night music prayer

"God of day and God of darkness,
now we stand before the night.
As the shadows stretch and deepen,
come and make our darkness bright.
All creation still is groaning
for the dawning of your might.
When the Sun of peace and justice
fills the earth with radiant light."

-- Marty Haugen

I found this music at RevGalBlogPals: Sunday Afternoon Music Video: God of Day and God of Darkness along with the text above, which may be sung to its melody.  It makes for good night prayer, especially in such times.

My prayer tonight is especially for the people of Japan.  My heart goes out to them, and I think especially of my former students from Japan, some at home and some listening and waiting for news from afar.  I've had news of almost all of them, thanks be to God, but what it must be like... I am reminded so much of the waiting time following the earthquake in Haiti.  The searching for loved ones.  And then the aftermath.  Power and water shortages.  And the piles of rubble everywhere more than a year later.  Japan has more resources, but then, so do we in the US, and we haven't finished cleaning up New Orleans or rebuilt Ground Zero.  Of course, at this point it seems a bit early to think of rebuilding when people are still in shock and trying to contact the missing.   

And we are all still waiting as they try to bring the nuclear reactors under control.  Dangerous work on top of the emotional and physical exhaustion that come from living through disaster.  Further prayers for all of those involved.

Earthquakes, tsunamis, nuclear reactors, political violence, epidemics, and more - so much heartache in the world right now.  Japan.  Haiti. Libya.  So very many places.

The other side of the world seems so close tonight, but as my thoughts are there, I am also very aware that there is hunger and heartache right here at home.  We see it at home in Boston and I see it especially in Chelsea at the well-attended Saturday food pantry and the accompanying breakfast and lunch.

Yet I do firmly believe that all this disaster and pain are not the end of the story.  Just as Good Friday leads to Easter, so we know that none of these events is final, full stop.  There will be new life.  There will be new beauty.  There really is hope.  We just need to respond to God's call to work as well as watch for spring to come out of winter, for life to come out of death.

Perhaps this Lent we will learn to care for each other better as we realize how very connected we all are. 

God of day and God of darkness,
now we stand before the night.
As the shadows stretch and deepen,
come and make our darkness bright.