People's Prayers

Monday, February 10, 2020

Prayers of the People: Idol-ic or Eternal, a Choice ~ 6th Sunday after the Epiphany '20 Yr A

For Sunday, February 16, 2020, Readings: Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Psalm 119:1-8, 1 Corinthians 3:1-9, Matthew 5:21-37

…I set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity...If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God...the Lord your God will bless you...But if your heart turns away and you do not hear, but are led astray to bow down to other gods and serve them, I declare to you today that you shall perish...Choose life…

[Deuteronomy 30:16-18a, 19b]

Happy are they whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord! Happy are they who observe his decrees and seek him with all their hearts! I will thank you with an unfeigned heart... [Psalm 119:1-2, 7a]

I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but rather...infants in Christ. Even now you are still not ready, for you are still people of the flesh...So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God gives the growth. The one who plants and the one who waters have a common purpose...For we are God's servants, working together; you are God's field, God's building. [1 Corinthians 3:11b, 2b-3, 7-9]

So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift...If your right eye causes you to sin tear it out...and if your right hand causes you to sin, cut if off and throw it away... [Matthew 5:23, 29a, 30a]

Life is about our choices. We all have spiritual choices and decisions to make in this life, even in the midst of unforeseen circumstances. Moses gives the Israelites, and us, the basics of the Law of God ~ the Commandments ~ and outlines the “if this/then that” actions/consequences: I set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity. By observing the commandments, decrees, and ordinances and by loving God we choose life. By turning away and being led astray to serve other gods is to choose to perish. The Psalmist chimes in with how happy they are who observe the Law of the Lord, our God.

Paul lays it out to the Church at Corinth ~ they were not ready to hear what he had to say ~ and he spoke to them as infants in Christ because they were still of the flesh. He also tells them/us that working together in community with a common purpose serves our God. There are planters and waterers in God’s fields, and we are each called in to till, fertilize, or manage. Yet with all we are to do, only God provides the growth.

We also may not be ready to hear the message. It’s so easy to be led astray to bow to the many gods in the gardens of life’s idol distractions ~ the idolatry of social media, of celebrity, of mega-wealth, of choosing the correct side of multiple political issues while fomenting exponentially increasing outrage ~ our own and others; or being around the “right” kind of people while judging and excluding, or worse, "those" kinds of people?

And in this continuation of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus furthers the idea of community with a list do’s and don’ts regarding our behaviors with and toward others. In one sense, it sounds as though he’s replacing The Law with his own but read carefully. In his use of You have heard…but I say…Jesus is not reducing but expanding the scope of God’s Law. Most of us avoid murder, for example, but Jesus is warning us that our anger and insult can be a form of violence and subject to God’s judgment. In that vein, it is not a surprise that he says first, be reconciled to your brother or sister.

There is so much depth to each of Christ’s admonitions. These commandments are not simply a basic morality checklist. They are individually and collectively organized around love, trust, and commitment to God through how we are with one another. We must look beyond the literal statements and understand that each and every one of these are intent on us flourishing in this life. By understanding and living into the full expanse of these commandments, we are then able to experience the transformative power of spiritual and relational wholeness. No, not everyone will welcome the love but it’s how we respond that is the crux of the call. We all fail in relationships at one time or another and we have to decide what to do about it. Being reconciled to our brothers and sisters may simply mean I have sincerely offered to work things out. Some will accept, some will not join me in returning to the altar of God. As we hear Jesus say in Mark’s Gospel, the Greatest Commandment is to love God with all of yourself and love your neighbor as (if she/he were) yourself ~ if we do all that then we ARE following the Commandments, we ARE living the Law, we are reconciled to God and humanity, and we do Choose Life - eternal life, spiritual nourishment, an open and unfeigned heart.

The clear message of the combined readings that I hear is that God gives us free will to choose the path we take and tells us what results to expect. Take it or leave it. Face the consequences. Be reconciled. Still an infant in Christ? Grow up. Be in, with, and for Christ; or, not. Idol-ic or Eternal, a choice.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O God of Blessing and Promise, inject our souls with a conscious spiritual hunger, that drives us away from human inclinations, seek Your ways, and be happy to walk in Your Law.

O Lord, our God

RESPONSE: Our trust is in You

~ O God of Blessing and Promise, may those who govern in our names throughout this world, this country, and this community, be earnest in observing Your decrees and keeping Your statutes faithfully, in good conscience, for the well-being of all Your people and Your Creation. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O Lord, our God

Our trust is in You

~ O God of Blessing and Promise, we ask your blessings for those who are dangerously ill, distraught, or life-weary, and for all who serve their needs. We now join our voices to pray aloud for those in need… add your own petitions

O Lord, our God

Our trust is in You

~ O God of Blessing and Promise, hold close the hearts in sorrow, as we celebrate the gifts of all who have departed for new life in Your complete love and perfect peace. We pray especially for… add your own petitions

O Lord, our God

Our trust is in You

~ O God of Blessing and Promise, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently… add your own petitions

O Lord, our God

Our trust is in You

~ O God of Blessing and Promise, may all who serve Your Church feel affirmed and encouraged in guiding us toward growth and grace in You, while we work together as the planters and waterers among Your fields. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O Lord, our God

Our trust is in You

The Celebrant adds: Holy and Mighty God, turn our hearts away from the idol-ic distractions of earthly existence to choose Life Eternal with You. Grant us courage to reconcile with one another, even in disagreement, and to begin each day with love, determined to carry out the vows we have made to You. We ask through Jesus, our Redeemer Lord; and the Holy Spirit, our Divine Counselor; who together with You are One God, now and forever. Amen.

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Monday, February 3, 2020

Prayers of the People: Salt-ed Light-ly ~ 5th Sunday after the Epiphany '20 Yr A

For Sunday, February 9, 2020, Readings: Isaiah 58:1-12, Ps 112:1-10, 1 Cor 2:1-16, Mt 5:13-20

Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet!...Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free...to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house...Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer...
[Isaiah 58:1a, 6-7, 9a]

Light shines in the darkness for the upright; the righteous are merciful and full of compassion...They have freely given to the poor...they will hold up their heads with honor. The wicked will see it and be angry, they will gnash their teeth and pine away; the desires of the wicked will perish. [Psalm 112:4, 9-10]

I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom but on the power of God. [1 Corinthians 2:2-5]

Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored. It is no longer good for anything...You are the light of the world...No one lighting a lamp puts it under a bushel basket, but on the lampstand and it gives light to all in the house. [Matthew 5:13a, 14-15]

This week we pick up on the second installment of The Sermon on the Mount. Last week the feast of The Presentation of Jesus fell unusually on Sunday so we missed the first part of the Sermon, in Matthew 5:1-12, which is a recitation of the Beatitudes. It is always worth re-reading and re-examining what they mean to us individually. One way to approach them is as “Be Attitudes” as there are blessings for each stage along our faith journey. With an attitude of being Christ’s disciples, we aren’t seeking fame and fortune or success by some earthly measure, but rather we change our thinking, adjust our expectations of “life” for a brief sojourn on this earthly plain to the rewards of eternal life in God’s Kingdom. The readings appointed for this Sunday are a good primer on ways to start to think again about how to live this human time as God wants.

Isaiah tells us that just showing up to do a few good acts and a bit of fasting without the right intention isn’t enough, especially if we’re still pointing fingers and judging others. God sees through our waving of hands and cries of “Look at Me” when self-interest is our prime motivator in helping another. Paul carries us along by saying that those who are not spiritually inclined don’t care about what is or isn’t of God and are more likely to get caught up in following the "wisdom" that is merely human. But if we truly seek the wisdom and spirit of God, we will be given more ways to understand.

Jesus takes us further by giving us a few particulars on the responsibilities of discipleship. He starts by telling us we are the “salt of the earth.” Salt in his time was a commodity of great importance far beyond a condiment, it was currency. Soldiers’ wages were paid in salt – salarium in Latin, from where we get the word salary. Everyone used salt as we use money in our own time. If salt loses its taste, its value as currency drops; it becomes worthless, good only to throw on the street. A serious financial problem arises with tasteless salt ~ imagine your paycheck bouncing.

Today good salt enhances the flavors of our food, and the yeast in bread will not rise without it. An appropriate amount of salt is vital to our physical health in digestive and other body processes. In being so identified as the salt of the earth, we are called to realize our own worth and potential in God's sight and to let our good works reflect the Glory of God as a pathway to eternal life.

Jesus also tells us we are the light of the world, a light on the lampstand of life, filling God’s House with spirit-filled light for everyone, unhidden as a city built on a hill, reflecting and refracting God's glory through us as a prism.

These rich images, along with the blessings from the Beatitudes, are a guide for how we choose to live in discipleship. Jesus is clear that he has come to fulfill, not abolish, the Law of God ~ the Commandments ~ and that we are to follow even the least of these to the letter and to teach others to do the same. He doesn't think well of the scribes and Pharisees and while we are challenged to go much farther, the bar is set rather low with them as examples.

It is important to remember that Jesus gave us a summary of the Law: You shall love the Lord your God with all you heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind…You shall love your neighbor as yourself [Matthew 22:37-39b]. If you do those you will have well fulfilled all the Commandments as God gave them to Moses. Love God; Love your neighbor as yourself. After all, if you truly love God and love your neighbor as yourself you won’t steal, kill, covet, commit, etc. The as yourself part is a very specific clarification that often goes unheard or dismissed. It is to love your neighbor as if your neighbor is yourself; you are your neighbor/your neighbor is you. Not so easy to dismiss one neighbor for another if it is dismissing yourself!

When we follow these instructions, we will receive the blessings outlined in the Beatitudes and our light shall rise in the darkness to shine God’s glory to others. Stay tuned, this week was a mere introduction to the rest of the Sermon. Let us go forth salt-ed and light-ly by, in, and with God's everlasting remembrance.

In the meantime, let us look at another Summary of God’s wishes, this from John Wesley:

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O God of Power and Wisdom, infuse our souls with the deep desire to move from the self-indulgence of limitless distractions, to being the upright salt of the earth, preserving and enhancing the freshness of Christ’s call to a life of trust in You.

O Lord, our Guide

RESPONSE: Keep our hearts right and unafraid

~ O God of Power and Wisdom, free us from fear and trembling to be Your beacon as a city on a hill, shining Your Light in the darkness. Let us lift our voices to implore all who lead governments on this Planet, in this Country, and in our Community to be just, merciful, compassionate, and honorable in their lives and work. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O Lord, our Guide