As evening fades...

I am drawn once again to quietness. To stillness.
To prayer. Of course, to prayer.
And to this prayer in particular.


We your servants give you humble thanks, Almighty God,
for all your gifts and graces to us this day.

For the splendor of the whole creation and the beauty of this world,
for the wonder of life and the mystery of love, 
for the blessings of family and friends, 
and the loving care that surround us on every side.

And for this day's work, for the things that demanded our best,
for the things that delighted us,
and for the disappointments and failures that 
lead us to depend on You truly,
we thank you, O Lord.

Stay with us, we pray, for evening is at hand and the day is done.
Be our light in the darkness, and in your great mercy,
defend us from all perils and dangers of this night.
Hear us, O Lord. 

We offer prayers for the welfare of the whole world, 
for all people in their daily life and work,
for all who hold authority and all who work for freedom, justice, and peace;

for all who suffer and all who remember and care for them;
and for all those in whom we have seen the Christ this day,

in joy and in sorrow, 
Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.


You know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking:
have compassion on our weakness, we pray,

and mercifully give us those things which, for our unworthiness we dare not,
and for our blindness we cannot ask. 


As evening fades, I find myself once again filled with gratitude, with peace, with hope, with love, and with boundless prayers for all of the above to flow abundantly through your life and through the lives of all people everywhere.


PS. Thank you, Robert Benson, for sending me the book that contains this and several other beautiful, powerful, soul-stirring prayers.