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Sometimes,
O God, the very sounds of our
words mock us.
Sometimes we simply do
not know how to pray, and the
effort to do so reminds us of
that.
Sometimes
our groanings are too deep for
words, but we have your
promise that when that happens
your spirit will intercede.
So we utter words
believing by faith that you
will hear our hearts. |
Now it is not the rumor of
war, it is war.
And we are divided as a world,
divided again as a nation, divided
within this community, and even some
of us, O God, divided within
ourselves.
All of us know that as
Christians we are called to be
peacemakers, but some of us remember
9-11 and believe that peace requires
a terrible, swift sword.
None of us can imagine Jesus
sighting down the barrel of a rifle,
but some of us see pictures of freed
Iraqis crying in gratitude and we
say "yes."
Then we see injured and
crying children and say
"no."
Some of us feel that the
inspections should have been given
more time; some of us feel that
twelve years has been time enough.
When the body bags start
coming home, all of us will feel
sick.
But
surely in one voice we can pray to
you, O Holy One, that the fighting
be blessedly brief, that the
humanitarian effort to follow be
genuine and efficient, that the
political aftermath resemble our
hopes, not our fears, and that no
matter our views we embrace our
dutiful young men and women when
they come home.
For those in this community
who have loved ones there or who
will have, help us to be especially
sensitive in our caring.
I guess, O God, what we
really want to pray is that in your
mystery you will redeem this tragedy
that we human beings have once again
wrought.
Here,
in this place, our peace is also
shattered by the death of Becky.
Dear God, what a warm, generous,
compassionate, and wise servant she
was. She helped others die well
because she was holding their hands.
Truth be known, O God, many
of us had hoped that Becky would be
there to help us die well, but now
she is gone, and we grieve.
As we humans calculate time,
Becky died too young, she died out
of season, and it is hard to imagine
the grief of her parents and her
children, Micah and Matthew.
We pray for those who comfort
them, and for them we pray that
grace-given peace that surpasses all
understanding.
These
past few weeks have demanded so much
of our own ministers, Dorisanne,
Sharlande, Catherine, Mike, and
Rachel.
Help them to know that we do
not take their struggles, their
faithfulness to their calling, their
ministry to us for granted.
We love them, O God, and want
to care for them in the way that
they love and care for us.
Easter
is on the horizon!
In the midst of war, in the
midst of our loss last week of Penny
and this week of Becky,
in the midst of all that is
going on in our lives, be early
resurrection to us, O Lord Christ,
our help
in ages past and our hope for peace
in days to come.
Amen.
