Tag Archive for "meditation for today"

Posts Tagged ‘meditation for today’

Words of Medicine

Posted on: November 13th, 2024 by Alden

A prayer-poem about being at a loss for words to share with God in these difficult times. Somehow, this meditation manages to return to hope; or, at least, what I call ‘the hope for hope.’

Words of Medicine
A long time
Has passed
Since I felt
Close to God.
And now
I have nothing
Left to say.
We sit together
In silence,
And I understand
That God, too,
Has nothing
Left to say.

Maybe tomorrow,
Or the tomorrow
After that,
We will speak
Together
In whispers
And prayers,
Gently hoping
To find words
Of medicine
As gifts
For one another.

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Postscript: With joy and curiousity, I’ve followed a poetic dialogue on Facebook, a conversation in poetry about communication with God. It began with Evan Schultz, who wrote about text messages from God, dedicating it to Menachem Creditor. Then Hanna Yerushalmi added her voice, then Emma Gotlieb, then Julie Brandon. (I hope that’s everyone..) It’s been tremendous to experience this call and response poetry. This is my addition to the poetic dialogue.

Please check out my latest volume Enter These Gates: Meditations for the Days of Awe and my other CCAR Press books: These Words: Poetic Midrash on the Language of Torah, This Grateful Heart, This Joyous Soul, and This Precious Life, which can also be purchased as the Grateful/Joyous/Precious trilogy. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines, 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. For a taste of my teaching, see my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer.”

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Photo by Alden Solovy

This Day, Revised

Posted on: August 7th, 2019 by Alden

Here’s a meditation about living a life of love and honor in service to G-d and the world. It is offered now as a balm in the face of a difficult week of mass shootings in the U.S. The first two stanzas pose questions: “What do I ask of this day?” and “What does this day ask of me?” This revised version adds a final stanza, in the tradition of Jewish prayer, restating and strengthening the core message.

This Day, Revised
What do I ask of this day?

Joy and laughter.
Kindness and grace.
To live with dignity and compassion,
Humility and strength.
Work. Honest Labor.
A job. A livelihood.
Food. Clothing. Shelter.
Gratitude and hope.
Love and contentment.

What does this day ask of me?

Humor and wonder.
Forgiveness and surrender.
To act with reverence and respect.
To be awake and alive
With passion and commitment.
Justice. Righteousness. Charity.
Integrity and honor.
Gratitude and hope.
Love and contentment.

G-d of blessings,
Let me be a source of peace,
A beacon of comfort,
And a well of blessings,
This day,
And every day,
In service to Your world.

Postscript: The original version of this prayer was first posted here on Nov. 27, 2011. Here are more brief prayers for the day: “Quick Meditation for Today,” “Quick Meditation at Noon,” “Your Name: Quick Prayer at Dusk” and “Quick Meditation at Night.”

Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and my two CCAR Press books: This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings 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.

Image Source: WikiMedia Commons

Being Present

Posted on: May 30th, 2012 by tobendlight

Here’s a prayer about living fully, being present in the moment. This piece appears in This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings from CCAR Press.

Being Present
G-d, help me live this day
In a way that draws Your favor,
That summons
Your gifts and Your blessings,
That attracts holiness and light.

Give me courage and strength,
Hope and understanding.

Help me to be present in my life.
Help me be present in my day.
Help me be present for others.
Help me be present for myself.

Let me live awake and aware,
Vital and energetic,
Casting off the chains of doubt and fear.

G-d of hidden worlds,
G-d of secret realms,
G-d of trial and triumph,
You have given me moments and choices,
Hours and opportunities,
Days to build
And days to renew.
Let me live this day with wisdom,
Awake to the moments of healing,
Dedicating my hands and my heart
To the work of creation.

And Your gifts will appear quietly,
Gently,
Sweet like morning dew
To refresh my heart.

Postscript: This prayer echoes the themes of my three-part meditation about the rhythm and flow of life. These meditations are written to be recited in order: “Leaving,” “Arriving” and “Now.”

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 credit: Vionnaswatching

This Day

Posted on: November 27th, 2011 by tobendlight

Here’s another prayer about living a life of love and honor in service to G-d and the world. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below (website only). The text follows.

This Day
What do I ask of this day?

What does this day ask of me?

Postscript: Here are more brief prayers for the day: “Quick Meditation for Today,” “Quick Meditation at Noon,” “Your Name: Quick Prayer at Dusk” and “Quick Meditation at Night.”

If you like this prayer, post a link to your Facebook page, your blog or as part of a tweet. And don’t forget to click “like” on this page. Thanks. Please subscribe. For reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!”

Posts Tagged ‘meditation for today’

Words of Medicine

This Day, Revised

Being Present

This Day

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