Helping Others

Worship is a physical act.  Just as some folks see lifting their hands to God as a sign of worship, we also see lifting our hands out to a neighbor as an act of worship. Homeless friends, who sometimes smell a little, have told us the only hugs they get during the week are in Mass on Sunday.  Hopefully we have a church that is living a life of worship outside of Sunday, passing the peace on the streets and giving hugs away during the week, especially to those who smell a little.

From Common Prayer,  Shane Claiborne, primary contributor

Days of Summer ..

Every moment, we have the chance
to breathe in your goodness and grace;
every hour, we have opportunities
to share your love and hope;
every day, we have occasions
to rest in the comfort of your heart.
In you, we discover the fullness of time,
Delight of the Ages.

In every challenge we face,
we can find the strength to persevere;
in every person we meet,
we can find the blessing you have sent;
in every need we encounter,
we can find the help you would have us offer.
In you, we discover the fullness of life,
Companion of our days.

In every conflict of our lives,
there is your healing we can offer;
in every brokenness we experience,
there is that reconciliation we can receive;
in every difficulty which makes us stumble,
there is that dance of hope you would teach us.
In you, we discover the fullness of faith,
Promised Spirit.

 

-Thom Shuman

www.lectionaryliturgies.blogspot.com

What kind of life does my heart want?
I find no easy answers to that question,
but I know the answer means
giving up the fantasy of always moving forward
and allowing instead for seasons of dormancy.
And it is always time to listen.
Perhaps the heart’s single greatest desire
is to listen attentively to the voice of God
speaking through scripture, nature, daily events,
and the kind of reflection that leads to expanding self-knowledge. …
My heart wants the kind of life that leaves room for God.

- Elizabeth J. Canham
Heart Whispers

Leave me alone with God as much as may be.

As the tide draws the waters close in upon the shore,

Make me an island, set apart, alone with you, God, holy to you.

Then with the turning of the tide prepare me to carry your presence to

the busy world beyond, the world that rushes in on me

till the waters come again and fold me back to you.

- - St. Aidan of Lindisfarne