Tag Archive for "gifts" | To Bend Light

Posts Tagged ‘gifts’

For Endurance

Posted on: June 9th, 2011 by tobendlight

This short prayer incorporates the theme of the morning blessing Asher Yatzar, thanking G-d for the complexity of the human body. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below (website only). The text follows.

For Endurance
My body is a mystery.
So strong, so fragile.
It can suffer great pain,
Endure to reach triumph,
But a small moment can bring collapse and death.

My body is a mystery,
A gift of intricacy and beauty.
Powerful,
Endowed with the ability to take light and air and food
And make them into energy and action.

What then is my life?
How then will I use this gift?

I will thank You for Your kindness and abundance.
I will treasure the moments of strength and vigor.
I will surrender to moments of weakness and distress.

G-d, who provides sustenance and health,
You are the Source of Life.

Postscript: Here’s another alternative for use in morning prayer, “Morning Blessings.”

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For Service

Posted on: June 6th, 2011 by tobendlight

A prayer about living a life of service. It appears in my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing. I have also selected it for use during week six of Counting the Omer. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

For Service
G-d of our fathers,
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
G-d of our mothers,
Sarah, Rebekah, Leah and Rachel,
Open my heart to serve others
With joy and thanksgiving.
Remove ego, judgment and self-will
So that I am present with kindness and understanding.
Make me a tool of Your hand,
An echo of Your voice,
And a shining lamp of Your love.
Grant me the wisdom to offer myself willingly, without fear.
Fill me with compassion and grace,
Vitality and endurance,
So that my service becomes a blessing
In heaven and on earth.

Blessed are You, G-d of Old,
You set Your people on a noble path,
To serve with love.

Postscript: Other prayers that touch on the theme of service include: “Giving Thanks,” “To Hear Your Voice” and “To Know Your Word.”

Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Source: A Project for Kindness

Offerings

Posted on: May 22nd, 2011 by tobendlight

In this simple set of rhythmic, parallel verses we affirm the connection between G-d’s gifts and our responses. The result is hope for a lasting dialogue with G-d. In communal worship this can be used as a congregational mediation or it can be read responsively. I use this prayer during week five of counting the Omer. It appears in This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Offerings
When G-d offers love, I offer my heart.
When G-d offers wisdom, I offer my mind.

When G-d offers beauty, I offer my senses.
When G-d offers silence, I offer my patience.

When G-d offers challenge, I offer my strength.
When G-d offers trial, I offer my faith.

When G-d offers pain, I offer my dignity.
When G-d offers fear, I offer my courage.

When G-d offers grief, I offer my endurance.
When G-d offers shame, I offer my amends.

When G-d offers death, I offer my mourning.
When G-d offers life, I offer my rejoicing.

When G-d offers joy, I offer my thanksgiving.
When G-d offers awe, I offer my wonder.

When G-d offers righteousness, I offer my blessings.
When G-d offers holiness, I offer my praise.

Postscript: Other prayers about G-d’s gifts include: “This Bounty,” “These Blessings” and “In Plain Sight.” This “Meditation After the Yom Kippur Vidui” is also about offering ourselves in service to G-d.

Photo Credit: The Word in Hebrew

G-d’s Plan: An Introspection

Posted on: May 14th, 2011 by tobendlight

A prayer/poem about surrender, about the dance of grief and joy, the paradox of of love and loss, the duet of doubt and faith, the unbreakable bond between life and death. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows. This prayer appears in my book This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day.

G-d’s Plan: An Introspection
If G-d’s plan
Followed my plan,
I would have no scars on my skin
Or in my heart.

If G-d’s plan
Followed my plan,
I would not have felt the fire or the ice,
Heard the beauty or the terror,
Seen the new bud or the dying leaf.

If G-d’s plan
Followed my plan,
I would not have learned to grieve or to cherish,
To hope or surrender,
To be broken and still be whole.

What, then, keeps me locked in fear,
In dread of yielding to Your great works,
Your awesome love,
Your radiant power?
What small desire,
Petty hope –
What yearning of self –
Blocks my service in G-d’s holy name?

G-d on high,
Release me from my judgments and designs.
Open my heart to You fully,
Without reservation.
Cast out my doubts and shames,
To receive Your divine wisdom and strength.

G-d of All Being,
Wise and true,
Make my limbs Your tools and
My voice Your messenger.
Make my heart Your tabernacle,
A dwelling place of holiness
And splendor.

Postscript: Related prayers include: “This Wound,” “Seeking G-d” and “Near the End: A Meditation.”

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

Transitions

Posted on: May 9th, 2011 by tobendlight

Last night I tossed in bed, half awake, half asleep, in prayer. It wasn’t fun. When I woke, more like emerging from a semi-hypnotic state, my first thought: write that dream as a prayer. It was impossible. Words were the lesser part of the experience. It was an ebb and flow of thoughts, emotions, images, love for my daughters, for my family, for myself, love of G-d, fear and joy, dread and hope, pride and shame, mystery and light. What I captured is my sense of that prayer, which resonates with humility and endurance. The prayer itself is beyond my reach. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Transitions
G-d of sacred moments,
G-d of endings and beginnings,
Hear this prayer for guidance and deliverance
As my life moves in new directions,
Onto new paths,
Into uncertain water.

Grant me courage as an answer to fear,
As the winds blow,
Strength as an answer to doubt,
As the storms gather,
And wisdom as an answer to uncertainty.

Grant me grace in the face of obstacles,
As fires rage,
Patience in the face of detours,
As the earth trembles,
And trust in the face of the unknown.

Grant me joy in my successes,
As the sun warms the land,
Humor in my defeats,
As the cactus opens a flower,
And acceptance throughout my days.

Grant me faith in Your guidance,
As songs lift my heart,
Gratitude for Your works,
As love lifts my life,
And joy in Your gifts.

G-d of Old,
Rock and Shelter,
My time is a blink,
My journey a puff of wind,
My life fragile and fleeting.
Therefore,
G-d of Secrets,
Grant me delight,
Luminous, majestic delight,
In using these blessings
In service to Your Holy Name.

Postscript: I use this prayer for the 26th day of counting the Omer. My other prayers about transitions include three favorites: “Leaving,” “River” and “Rhythms.”

Photo Credit: NOAA Photo Library

This Bounty

Posted on: April 14th, 2011 by tobendlight

This prayer celebrates G-d’s bounty and grace, making it a lovely prayer for both Sukkot and Thanksgiving. It will appear in This Grateful Heart, my forthcoming from CCAR Press.

This Bounty
G-d of abundance,
You have blessed me
With Your bounty
Your love,
Your grace,
The treasures of Your creation.

In gratitude for these gifts,
Holy One,
Bless me with wisdom
To use them with skill,
In service to Your holy name.

Bless me with humility
To use them with joy
In service to Your creation.

Bless me with a generous heart
And a forgiving hand
In service to Your commandments.

Bless me with a strong arm
And a curious mind
In the name of tikkun olam.

Bless me with gentle speech
And joyous laughter,
So that all my works
Summon holiness into Your world.

Then, Rock of Israel,
I will honor Your glorious gifts
With all my being.

Blessed are You, Adonai our G-d,
Your bounty calls us to service.

Postscript: Here are a few prayers with a similar theme: “Life as A Banquet,” “These Blessings” and “Giving Thanks.” And If you would, please put in a quick prayer for Dana, Marty and me. Thanks.

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Photo Source: WikiMedia Commons

Sing Hallelujah

Posted on: April 9th, 2011 by tobendlight

To sing as an expression of G-d’s love and G-d’s gifts, that is to Sing Hallelujah. This and a companion prayer, “Dance Hallelujah,” would fit well into the Hallel section of your Passover Seder. To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Sing Hallelujah
Hallelujah
A hymn of glory,
A chant of praise,
A song of thanksgiving.
Voices raised, hearts to heaven.
Lungs full and strong.
A breath, a note, a lyric, a tune.
A call of love,
An echo of truth,
Resounding with joy and praise.

Let my hopes carry me toward wondrous deeds.
Let my heart lift me toward sacred wisdom.
Let my breath lead me to majestic truth.
Let my words exalt Your Holy Name.

Hallelujah
A song of hope,
A harmony of justice,
A chorus of mercy.

G-d of Miriam,
Prophet who danced by the sea,
Teach me the song of life,
Of dedication and zeal,
Of wonder and glory.
Teach me to sing my Hallelujah.
Teach me to live my Hallelujah.
A song of righteousness.
A song of thanksgiving.
A song for the generations.

Postscript: Here are links to related prayers: “For the Gift of Song,” “For the Gift of Dance” and “For the Gift of Music.” Please take a look at my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

Click here for a list of prayers that would make lovely additions to a Seder.

Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. Connect with To Bend Light on Facebook and on Twitter.

Let Love

Posted on: April 6th, 2011 by tobendlight

What if we could embody love? Love would light up our days, our lives and the lives of those around us. Together, we could light up the world. This is from a series of prayers that invokes a prophetic voice, the voice of spiritual challenge, calling on us to embody all that is good. The series includes “Let Truth,” “Let Joy,” “Let Holiness” and “Let Torah.” To listen, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Let Love
Let love wash over your face,
Caress your eyes,
Brush your lips.

Let love pulse through your heart,
Warm your lungs,
Fill your chest.

Let love strengthen your bones,
Ignite your nerves,
Awaken your flesh.

For love is in the air and in the wind,
The current and the waters,
The flow of gifts from G-d’s creation,
Divine bounty and grace,
Calling out to you dear sisters and brothers:
‘Awake you slumberers!
Awake you who walk warily into the day and dejected into the night.
Have you forgotten My gifts and treasures?
Have you forsaken the beauty around you?
Have you surrendered your joy and passion?’

This, then, is G-d’s command:
Let love wash over you,
Pulse through you,
Pour strength into you.
Let love carry you into luminous days
And radiant nights.
Sing and dance,
Laugh and play,
Lifting your life with passion and hope.
Let love be your messenger and your message.

Blessed are You, G-d of love.

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Photo Credit: Epic Love

A Year of Prayer

Posted on: March 22nd, 2011 by tobendlight

Today marks the first anniversary of launching this site. Thank you for your connection and commitment to prayer. Thank you for taking time to read and listen to my words. Here’s a list of just a few of my favorites:

The list represents a nice mix of the styles and voices that I use for writing prayers. So far, this site holds 128 posts, including 114 original prayers and seven short stories. It has 79 subscribers, 283 fans on Facebook and has had nearly 13,000 page views. My hope is that this represents a wonderful, albeit small, start.

How Do You Use These Prayers?
Knowing that these prayers are being used helps to energize my work. Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom, Montreal, includes them in service handouts. Positive Jewish Living, Pastor Austin Fleming, Priest of the Archdiocese of Boston, and Rabbi Paul Kipnes, Congregation Or Ami, Calabasas, CA, have shared my prayers with their readers. Thanks to all of you. How do you use these prayers? What other topics, emotions or moments need to be captured in prayer? What else would you like to see on this site? Please drop me an email or reply to this post.

A Few Words of Thanks
As a result of this site I’ve met amazing people from the Jewish world. I’m touched by everyone who’s reached out to connect. My deepest gratitude for the support of Beth Emet, The Free Synagogue, Evanston, IL. Special thanks to Joe Tye, Michael Greenwald, Rabbi Peter Knobel, Rabbi Andrea London, Larry Kaufman, Brenda Epstein, Beth Schafer, Rabbi Lisa Silverstein Tzur, Andrew Dennen and Tracy Friend for their love and encouragement. If you think you need to be thanked, you probably do and I apologize for missing your name.

Thanks again to all of my readers, partners in prayer.

B’Shalom,

Alden

About Shabbat

Posted on: March 4th, 2011 by tobendlight

This is from a series of prayer/poems in the voice of the one who has a question that doesn’t need an answer. The series includes “About the Rainbow” and “About the Heavens.” Here’s another lovely Sabbath prayer, “For the Arrival of Shabbat,” as well as two stories, “Sarah Rivkah: A Challah Baking Story” and “Mendel Baruch: S’hema on Shabbat.” To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

About Shabbat
Majestic Sovereign,
Well of blessings,
How did You decide
To create heaven and earth?
Was this Your purpose:
To make a world of work,
For us to toil in service?
Did You bring forth a day of rest
As a gift to Your creation?
Or was this Your only option,
After first conceiving
The glory of Shabbat?
Was the Sabbath itself
Your only intention?
Perhaps You summoned
Time and space
Solely to bring forth
The magnificent splendor
Of Shabbat.

Postscript: See also “For the Arrival of Shabbat,” as well as two Shabbat stories, “Sarah Rivkah: A Challah Baking Story” and “Mendel Baruch: S’hema on Shabbat.”

Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo credit: The Little Minyan

Posts Tagged ‘gifts’

For Endurance

For Service

Offerings

G-d’s Plan: An Introspection

Transitions

This Bounty

Sing Hallelujah

Let Love

A Year of Prayer

About Shabbat

“Alden has become one of Reform Judaism’s master poet-liturgists…" - Religion News Service, Dec. 23, 2020

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**"Alden Solovy has become one of the most revered liturgists of the last decade…" - Jewish Post & Opinion, March 29, 2023**

“Alden left everyone feeling inspired.” – Cantor Jeri Robins, Shabbat Chair, NewCAJE6

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