Ep. 44 - Help in the Darkness

A liturgy for help in the darkness.

Helper, 

Be with me as I walk through the darkness around me

In these places where spirits are feared and yet honored

Where hope is lacking and strongholds abound

Where I so often feel the physical presence of the enemy lurking nearby

Where temples house idols

Beckoning worshippers to come,

Seek blessings and make merit. 

Where spirit houses reside among each home

And offerings to them stand stale and rotting.

This endless cycle of hopeless striving

To please an idol that neither sees nor hears

To appease spirits that will never relent

Is heartbreaking. 

Helper, 

Be the light that illuminates my path

As I go to battle behind enemy lines.

Be my shield of faith 

As I walk through the valleys of darkness.

Be my sword of truth

To battle the lies of the Deceiver 

Who seeks to discourage me

To make me believe that

My presence here makes no difference. 

Even though I often cannot see it

You are present and working behind the scenes. 

Even when the weight of brokenness feels paralyzing

And the grasp of evil on society seems relentless. 

You are not distant nor indifferent. 

Remind me that you care more deeply for your dear ones

Than I ever could 

And you are pursuing them 

Unceasingly. 

Even though these battles often stir me to confusion

And at times, I wallow in my own helplessness.

Helper, remind me that 

That you are the true help we all need

That even what I offer flows from your grace for me.

Help me to live in the freedom of your provision

And to embrace my own dependence on you

So that I might demonstrate the sufficiency of your help for me

In this dry and weary land

Where you have lead me to labor

In the strength you provide. 

Helper, 

Thank you for walking with me

For guiding me past the enemies snares

For leading me into preordained circumstances

For never leaving or forsaking me. 

Indeed you dwell with me among this dark oppression

You are an ever present help in trouble

My only source of enduring hope. 

Helper, 

Please make yourself known to those around me

As I continue on my journey in this foreign land

As I interact with friends and neighbors, students and strangers

May the light and freedom and hope that come from you

Be felt, experienced, and desired anew 

By those whose spirits are crushed and wandering in darkness 

So that your power may break forth here

And your will may become their delight

And this land may be transformed and filled with Light. 

Amen.