People's Prayers

Saturday, April 20, 2024

Meditation in Eastertide ~ Saturday, Week 3: ALL OF THEM ALL THE TIME?

April 20, 2024 ~ Saturday, Week 3

The bible is very easy to understand. But...[t]ake any words in the New Testament and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. My God, you will say, if I do that my whole life will be ruined. How would I ever get on in the world…

~ Søren Kierkegaard*

Jesus said, "The First Commandment is this: Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is the only Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is love your neighbor as [if it is] your self. There is no commandment greater than these."

~ Mark 12:29-31

Dear Jesus ~

I don't have any idea when I last examined my relationship with the Commandments. I know that I haven't stolen anything since I was a kid and got caught; well, ok a few pens from work here and there but that's all, really! I definitely have not killed anyone though maybe I've had a covet or two. But then You already know what I have and haven't done.

I go through each day, week, month, and year and just assume in the back of my mind that I'm doing reasonably ok as a Christian. Well, actually, I don't really think about it at all; I just wander through time doing everyday stuff and as life goes, and I do better on some days than I do on others. But, it's time, now, to look closer about how I truly and consciously know that I love God, how well or not that I love all of my neighbors and, how I act

upon that love. Oh Jesus, help me to Love all those neighbors that I can barely like some days (and could you please ignore how I feel about them on some other days as I work on this?). Give me the compassion, the empathy, the humility to live all that I profess to believe. It is a struggle, each and every day, to be intentional and conscious of being a Christ-Follower with all that You and I expect of me and all that represents to the world in these difficult, contentious, and fraught times. It's very hard work. So, please, please, I need all the help You can give me, and I will work at being better at Love with a capital L as in Love of, with, in, for, and by Christ. amen.

and we are also to Love:
Thy Hispanic Neighbor
Thy Hindu Neighbor
Thy Asian Neighbor
Thy Poor Neighbor
Thy Rich Neighbor
Thy Elderly Neighbor
Thy Teenaged Neighbor
Thy LGBTQIA+ Neighbor

Terrible Parent Neighbor
Thy Thoughtless Next-Door Neighbor
Thy Driver-on-the-Road Neighbor
Thy Cranky Neighbor

Thy Mentally Ill Neighbor

Thy Politically-Wrong Neighbor

and ALL of Thy Other Neighbors!

and help me to love Me, as You do.

*Søren Kierkegaard [1813-1855] was a Danish philosopher, theologian, poet, social critic and wrote extensively on Christian Ethics, psychology, and the philosophy of Religion. He often focused on personal choice and commitment and the art of Christian love. He was a strong critic of some of his philosopher contemporaries such as Swedenborg, Hegel, Goethe, and Hans Christian Anderson. It is impossible to distill his vast work into a small space as his work continues to influence the discussions of intellectuals and religious philosophers to this day. Fear and Trembling and Either/Or are two of his most well known works still being read today.

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Friday, April 19, 2024

Meditation in Eastertide ~ Friday, Week 3 '24: Our Turn to Rise Again and Again

April 19, 2024 ~ Friday, Week 3

The mythical Phoenix

rising from the ashes of its previous life

I get knocked down

But I get up again

You're never going to keep me down

~ Chumbawamba**

If there is anywhere on earth a lover of God who is always kept safe,

I know nothing of it, for it was not shown to me.

But this was shown: that in falling and rising again

we are always kept in that same precious love.

~ Julian of Norwich*

Dear God of Skinned Knees, Bruised Egos, Grieving Hearts, Pain-Filled Bodies, and Damaged Souls,

I've been hit hard here and there ~ more than some, less than others ~ and then life goes on in its way until the next bump, or fall, or smack-down and I pick myself up, dust myself off, and life goes on again. Some days, though, I do have to fight back the not always fears of what's next while the world turns on its axis, the sun rises and sets, and the seasons change. I know You are here with me, I don't know how I would have gotten this far without You. And as long as I have breath within me, I will try to remember to turn to You in those inevitable times. But, could you give me a nudge now and then? Sometimes I need a shove to get myself out of the dark. Better yet, send me off to help someone else, there's always someone hurting far worse than me ~ then I'll get out of my own stuff and let Your light shine. amen.

*Julian of Norwich [1342-ca 1416], was an English Anchoress ~ a hermit who lived in, and was sometimes permanently enclosed in, a small cell attached to a wall of the church ~ whose life consisted of daily devotions, prayer, devotional reading, and writing. She is considered to be one of the most important mystics in all of Christianity. Her manuscript of Revelations of Divine Love - also known as the Short Text - is thought to be the oldest surviving book written in English by a woman. She is probably best known for her words that with God, "All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well."

**Chumbawamba ~ a British Rock group, released their most popular song Tubthumping in 1997. Perhaps not the most elegant of tunes or lyrics, but their line above has always kept me going!

Thursday, April 18, 2024

Meditation in Eastertide ~ Thursday: Week 3: Who Will I Be Today?

April 18, 2024 ~ Thursday, Week 3

I can't go back to yesterday,
because
I was a different person then.

~ Lewis Carroll*

Was I a better or a worse person yesterday? What I know for sure is that today I have new experiences to reflect upon and a fresh perspective about now. Today might be a "normal" day filled with the routine and the ordinary but then one never knows what the world's news will be, what wonderful surprises will occur, or what difficulties great and small will arise. With all that comes with each day of living, who will I be today?

So, Dear God of All Possibilities, grant me the energy, curiosity, and persistence to explore all that this day offers. Let me accept all the busy-ness, relationships, moments of boredom, the stresses, the quiet, the noise, the laughter, the tears that this day may bring. I want to be aware of all the colors, the art, the music, and the characters that usually fade into the background in an everyday day. If it becomes an extraordinary day, I hope to have the reflexes to go with whatever comes. I want to be the best person I can be in every life circumstance. Mostly, I want to remember to be kind to everyone ~ and ~ my self.

As I lay my head down on the pillow at the end of it, help me sift through the moments where I found You most present. And, might there be a refreshing and peaceful sleep to follow? I'll need all that will empower and motivate the different person I will be tomorrow. amen.

*Lewis Carroll was the pen name of British born author, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, best known for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, and a host of other children's stories and poems. A mathematics lecturer, he was also an avid photographer, wrote political pamphlets, and essays.

Wednesday, April 17, 2024

Meditation Moment in Eastertide ~ Wednesday, Week 3: Morning, Open Eyes. First Thought?

April 17, 2024 ~ Wednesday, Week 3

For each new morning with its light,

For rest and shelter of the night,

For health and food, for love and friends,

For everything Thy goodness sends.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson*

Holy Creator of Dawn, Noonday, Sunset, and Night,

How I often I open my eyes upon waking and my first thought is to go through the day ahead with my agenda of things to do, places to go, and people to see without taking a moment to recognize the blessings of my life. I'm always quick to complain, whine, or moan to You and yet while I might remember an exclamation of "Thank God!" when something dramatic occurs (such as the birth of a child, an improvement in health, or a disaster averted), I'm less likely to remember to breathe a small prayer of thankfulness for waking to another day of life, for the light of this day, and for the stars of this night.

Whatever the circumstances of my daily life, I always have small moments for which I can be thankful. All I have to do is learn to remember. It's easy enough on Sundays to remember to be thankful for the Resurrection or the Nativity of Your Son, but please help me, Lord, to add thankfulness into my daily life many times, if only in small ways. While I'm not suggesting that You are the Do-er of all things, I do want to acknowledge the parts of Creation that impact me in positive ways as a thanksgiving for the miracle of life itself.

Lord of Heaven, Lord of Life, Lord of All, thank You for this moment, right now! amen.

*Ralph Waldo Emerson [1803-1882] was a noted lecturer and leader of the Transcendentalist Movement of the mid-19th century. With a Unitarian background and Harvard Divinity School education, he came to champion the belief in the inherent goodness of people and nature, and, particularly, that only from truly self-reliant and independent people can genuine community be formed. A well-traveled and well-written life, Emerson forms the backdrop of American intellectual pursuits and long collegial relationships with contemporaries such as Oliver Wendell Holmes, Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman, Henry James and other literary luminaries such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge, William Wordsworth, and Thomas Carlyle. His work resonates to this day and speaks to much of our current experience and dilemmas.

Photo by Christina Brennan Lee, one Easter Sunday Morning in Rice, Virginia

Tuesday, April 16, 2024

Meditation in Eastertide ~ Tuesday, Week 3: Differently Blind

April 16, 2024 ~ Tuesday, Week 3

Believe, when you are most unhappy,

that there is something for you to do in the world.

So long as you can sweeten another's pain,

life is not in vain.

~ Helen Keller *

Dear God ~ Straight up, I need Your help! I do my best to be a helpful person to family, friends, and even strangers (unless their driving is driving me nuts ~ I keep working on that). But the part that is hard is remembering to remember others when I'm feeling down and when I'm on top of the world. Help me find a way to look outside of myself regardless of what is happening in my life. In the ordinary moments of life, reaching out my hand to another is easy. It is in the difficult times that I want to be thoughtlessly thoughtful, to hold my hand out to someone who needs me more than I need to think about myself. Helen Keller, who gave new meaning to the word Visionary, saw and heard far more than I do with all of my senses intact. Please give me a hand with my being differently blind and too hard of hearing when I’m too busy with me, myself, and I. Thank You, as always. amen.

*Helen Keller [1880-1968] was born a healthy girl in Tuscumbria, Alabama and at 19 months old she contracted an illness that left her deaf and blind. The story of her extraordinary journey and that of her teacher, Anne Sullivan, has been depicted in the play and film "The Miracle Worker." An internationally known author, political activist, and lecturer, she was the recipient of numerous honors including the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Lyndon Johnson, elections to the National Women's Hall of Fame and the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame. She was the first deaf/blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree upon graduation from Radcliffe. Her life and work are iconic in framing the concept of overcoming obstacles and as an ardent advocate on behalf of others.

Click here to see Helen and her teacher Anne: How Helen Learned to Speak

Monday, April 15, 2024

Prayers of the People: Catching Up with the Flock ~ 4th Sunday of Easter '24 Yr B

For Sunday, April 21, 2024; Readings: Acts 4:5-12, Psalm 23, 1 John 3:16-24, John 10:11-18

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders...This Jesus is 'the stone that was rejected by you...it has become the cornerstone.' There is salvation in no one else... [Acts 3:8, 11-12a]

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not be in want...Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil; for you are with me...Surely your goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. [Psalm 23:1, 4, 6]

How does God's love abide in anyone who has the world's goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help? Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. [1 John 3:17-18]

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and the will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. [John 10:14-16]

The poetry of Psalm 23 speaks to us in the simplest of terms that belie the intricacy of its depth. Jesus would, of course, have known the psalm and it is a perfect pairing to his continuing "discussion" with the religious authorities in this week's Gospel of John.

The symbolism in this well-known Psalm is far more complex and fascinating than just the obvious image of a man walking down a country lane with a big staff and a dog, the shepherds of the arid regions of the middle east separating sheep from goats, or the pretty girl of nursery rhymes with a bow on her crook as the sheep dutifully follow. Along with the earlier verses in John 10 (which I encourage you to read), taken line by line we can see, feel, and almost hear Jesus, our Shepherd, with us, reviving, caring, comforting, and anointing. Watching over us, preparing our table, restoring us; nothing we need is withheld.

Our Good Shepherd's job is never done. The demands on real living shepherds are constant and endless. Sheep are peculiarly needy and helpless creatures, quite restive, and even self-destructive at times. They can stand still for hours or bolt into stampedes because an apple drops from a tree. The shepherd must keep continuous vigil against disease, insect infestations, predators, pecking-order fights, escape artists, water, and food supplies. Sheep will NOT lie down unless they are completely contented and secure. A special oil mixture that the shepherd prepares and swabs (anoints) around each sheep's head and nose keeps deadly insects from burrowing and causing panic, disease, and injury, and the sheep is calmed for at least a little while. Then there are shearing and lambing seasons...*

The sheep know their shepherd's voice and it comforts them. Do we know the voice of our Shepherd? Do we stand by as those in our own or other flocks are in need and refuse, or neglect to give help? Jesus, as Peter told those in religious and political authority after the Crucifixion, was the Cornerstone of our Salvation rejected and executed by them. But Jesus, the Good Shepherd stood firmly, and peacefully, in the midst of their persecution, and laid down his life for us, his sheep.

Some days I feel pretty sheepish and need that still small voice of God as a reminder to get back into the flock, to follow and, in confidence, abide in the one who abides in us. Time for this sheep to answer the Shepherd's call, again, and catch up with the flock. C'mon along!

*I commend to you a charming and interesting little book, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 by W. Phillip Keller, himself a modern-day shepherd, for a closer look at the connections between the Psalm's imagery and real-life sheep farming, line by line.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ Holy Christ, Loving Shepherd, lead our souls to Your verdant pasture to lay aside our earthly wants for your eternal shelter. May our hearts and minds be nourished by Your Word and Sacrifice, learn to know Your voice as You know ours, and answer Your call.