Perplex our Spirits: A Prayer for Pentecost 2021
Oh Spirit of God-
who moves us in ways we cannot control,
who leads us to places we never dreamed-
We cry out to you this Pentecost Day,
for you to ignite the fires of possibility,
to stir up the winds of change.
Amidst the disruptions and rumblings of this past year,
we don’t want the upended fragments of our lives
to settle back into the status quo.
We don’t want for things to “return to normal.”
So come-
like a burning fire,
consume all sense of normalcy based on status quo
and rekindle Heaven’s sense of what is possible
Come-
like a rushing wind,
scatter our impulses toward violence and scarcity,
fear, greed, and hierarchy
to the farthest corners of the earth
Come-
like new breath in our lungs,
swelling our bodies with the force of life,
an unwavering cadence claiming that
our lives are seen as sacred,
our beloved siblings are worthy of flourishing.
Come-
like a long awaited dove,
leading us to a world where
elders walk our streets in peace,
children laugh and play in joy,
wars are a distant memory
and police are no more.
Pour out on us
Your intoxicating Presence,
filling us with dreams of new creation
so wild and unrecognizable
that the world can only fathom we are drunk.
Help us in the waiting,
and perplex our spirits by your Spirit,
so that we might bear witness
to God’s amazing deeds of power,
just as our ancestors did.
Amen.
