O God, you have called your pilgrim people
to ventures of which we cannot see the ending,
by paths as yet untrodden. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
The prayer above is one of my favorites. It’s been around for decades and is attributed to an Anglican minister Eric Milner-White. Sometimes called the Prayer of Good Courage, it expresses the attitude of one desiring to live and be of service to the Lord wherever life leads.
This prayer became especially near and dear to me when after Denise, my first wife, died suddenly, I chose to venture from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest, ready to live into a new chapter of God’s call on my life. To my surprise, the unfolding of this new stage of life and service would include journeying to the end of the Oregon Trail, serving at Pioneer Presbyterian Church on the Clatsop Plains.
So, in many ways I’ve been on a pilgrimage for the past decade or more. Day by day, full of grace, the Lord leading me, God’s love supporting me and I amazed time and again at how I am blessed to be a blessing along the way.
Be it a new phase in life, a journey to a far-off sacred place, or simply taking an afternoon or a weekend away, spiritual growth and life-giving discernment await those who are willing to embark on a spiritual pilgrimage.
