A Thanksgiving Prayer

O God, You who are source and center of all life,

We thank you for Yourself, for without You we would not be.

We thank you for the elements which sustain our lives, for air, water, earth and sun

—awaken us to their precious livingness;

We thank you for the beauty of the earth, for rocks and soil, plants and trees,

—awaken us to the aliveness of all earthly life.

We thank you for the rich variety of human persons, for black, brown, red, yellow, gay, trans, poly, straight, for all the many ways we humans seek to express ourselves,

—awaken us to your ineffable love which delights in diversity

—deepen Your love within us, that love which fills every human heart
in a unique way.

We thank You for the darkness of our age, for without darkness, we would not seek light;

We thank You for the struggles of our age, for without struggle,
we would not seek to move beyond our partial selves.

We thank You for our differences, for without the tensions between us
we would not strive for unity.

In all things Lord, You are, and in us, You are coming to be.
Help us to trust in Your presence, to have faith in this world and in one another,
for we are becoming something more together, in You and with You,
which no words can express,

for You are simply breathless beauty and peace.

5 Comments

  1. Mary Pat Jones on December 2, 2021 at 10:15 pm

    This Prayer brings forth what is deepest in my heart, it centers me in my daily prayer life. Thank You so much! Take good care of this earthen vessel of yours. You are so needed and we are so grateful.



  2. Joe Masterleo on November 27, 2021 at 9:13 am

    . . . and we thank you for the gift of illuminates, known and unknown, beings and bearers of your light, who, like the sun, moon, and stars in the firmament are set upon the earth to shed your light, that through them others may catch a glimpse of creation’s glorious incandescence and be set ablaze.



  3. Kathleen Deignan, CND on November 25, 2021 at 12:53 pm

    BLESS YOU, ILIA – WITH GRATITUDE FOR ALL THE LIGHT YOU ARE EMANATING. STAY WELL. KATHLEEN DEIGNAN, CND



  4. Donna Z on November 24, 2021 at 9:14 pm

    Beautiful until and after “Lord”. Most vowed religious get stuck on the patriarchal word of male dominance. ?



  5. Carol Ann Juen on November 24, 2021 at 12:11 pm

    Thank you for this beautiful prayer and the blessing of it. Thank you for sharing your being with all of us.



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