Tag: peace

Prayer for peace and strength

Peace and strength are one,

We are weakest when pain and hurt rule,

When our minds are pulled and pushed by the cruelty of others,

When anger is the energy that moves and drives us,

When shame and guilt are the lenses through which we view life,

When insecurity drains our ability to see how beautiful we are,

When we walk in fear of what will happen around each coming corner,

When we see only loss ahead and live for what we do not have,

When frustration for what hasn’t been flows fast in our veins,

Peace and strength are one,

We are most powerful when our spirits can be still.

When we find our true self in it’s imperfection,

When we gain a new understanding of deep beauty,

When we meet those who only add to us,

When we feel our feet solid upon the world we walk in,

When we banish the judgement of others and know divine grace,

When we can grieve and feel loss, but not allow it kill our hope,

When we learn how to stop and simply be who we were made to be.

Peace and strength are one.

Peace is my prayer.

Today in Westminster

Sadly, I can’t see today bringing any peace or answers for our torn nation!

I pray for humility and honesty, for the peacemakers and the meek, for those who seek to heal division not ferment it, for a willingness to think of the best for us all not just what is expedient for the few, and of the future together not the present polarities. I pray that our governors would be humble enough to recognise mistakes, brave enough to correct them and generous enough to put aside differences for the sake of us all.

Finding rest…

After an intense week, I’m sat on the train thinking about rest, the chap opposite is fast asleep and snoring, whilst curled up in what looks like the most uncomfortable position. We all have to find rest however we can, and we all find rest in different ways. Rest isn’t just about recharging, although that is an important part of life, and some of use are recharged by company, some by solitude etc. But, rest is much more than that. Rest, is an outcome of security and love. It’s not just the body that needs rest. Every part of us needs to find a state of peace if we are to survive and thrive in a hectic world, a world where the pressure to be ‘on it’ can be intense. Sleep is part of rest, but it’s a fragile part and in many ways is a product of rest! I cannot sleep unless I am at rest. Of my mind or my spirit is in turmoil, sleep is a battle, sometimes one I cannot win. So, it is vital to understand what rest is to me if I am going to be able to sleep, never mind be recharged.

Rest is often about escaping the insecurity of identity and/or faith. If I can find escape from the nagging self doubts and existential panics that can plague all of us at times then I find rest. Rest can be in a good book, a film, a mountain walk, the arms of a lover, in meditation/prayer, even in silence. It’s in the place where insecurity and performance are irrelevant, where the mind and the spirit are stilled and at peace, where I need only be me with no expectation or judgement, where there is no place for performance anxiety! Rest is an outcome of peace and peace is an outcome of love. May you find love, peace and rest.