Learn to do what is good. Seek justice. Correct the oppressor. Defend the rights of the fatherless. Plead the widow’s cause. Isaiah 1:17
Because I’ve been fighting for so long and insisting
and persisting
and persnickety
and resisting
and fighting for so long
I forgot to notice along the way that I too am loved
that I too am graced
that I too am hurt
and scattered and broken and confused
and that I too am loved.
It’s easier after all to think about the injustices out there and ignore the tears in here
it’s easier to find a distraction to climb a hill that is not mine and ignore the tears in here.
and I don’t know where any of it leads but I think I’ll spread a little light,
share a little light
ask a little light to come around,
call it God, call it love, call it thou, call it peace,
call it unnamable, call it what you will
I’m over here asking it to light me up
I am loved, I am loved, I am loved.
PRAYER
Sweet holy spirit.
We pause before another day of exploration.
First, to give thanks that we are alive and breathing
and to give thanks for the moon and the sun
and the bright blue sky.
We pause to open our hearts
to open our minds
to be receptive to the wisdom this day will bring us.
We pause to remember the sacred center of our bodies and our spirits.
To remember the goodness at the heart of all creation,
including ourselves.
That purposeful goodness from which we come,
in which we live our fullest,
to which we shall at last return.
There is no other day.
no other hour
no other people
no other life
everything we need is here
all the pieces
all the possibilities
the ideas and the partners
no saints or heroes required
no perfect plans
no perfect people
only
the willingness to speak and to hear
to laugh
to explore
the willing heart
of each one we encounter today
the heart filled with wonder
we each of us are stumbling
and bumbling
we each are forgiven
and we each forgive
thank you, God, thank you spirit
we show up
we’ve shown up
these are the ingredients
we need today
for healing
for change
for life
they are all here
and here is enough
for praise and thanksgiving
and the work set before us.
Let us begin the day in joy and peace.
Amen.
REFLECTION
As you think about your spiritual journey, when have you felt you were most resistant? What happened? And what was that about?
How did you come to a place where you felt loved?
How did you come to a place of self-acceptance and self-appreciation?
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If you feel so moved, respond to the reflection questions in the comments section below.
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Excerpted from Seeds of Devotion: Weekly Contemplations on Faith by Roger Butts.
©2021 Roger Butts
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