Here is a prayer which
reflects on the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12, Luke 6:20-22). It was written by
Christine Jerrett in 2011, and posted on her blog (see link below).
Strange
Territory:
A prayer
reflecting on the Beatitudes
God of life and of truth,
Your Son invites us to see
the world through your eyes
and we find ourselves
disoriented:
You bless the poor
You bless the meek
You bless the pure in heart.
You turn our world and its
values upside down.
We have signed on to follow
your Son
but this is strange
territory.
It doesn’t look anything
like
the life we have been taught
to yearn for,
to work for,
to believe will bring us
happiness.
Yet, You know the despair
that besets
so many of our young people
who fear that their future
has been mortgaged
by our greed and
carelessness.
You hear the cries of those
who
have traded their souls for
power and money
and now have emptiness as a
friend.
You see those who are caught
in lives that
lead only to weariness and
anxiety.
Set us at Jesus’ feet
so we can learn to judge our
lives differently.
Awaken in us that hunger and
thirst for you
which will lead us to your
will
and your peace.
Open our eyes to see your
unexpected blessings.
Open our hearts to welcome
you
when you come to us in
strange ways.
Then make us into a
community of blessedness
that beckons this
neighbourhood
into your joy.
We ask these things in the
name of Jesus
who blesses us with your
living presence
and fills our lives with
your life-changing truth. Amen.
