A Prayer at New Year’s

May God make your year a happy one!

Not by shielding you from all sorrows and pain,
But by strengthening you to bear it, as it comes;

Not by making your path easy,
But by making you sturdy to travel any path;

Not by taking hardships from you,
But by taking fear from your heart;

Not by granting you unbroken sunshine,
But by keeping your face bright, even in the shadows;

Not by making your life always pleasant,
But by showing you when people and their causes need you the most,
And by making you anxious to be there to help.

God’s love, peace, hope, and joy to you for the year ahead!

— St. Thomas à Becket (1118 or 1120—1170)

9 replies
  1. Don Siegal
    Don Siegal says:

    Thanks for the shout out for my nomination of the reflections of Elizabeth Sextant. Her reflections have become my New Year’s Resolution.

    In the prayer for today’s Bondings 2.0,

    “Not by taking hardships from you,
    But by taking fear from your heart…”

    That is still hard for me because of the ministry that I do for my parish. Regardless, using Sextant’s exhortation for courage, today I intentionally chose to wear my rainbow Christian fish symbol on my jacket while facilitating my ministry gathering.

    I look forward to attending New Ways Ministry’s symposium and retreat in Chicago. My hope is to find solutions for my fears, perhaps unfounded, but nevertheless real to me.

    Reply
  2. Denise Carmody
    Denise Carmody says:

    Thank you for this beautiful prayer. I have sent it to many friends who wrote to express their gratitude. Blessings on your good work.

    Denise

    Reply

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