This is a prayer we prayed at the memorial service for Lola Lohrentz last week.  Some of this imagery comes from Psalm 46, which she chose to have read at her service.

Lola is deeply loved and deeply missed. I could tell you many wonderful things about her, but she most definitely told me that she did not want to be “bragged up” after she had died. So no bragging. Just gratitude for her witness and prayers of strength for those who love her.

Holy, Living God of Resurrection,

We gather together to worship you this afternoon because Lola’s death has shifted the earth beneath our feet.

Because the tide of our grief roars and foams and threatens to overwhelm us.

And now, in our sorrow, God, we need to be together. And we need to know your presence.

So be our refuge, O God. Be our strength.

Let us depend on your faithfulness–that you will carry us through this time of mourning and into the life we must live now.

Let us rejoice in your faithfulness–that you have carried Lola through an exhausting, painful illness and into her resurrection life with you.

Let us live lives of faithfulness–that we might follow Jesus’ path of peace and justice with each step we are privileged to take in this world.

Holy One, receive our praise and receive our prayers. Hear our sighs too deep for words.

Send your Holy Spirit–the Comforter–to dwell among us and within us–now and always. Amen.