Prayer

Good Creator,

Our self-preservation depends on so many interconnected factors that we often take for granted, including the soils and forests that aerate our lands and fill our lungs with strength-giving breath. As we re-learn our connections to the ground beneath our feet, empower us with hope and creativity, that we might protect the land we inhabit. For our own sake as much as the rest of creation, we pray. Amen.

Prayer

Gracious God,

Your watchful attention over all your creatures brings us comfort. And your words remind us that you treasure all people, bestowing them with inherent value, which can never be lost or taken away. Lead us today into a more grateful awareness of your constant affection for us and our neighbors. For all those who are sick today, we ask you to encourage them with your accompanying presence, and may we be extensions of your presence for each other. This day and each day, Amen.

Prayer

God over all,

Today we remember the life of St. Kateri Tekakwitha. Recognized as the first Native American saint and patroness of the environment, St. Kateri inspires us to celebrate the grace of God found in every culture on earth, and the gift God has given us all to share, the home we share in the wider creation. With gratitude for St. Kateri’s life and witness, may we recommit to loving the God we encounter in every human person and in the rest of creation. Amen.

Prayer

All in all,

The spiritual life sometimes feels like being on a journey for which there is no map. Yet a long list of sojourners before us insist, we can chart a sure course by learning each day to see you in everything. As we strive to grow in grace and gratitude, lead us to enlarge our perspective of the world we inhabit and the people we encounter. Help us to see you in them, that we might love them more faithfully as you would have us to do. With thanks for your love, which covers a multitude of sins, we pray. Amen.

Prayer

Transforming God,

We are often resistant to change. Perhaps because we’re afraid it will mean hardship and burdens we never bargained for. Open our eyes to the many ways in which change can also bring blessing and gift and opportunity. Make us agents of that kind of change, eager to shape the culture and systems around us in new ways, improving the health and well-being of all. For the sake of patients in need of compassionate care, communities struggling beneath systemic injustice, and a world waiting for a reason to hope, we pray for change to come, through us, today. Amen.

Prayer

Affirming Spirit,

Some of the kindest words that people most deserve to hear never reach their ears. For reasons unknown we often hold on to our appreciations until it’s too late. Until some event or another takes a friend or colleague or partner away from us. Give us courage and boldness, and especially a willingness to make ourselves vulnerable today. May we choose to open up and let a colleague or friend or acquaintance know how much we admire and appreciate them. Such simple but heartfelt gestures are what make life together so sweet, for the giver as much as receiver. Amen.

Prayer

Creative redeemer,

There seem to be a lot of whiners these days! Among our family and friends, amidst those who share in our work and activities, or if we’re honest, in the face that we see looking back from the mirror. It seems to be part of being human that, at some time or another, we all become prone to whining and complaining about problems. Yet we ask for strength, that we might become the kind of people who can shut off the whining and get on with the tasks at hand. May we gain a reputation for being problem solvers who know how to manage the tensions we face with creativity and joy. Amen.