We thank you, God, for the month of May, with all of its incredible beauty – with the buds, the blossoms, the flowers, the lushness of our yards, the singing of the birds and the warmer weather. Every morning feels like a gift.
Lord, we thank you this day for our mothers, or the women in our life that mothered us well. Thank you for the ones that stepped in when our own moms needed support. Thank you for grandmothers and aunts, for older sisters and for the teachers who encouraged us, cheered for us and cared for us.
We also acknowledge that many of us find this day hard. So hard.
For those who have lost their mom and feel her absence, we pray for your peace.
For those who have a broken relationship with their mother, for reasons too difficult to explain, we pray for your touch.
We pray for the moms of littles who are exhausted and tapped out, unable to find even a minute to themselves – may you be their strength.
We pray for those who ache to hold a little one of their own, and are not yet able to…. and for those who mothered a little one… but that child is no longer with them. Hold them in their grief.
We pray for empty-nesting moms whose hearts sometimes ache with the loneliness of a house that feels too quiet.
We ask for the mother who feels rejected by her children, that You would walk close to her and know that she is fully accepted by You.
We pray for the moms who care for special needs children and the challenges that come with that.
We pray for the moms of prodigals, of addicts, of rogues and rebels, as they pray and wait for change.
We lift up the women in Ukraine, Sudan and in other war-torn regions of the world as they mother their children through violence and war.
We also pray for indigenous women who mother in the face of incredibly difficult circumstances.
Lord, you know all the broken bits and pieces of our stories… and You meet us in those places that hurt. Thank you for being a God who draws close.
Not only that, but You are a God who mothers us… you draw us with your compassion, your care, your grace, your tender love. Like a mother hen, you want to gather us close under your feathers. You long to soothe our broken hearts and our aching spirits with your arms of Love.
God, may you bind broken hearts this day, release us from darkness…. may you comfort those who mourn, and provide for those who grieve. Would you bestow upon them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. (from Is.61)
Heart Murmurs 