Lenten Meditation: Be God's Light
BE GOD’S LIGHT THAT SHINES IN THE DARKNESS
A MEDITATION LITANY FOR LENT
In the Book of Genesis we read: “Then God said, “let there be light’, and there was light.”
Almighty God, shine your light on us and on our world during this Lenten season. Dispel our fears and uncertainties, our anger and our selfishness. Break into our hearts with your light and make our world new. Lord, hear my prayer.
Throughout the books of the Bible, we hear the stories of ordinary people following your light. We hear the story of the magi, who, having seen a new star in the heavens, followed it to find their new king - an entirely different kind of king whose life and death would change the world. We pray that we may see such a new star in the heavens of our lives. We pray for the grace and strength to believe in You and to follow your light, wherever You may lead us. Lord, hear my prayer.
Lord, we are tired. We are tired of the worry and the anxiety and the uncertainty and the enmity and the division. Set your light before us. Help us see in it the pure light of hope. Help us each pick up that candle to be your light and your hope in our world. Help us to act, each in our own way, to bring your light to others, to those dear to us and to complete strangers, to people who are literally our neighbors and to people whom we will never meet, to your children who are sick and your children who are in need. Lord, hear my prayer.
In the words of the old hymn, Lord, “dawn on our darkness and lend us thine aid.” We see your light in the work of good people, of all kinds, of all faiths and nations and races, of all political beliefs. Open our eyes to your light that is within each of us, within each person, without exception. Use your light to illuminate what unites us. Cast your light into the darkness of our worst behavior, scattering our pride and self-centeredness, our impatience and our lashing out. Shine your light brightly on the paths that we should follow as we try to follow You. Lord, hear my prayer.
Your light shines without fail. It is there, even when, especially when, we think we can’t see it, giving us hope and courage and strength to do what we know we should, what we know we must. By your grace, may we individually and together be your lights in our world, bringing hope and solace and cheer and optimism and help and peace to your children, in our homes, in our communities, in our nation, across our world. Lord, hear my prayer.
“And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.” Jesus, our Bright Morning Star, the Light of the World, light our way as we step from out of the darkness and into the light of hope. AMEN.