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Hello friends! This is the last litany I'll write in 2021! I'm sharing it now in case it might assist you in your plans for the next couple of weeks. I'll be going dark and resting from writing for a bit.

I have made this particular prayer public, so feel free to send it along to friends and colleagues. I also have available:

Litany for a New Year (from 2018)

Litany for New Year's Day (from 2016)

Thank you to all who have followed along this year, shared my prayers, jumped on my Patreon, and prayed along with me.

And to all you who are there in the everyday trenches of spiritual work and ministry, doing care and practicing presence: may you be blessed with wisdom, fresh energy and compassion, rest, and purpose. May every wound your soul sustained this past year be soothed and healed, and your confidence in the Commonwealth of Heaven strengthened.

God as we close another calendar year
And look toward a new one,
We remember that every day is a new day;
Not just New Year’s Day.

Every day we can choose fresh purpose (1),
Access fresh wisdom,
Practice gratitude for our gifts, blessings, and experiences,
Practice mercy and love toward ourselves and others (2).

Every day we can take an honest look at ourselves,
Assess our unhelpful habits and patterns,
Create new ones,
Ask for help.

Everyday we can shut out voices that tear us down,
And practice listening to the truth about ourselves:
We are beloved, accepted, encased in Divine Love.
We have access to everything we need (3).

We ask for strength in the coming year:
To continue growing in wisdom,
To continue our healing journey,
To continue our creative work,
To continue our self-care,
To continue awakening to truth and oneness,
To continue in generosity and serving our neighbors (4),
To continue the work of bringing heaven to earth.

Whatever happens this year, we know you are alive within us,
Your light is shared and burning in our hearts.
We know that life can be enjoyed (5),
And rest can be found.
We know each time our eyes open,
The mercies are new and the goodness is flowing (6).

Amen

Revelation 21:5
Ecclesiastes 3:13
Psalm 8:6
Matthew 25:36
Ecclesiastes 3:12
Psalm 8:1

In Jonah 3, a group of people turn from idolatrous and evil ways, repenting (turning away from) their old, exploitative ways.

Psalm 62 exhorts us to look to God - not to any earthly thing. Not to riches or wealth. Not to powerful people. To the Divine Within.

In Mark 1, John the Baptist is arrested and imprisoned. Jesus is assembling a group of followers - disciples, they’re called. His unifying message is: the Kingdom of God is near! Repent!... In other words: Turn away from your old ways of thinking about success, about victory, about what is really happening, and what is really important in the world; and believe instead in the good news of God - that all divine resources are yours for the taking, that the commonwealth of heaven is a place where you and every other person belongs. Re-wire your brain with the understanding that all are one, all are Beloved, all are welcome, and all are forgiven for whatever they did before they understood that.

I write this litany immediately following the inauguration of the new president and vice-president of the US. We (some of us) in the US are tentatively hopeful, anxiously expectant. It is a moment in which we have the opportunity to listen to this week’s scriptures in an open-minded way - to hear of the Ninevites repentance, the Psalmic call to trust in God and not in economies or rulers, and the invitation of Christ to turn our attention to the Kingdom of God, which is near at hand and available to us as we move forward, working for change. I hope this prayer inspires and offers some hope. . .