Friday’s Poetic Pause: by Ted Loder

Empower me
to be a bold participant,
rather than a timid saint in waiting,
in the difficult ordinariness of now;
to exercise the authority of honesty;
rather than defer to power,
or deceive to get it;
to influence someone for justice,
rather than impress anyone for gain;
and, by grace, to find treasures
of joy, of friendship, of peace
hidden in the fields of the daily
you give me to plow.

~Ted Loder, from Wrestling the Light: Ache and Awe in the Human-Divine Struggle

I recommend wholeheartedly Ted’s books, which offer poetry/prose/prayer hybrids that uplift the soul, regardless of your faith background. Another favorite of mine is Guerillas of Grace: Prayers for the Battle.

To read more about Ted, see links here and here. He blogs at: http://tedloder.blogspot.com/.

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