"Give us this day! "

(A meditation on each word(s)
of the Lord's prayer)

Lord,
Give us this day
to live and share our love.

Lord,
Give us this day
to take delight in You.

Lord, 
Give us this day
to be peacemakers in this hostile world. 

Lord,
Give us this day
to be patient in this "me-first" world.

Lord,
Give us this day
to show kindness to strangers.

Lord, 
Give us this day
to value our friendships.

Lord,
At the end of this day
may we surrender all back to You
and petition You, 
our heavenly Father
to grant us one more day.

"Give us this day"

(A meditation on each word(s) 

of the Lord's prayer)

The Hand You’re Dealt

Every day

God deals us

our hand

for the day.

Some of us

fold

in resignation.

Some of us

bluff

our way 

through the day.

And the rest

play the game

the way the Master 

taught them.

"...our daily bread"

(A meditation on each word(s) 

of the Lord's prayer)

The people of the Empire

wonder why 

the God of abundance

parcels out

His Providence

in daily packages,

while 

the rest of the world

utters a 

grateful

alleluia. 

The Vast Ocean Begins Just Outside Our Church: The Eucharist

Something has happened
to the bread
and the wine.
They have been blessed.
What now?
The body leans forward
to receive the gift
from the priest’s hand,
then the chalice.

They are something else now
from what they were
before this began.

I want
to see Jesus,
maybe in the clouds
or on the shore,
just walking,
beautiful man
and clearly
someone else
besides.

On the hard days
I ask myself
if I ever will.

Also there are times
my body whispers to me
that I have.

Mary Oliver