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It was a time of great turmoil in the land. The Spirit of God bypassed all the famous leaders and came to me with a dream.

And I saw the Ruler of All Creation sitting on a throne, high and lofty, with majesty filling the sky as far as the eye could see.

Angels filled the air, shouting, “Holy, holy, holy! Just and Righteous and Merciful is God’s name!”

“Every bit of the earth is filled with the Blessed One’s caress!” And in my vision, Heaven’s Voice made the mountains shake and the meadows rumble.

And I said, “I am not worthy to see such things! My lips cannot speak such wonder. My hands cannot hold it. I am only a little girl.”

But the One who breathes every breath said to me: “Do not say ‘I am only a little girl.’ For you shall go where I send you, speak what I command you. Fear not, fear not.”

That’s when the Hand of Strength reached out and touched my mouth, saying, “I am putting my words in your mouth.”

It was as if coals of fire reached my lips. Not with pain, but with cleansing speech and clarifying conviction.

And I said: “OK. Here I am. Send me where you want me to go.”

Blessed is the journey in and through the turmoil. And blessed is the One who seeks the abandoned, who sings the harmony of life, who sows the seeds of justice and reaps the harvest of peace.

Send us. Send me.

So let it be.

Amen and Amen.

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. Inspired by Isaiah 6:1-8 and Jeremiah 1:7-9; leader’s part read by one of our 9-year-old girls.

We gather in wonder at the times in which we live.

As with the disciples of old, the seasons of crucifixion seem endless.

Yet life beyond what was imagined appears and beckons us forward.

Who can believe such news?

Only those with open eyes, willing hands and supple hearts.

The voice of Jesus speaks anew.

Follow me!

And we shall follow.

We follow not because of worthy claim.

For our lives are marked by tattered hopes and failed dreams.

Shame and disappointment stand in accusation.

But their threats wither in the face of grace.

The voice of Jesus speaks anew:

Follow me!

The humiliating power of the cross has been scattered; the stone of the burial tomb rolled away. Come, my friends. The journey continues. Provision is promised. Mercy is assured to fuel the mission at hand. Be of good cheer.

All with ears to hear, draw near, draw near. Be of good cheer, be of good cheer!

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org.

In the beginning the Verdant One saw everything that was made, and behold, it was lavish and delightful. (Genesis 1:31)

The earth is satisfied with the fruit of God’s greening hand. (Psalm 104:13)

Let the heavens be glad and the earth applaud. Let the sea roar, and the field exult, and all trees of the forest rejoice. (Psalm 96:11-12)

For the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof. (Psalm 24:1)

Give thanks, sun and moon; praise God, shining stars! Fire and hail, snow and frost, stormy wind fulfilling God’s command! Mountains and hills, fruit trees and cedars! Beasts and cattle, creeping things and flying birds! Let all praise the name of your Maker. (Psalm 148:3, 7-10, 13)

The heavens are telling the glory of God. (Psalm 19:1)

Why then is there no faithfulness or mercy, no knowledge of God? Lo, the envoys of peace weep bitterly and the land mourns. From every house framed in greed, the stone cries out from the wall and the beam from the woodwork responds. (Hosea 4:1, 3; Isaiah 33:7, 9, 10; Habakkuk 2:9-11)

If you defile the land, it will vomit you out. (Leviticus 18:28)

Nevertheless, the days are coming, says the Beloved, when the mountains shall drip sweet wine. On that day I will make a covenant with the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the creeping things of the ground; and I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and make you lie down in safety. (Amos 9:13; Hosea 2:18)

You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills will burst into song, and all the trees will clap their hands. (Isaiah 55:12)

Ask the animals, and they will teach you; the birds of the air, and they will tell you; ask the plants of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. In God’s hand is the life of every living thing. (Job 12:7-8, 10)

Give applause and acclaim to the bounteous Name who grants beauty its grandeur and fame!

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org.

May the Blessed One grant you the desire of your heart and hoist your hands in praise.

May you be like a tree planted by the water, whose roots know neither thirst nor famine,

Whose leaves blossom fearless against the threat of heat, whose fruit ripen with succulent joy.

For I know the plans I have for you, says the Beloved, plans to prosper, not peril;

Plans for radiant light and sheltering night; no scorching heat or terror’s blight.

Your Future calls you by name.

May the Christ who lightens every burden, and heightens every cheer, be ever-near, ever-here, no matter the road’s rutted way, no matter the journey’s bitter dismay.

Taste and see that the Lord is good, Who prepares both banquet and abiding shelter.

Hear the well-wishing of Heaven’s delight, and the Glory framing your countenance.

Listen for that which no libelous tongue can say nor grief-plugged ear can hear:

The One who suckles you and savors you and thrills at the sound of your beating heart—this One knows your need and will bleed in your defense.

Stand on this Rock against every turbulent sea and threatening gale.

Your Safe Harbor awaits your return from every raging storm.

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. Inspired by Psalm 20:4, Jeremiah 17:7-8, Jeremiah 29:11, Matthew 11:28-30, Psalm 34:8, Numbers 6:24-26.

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

It is to You, beloved Shepherd, that I entrust my every need.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters.

You invite me to lounge in verdant fields of splendid yield. You bid me rest and from your breast flow gentle streams, refreshing every faint and fretful soul.

He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

In beauty you lead me according to the bounty of your Name.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

Even through darkest fright of endless night, no threat shall confound or control me.

For thou are with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Unwavering is your presence. Confiding is your guiding staff. Restoring is your wrathless rod.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.

Your banquet feast for every least and longing heart brings respite from fearsome foes.

Thou anoinest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

The very hairs of my head arise to your caress, and my cup of provision knows no end.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.

Your extravagant welcome and manifold mercy shall track my every step, whether wandering nigh or distant afar, whether lit by sun or dimly-seen star.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

And surely, ever surely—with confidence bestowed—the Most High’s habitation will be my abode.

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org.

“I’m really tired of your smells and bells
           and frills and thrills.”
From the hollow of the Most High thunders the
complaint of Heaven against every piety peddler.

“Tired of your sanctimonious pomp and long-winded
     prayers; tired of your self-serving petitions
           for a downtown parking space.”

Good God a’Mighty, when we say our hail marys,
     our thank-you-jesuses and our god-bless-americas—
           why don’t you tip your hat and offer a prize?!

“Your prayer breakfasts don’t cut it, given the way you
     treat school teachers and ICE-hounded immigrants.”

You really want to galvanize Good-God attention?
You really want the Vindicator’s might to dispel every
blight, every menace and every fret, every poacher, every threat?

Here’s a hint: Undo your oppressive laws, and give the
     sinned-against a break.

Share your meal-ticketed fortune with the beggar-bowled;
     unlock the doors of warm houses for the frostbitten.

God just might bless such an America, and light might
     break through from your darkest cell blocks.

Maybe then your decayed cities will be rebuilt;
           your makers and takers find a common future.
                       E pluribus unum, y’all.

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. Inspired by Isaaiah 58. ICE – acronymn for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. federal government.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all
     that is within me, bless God’s Holy Name.
Bless your Harbored Hope,
oh harrowed heart, and forget not
     the Anchor of your mooring.

The One who formed you has not forsaken;
     your failures no longer define.
As far as the east lies from the west,
     farther still shall our sins be removed.

The bridge of grace,
     unhinged by rage,
           will be restored.

Now parched with fear, your withered throat
     shall be quenched with a torrent of goodness.
Your fractured limbs and frail bodies
     are destined for healing relief.
Vindication is coming, you victims of torture!
The blaze of Heaven marks the way to mercy.

The One we adore is mercy-full and gracious,
     slow to anger and confounding with love.
God will not always accuse nor foment in anger.
God has no score to settle, no payback to unleash.

Like a father rejoicing in wombish disclosure,
     like a mother’s delight
     in her newborn’s first wail,
So your Maker exults in each heart’s full exposure
     to reverent ovation and wonder’s avail.

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. Inspired by Psalm 103:1-14.

As people of faith gather for prayer and praise, the first act is that of interrogation.

How long, oh Beloved, will you permit envy and enmity to choke the soil of our land and souls?

Why are the righteous silenced, the truth-tellers scorned?

Speak, oh Confidence of the Ages.

Train your eyes on our brittle bones and hungry hearts.

Draw near, You from whose womb earth was birthed and bathed in mercy.

Our land shakes and shatters under the weight of its discord; the sky wails and the sea churns.

Remind us again, oh maker of peace, oh drier of tear and calmer of storm, that lion and lamb share a common destiny.

Remind us again, that all is Yours and Love secures.

And now prepare, prepare, prepare ye the Way of the Lord!

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. Inspired by Psalm 82.

Turning from darkness (death) to light (life) is a major theme in Scripture. But there is also a minority report, where darkness and shadow are the place of God’s abiding Presence.

Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry; give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit. Guard me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings. (Psalm 17:1, 8)

How precious is your steadfast love, O God! All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings. (Psalm 36:7)

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, until the destroying storms pass by. (Psalm 57:1)

O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast, and my mouth praises you with joyful lips when I meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy. (Psalm 63:1, 5-8)

You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.” For God will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and under God’s wings you will find refuge. You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day, or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday. God will command the angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. “I will protect those who know my name. When they call to me, I will answer them.” (Psalm 91:1-3, 5-6, 15-16)

They shall again live beneath my shadow, they shall flourish as a garden; they shall blossom like the vine, their fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon. (Hosea 14:7)

For a significant part of the ancient Hebrews’ history, Egypt was the world’s sole superpower. Abiding in God’s “shadow” contrasts with such political allegiance:

Oh, rebellious children, says the Lord, who carry out a plan, but not mine; who make an alliance, but against my will; who set out to go down to Egypt without asking for my counsel, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt. Therefore the protection of Pharaoh shall become your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt your humiliation. For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength. (Isaiah 30:1, 3, 15)

Zechariah, father of John the Baptizer in his song of praise when Elizabeth gave birth, made this prediction: “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." (Luke 1:78-79)

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. 

Background: There are two great ironies behind the “Liberty Bell,” associated with the founding convictions of the United States of America and inscribed with the phrase “Proclaim liberty throughout the land and unto the inhabitants thereof.” The reference, from Leviticus 25:10, is a text that stipulates profound social renewal as part of God’s covenant with the Hebrew people, requiring the forgiveness of debt, reclamation of ancestral lands and the release of slaves every fifty years.

It is ironic, first, because the bell’s tolling to announce the opening of the first Continental Congress in 1774 was preface to the nation-building policies that enshrined slavery as a legal form of commerce. Indeed, throughout human history the lure of commercial gain often trumps humane political aspirations.

A second irony is that the bell, originally referred to as the “Independence Bell,” did not assume its current name until 1837 when it was adopted by the American Anti-Slavery Society as a symbol of the abolitionist movement.

Let praise leap from the lungs, ascend the throat, rattle the teeth and flutter the tongue. The Blessed Haunt of Zion calls out to all flesh. To this Embrace, everything that has breath shall come. The God who lingers in slave quarters assails every Pharaoh’s palace:

Let my people go! Proclaim liberty throughout the land!

Independence from the Reign of Death has been declared! The boundaries of transgression have been breached. The Liberty Bell of Creation echoes across the hills and plains. The God who forges a people of redemption sets the covenant of freedom as the bond of bounty:

Proclaim liberty throughout the land!

The very edges of the earth hear the sound of God’s Rousing. The sun’s rising is a gateway for the Beloved’s Voice, and the evening stars burst into freedom song. The God who waters the earth and sprouts abundant harvest, who clothes the meadow and silences the roaring sea, makes this demand of every citizen of Mercy:

Proclaim liberty throughout the land!

Let no one lift a coin of gold and say, “In God We Trust.” The shekel’s rule and the shackle’s restraint shall feel the wrath of the One who sets prisoners free. In this confidence, sing and shout together, lift every voice and sing:

Proclaim liberty throughout the land!

©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. Inspired by Psalm 65, for a worship service focused on the U.S. “Independence Day” holiday on 4 July.