Write a Prayer-a-Day Project

The new day is alive with possibilities.  Strangers, soon to be friends, are waiting to meet us.  Insights both profound and mundane reside just below our shoes and above our heads.  We need only greet the world with openness and curiosity and all will become illuminated.  It is an act of trust.  It is the practice of patience.  It is the art of vulnerable living.  We practice daily, our lives expanding and our hearts filling.  The miracle is we are limitless vessels in this enterprise: the more we give, the more we receive in turn, always with room for more.  So great the world with grateful eyes and loving hearts.  For ever expanding wholeness we give thanks.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

May today bring us deeper patience and understanding.  Seeing another point of view can be a challenge, as all of our perceptions and opinions are formed from our own unique experiences.  The adage that encourages us to walk in another’s shoes is sound advice, but not so easy to do.  We must somehow come to a deeper appreciation that another’s experiences are no less valid than ours, and that we can always learn from other opinions.  May this day give us the grace and humility to temper our own opinions and beliefs, not to abandon them, but rather to expand them.  For compromise we give thanks.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

We pray today for energy in motion, and for motion in energy.  Each day we must fuel our bodies in order to function properly.  The same is true for our spiritual health: we must find the ethereal sustenance that feeds our soul.  When the batteries that supply our own divinity are low, it is difficult to find purpose and joy in our days.  We become spiritually sluggish, anemic in Be-ing.  Overall health is holistic and whole-istic.  We are only as strong as our weakest system.  Our prayers are but one component of a healthy spiritual life, part of an ongoing practice to heal ourselves, that we may in turn heal the world.  So here is to robust soul health, for which we are resoundingly grateful.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

Power to the People!  Individually we can be effective; collectively we are undeniable.  This is just another of the many reasons to practice community.  Not just join a community, but practice the art of being in community.  It calls upon our deepest skills: active listening, patience, humility, and compassion.  And certainly in community there are times when we must set our own desires aside, that the collective may move forward.  If our peers are practicing community we can rest assured that our voice was heard, and that what we will gain will far exceed any concession we’ve made.  Today, let us engage with our community, wherever we may find it, and ever expand the holy community of all souls.  For our communities we give thanks.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

Wisdom is knowing the difference between what is superfluous and what is sublime; between what is fleeting and what is lasting; between what is frivolous and what is important.  What’s more, wisdom is recognizing that these things are shifting, not eternal.  Revelation is an ongoing process; our lives are lived on a continuum.  Wisdom reminds us to avoid attachment, and to constantly reevaluate.  May we find wisdom, for which we are grateful.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

A day of blessings awaits us, if we are patient enough and open to their possibilities.  It is not that they wish to hide, but more often that we are unwilling to see them.  It is easy to become mired in the negativity that surrounds us; why do we not as easily become mired in the positivity that surrounds us?  May today be one of those days that we open-heartedly great the world, and open ourselves to possibilities, rather than close ourselves from strife and judgement.  For positive energies we give thanks.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

We sometimes dream, and wake disappointed that the dream is not reality.  We move into our day certain it will only hold disappointment.  Soon we become distracted enough to have forgotten the dream, but does the sadness of its being unfulfilled linger?  The subconscious holds mysterious waters indeed, playing tricks on us and charting our course randomly.  We speak of being present and intentional, yet it’s as if there is a small gremlin inside us, delightfully causing chaos.  May we, as best we can, seek friendship and alliance with our gremlins, that although this uncharted coastline will remain shrouded in mystery, we will not fear or despair the unknown, and be content in our ignorance.  For peace of mind we are thankful.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

Turning.  We turn a phrase.  We turn on a dime.  We turn the other cheek.  We turn inward.  Our seasons turn.  We turn the page.  Turn, turn, turn.  In our turnings may we happen to catch a glimpse of the Truth as it escapes from our peripheral vision.  As the world turns may the motion tickle our stomachs and bring us delight.  May we turn and find ourselves in awe of unexpected wonder.  As the old Shaker song reminds us, “To turn, turn will be our delight, till by turning, turning we come ’round right.”  For the many turns and twists in life we are eternally grateful.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

In prayer it is enough to say ‘thank you.’  It is enough to say ‘I am blessed.’  It is enough to say ‘I love and am loved.’  Simple acknowledgement of the bounty of life is worthy of uplifting.  Likewise, it is enough to say ‘I hurt.’  It is enough to say ‘I’m afraid.’  It is enough to say ‘I don’t know the way forward.’  In owning our fears or our shame, we enable ourselves to begin to rise above it.  So, in prayer, it is enough to objectively and subjectively acknowledge that we are simply human, no more and no less.  And that is enough, and that is marvelous.  For our humanity we give thanks.  Blessed Be, and Amen.

Again we begin, born anew this day.  May we recognize all that is good and affirming that surrounds us.  May we feel the presence of love in our lives.  May we practice deep gratitude.  Fear too will be present, as will injustice and destructive behavior.  Let these be our call to live in plain sight, with hearts wide open, so as to heal the world, and prepare for tomorrow, when we will be born anew again.  We are grateful for the cycle of opportunity.  Blessed Be, and Amen.