Tag: worry

Let My Worries Be Prayer

When I wake up in the middle of the night
Weighed down by news of illness, hate or war
Let my worries be prayer

That beloved one in the hospital
Let her be free from pain
Hold him if he is afraid
Thank you for all those working to comfort, care, and heal

So many signs and sounds of war
Send wisdom to the leaders of the world
Protect the vulnerable who sit or live or walk in harm’s way

Hatred and fear divide us
Friends, families, communities torn apart
Heal us, hold us
Help us see that we are more alike than different

When I wake up in the middle of the night
Weighed down by news of illness, hate or war
Let my fretfulness be time with you
Let my fears be intercessions
Let my worries be prayer

God’s Mail Room

computer, candle, coffee

I woke up in the night, worrying
And praying for my candidate to win.
In my heart it feels
Like certain doom
If the other team is elected.

Then I thought about
All the other worrying people
Awake in the night.
Praying as fervently
For their candidate to win
And mine to lose.

What does the Holy One do
With all these earnest, conflicting prayers?

May my prayers
not be sorted
(in the heavenly mail room)
Into bins marked:
“Hopeless cases”
“Addressee not known”
“Features to fix in the next upgrade (Human 2.0)”

But rather
May my prayers be heard and acted on!
May they be filed under:
“Return receipt requested and sent”
“Straight to the Ear of the Creator”
“No worries, God’s got this”

At the end of this day
(or the very long nights to come)
May the Creator have mercy on us …
On our fears,
Our limited imagination,
Our wounded and calloused hearts.

May the Holy One
Crank up healing power
For me, for all of us …
Divided families, communities,
States, nations.

That we might to see and hear,
Know and accept each other
Through eyes and hearts of divine love.