Praying with hope . . .

 

 

 

Disturb us, God, when
 We are too well pleased with ourselves,
 When our dreams have come true
 Because we have dreamed too little,
 When we arrived safely
 Because we sailed too close to the shore.

 Disturb us, God, when
 With the abundance of things we possess
 We have lost our thirst
 For the waters of life;
 Having fallen in love with life,
 We have ceased to dream of eternity
 And in our efforts to build a new earth,
 We have allowed our vision
 Of the new Heaven to dim.

 Disturb us, God, to dare more boldly,
 To venture on wider seas
 Where storms will show your mastery;
 Where losing sight of land,
 We shall find the stars.

 We ask You to push back
 The horizons of our hopes;
 And to push into the future
 In strength, courage, hope, and love.

 attributed - Sir Francis Drake -1577
Original source unknown

https://www.sethbarnes.com/?filename=disturb-us-lord-a-prayer-by-francis-drake

A prayer for the moment of NOW!

  Father, Mother, God,
 Thank you for your presence
 during the hard and mean days.
 For then we have you to lean upon.

 Thank you for your presence
 during the bright and sunny days,
 for then we can share that which we have
 with those who have less.

 And thank you for your presence
 during the Holy Days, for then we are able
 to celebrate you and our families
 and our friends.

 For those who have no voice,
 we ask you to speak.
 For those who feel unworthy,
 we ask you to pour your love out
 in waterfalls of tenderness.

 For those who live in pain,
 we ask you to bathe them
 in the river of your healing.

 For those who are lonely, we ask
 you to keep them company.
 For those who are depressed,
 we ask you to shower upon them
 the light of hope.

 Dear Creator, You, the borderless
 sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the
 world that which we need most—Peace.
 
prayer - Maya Angelou
Original source unknown

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Morning Musings . . .

Today in my morning prayer, the Scriptures were from Luke, in which the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. I looked up from my book and viewed the maple tree beyond my patio. Slowly, lovingly, and with inner knowing it was giving a nod to each falling leaf that it was time to let go. Truly, my patio companion was teaching me how to pray!

Oh, how I visited this view often in the spring to watch the buds take shape and birth forth the fragile beauty of the new leaves unfolding.  I remember how each leaf participated in the dance of the April ice storm, the summer intense sun and rains, and the rush of tornadic winds . . . Now it's time to pray them in gratitude for their journey of resiliency and faithfulness. 

And so with each falling leaf, I am being taught how to pray. To pray in gratitude for what was, for what is, and to pray in openness and hope for what will be.

I prayed in gratitude . . .
• for each person I have met along my summer journey as I listened to the joyful and sorrowful mysteries of their lives.

• for each memory of the tragedies of nature – floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, earthquakes, and volcanoes . . .  learning once again, that with some things there is no control, but only honoring our understanding to be in partnership with earth as its stewards.

• for each moment I gathered with friends to celebrate thresholds, turning points, anniversaries, jubilees, professions, passings, and fun times to mark the day and time.

• for each Birthday card I received . . .

• for each opportunity to photograph the streams, flowers, trees, mushrooms, birds, sunsets, and moon risings . . .

• for each time of prayer in which the silence spoke of Divinity . . .

May I continue to listen to the falling leaves as they teach me how to pray. For all that was, I give thanks. For all that is, I give praise for I am blessed, and for all that will be, I pray with openness and hope.
Amen . . .Amen!

 

 

Jesus' loving look . . .

Story:
A father left his village on business and while he was gone bandits came and burned down the village and kidnapped his son. When the father returned he found a burned corpse near his home and thought it was the remains of his son. The father almost went mad with grief and, after an elaborate cremation ceremony, placed the ashes of his son in a beautiful velvet bag, which he carried with him always.

One day the son escaped from his kidnappers and arrived at his father’s home at midnight. He knocked, and his father who was holding the bag of his son’s ashes, said, “Who is there?”  The child answered, “It is me, papa.  Open the door.  It’s your son.”

But the father was so certain that his son was dead that he told the boy to stop tormenting him and go away. The boy knocked and knocked, but the father never answered.  He held the velvet bag closer and cried without ceasing.  Finally the child left and the father and son never saw one another.  (Author and Source Unknown)

In today’s Sunday Gospel the young man, no doubt, has been abundantly blessed with wealth and security.  He was a good man who followed all the commandments, but he wanted to be better in fact.  Could we not say, that he “clutches his velvet bag” of ideals, values and truths with great passion and a strong ego?

Like Jesus, he has been raised on Torah, which is about how to live, not what to believe. This questioner seems reflective rather than impulsive.  He is in search of something more than just a “quick fix.”  He is looking for clarity that stipulates a task or program.  His agenda is clear, his approach direct, and his intentions are honorable.

His manner of living his faith is one of keeping the commandments and having a private piety.  His question concerns practice and not belief.  He wants Jesus to tell him in plain language what kind of life he should be living now in order to live in God’s presence forevermore. 

Well, this seeker has possibly come to the wrong rabbi. Jesus does not always provide clarity.  He rarely stipulates a task or a program and refuses to set a limit to love. Jesus never answers closed questions. Jesus looks for generous and open-ended commitment. 

He has come to expand imaginations, not to play a political game or be limited to the art of the possible. His agenda is as open as God’s love, and his perspective is as wide as God’s reign. This requires any seeker to be willing to choose to live “on the edge”  with an open mind and heart; to have a readiness to embrace vulnerability; to have a willingness to break through illusions and trust in imagination and vision, and move beyond the margins to encounter risk and challenge, and dare to face ambiguity, paradox and creative chaos!

Every time Jesus gives this seeker a challenge, the young man has already accomplished it. But still he wants to do more.  When Jesus says the last thing he can do is to sell everything he has, give the money to the poor, and give up his life and relationships to follow Jesus, that’s even above and beyond.

And so it is written “That was the last thing the young man expected to hear. And so, crestfallen, he walked away. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and he couldn’t bear to let go.”  He takes with him his “velvet bag” of the need for answers, clarity, achievement, and a task to accomplish.

When Jesus says, “Follow me,” he is inviting us to a new discipleship. This discipleship requires new kinds of relationships and new kinds of community.  Jesus expects a radical “no nonsense” response when it comes to following his new way. Rugged individualism is simply not adequate.  "To follow Jesus is a dangerous thing. To follow Jesus is to follow the one who turns the world upside down, even the religious world."  Jesus’ idea of discipleship is not about giving people answers but leading them into that space where they will long and yearn for God – for wisdom, for healing and for transformation. 

For us today, Christian discipleship may challenge us to loosen our grasp on our “velvet bag” of treasured beliefs and opinions, hopes and promises, ideas and ideals, truths and traditions.  Christian discipleship invites us to leave our old patterns of life, our cherished identities, and positions of power, success, and security and to be now in the world as “voice and heart, call and sign of the God whose design for this world is justice and love.”

Let us recall the disciple, Sr. Dorothy Stang, a Notre Dame de Namur sister, who dedicated her life for nearly 4 decades in the jungles of Brazil.  She defended the rights of the poor peasants whose land was being devoured by big business, and ranchers and lumber companies. 

On Feb. 12, 2005, 74 year old Dorothy was assassinated.  She was shot six times as she headed to meet government officials to discuss the demarcation of land for peasants.  “According to eyewitness accounts, she held up a Bible and told the gunmen that it was the only weapon she carried. She was reading the book as the bullets struck.”  Truly Dorothy went above and beyond – she gave away everything for the last, the least and the lost. 

And so today, let us be open to the graces of these Scriptures as we take up the challenge to follow Jesus unreservedly.  Let us take time this week to reflect on the “velvet bag” that we might be carrying with treasures which may well be in the way of our responding to God’s invitation to be voice and heart, call and sign of God’s mission for justice, love, and mercy in our world today.  

And finally, one last thought.  Whatever happened to the rich young man?
Perhaps he did return.  Could he be the one in Mark 14: 50 at the arrest of Jesus?  The Scripture tells us:  “And they all left him and fled.  Now a young man followed him wearing nothing but a linen cloth about his body.”  Has our seeker come to tell Jesus that he is now ready to follow him and that he has sold or given away everything?

The Scriptures continue:  “They seized him, but he left the cloth behind and ran off naked.”    If this is our young man, then he truly did let go of everything he possessed – and no doubt, Jesus looked upon him with love once again. 

Another point of view . . .



Artist and source unknown.
 
 

Today's Sunday Scripture was that of the Good Samaritan parable.  Once I had written a reflection on this Scripture from the Inn Keeper’s point of view.  I post it here for your reflection.  I invite you to consider “stepping into the parable” and writing your own reflection.  Blessings!

 

Shalom to you!

I am the owner and manager of this establishment which some would like to call an inn. It seems to be the only place on this rugged stretch of road between Jerusalem and Jericho.  I see a lot of strange happenings along these heavily traveled paths, for it is a major trade route.  One has to be vigilant on these roads, especially when the band of robbers surprise unsuspecting victims.

 I am often fortunate to encounter a number of travelers who are merchants, pilgrims, temple elders, and foreigners from nearby provinces who are looking for work.  I know that some are not of my faith, but my wife says I need to be open and offer hospitality to anyone who seeks refuge from the desert sun, or needs rest from walking the dirt roads, or who may be on pilgrimage for atonement of sins long ago.  I have a young new family and the extra money is essential for me so I can feed and clothe my family, besides paying taxes to the governor! 

I learned a lot from my father when he was an innkeeper in Bethlehem.  When I was a child, he often told me stories of the people who came to his establishment.  He always enjoyed telling one story in particular of a young pregnant woman, who traveled with a man with strong hands and an anxious heart.   Since this was the time of the census, they sought a place to stay with their relatives, but no one would make room for this unwed mother to be.  It was my father who gave them a place to stay.

So I now encounter this Samaritan man – I can tell by his accent and the way he is dressed.  He is carrying someone on his donkey and is heading here to my desk.  We are a simple establishment. No magnetic swipe, cards, no room service (unless there is money to accompany the request) and no extra set of clean towels.  This tall, quite burly Samaritan says that he found this Jew along the roadside, beaten and left half dead.  Apparently this man encountered those robbers that I spoke of earlier. The Samaritan requested a room for him to care for this injured man. I accommodated and even gave him those extra towels with no charge – my wife said that would be the compassionate thing to do.  Early the next morning, the Samaritan handed me money, two days wages, and wanted me to give the injured man further care with a bed, food, and healing oils.  I agree to do so immediately.  I guess it was his eyes, his gentle voice, and his deep concern for this traveler.  He didn’t even know his name.  He said that he would return in a few days and pay me with more money if what he had given me was not enough. 

He then turned, started to walk out the door, but turned and spoke a blessing to me and my family.  I wondered if he was a follower of the man from Galilee whom they call, Jesus.  This Samaritan man was so compassionate toward this traveler, a Jew.   When he returns, I will ask him where I can find this Jesus. 

~ Based on the Parable of the Good Samaritan ~ Luke 10:25-37

A Flame of Hope . . .

The Story of the 4 Candles

 

The Four Candles burned slowly. Their ambiance was so soft you could hear them speak...
The first candle said, “I Am Peace, but these days, nobody wants to keep me lit." Then Peace's flame slowly diminished and went out completely.

The second candle said, "I Am Faith, but these days, I am no longer indispensable." Then Faith's flame slowly diminished and went out completely.

Sadly the third candle spoke,
"I Am Love and I haven't the strength to stay lit any longer.
People put me aside and don't understand my importance.            
They even forget to love those who are nearest to them."
And waiting no longer, Love went out completely.

Suddenly ... A child entered the room and saw the three candles no longer burning.

The child began to cry, "Why are you not burning? You are supposed to stay lit until the end."

Then the Fourth Candle spoke gently to the little boy, "Don't be afraid, for I Am Hope, and while I still burn, we can re-light the other candles."
With shining eyes, the child took the Candle of Hope and lit the other three candles. Never let the Flame of Hope go out. With Hope in your life, no matter how bad things may be, Peace, Faith and Love may shine brightly once again. (~ Author Unknown)

Morning Prayer (Part Two)

With that last bolt of lightning
a great calm came over me
and I felt free
the way I always feel, when
I’m finally able to own the truth.

God gave me back the pieces of my heart
without trying to fix them up or mend them
The Holy One looked at me with trust
with total confidence
as if to say,
I’ll be here when you’re ready to begin
the transformation of your heart
for we both know
Your love is too small
That’s why your heart is so divided
That’s why the pieces never seem to fit.

I took the pieces back with reverence
My tears proclaiming
the truth of all I felt.
There was no pressure, no force
just the God of morning
asking for my love.

And now, every time I see those flashes
in the northern sky
I hear again, a voice
saying simply,
Your love is too small.
And I weep; I weep at the possibility
of who I could be.
(Used with permission)

Too Small a Love
Author: Macrina Wiederkehr
Seasons of Your Heart (1991)

http://www.macrinawiederkehr.com/