01/07/2013 - Daily Prayer

Good afternoon Senators and Guests. We give thanks for this New Year and new opportunities to serve in this world God loves so much. My message today is simple-it is that I hope you sense in a very deep way your call to service as California legislators. I`m not just talking about the call of those who voted for you-you already know that calling is so much deeper than that. Calling involves a responsibility for the hopes and dreams of all the people in your charge. And calling, as I have come to understand it, comes from God, who is good, and wants the best of you and me, for the sake of all people. Martin Luther called this the theology of vocation, which underlies all human affairs and all we do in life.
In this, you are not alone, for all of us here in California are called to this work too, as citizens. For you see, a calling is not just for those of us with clerical collars wrapped around our necks (or some other easily recognizable religious garb). And a calling is not just for you who take an oath to public office (as crucially important as your work will be). For all are called in tangible ways to be of service to our neighbor, and especially to those around us in need. Our work, each of us, in our specific circumstances, is to hear and respond to that call, as best we are able.
So let us pray: God of all things (including human affairs). Bless and keep these our servants, your servants, who we have elected to govern our State. Give them wisdom, courage, discernment, and an awareness that they are not the only ones being called-for you call all of us into service. We especially hear your call to us for those who lack voice to call-those who are poor and most vulnerable in our midst. In whatever way you choose, call us to this new day.-AMEN.