I pray for you, and me, and all of us
that during this season
of rush and fuss and busy-ness
we would quiet our hearts
and remember the reason
that the Christ child comes to us.
It is for love that He comes near.
He gives us grace and quiets our fear.
He takes our pain and sin and makes us new.
We can drop our burdens and rest in Him.
No longer trying to do and do and do,
we're transformed by Light that will never dim.
Peace and love and joy He'll bring;
with His song in us we too will sing.
When we invite Him into our hearts,
this is where the healing starts.
His light will spread to each person we meet,
and He Himself will guide our feet.
So during this Christmas for us I pray
to stop and listen to what He has to say,
spend sweet time communing with Him,
and let Him fill us to the very brim
with gifts that will forever last,
then these to others we will pass.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Monday, October 10, 2011
Alleluia
Alleluia. Open your heart. Sing praises.
God breathed life into this world, and into each plant and animal, and into each of us.
The reverberation of his word of creation hums through the world yet today, behind all the incessant movement and busy-ness and changes. If we look, we can see him everywhere around us.
When we slow and attune ourselves to him, peace enters, and we drink from the well of joy.
We go to a place where we walk with him, and know that we are his, and he is ours.
Then we flow with the water of life, and it drips from our hands, and we are fed and rested, no longer thirsty. It spreads and touches those around us.
And the light shines through us, and neither darkness nor fire can hurt us. Our inmost soul is safe with him, spoken by his word, sheltered and borne by his wings, lifted out of the clinging mire and shifting sands, set on solid rock. We too can soar and fly.
He loves you. Let him open your eyes, that you may see, and open your ears, that you may hear. Let him sing in your heart. Let his surety quiet your mind and bring you peace. Let him live in you.
Sing praises from a grateful heart.
Alleluia.
Friday, September 23, 2011
A Psalm/Prayer
Lord God, You are mighty and your power has created the universe. Your splendor is reflected throughout the earth.
Yet your spirit of gentle love flows around and through each of us little ones. As we nestle into you, Abba, you draw and guide us. You are our shepherd.
Lord, I thank you for your love, for the earth, for my life. I praise you for all the wonders you have created -- for sun and moon and stars, for mountains and waterfalls, for thunderstorms, for snow and rain and streams and springs, for the ocean, for winds and gentle breezes, for the fragrance of flowers and mown grass, for the animals and plants, for everything moving in harmony. I praise you for your mighty works -- in nations, communities, families, and individuals, for healing and miracles, and protection and knowledge, for the creation of new things.
You were there as my body was formed in my mother. Because of you I have always felt at home in the universe. Your love shone through my mother and father. You guided me and taught me about you. When I was confused and hurt, you waited patiently until I turned toward you, and you loved me. You taught me how to hear you and walk with your Spirit. You taught me how to let your love flow through me to others.
Lord, use my experiences to polish me and to open my heart so that I reflect you better and better, like a polished gem letting the light shine through. Help me totally surrender into your great mystery so that I hear your voice and music around me always, and feel your presence and love. Capture my will in obedience to yours, that your love and power may flow through me for your purposes. Help me learn to talk and listen to you, to know your voice even when it whispers amidst the storms in life, to seek you with all my heart and strength, to rest secure in you. Help me to be rooted in you, to let your energy flow through me, to move in accordance with your love and will, in harmony. As I turn toward your bright light, help me grow and let it shine through my life, illuminating all, so I can eventually join with the bright sun of your presence. Remind me to seek and ask, so that your power can move through the world.
c. 2000, Barbara Showalter (may be reprinted with attribution)
Yet your spirit of gentle love flows around and through each of us little ones. As we nestle into you, Abba, you draw and guide us. You are our shepherd.
Lord, I thank you for your love, for the earth, for my life. I praise you for all the wonders you have created -- for sun and moon and stars, for mountains and waterfalls, for thunderstorms, for snow and rain and streams and springs, for the ocean, for winds and gentle breezes, for the fragrance of flowers and mown grass, for the animals and plants, for everything moving in harmony. I praise you for your mighty works -- in nations, communities, families, and individuals, for healing and miracles, and protection and knowledge, for the creation of new things.
You were there as my body was formed in my mother. Because of you I have always felt at home in the universe. Your love shone through my mother and father. You guided me and taught me about you. When I was confused and hurt, you waited patiently until I turned toward you, and you loved me. You taught me how to hear you and walk with your Spirit. You taught me how to let your love flow through me to others.
Lord, use my experiences to polish me and to open my heart so that I reflect you better and better, like a polished gem letting the light shine through. Help me totally surrender into your great mystery so that I hear your voice and music around me always, and feel your presence and love. Capture my will in obedience to yours, that your love and power may flow through me for your purposes. Help me learn to talk and listen to you, to know your voice even when it whispers amidst the storms in life, to seek you with all my heart and strength, to rest secure in you. Help me to be rooted in you, to let your energy flow through me, to move in accordance with your love and will, in harmony. As I turn toward your bright light, help me grow and let it shine through my life, illuminating all, so I can eventually join with the bright sun of your presence. Remind me to seek and ask, so that your power can move through the world.
c. 2000, Barbara Showalter (may be reprinted with attribution)
A Psalm
A. Attitude. Lord God, Almighty, Alpha and Omega, Creator, Provider and Giver of gifts -- help me remember and turn to and trust in you always, with a grateful, loving, and obedient heart; seeking your face, your voice, your leading in my life. Thank you for the world and for life; thank you for a calling and purpose; thank your for love, and for providing all the things I need to live. Thank you for difficulties, to learn what's important and to become strong.
B. Beauty. You created the earth and all in it, and declared it good. Let my eyes open to the beauty and wonder all around me, let me walk in beaury, let my life shape itself into a beautiful offering to you. Let my mind dwell on what is good and beautiful and uplifting. Help me create beauty around me, and bring out the beauty in each person I meet. Let me be open and yield to you so you can shine through me and illuminate my life.
C. Compassion -- Your great love, compassion, and mercy surrounds us all our lives. Christ came to share our lives and teach us and show us the way. Let that same compassion suffuse through us and be present in all our interactions with others, whether they are loved ones or friends or strangers or enemies. Let that love touch everyone's heart and bring them to you.
D. Discipline -- Help us become true disciples who follow you. Help us learn and love even through great difficulties. Help us yield and turn our hearts toward you even in times of distraction and hurt. Draw us to you, help us seek you first and love you with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. Help us to lean on you, rather than on our own strength and understanding. Help us to seek and welcome your guidance and correction, and to persist and persevere, putting you first.
E. Error. Thank you for forgiving our errors, welcoming us back to you, and loving us even in the midst of errors, knowing that we'll make them and not holding us to an impossible standard. Thank you for sending Jesus to show us the way to you, to reconcile and redeem us, to pay for our sins, and to cloak us in his purity. Thank you for sending the Holy Spirit, to guide us and teach us, that we may avoid and recognize errors, and turn away from them an
F. Father. Father God, Abba, Provider, Nurturer, Shepherd, Teacher. You surround me with your love and caring. I nestle into you, curl up on your lap to rest, turn to you with difficulties, rejoice and thrive in your love. You are always there. You created me, you knit me together in my mother's womb, you know my thoughts. You sustain me. You have made the universe my home. Thank you for your love. Help me remember to run to you, leap into your arms as a young child does when Daddy comes home, with love and joy and excitement.
G.. Grace. Freely given, unmerited favor, unearned, undeserved. (Impossible to earn or deserve.) Your love and grace fall into our lives freely. Your forgiveness waits but for us to turn to you and ask and accept. We respond with joy, tears, opening hearts, love, dedication, a sense of freedom and delight, dancing instead of weighed down with burdens. our gifts suffuse our life with an ineffable perfume, give us hope, surround us with music, touch our hearts and souls, transform our very beings.
H. Holy Spirit. You walk with us, dwell in us, share our lives and hearts intimately. Counselor. Teacher. Friend. The small voice we hear when we turn inward-- intuition whispering to us, coursing through our lives, connecting us with God and all creation. You draw us to God, help us pray, guide us, teach and remind us. The more we listen to you and act on it, the clearer and more real to us you become. Help us learn to listen, remember to seek you, and feel your power. You bring us amazing gifts; help us to recognize them and learn to use them well. Help us to live in a way that brings you delight and honor and glory, and does not in any way grieve you.
I. Illumination. Your light, love, and word illuminate my path. The radiance of your spirit lights every spot in the universe, penetrating physical darkness, darkness of the heart, spiritual blindness, and intellectual ignorance. The range of your light is exquisite: the blinding bright sun of your full being on your throne in the center of heaven; the warm glow of your presence in a time of darkness and difficulty in my life; a new perspective, like a change in the quality of light slanting across a landscape (fresh morning sun, bright mid-day, the golden slant of late afternoon...); illumination of a certain area or problem that lets me see it clearly as you guide and teach me; a sparkle of excitement and joy. Open my spiritual eyes and the eyes of my heart. Inspire the vision of my mind. Let me truly see, with your eyes, the reality around me, with full awareness. Illuminate my dreams. Let me follow your guiding light throughout my life.
J. Joy. Lord, let my response to life and to your presence be a spring of joy bubbling up in my heart. Help me stay aware of the beauty and wonder of creation, of the workings of our bodies, of the love surrounding and connecting us. Help me approach challenges and difficulties with a joyful heart. Help me count all your gifts and blessings to me, to focus on the good that I have. I don't want a dissatisfied or bitter heart that always longs after more. I rejoice in your love and teaching and guidance. Let my path through life be full of joyous exploration and learning. Let me be like the child who woke in the morning and, after looking around for a minute, responded, "Wow!" Help me remember in difficult times that surface physical reality is only a small part of what is, and that spiritual strength and joy is possible always. Joy and thanksgiving are contagious; help me spread them around me. Train into me a consistent attitude and response of worship, praise, thanksgiving, and joy -- a constant song and prayer and communion with You. Let quiet joy and gratitude be a constant background to the events and flow of my life.
K. King of kings, Lord of lords... help me make you the king of my heart and of my life. Growing up in a democracy where we all expect to help make decisions, it's sometimes hard to remember to look outside myself first. But listening and moving in accord with your Holy Spirit is so much wiser. Being a child of the King is such a blessed position. Help me know and trust that you will do what's right, and what's the very best for me and everyone else. Help me eagerly seek and obey your will. You are a good and righteous King; you can see far beyond what I can. Your plan is to bring us full joy in life, and you will equip us for whatever you ask us to do. Let your word be the law of my heart, my life, the world. Help me give my life to you, and know that any apparent sacrifices aren't a pain or loss, but bring greater joy. Help me to understand your true principle of kingship, which led you to be a servant and a sacrifice. Being close to you is a privilege -- and one you give freely to all who turn to you.
L. Life. Thank you for the miracle of life. That each type of life can take dirt,sun, air, and water, and grow and recreate its own kind; that we have bodies that can move and feel; that our spirits can love and create and wonder; that our souls can commune with you: these are all miracles. Thank you for all the aspects of life, for all seasons. Thank you for the journey and learning in our physical life. Thank you for suffusing our lives with your Spirit when we open our hearts to you. Thank you for life eternal. Thank you for being with us, communicating with us, teaching and guiding us throughout the amazing adventure of our lives.
M. Mystery Lord, help us to be aware of and rejoice in mystery -- the mystery of yourself, which we can't comprehend or describe;the mystery of life. If we knew everything that would happen and why, life would lose its fullness, and no longer be an adventure nor a place to learn and explore. We would just be going through rote moves. There is a joy and wonder, a lifting of my heart, in following paths around corners and into hidden places. There is room for the magical and mystical, for miracles, for unexpected joys and sorrows, for unexpected learning and growth. Help me remember the map is never the territory. Help me be aware and open, to live with all of my senses, including the inner ones of spirit. Let me not get caught in ruts or "old tapes", but experience people, places, actions, and days as new and fresh and wonderful. help me not try to cut you down to the size of my words and understanding, but realize that all words are an attempt to describe something that can't be described. Let me look to the mystery with reverence and joy.
O. Open Heart. Lord, let my heart be open, tender, loving, warm, humble, and obedient to you. Help me clear away the obstructions and protections I've woven around it through life (such as pride, wounds, bitterness, self-pity, pain, and scars that make it hard and closed). Soften it, make it clear and light, that you may shine through it, work in and through it, extend your love through it to others. When you speak to my heart, I pray that your voice may penetrate to its depths, that it beat to your song, and reverberate to your word. Help me to be fully ready to hear your voice and follow you. Help my stay vulnerable, protected by the power of your love, not by closing and hardening my heart. May I remember that each person, creature and thing on Earth is created and dearly loved by You.
P. Perseverance. Lord, there are many difficulties, trial, and sorrows in life. You never promised us an easy time, and in fact instructed us to rejoice in difficulties. Help us to learn, thrive, and stay connected to you through our times of trouble, following your call and direction. Give us the courage and trust in you to take just one more step, and then another, even when our way is dark and we can't see which way to go. Help us learn persistence. Help us care enough -- about you, others, and ourselves -- to continue, to press on. Help our attitude: rather than bitterness and despair, let us be thankful for what we have had and do have, let us rejoice in our deepening connection and trust in you, and let us be aware of how we are growing, maturing, and becoming strong. Help us grow deep roots to withstand the storms and droughts of life. Just as a gem is cut, a rock tumbled and polished, or pottery shaped and molded by pressure and heat, the strong, vibrant beauty of our character would never emerge without persevering through difficulties.
Q. Quest. Let my life be a quest -- a seeking for God, for my true self, for my calling.... a journey, an adventure, an exploration full of discoveries. Let there be challenges that lead me to drop the easy, the false, everything that -- even if good -- is not the best. Let me value the true treasures. Let me not settle for making do, for appearances, for the superficial false gods of the flesh (such as fame, fortune, and success), for looking good, for others' approval, for getting along, for the easy life. God, let me feel my soul's yearning for you and your ways. Let me walk with your Holy Spirit as my guide, teacher, companion, and inspiration. Forge my character, burning away that which isn't the true me, so that you can shine through me, so that your reflection shows in me. Let me seek the glory of your love, the tranquility of your peace, the wellspring of your joy, the strength of your purpose and guidance, my part in the melody of your song. Let my home and my comfort and my sustenance be you.
R. Rest. Lord, you said, "Come to me all you who are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest." You gave the nation of Israel commandments about keeping a regular weekly day of rest, the Sabbath. Help me remember to turn to you, especially when I get caught up in and worn down by all the different tasks, problems, and needs in my life. Instead of making a huge to-do list, or trying to solve my family's, friends', and the world's problems on my own, let me turn first to you, and remember to walk and talk with you on my journey. Let me taste your sweet peace, drink from your spring of joy and life, be nourished by your work and love. Help me remember that I can't run the world. Remind me to turn my burdens over to you. I will follow you as my shepherd; listen to you as my friend and love and master; let you tell me when and how to act, rather than try to effort through on my own. I will let your light and love shine through me, illumine my life, and spill into the lives of others. Rather than worry, help me trust you, pray to you, and grow in you. Help me open to your song and power and love, and let them dance and flow through my life. In the midst of trials and pain, remind me that you're there, and that I can nestle on your lap like a child, cry on your shoulder, rest in your embrace, and splash in your river of life. Open my ears and my heart to your invitation to rest in you.
S. Servanthood. Lord, you transformed our ideas of power and leadership and honor. Changing the worldly perspective, you taught that the highest thing is to serve, not to direct or be served. Serving others is not a drudgery, but a song, a joy, an honor. Teach us to take our selves out of the way of our eyes, our minds, and our hearts; that we may see with eyes of Spirit and let your love shine through to all the places it's needed, to heal and make whole. Help us to see you in all the others around us. You have told us that anything we do or don't do for the least important person, we do or don't do for you. In the words of St. Francis, "Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted; to understand than to be understood; to love than to be loved. For it is by forgetting self that one finds; it is by forgiving that one is forgiven; it is by dying that one awakens to eternal life."
T. Trust. Lord, help me trust in you as a young child trusts in his or her parents -- to feed him, play with her, protect him, love her, be there when he's hurt or has bad dreams, catch her when she jumps into their arms, teach and guide him. I want that knowing to be automatic, conscious and subconscious. I want to confide in you, walk hand-in-hand with you, talk to you about what I see and feel on the way, reach out to you to help me over obstacles, curl up in your lap to rest, and have such trust and love in my relationship with you that I take your words to heart, act in accordance, obey immediately. As I experience problems in the world, let them turn me even more to You, knowing I can't trust in the world's fairness, justice, love, or mercy .. .but I can in yours.
U. Understanding. Dear God, Give us understanding through your Holy Spirit, who is always with us. Help us share your perspective. Our own vision is not clear; we see through a glass darkly. The circumstances in the world are full of uncertainty, confusion, and mystery. You combine wisdom, penetrating vision, judgment, love, and mercy; you see our flaws and gifts clearly, and love and teach and forgive us. Help us to do the same thing with the people around us. Help us to rely on you as our foundation, the basis of our understanding. You are the rock supporting us, giving us stability. If we stand on you, we no longer have to try to keep our balance on the shifting rocks and sands of the world. You lift us out of the mire and the quicksand, give us a place to stand in the floods and storms, keep us from getting caught in the illusions and snares that are around us. Thank you for guiding us and giving us gifts of knowledge and wisdom.
V. Vine. Jesus, you said, "I am the vine. You are the branches. If you remain joined to me, and I to you, you will bear a lot of fruit. You can't do anything without me." The vine brings the water of life and all needed nutrition up out of the earth, even in hot and dry areas, and pours it into each branch, which can then grow and produce leaves and fruit. Let us look to our connection with the vine, making sure it is healthy and strong. Let us abide in Jesus, and let him live in our hearts and spill into all parts of our lives. Then we will be sustained and grow no matter where we are, no matter what is happening in our lives.
W. Word. Your word defines and creates reality. The reverberations echo through space and time, reflections of the eternal. Jesus is the word made flesh, our clearest way of seeing and hearing you, and the agent of our transformation and reconciliation with you. We are made in your image, and with our words create the structure of our world and lives. We wait and listen.... to the shouting of your word that we see and hear in all creation... to the teaching and comfort of your word passed on by other people, spoken or written... to the whisper of your word in our hearts. It behooves us to listen carefully to your word in all its manifestations, to incorporate it into ourselves, to broadcast it to the world, and to take special care with what we create with our own words, as they have power.
X = the answer. We don't always know the questions to ask. You are always our answer. The incompleteness and lack we feel: you are the answer. Our fear and hurt and bitterness: you are the remedy. Our struggles to understand: you give us vision and hope. Our uncertainties and despair: you are our solid rock on which to stand. Our sins and death: you are our Savior, our salvation, our way to eternal life. Our desires and pride: you teach us, guide us, and correct us with love and compassion. Our losses, illnesses, and grief: you are our healer. Our remorse and shame: you forgive and accept us. You love us, delight in us, welcome us home, give us rest. You are always there, our true friend and companion.
Y. Yearning.
"A deer longs for streams of water. God, I long for you in the same way. I am thirsty for God. I am thirsty for the living God." Psalm 42
"God, you are my God. I greatly long for you. With all my heart I thirst for you in this dry desert where there isn't any water." Psalm 63
"I long to be in the courtyards of the Lord's temple. I deeply long to be there. My whole being cries out for the living God." Psalm 84
Lord, may I respond to your love and leading with my whole heart and being. May such yearning awake in me that I follow you all the way to my home May the difficulties and falling short of this world open the eyes of my spirit and heart to yearn beyond, to forsake empty achievements of this world and reach for the eternal wonders of the next "which never tarnish or rust"/ Let my heart and being fully long for you, that that yearning may be my true guide to find my way to you.
Z. Zeal. Zest, excitement, energy, enthusiasm, dedication: may these be evident in my life; may those who watch me be able to look through to you; may my life reflect the joy of following my calling, the joy of walking with you, the peace and wonder of having you in my heart. Let me play and work and rest in you, and may they all be one thing as I move in harmony with your voice and call.
B. Beauty. You created the earth and all in it, and declared it good. Let my eyes open to the beauty and wonder all around me, let me walk in beaury, let my life shape itself into a beautiful offering to you. Let my mind dwell on what is good and beautiful and uplifting. Help me create beauty around me, and bring out the beauty in each person I meet. Let me be open and yield to you so you can shine through me and illuminate my life.
C. Compassion -- Your great love, compassion, and mercy surrounds us all our lives. Christ came to share our lives and teach us and show us the way. Let that same compassion suffuse through us and be present in all our interactions with others, whether they are loved ones or friends or strangers or enemies. Let that love touch everyone's heart and bring them to you.
D. Discipline -- Help us become true disciples who follow you. Help us learn and love even through great difficulties. Help us yield and turn our hearts toward you even in times of distraction and hurt. Draw us to you, help us seek you first and love you with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. Help us to lean on you, rather than on our own strength and understanding. Help us to seek and welcome your guidance and correction, and to persist and persevere, putting you first.
E. Error. Thank you for forgiving our errors, welcoming us back to you, and loving us even in the midst of errors, knowing that we'll make them and not holding us to an impossible standard. Thank you for sending Jesus to show us the way to you, to reconcile and redeem us, to pay for our sins, and to cloak us in his purity. Thank you for sending the Holy Spirit, to guide us and teach us, that we may avoid and recognize errors, and turn away from them an
F. Father. Father God, Abba, Provider, Nurturer, Shepherd, Teacher. You surround me with your love and caring. I nestle into you, curl up on your lap to rest, turn to you with difficulties, rejoice and thrive in your love. You are always there. You created me, you knit me together in my mother's womb, you know my thoughts. You sustain me. You have made the universe my home. Thank you for your love. Help me remember to run to you, leap into your arms as a young child does when Daddy comes home, with love and joy and excitement.
G.. Grace. Freely given, unmerited favor, unearned, undeserved. (Impossible to earn or deserve.) Your love and grace fall into our lives freely. Your forgiveness waits but for us to turn to you and ask and accept. We respond with joy, tears, opening hearts, love, dedication, a sense of freedom and delight, dancing instead of weighed down with burdens. our gifts suffuse our life with an ineffable perfume, give us hope, surround us with music, touch our hearts and souls, transform our very beings.
H. Holy Spirit. You walk with us, dwell in us, share our lives and hearts intimately. Counselor. Teacher. Friend. The small voice we hear when we turn inward-- intuition whispering to us, coursing through our lives, connecting us with God and all creation. You draw us to God, help us pray, guide us, teach and remind us. The more we listen to you and act on it, the clearer and more real to us you become. Help us learn to listen, remember to seek you, and feel your power. You bring us amazing gifts; help us to recognize them and learn to use them well. Help us to live in a way that brings you delight and honor and glory, and does not in any way grieve you.
I. Illumination. Your light, love, and word illuminate my path. The radiance of your spirit lights every spot in the universe, penetrating physical darkness, darkness of the heart, spiritual blindness, and intellectual ignorance. The range of your light is exquisite: the blinding bright sun of your full being on your throne in the center of heaven; the warm glow of your presence in a time of darkness and difficulty in my life; a new perspective, like a change in the quality of light slanting across a landscape (fresh morning sun, bright mid-day, the golden slant of late afternoon...); illumination of a certain area or problem that lets me see it clearly as you guide and teach me; a sparkle of excitement and joy. Open my spiritual eyes and the eyes of my heart. Inspire the vision of my mind. Let me truly see, with your eyes, the reality around me, with full awareness. Illuminate my dreams. Let me follow your guiding light throughout my life.
J. Joy. Lord, let my response to life and to your presence be a spring of joy bubbling up in my heart. Help me stay aware of the beauty and wonder of creation, of the workings of our bodies, of the love surrounding and connecting us. Help me approach challenges and difficulties with a joyful heart. Help me count all your gifts and blessings to me, to focus on the good that I have. I don't want a dissatisfied or bitter heart that always longs after more. I rejoice in your love and teaching and guidance. Let my path through life be full of joyous exploration and learning. Let me be like the child who woke in the morning and, after looking around for a minute, responded, "Wow!" Help me remember in difficult times that surface physical reality is only a small part of what is, and that spiritual strength and joy is possible always. Joy and thanksgiving are contagious; help me spread them around me. Train into me a consistent attitude and response of worship, praise, thanksgiving, and joy -- a constant song and prayer and communion with You. Let quiet joy and gratitude be a constant background to the events and flow of my life.
K. King of kings, Lord of lords... help me make you the king of my heart and of my life. Growing up in a democracy where we all expect to help make decisions, it's sometimes hard to remember to look outside myself first. But listening and moving in accord with your Holy Spirit is so much wiser. Being a child of the King is such a blessed position. Help me know and trust that you will do what's right, and what's the very best for me and everyone else. Help me eagerly seek and obey your will. You are a good and righteous King; you can see far beyond what I can. Your plan is to bring us full joy in life, and you will equip us for whatever you ask us to do. Let your word be the law of my heart, my life, the world. Help me give my life to you, and know that any apparent sacrifices aren't a pain or loss, but bring greater joy. Help me to understand your true principle of kingship, which led you to be a servant and a sacrifice. Being close to you is a privilege -- and one you give freely to all who turn to you.
L. Life. Thank you for the miracle of life. That each type of life can take dirt,sun, air, and water, and grow and recreate its own kind; that we have bodies that can move and feel; that our spirits can love and create and wonder; that our souls can commune with you: these are all miracles. Thank you for all the aspects of life, for all seasons. Thank you for the journey and learning in our physical life. Thank you for suffusing our lives with your Spirit when we open our hearts to you. Thank you for life eternal. Thank you for being with us, communicating with us, teaching and guiding us throughout the amazing adventure of our lives.
M. Mystery Lord, help us to be aware of and rejoice in mystery -- the mystery of yourself, which we can't comprehend or describe;the mystery of life. If we knew everything that would happen and why, life would lose its fullness, and no longer be an adventure nor a place to learn and explore. We would just be going through rote moves. There is a joy and wonder, a lifting of my heart, in following paths around corners and into hidden places. There is room for the magical and mystical, for miracles, for unexpected joys and sorrows, for unexpected learning and growth. Help me remember the map is never the territory. Help me be aware and open, to live with all of my senses, including the inner ones of spirit. Let me not get caught in ruts or "old tapes", but experience people, places, actions, and days as new and fresh and wonderful. help me not try to cut you down to the size of my words and understanding, but realize that all words are an attempt to describe something that can't be described. Let me look to the mystery with reverence and joy.
N, Names. Lord, we often forget the power of names. Our culture doesn't focus on it. Yet our experiences of reality and of our lives depend on how we name things to ourselves ... what we call ourselves and how we describe the things around us ... the words we use (aloud or silent) create non-conscious expectations that channel our experiences. Names identify us, define us, make us known, describe experience and character. They have power. In many cultures, a new name may be given after a special accomplishment or experience, or to mark a new phase of life. (In the Bible: Abram to Abraham, Sarai to Sarah, Jacob to Israel, Simon to Peter, Boanerges, Saul to Paul. People named places after their experiences there.) Different names for You embody different experiences of You.
Lord, help us to learn your names, that we may know you more and more fully. As we invite you to dwell in us and work in us, our names change; help us to allow you fully into our lives and grow in you, that You can change our names. Help us remember that there is power in your Name, that we may gather, pray and act in your Name, and call on your Name in times of need. Help us to live up to your Name, your character, as we are all your children. We are joyful to be in your family.
Lord, help us to learn your names, that we may know you more and more fully. As we invite you to dwell in us and work in us, our names change; help us to allow you fully into our lives and grow in you, that You can change our names. Help us remember that there is power in your Name, that we may gather, pray and act in your Name, and call on your Name in times of need. Help us to live up to your Name, your character, as we are all your children. We are joyful to be in your family.
O. Open Heart. Lord, let my heart be open, tender, loving, warm, humble, and obedient to you. Help me clear away the obstructions and protections I've woven around it through life (such as pride, wounds, bitterness, self-pity, pain, and scars that make it hard and closed). Soften it, make it clear and light, that you may shine through it, work in and through it, extend your love through it to others. When you speak to my heart, I pray that your voice may penetrate to its depths, that it beat to your song, and reverberate to your word. Help me to be fully ready to hear your voice and follow you. Help my stay vulnerable, protected by the power of your love, not by closing and hardening my heart. May I remember that each person, creature and thing on Earth is created and dearly loved by You.
P. Perseverance. Lord, there are many difficulties, trial, and sorrows in life. You never promised us an easy time, and in fact instructed us to rejoice in difficulties. Help us to learn, thrive, and stay connected to you through our times of trouble, following your call and direction. Give us the courage and trust in you to take just one more step, and then another, even when our way is dark and we can't see which way to go. Help us learn persistence. Help us care enough -- about you, others, and ourselves -- to continue, to press on. Help our attitude: rather than bitterness and despair, let us be thankful for what we have had and do have, let us rejoice in our deepening connection and trust in you, and let us be aware of how we are growing, maturing, and becoming strong. Help us grow deep roots to withstand the storms and droughts of life. Just as a gem is cut, a rock tumbled and polished, or pottery shaped and molded by pressure and heat, the strong, vibrant beauty of our character would never emerge without persevering through difficulties.
Q. Quest. Let my life be a quest -- a seeking for God, for my true self, for my calling.... a journey, an adventure, an exploration full of discoveries. Let there be challenges that lead me to drop the easy, the false, everything that -- even if good -- is not the best. Let me value the true treasures. Let me not settle for making do, for appearances, for the superficial false gods of the flesh (such as fame, fortune, and success), for looking good, for others' approval, for getting along, for the easy life. God, let me feel my soul's yearning for you and your ways. Let me walk with your Holy Spirit as my guide, teacher, companion, and inspiration. Forge my character, burning away that which isn't the true me, so that you can shine through me, so that your reflection shows in me. Let me seek the glory of your love, the tranquility of your peace, the wellspring of your joy, the strength of your purpose and guidance, my part in the melody of your song. Let my home and my comfort and my sustenance be you.
R. Rest. Lord, you said, "Come to me all you who are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest." You gave the nation of Israel commandments about keeping a regular weekly day of rest, the Sabbath. Help me remember to turn to you, especially when I get caught up in and worn down by all the different tasks, problems, and needs in my life. Instead of making a huge to-do list, or trying to solve my family's, friends', and the world's problems on my own, let me turn first to you, and remember to walk and talk with you on my journey. Let me taste your sweet peace, drink from your spring of joy and life, be nourished by your work and love. Help me remember that I can't run the world. Remind me to turn my burdens over to you. I will follow you as my shepherd; listen to you as my friend and love and master; let you tell me when and how to act, rather than try to effort through on my own. I will let your light and love shine through me, illumine my life, and spill into the lives of others. Rather than worry, help me trust you, pray to you, and grow in you. Help me open to your song and power and love, and let them dance and flow through my life. In the midst of trials and pain, remind me that you're there, and that I can nestle on your lap like a child, cry on your shoulder, rest in your embrace, and splash in your river of life. Open my ears and my heart to your invitation to rest in you.
S. Servanthood. Lord, you transformed our ideas of power and leadership and honor. Changing the worldly perspective, you taught that the highest thing is to serve, not to direct or be served. Serving others is not a drudgery, but a song, a joy, an honor. Teach us to take our selves out of the way of our eyes, our minds, and our hearts; that we may see with eyes of Spirit and let your love shine through to all the places it's needed, to heal and make whole. Help us to see you in all the others around us. You have told us that anything we do or don't do for the least important person, we do or don't do for you. In the words of St. Francis, "Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted; to understand than to be understood; to love than to be loved. For it is by forgetting self that one finds; it is by forgiving that one is forgiven; it is by dying that one awakens to eternal life."
T. Trust. Lord, help me trust in you as a young child trusts in his or her parents -- to feed him, play with her, protect him, love her, be there when he's hurt or has bad dreams, catch her when she jumps into their arms, teach and guide him. I want that knowing to be automatic, conscious and subconscious. I want to confide in you, walk hand-in-hand with you, talk to you about what I see and feel on the way, reach out to you to help me over obstacles, curl up in your lap to rest, and have such trust and love in my relationship with you that I take your words to heart, act in accordance, obey immediately. As I experience problems in the world, let them turn me even more to You, knowing I can't trust in the world's fairness, justice, love, or mercy .. .but I can in yours.
U. Understanding. Dear God, Give us understanding through your Holy Spirit, who is always with us. Help us share your perspective. Our own vision is not clear; we see through a glass darkly. The circumstances in the world are full of uncertainty, confusion, and mystery. You combine wisdom, penetrating vision, judgment, love, and mercy; you see our flaws and gifts clearly, and love and teach and forgive us. Help us to do the same thing with the people around us. Help us to rely on you as our foundation, the basis of our understanding. You are the rock supporting us, giving us stability. If we stand on you, we no longer have to try to keep our balance on the shifting rocks and sands of the world. You lift us out of the mire and the quicksand, give us a place to stand in the floods and storms, keep us from getting caught in the illusions and snares that are around us. Thank you for guiding us and giving us gifts of knowledge and wisdom.
V. Vine. Jesus, you said, "I am the vine. You are the branches. If you remain joined to me, and I to you, you will bear a lot of fruit. You can't do anything without me." The vine brings the water of life and all needed nutrition up out of the earth, even in hot and dry areas, and pours it into each branch, which can then grow and produce leaves and fruit. Let us look to our connection with the vine, making sure it is healthy and strong. Let us abide in Jesus, and let him live in our hearts and spill into all parts of our lives. Then we will be sustained and grow no matter where we are, no matter what is happening in our lives.
W. Word. Your word defines and creates reality. The reverberations echo through space and time, reflections of the eternal. Jesus is the word made flesh, our clearest way of seeing and hearing you, and the agent of our transformation and reconciliation with you. We are made in your image, and with our words create the structure of our world and lives. We wait and listen.... to the shouting of your word that we see and hear in all creation... to the teaching and comfort of your word passed on by other people, spoken or written... to the whisper of your word in our hearts. It behooves us to listen carefully to your word in all its manifestations, to incorporate it into ourselves, to broadcast it to the world, and to take special care with what we create with our own words, as they have power.
X = the answer. We don't always know the questions to ask. You are always our answer. The incompleteness and lack we feel: you are the answer. Our fear and hurt and bitterness: you are the remedy. Our struggles to understand: you give us vision and hope. Our uncertainties and despair: you are our solid rock on which to stand. Our sins and death: you are our Savior, our salvation, our way to eternal life. Our desires and pride: you teach us, guide us, and correct us with love and compassion. Our losses, illnesses, and grief: you are our healer. Our remorse and shame: you forgive and accept us. You love us, delight in us, welcome us home, give us rest. You are always there, our true friend and companion.
Y. Yearning.
"A deer longs for streams of water. God, I long for you in the same way. I am thirsty for God. I am thirsty for the living God." Psalm 42
"God, you are my God. I greatly long for you. With all my heart I thirst for you in this dry desert where there isn't any water." Psalm 63
"I long to be in the courtyards of the Lord's temple. I deeply long to be there. My whole being cries out for the living God." Psalm 84
Lord, may I respond to your love and leading with my whole heart and being. May such yearning awake in me that I follow you all the way to my home May the difficulties and falling short of this world open the eyes of my spirit and heart to yearn beyond, to forsake empty achievements of this world and reach for the eternal wonders of the next "which never tarnish or rust"/ Let my heart and being fully long for you, that that yearning may be my true guide to find my way to you.
Z. Zeal. Zest, excitement, energy, enthusiasm, dedication: may these be evident in my life; may those who watch me be able to look through to you; may my life reflect the joy of following my calling, the joy of walking with you, the peace and wonder of having you in my heart. Let me play and work and rest in you, and may they all be one thing as I move in harmony with your voice and call.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Thoughts on the Law and Grace
The law is an absolute: this is the way it must be done; if you don’t do it exactly right (follow the letter of the law) you have failed, stand condemned, and must be punished. It makes things certain: you know how you stand, you know exactly what you should do and not do, you can judge yourself and others with certainty. However, there is no way any person can keep all the parts of the law; therefore we all have failed and will fail, all stand condemned, all deserve punishment. There is no excuse or allowance for human weakness, illness, love, wanting. There may be prescribed ways you can pay or atone for what you’ve done; or the cost could be death.
In any case, under the law there is no uncertainty, no need to wonder did you do the right thing. It’s black and white and absolute. You earn the good and the bad, depending on what you do. You can absolutely know that bad things won’t happen to you, and you can see why they happened to others. (I think this is why, unconsciously, people look for explanations of why tragedy – rape, fires, illnesses... – happen to others; then they can “know” that it won’t happen to them, because they won’t do those things.)
Then there is another approach, totally different from the law. It is characterized by grace – unmerited favor and blessing. There is no prescription, no way to earn it, nothing you have to do or accomplish. As Jesus puts it in the Sermon on the Mount, God gives sun and rain to the good and the evil alike. He says not only to love those who love us (anyone can do that), but to love our neighbor as ourselves (more difficult), and even to love our enemies and do good to those who persecute us (almost impossible under normal human standards) – because then we’ll be like our Father in heaven.
Jesus talks of the spirit of the law – yes, no work on the Sabbath, but then he totally disagrees with accepted doctrine on what “work” is, and that eating (picking grain while walking), giving animals water, and healing are all things that should indeed be done. (Perhaps even especially so on the Sabbath, given the insight into God’s heart provided both in the Old Testament – Isaiah 58 about what true fasting should be and the New Testament -- Matthew 25 about helping others. See below.) We may be asked to do things that the law says would defile us (see the parable of the Good Samaritan; or communion -- eating Jesus' body and drinking his blood). He specifically tells people that tragedies, such as a tower falling and crushing people, had nothing to do with those people being any worse than anyone else, or that a man born blind was not that way because of his sins or his parents’ sins, but to show the glory of God (and proceeded to heal his sight, John 9).
Jesus talks in the Sermon on the Mount of not needing to worry or strive about what you are going to eat or wear, that God feeds the animals and clothes the flowers in beauty, and the same will be done for us. That we need to seek first the kingdom of God, and all else will be added unto us. That we can ask and we will receive, seek and we will find. That we are not to live by the law “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”, but by an even higher standard, where we will be and act much differently. And he sends us the Holy Spirit – to be our teacher and friend and counselor and to show us truth.
On the one hand, this is much easier than trying to follow the myriad demands of the law; on the other hand, it’s much harder, since it’s so different from usual human behavior and there isn’t a “certainty” about it. We don’t "know" it like we "know" the law. We have to venture into it, feel, try, be inspired and called, realize there are still more levels and that we can never achieve it or be there once and for all. We continuously have to listen and feel and act, and fail and try again, realize our limited understanding and stretch ourselves. There is no prescribed right way, no recipe or magical set of words to say or specific thing to do that will for sure lead to healing or wealth or any other thing we want. (Sometimes we might be told to do something that seems utterly foolish, like walking around the walls of Jericho playing trumpets and making noise -- and then the walls fall -- but that won't work the next time.)
There is just being, listening, dancing; and when we sing off-tune, or fall in the dance, there is no punishment, just an outstretched hand to help us back up, and rejoining the dance. And oh, the beauty and wonder and miracles all around us in that dance; and the temptation to trade that level, since it’s so beyond us, for the certainty of the law, even though we are bound to fail under it, and flourish under grace. (For flourishing doesn’t mean that everything goes easily and well by normal human standards, but can involve what looks like incredible difficulty and pain – but the joy and peace and purpose and love abound, and there is connection to God and others that can never occur under the law.)
c. 2011, Barbara Showalter (may be reprinted with attribution)
In any case, under the law there is no uncertainty, no need to wonder did you do the right thing. It’s black and white and absolute. You earn the good and the bad, depending on what you do. You can absolutely know that bad things won’t happen to you, and you can see why they happened to others. (I think this is why, unconsciously, people look for explanations of why tragedy – rape, fires, illnesses... – happen to others; then they can “know” that it won’t happen to them, because they won’t do those things.)
Then there is another approach, totally different from the law. It is characterized by grace – unmerited favor and blessing. There is no prescription, no way to earn it, nothing you have to do or accomplish. As Jesus puts it in the Sermon on the Mount, God gives sun and rain to the good and the evil alike. He says not only to love those who love us (anyone can do that), but to love our neighbor as ourselves (more difficult), and even to love our enemies and do good to those who persecute us (almost impossible under normal human standards) – because then we’ll be like our Father in heaven.
Jesus talks of the spirit of the law – yes, no work on the Sabbath, but then he totally disagrees with accepted doctrine on what “work” is, and that eating (picking grain while walking), giving animals water, and healing are all things that should indeed be done. (Perhaps even especially so on the Sabbath, given the insight into God’s heart provided both in the Old Testament – Isaiah 58 about what true fasting should be and the New Testament -- Matthew 25 about helping others. See below.) We may be asked to do things that the law says would defile us (see the parable of the Good Samaritan; or communion -- eating Jesus' body and drinking his blood). He specifically tells people that tragedies, such as a tower falling and crushing people, had nothing to do with those people being any worse than anyone else, or that a man born blind was not that way because of his sins or his parents’ sins, but to show the glory of God (and proceeded to heal his sight, John 9).
Jesus talks in the Sermon on the Mount of not needing to worry or strive about what you are going to eat or wear, that God feeds the animals and clothes the flowers in beauty, and the same will be done for us. That we need to seek first the kingdom of God, and all else will be added unto us. That we can ask and we will receive, seek and we will find. That we are not to live by the law “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”, but by an even higher standard, where we will be and act much differently. And he sends us the Holy Spirit – to be our teacher and friend and counselor and to show us truth.
On the one hand, this is much easier than trying to follow the myriad demands of the law; on the other hand, it’s much harder, since it’s so different from usual human behavior and there isn’t a “certainty” about it. We don’t "know" it like we "know" the law. We have to venture into it, feel, try, be inspired and called, realize there are still more levels and that we can never achieve it or be there once and for all. We continuously have to listen and feel and act, and fail and try again, realize our limited understanding and stretch ourselves. There is no prescribed right way, no recipe or magical set of words to say or specific thing to do that will for sure lead to healing or wealth or any other thing we want. (Sometimes we might be told to do something that seems utterly foolish, like walking around the walls of Jericho playing trumpets and making noise -- and then the walls fall -- but that won't work the next time.)
There is just being, listening, dancing; and when we sing off-tune, or fall in the dance, there is no punishment, just an outstretched hand to help us back up, and rejoining the dance. And oh, the beauty and wonder and miracles all around us in that dance; and the temptation to trade that level, since it’s so beyond us, for the certainty of the law, even though we are bound to fail under it, and flourish under grace. (For flourishing doesn’t mean that everything goes easily and well by normal human standards, but can involve what looks like incredible difficulty and pain – but the joy and peace and purpose and love abound, and there is connection to God and others that can never occur under the law.)
c. 2011, Barbara Showalter (may be reprinted with attribution)
Matthew 25 (NIV version; www.biblegateway.com)
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ 44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ 45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ 46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Isaiah 58 (NIV version; www.biblegateway.com)
1 “Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the descendants of Jacob their sins. 2 For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them. 3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. 4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high. 5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD? 6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness[a] will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. “If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, 10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. 11 The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. 12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings. 13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, 14 then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
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