Carol Penner

A Prayer for When I am Self-destructive

Lord, I am an instrument of your peace.
Where there is self-hatred, let me sow love;
where there is negative self-talk, kindness;
where there is loathing of my body, acceptance;
where there is nursing of old injuries, release;
where there is envy of others, gratefulness;
where there is perfectionism, humanness.
 
O Divine Mother, grant that I may not so much seek
to be self-hurting, as self-healing;
to be self-denying, as self-cherishing,
to be numb, as to feel.
For it is in being loved by you, that I know I am lovable;
through your confidence in me, I confidently face each day,
it is in being yours now and eternally, that I live in peace.
 

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Song of Peace Prayer

Thank you for the gift of music,
for melodies and harmonies, for voices of every pitch.
Thank you for composers and poets,
for instruments and musicians.
Music is the soundtrack of our lives,
it delights us and helps us express our deepest emotions.
You give each of us a song to sing each week:
we confess that we abandon your score,
giving up your loving notes in favour of our own tune.
We fail to harmonize with those around us.
We want to be part of the work you are composing,

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Was that Joy?

Joy may be like a fountain,
but it has no on/off switch.
We can’t manufacture joy
or produce it on demand.
Running after joy is
like running after the wind;
you can’t catch it.
Joy is wild and treasured,
like a rare shy bird
that suddenly appears.
It can be fleeting,
or its presence can rest with you…

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The Good Book

I was always captivated by
“Once upon a time”:
the magical invitation
into a world not mine.
The world of giants and talking animals,
the world of spies and zookeepers,
pirates, pioneers and pilots–
I followed them through deserts and oceans,
deep space, rush hour traffic,
mountains and subterranean caverns.
I puzzled things out with Nancy Drew,
yearned for justice with Black Beauty,
cried with Jane Eyre,

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The Language of Love

Words dance into space
bouncing off satellites:
my voice rocketing
through the stratosphere here
and ricocheting into your ear there.
Your thumbs type text
and even as you press send,
I receive your message.
Across the miles
the image of your presence
hovers on my screen,
our voices intertwining on this internet.
My grandparents were as proud

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Prayer for the Terror-Stricken

God of the afflicted:
On this anniversary of [the Montreal massacre
where a man who declared feminists his enemy
opened fire in a school,
killing fourteen, wounding fourteen]
on this day we turn to you.
We pray for healing for all affected by acts of terror.
Terror from a bomb, or a gun,
or a knife, or a rope, or a body,
terror from any force poised for cruelty….
You know what happened next.
Be with all who are picking up,

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Waiters in God’s House: An Advent Prayer

God of hope.
be with all tonight
who are waiting for a miracle.
Waiting for God,
waiting for justice,
waiting for a diagnosis,
waiting for a phone call,
waiting for a job,
waiting for death,
waiting for inspiration,

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A Prayer for a Thousand Tongues

God of every tongue and nation:
thank you for the multiplicity and beauty of languages,
each one a treasure, each one unmatched and irreplaceable.
Thank you for the slow growth of languages over time,
their plasticity and adaptability,
their ability to convey and carry culture,
the heart of a people.
As a white Canadian, I mourn the colonial decision
to declare only two languages official,
the languages of white people.
Settler peoples waged war on First Nations and Inuit,

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Prayer for Reporters

Hear our prayers for reporters, Lord.
In this surroundsound world
with information and lies
mixed on every platform,
raise up truth-tellers
who want to get the story right.
People who are not content with face value,
who smell a rat at any distance,
who are not intimidated by intimidators.
Reporters who care about those
who others abuse and discard.
Reporters who seek out sources,
work diligently to get the whole picture,
and who write with passion and integrity….

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About Carol Penner

I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.

I love to write and to lead worship! If you are finding my writing helpful, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to use or adapt the material here, it is all written by me. If printing material, please credit “Copyright Carol Penner www.leadinginworship.com” (and say whether you modified it). If publishing, please contact me for permission. Contact me at carol@leadinginworship.com

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