leadinginworship

Prayer for Those Seeking Shelter

Today we pray for those among us
who seek shelter every day.
Home is gone for them, for many reasons;
addiction, mental illness, violence,
or they just couldn't pay the rent.
Evicted or just drifting, they wander.
Some live in their vehicle,
holding on to suitcases of possessions.
Others have left it all behind,
and with a bag or two 
go to shelters for a meal or a bed.
Others sleep rough, under bridges,
or in the hedges around the city.
People of no address,
they are forgotten by every social safety net.
No healthcare, no safety, few options.
These are the ones who are precious and loved in your sight.
You don't lose track.
We see them sitting on the park benches,
or avoiding the cold in stairwells or subway cars.
God of miracles, can you change this “us and them”?
Can we call each other by name;
Jason, Mike, Emma, Rick, Carol?
As your children, can we meet and hear stories?
Instead of only a handout, can we sit together, 
lamenting what is lost, acknowledging resourcefulness.
From those with homes,
take away smugness and superiority,
and every hero complex of wanting to rescue those
we objectify into "the homeless".
Open those who have plenty, to share it.
For those who are seeking shelter,
give courage and stamina.
When hope is hard to find,
help them find it.
For safety, for friends,
for community on the way,
we give thanks.
You identify with all who have
nowhere to lay their head.
You are with them this night,
you are with them every night. Amen.

Mothering Mended

It’s not easy to trace the tears,
the gaping holes where mothering
went wrong.
I can point to the withering look
that day at the dinner table
when I took my father’s attention.
Or maybe the stoney face
accusing me of losing something precious,
my protests unheard.
Or the subtle manipulations;
the distaste for what I wore,
the way I looked, laughed, talked.
I saw you coming to the front door,
and my heart panicked.
And yet, there was love,
and good times too.
You cutting up an apple for me
as we shared an evening snack,
or our walks along the beach.
The picture I have of you
trying to pick up a piece of driftwood
that you could never lift.
But I couldn’t trust you,
I never knew when you would turn.
I eventually walked out of that room
where mother was judge and jury.

Duty brought me back, not love.
When you had to come to me,
I had to let you in.
And in those final dependent years,
something shifted.
Was it power (yours? mine?)
or was it the pills they gave you,
pharmaceuticals revealing
some inner long hidden sensitivity?
No matter, for suddenly
there was a new language
of affection and appreciation,
so longed for, never before received.
You had the happy blessing of remembering
only pleasantries from our shared history.
I moved forward, trying not to look back.

At the end, you reached the shore alone
but I would have wanted to be there.
I only give thanks now for mothering
mended against all odds,
and the gift of bereavement.

A prayer for those contemplating suicide

For each of your beloved children
who this night are poised to take their own life,
we pray this prayer.
For those plagued by despair,
for those haunted by hopelessness,
for those immersed in mind-numbing pain,
for those confused by bewildering delusions,
for those mired in violent memories,
for those pushed to the edge by grief,
for those bullied because of their sexuality,
for those overwhelmed by stress or financial pressures,
for those caught fast in chains of addiction,
for those feeling unwanted and unloved,
for those who can love everyone but themselves,
for those who feel that the world would be better off without them,
Creator of us all, hear our prayer.
Send your rainbow of hope
arching over these dark moments.
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet;
thousands of angels of every hue
surrounding and supporting each dear one
tenderly, lovingly,
away from the brink.
Your presence a bridge to one more day.

Light Congregational Prayer

All praise to you, God, the giver of light!
We give thanks for the sun, whose rays give life,
and the moon that illuminates our darkest nights.
Praise for fire, the flickering flames of candles and lamps.
We give thanks for electric light
that twinkles around the world, shining into space.
Thank you for starlight that travels light years
and for lasers which circle the globe in fibre optic cables.
You give us light, which is bright and serviceable and pure.
We cannot live without light.
Thank you most of all for Jesus Christ,
the Light of the world,
who came to earth as a Light-bearer,
the bright and Morning Star.
Forgive us for the times this past week
when we have turned away from the tasks set before us,
preferring darkness and wallowing in shadows.
Help us to be bearers of your light this week,
shining your care even in the face of callousness,
shining your hope when all around us despair,
shining your peace even in the face of hatred.
Thank you for the peacemakers in our city, our country,
who inspire us to live lives that make a difference.
Help us to be examples for the children in our lives,
so that they can see our good works
and learn more about the light that passes understanding.
We pray for people we know who are going through dark times,
or who live with disabilities or chronic pain.
We also remember all who live with mental illness,
and dis-ease of mind or spirit.
Bring your light to all these.
Give us wisdom and compassion as we bear that light for you.
You lighten our loads, and bear our burdens.
We trust in you, O God,
our Light and our Salvation.  Amen.

God of Gardens Congregational Prayer

God of gardens,
thank you for the garden of [name your area]
for tree peonies and white lilacs,
for graceful yellow tulips, and sweet honeysuckle [name the flowers that bloom in your area]
For fields showing green, for vegetables growing, for fruit setting,
for the whole wide earth waking up and exploding into life before our very eyes,
slow fireworks of green trees and blossoms everywhere we look.

The kingdom of God is like this;
beautiful and rich and many faceted,
blooming in hearts around the world for those who have eyes to see.
The news tells us every horrible thing that happens,
but you bring good news:
that people do love each other, that people do help each other,
that you care for us, that we can make a difference.
Help us to be your messengers of good news,
help us to be good news.

We need this assurance because we are sometimes overwhelmed with bad news,
in our families and our communities.
Forgive us for the times this week that we have been short and angry with those we love,
callous and uncaring towards our neighbours or the people we work with.
Give us open hearts, that grow in love towards every place where love is not.
Give us compassion especially today for those who are grieving,
who feel the ache of loved ones who are no longer here.
Give us compassion especially today for those who struggle with illness
who are undergoing tests, or taking medication
or are afraid to take medication for physical or mental illnesses.

This morning we also pray for our government, our Prime Minister, our Premier,
for the many people who work in public service.
Thank you for their contributions to growing good communities.
At this time where public corruption is so prevalent in the news,
help us as a country to cultivate justice and honesty.
God of gardens, be with us this week,
wherever we grow,
in your name, Amen. 

Psalm for those living with mental illness

Oh God, you are my God!  I seek you!
I am feeling heavy and tired,
I am troubled and empty.
From this place of pain I cry out to you!
I have never felt so sad,
I am totally overwhelmed,
I am facing despair.
People around me say,
“You’ll feel better tomorrow.”
They say I lack faith,
they are irritated with me and say,
“Pull yourself together!”
I hear the other voices of people saying
“Stupid, idiot, dumb, birdbrain.”

I call out to you because nobody else understands me,
nobody cares for me but you.
I can’t move, I feel paralyzed.  
I need your help!
If I don’t receive your help,
I have no reason to live. 
I can’t go on living like this.

Oh, you are my God, you are with me!
You hold me, you encourage me,
you are the one who is there for me at rock bottom.
Jesus weeps in the garden with me.
Jesus knows what it is like to feel forsaken.
My God is mighty to save,
God touches me and makes me whole.

Were you there for me?
Yes, you were! 
You say to me,
“Come unto me all you who labour and are heavy-laden,
and I will give you rest.”
You have plans for me,
plans for good and not for evil.
You give me a hope and purpose.
I will always praise you,
for you are my God,
my Rock and my Redeemer.

[I help to run a peer support group for people with mood disorders. This Psalm came out of an exercise we did together, everyone in the group helped to write this psalm.]

Celebrate: A Poem for Survivors of Mental Illness

On the long journey,
where many steps are required each day,
there comes a time to pause and look back,
to join with a companion and say, “There!
Those steps have been completed, they’re done.
I’ve come this far.”
Or if no companion is there,
to stand alone and whisper, with clear eyes,
“I’ve done this, I’ve made this journey.”

The journey with mental illness
has milestones seldom marked except by those who walk there…
a day where I continued to live,
a week where I managed to take my medication,
a month since the last episode,
a year since I was in the hospital,
a decade since I began living with this disability.

I have made this journey,
I have moved in darkness and lived to see the day.
I have been swept up in the whirlwind and survived.
I have been lost and found my way.
I have wept and my tears have turned to peace.
I have been abandoned and found my own strength.
I have called on God in despair and found faithfulness.

I can celebrate this, this moving towards healing.
And if I walk this road again, God help me,
I will turn and help a fellow traveller,
“You can do this.  I have done this.  We can do this together.”

Litany for Mental Illness

Lord, you are the great Healer.
Today we pray for those who live with mental illness. 
For those crippled by depression and anxious feelings,
                bring healing, bring peace.
For those who suffer from the high and lows of severe mood swings,
                bring healing, bring peace.
For those who are tormented by voices and hallucinations,
                bring healing, bring peace.
For those who find it difficult to cope with tasks of daily living,
                bring healing, bring peace.
For those who struggle with suicidal thoughts,
                bring healing, bring peace.

God of great gifts,
thank you for the courage of those who live with mental illness.
Thank you for the patience of family and friends who support.
Thank you for our health system and all who work to
                bring healing, bring peace.
Give us wisdom and insight as a church,
as a community, as a society,
to be places that can
                bring healing, bring peace.

Heavyhearted Prayer

My heart is heavy.

Heavy like a bulky suitcase carried too long,

Heavy like the pressure at the bottom of the pool’s deep end,

Heavy like feet at the end of a long day’s walk,

Heavy like carrying bad news to a friend,

 

Lifter of the heavyhearted, hear my prayer.

Help me to remember the strength that first lifted

    and bore the weight easily.

Help me to remember the sweet surrender of diving

    and the adventure of going deep.

Help me to remember the lightness of step

    at the beginning of a purposeful journey.

Help me to remember how even bad news

    is endured together in love’s embrace.

You are the God of the heavyhearted and the lighthearted,

keep me near your heart this day.  Amen.