Young Methodist Prayer
Dear God,
Who is the One who allows people to feel their calling, no matter whom they love?
Is this You?
Are You the Companion who shares in all the pains and joys of the world -- the One who is present in the world as a guiding energy, a lure, toward inclusive love -- the One whose very life is partly composed of all the sentient beings in the universe -- the One who forever remembers and cherishes all the experiences of each and every living being with tender care -- the One who is at work in the world, now and always, as a lure toward creative transformation -- the One who is the very mind of the universe, deciding from a placeless place for love not hatred?
Are You the One whose heart was revealed uniquely but not exclusively in the life, death, and resurrection of a young Jew from Nazareth? The One who beckons each and all toward a basileia (a royal place) where each person is recognized as a royal one, along the the animals and plants, too? The One whose will can be done on earth even as it is also done in heaven?
Is this You O Lord?
And might there be a gathering of people who are faithful to You, who seek to live in your spirit and follow your call? Yes, might we young Methodists be examples of that gathering?
Might we play our role in the greater hope? Might we, too, help your dreams for the world come true?
May we become vessels of that creative transformation to which Jesus himself was so open. May we become channels of your love and grace, that our love might be perfected in Yours.
May we help create royal places, too. May we help create communities that are creative, compassionate, participatory, egalitarian, celebratory of differences, humane to animals, and good for the earth, with no one left behind.
This is our hope and our ministry. This is who we are and who we seek to become.
Yours in the spirit,
Young Methodists
Photo: Susannah Stubbs, Artist in Residence, Open Horizons
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Photo: Susannah Stubbs, Artist in Residence, Open Horizons
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