Sarum Prayer
God be in my head—and in my understanding
God be in my eyes—and in my looking
God be in my mouth—and in my speaking
God be in my heart—and in my thinking
God be at my end—and at my departing
Cloud of Witnesses Meditation
Now let’s call to mind and heart, the ancestors—loved and admired ones who have gone before us and surround us, we are told, in the cloud of witnesses. Over the next half minute hold in your memory some dear ones who have gone before you. If you like, you can Invite them to be with you as you pray.
Refrain for the Psalm
But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother.
Psalm 131
O LORD, my heart is not lifted up,
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.
But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother;
my soul is like the weaned child that is with me.
O Israel, hope in the LORD
from this time on and forevermore.
Refrain for the Psalm
But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother.
Song of the Servant
Isaiah 49: 13–17
Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the LORD has comforted his people,
and will have compassion on his suffering ones.
But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me,
my Lord has forgotten me.”
Can a woman forget her nursing child,
or show no compassion for the child of her womb?
Even these may forget,
yet I will not forget you.
See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are continually before me.
Your builders outdo your destroyers,
and those who laid you waste go away from you.
Refrain for the Reading
But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother.
Prayer for Loved Ones
Over the next minute simply name your loved ones, calling each to mind in love, lifting each in the embrace of remembered love, to the God who is the source of all love.
Prayer to Face the Frustrations of the Day
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can,
and wisdom to know the difference.
A Pause for Gratitude
Take about 30 seconds to focus on one or two things that you are grateful for.
An Old Prayer from the African American Church
O Lord, we come today knee bowed and body bent before thy throne of grace. We come today like empty pitchers before a full fountain, realizing that many who are better by nature than we are by practice have passed into that great beyond; and yet you have allowed us your humble servants to plod along just a few days longer here in this howling wilderness. We thank thee Lord that we arose this morning, and that our bed was not a cooling board, and our sheet was not a winding shroud. We thank thee Lord that we are clothed in our right mind–bless the sick and afflicted. And when we have prayed our last prayer and sung our last song, and when we are done climbing the rough side of the mountain, when we come down to tread the steep and prickly banks of Jordan, meet us with thy rod and staff and bear us safely over. We ask these things in Jesus name, world without end. Amen.
Benediction
Go in peace, wash your hands, love your neighbor—you are not alone.