A Walk in the Woods

 It was, perhaps,

just a walk in the woods.

or, Lord,

was it more than that?

There was the hollow radi-tat-tat

high above from a dead tree

revealing a Redheaded Woodpecker.

I stood staring up in wonder

the vibrant red adorning the head,

the black feathers on the back, &

the white belly

all the while hammering away

at a dead tree.

I walked on

until a sort of scamper-slither

crossed the path.

Again I stopped to notice

a black lizard body

with stripes of bright blue and orange 

on the Skink standing still before me.

I walked on

until a tunnel of live oak branches dressed in resurrection fern

fringed with Spanish moss.

invited me down an aisle

to a sacred altar, a thin place,

where heaven and earth seemed to touch.

Yes, Lord,

it was a walk in the woods,

a sacred communion,

a holy time,

a deeper connection with fellow creatures,

a time to wonder

at your beautiful intricate web called,

Creation,

a masterpiece of the finest order 

by the oldest of artist,

you, O Lord.

I look forward to my next visit

to your gallery.

Amen

______

This prayer was inspired by a recent visit to Skidaway Island State Park, Georgia.

Prayer on a Rainy Day

Pitter pat, pat, pat
goes the rain outside the window.
Lord,

It's a calming sound,
a sleepy sound,
a deceivingly peaceful sound.

For those same pitter pats
can quickly become a torrent river
washing away everything in it's path.
Just ask Noah,
or anyone who has experienced a flood. 

Lord,
today it's a gentle rain
lulling me to sleep...
Pitter pat, pat, pat.

When I wake,
the vibrant grass,
the budding flower,
the buzzing bee,
the singing bird
will greet me
awakened, anew, afresh,
on a Spring day.

For now,
it's the pitter pat, pat, pat
of a promise being fulfilled.
"For as the rain and the snow
come down from heaven and
do not return there
until they have watered the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower
and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be
that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish
that which I purpose
and succeed in the thing
for which I sent it."
--Isaiah 55:10-11

Pitter pat, pat, pat
Amen

Confessing Dumb Words

"Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips." -- Psalms 141:3 NIV

Why?! Why? O Lord,
Why do I say dumb things?
As soon as it was out of my mouth,
I regretted it.

If it had been the first time
I said something dumb,
I would get over it.
I had hoped I had learned by now
to pause, to think,
to choose my words.

Forgive me, Lord.
May the other forgive me too.
Help me forgive myself.
Help me learn what the psalmist says,
"Set a guard over my mouth, Lord, keep watch over the door of my lips."

Yes, Lord,
make it so for me.
Amen.