Thursday, March 4, 2010

Praying and Patiently (maybe) waiting.

I suppose it's very appropriate that we are in the season of Lent, and that we are encouraged to be in deep prayer and reflection at this time in the church year. As we pray and journey towards Holy Week, towards Good Friday and then the joy of Easter, I also await and journey in my own life and candidacy process.

As an assigned candidate for ordained ministry in the ELCA, I'm waiting to find out which Synod I will have my first call in. I was assigned to Region 7, the region which spans from SE Pennsylvania, to NE Penn, NJ, NY, and New England. I was overjoyed at the prospect of being closer to home again, at being able to drive home at holidays rather then fly. So now I wait, until March 14th, when the Bishops from Region 7 gather together with us, interview us (speed dating basically) and then make their decision by the close of the day.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't anxious. I want to know where my life is headed, I want to begin to anticipate the environment that I will be a pastor within. I'm being human, and needy. I want to be able to start viewing my future, and mostly I want to go where I want to be. And this is the hardest part, and a good lesson for me. As the song goes, "you don't always get what you want," and that is possible in this case. It's possible that God has a different plan for me then what I have in mind, and it's most likely the truth. I feel called to Metro NY, I think my gifts will be well used in urban ministry there, and that is what I am keep in prayer. I'm praying that I will be sent where I am needed, and that I will be able to get over my own wants and desires, and see that I was placed exactly where I was meant to be.

So please, keep me in prayer on this journey, and I will keep you up to date.

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posted by Dana @ 5:11 PM 0 Comments

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Prayers that tugged at my heart.

So during Advent, we made this prayer chain, and over the weeks following Advent we had been taking pieces of the chain off and using them during the intercessory prayers on Sundays.

As I went through these, there are several I pulled out that tugged at my heart, and truly illustrate what the kids in this neighborhood go through, and how powerfully they see God in their lives and need God in their lives. I want to share them, and hope that you will see their power as well.


1. I pray that I live to see another day and I pray that some day my mom won't give up on me.

2. I pray that my broken heart can get healed and I can stop thinking about the one I gave my heart and gift to.

3. Me.

4. All my close friends and enemies.

5. I pray that I can go to Prom because this is my first one.

6. I pray that my mom could get some help with paying the bills and with us, she can't do it alone.

7. Gay pride.

8. Safer streets in all cities.

9. I would like to pray on my life and that I won't be homeless by January.


There were many many more prayers, but these are the ones I knew were written by the youth, and that made me cry each time I read them. The children of the church and of the cities are in need of help, they need people to support them, to show them love (because they don't always get it at home) and to listen to their fears, because they are real. Many of these children try to find that somewhere, and end up in gangs or as prositutes, so I would encourage everyone to reach out and care, take a child into your heart, and offer them a safe place that they can talk and be a kid.

I pray that all these children's prayers are answered, and that they feeling the healing presence of God in their lives, supported by people who care.

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posted by Dana @ 9:27 AM 0 Comments