I’ve always appreciated the way Guidepost publications encourage us to see all the ways Jesus “shows up” in daily life. In a recent e-mail, readers were encouraged to “pray away the winter with five winter prayers!”
The use of the word “glorious” in each prayer comes from the opening lines of Richard III, a play by William Shakespeare. “Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this sun of York.” In other words, now that his brother was king, winter’s discontent had given way to spring’s sunshine! It’s a happy beginning to a play that quickly turns tragic!
Prayer for Winter Illness
Lord, turn the winter of my discomfort into a glorious summer of health and vitality.
Winter Prayer for Financial Stress
God, grant that this winter of deficit and debt may become a glorious summer of recovery and generosity.
Winter Prayer for Grief
Father, let this winter of loss and pain become glorious summer by the way You heal our hearts and restore our hope.
Prayer for Winter Weather
God, thank you that this winter of slush and snow will soon give way to another glorious spring and summer of sun and surf.
Prayer for the Winter Blues
When overcast skies or inclement weather get you down, it helps to honestly express the not-so-pleasant, wintry elements of your experience while envisioning a better, warmer future ahead. Pray this and fill in the blanks with things that currently give you anxiety and things that you are looking forward to this summer:
Now let the winter of __________be made glorious summer by _________.
Thanks to our friends at Guideposts for these suggestions for prayer during the winter months.
Elizabeth
My four-year-old great-grandson shared with me one of his Reading Rainbow Books, given to children living in his county through a joint grant from the county library and Smart Start. The book is Whoever You Are, by Mem Fox.
The message of the book is this: “Every day all over the world, children are laughing and crying, playing and learning, eating and sleeping. They may not look the same. They may not speak the same language. Their lives may be quite different. But inside, they are just like you.”
One comment in the book review states: An essential book that acknowledges in the simplest of terms our common humanity.” (Kirkus Reviews) I thought, what a beautiful book to put in the hands of our children!
I share this simple, beautiful text to bless us all:
“Little one, whoever you are, wherever you are,
there are little ones just like you all over the world.
Their skin may be different from yours,
and their homes may be different from yours.
Their schools may be different from yours,
and their lands may be different from yours.
Their lives may be different from yours,
and their words may be very different from yours.
But inside, their hearts are just like yours,
whoever they are, wherever they are, all over the world.
Their smiles are like yours and they laugh just like you.
Their hurts are like yours, and they cry like you, too,
whoever they are, wherever they are, all over the world.
Little one, when you are older and when you are grown,
you may be different, and they may be different,
wherever you are, wherever they are, in this big, wide world.
But remember this:
Joys are the same, and love is the same,
Pain is the same and blood is the same.
Smiles are the same, and hearts are just the same -
wherever they are, wherever you are, wherever we are,
all over the world.”
Words for all of God’s children to take to heart as we live our lives, wherever we are.
Elizabeth
Today is Martin Luther King Day, and we honor the life and legacy of Dr. King, and observe a “Day of Service, volunteering with organizations working to make life better for all. Among his many memorable quotes is this: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” (Letter from the Birmingham Jail,” April 16, 1963.)
When I was serving the church in Laurinburg, January was a very special month. We celebrated MLK Day with a march through the town, with all churches in the community participating. As we walked together, as a community, we sang “We Shall Overcome” and talked among ourselves about what it all meant. The march ended at the Bright Hopewell Baptist Church, where we heard an inspiring message and sang the moving hymn, “Lift Every Voice and Sing”.
The beautiful thing about January in Laurinburg was that we observed the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity as well, during the week of MLK Day, and held other different kinds of services throughout the week. From day to day and from church to church, we celebrated our oneness in Jesus Christ in various ways.
Christian Unity is an ecumenical Christian observance in the Christian calendar that is celebrated internationally. It is kept annually between January 18 and January 25 in the Northern Hemisphere. It is an octave, an observance lasting eight days. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is annually coordinated by the World Council of Churches, with participation by member churches.
During the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, we are reminded of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples that “they may be one so that the world may believe” (John 17:21) Hearts are touched and Christians come together to pray for their unity. Congregations and parishes all over the world exchange preachers or arrange special ecumenical celebrations and prayer services.
Dr. King said, “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” Frederick Buechner says much the same: “Our lives flow into each other as wave flows into wave, and there can be no lasting peace and joy for any until there is peace and joy for all.”
Martin Luther King Day, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, and Jesus’ prayer “that they all may be one” - these three make for a week of true celebration for any community!
Elizabeth