Liturgies for WholenessSample

A LITURGY FOR UNPLUGGING

Oh Jesus, You are our model for retreating,

for taking time away from noise to pray.

Show me how stillness is not just a luxury

but rather a discipline,

an obedience.

When muscle memory has me reaching first for my phone,

when I’ve drunk too deeply of news,

when I’ve scrolled mindlessly and the world crowds my thoughts,

Oh Lord, empty my hands

and help me to unplug.

I am weary of knowing too much

and taxed by the constancy of idle chatter.

I long to join a different sort of dialogue,

to disconnect from what does not nourish or benefit my soul,

and to reconnect with what is right and true.

What a strange time we live in,

when isolation and constant availability co-exist,

when curiosity can be satisfied with a click.

Oh Creator, this is what I know is true:

no screen can compare to the sun,

no device can compete with the lilies of the field,

no notifications can replace flesh and blood,

and no headline can compete with Your voice.

How can we be tethered to something so small

when the whole of creation looms ready for us?

If I do not look up and worship,

then surely the trees will clap their hands

and the stones will cry out in chorus.

Oh Christ, I do not want to miss this.

Ground your feet, pause, breathe, and move slowly through these words:

Grant me the grace to sit in discomfort,

in silence, to embrace boredom and see where it leads,

creating room to hear what You might want to say.

Lift my chin to see the people around me,

to be content with questions instead of instantaneous answers.

Free my mind and body from this cycle of addiction,

and let me prize wisdom more than knowing everything.

I admit that I fear the yet-unknown needs that may arise while I unplug,

but I trust You will always take care of what I cannot.

May I understand I am free to log on and free to log off

and can rely on You to determine which is best.

Amen.

We hope this plan encouraged you. Learn more about Liturgies for Wholeness by Audrey Elledge and Elizabeth Moore here.