Guidance and One City

Prayer by CHARLES JENKINS, Pastor, Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church; delivered at the inaugural ceremony of new Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuael, Milennium Park, Chicago, May 16, 2011

It has been said:
 “Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.”

Hence, as we celebrate this auspicious and momentous occasion, as we celebrate, Lord we confess as One City that we need Guidance!

For there to be an economic revival, and an assault on joblessness, for peace to be stitched into the social fabric of our streets, for there to be an educational reformation that fills our city and state colleges, while halting prison enrollment, we need Guidance.

If our energy will become more efficient, and if our gas prices will nosedive from Mount Everest, we need Guidance.
For there to be a healthcare system that heals our sick, destitute, and wealthy, if budgets will be balanced without tipping over programs that produce oxygen to necessary demographics, we need Guidance!

If opportunities will bring broad optimism and if hunger, homelessness, and helplessness will be thrown into a furnace of wisdom and consumed by the answers of sacrifice and understanding, we need Guidance.
If our seniors will be served, and if our children will have an opportunity to become all that God has destined them to be, we need Guidance!

For the Chicago Bulls to defeat the Miami Heat and go on to the NBA Finals and Win! We confess we need Guidance!

We confess, that in order to receive guidance, we must look up with humility to a God whose divinity transcends our humanity, receiving direction when life paralyzes us with complexity. We must look across to our fellow citizens whom God has gifted, as they were born into the human family as solutions to some problems or answers to some questions.

We must look out to those who will commit to contribute their heads, hearts, and hands to serve and strengthen our beloved Chicago.

Lord, today, we celebrate as many, but also as One because we are ONE CITY!

As compartmentalized as we can live, as guarded as we can sometimes be, as divided or even disconnected as we may sometimes seem, we are One City!

Lord, today we celebrate and exclaim that we are One City, from every person, to every family, we are One City. From every culture to every creed, we are One City. From every apartment, to every condo, to every townhouse, to every single-family dwelling, we are One City. From every block, to every neighborhood, to every ward we are One City. From every zip code to every area code we are One City.

We are One City that congratulates One Leader who has led well. Today, we are One City that celebrates and welcomes another leader and his team who will lead us to even higher ground.

We are One City, a city that works, a city that lives, and a city that leads! We are One City, The Windy City, A Presidential city, An International City, A World Class City, A Championship City, The Greatest City in The World, Sweet Home Chicago—Reaching UP, reaching across, and reaching out!

Mr. Mayor we join you as we go forward together in Chicago,  BECAUSE TEAMWORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK!

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