Tuesday Morning Prayer: 07 Jul 2020 – Psalm 122:1, Ezra 5:1-2, Mark 1:35-36 ~ a quiet place to pray

Tuesday Morning Prayer, 07 Jul 2020

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

Grant us, O Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who can do no good thing apart from you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Follow the example of good men and women of old,
and God will comfort you and help you.
[ St Columba ]

Scripture Reading (CEV)

Psalm 122:1

It made me glad
to hear them say,
“Let’s go to the house
of the Lord!”

Ezra 5:1-2

Then the Lord God of Israel told the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to speak in his name to the people of Judah and Jerusalem. And they did. So Zerubbabel the governor and Joshua the priest urged the people to start working on the temple again, and God’s prophets encouraged them.

Mark 1:35-36

Very early the next morning, Jesus got up and went to a place where he could be alone and pray. Simon and the others started looking for him.

Saint’s Feast Day – 07 Jul, Boisil (?–661)

A prior at Melrose Abbey who first welcomed Cuthbert and recognized how greatly God’s hand would be upon him. Whilst dying of the plague he asked to spend a week with Cuthbert in reading John’s Gospel, and prophesied that God wanted Cuthbert to be a bishop one day.*

Reflection:

Old Bewick

Beside the little road from Eglingham to Chatton is a stone Celtic cross, and carved beneath it are the joyful words, I was glad when they said to me, Let us go to the house of the Lord. A narrow drive leads to a tiny chapel hushed with prayer, where twice a month communion services still are held, but day by day people make their way to be alone, to be quiet. At Easter in 1988 with adults and children we sang and processed up that little path to place a wooden cross from Heavenfield in the hut by the church gate. This hut was to be used as a poustinia, a silent place for prayer. Come, occupy my silent place and make Thy dwelling there. More grace is wrought in quietness than any is aware.
(John Oxenham)

God’s regular channels of grace are his word, his ear, and his people. So often, he showers his people with unexpected favor. But typically the grace that sends our roots deepest, truly grows us up in Christ, and produces lasting spiritual maturity, streams from the ordinary and unspectacular paths of fellowship, prayer, and Bible intake in its many forms.
(David Mathis)

Prayer:

Lord, thank you for your abundant, abounding grace. Thank you that we don’t have to earn a drop of the mighty river of grace that flows freely for us today. Thank you for the unexpected, unmerited favor you’ve showered on my life. Help me put myself in the path of your love and grace. Help me not neglect the disciplines I need to meet with you regularly and to drink from the water of life. Thank you for your rich love. Amen.

Know (Be Still) – Jeremy Riddle

Closing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

* Northumbria Community. Celtic Daily Prayer (Kindle Locations 12184-12189). HarperCollins Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Monday Morning Prayer: 06 Jul 2020 – Psalm 121:8, Zechariah 6:8, Acts 26:19 ~ a vision from heaven

Monday Morning Prayer, 06 Jul 2020

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

Follow the example of good men and women of old,
and God will comfort you and help you.
[ St Columba ]

Scripture Reading (CEV)

Psalm 121:8

The Lord will protect you
now and always
wherever you go.

Zechariah 6:8

[the angel] shouted to me, “Those that have gone to the country in the north will do what the Lord’s Spirit wants them to do there.”

Acts 26:19

King Agrippa, I obeyed this vision from heaven.

Reflection:

Bamburgh – Bamburgh is a beautiful coastal town in the heart of Northumberland. Thousands of people visit Bamburgh every year for its famous castle, coastlines & walking trails.

It was one summer’s evening, years ago, at Bamburgh on the Northumbrian coast, that we received the call to ministry. Sitting on the rocks, gazing out to sea and the Farne Islands, I saw a vision of people being rescued and brought safe onto the rock. – (Roy Searle)

I saw a picture of Northumbria, dark, but with beacons of light growing and pushing back the darkness, then bands of people traveling around the area, fanning into flame what God already was doing in the area. – (Don Bridge)*

Q: When you look at the world around you, what do you see?

What is God doing?
Is anyone being rescued and saved?
Is the darkness being pushed back?

Prayer:

Almighty God our Savior, you desire that none should perish, and you have taught us through your Son that there is great joy in heaven over every sinner who repents: Grant that our hearts may ache for a lost and broken world. May your Holy Spirit work through our words, deeds, and prayers, that the lost may be found and the dead made alive, and that all your redeemed may rejoice around your throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Rescue the Perishing – Altar of Praise Chorale

Closing

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

* Northumbria Community. Celtic Daily Prayer (Kindle Locations 12124-12129). HarperCollins Publishers. Kindle Edition.

The 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, 05 Jul 2020 – Romans 8:1-6, Matthew 11:25-30, Psalm 145 ~ come to me and rest

The 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, 05 Jul 2020

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

“Everyone who is ruled by the Holy Spirit thinks about spiritual things.
If our minds are ruled by our desires, we will die.
But if our minds are ruled by the Spirit, we will have life and peace.”

__________

Come Thou Fount – David Crowder Band

__________

Collect for Purity

Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
__________

A Reading from the Epistles: Romans 8:1-6 (CEV)

If you belong to Christ Jesus, you won’t be punished. The Holy Spirit will give you life that comes from Christ Jesus and will set you free from sin and death. The Law of Moses cannot do this, because our selfish desires make the Law weak. But God set you free when he sent his own Son to be like us sinners and to be a sacrifice for our sin. God used Christ’s body to condemn sin. He did this, so that we would do what the Law commands by obeying the Spirit instead of our own desires.

People who are ruled by their desires think only of themselves. Everyone who is ruled by the Holy Spirit thinks about spiritual things. If our minds are ruled by our desires, we will die. But if our minds are ruled by the Spirit, we will have life and peace.
__________

Leaning On You – Crowder

__________

A Reading from the Gospels: Matthew 11:25-30 (CEV)

At that moment Jesus said:

My Father, Lord of heaven and earth, I am grateful that you hid all this from wise and educated people and showed it to ordinary people. Yes, Father, that is what pleased you.

My Father has given me everything, and he is the only one who knows the Son. The only one who truly knows the Father is the Son. But the Son wants to tell others about the Father, so that they can know him too.

If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest. This yoke is easy to bear, and this burden is light.
__________

“When We Pray” – Tauren Wells

__________

Pastoral Prayer:

O God, almighty and merciful, you heal the broken-hearted, and turn the sadness of the sorrowful to joy, Let your fatherly goodness be upon all whom you have made. Remember in pity all those who are this day destitute, homeless, elderly, infirm, or forgotten. Bless the multitude of your poor. Lift up those who are cast down. Mightily befriend innocent sufferers, and sanctify to them the endurance of their wrongs. Cheer with hope all who are discouraged and downcast, and by your heavenly grace preserve from falling those whose poverty tempts them to sin. Though they be troubled on every side, suffer them not to be distressed; though they are perplexed, save them from despair.

Increase, O God, the spirit of neighborliness among us, that in peril we may uphold one another, in suffering tend to one another, and in homelessness, loneliness, or exile befriend one another. Grant us brave and enduring hearts that we may strengthen one another, until the disciplines and testing of these days are ended, and you again give peace in our time; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
__________

Run Devil Run –

__________

Closing – Romans 8:1-2 (CEV)

“If you belong to Christ Jesus, you won’t be punished.
The Holy Spirit will give you life that comes from Christ Jesus
and will set you free from sin and death.”
__________

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen

Saturday Morning Prayer: 04 Jul 2020 – Psalm 121:1-3, Habakkuk 3:16-19, John 10:14-26 ~ America: repent and return to God

Saturday Morning Prayer, 04 Jul 2020

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

Lord God, by your providence our founders won their liberties of old: Grant that we and all the people of this land may have grace to exercise these liberties in righteousness and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Follow the example of good men and women of old,
and God will comfort you and help you.
[ St Columba ]

Scripture Reading (CEV)

Psalm 121:1-3

I look to the hills!
Where will I find help?
It will come from the Lord,
who created the heavens
and the earth.

The Lord is your protector,
and he won’t go to sleep
or let you stumble.

Habakkuk 3:16-19

When I heard [the Lord’s] message, I felt weak from fear, and my lips quivered. My bones seemed to melt, and I stumbled around. But I will patiently wait. Someday those vicious enemies will be struck by disaster.

Fig trees may no longer bloom, or vineyards produce grapes; olive trees may be fruitless, and harvest time a failure; sheep pens may be empty, and cattle stalls vacant—but I will still celebrate because the Lord God saves me.

The Lord gives me strength. He makes my feet as sure as those of a deer, and he helps me stand on the mountains.

John 10:14-26

I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. Just as the Father knows me, I know the Father, and I give up my life for my sheep. I have other sheep that are not in this sheep pen. I must bring them together too, when they hear my voice. Then there will be one flock of sheep and one shepherd.

The Father loves me, because I give up my life, so that I may receive it back again. No one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly! I have the power to give it up and the power to receive it back again, just as my Father commanded me to do.

The people took sides because of what Jesus had told them. Many of them said, “He has a demon in him! He is crazy! Why listen to him?”

But others said, “How could anyone with a demon in him say these things? No one like that could give sight to a blind person!”

That winter, Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Temple Festival. One day he was walking in that part of the temple known as Solomon’s Porch, and the people gathered all around him. They said, “How long are you going to keep us guessing? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly!”

Jesus answered:

I have told you, and you refused to believe me. The things I do by my Father’s authority show who I am. But since you are not my sheep, you don’t believe me.

Reflection:

On America –

“I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers – and it was not there . . . in her fertile fields and boundless forests and it was not there . . . in her rich mines and her vast world commerce – and it was not there . . . in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution – and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great.”

Alexis de Tocqueville, “Democracy in America”(1835)

Prayer: (Originally delivered January 23, 1996 by Pastor Joe Wright to the Kansas House of Representatives in Topeka.)

Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and seek your direction and guidance. We know your Word says, “Woe to those who call evil good,” but that’s exactly what we’ve done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and inverted our values.

We confess that…

We have ridiculed the absolute truth of your Word and called it moral pluralism.
We have worshiped other gods and called it multiculturalism.
We have endorsed perversion and called it an alternative lifestyle.
We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.
We have neglected the needy and called it self-preservation.
We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.
We have killed our unborn and called it choice.
We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.
We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building esteem.
We have abused power and called it political savvy.
We have coveted our neighbors’ possessions and called it ambition.
We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.
We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.

Search us O God and know our hearts today; try us and see if there be some wicked way in us; cleanse us from every sin and set us free.

Guide and bless the men and women we have sent to [Washington D.C.] by the people of America – those ordained by you, to govern this great country. Grant them your wisdom to rule, and may their decisions direct us to the center of your will. I ask it in the name of your son, the living savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

If My People – Scripture Memory Songs

Closing

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Friday Morning Prayer: 03 Jul 2020 – Psalm 120 5-7, Zechariah 8:3-5, Luke 15:13-20 ~ return to a childhood place

Friday Morning Prayer, 03 Jul 2020

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

All-powerful God, your incarnate Word commands our obedience and offers us true life. Make our ears attentive to the voice of your Son and our hearts generous in answering his call,that we may take up the cross with trust in his promises. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever.Amen.

Follow the example of good men and women of old,
and God will comfort you and help you.
[ St Columba ]

Scripture Reading (CEV)

Psalm 120 5-7

But I must live as a foreigner
among the people of Meshech
and in the tents of Kedar.
I have spent too much time
living among people
who hate peace.
I am in favor of peace,
but when I speak of it,
all they want is war.

Zechariah 8:3-5

I will return to Jerusalem and live there on Mount Zion. Then Jerusalem will be known as my faithful city, and Zion will be known as my holy mountain.
Very old people with walking sticks will once again sit around in Jerusalem, while boys and girls play in the streets.

Luke 15:13-20

Not long after that, the younger son packed up everything he owned and left for a foreign country, where he wasted all his money in wild living. He had spent everything, when a bad famine spread through that whole land. Soon he had nothing to eat.
He went to work for a man in that country, and the man sent him out to take care of his pigs. He would have been glad to eat what the pigs were eating, but no one gave him a thing.
Finally, he came to his senses and said, “My father’s workers have plenty to eat, and here I am, starving to death! I will go to my father and say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against God in heaven and against you. I am no longer good enough to be called your son. Treat me like one of your workers.’”
The younger son got up and started back to his father. But when he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt sorry for him. He ran to his son and hugged and kissed him.

Saint’s Day: 03 Jul – St Thomas (first century)

Persistent tradition links Thomas with missionary work in India, and the Syriac Christians of Malabar claim that they were evangelized by Thomas, who was killed by a spear and buried at Mylapore, near Madras.

Reflection:

One sort of pilgrimage is to go back to a place full of memories, of joy, of childhood.
Many things will have changed, not least ourselves, and it is a bitter-sweet experience.

Have you returned to your place of childhood?
What has changed?

T.S. Eliot writes:

You are not here to verify,
instruct yourself, or inform curiosity
or carry report.
You are here to kneel
where prayer has been valid.
And prayer is more than an order of words, the conscious occupation of the praying mind, or the sound of the voice praying.

Roxbury, Massachusetts (circa 1950)