Morning Prayer Tuesday, 17 November 2020
GLIMPSE
Chase Twichell
It was as if a window suddenly blew open
and the sky outside the mind came flooding in.
My childhood shriveled to a close,
thread of smoke that rose
and touched a cloud — or the cloud’s
replica adrift on the slow river of thinking —
and disappeared inside it. In that dark water,
a new lily was opening, sky-white out of the muck.
It was only a glimpse, quick,
like a bird ruffling,
but I saw the flower’s
beautiful stark shape, an artichoke
brightened from within by the moon.
A path lay shadowy at my feet,
and I followed it.
Good morning and welcome to Morning Prayer
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
Amen.
Breathe in
Breathe out
Be still…
I arise today,
embraced in the arms
of God the Father,
empowered by the strength
of God the Spirit,
immersed in the love
of God the Son.
I arise today
in the company
of the Trinity,
Father, Spirit and Son.
I arise today
Amen
Presence
Dear Lord as I come to you today
Fill my heart and my whole being
with the wonder of Your presence
Freedom
Lord, I pray for your gift of freedom.
May your Holy Spirit
guide those in power to work for
equality for all your people.
Consciousness
Where do I sense hope, encouragement,
and growth areas in my life? By looking back over
the last few months, I may be able to see which
activities and occasions have produced rich fruit.
If I do notice such areas, I will determine to give
those areas both time and space in the future.
The Word of God
Luke 18:35-43
As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.
When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening.
They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”
Then he shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
Those who were in front sternly ordered him to be quiet;
but he shouted even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
Jesus stood still and ordered the man to be brought to him;
and when he came near, he asked him,
“What do you want me to do for you?” He said,
“Lord, let me see again.” Jesus said to him,
“Receive your sight; your faith has saved you.”
Immediately he regained his sight and followed him,
glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, praised God.
WORDS OF WISDOM
Love is who you are. When you don’t live according to love, you are outside of being. You’re not being real. When you love, you are acting according to your deepest being, your deepest truth. You are operating according to your dignity.
Drawing from my many years of teaching, I can honestly say that the most powerful, most needed, and most essential teaching is always about love. Love is our foundation and our destiny. It is where we come from and where we’re headed. As St. Paul famously says, “So faith, hope, and love remain, but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13).
My hope, whenever I speak or write, is to help clear away the impediments to receiving, allowing, trusting, and participating in a foundational love. God’s love is planted inside each of us as the Holy Spirit who, according to Jesus, “will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you” (John 14:26). Love is who you are. All I can do is remind you of what you already know deep within your True Self and invite you to live connected to this Source.
The first letter of John reminds us “God is love, and whoever remains in love, remains in God and God in her or him” (1 John 4:16). The creation story in Genesis says that we were created in the very “image and likeness” of God—who is love (Genesis 1:26; see also Genesis 9:6). Out of the Trinity’s generative, loving relationship, creation takes form, mirroring its Creator.
If we are truly created in the “image and likeness of God” —then our family of origin is divine. We were created by a loving God to be love in the world. Our core is original blessing, not original sin. Our starting point is positive and, as it is written in the first chapter of the Bible, it is “very good” (Genesis 1:31). We do have a good place to go home.
If the beginning is right, the rest is made considerably easier, because we know and can trust the clear direction of our life’s tangent. We must all overcome the illusion of separateness. It is the primary task of religion to communicate not worthiness but union, to reconnect people to their original identity “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). God’s job description is to draw us back into primal and intimate relationship.
Richard Rohr
PRAYERS & INTERCESSIONS
We pray for the world…
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
We pray for the universal church of Christ…
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
We pray for one another and all those known to us…
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
May God the Father
prepare your journey,
Jesus the Son
guide your footsteps,
The Spirit of Life
strengthen your body,
The Three in One
watch over you,
on every road
that you may follow.
Amen
BLESSING
May your day be blessed
by moments of quietness,
light in your darkness,
strength in your weakness,
grace in your meekness,
joy in your gladness,
peace in your stillness.
May your day be blessed
AMEN
Thank you for join us…have a wonderful day!
Revd. Ernesto Lozada-Uzuriaga
