Revised today based on a prayer I wrote April 2, 2020 on day 37 (rooted) of Writing to God by Rachel Hackenberg in response to Ephesians 3:14-21.

Because I come from love
I am beloved
I am sent forth to love
 
Let me feel my deep, wide roots
The firm, fertile ground
Your love that is my source
 
Your love allows me to grow
Needs me to grow
Forces me to grow
 
Let me grow into what I am meant to be
Into the truest me
Into your love alive through me
 
Let me bear the good fruit of love
Let me give seed to love that never ends
So all may know they are loved beyond measure

Written March 19, 2020 on day 23 (Experiencing Psalm 23) of Writing to God by Rachel Hackenberg. This was the week when the outlook for the pandemic seemed to grow exponentially bleaker by the hour. This was also the first day we began talking about whether we might need to postpone our wedding scheduled for the end of May.

​Though there may a shadow of death
It is but a shadow
And in the darkest valleys
You have always been there
And yet, everything feels so dark
 
I know you are with me
I look for you in the wilderness
For a moment there is light
Still waters and green pastures
And then I turn away and the darkness creeps in
 
Make me rest and know I am yours
Lead me into peace
Restore my soul
Lead me through the darkness
So I can speak of your light
 
Let your rod and staff guide my path
Even as I continue to wander
And when I am lost in darkness
Let me know you are right there with me
And anoint me with your oil when I need it most

​Create in me a clean heart
            Wipe away the pain that lingers
            Free me from old wounds
            Let joy emerge unencumbered
            And let me delight in life
Uphold my spirit that longs for you
            When I despair, remind me of our covenant
            Steadfast love
            There is nothing else you desire
            Nothing more I need
Speak your promise of hesed through me
            Words spoken and written
            With my voice, my pen, my very life
            Outrageous, irrational hope
            Declaring your love that claims and redeems

Written March 16, 2020 on day 20 (taking a breath) of Writing to God by Rachel Hackenberg, which invited us to write a prayer "to release the strain from your shoulders and the pain from your heart as you savor the good news that you belong to God." I frequently use some variation of this breath prayer to calm my body and mind and remember God is with me.

​Breathe in: You call me by name
Breathe out: I am yours
 
Breathe in: You are with me
Breathe out: I am yours
 
Breathe in: Wherever I go
Breathe out: I am yours
 
Breathe in: Whatever I feel
Breathe out: I am yours
 
Breathe in: You long for me
Breathe out: I am yours

​Written March 15, 2020 on day 19 (lament) of Writing to God by Rachel Hackenberg, which, after reading Psalm 22, invited us to "lift up a need for healing--in your life, in another's life, in the world." March 15th was the last time we attended church before everything in Chicago completely shut down two days later. We would not return until May 23, 2021.

​O God, you have not forsaken us!
Let all people feel your presence
Trust in your power
And join together in prayer for healing
Heal the sick!
Give wisdom and insight and discovery to scientists, doctors, and healthcare providers!
And give them courage and resources!
Remove political, economic, and social barriers to healing!
Heal fear and anxiety and blame!
Heal apathy and denial and dismay!
You are the healer of your people and their deliverer
Let us praise you and pray to you
Let us trust you and wait upon you with faithful expectation
Because you have not forsaken us!

Written September 9, 2020 as my small group began reading Radical Amazement by Judy Cannato

​Your sky is grey, God
There are no stars, no sun or moon
Only shades of grey somehow too bright for my sensitive eyes
Yet the stars and the sun and the moon are all still there
Infinite stars and suns and moons in countless galaxies
All beyond my sight, but surely there
This empty grey sky reveals as much as a clear dark night spread with twinkling stars
It reveals that I am blind, I cannot see
 
I try to contain your boundless sky
To make it a canopy over these houses and trees
            and over the houses and trees of those I know
            and over places I’ve been
But it is not a blanket
            or gauze
            ​or even a glass ceiling
It is infinity, or a void somehow full of potential
Alpha and Omega commingled and co-creating
 
Your sky stretches to all that was and is and ever will be
To the heavens, whatever that means
To Love
 
When I see by starlight, I glimpse your vast design
I begin to sense my place in the universe
A lovely speck in something too big with beauty to fully perceive
But when you hide the stars from my view
I am still part of your creation
Formed in your image
Fearfully and wonderfully made
Beyond understanding

​Keep me creative
Loosen my grip
On the illusion of control
Make me observant
Of beauty around me
And of hidden and not-so-hidden suffering
Let me play
And dream
And hope
 
Breathe into me
Activate my gifts
Arouse my passions
Free me to serve
To let go of myself
So I may work with you

Written March 15, 2023 in response to a question posed in reference to John 3:1-19 in One Day I Wrote Back by Jane Herring

Being born from above as the Bible rang true
New winds blowing
           that I didn’t understand
           that terrified me
           that forever changed me
Born into the church as I was dunked in the tank
           soaking wet
           freezing cold
           emerging into new life
The real birthing began as I tried to follow Jesus
           joining ROC
           visiting churches
           asking questions
Born from above so many times
           in tragedy
           in love
           in unexpected ways
Born from within
           woven together
           in my mother’s womb
           and before time began
Born from beyond
           the big boom
           never-ending stardust
           ruach that lives on
Born new every morning
           especially
           but not only
           the ones I begin with God