This year’s theme for student week of worship was “Blessings in Disguise” which was inspired by Laura Story’s song “Blessings.” Each morning we began by reading a blessing from the book The Lives We Actually Have by Kate Bowler and Jessica Richie. Afterwards, students had the opportunity to write their own blessing in the lobby answering the prompts “blessed are you who…” and “blessed are…”
Friday afternoon I had the opportunity to read through the 100+ responses that were handwritten on pastel pieces of paper. They were thoughtful, vulnerable, and humorous. Many ideas were repeated, emphasizing to me their significance, while others were beautifully unique.
While sitting in the front left of the University church listening to hymns “It is Well” and “Great is Thy Faithfulness” during sound check for vespers I complied as many of the responses as possible into one blessing that was read during vespers. This blessing isn’t my words, but yours.
A blessing for us, Walla Walla University students
Blessed are those who do small acts of kindness with great care
The ones who sits next to us in the cafeteria
The ones who stops to hold open the door
The ones who welcome us with a smile regardless of how they’re feeling
Blessed are those who think of others, even when it doesn’t benefit them
Remembering that your win isn’t my loss
Blessed are the people who hold us up
The ones who check in on us when we disappear
Who make us meals when it’s hard to eat
Who help fulfill God’s promise that those who mourn will be comforted
Blessed are those who care about all creature regardless of their reputation
Giving generously without recognition or reward
Blessed are we who experience ordinary delights
A pair of skis and lots of snow
An invitation from a friend
A monday afternoon nap
Blessed are those who imagine, who persist, who decide to try again tomorrow.
Blessed are your quirks; the particularities that make you you
You who wears a wrist watch
You who is good at math
You who supports the arizona cardinals
You who knits scarves
You who wears shorts in the middle of winter
Blessed are you the pragmatic
The one who asks questions and is unsatisfied with the answer
And
Blessed are you the idealist
The one who is comfortable with uncertainty and okay without having all the answers
Blessed are you who lives breath to breath
You who feel alone sitting in this crowd of people
You who feels too tired to pray
You who struggles to remember that your worth isn’t determined by finite things
Blessed are you who struggles to forgive yourself and others
Trying to remember that we all make mistakes
Blessed are we, the college kids,
We who follow our hearts and change our major
We who are just trying to pass our classes
We who have to figure out how to pay tuition
We who fail at what the world deems important
We who don’t know what in the world we’re doing
Blessed are we, who choose to gather together despite our busy schedules
Using all of it to remember that our togetherness matters to God
So God, bless this.
