Luke 15:31

"My son,” the father said, “you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”

Lord, fill us today with

the breath of Your spirit.

Stretch our souls

past capacity,

and make room there

for empathy and compassion.

Give us an unquenchable

thirst for justice.

Fill us with Your Holy righteous fire.

Lord, sometimes it is so hard to breathe.

The air here is gray and polluted,

filled with hate and selfish anger.

The air is thick and heavy, dripping

with bitterness and resentment,

and it is impossible to breathe

and keep our spirits healthy.

Lord, we are Your heirs.

We are Your sole heirs,

Your soul heirs, blessed

to receive Your spirit

in the event of Your death.

We live today because You died.

We live today because You rose.

We live today because we know

to turn to You when we cannot breathe,

to turn to You when the world itself

gasps for breath and cries out in pain.

Fill us today, Lord, with Your breath.

Fill us today, Lord, with Your spirit.

Give us the strength to carry on.

Give us Your strength, Lord,

so that we may pick each other up,

lift each other up and walk in the way

of the Spirit, this day and always.

Amen.