A New Year's Prayer

Rev. Jeffrey Symynkywicz, December 30, 2001

O God of timeless ages, in whom the past, present, and future meet and merge as one, we bow before the spirit of eternity this day. Our years on this planet are but few; so swiftly they come and go; and soon, we know, the children of this hour must give you back the breath that gives us life, and our beings become one again with all that is eternal.

And yet, within the shortness of our days, the flame burns brightly, and in its radiance we behold the mystery all about us. The voice of hope sings through our darkness. Faith points to a far-off dawn, a vision of a better world to be. The silence speaks; the shadows glow; amid the tumult, we yet hear the quiet, insistent whisper in our souls.

This we know: We are children of our Mother Earth, and our years must soon be spent. And yet, we have beheld the glory of the Eternal. Amid the strangeness and the haste, we have glimpsed the glory of our true Being. Forlorn, we have felt solace; alone, we have felt an abiding presence. Our spirits have been touched by that which is Holy, and our dust is animated by the burning essence of stars.

In the New Year that is before us, help us to trust our dreams, O God. Help us to voyage through this year steady in faith and hope, even when we have no idea of where our road may be leading. Holding aloft the sacred flame of our humanity—our kindness and our love, our compassion and our creativity—may we venture forward through the dark to face the future we are creating, here and now.

Amen.

(based upon a prayer by A. Powell Davies)

jbs
1/1/87, 12/27/98, 12/30/01

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