A Concord Pastor Comments: Monday Morning Offering: 6/25

Image: George Mendoza

Good morning, good God!

I offer you praise and thanks, Lord:

for the universe and all it holds;

for the planets, for Earth,
my home in your vast world;

for the continent on which I live
and the nation I call home;

for this Bay State where I was born,
and for those who gave me life;

for the Church of Boston which I serve
and my parish which I love;

for my friends who keep me going
and for the gift of faith within my heart

where mind and soul and life and loves are met
and all made one in you...

From the impenetrable reaches of the universe,
to the depths of my heart
your grace courses through my veins
and through my nights and days
giving life to who I am and all I do -
and for this I give you thanks and praise...

All I have, all I am and all I hope to be
is pure gift:
shaped by your hand,
crafted in your wisdom
and offered for the taking...

My thoughts come and go
but not one passes through my mind and heart
without your knowing it...

My most secret desires are deeply hidden,
yet every one of them
is laid bare in the light of your eyes...

No pain, no hurt
has ever touched my heart without touching, too,
your heart's love for me...

No burden has weighed upon my shoulders
that you've not reached to lift and help me carry...

No grief has ever pierced my soul
without your gentle hand reaching
to dress and close a wound I feared might never heal...

I offer you my thanks and praise,
Lord of the universe, my God,
for you bend low and tend to me
as a mother nurses the child in her arms,
as a father fends for his family,
as the lover gives ear to the needs of the beloved...

I offer you my thanks that your love and grace
have brought me safe thus far:
through times and troubles I thought I'd not survive,
through difficulties I thought would never be resolved,
through pain I thought I could not long endure, but did...

I praise you for the times when, with your help,
I've done what I thought I couldn't do
and survived what I thought to be
impassible, impossible...

Only by your grace, Lord, am I here today,
in the place where I am,
trusting that this day's problems, too,
are on your mind and in your heart and care...

I praise you for this mystery, Lord:
that you, eternal God,
have time and love to spare for me
and care for me,
to share in my heart's struggles
as if they were your own...

Make me mindful, Lord, of others
whose paths cross mine today:
if you have time for each of us
then certainly I have time
to care for those whose needs, like mine,
rest upon your heart and in your hands...

Receive my morning offering, Lord:
hear my prayer today, tonight
and through the week ahead...

Amen.

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