Sunday, December 30, 2012

Les Mis

Dear God,
Thank you for moments when we can find you in movies, in the media. Thank you that there are still people who believe it's important to include you and to include faith. Today my prayer is borrowed:

God on high, hear my prayer. In my need, you have always been there. She is young, she's afraid, let her rest heaven blessed. Bring her peace, bring her joy. She is young, just a child. You can take, you can give. Let her be, let her live.

Amen.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Home

Dear God,
Caroline talks a lot about home these days. She shouts out 'home!' when we're out and she's ready to come back. Sometimes it's a question "hooome?" as we're driving through the neighborhood. Most commonly it's an exclamation as we pull into the driveway "HOME!". That's right baby, we're home. This Christmas I've thought a lot about home, and what it means to Be Home. When CC talks about home, all she means is 'our place' - she has no concept of what state we're in, what our property taxes are, how long we plan to be here - it's just home. Tonight God my prayer  is that home is always such a simple concept for her. Let her always find home so easily in her life. God please show us how to make our home a place that she wants to exclaim over, and please fill our home with grace, patience, laughter, joy, love, and humility.

Thank you Lord for our home, that we may never take it for granted. Thank you for our girl.
Amen.

Monday, December 24, 2012

Light

Dear God,
You call us to be the light of the world, and tonight my prayer is that you give Caroline a bright light. God please make her into the kind of woman who shines light into dark places, shows light to those who need it and can always find the comfort of your spirit in the light she holds inside of her. Thank you for our girl, and the promise you gave us in your own son.

Amen.

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Bells

Dear God,
Tonight we took Caroline on her first train ride, a Christmas train ride on an old train with a steam engine. It was so exciting to experience the ride by looking at her - watching her get excited about the steam, about the people, the noises, the whistles. On the ride she was given a jingle bell - and she loved it. She played with it all the way home. Tonight my prayer is simply a prayer of thanks for the crisp, clean sound of bells, for the joy the noise brought to my sweet child, for the time we had on the train together. God thank you for our family, please never let me take these moments for granted, please always show me how to find joy the way she does in the smallest things.

Amen.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Mental Illness

Dear God,
There have been a few tragic events recently in our country that are related to people suffering from mental illness. The stories are so sad, so deep, so desperate. Today my prayer is that you spare Caroline from any form of mental illness. Please protect her, and help us teach her healthy habits in life, including how to ask for help. God please be here with us, please show us how to affect change in our world.

Amen.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Christmas

Dear God,
We are gearing up for Christmas at our house. We're wrapping gifts and putting them under the tree, Dan asks each evening if anything arrived in the mail with his name on it. It's all fun - looking forward to our celebration together. This morning God I pray that you make us mindful of the real reason we celebrate Christmas, and that we raise Caroline in a home where that's clear, where you and your son are the focal point of Christmas, and the fun traditions surrounding the holiday are on the back burner. God please give us the words to start talking to her this year about the miracle of Christmas.

Amen.

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Am I asking for too much?

Dear God,
So many of the things I ask of you for Caroline are antithetical. My requests feel selfish, as if I'm asking that you give her everything and then the ability to keep it all in balance. I realized this morning, as I prayed to you that it IS selfish, and that I do want so much for Caroline, I want her to live an abundant life full of layers and fascinating complexity. I also know that you have the power to give it all to her and teach her how to handle it. Recently I've been praising you for Caroline's increasing independence, for all of the things she's learning how to do on her own - today's prayer seems to rise from that increasing independence. Today I ask that you instill in Caroline a desire to cooperate. Sometimes her independence, her strong will keep her from cooperating with me and with Dan. That can cause frustration in all of us, and I know that what we need from her is more cooperation. So God, please grow that in Caroline, and show me how to encourage it in her.

Thank you Lord for hearing all of my prayers, even when they're contradictory, even when I'm asking for the whole world.

Amen.

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Cheering for herself

Dear God,
Caroline's showing interest in potty training, and today she tried. When she finished trying, she clapped and cheered for herself. Thank you for her sweet, happy nature that's so self-supportive! God I pray that she continues to be so encouraging of herself, so proud of herself over the years. I fear that as a young girl its entirely too easy to lose that confidence, so I pray that you keep it too deeply rooted to fade.

Amen.