People's Prayers

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Prayers of the People: Pearls and Mustard, 7th Sunday after Pentecost

for July 27, 2014, 7th Sunday after Pentecost, Readings: Gen 29: 15-28; Ps 105: 1-11, 44-45; Romans 8:26-39; Mt 13:31-52

When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, 'What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn't I? Why have you deceived me?'
[Gen 29:25 NIV]

The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed...like yeast...like treasure hidden in a field...[and] like [a pearl] of great value... [Matthew 13:31, 33, 44, 45 NIV]

A Taste of Creation this week -
the deceiver is deceived, and there is more sibling rivalry and jealousy. In using imperfect people to show us to ourselves, we also see that we are still counted among all those that God loves, regardless of our flaws.
Jesus lets us know there is something for everyone in God's Kingdom whether we are planting the tiny mustard seeds to grow into large trees that birds will flock to, mixing yeast with flour to expand the dough, finding buried treasure in the field, or discovering a pearl so perfect that we sell all we own to buy it.
One message is that there is no perfection in humanity but our smallest efforts can grow and yield a large return. All we have to do is recognize that God is always here, we just have to look, and sometimes that requires a little digging. We have to work pretty hard to be separated from the love of God through Jesus, even with all of our faults. So even when we start small, all that we do will expand, and we'll be able to achieve the greatest possible reward. After all, If God is for us, who can be against us? [Romans 8:31b] Only us.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O God of Strength and Presence, the hidden gems in Your Creation: the smallest seeds yielding the largest trees, the yeast that expands the dough, the treasure for which we buy the field, are all markers of Your bountiful love that begins in small ways and fills our souls beyond measure. Catch us in Your net, keep us worthy, and gather us into the good basket of Your bountiful harvest.

Spirit of God, search our hearts, know our minds

RESPONSE: Help us, O Lord, in our weakness

~ O God of Strength and Presence, enjoin the political leaders of this world, our country, and our community, to stop the wars, provide the basic necessities for Your neediest people, and live into the ethics of acting on what is best for all whom they govern, not merely some. We pray especially for Barack, our President; Jack, our Governor; Tom, our County Executive; and Dennis, our mayor.

Spirit of God, search our hearts, know our minds

Help us, O Lord, in our weakness

~ O God of Strength and Presence, ease the burden of illness, injury, or affliction for those who suffer, and bring relief to those who give them care. We pray especially for:

Spirit of God, search our hearts, know our minds

Help us, O Lord, in our weakness

~ O God of Strength and Presence, give shelter to those who are weary with grief, and let those we have lost, find themselves now shining in the sun of Your covenant, nesting in Your Tree of Eternal Life. We pray especially for:

Spirit of God, search our hearts, know our minds

Help us, O Lord, in our weakness

~ O God of Strength and Presence, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt intentions and petitions, silently or aloud…..

Spirit of God, search our hearts, know our minds

Help us, O Lord, in our weakness

~ O God of Strength and Presence, for those who You and we have called upon to lead us in Your church, bestow the gift of grace-filled respite and the reminder that, “We know that all things work together for good, for those who love God...” We pray especially for: Katharine, our Presiding Bishop; Wayne, our own Bishop; David, our rector; Lloyd, our Rector Emeritus; and Peter, our Associate Priest.

Spirit of God, search our hearts, know our minds

Help us, O Lord, in our weakness

The Celebrant adds: O God of Abraham and Sarah; Jacob, Rebekah and Leah; David, and Judas, to fulfill Your covenant, You use imperfect people who argue, are jealous, greedy, and disobey Your Law, so that we might see ourselves among those You love. Guide us to remember that You are always for us and nothing but our own selfishness will separate us from the love of Christ. We ask Your continued blessing through Jesus, our Redeemer and the Holy Spirit, our Sanctifier who fill the heavens with You as One God, now and forever. Amen.

Please feel free to request a prayer or meditation to be composed for a particular person, concern, or topic for posting in this space. You may leave your request in the comments section or contact me directly at Leeosophy@gmail.com All compositions remain the property of the owner of this blog but may be used with attribution as long as they are not sold or charged for in any way. If you would like the weekly Prayers of the People prior to its appearance on the blog, please send me an email. Personal prayer requestors will remain anonymous.

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Meditation Moments: Sure'n up

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. “Pooh,” he whispered.

“Yes,” said Pooh.

“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s paw, “I just wanted to be sure of you.”*

Well, Dear God of all Hunny Bears and Other Sweet Creatures,

I’m having one of "those" days and weeks and even a month! It's been such a busy time, so very much stuff going on, some happiness here, a worry or two there, and a few other things. I might not have been paying as much attention to You lately as I could have, even missed church once or twice or...but here I am now, just sidling up to You. It seemed like it was past time for us to take a walk together and for me to check in. I just want You to be as sure of me as I am of You - ok, that might take some work on my part so here I am sure-ing things up with You. Thanks for being here even when I've wandered a little bit away. I'll try not to let it happen again but in case it does, I promise [again] to remember You quicker the next time and then I'll be sure to reach up. amen.

*Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet came from the fertile imagination of English-born playwright, author, and child's poet, A. A. Milne [1881-1956], who based the main character, Pooh, on the teddy bear of the same name belonging to Milne's son, Christopher Robin Milne.

Please feel free to request a prayer or meditation to be composed for a particular person, concern, or topic for posting in this space. You may leave your request in the comments section or contact me directly at Leeosophy@gmail.com All compositions remain the property of the owner of this blog but may be used with attribution as long as they are not sold or charged for in any way. If you would like the weekly Prayers of the People prior to its appearance on the blog, please send me an email. Personal prayer requestors will remain anonymous.

Friday, July 18, 2014

Meditation Moments: Inside, Outside, or Circular?

THINK DIFFERENT. But don't believe everything you think.
~ Charlie Chaplin* [1899-1977]

I'm always certain that my thoughts are on track and correct, except when I stop to think about my thoughts. Then, I realize I might, possibly, perhaps, have a bias or two or, at the very least, an untested expectation that affects what I'm thinking. Often I think that you think that I should think one thing or another, but I've never asked you so maybe you don't think that at all but something else instead. But if I ask you, will you think I just don't know what I'm thinking? All this thinking stuff gives me a headache. Can't I just breeze through life thoughtlessly?
Dear Most Excellent Thinker of Thoughts, please help me to work more diligently on how to think critically, objectively, and constructively. Let me recognize and understand the biases and emotions that influence my thoughts and, after some analysis (which may include advice from several others), feel comfortable moving forward anyway or, to change direction entirely. I do know that my thoughts, human as they are, will always be flawed in one way or another. Grant me the ability to be open to changes in my opinions and positions based on new information. Let me work calmly through criticism - fair or not - and accept the outcomes of my actions while learning new lessons for the future. Whether my thinking is inside or outside of any given box, let me not recycle the same ways of understanding life in ever smaller circles with ever smaller thoughts, or, in other words, don't let me believe everything I think. amen.

*Charlie Chaplin, born in England, an actor, comedian, director, writer all of the first magnitude with a huge fan base on both sides of the Atlantic and elsewhere that helped him survive adoration and controversy. His brilliance in his early silent films is still being admired today. His most famous character, The Tramp, propelled him to icon status.

Please feel free to request a prayer or meditation to be composed for a particular person, concern, or topic for posting in this space. You may leave your request in the comments section or contact me directly at Leeosophy@gmail.com All compositions remain the property of the owner of this blog but may be used with attribution as long as they are not sold or charged for in any way. If you would like the weekly Prayers of the People prior to its appearance on the blog, please send me an email. Personal prayer requestors will remain anonymous.

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Meditation Moments: STOP THE WAR! a reprise of sorts...

Some will remember this medallion
from the Viet Nam protests in the 1970s
It still is true

The following is from an original post that has had over 120 hits in the last 10 days alone with the words prayers/Palestine being the most frequent search words used. The readers are from all over the world including the Middle East. I cannot tell who reads, only what country they represent. With all that is happening, especially this week, I thought it was time to reprise part of what I had written in April with a few little changes. The link to the original post is at the bottom.
           Let us join together in prayer for all the turmoil in the Middle East, the Sudan, the Ukraine, and everywhere that there is war - not for "sides," but for peace, especially for the sake of the children:

         After the discoveries and acknowledgement of the horrors of the Nazi Holocaust, a homeland for the Jews was sympathetically promoted for Palestine as "A Land Without People for People Without A Land" except the flaw in the ointment of the great repatriation was that there were people already there, a few Jewish people and also non-Jewish people - Muslims, Christians, and non-believers. The debates, the wars, the persecutions, the walls, the guns, the bombs, the bloodshed continue and escalate on a daily basis....and yet, Who does any of the Earth really belong to? We cannot take the land with us when we die but so many are willing to die - or to kill - to prove it belongs to them.

God of Heaven and of Earth, and of all the Universes known and unknown:
           We grieve for the pain and suffering, the torment and anger on all sides of this and every other blood feud over who can, must, should, shouldn't, can't live here or there. Deep as the core of this earth, is the anguish that belongs to everyone. We are all Your people - please, we implore, we beseech, we beg You - show Your care for us, Your children, and help us learn to care for each other and to live together in peace, safety, and freedom. Open our eyes, our hearts, and our souls to see ourselves in each other's faces and especially in the faces of all of our children.
          For today I must give up worrying more about fixing blame and take on learning more about the history of all sides of a conflict whether in the Middle East, or in any country including my own, my city, or even my family. I pray for the courage to support those who abhor violence and who will encourage dialogue and other non-violent remedies to promote understanding among us all. I entreat You through the Saving Love of Jesus the Christ and the Wisdom of Your Holy Spirit who live and reign with You as One,The God of Abraham, for now, for tomorrow, for eternity. amen.

The original piece which includes maps showing the time changes in the maps of Palestinian holdings in Israel since 1917 and a quote from Dr. Naim Ateek, can be found at:
http://prayersofthepeople.blogspot.com/2014/04/prayers-for-lent-day-33-give-up-take-on.html

Please feel free to request a prayer or meditation to be composed for a particular person, concern, or topic for posting in this space. You may leave your request in the comments section or contact me directly at Leeosophy@gmail.com All compositions remain the property of the owner of this blog but may be used with attribution as long as they are not sold or charged for in any way. If you would like the weekly Prayers of the People prior to its appearance on the blog, please send me an email. Personal prayer requestors will remain anonymous.

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Meditation Moments: The Trip of a Lifetime

It's good to have an end

to journey toward;

but it's the journey that matters in the end. ~ Ernest Hemingway*[1899-1961]

Dear Master Travel Agent ~
As You already know, I've come a good distance on this journey and sometimes I don't know how I've gotten this far let alone figured out where I'm headed. Oh I know I'm ultimately headed in Your direction and that how I get there matters, it's just that there have been so many twists and turns along the road so far and I'm sort of directionally challenged at times. Am I headed down or up the right road? I'm hoping that effort, spelling, and punctuation count toward my final grade (please, though, not neatness). In the meantime, I'm just here to ask for the usual travel stuff - please be my Guide and Companion along the Way and let me recognize You wherever I go and in whoever I encounter. I know that MapQuest won't help but I look forward to little hints here and there that I'm on the right track. Thanks for letting me get this far and, if it's not too much of a bother, I'd like to go on for quite awhile yet, whatever bumps and bites yet to come. amen.

*Ernest Hemingway, American journalist and author, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954, his writings are considered classics in American literature. Multiple marriages and a colorful life led Hemingway down many roads in his fairly short but completely filled journey that culminated in suicide in 1961 but left a legacy of words that will never die.

Please feel free to request a prayer or meditation to be composed for a particular person, concern, or topic for posting in this space. You may leave your request in the comments section or contact me directly at Leeosophy@gmail.com All compositions remain the property of the owner of this blog but may be used with attribution as long as they are not sold or charged for in any way. If you would like the weekly Prayers of the People prior to its appearance on the blog, please send me an email. Personal prayer requestors will remain anonymous.

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Meditation Moments: Don't Judge a Fish by its Scales

Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.
~ Albert Einstein* [1879-1955]

Lord of all Intelligent, and not so, Life,
I cannot count the times I have felt diminished by being told I wasn't capable of x or that I couldn't possibly achieve y. I've also been elevated by the encouragement of or compliment by someone I respect and admire, or even by a stranger. How easy it can be to shake or make self-confidence, to thwart or inspire development. How fragile we, who-pretend-even-to-ourselves-we-are-not, often are.
SO, here's a twist on some familiar refrains - Let me NOT do or say unto others the insensitive and hurtful things as have been done or said unto me (even if unaware and unintended). And grant me the serenity to let go of that same stuff and just get on with myself. Help me to always be an encourager and a listener even if I'm pretty sure that the fish can't climb the tree - sometimes we may all be surprised at the outcome. amen.

*Albert Einstein, German-born, is an icon of theoretical physics, a Nobel Prize winner, with so many intellectual and scientific achievements to his credit his name has become the synonym for genius. He was visiting in the US in 1933 when Hitler came to power and he never returned to Germany. He became a US citizen in 1940 and warned President Roosevelt of the possible weapon development in Germany that would become the Manhattan Project in the US leading to the atomic bomb. Einstein later denounced the use of nuclear fission for weapons but had been worried that Germany would develop it first. His career in the US was with the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton University in New Jersey which lasted until his death.

Please feel free to request a prayer or meditation to be composed for a particular person, concern, or topic for posting in this space. You may leave your request in the comments section or contact me directly at Leeosophy@gmail.com All compositions remain the property of the owner of this blog but may be used with attribution as long as they are not sold or charged for in any way. If you would like the weekly Prayers of the People prior to its appearance on the blog, please send me an email. Personal prayer requestors will remain anonymous.

Prayers of the People: Bloomin' Weeds, 6th Sunday after Pentecost

For July 20, 2014, 6th Sunday after Pentecost, Readings: Gen 28: 10-19; Ps 139: 1-12, 21-23; Romans 8:12-25; Mt 13:24-30, 36-43

...for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them.Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn. [Mt 13: 29-30]

As a sometimes gardener, I often don't know the weed from the desired seedling until there's been significant growth and by then it is a losing game trying to keep up with them. And sometimes, the weed is prettier than the plant I wanted, that is, until it takes over the rest of the yard. There are multiple exceptions of course, many weeds are clearly a menace to the order and beauty of the garden, can wreak serious havoc with the crop, and really try my patience.

But it isn't at all unlike moving with groups of people. I'm still learning that very often those who appear to be less attractive on the outside have an interior beauty that blooms through into their lives, cultivating and spreading the seeds of goodness and joy all around them. Others who seem to blossom profusely on the outside fade pretty quickly in the scheme of things after attempts to spread their charms are unwelcome. Thankfully, I'm very glad that I'm not in charge of what gets to the barn and what gets burned. I need to pay attention to what within me needs some pruning.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ Spirit of Hope and Patience, we are led by You as the children of God and made joint heirs with Jesus to eternal life in glory. Let us take the wings of each morning to labor in the fields of our Lord, where every place we stop is Beth-El, the House of God.