Shemot

I could only enter that secret place in February enough for myself and not enough to pray with you… life, worries, fears, struggles, and overwhelm kept me in a state of pursuit—the pursuit of peace, of stillness, joy, calm, safety, and assurance. I am learning what it means to “Be still and know that I am God”, but have not mastered it yet.

This prayer is not for a Torah Portion but for the entire book of Exodus that we just closed out. We have just finished the season of Purim, a time of unveiling, of “hester panim” or the hidden face of God, a time of victory over darkness and evil, but also a time of bravery and divine action by the faithful.

Avinu Malkeinu,

Father, please surround us with love as you reveal the hidden things within us. Draw the toxic, the dark, the brokenness to the light so that we can heal. What we reveal, You heal. Give us the courage to sit in the light. Teach us how to allow ourselves to be fully known, as Paul says in his verse written in 1 Corinthians 13:12. Help us to know how to be vulnerable with You, trusting that you are not an angry God but a loving one who is deeply invested in His creation.

Just as you did for Esther and Mordechai, expose the hidden motives and plans of others meant for our harm. Bring their evil plans to a halt and make them of no effect. Protect us from evil, harm, ill will, and strife with others. Keep us diligent to follow Your voice, which is our intuition. Thank you for protecting those who trust in You. Thanks for keeping us safe from traps and manipulation. Thank you for seeing all things and being sovereign. There is no plan greater than Your ability to control it. There is no human more powerful than You. Hatred, jealousy, and pride are not more powerful than love, generosity, and humility. You can guard us from things we see and do not see. Help that knowledge to bring us peace.

There are times You hide Your face from us, not to be cheeky or shady, but to initiate a search on our part. To light a spark of awareness that begs us to ask, “Are You in this? as we are headlong into pursuits. “Did we connect on an intimate level today?” as we go about our busy days. “Do I miss You when we don’t chat?” as we lie down for rest and realize that we did not work time with You into our day. Thank You for hiding Your face so we can recognize the lack, but please don’t stay hidden. Return and breathe life into us. Return with power and presence. Unveil the knowledge that You are never gone, but rather, ignored or taken to places that Your Spirit cannot dwell. Help us to live in a way that does not make You hide Your face but to reveal it.

Thank You for Your ability to overcome darkness, death, and evil. Thank you for giving us the tools to overcome those things as well, inside and around us. Help us to be like Esther, brave, living in our purpose, focused on the preservation of life, and the love of others, even if it costs us. Help us to be like Mordechai, giving wisdom, encouragement, and speaking truth in love to support others in their purpose. Help us to embody both of their spirits of courage and trust in the Holy One. The kind of trust that says, “even if You don’t deliver us, we will do and say what is right.”

Thank You for being faithful to Your people. Teach us how to be faithful too.

“Chazak, chazak, v’nitchazek” (Be strong, be strong, and may we be strengthened.)

Love,

Brianna