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A
Prayer of Hope
for the World
Offered
by Erin Cline in morning worship,
Sunday, November 30, 2003
Mountains
overlooking Kachemak Bay in Homer,
Alaska, photo by Mike Cline
God
of All Creation,
You Bring Us Hope
In
the sight of peach colored streaks
across the sky as the sun sets in
Ghana.
In
the sound of caribou hooves shuffling
through the snow in an Alaskan pass.
In
the taste of rice noodles from a
sidewalk café in Xiamen, China.
In
the smell of the hay stacked up in a
Texas barn.
In
the touch of cool raindrops falling on
a soft day in Ireland.
We
lift our hearts and minds up to you
knowing that you are filled with the
sights, sounds, tastes, smells, and
touches of the world.
You
see all that we do.
You
hear all that we say.
And
you bring hope in the midst of our
successes and failures.
You
bring hope in the midst of the pain
that cuts scars so thick and deep
inside of us, we expect to break at
any instant.
You
bring hope in the midst of the joy
that makes us feel as though we know
the song of your presence more fully
than we ever imagined possible.
And
now, here in the silence, we lift up
our prayer that your hope will be
dispersed to the world like rays from
the Eastern star,
Shining
on those with everything, and those
with nothing.
On
those who are hungry, and on those who
are satisfied.
On
those who live in fear, and on those
who live in comfort.
We
pray that you will touch the children,
giving them the hope they so often
give us, just in their smiles.
Be
with the sick and the elderly, who
need hope in the struggle against
loneliness and illness.
Touch
them with the grace of your presence,
telling them that
Hope
is there.
For
you are there.
Most
of all, we pray that you will show us
the way to be your eyes, ears, and
hands in a world that needs your hope.
God
of All Creation, You Bring Us Hope
In the sight of a bright star in the
Eastern skies,
shining from the deserts of Iraq to
the deserts of Texas.
In
the sound of a donkey’s hooves on a
sandy road.
In
the taste of fresh warm milk from a
cow in the stable.
In
the mingling smells of frankincense
and fresh hay.
In
the touch of a newborn baby’s
fingers
wrapping around ours tightly, and
never letting go.
You
Bring Us Hope.
O
God, we pray that the world will see,
hear,
taste, smell, and feel your hope
As
we awaken to the miracle of your love.
Amen
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