Sunday Prayer (Pentecost 17c, Proper 19)

My God, we are such wrecks:
Prone to our whims & fancies,
gleefully chasing passing delights,
passively fixating on war & worry.

It is easy to take the easy way.
It is tempting to settle for doing
& giving less than our best…and
while we’re at it: to blame others.

We should not be surprised
if you flee from us. We ask
instead that you rush upon us
as an unrelenting Spirit-Wind.

Whip up a dust storm to blind
our intolerant hearts. Bring a fire
to sear away our ego & self-pity.
Require of us full reconciliation.

Do not nudge us little by little.
Transform us! Leave nothing
unchanged, so that we might
be stars in Abraham’s night sky.

Cleanse us with wisdom & joy.
Capture our wandering hearts.
Align our bodies and spirits to
follow faithfully in your ways.

Amen.