Lord Help Us!

Lord help us! 

Lord have mercy on the land of Your hand, and have mercy on us, who squandered the garden that feeds our breath. 

Lord have mercy on the waters that remember Your Name, and have mercy on us, who took the fountain of life for granted. 

Lord have mercy.

Lord have mercy.

Lord have mercy. 

Lord help us. 

We look upon the ruin our hands have made, and humble ourselves in repentance. 

Heal the land, Merciful Lord. 

Have mercy on the water, soil, and wind that whispers Your Name in its breeze. Have mercy on every green sprout and creature of earth and sea. They turn like wheels within a wheel— hold their fragile balance in Your Right hand. 

Open our eyes to see the beauty and holiness of Your creation. 

Open our ears to hear the chorus of Your creation glorifying Your Name. 

Teach us to walk softly upon this land, and to tend it with great care as good stewards. 

Have mercy on us on the last day. 

Lord help us!

Lord have mercy!

This summer was a time of deep learning for me— data centers, planning and zoning, karst geography, water scarcity, and criteria for granting and potential withdrawal of UNESCO World Heritage site designations. 

(Mammoth Cave National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site and potential development near the park could put this honorable designation at risk.)

All of the above considered, accompanied with news of current events in the background (local, state, national, global) as I learned how to garden again, put up the harvest and eventually began learning how to bake again with fresh milled flour. 

It's fair to say this is a time of anxiousness for virtually everyone. I began to focus on what really matters to me more intently which led me to go deeper in my faith and come back to the basics of grace and mercy— with the help of a precious soul. 

They shared the Jesus Prayer with me and asked me to add it to my daily prayers and say it often. Months before I asked them to commit to saying the Lord's Prayer every day with me for our family and communities and they did. 

The gift of repentance flooded my heart and poured out of my mouth along with the tears the more I prayed it—

Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner. 

I was lapsing into error in my faith at the time. I thought I was fine and assured of salvation. The Lord opened my eyes and showed me the reality. 

As a result, I've gone quiet for a time, leaving everything surrendered to the Lord, waiting on Him while my heart and pen grow in His grace. 

Now, I've shared this prayer with you, pray it daily and often. 

Thank you for stopping in on my blog and reading. 

Subjectifying Nature Through Orthodox Christian Theology by Allison Van Tilborgh, a theologian author on Medium eloquently relates much of what I also hold true about nature in relation to faith and our responsibility to be good stewards with what we've been entrusted. While I am unfamiliar with her wider body of work, this particular essay resonated deeply with me—a welcome reminder that others share this sacred perspective on the natural world.