Tree of Life and Awesome Mystery (ELW 334, st. 8)
8 God of all our fear and sorrow,
God who lives beyond our death,
Hold us close through each
tomorrow,
Love as near as ev’ry breath,
Love us near as ev’ry breath.
Words and music by Marty Haugen
© 1984, GIA Publications, Inc.
Reprinted under OneLicense.net #A730924
Devotion
In this final verse of our theme hymn we ask God to “hold us close through each tomorrow.” So we recognize that in all the perils and passages of life we are not alone; we are surrounded by God’s loving arms, by all the saints who have gone before us, by our memories, and by a church and faith that calls forth our deepest longing and answers our fears and sorrow.
Ours is not a morbid faith, but a living, breathing, supporting faith that connects us to the past through the gift of memories, to the present through our faith communities, and leads us into a future prepared for us from the beginning of time. In the quiet of Holy Saturday, or in the joy of Easter Vigil, we prepare our hearts and minds to yet again remember the Easter joy that has formed us and sustained us. Let the quiet of today help us to remember, and in remembering, prepare us to receive yet again tomorrow’s triumphant news.
Prayer
Rising, Risen Christ, hold us close through each tomorrow, love as near as ev’ry breath. Help us feel the loving arms that surround and support us day by day. Thank you for your wondrous love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.