-healing;

to be self-denying, as self-cherishing,

to be numb, as to feel.

For it is in being loved by you, that I know I am lovable;

through your confidence in me, I confidently face each day,

it is in being yours now and eternally, that I live in peace.

 

Prayer for the City of Aleppo

God of angel armies, hear our prayer

for your beloved city of Aleppo.

Cast out the demon of bomb dropping.

Cast out the demon of rocket hurling.

Cast out the demon of bullet shooting.

Cast out the demon of hostage holding.

Cast out the demon of civilian persecuting.

Cast out the demon of ceasefire breaking.

Cast out the demon of perpetual despairing,

that would tell us there is no way to peace.

 

God, you are an impossibility specialist.

Send down angels to melt frozen hearts.

Send down angels to protect civilians.

Send down angels to destroy weapons.

Send down angels to negotiate treaties that last.

Send down angels to gather a scattered people.

Send down angels to heal a broken nation.

Send down angels with good news of great joy

which shall be for all people,

even the people of the city of Aleppo.

 

Song of Peace Prayer

Thank you for the gift of music,
for melodies and harmonies,
for voices of every pitch.
Thank you for composers and poets,
for instruments and musicians.
Thank you for ears to hear
and minds to comprehend
the gift that was given so long ago,
Immanuel, God with us,
be the song we sing,
each and every day.
Let yours be the melody we carry,
your song of peace ringing out
through everything we say and do,
grace notes in this season of darkness.

Joy to the World

Joy may be like a fountain,
but it has no on/off switch.
We can’t manufacture joy
or produce it on demand.
Running after joy is
like running after the wind;
you can’t catch it.
Joy is wild and treasured,
like a rare shy bird
that suddenly appears.
It can be fleeting,
or its presence can rest with you,
like a benediction,
for days and months.
It shows up in the strangest places,
and just as quickly disappears.
The moment you try to hold it,
it flees away.
I held the hand of a dying man
all morning
and spent the afternoon
visiting a newborn baby.
Holding that little one’s hand,
my tears kept coming and coming.
Was that joy, or something like it?
In our Good Friday world,
where death is our constant companion,
God holds out a hand
with surprisingly little fingers.
God with us.

The good book

I was always captivated by
“Once upon a time”:
the magical invitation
into a world not mine.
The world of giants and talking animals,
the world of spies and zookeepers,
pirates, pioneers and pilots--
I followed them through deserts and oceans,
deep space, rush hour traffic,
mountains and subterranean caverns.
I puzzled things out with Nancy Drew,
yearned for justice with Black Beauty,
cried with Jane Eyre,
whistled with Tom Sawyer,
and found my way to Narnia
through a dusty old wardrobe.
The stories of people long ago,
and of people yet to be,
mingled in my mind
with the stories of people just like me.
Hours spent turning pages
have helped me more than I can say
to walk in others’ footsteps
and imagine the lives they lead.
So I give thanks for authors,
for the feel of pages between my fingers,
for libraries and bookstores and friend’s shelves.
I give thanks for literacy and leisure to read.
I praise God for the good book.

Your language of love

Words dance into space
bouncing off satellites:
my voice rocketing
through the stratosphere here
ricocheting into your ear there.
Your thumbs type text
and even as you press send,
I receive your message.
Across the miles
the image of your presence
hovers on my screen,
our voices intertwining on this internet.
My grandparents were as proud
of their telegraph, reliable mail service,
and the wonder of the telephone.

And for all this, Lord,
are we better connected?
Has all this technology
enabled us to live more peacefully,
more in tune with one another?
Have all our inventions
increased our capacity for compassion
or changed the desires of our hearts?
As our means of communication
increase in clarity and capacity
and speed and sophistication,
touch our hearts.
May our longing to reach one another
be matched by our yearning
to learn your language of love.

A prayer about terror (on the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre)

God of the afflicted:
On this anniversary of the Montreal massacre
where a man who declared feminists his enemy
opened fire in a school,
killing fourteen, wounding fourteen,
on this day we turn to you.
We pray for healing for all affected by acts of terror.
Terror from a bomb, or a gun,
or a knife, or a rope, or a body,
terror from any force poised for cruelty.
You know what happened next.
Be with all who are picking up,
with tears, the pieces of their lives,
painstakingly living to see another day,
and another, and another,
becoming survivors.
Be with them in the fear
that haunts them daily
and pursues them in their dreams.
Be with them in their anger,
which fuels their drive for justice,
and their certainty
that this must not happen again.
And yet it happens to another,
and another, and another.
Almighty God, where are you?
Jesus, do you see our suffering?
Holy Spirit, where is your relief?
God of the terror-stricken,
God of the terror-survivors,
God of the terror-fighters,
God of all who work for peace,
we pray to you today:
deliver us from evil.

Waiters in God's House: An Advent Prayer

God of hope.
be with all tonight
who are waiting for a miracle.
Waiting for God,
waiting for justice,
waiting for a diagnosis,
waiting for a phone call,
waiting for a job,
waiting for death,
waiting for inspiration,
waiting for the right moment,
waiting for the fighting to stop,
waiting for day to dawn,
waiting for a baby to be born.
Hear our cries tonight,
as they rise to the stars,
cries from the waiters in God’s house.

A prayer for a thousand tongues

God of every tongue and nation:
thank you for the multiplicity and beauty of languages,
each one a treasure, each one unmatched and irreplaceable.
Thank you for their slow growth over time,
their plasticity and adaptability,
their ability to convey and carry culture,
the heart of a people.
As a white Canadian, I mourn the colonial decision
to declare only two languages official,
the languages of white people.
We waged war on First Nations and Inuit,
doing everything we could to eradicate their mother tongues,
kidnapping and torturing children,
trying to deafen them to the voice of their people.
For the peoples and languages that are no more,
God of memory, preserve them in your heart.
I give thanks for the resilience and strength
of indigenous people who refused to forget.
Strengthen them, and give them ingenuity
as they work to resuscitate ways of speaking
known only to small communities.
Show us our part in supporting their work.
When newcomers to Canada
feel they must shed their languages
like coats that no longer fit,
help us to be welcoming of diversity,
celebrating the plural voice.
Open our ears to the virtues of the vernacular.
Set us the multilingual task of learning our own
and each other’s languages by heart,
taking seriously the challenge of
a thousand tongues to sing your praise.

Prayer for Reporters

Hear our prayers for reporters, Lord.
In this surroundsound world
with information and lies
mixed on every platform,
raise up truth-tellers
who want to get the story right.
People who are not content with face value,
who smell a rat at any distance,
who are not intimidated by intimidators.
Reporters who care about those
who others abuse and discard.
Reporters who seek out sources,
work diligently to get the whole picture,
and who write with passion and integrity.
Protect them from those who would
kill the story, or even kill the writer of the story.
Help them find ways to share their work,
and even make a living do it.
In a world where truth is sometimes in short supply,
remind us that we need to support reporters
whose craft is research
whose gift is clear communication
and whose product is the bedrock of democracy.

Peace Prayer for Those Living with HIV/AIDS

Immanuel, thank you for being with us in our HIV/AIDS filled world.
We pray expecting your presence among us!
Be with all who live with the effects of this disease.
Be with those who wait to die because they have no access to medication.
Be with children who received HIV as a legacy from their parents.
Be with orphans and families who have lost loved ones.
Be with countries who have millions of citizens with HIV/AIDS.
Be with all who are stigmatized and ignored because they have this virus.
Be with researchers and scientists who work to find a cure.
Be with corporate executives who control access to affordable medications.
Be with healthcare workers and caregivers who comfort and encourage.
Be with all who have lost hope because of HIV/AIDS.
Forgive us when we don’t give a thought to this disease
because it does not personally affect us.
Help us see your face in the thirty-six million people
who live with this disease.
Lord, we long to hear the angel's song of peace:
empower people of good will to work
for justice and healing for all
who suffer from HIV/AIDS.  Amen.