The String of Silence Just Before Dawn

A prayer inspired by The End of Night by Paul Bogard, Mindful Day by Deborah Hopkins, and the United Church of Canada Song of Faith.

The string of silence just before dawn draws us toward you, O God:

the feeling of infinitude vanishing

as the deeper, clearer, blue white of the Milky Way

disappears into morning song.

We hear you sculpt the contours of this day:

sickness and health met with healing and hope,

the froth and fury of friendship and family

made holy under your wide canopy of love,

the ability of our bodies to rise and meet you

as light leaks into this new day.

We are grateful, O God.

We seek you, O Christ.

We hear you, O Spirit.

The constant motion of today’s tasks will distract and divide us,

but we ask that you keep us mindful,

help us to breathe in, out, soft, slow,

the gift of your presence as near as breath.

Do not let the instability of this day,

this season,

this stretch of life unsettle us:

your peace is near.

Your spirit persists through impermanence.

For all that is fragile, O God.

For all that is vulnerable.

For all that is wild.

For all that is entirely interconnected.

Help us to breathe in, out, soft, slow,

the gift of your presence as near as breath.

Your irresistible love eavesdrops on what we consider our most genuine selves,

and you give us a glimpse of how we might become more like you:

to live with respect in Creation,

to love and serve others,

to seek justice,

to resist evil,

to reconcile and make new.

You are beyond complete knowledge,

above perfect description,

source of life,

living word,

bond of love,

generous self-giving,

nearer than near

and as distant as the farthest corners of the universe.

Even when we turn away from you,

you are with us,

your presence never fails us,

your gifts of hope and new life transform us.