Saturday morning I was lying in bed, mentally drafting the prayers for today. Nothing felt right. Naturally my prayers all had some connection to what was happening around us, as a society caught up in a scary pandemic. But I realised, I was tired of talking and thinking about it.
I needed a break.
Luckily I have been working on a project using this book, and it was on my bedside table. So I opened it up and was greeted by the Sermon on the Mount.
Let us go to God in prayer…
Jesus you tell your followers, Blessed be the poor in spirit. This morning we pray for all those who feel poor in spirit. For those that feel low and down, depressed and alone, be with them now Holy Spirit and bring them comfort and warmth. Holy Spirit, for those who feel poor in spirit because they are struggling on their spiritual journey, bring them the satisfying knowledge that they have begun the journey and that in itself is a beautiful thing. Each journey has twists and turns and ups and downs. Holy Spirit guide them to enjoy each step of their spiritual journey, remind them, remind us all it is those who feel they have completed it, who feel they know best about spiritual journeys who are probably most misguided.
Jesus you tell us, Blessed are those who mourn. Heavenly Mother bring your comforting touch and embrace all those who are mourning. We pray for those who are mourning the loss of loved ones, of family members, of friends. We pray for those who are separated from the people they should be joined in grief with. We pray for those people mourning the loss of jobs, of industry, of income ,of meaning. Many of us feel isolated form our friends right now, many of us will be experiencing a kind of grief because of this. We pray for everyone who feels lonely, alone, abandoned; bring them hope, the vision of a future that is still to come where all will be reunited.
Jesus you tell us, Blessed are the meek, the humble. We pray for those people who have power, that they use it wisely, sensitively. We pray for those people who possess the ability to bring about great change, good or bad, that they are humbled to always seek to good, to always put others first. We give you great thanks Lord for those people who are humble enough to put others needs first, to go out each day and do your good work and serve others, especially in these challenging times.
Jesus you tell us, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. We give you great thanks for all those in our communities who have a thirst for righteousness to be done, to see a more just world, a fairer society. We give you thanks for these people who push and challenge the status quo, who shine a light on injustice. Holy Spirit give us all the strength and courage to pursue righteousness, to desire to see your will done on earth.
Jesus you tell us, Blessed are the merciful. Heavenly Father you show us mercy every time we go wrong and muck things up. The least we can do in return is show mercy to other. We pray that each day you inspire us to be merciful, compassionate, that we show forgiveness and love and empathy every where we go. Only through forgiveness and people truly heal. Take us to those places, Holy Spirt, where it is hard to forgive and give us the wisdom to do it anyway.
This week, we pray Lord, that you poor your blessings on us so that we can be merciful, meek, hungry for what is right. We will share in people’s mourning, be pure in heart and work for peace!
Amen!
The Unexpected Prayer 