When trick or treating is over, there’s another special day right on Halloween’s heels. The day (or Sunday) after Halloween is All Saints Day, a special day for remembering Christians from every time and place in history who have gone on before us. Hebrews 12 encourages Christians to remember that a “great cloud of witnesses” surrounds us encouraging us, cheering us on. As we start to turn our attention to gratitude and thankfulness in November, let’s take a moment to thank God for people past and present whose examples for godly living inspire our own faith journeys today. On Sunday, we will honor some of these saints with special music.
But All Saints Day is also a call to action. It invites us to examine how we the living can better walk as disciples who encourage others along the way.
- How can we offer hope to the hopeless?
- How can we offer gladness to the grieving?
- How can we offer nourishment to the hungry, even beyond food and drink?
- How can we offer mercy and peace to others?
- Are we ready to stand up for what we believe and do what is right?
No matter where you are in life, be a blessing and brighten the corner where you are, just as other saints have done. Safiyah Fosua’s prayer below reminds us of the great diversity of saints and their experiences throughout the ages and calls for us to learn from them.
A Prayer Meditation for All Saints Day
(Written by Safiyah Fosua)
We give you thanks, O God, for all the saints who ever worshiped you,
whether in arbors or cathedrals,
wooden churches or cement meeting houses.
We give you thanks, O God, for hands lifted in praise:
manicured hands and hands stained with grease or soil,
strong hands and hands gnarled with age,
holy hands.
We thank you, God, for hardworking saints,
whether hard-hatted or aproned,
blue-collared or three-piece-suited.
They left their mark for you, for us, for our children to come.
Thank you for the sacrifices made by those who have gone before us.
Bless the memories of your saints.
May we learn how to walk wisely from their examples of faith, dedication, worship, and love.
Amen.