#89: That I May Find You There

This is a very earnest prayer, a prayer of one who is earnestly seeking the will of God in his life and wants to be sent to the least, the last, and the lost. Pray that you may have the heart to have that today. If you are afraid, pray that you have the courage to pray this to God. That you may have an inkling of desire to reach out to the least, the last, and the lost of society.

Lord of All nations,
I asked how you will know me.

You answered that you will know the ones who have fed you
When they have fed the least of your people.

Send me out to the most famished land
That I may find you there
And give of my portion to eat.

You answered that you will know the ones who have given you water
When they have given water to the least of your people.

Send me out to the driest land
That I may find you there
And give of my portion to drink.

You answered that you will know the ones who have clothed you
When they have clothed the least of your people.
Send me where the elements have made too large a claim
That I may find you there
And share with you my cloak.

You told me that I will know you in the sick
Send me among the most plagued.

You told me that I will know you in the prisoner:
Send me into the midst of the darkest cell,
Into the slave master’s marketplace,
For I seek you with all my heart.
As you were revealed in your glory to all nations
Through the miracle of the Epiphany

May you be so revealed through all ages in the faces of your people:
In their joy and in their struggle.
In their dignity and in their vulnerability.
And when I find you in these,
Let them ask who is this Lord who has sent me,
So that they may find you in me as well.

Amen.

From CRS.ORG