A prayer for 2023

Happy New Year, friends!

This morning at the Community of Emmanuel, Pastor Jim shared a beautiful prayer that he wrote, and I asked him if I could share it here. Gracious fellow that he is, he agreed.

God of all times and places and beings,

as a new year begins,

keep us aware of the road we are called to walk,

a road where we

   welcome outcasts and refugees,

   heal a broken planet,

   feed the hungry,

   build bridges of trust, not walls of fear,

   share our gifts,

   seek justice and peace for all people,

   and bring Christ's light to the world. 

+Amen.

                                    -- Jim Gurnett

His sermon this morning, about the road we walk starting in this new year, used the word WALK as an acronym for how we can move through the year in God's presence. I loved this idea, and am sure he won't mind me sharing it as well:

W -- we walk in Wonder

A -- we walk in Appreciation

L -- we walk knowing that we are Linked to all other beings, and 

K -- we walk giving Kindness wherever we can along the way.

My prayer is that we all walk through the year 2023 in this good way!

A simple prayer for the New Year

As we stand on the edge
of a New Year,
we thank you for the old one
with all its hopes and dreams,
its joys and struggles,
its loves,
and its losses that made our loves clear.
Bless us as we step over the threshold
of a year yet to be lived.
Help us
to see you
in those who will cross our paths,
to welcome those
who need a place to be,
to reach out to those
who are hurting,
and to forgive ourselves
when we fail.
Give us the courage to follow you,
Compassionate God,
wherever you lead us in 2014.

+Amen.