Matt and Michelle Norman
CBF Field Personnel in Barcelona, Spain
The following is a prayer that I (Matt) wrote recently, and I continue to pray personally and use in the various ministries in which we are involved in Spain and Europe. The prayer emerged from a conversation with the leadership team of a ministry called Mosaic that Michelle and I helped start in the Barcelona area. Mosaic is a ministry that seeks to offer a safe place for those who have questions about God, faith, life and how we can live our faith practically. At the core of Mosaic is the belief that God is ministering in the world and that each and every one of us is called to discern how God is present and to respond. Mosaic is structured to help those who participate to develop theological discernment and enable and encourage each person to practice his or her ability to respond to God in their everyday lives.
The Beauty of the Lord Our God Is with Us
In faith, we know that the beauty of the Lord our God is with us.
We seek glimpses of you as we roam about the neighborhood.
We seek glimpses of you as we listen to news reports from places not so far.
We dispose ourselves to your encounter.
We risk ourselves to your encounter.
We commit ourselves to that which we do not know fully.
We welcome you and the transformation that will occur.
Give us eyes to see and ears to hear.
With all our being, we wait for the Lord!
We rise and prepare for the day; we journey forward in hope.
We wait for the Lord in anticipation while continuing onward faithfully.
Our hope rests in the Lord!
We practice an active receptivity, and a receptive activity.
And when we realize you are here—before us, behind us, with us—we take off our shoes.
Out of the depths of covid we have cried to you.
Out of the depths of war we now cry to you.
With our whole hearts we have praised and questioned you.
O Lord, you hear our voices. You go before us into the future.
We will trust in the Lord.
We will hope in the Lord.
Lord, you have always given bread for the coming day; help us to do likewise.
Lord, you have always given strength for the coming day; help us to give likewise.
Lord, you have always given peace for the coming day; help us to be a people of peace.
Lord, you have always gone before us into the coming day; help us to follow as your people,
help us to be present.
We believe these things will continue God, for you are faithful.
We believe Lord. Help our unbelief. Amen.
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.