10 November 2024 Prayer for the Pastor, Deacon, Chaplain

Faithful God, Thank you for that. For being you – for being faithful to me, even when I get it wrong. And when I put too much into what worship or preaching will all look and sound and feel like. When I seem to enjoy the pomp and seem to forget you or forget my people. Or when I sit beneath a tree on the outskirts of the town where I serve “Holy Hannah! Lutheran Church” and sulk. You remain faithful to me even in my darkest thoughts about people who I am called to love. Because it is your love that saves them and me. Not mine. Not by my will or mite, but yours. So reveal to me today what I am not able to see on my own. Make the invisible visible in the ones I serve and love. And help me to see what it is I need to let go of so that I can preach and believe and point to Christ crucified. You are always calling me to the cross and the only way to the cross is letting go. To loosen my grip on All. The. Things. Help me to let go so I can love with your love. By your power. Power that only comes through dying and then the rising. Death and resurrection. It is the rhythm of our faith. It is the rhythm of our being. It is the rhythm of all creation. It is no mistake that you made it this way. The world screams for me to draw lines and to withhold and to seek revenge and to take and misuse power. Instead, help me to let it go. Help me to follow you. Help me to follow you – you show me how to let it go through Jesus. Help me to pay attention and to notice what you notice, God. Quiet my noisy thoughts. Still my churning heart. Change me. Transform my heart. Steady my feet and ready my voice to sing and speak of your love and faithfulness. No matter the chaos of the world. Turns out, the ingredients you work so well with are chaos and mortality. Thank you for not giving up on me. Or the world that we mess up.

Draw me close to those who love me best and most. Help us to not take out our stress on one another. And I pray for those whose calls are ending abruptly and messily, and pray for your Holy Spirit to tend to those pastor’s hearts and to mend broken your broken church. Oh Lord, have mercy on those messes. Because hearts and people and lives are in those messes. Amen.

Deep breaths dear pastor, dear deacon, dear chaplain. I mean, seriously. Stop and take a couple of deep breaths. From the bottom of your feet to the tippy top of your head. And remember the promise that Your labor in the Lord is not in vain. Don’t be afraid. But even if you are, even just a little bit – you are not alone. God is with you.