X

New every morning is your love, great God of light, and all day long you are working for good in the world. Stir up in us desire to serve you, to live peacefully with our neighbors and all your creation, and to devote each day to your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

"A Liturgy for Morning Prayer," Upper Room Worshipbook

Used by permission from the Book of Common Worship, © 2018 Westminster John Knox Press. All rights reserved. This prayer appears in “A Liturgy for Morning Prayer” in Upper Room Worshipbook.

 

Today’s Reflection

I found it painful to remember these activities and feelings, yet the memories filled me then and fill me now with an overwhelming sense of gratitude.

Perhaps this gratitude carried the beginning of the healing of grief with it. I do not recall having ever been so completely grateful for my mother’s life, her being, or her gifts in this way. It was like sunlight on a warm field, a hot meal in a safe place on a cold day, a soaking in of summer beauty complete with a breeze. It involved the limbering up of stiffened muscles, the waking from sleep. Gratitude works like this.

—Roberta C. Bondi, Wild Things: Poems of Grief and Love, Loss and Gratitude (Upper Room Books, 2014)

Today’s Question

Have you ever noticed gratitude in the midst of grief? Join the conversation.

Today’s Scripture

[Jesus said,] “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”
—Matthew 5:4 (NRSVUE)

Prayer for the Week

Creator God, as you draw us closer to you, draw us closer to each other. Amen.
Submit your prayer to The Upper Room.

Something More

Advent is just around the corner. In Season’s Greetings, twelve vividly imagined letters from long-ago Bible characters who were there for the birth of Jesus speak to the many meanings of Christmas.
Learn more here.

Lectionary Readings

  • Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17
  • Psalm 127
  • Hebrews 9:24-28
  • Mark 12:38-44

Read the lectionary texts courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library here.

Looking for lectionary-based resources? Learn more about The Upper Room Disciplines.

2 Comments

  • robert moeller Posted November 5, 2024 5:33 am

    Yes, I was and still am very grateful for my parents. In different ways both cared for me..
    My wife and I were married for 23 years when she suddenly, unexpectedly passed away.
    The autopsy showed that nothing humanly possible could have been done. I’m very thankful for the time we had together. Good memories are very strong. Thank You, Lord.

  • Ally Posted November 5, 2024 9:20 pm

    I felt immense gratitude for my mama and daddy as I grieved for them when they passed. They gave my sister and me so much love. The grief we felt was because we loved them. It is Late in the evening. I pray for the nation. Lord, may compassion and love prevail.

Add Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *