Thanksgiving Prayer

Before I jump into Exodus for my next post, I thought it would be felicitous to post a copy of a Thanksgiving prayer I wrote. When writing or speaking a prayer, I'm always reminded of the following passage from Mark Twain's superb The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (a classic novel that's genuinely a hoot to read):

And now the minister prayed. A good, generous prayer it was, and went into details: it pleaded for the church, and the little children of the church; for the other churches of the village; for the village itself; for the county; for the State; for the State officers; for the United States; for the churches of the United States; for Congress; for the President; for the officers of the Government; for poor sailors, tossed by stormy seas; for the oppressed millions groaning under the heel of European monarchies and Oriental despotisms; for such as have the light and the good tidings, and yet have not eyes to see nor ears to hear withal; for the heathen in the far islands of the sea; and closed with a supplication that the words he was about to speak might find grace and favor, and be as seed sown in fertile ground, yielding in time a grateful harvest of good. Amen.

 I hope my prayer isn't as interminable as this voluble minster's was, but I suppose you can judge for yourself:

We live in troubled times. Events both current and recurrent can cause consternation and anguish. So as we gather here today, I want to thank you for all that we have. Family, food, a roof over our heads, the necessities of life, safety for those whom we love—we thank you for all these things. We’re thankful for living in a part of the world where we can worship you unfettered and for giving us this fantastic community of brothers and sisters with whom we can worship.

You are responsible for the awesome wonders of creation, from the mysteries of black hole singularities and dark matter to the staggering magnificence of our planet’s natural wonders. And yet even more awesome is that you, the creator of these spectacular marvels, yearn to have a personal relationship with us. We thank you for this intimacy that we do not deserve, and we thank you for the grace that we do not merit. Thank you for loving us so much that you let your son die on the cross for our sins, an act of compassion so heart-rending that we can barely begin to fathom it. Each one of us has a different story of how we came to accept you as our Savior, and I thank you for your providence that has led us to you. May we continue to foster a thankful attitude in our hearts, for you have given us all that is good in our lives. Amen.