Blessing for When the Road is Long

Summary

This bonus recording is of Kathy Young Deegan reading of 'Blessing for When the Road is Long' by Kate Bowler. It's a spiritual meditation about finding strength in moments of weakness and exhaustion. The piece incorporates biblical references from Jeremiah 6:16 and Isaiah 41, focusing on themes of spiritual guidance, divine support, and finding rest in moments of complete vulnerability.

Highlights

Introduction and Opening Prayer

The opening sets a tone of vulnerability and spiritual seeking as Kathy Young Deegan introduces the blessing's title and author.

Biblical Guidance and Blessing of Weakness

Kathy recites Jeremiah 6:16, emphasizing the importance of seeking ancient paths and divine guidance. She then offers blessings for those who must acknowledge their weakness and surrender their burdens, suggesting that simply existing is enough in moments of struggle.

Finding Rest in Stillness

The blessing describes a profound moment of stillness that becomes a sacred space for divine presence, where rest and wholeness can be found. This section emphasizes the transformative power of complete surrender.

Divine Strength in Human Weakness

The reading concludes with Kathy sharing Isaiah 41's promise of divine support, highlighting the paradoxical truth that God's strength becomes most evident at the point of human weakness.

Episode Transcript

Kathy
"Blessing for When the Road is Long" by Kate Bowler.

Kathy
Oh God, I could not have imagined that this road could be so long and so hard. Yet here I am, worn out, body and soul. Oh God, I don't know what to do. Help me.

The Lord says, "Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths, which is the good way, and walk in it," Jeremiah 6:16. Blessed are we, the weak who must set aside what we are carrying, and begin to feel only the weight of our own being. It is enough for now.

Oh God, blessed are we who cannot go on, but stand and look and ask, which is the good way to walk in. Blessed are we who listen for the voice that is both thunder and softest rain, that warms and quickens. Blessed are we at the point of utter stillness that becomes an empty space for that voice to echo and build and resound until it becomes a place to rest and receive and to be made whole.

Kathy
And how blessed we are who are astonished to find that God's strength begins at the very point when ours stops.

Kathy
"Fear not, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you," Isaiah 41:10.

Blessing for When the Road is Long

Join Our Free Trial