To the God of many names

I want to know
in my inmost being
the humanity of Jesus
whose constant prayer was
to be intimately connected with you
in the doing of justice
the enactment of peace
the power of sacrificial love.

I want to seek
friendship with the divine
more than right beliefs
dutiful virtues
or accepted behaviors
so that the movement of my soul
might be toward life in its fullness
life in touch with the Center
life contributing to newness
life in communion with others
life as holy gift
life as sheer wonder.

May I embody
what to me is true
what to me is beautiful
what to me is eternal –
a life whose wholeness is found in God,
a song that can only be sung
in concert with all of creation!

Christ of the Lakeshore

10 Wednesday May 2017

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Poems, Prayers, Reflections

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

creation, glory of God, hope, Jesus Christ, Lake Tahoe, nature, prayer, Waters of life, world's suffering

Zephyr Point Presbyterian Conference Center, Lake Tahoe

Christ of the lakeshore,
come beside me this day
as my eyes soak in
the blueness spread before me
geese gliding effortlessly
inches above placid waters
slender pencils of pine
garbed in glorious green
a light blanket of snow
draped over neighboring peaks.

Christ of the lakeshore,
come beside me this day
as my ears take in
the songs of the birds
the lapping of the surf
the laughter and crying of a child
the soft whispering breeze.

Christ of the lakeshore,
come beside me this day
as my heart lets in
the pain of the world
of immigrant and refugee
the poor
the houseless
the lonely
the pushed aside
the wounded
the broken-hearted.

Christ of the lakeshore,
come beside me this day
that my praying
my dreaming
my hoping
my longing
may be in conversation
with yours.

That We Might Be Healers Too

05 Wednesday Apr 2017

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Poems, Prayers

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

abundance, creation, God's goodness, harmony, healing, hopefulness, justice, Kauai, mindfulness, Pali Coast, relationship with the divine, sacred value of life, trust, wholeness

Pali Coast, Kauai

The world of your creating is beautiful, O God.

You are master sculptor of imposing mountain ranges,
rugged seascapes, luxuriant valleys, bubbling volcanoes.

You give thought to the birds of the air,
the cattle on the hill, the sea creatures and crawling things.

You orchestrate the sights and sounds of creation
to be a harmonious symphonic masterpiece
that all might know the abundance of your goodness.

There is no detail you leave unattended,
no part of this world beyond your concern.

And amazingly,
you are mindful of human beings –
made in your image,
made for relationship,
made of dust and water,
made of breath and hope,
made of dreams for becoming,
made to live at peace,
made to create,
made with a spark of divinity,
made with a twinkle in your eye,
made to hold and to heal,
made to trust,
made from a deep abiding love.

Our burdens begin
when we misplace our mindfulness of you.

Anxieties follow
when we forget who it is who holds our lives.

Troubles mount
when we boast that this is all meant for us.

Sorrows breed
when we ignore what you intend for our wholeness.

Heal us.
Shake us from our complacency.
Renew in us a vision of life’s harmony.
Restore in us a thriving hopefulness.
Stir up in us a righteous anger at injustice.
Prevent us from doing any more harm.
Call forth from us what is beautiful and true.
Lead us back to our sacredness.
Heal us, we pray, that we might be healers too.

Mark Lloyd Richardson
(c) 2017

Breath Prayer

05 Saturday Mar 2016

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Poems, Prayers

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

breath prayer, Breathing, creation, God's glory, grace, prayer, sacredness

Alice Keck Park Memorial Gardens, Santa Barbara, California

On this lovely day
with a heart that is restless and unsure
I am gladdened by glory’s simple display
and grateful for sun-warmed sacred moments
as color catches the corner of my eye
while I walk in the park
with no purpose or intention
other than

to breathe in
the life around me

and breathe out
the troubles of the day.

With Sighs Too Deep For Words

23 Saturday May 2015

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Poems, Reflections

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

creation, gladness, grace, intercession, Mystery, prayer, sorrow, spirit, spiritual life

Pentecost Sky

We do not know what we should rightly pray for,
but the spirit intercedes with groans that cannot be uttered,
and he searching our hearts perceives the mind of the spirit,
since as God commands the spirit intercedes to help the saints.
~ Romans 8:26-27

The spirit,
from your first breath,
breathes God’s loving intentions through you.

You,
in your weakness,
don’t know enough to welcome this silent grace.

Your days are littered
with numbed neglect of your soul
and unresponsiveness to the groans of creation.

When you pray
the noises of your mind clamor and disrupt
the stillness where you had hoped to find rest.

Yet below the words
in a deeper, mysterious consciousness
the divine within appeals to the divine above.

There your heart is laid bare,
and with sighs too deep for words
the spirit intercedes to help you find your way.

This day’s sorrow
takes the hand of your heart’s undying gladness
and crosses over into the mystery where hope resides.

Pentecost 2015
Words © 2015 Mark Lloyd Richardson

God of Earth and Sky and Sea

04 Thursday Dec 2014

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Prayers, Worship Liturgy

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Tags

comfort, compassion, creation, faith, forgiveness, healing, hope, prayer, Prophet Isaiah, reconciliation, season of Advent, Shepherding God

A Prayer for the Second Sunday of Advent:

God of earth and sky and sea,
God of rich and poor and in-between,
God of lost and God of found,
God who is like a shepherd to us,
we walk the path of Advent awakenings,
mindful of your call to repentance and change,
thankful for your offer of mercy and grace.
You are ever before and behind us.
You are the one constant amid a sea of change.
You are the shepherd who feeds his flock,
the one who gathers the lambs in his arms (Isa 40:11).
You long for us to receive your word of comfort.
You announce that our penalty is paid,
that we are free to live with godlike compassion,
that we are empowered to bring comfort to the world.
Still we turn away,
and walk in paths that suit our own interests,
and fail to welcome the one who is different,
and justify our prejudices with Scripture verses.
Forgive us our sins, and change our hearts, O God.
In this time of waiting and watching,
we pray for all who need the comfort of your presence,
for all who need the comfort of your Church.
To those who are sick or in pain, bring wholeness.
To the lonely and discouraged, renew hope.
To the grieving and troubled, speak comfort.
To any who struggle with self-judgment, extend your grace.
To any who are exiled from your Church, awaken their faith.
(We silently bring our prayers for particular persons now.)
Make of us your forgiven and reconciling people.
Use us to welcome others into your kin-dom.
Stir up within us the faith to trust you with our blind spots,
our shortcomings, our very lives.
And even though our lives are transient like the flowers of the field,
feed us with your word that stands forever (Isa. 40:8).
In the name of the Christ who comes among us to heal and to save. Amen.

Thanksgiving Eve Prayer

27 Wednesday Nov 2013

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Prayers, Uncategorized, Worship Liturgy

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

blessing, Christ, creation, forgiveness, grace, gratitude, Psalm, source of life, thanksgiving

First United Methodist Church, Santa Maria, CA, USA

I will be sharing this Opening Prayer I wrote for our 13th Annual Ecumenical Thanksgiving Eve Service in Santa Maria, California this evening. We are the host church for this annual event involving about ten congregations. If you wish to adapt this prayer for your own use in worship, please feel welcome to do so. ~ Mark

God of all creation and Source of all life,
tonight we offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving. Psalm 50:14
We bring ourselves, humble and broken though we may be,
to the altar of your blessing and grace.
We bring our voices, frail and hesitant though they may be,
in joyous praise to the One who gives us a new song to sing. Psalm 40:3
We bring our gifts to the One who is awesome,
who inspires fear in the rulers of the earth. Psalm 76:11-12
We thank you for these moments we have together
to pause from the busy pace and endless noise of our lives
and simply rest in a spirit of gratitude for all you are to us.
We thank you that as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is your steadfast love toward us,
and that as far as the east is from the west,
so far do you remove our transgressions from us.                                    Psalm 103:11-12
We thank you for your deep compassion over your creation,
and the ways in which you constantly call us back to you.
Most of all, we thank you for your Son Jesus,
who came that we might have life and have it abundantly.   John 10:10
Christ is the morning star who rises in our hearts,                                    2 Peter 1:19
the true light which enlightens everyone. John 1:9
Christ instructs us in your holy way of love,
and invites us into that perfect love that casts out fear. 1 John 4:18
We pray this day for people and nations the world over
who need to be blessed by the bounty of your grace.
May our thanksgiving bring others closer to you,
O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Psalm 19:14
There is no other rock besides you, O Lord,   Isaiah 44:8
our fortress in whom we take refuge. Psalm 18:2
So we join the multitude from every nation,
from all tribes and peoples and languages,
and all the angels standing around the throne
worshipping you and singing,
“Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honor and power and might
be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Revelation 7:12

God writes the gospel

07 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Prayers

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Bible, creation, Divine Artist, God, God's glory, Gospel, Martin Luther, nature, praise, souls, stars

Arboretum, Harrisonburg VA, Spring 2012

“God writes the gospel not in the Bible alone,
but on trees and flowers and clouds and stars.”
~ Martin Luther 1483 –1546

O Divine Artist,
whose brushstrokes splash color across creation,
we receive the gospel in a morning walk,
among the fragrant flowers,
in the shade of sycamore and oak,
in moments of holy amazement.

O Divine Artist,
whose glory sparkles in the night sky,
we receive the gospel in hours of rest,
among the sleeping landscapes of our souls,
beneath the canopy of constellations,
in moments of sacred surprise.

Grant us grace to receive your gospel,
however it is manifested in your world,
that we might live to the praise of your glory. Amen.

Beginnings

18 Tuesday Dec 2012

Posted by mark lloyd richardson in Poems

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Bethlehem, birth, Christmas, creation, Jesus' birth, peace, reconciliation, spiritual life, Ultimate Mystery

As we approach Christmas, I share this Christmas poem I wrote a few years ago with you. It speaks of the timeless mystery of God’s presence in creation in which we live our lives.

Beginnings

From the beginning, eternity’s song
danced on garden breezes,
singing God’s delight.
From the beginning, earth’s bounty
blossomed in forests and fields,
declaring God’s glory.
From the beginning, life’s spirit
beat within each human heart,
creating God’s life within us.

Here is the story of our birth.
Everyone is born of God and in God.
Everyone is born through God and for God.
God is in our beginnings.
God will be in all of our endings.

On a still night in Bethlehem
a cry pierced the starry sky,
a life began,
a child was given,
a mystery began to unfold.
All who have need of a new beginning
find it here in this child of peace–
this one who comes bearing
God’s reconciling love to the world.

dreamprayact

~ Reflections of a preacher, poet, and contemplative activist

Tag Archives: creation

To the God of many names

Prayer to Begin the Day

Christ of the Lakeshore

That We Might Be Healers Too

Breath Prayer

With Sighs Too Deep For Words

God of Earth and Sky and Sea

Thanksgiving Eve Prayer

God writes the gospel

Beginnings