A Prayer Walk at Night

 Come with me on a prayer walk

   you'll need the imagination of your heart

we start in the early night, 6:30 or 7 o' clock

   we walk side by side, the Lord walks with us too

         though we may not know it

The stars are already out

   all is quiet

there goes a satellite, and there an airplane

   notice the two flaming planets in the south western sky

   ~silence

The Lord of all creation set this in motion, cares for it all

   in all of the things that have transpired in history

   we are here . . . and so is God

Our heart explodes with joy and praise, for all that God has done

   our voice joins the loud stillness of the darkness... Great is the Lord

The hymn line crosses our hearts 

   "In him there is no darkness at all, the day and the night are both alike

The Lamb is the light of the City of God"

    The Lamb is our LIGHT!

   ~silence

We walk on, the grass ready for winter crunches beneath our feet

  Cattle in the pastures round about graze on the final blades of green grass

Birds leap from the branches of the cedar trees

   ~silence

We think of events of the past week

   some were fantastic, others were of a great evil

Again the words of a hymn, this time, O Holy Night

   "long lay the word in sin and error pining

til He appeared and the soul felt its worth"

   This week a soul who did not know its worth commited great evil

We think of the person who stares at us from the mirror

   And of the names the Lord whispers in our ear

Draw near your neighbor, the kid in your home . . . draw near

    ~silence

Again, O Holy Night

   "A thrill of Hope; the weary world rejoices,

For younder breaks, A new and glorious Morn"

   And the one who has been walking with us, Christ himself speaks...

All is well . . . and all will be well.

   ~silence

Amen.

(originally used in worship at Schweitzer Church, 5 December 2021)