L'Arche Prayer (added and adapted)

Father…
Mother, Lord, Lordisa, God, Holiness, Divine, Creator, All…
We ask you to bless our houses…
… the Activity Center, 161, 261, 201, 1360, and all of the L’Arche homes around
the world... May all community members feel welcomed into a home found in the relationships of love, gentleness, forgiveness, and understanding. May we remember that we belong to each other.
Keep them safe in your heart….
…wrapped in your joyous Love, holding us as the Beloved. May we remember the blessings allowed to each one of us within the community large and small. May we remember the joy and life given within a community which is open to giving and receiving each individual with all the gifts and brokenness one has to offer. May we keep each person close to heart.
Make L’Arche a true home…
….a true family, a true comfort, a true security, a true refuge. May we remember to create our homes and our family through the blessedness found in sharing traditions of simple prayer, nourishing meals, and fun celebrations always with the intention of Love.
A refuge for the poor in spirit…
… those lost without hope; those wandering without direction; those convinced of despair; those scared of recognizing the beauty within themselves…. 
That they may find here the source of all life…
... where being loved can be as simple as breathing and where the light always shines through cracks in each of us.
A refuge for those who are severely tried…
... for the tired, the weary, the displaced, and the marginalized….
That they may be ceaselessly consoled…
... with newfound hope over and over again. May we be a constant sign that Hope is possible and real in each and every day, simply because we believe that each of the abilities and disabilities inherent in each of one of us are Necessary for the beauty of Life.

Father…
Mother, Lord, Lordisa, God, Holiness, Divine, Creator, All…
Give us hearts that are humble and gentle…
... both to the strangers we just meet and to ourselves that we know all too well. May we remember to remain open to listening, learning, receiving, and growing through the gifts of others...
To welcome with kindness and compassion…
… as we too hope to be welcomed. May we not forget the deepest desire of our hearts is the need to Belong. May we remember our belonging rests in the necessity of loving and respecting the stranger as well as loving and respecting our own self. May we remember that gentleness, compassion, and forgiveness are the sunshine and water necessary for growth, as well as the fruits born from mutual relationships…
All those whom you send us…
…the sick, the well, the old, the young, the ragged, the rich, the humble, and the boisterous; all are called to share a meal together at the Divine table. May each of us remember where we come from, but strive to meet others where they stand. May each of us share the beauties of our life, our culture, and our independence, while welcoming new beauty, new life, and new understanding of togetherness.

Give us hearts full of mercy…
… as to be slow to judge, slow to condemn, and slow to shutout, anyone who has wronged us. May we give mercy freely to others as it has been divinely given to us, knowing and understanding that each of us could use a little more compassion in our everyday lives.
To love them…
… undoubtedly, irrevocably, and unquestionably as the Beloved. May this Love be mutually shared in a relationship born to slowly transform each person into a constant vessel of the Divine.
To serve them….
… in love, in laughter, and in friendship. May our service to others help us discover the source of our own poverty. May we empty ourselves in loving and intentional service to others, as to be open and ready to receive the gifts and service each person returns to us…
To extinguish discord…
…by seeking understanding and reconciliation in each moment of choice. May our community be given renewal with each new occasion sought to mend brokenness, heal hurts, and listen to heartaches. May we put out the fires of indifference, apathy, judgments, and criticism and re-ignite our hearts with the flames of true care, concern, and respect for every individual in the community.
And to see in our suffering brothers and sisters the living presence of Jesus…
... where simplicity, prayer, and fun turn into spontaneous moments of outrageous Joy for a life shared with other people. May we remember these are the moments capable of lifting Life from suffering to illumination.

Bless us from the hands of your poor…
… from those rejected, dejected, isolated, and marginalized. May we listen to their stories and receive the truth offered in their hands. May this truth keep us living in the reality of our world and to respond always with Love.
Smile on us from the eyes of your poor…
… from eyes of longing, eyes of seeking, and eyes full of hope for more. Baptize us with tears of poverty, of loss, of loneliness, and of fear. May the eyes of the poor search our souls and allow us to see ourselves more clearly as the Beloved.
Lord, one day receive us in the holy company of your poor…
…with the murderers, the rapists, the abusers, the users, the gluttons, the consumers, the ignorant, and the self-absorbed. May we realize our own poverty and recognize our own feelings of loneliness, fear, and rejection. May we also recognize our own undeniable gifts uniquely named and freely given to each one of us. May we use our gifts to the greatest of our abilities. May we not be scared to shine brightly and soar freely. May we transform our feelings of war into energies of peace and Life. May we build community within our hearts, within our homes, within our neighborhoods, and within our world. May we always recognize the necessity of each living and breathing creature. May we always remember that we belong to each other. And may we receive you as freely as you receive us.
Amen.