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A Prayer for the Church
Harry Emerson Fosdick's God of Grace and God of Glory is one of my favorite hymns. Below is a prayer he wrote that resonates as powerfully with me as that hymn, especially in terms of our life together as the PC (USA):
Eternal Spirit, from whom we come and to whom we belong, and in whose service is our peace, we worship thee.
Lift us up, we beseech thee, from cowardice to courage. Save us from self-pity. Build into us stout hearts, that we may stand undaunted by fear, unconquered by adversity, unstained by cowardice.
Lift us up, we pray thee, from vindictiveness to good will. If we are harboring grudges, if hatefulness has taken hold of our spirits, save us, we pray thee, from such a desecration of this holy hour.
Lift us up from malice and evil-speaking and unkindness of heart. Arouse in us the spirit of Christ, who could pray upon the cross for those who put him there.
Lift us up, we pray thee, from selfishness to service. Let our imaginations run out into our prisons, the unprivileged areas of our city's life and of the world where blessings that we take for granted are little known, and hunger stalks, and fear taunts, and tomorrow is full of terror. Wake up with us, we beseech thee, our forgotten kindliness.
And with all this, Spirit of the eternal Christ, lift us up from doubt to faith. Lift us out of our cynicism, our skepticism, our unwillingness to believe that the good may be true, into a courageous faith and certitude concerning God and divine purposes. Illumine us, thou Sun of the morning, until not only shall our mountain peaks shine with a new confidence, but the very valleys shall feel thy noontime's splendor and we have faith again in ourselves, in others, and in thee.
We pray in the Spirit of Christ. Amen.
- Posted at 2:53 p.m.
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