Prayer of the Week 7/3/2019

Father, we celebrate the essence of your Being as Presence. You are Spirit and you are nearer than we are to ourselves. But there are times when you seem so very far away—even absent. We know in those times that you have not moved; we have.

We may remember that fresh day in our lives when we were baptized—when our faith was young and hope was bright—when the light of Christ seemed to shine in our hearts and chase away the darkness and sadness. But, the heavy demands of life lead us through valleys and shadows, and we call out to be found again—to have you close to us once more.

The prophet Isaiah said that, in those times of feeling estranged, your arm of divine power and love has not shortened so that You cannot reach us and your ear has not gone deaf so that you cannot hear us. Rather, our iniquities have hidden your face from us and have put a barrier between us. We have not been diligent to obey your guidance and so we have drifted apart.

We recognize we must first clear the debris that clutters the space where we really want you to dwell. The overgrowth in our lives needs to be pruned in order for us to find our way back to you. We must be honest and confess that the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts have not been entirely righteous—not always. And so we ask for forgiveness and cleansing.

We have learned that we cannot demand your Spirit and we cannot rush your Spirit. Slowly, we come to understand that waiting precedes your coming. It is not on our terms or our whims that you draw closer. You come when we quit playing games with you or ourselves—when we desire you enough to wait for you. Still and quiet—or active and busy—you come in your time and in your way.

So, we wait and pray—sometimes with words, sometimes with thoughts, sometimes with groans, sometimes with silence, sometimes with songs—and sometimes with the words of the Psalmist:

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want; he makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever. (Psalm 23, RSV)

Scripture quotation is from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.