One Word
This winter on The Daily Pattern we’re in a series called One Word. Each day we take one word – a feeling or circumstance – and bring a word from God to it. Let the Word of God speak to your life.
Invocation
Make the sign of the cross, and say,
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Invitation Prayer
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matt. 5:4) O Lord, I suffer grief and loss. You alone are my comfort. Amen.
Word: Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4-6
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: …
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away…”
Meditation
Loss by Megan Roegner
My friends are moving soon.
I can’t say I’m losing them because I know exactly where they will be. I also can’t say that I am losing their friendship: there will be encouraging texts and silly Zooms and hopefully trips across the plains to visit each other.
My friends are moving soon.
What we’re losing is the season we had of a life lived together, of impromptu gatherings, of taking care of each other’s children, of Sundays when the borders of our families were blurred, sometimes even to us.
My friends are moving soon.
I’ve lost seasons before. I’m a person who stays: living in the same town where I grew up, worshipping in the same church. Married to my first boyfriend, working still at my first grown-up job. It’s hard to be the same when everything around me keeps changing.
My friends are moving soon.
New seasons bring new growth. I wonder what the next season will bring for them. Who will the next season bring? How will they grow, and who will grow with them, in their new soil? And what about us here? Will our roots dig a little deeper, spread a little wider?
My friends are moving soon.
I’m reminded of a closing line by one of my favorite writers, Hilary Mantel: “There are no endings. If you think so you are deceived as to their nature. They are all beginnings. Here is one.”
Lord, bring us comfort in our losses, but also keep our eyes open for new gifts and new seasons. Thank you for beginnings. Amen.
Prayer for Life as a Child of God
· For the Father to give me care and guidance.
· For forgiveness when I wander and want my own way.
· For the Father to keep me childlike in faith even as I age.
· For growth in faith, that I love and trust in God above all things.
· For strength to obey God.
· For the Father to heal my hurts.
· For assurance when I doubt.
Closing Prayer
O Lord, your ways are not our ways. Teach us your will, even when it appears backwards. We want to know you. We want what you want. Thy will be done, in Jesus’ name. Amen.