Task

Thank you, Lord,

that the task ahead of me

is never as great

as the power behind me.

Amen.

(photo by markkoenig via Unsplash.com)

More Than Solomon

Lord,
my body creaks and my hair is awful gray,
but Solomon in all his glory
didn't have the health and comfort I enjoy.

And the one wife I have
(compared to his 700 wives)
is more than I can handle,
but Solomon in all his glory
didn't have the lovely Robin to call his own,
his one,
his only.

And these children and grandchildren of mine--
Solomon in all his glory
could not have been happier or prouder or fuller than me.

And this home is no palace, for sure,
but Solomon in all his glory
didn't have his needs met, his comfort regulated, like this.

And I don't have all the books I'd like to have,
nor the time I'd love to read them,
but Solomon in all his glory
didn't have access to the volumes of truth and beauty I have at my fingertips.

And, sure, I have to carefully watch what I eat for the sake of my health and my weight,
but Solomon in all his glory
didn't have coffee every morning, donuts every so often, and fruit year-round.

And most of all, of course, though I am a fitful follower and a poor servant,
yet Solomon in all his glory
didn't know what it is to be rescued from the domain of darkness,
transferred to the kingdom of God's beloved Son,
in whom I have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

So thank you, Lord,
thank you,
that Solomon in all his glory
was not blessed like this.

For the Beauty of Small, Homely Things

For the beauty of small, homely things:
Sunlight through a jar of beach-plum jelly...
A rainbow in soapsuds in dishwater...
An eggyolk in a blue bowl...
White ruffled curtains sifting moonlight...
The color of cranberry glass...
A little cottage with blue shutters...
Crimson roses in an old stone crock...
The smell of newly baked bread...
Candlelight on old brass...
The soft brown of a cocker spaniel's eyes...
Thank you, in Jesus' name, amen.

(based on lines from Peter Marshall; photo via pixabay.com)

And Ever Thanks

Every good gift comes from your hand, Lord!

Help me to count my blessings this day
and to be grateful to you from whom they flow...

I thank you for the blessing of family and friends,
those with me still and those gone home to you...

I thank you for my eyes and ears,
for finding the beauty of your presence all around me...

I thank you for nature's seasons and all I learn
in their coming and going, year in and year out...

I thank you for the blessing of a sunrise
and the blessing of the same sun's setting...

I thank you for the company of others
and good times shared with them...

I thank you for silence, for solitude
and for times of peace and quiet with you...

I thank you for your mercy and forgiveness,
for your pardon of my faults and sins...

I thank you for correction that helps me grow
and for reprimands that keep me honest...

I thank you for the healing grace of forgiving others
and of others forgiving me...

I thank you for anticipation's joy
and for disappointment's healing...

I thank you for a good night's sleep
and the blessing of sweet dreams...

I thank you for the gift of each new day,
one day at a time...

I thank you for steady work, for satisfying work,
for work that serves the needs of others...

I thank you for the gift of those who help me
and for the opportunity to be of help to others...

I thank you for the works of grace and faith
that shape us as your people...

I thank you for a child's birth,
the promise new life brings...

I thank you for the gift a peaceful death can be
for those who've lost a loved one...

I thank you for the life that's mine
and your promise of a life that never ends...

I thank you for the ordinary, the routine
the unexpected, the surprise...
I thank you for cleansing tears
and for healing laughter...

I thank you for my faith when I'm confused;
for the gift of hope when trust's in short supply;
for the blessing of your love when I'm alone...
In the quiet of my prayer, Lord,
help me count my blessings before I list my problems,
before I whine and whimper,
before I turn to pity for myself...

Every good gift comes from your hand, Lord,
and you're more generous than I'm sometimes willing to notice,
to see, to acknowledge, to remember
and to hold in my heart as gift and grace...

In the quiet of my prayer, Lord,
show me the peace, the grace, the healing
of your blessings in my life:
the ones I often miss, the ones that I've forgotten,
and the blessings will come my way today...

Amen.

(graphic and prayer from A Concord Pastor Comments)

One Single Day

Thank you, Lord, 

for today, just one single day, 

you have given me grace to pray, 

coffee to drink, 

food to eat, 

clothes to wear. 

You allowed me 

to wake in my own bed, 

in health, 

and in (mostly) my right mind.

I have hope of meaningful work, 

innumerable comforts, 

and a happy conclusion to this day. 

By your grace, I can see, hear, touch, taste, feel.

By your grace, I know love and companionship. 

By your grace, I have the means to buy, and abundance to give. 

By your grace, I am forgiven and forgiving. 

For this and more, 

just one day's worth, 

I give you my most heartfelt thanks! 

Amen.

(photo by RachelScottYoga via pixabay.com)

While It Lasts

Thank you, Lord,
that I can walk without pain,
see without impediment,
hear without assistance,
sleep without fear,
chew without discomfort,
swallow without effort,
work without end!

Amen.

For Things I Don't Possess

Thank you, good God,
for the things I don't possess:
fancy cars,
expensive clothes,
a boat,
a plane,
a jet ski,
a second mortgage,
a divorce settlement,
an alimony payment,
a bodyguard,
a fence around my property.

Thank you also, Lord,
for the things that don't possess ME:
drugs or alcohol,
guilt or shame,
a need to maintain a certain lifestyle
or a desire to keep up appearances.
Thank you that I am not afflicted
with wealth,
fame,
or beauty,
in Jesus' name, amen.

(photo by Jim Winstead via everystockphoto.com)

Sensate

I give you thanks today, Lord God, Adonai; 

I give you thanks for the day, 

for the gift of waking, 

the grace of breathing, 

for the bounty of breaths I will draw 

and thoughts I will think, 

words I will exchange, 

and work I will do. 

Thank you for every moment of safety I will enjoy, 

for every bite of nourishment, 

every taste of pleasure. 

Thank you for every moment of sight, 

for the grace of seeing, 

the privilege of gazing on my wife, my children, my grandchildren, my friends, 

and the thousands of objects and images my eyes will see today. 

 Thank you for the sounds I will hear, 

the grace of hearing, 

the blessing of lover's voice and music and speech and even the cacophony of traffic and machinery. 

Thank you, Father, for all your kindnesses to me, 

which daily go unmarked, unthanked, unappreciated. 

Make me more mindful of the thousands of graces you bestow on me today, 

and make me glad to be alive, and sensate, and able to enjoy so much. 

Grant me to enjoy even the least enjoyable, 

remembering that the sense to taste bitter as well as sweet is a grace as well, 

in Jesus' name, amen.

(photo by DreamPixer via pixabay.com)

The Seasons of My Life

Thank you, Lord, that the seasons of my life

have included so many births, and so few deaths;

more times to plant, than times of plucking up that which is planted;

No times to kill, and many times to heal;

infrequent times to break down, and frequent times to build up;

Fewer times to weep than times to laugh;

Fewer times to mourn than times to dance.

Thank you for those times to cast away stones,

and times of gathering stones together;

thank you for times of embracing, and times to refrain from embracing;

Thank you for so many times to get, and so few times to lose,

so many times to keep, and so few times to cast away.

Make me wise to recognize times to rend, and times to sew;

times to keep silence, and times to speak;

times to love, and times to hate;

times of war, and times of peace,

in Jesus' name, amen

(based on Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, KJV).

Beauty and Comfort

For all the beauty and comfort I enjoy, I give you thanks, Lord God. For all the people in my life, for my bride, my children, my home, my friends, my possessions--spiritual, mental, emotional, material--for the years and days I have lived, for my victories and my disappointments, for all my worries that never happened and all my dreams that did, I give you thanks, in Jesus' name, amen.

Spiritual Feast

Lord, how wide is my vista now. What a rich and varied spiritual feast is mine. I am not impeded by dividing lines but can fellowship and worship and learn from and enjoy Thomas Merton (Catholic), A. W. Tozer (CMA), Henri Nouwen (Catholic), John Bevere (charismatic), Andrew Murray (Dutch Reformed), Charles Swindoll (EV Free, nondenominational), Samuel Logan Brengle (Salvation Army), Max Lucado (Church of Christ), and so many others. How blessed I have been through Episcopalian podcasts, and Catholic monasteries, and Methodist chapels, Baptist baptistries, and Church of God in Christ T.V. preachers, and so much more. How beautiful is the whole Body of Christ to me!

All My Springs

All my springs are in you (Psalm 87:7, ESV).
All my hopes are in you.
All my joy is in you.
All my strength is in you.
All my comfort is in you.
All my energy,
blessing,
integrity,
righteousness,
peace,
wisdom,
security,
encouragement,
freedom,
all,
all,
in you.

Furious Love

Lord God,

thank you for your furious love for me.

Amen.

New Day

 

My New Book

 

Lord, it's release day for my new book! Look how beautiful it is! 

Please shower your favor on it. 

Let it be a blessing to many. 

Use it to make children smile 

and feel secure in the knowledge of your love

and the love of their families. 

Use it to draw families closer

and help adults express their hopes and dreams for the children they love, and turn those hopes and dreams into focused, purposeful prayers. 

Thank you for granting me the honor of writing it

and seeing it published...and, I hope, purchased, 

in Jesus' name, amen. 

Las Vegas

 

Lord, 

isn't it strange that I live in Las Vegas? 

I would never have guessed. 

And yet here I am, and the lovely Robin. 

I love our comfy home here, 

our neighbors,

our church family, 

the hikes, 

and the trips to see our kids and grandkids.

Thank you for where we live, 

how we live, 

that we live, 

in Jesus' name, amen. 

(photo by julianpaefgen via unsplash.com)

My Great Strides Effort

Gracious God, thank you for all those who gave--and so generously--to my Great Strides effort this year, to fund a cure for cystic fibrosis! Thank you for your favor in meeting and exceeding my goal! Please let these funds be used well and speed the day when CF stands for "Cure Found!" 

Baseball

Thank you, God, for baseball:
for outfields of green
and the crack of the ball on a wooden bat.
For pitchers with eccentric windups,
for stolen bases
and diving catches.
For double plays
and double steals,
bunts and brushbacks,
squeeze plays and home runs.
For "cold beer here!" and ballpark franks.
For the seventh inning stretch.
For day games and night games.
For OBPs and ERAs,
pickoff plays and headfirst slides,
for opening days and hope springing eternal.
Amen.

For Things Important to a Writer

Abba, Father, Lord God,
thank you that I can type so fast,
that the internet makes research relatively easy (if dangerous),
that I can work at home or in a coffee shop.

Thank you that I can send manuscripts and galleys via email,
that I can quickly search a document,
that I can access, order, and download books online.

Thank you that I can choose between screen and paper,
digital or analog,
old ways and new ways.

Thank you for the quiet of my home office,
and for the vast choices of music I can tap into
to accompany and enliven my writing hours.

Thank you for the ability to scan and print,
to edit in hard copy or onscreen,
to sit or stand as I write.

Thank you for the "Do Not Disturb" function on my phone,
for the "Reminders" I can set,
and for the layers of Time Machine backups,
in Jesus' name, amen.

Valentine

Like summer snow
floating from a sun-filled sky,
draping airy-white on flowered fields,
Your love astonished me.

No frilly show,
no assorted-chocolate pledge,
no candy hearts or silver kisses
disclosed your care for me;

But unsparing,
cross-bearing, 
thorn-wearing love
that opened hands and feet and side
to spill your heart for me,

To recreate, 
inundate my longing soul
with giving, holding, accepting,
enfolding love for me.

(photo by stux via pixabay.com)