Thread by @KatecBowler

a blessing when thoughts and prayers are not enough

God, i am appalled
at the violence and suffering
that keeps happening.

God, how do i wrap my mind around this?
what can be done?

be angry and do not sin
Eph. 4:26 Literal Standard Version

God have mercy.
Christ have mercy.
Spirit have mercy.

The kind of fasting I want is this:
Remove the chains of oppression
and the yoke of injustice,
and let the oppressed go free.

Isaiah 58:6 Good News Translation

God have mercy.
Christ have mercy.
Spirit have mercy.

blessed are we who ask You God
to free us from the temptation
to look away in fear or horror,
or revert instead to a
‘thoughts and prayers’ theology
that offers the low-hanging fruit
of easy condolences
but is nowhere near enough.

blessed are we who say, God,
i want to stay just a little bit angry,
mad enough to keep looking steadily,
and hold before my eyes
the sharp images, the memories,
the ugly reality of what has happened.

God, save me from inaction
that will only make me complicit--
a party to the betrayal of others
and of You.

blessed are we who say, God,
help me form a strategy
that targets my gifts precisely
and doesn’t overreach my resources.

help me bring real comfort
to others who are vulnerable.
and grant me grace
to do this as steady work
that dismantles the systems
and mitigates the harm
even as we go.

God, where do i start?

God have mercy.
Christ have mercy.
Spirit have mercy.

there is love in this.
God is alive; magic is afoot.
you will be carried.

And I said,
“Here am I. Send me!”
Isaiah 6:8