This blessing was read as the closing prayer at the recent George Fox Evangelical Seminary graduation that we attended. We were there in honor and support of Andy's mom who graduated with a master or arts in Spiritual Formation. I think it makes a great New Year's prayer.
May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and turn their pain into joy.
May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done.
Amen
- Fourfold Franciscan Blessing
Showing posts with label new year's. Show all posts
Showing posts with label new year's. Show all posts
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Monday, January 02, 2006
Ah, Resolutions!
Those who refuse to make New Year's resolutions because they always break them anyway miss the point. Making resolutions is a cleansing ritual of self-assessment and repentance that demands personal honesty and reinforces humility. Breaking them is part of the cycle.
- Eric Zorn
I love this quote. In my humble opinion, it is true. There is something very humbling about the moment when you do the very thing you'd resolved not to do, and it's January 2nd. On landmark days such as New Year's I believe God does ask us to reflect on ourselves and our lives with honesty and humility.
Psalm 90:12 has popped up on my radar two years in a row on New Year's. "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom." Another version says it this way: “Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should.”
As I've been reflecting these first few days of 2006, I've been asking God what he wants to teach me this year. I'm sure there will be an ongoing answer, but for now I know that he wants me to be more present to my children on a daily basis; to live in the moment with them and soak in this all-to-short season of their lives.
I'm happy to have a new song that speaks to this theme. It's by one of my favorite artists, Sara Groves, from her new album Add To The Beauty. It's called Just Showed Up For My Own Life.
Spending my time sleep walking
Moving my mouth but not saying a thing
Hoping the changes would take
By working their way from the outside in
I was in love with an idea
Preoccupied with how a life should appear
Spending my time at the surface
Repairing the holes in the shiny veneer
There are so many ways to hide
There are so many ways not to feel
There are so many ways to deny what is real
And I just showed up for my own life
And I'm standing here taking it in
And it sure looks bright
I'm going to live my life inspired
Look for the holy in the commonplace
Open the windows and feel all that's honest and real
Until I'm truly amazed
I'm going to feel all my emotions
I'm going to look you in the eyes
I'm going to listen and hear until it's finally clear
And it changes our lives
Oh the glory of God is man fully alive
Whatever circumstances the year may bring, may I be fully alive and present to the Holy in the commonplace.
- Eric Zorn
I love this quote. In my humble opinion, it is true. There is something very humbling about the moment when you do the very thing you'd resolved not to do, and it's January 2nd. On landmark days such as New Year's I believe God does ask us to reflect on ourselves and our lives with honesty and humility.
Psalm 90:12 has popped up on my radar two years in a row on New Year's. "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom." Another version says it this way: “Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should.”
As I've been reflecting these first few days of 2006, I've been asking God what he wants to teach me this year. I'm sure there will be an ongoing answer, but for now I know that he wants me to be more present to my children on a daily basis; to live in the moment with them and soak in this all-to-short season of their lives.
I'm happy to have a new song that speaks to this theme. It's by one of my favorite artists, Sara Groves, from her new album Add To The Beauty. It's called Just Showed Up For My Own Life.
Spending my time sleep walking
Moving my mouth but not saying a thing
Hoping the changes would take
By working their way from the outside in
I was in love with an idea
Preoccupied with how a life should appear
Spending my time at the surface
Repairing the holes in the shiny veneer
There are so many ways to hide
There are so many ways not to feel
There are so many ways to deny what is real
And I just showed up for my own life
And I'm standing here taking it in
And it sure looks bright
I'm going to live my life inspired
Look for the holy in the commonplace
Open the windows and feel all that's honest and real
Until I'm truly amazed
I'm going to feel all my emotions
I'm going to look you in the eyes
I'm going to listen and hear until it's finally clear
And it changes our lives
Oh the glory of God is man fully alive
Whatever circumstances the year may bring, may I be fully alive and present to the Holy in the commonplace.
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