March 8, 2025

Genesis 3:19
By the sweat of your face you will eat bread until you return to the fertile land, since from it you are taken. You are soil; to the soil you will return.

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Gracious God,
we thank you
that you scooped up
something as common as dirt.
As rich as the soil.
With nutrients and minerals and life.
You scooped it up
and you made man
from the soil of the earth.

God, you.
You breathe life into a physical body
to make it a spiritual body.
And then the woman from the rib
you gave him as a companion.
So from his dirt, she became dirt.
All humanity, all living creatures, are dirt.

Our soil.
And from that soil, all of us will return.
On our tombstones
we see a date of birth.
And a date of death.

But hallelujah!
That dash between those dates
are the days and the hours
that you have worked in us.
And through us,
before we return to our resting place.

Thank you for speaking to us and through us.
And thank you for using us.
And thank you for allowing us
to be able to pour out of our well
the blessings that you have given us so abundantly.

We remember
during this Lenten season
that in a moment,
in the twinkling of an eye,
we will vanish
like the petals of a flower
being blown by the wind.
But even in that time,
we will rest with you.

We thank you for the gift of your presence.
We thank you for the holiness of your name.
We thank you
for your righteousness and your justice.
That we can make an impact in the world.

In our dash,
before we return to the soil
from which we have come.

Thank you for the inspiration
to be able to move forward in life,
and that we will share your word
and your goodness
and tell the story of just how good you are.

Thank you for this day.
Bless us as we go,
That we might indeed be a blessing
to the people of God.
And we pray in thanksgiving and faith
in the name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.