Llan Gwynt Prayer Poem by Brother Jonathan Gardner

When the bitter winds blow,
And the rain pours onto the soul of your life.
When you stumble and fall,
And when tears well up inside, but find no release.

When friends and family are afar,
And those night-hours of abject loneliness seem altogether too close.
When bones ache,
And the future uncertain seems.

Then, may His pure radiance pierce your darkest times,
And a spectrum of light fill your heart of hearts.
And show you, as a beacon, the narrow, sure way.

When thoughts race, and won't be still,
And lightning rages in your mind, disturbing you.
When things seem to go awry, or indeed, when things seem to go right
But there's an air of disquiet in your inner being.

Then, may He come to you. (He comes in the storm.)
May the Father bless you with His Divine quietness and solitude. Total stillness.
May the Son shine into the totality of your unique self. Perfect brilliance.
May the Spirit, the Divine breath, whisper into your ear that you are a much loved child of God, the apple of His eye.
And may you, wherever you find yourself, experience the 'thin place' of God's inestimable presence.

Amen.


[Brother Jonathan Gardner]
Copyright © ®2008, Brother Jonathan Gardner. All rights reserved.

Note:
General: written in the summer of 2007 when at Llan Gwynant, Wales (ie The Lake of Gwynant) , when the wind was, as is usual in that spot, blowing a gale. I often think that the lake should be called Llan Gwynt (which means the Lake of wind, or windy lake) as both Gwynant and Gwynt sound similar, though the latter is more descriptive.

Line 21: 'thin place' is a reference to the ancient celtic belief that there were places or times when the veil/connection between heaven and earth was unusually close and 'one could touch heaven' (almost!)