A Franciscan Benediction

May God bless us with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that we may live from deep within our hearts.

May God bless us with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of God's creations
So that we may work for justice, freedom, and peace.

May God bless us with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and war,
So that we may reach out our hands to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless us with just enough foolishness
To believe that we can make a difference in the world,
So that we can do what others claim cannot be done:
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and all our neighbors who are poor.
Amen.

Found at the site of Brian McLaren

Prayer of Sir Francis Drake

Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true
Because we have dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when
With the abundance of things we possess

We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;

Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity

And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wider seas

Where storms will show your mastery;

Where losing sight of land, We shall find the stars.

We ask You to push back The horizons of our hopes;

And to push into the future In strength, courage, hope, and love.

Sir Francis Drake c. 1540-1595
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Drake