Prayer for the Dying Leaves
A Prayer
God of all creation, we lift our spirits to you on this day.
As we look around, we see so much beauty and color; the earth is filled with the incredible artwork of your hands and we can see your imagination scattered on every tree and every leaf.
How beautiful is this time of year, O God? A time of year when color bursts forth in sudden, unexpected ways. Where there used to be the bright colors of spring and summer now fade into the blazing colors of fall.
And while we stand amazed at the beauty of the earth, we know that the reason this beauty greets us each day is because soon, these leaves will fall to the ground; and the trees will be bare again.
God, we ask that you help us see and appreciate the beauty while it is here in front of us and to not take it for granted. All it takes is a rainstorm or a blustery day to erase the beauty, and for the leaves to shift from vibrant golds and reds and oranges to fragile, crunchy brown debris.
Lord of all living and dying things, help us to give thanks for the beauty while it is here. Help us to pause for a moment and to watch as leaves flutter from branches to ground, where they will become food for the trees from which they fell; as the leaves crunch under our feet as we walk or as we pile them up in our yards or place them in bags by the curb, we offer our prayers of thanksgiving for the beautiful life they have lived, the shade they have provided, and the ways they will continue to feed your creation.
God, may we remember that just like these leaves, you have created us into artistic wonders; you have created each of us so that we may bring joy to those we meet and to you, and our lives should be lived so that we may nourish the people and world around us. May we appreciate our own beauty just as we appreciate the beauty of the leaves, and may we never take either of them for granted.
We pray this in the name of the God who is still showing up in the places where life and death can be found, Amen.
Reverend Kristen Koger has served as the Pastor for Children and Families at FBC Decatur since June 2017. Kristen loves working with the youngest of God’s family as she helps them realize that they have some of the most important gifts to offer the family of God. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her dog Dietrich “Bonehoeffer,” cooking, knitting, and playing board games.