Prayer for Letting Go

Rev. Douglas Taylor

Eternal Spirit

From Whom all things come and to Whom all things return

We gather this hour in recognition of the flow of time.  We pause before the festive celebration to honor the old year and acknowledge the coming of the new.  With reverence we stop to breath in a moment of peace and enact a ritual of release – of letting go.

We begin by letting go.  On the cusp of the New Year, we begin by letting go.

Beginnings are usually marked by picking something up:

            when we accept a request or an assignment

            when we choose to step forward or respond to a call

            when we begin by putting the first word on the paper,

turning the key, opening the door, or reaching out again

But really, in every case, we begin by letting go 

We let go of who we were, of our expectations of how this is supposed to be, of where this will all lead us.  We release our past – be it filled with suffering and grievances or with joys and plenty.  We cast it all behind and let go, releasing ourselves to embrace the coming year.

And what shall we embrace in the New Year?  May we embrace the call to be better people, may we reach out to those around us and offer them peace and comfort, may we heartily respond “yes!” to the challenges before us to make our communities more just and equitable, may we do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God.  May we let go of our anger and our past injuries, and face the beckoning future with an open heart.

Truly, when we let go in this way, we will be free to begin the deeper journey of peace and understanding.  Truly, when we let go we will begin.

Be Thou, O God, an ever-present strength on our journey.

In a world without end, may it be so.

Amen.

• Prayer