Note: As a personal, spiritual discipline, reviving my practice in the Lenten season of 2017, I revise the prayers I wrote then for each of the forty days of this Lent; each petition focusing on a theme, a concern weighing on my mind and heart or a care of my soul and spirit.
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On God’s confounding Love…
O God, Your Love confounds me. You confound me.
In Love, You give me the breath and strength of life…
In Love, You grant me sunshine to brighten my days and starlight to delight me in the dark of night…
In Love, You bestow upon me a mind to think of You, a heart to feel You, a soul and spirit to seek You, and hands to serve You…
In Love, You surround me with the fellowship of family and friends alway to care and comfort me, at times, to challenge, confront, and convict me…
In Love, You continuously pour out bounteous blessings, seen and unseen, known and unknown, and all beyond my power to name or to number.
All this surpasses mine merit.
Yea, even when I, in the vanity of my human hubris, would want to claim some (any!) deserving for myself, You love me.
When I am at the best of my being and doing, all still far short of Your worthiness, You love me.
When I am at my worst, surely the depth and height and breadth of my unworthiness, You love me.
O God, I am left with but one reckoning. You love me. In this, I find my worth.
Amen.
occasional observations of mind and heart, soul and spirit 
Love this Paul!!! It can be difficult to find and / or acknowledge our worth. One of the things that popped into my mind about your worth when I read this was everyone’s reaction to the YouTube video of your first sermon at St. Matthews . You and your words uplift people, and while it is not your only gift, it is one from which many people benefit. It was amazing to read about people’s reaction to the sermon either who had never seen you “live” or hadn’t done so in a long time. In these times of fear and sorrow…. your worth is obvious in many ways.
Thanks for that.
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Thanks, Loretta. I appreciate always you and your words of encouragement.
And I would like to think that God has blessed – and continues to bless – me with this gift of sharing the Word in ways that others have found and do find insightful and inspiring, energizing and enabling. So, as I’m wont to say, as long as I have breath to speak, strength to stand, and a mind that can put two words together to make some (any!) sense, I will use this gift of God in His service.
Love
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