Weaving Prayer Into the Tapestry of Life

I have been expecting now for several weeks that I would be in the hospital today recovering from spinal fusion surgery that had been scheduled for December 17. The surgeon researched records for a spinal laminectomy a colleague in his practice performed on me 12 years ago, and discovered complications that would require a much more complex procedure than we had previously discussed. I decided that I am not hurting that bad, and postponed surgery indefinitely. So my immediate future has changed. I will not be in a rehab center for Christmas. I will be feasting with family. The tapestry of my life has an abrupt modification of pattern. I am a little bit in shock at having to rethink the near future. I normally use one of the Prayer Prompts sets in Weaving Prayer Into the Tapestry of Life as a launching pad for my daily prayer time. I choose the set of prayer prompts that seem to fit best where I am at the time. Today I am inclined toward the set for listening prayer. The praise prompt says “I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad and my tongue rejoiced. Moreover my flesh will live in hope. You have made known to me the ways of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.” As I pray that prayer, I am reminded that I am not looking at this unexpected future alone. God is still calling me into a future that is custom designed for where I am in this moment. Today that assurance comes in the spirit of the Christmas message – joy at faith in God’s presence. In every moment, that future changes based on what has happened in the previous moment. Most of the time the change is not this dramatic. But I can rest in the faith that God is calling me in this moment into the future that has been opened up by my decision to postpone surgery. I may be a little non-plussed. But God knows what God’s will is for the coming days. And that makes me full of gladness. So today I pray a listening prayer – celebrating God’s presence with us.