Losses and Light: A Guided Prayer for All Saints Sunday

Praying through an All Saints Sunday like no other
November 1, 2020

Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it:  I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you.

—Isaiah 42:5-6

 Before any of us were anything at all, we were God’s. Before we knew who we were or what we wanted to do, before we had fallen in love, before we’d made a single friend, before we owned anything at all, we were named and known by God. We believe and trust that there is nothing in this world that can change that.

 And yet, we know that this life brings sorrow, anxiety, and grief right alongside joy, peace, and love. In the midst of all we have to give thanks for, we come together in this time to name our loss. We know that God takes all of us by the hand and keeps us and we trust that those we have lost this year are still held in God’s loving arms, but we who are still living feel the loss all the same.

 Even more than the loss of those we love, we have felt the loss of our peace, comfort, and even safety over the past few months. We’ve navigated sickness and uncertainty for days on end. We name, in this these moments of quiet, all that has grieved us this year.

Find something small and reflective, maybe a small mirror or a glass cup, and hold it in your hands as you think and pray. Who have you lost? What have you lost? What are you mourning? What grief are you bearing? How do you see this loss reflected in yourself?

 Are any among you suffering? They should pray… so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.

—James 5:13. 16

 In spite of all that we grieve and all that we’ve lost, we still have precious gifts from God who walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death. We have God’s presence with us always to comfort us and we stand always at the foot of the cross, where we see that through Christ’s death and resurrection, we are freed from anything and everything that might keep us from God. Whatever burdens we bear, we can give them to Jesus.

 What burdens are you carrying from this year? What grief or regret do you have? What worries or fears? What anger or sadness do you want to lay down? Write these things down. Give them to God. 

 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

—John 1:1-5

 No matter what darkness we face, there is always light. No matter what grief and loss, there is always hope. No matter what fear or anxiety, there is always peace.

As you’re able, in a fireplace, firepit, or in a large fire-safe bowl, burn the paper on which you wrote down the things you wanted to let go of. Let the sparks and smoke remind you that those concerns, worries, regrets, and burdens are gone from you, carried away to God who is always more ready to answer our prayers than we are to ask for them.

Then, set your candle down beside your reflective object and light it. Spend time watching the light from your candle as it reflects off of your mirror. God’s light is able to shine throughout the world not despite of our brokenness but because of it. Even in loss, we reflect God. Even though we can’t know what comes next, we know that in all things, God will shine and the whole world will be called out of darkness into God’s marvelous light.

Take whatever time you need in order to close out this time of prayer and reflection before returning to the good work God has called you to do.