Often attributed to Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador, this poem was actually written by Bishop Ken Untener of Saginaw in memory of Romero, an amazing, inspiring follower of and martyr for Christ.
It helps, now and then, to step back and take the long view.
The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is beyond our vision.
We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of
the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work.
Nothing we do is complete,
which is another way of saying
that the kingdom always lies beyond us.
No statement says all that could be said.
No prayer fully expresses our faith.
No confession brings perfection.
No pastoral visit brings wholeness.
No program accomplishes the church’s mission.
No set of goals and objectives includes everything.
This is what we are about:
We plant seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need further development.
We provide yeast that produces effects beyond our capabilities.
We cannot do everything
and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.
This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.
It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way,
an opportunity for God’s grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results,
but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders,
ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own.
Keywords: listening, stillness, silence, perspective-taking, Kingdom vision and work, seed planting
* Special thanks to Dennis Smith for sharing this prayer. If you have prayers for or about communication that you would like to contribute, please send to rwoods@theccsn.com
Source: https://whereisthewiseman.wordpress.com/2013/05/01/302/