2023-02-14 A Prayer: Things Past and Things Present

O Lord, grant talking willingness through all past and present, in holiness of Your memory not our own, Your heightened points not our own, Your practice each day to come honest and clean as to original fault and sin. Do see us practicing each day with humble assertions, if for a time You do wait for these to apply to all things in our lives. See them apply, yes, to what is past, and to what is present, and to what we hold fast to as though fearing an unexpected future.

So we take responsibility while also gladly coming before Your throne, knowing our confession is vouchsafed unto You, that You heard, You understood, You absolved. So grant us also to hear humor or to see the comedy that ensues when an unspoken elephant is in the room; help us bear our bruises and malign words directed our way, in utter honesty as to plain stereotypes that are in fact a bit true, to inequalities and original stories of sin being themselves fault-finding, accusatory to some in our midst. We wish we could rewrite the book, sometimes. But You have wisdom.

Heal, we pray, collective memory. Help us to remember things dramatic. Help us to see equally and with sanity how we come across, and the ways we unfortunately do challenge each other, but also do join up in the battle ahead.

Take any convenient words and reform, reshape them to words of assurance and invite. Each of us has a place of safety, however trampled upon. Help us to be sapient of good, ignorant of evil, willing to raise issues and talk through the unspoken. See us not enemies but friends in light of all being called of You unto acknowledging life as really played out, not as we would wish but with difficulties that are now copacetic and healed in You.

We pray all this in Your Name, Amen.