for Sunday, June 14, 2020

 O Lord,  these times have revealed how little control we have, we have seen how powerless we all truly are. We have grasped for hope, as we often grasp for air. 

In this time, we know we are vulnerable targets of lies and deceit.

Our hope is in you, O Lord, our hope is in you. Sometimes it is difficult to remember that, sometimes it is easy to look away.  False prophets shout for our attention, they seek to turn us from you. They sound like they are from you, but they are not, they claim to have your truth, but they do not. 

May gratitude steady our focus. May thanksgiving bring us back. May we always remember your works,  May we always remember your love.

So, today,  in the midst of a world consumed with fear. A world that refuses to see. A world that still cannot fathom our weaknesses.

On this day, we give thanks.  On this day, we give you, O Lord, our thanks. On this particular day, we thank you for fathers, which reminds us also of our gratitude for mothers. For their perfections and their imperfections – for we have learned from them both. For their sacrifices – most of which we never saw.  For their concerns – few of which we ever appreciated. For Fathers and Mothers we thank you. 

We thank you for the scientists,  the health care professionals,  the essential workers. We are grateful for their expertise, their sacrifices, their perseverance through uncertain times. They have analyzed data, they have have studied pathogens, they have guarded the vulnerable, they have cared for the ailing. They have delivered food to our homes, met us at curbside when we are hungry, worn masks to keep us safe,  They have taken care of us as if their own lives didn’t matter.

O Lord, we also thank you for technology. We thank you for the useful applications which have permitted us to be together even though we have needed to stay apart. We give thanks that the frustrations experienced with technology have been countered by the access provided to each other. God, we recognize that you, using technology, have pierced the darkness of our isolation, you have let us see the light of your presence in each other.

O Lord, may gratitude be our path in these strange times. O Lord, may gratitude point us back to you. O Lord, may gratitude guide our emotions, actions, and  reactions. O Lord, may gratitude carry us through our fear.

Amen