A Prayer of Remembrance

Dear God,

Thank-you for the gift of Lois Hanselman Bilhorn. We are blessed in the fullest sense of the word.

Her tenderness, her persistence, her elegance, but most of all her unconditional love have helped us to understand and know you more.

And as we leave here, may we remember:

When we are tempted to be coarse, may we be tender as Lois was.

When our courage wanes, hope is bleak, faith is small and we want to give up, may we persist in faithfulness as Lois did.

May our elegance be not simply superficial, but beauty that is marked first by substance and depth.

And may we love others unconditionally as Lois did, knowing that you are love and we ultimately know true love is found in you.

Help us to follow Lois

And those who have gone before us

As we follow you,

Until all sad things are made untrue.

In Jesus name we pray,

Amen.

Neither Riches nor Poverty: Food and Friendship

Several years ago I was impacted when a friend of mine transformed the way I look at the world through a simple prayer at a meal.  He prayed something along the lines of, “God, thank-you for the privilege of having the opportunity to choose what we have to eat today. We ask for you to provide for those who don’t have food.”

Another of my friends prays, “God, thanks for providing and help us to fight for justice for those who don’t have.”

It’s true. In our consumerist society, when food is plentiful and more Americans are on diets than ever, we often first think of poverty in terms of providing food and other resources.

But as this thoughtful video shows, it’s not really just about food and resources.

Over the last year as I eat with friends, I’m often asked to pray for the food (even the non-religious folks think this is still appropriate).  I have learned that we become who we are in large part because of those we call friends and family.  I now thank God for food and friendship, and to provide both for those who don’t have today. And if we tell the truth, there are more friendless people with full stomachs than we’d like to think.