Liturgy 121: You Hear What I Do Not Say

A Prayer to Know God as Immigrant Restraint and Sitcom Tenderness

Lectio Divina

In the wilderness,
you saw
how the Lord your God
carried you,
as a father carries his son.
Deuteronomy 1

This is my song of praise to you
For who you are and all that you do
Brian Doerksen

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Prayer

I threw my daughter in the sky
She fell into loving embrace
Belly laughter filled the air

And God,
I remembered

the first time
I was handed
that metaphor
of the Divine as
paternal affection

Selah

I think of my own father
his stoic hands
and quiet provision

I think of Tim Taylor
his love loud
and boisterous

I think of Uncle Phil
his arms wide enough
to absorb shame
and make it small

Somewhere between
sitcom tenderness
and immigrant restraint

I begin
to see you

The laughter of heaven
loud, unashamed

A father
who does not flinch
when his children
rise high
or come crashing down

Selah

Oh how I need you, God

You hear
what I do not say

You sit with
what I cannot carry

What hope
to be loved
as I am

What gift
to reflect
who you are

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Blessing

Dear Friend

What sustained Jesus
through the Gethsemane night
was not determinism
but affection.

If you are tired,
consider stillness.

May the affirmation
of a loving God
give clarity for the day.

May you be renewed
by the embrace of God.

In the Name of the One
Who taught us to
address a holy God
as Abba.

Amen.