Starter Prayer: God of both light and darkness, help me appreciate all the movements of life with you. Give me deep connection in times of living, dying, rising, rest and renewal. Teach me about the beautiful protection in the gift of darkness. Focus Phrase: Beautiful Protection It’s sad how some Christian ways of thinking lead […]

Starter Prayer: God of hidden wisdom, cure me of the anxiety that keeps me speaking, arguing and justifying. Help me listen to, and receive direction from, Jesus. Give me a vision for this alternative way of being. Focus Word: Imagination Imagine you are Peter, who countered Jesus when Jesus tried to talk honestly about his […]

Starter Prayer: God who Shapes our Perspectives, we marvel at the beautiful Mind of Christ. Give us eyes to observe our limited beliefs and ears to hear truth from your Beloved Son. Focus Word: Divine Mindset Today we read Rev. Lauren Wright Pittmon’s description of her non-listening self. She explains what not-listening looks and sounds […]

Starter Prayer: God of Hard Truths that Set Us Free, keep me learning and growing in my ability to see things from your perspective Focus Phrase: Listen and Evolve Back in the day, when I was a youth group kid, we learned about the “hard truths” of Christianity. The truth focused on behavioral codes that […]

Starter Prayer: Christ Who Speaks Truth, May we listen to your Wisdom with better ears. Give us the courage to set aside the worn out arguments, excuses and flimsy self-protections. Show us something new– something too wonderful to dismiss. Focus Phrase: Listen To Jesus As we step into the second full week of Lent, I […]

Starter Prayer: God of our Stories, give me tireless curiosity to find the meaning in your story, my story, our stories. Give me the courage to ask, “What happened?” and the compassion to show mercy. Focus Phrase: Wonderful World Yesterday, we read Lauren Wright Pittman’s reflection on her oil-based ink drawing, “In Our Hands” (pp. […]

Starter Prayer: God of Mercy and Promise, help me join you in loving the earth and all her inhabitants. Lead me into new actions, expressing my gratitude for the wonder of creation. Focus Phrase: Creation Care Last summer I was sharing a reflection on Facebook Live. The topic was wisdom for discerning one’s vote in […]

Starter Prayer: God of Salvation, teach us to see you and feel your presence in the shifting circumstances of our lives. Focus Word: Shift God was close to Jesus in moments of shift. Rev. Denise Anderson ends her commentary on Jesus’ closeness with God writing: Again and again, God meets us where we are, but […]

Starter Prayer: God Who Meets Me at the Edge of Things: Help me allow your favor to fall on me like rain. Give me a vision living as the “beloved.” Make this identity Real to me. Focus Word: Beloved May the painting and commentary on Jesus’ Baptism from Rev. Lisle Gwynn Garrity open your eyes […]

Starter Prayer: God of good memories, help me perceive your closeness in our sweetest moments and in our boldest acts for justice and mercy. Amen Focus Phrase: Remember When I remember when I was struggling with an important decision and asked my spiritual director for help with how to pray. He suggested I ask God […]