Tag: blessing

A Blessing for Those Who Wait

image of candle

For those who wait
In despair,
In grief,
In sorrow.
You are comfort.
You are strength.

For those who wait
In anxiety,
In isolation,
In loneliness.
You are comfort.
You are strength.

For those who wait
In tender hope,
In tear-streaked sadness,
In fearful anticipation.
You are comfort.
You are strength.

Bless, Loving Healer,
All those who wait.
You are comfort.
You are strength.

Originally written 9/2018. Updated for us waiting and watching the unfolding of the pandemic. Find more of my blessings in my book Christ Beside Me, Christ Before Me: Celtic Blessings.

A Blessing of the Wounds (#metoo)

Bless, O bless these wounds,
God, the healer.
Fresh wounds, still bleeding.
Tender hearts, tender spirits.
An innocent crossing the path of violence.
Bless, O bless these wounds.

Bless, O bless these wounds,
God, the comforter.
Old wounds, healed over,
But suddenly reopened,
Tender hearts, tender spirits.
Wounds inflicted by stories in the news.
Bless, O bless these wounds.

Bless, O bless these wounds,
God of tenderheartedness.
Hidden wounds, forgotten, never known,
Tear through the layers of memory.
Wounds, long buried, rise to the surface.
Bless, O bless these wounds.

Bless, O bless these wounds,
God, of justice.
And bless those bearing these wounds:
Victim or survivor,
Angry prophet or weeping child,
Tender hearts and tender spirits.
Bless, O bless these wounds.

God, In Your Mercy

  
We wake up to the news
Of another terrorist attack.
Ordinary people doing ordinary things.
Lives changed forever.

This place seems so far away this morning.
But we are joined in our fear,
Our horror, our grief,
Our powerlessness to stop the evil of this world.

And yet, in this week, we remember
That though there is evil in this world
There is a Love that is greater.
There is a Love that overcomes even death.

This world, so large,
Yet so small.
We are joined together across the globe
In our ordinary human lives.

For those who suffer, send comfort.
For those who fear, send presence.
For those who grieve, send healing love.

God, in your mercy, hear our prayers.

Read more of Beth’s blessings in her book Christ Beside Me, Christ Before Me: Celtic Blessings.

Welcome, Spring

2014-03-19 09.12.59-2

Long nights and cold days
Fallow fields and dormant trees
A lenten journey of the inner world

I open my eyes and see
Light. Warmth breaking through

Promise of new life
Coming out of death
Resurrection

Welcome, beauty
Welcome, buds
Welcome, newness
Inside and all around me

You, God, source of Hope
Source of Healing
Source of Life

Welcome, welcome
Make your home in me

Photo by Beth A. Richardson. Tulip tree bloom with the windows of The Upper Room Chapel in the background.

 
 
Find more of my prayers in my book Christ Beside Me, Christ Before Me: Celtic Blessings.

Platitudes

20140119-094316.jpg

“God doesn’t give you more than you can handle.”
“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

Well meaning, but unhelpful words,
When you know you can’t handle what’s in front of you,
When you think you might actually die
This time.

God, help me,
I’ve been there before, on both ends
Of this conversation.

Next time
Let me be a quiet presence
A channel of love
A comforting touch,

And if I must talk,
Give me words through which you speak.

“I love you.”
“You are not alone.”
“You are held in God’s tender embrace.”

Bring comfort,
Bring healing,
Bring hope.

Let me be your heart,
Your hands,
Your presence.

I am yours.