I will heal their waywardness;
I will love them freely. . .
I will be like the dew to Israel;
she shall blossom like the lily,
she shall strike root like the forests of Lebanon.
His shoots shall spread out;
her beauty shall be like the olive tree,
and his fragrance like that of Lebanon.
They shall again live beneath my shadow,
they shall flourish as a garden;
they shall blossom like the vine,
their fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon.from Hosea 4
Sweet Hour of Prayer
God, who in the beginning breathed into newborn soil the breath of life–
God, your Spirit exhales even now into us–
into our bodies
our lives
our world.
Your Spirit exhales and fragrances our lives and communities
with the sweet aromas of your mercy and grace.
Breathe on us
in us
through us
O God.
Sweeten us–
our words
our actions
our very beings.
Fragrance your world with radical aromas of justice-making.
Bring to aching souls and bodies the healing balm of your presence.
Strengthen us for the journey of these days–
O God, may your breath moving in us lift us up.
O God, may your breath moving though us incense the places where we walk
with the redeeming fragrances of your love and peace.
Amen.
Photo by petr sidorov on Unsplash.
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