When I go birding, when I walk through the hills and pastures and along rivers, I am not walking away from my fears or even solving my problems. These small retreats do not fix me or the world; instead they restore my vision so that I may see with the clarity required to act helpfully and to live purposefully.

When reality is overwhelming, the psalmist reminds us that no matter where we are or what life around us is like, God is everpresent with us.

We may not be in our man-made walls, but the whole earth is God’s footstool. Do we truly see God’s world outside our front doors that way? Do we see all of Creation as God’s dwelling place that God Himself built?

This prayer is a prayer to help us be present with others from our first session of Compassion Camp, published by Illustrated Ministry.

Sometimes we don’t know how to help the people around us, or what direction to take. But if we are present to the experiences of those around us, we can trust God’s Spirit to show us the compassionate way to be present with someone else.