Tuesday Prayer for 4/16/13: Enough

Dear God:

One: God is my shepherd,

  I shall not want.

God makes me lie down in green pastures,

  and leads me beside still waters...

Many: Please lead us through these rapids of change, the floods of anxiety, and the droughts of hope.

One: God restores my soul,

  and leads me in right paths

for the sake of God's name.

Many: Our collective soul is battered and bruised.  There are multiple paths in front of us.  Help us pause and pray then - as a restored people - be willing to be lead on the right path.

One: Even though I walk through the darkest valley,

  I fear no evil; for you are with me;

your rod and your staff — they comfort me.

Many: We confess we sometimes do fear evil and the evil doer.  It sometimes seems as though there is so much and so many to fear and, then, all our panicked attempts to build comfort and hope leave us even more broken.

One: You prepare a table before me

  in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

  my cup overflows.

Many lead by one: Let us pause and remember what it means to trust and be trusted.

(silence and a deep breath)

          Let us pause and remember what it means to love and to give love.

(silence and a deep breath)

Let us pause and remember all that we have and all we might share.

(silence and a deep breath)

One: Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

  all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of God

  my whole life long.

Many:  We have enough.  We are enough.  We can be more.  Thanks be to God.  Amen.

Amen.

Tuesday Prayer for 4/9/13 (um, plus a day...)

From http://www.cruzblanca.org

(inspired by Acts 9:1-6)

One: Knocked on the ground by a flash of light, Saul - gasping for breath and grasping for vision - hears a voice...

Many: “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

One: Have you heard the voice of God this week?  Was it a question?

Many: A plea?

One: A blessing?

Many: A cry?

One: A call?

Many: A song?

One: Have you heard the voice of God this week?  Did it come in the form of a person?

Many: A feeling?

One: A coincidence?

Many: An incident?

One: A surprise?

Many: A healing?

One: Have you heard the voice of God this week?  Amen.

The Inheritence

Here's a link for my post to the Seattle U's School of Theology and Ministry's "Faith and Values in the Public Square" blog.

http://faithandvaluesblog.com/2013/01/27/the-inheritance/

1-22-13 Tuesday Prayer: Mission Statement

Inspired by Luke 4:14-21

Dear God:

One:  And Jesus said,

   "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

     because God has anointed me 

        to bring good news to the poor.”

Many: “God has sent me to proclaim 

        release to the captives 

     and recovery of sight to the blind, 

        to let the oppressed go free, 

    to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor."

One: Amen.  We in the church may seek out our mission statements...

Many: And mission statements... 

One: And seek out our purpose.  And yet, if Jesus is the one we follow...

(Moment of silence)

One:  If Jesus is the one we follow...

(Moment of silence followed by these words)

If Jesus is the one we follow, aren’t we called to support the work of Jesus?

Many:  If Jesus is the one we follow, 

One: Shouldn’t we also bring good news like we bring dishes to a pot luck?

Many:  If Jesus is the one we follow, 

One:  Shouldn’t we proclaim freedom and grace to all those held captive by people, systems and addictions?

Many: If Jesus is the one we follow,

One: Shouldn’t we call for the reclamation of a compassionate, faithful vision?

Many: If Jesus is the one we follow,

One: Shouldn’t we check our pockets for those the keys that might set the oppressed free?

Many: If Jesus is the one we follow,

One: Shouldn’t we proclaim Jubilee and do all that we can to make things right,

Many: And fair,

One: And healthy,

Many: And sustainable,

One: And just?

Many: And when we are the ones who are poor in some way,

One: And when we are the ones captive in some way,

Many: And when we are the ones blind, in some way,

One: And when we are the ones oppressed, in some way,

Many: And when we are the ones thrown off-kilter by a world that is imbalanced, in so many ways,

One: Can we receive good news, and freedom,

Many: And recovery, and release,

One: And that wonderful, beautiful, holy, sacred, favor of all that is holy and good?

(Moment of silence)

One:  Let us all say together:

Many: Amen

Tuesday Prayer for 1/15/13

(somewhat inspired by John 2:1-11)

Dear God:

So, is the miracle fluidity?

The three, yet one?

The sick, yet healed?

The water, yet wine?

That which is the present and that that which is yet to come?

This fluidity that fills those spaces left 

unfilled... that

soaks... that

floods... that

baptizes... that

overwhelms... that

grows things.

Embracing this is like trying to hug water as it cleans and drowns and washes away any pretense of stability.  I fight it and sputter and tire but when I float I see the stars as they move and flutter and flow and remind me that we are all made of these... 

of this...

this fluidity...

this miracle...

Amen.

From: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Van-Gogh-stars-night-water-reflections-CANVAS-OR-PRINT-WALL-ART-/120973105238

Prayer for 12/14/12

From: http://www.freepik.com

Dear God:

Today 

my heart feels turned 

inside 

out

and

I don’t know 

what 

to 

say.

...

(Fix this.

Fix us.)

...

Give us the courage,

the hope,

the love,

and the strength 

to change this kind of

FEROCIOUS

normality.

...

Amen.

Tuesday Prayer for 11/27/12

(inspired by Jeremiah 33:14-16)

One:  Do we dare to hope?

Many:  Do we dare to hope for an unchained, deep justice that seeks renewal instead of revenge;

One:  That seeks healing instead of harm;

Many: That seeks peace instead of punishment?

(From http://addictionandrecoverynews.wordpress.com/)

One: Do we dare hope for for an unchained, expanding peace that seeks opportunity instead of oppression;

Many: That seeks courage instead of compliance;

One: That seeks mutual accountability instead of mutually assured destruction?

(From http://lespoir-hope.blogspot.com/)

Many: Do we dare hope for an unchained, liberated love that seeks truth instead of terror;

One:  That seeks generosity instead of greed;

Many: That seeks vulnerability instead of vengeance?

(From http://leadfeet.com/)

One:  Do we dare to hope?

Many:  Do we dare to hope?

One: Where are those places in the world we need to hopefully pray for justice, peace and love?

Many: (Whisper the name of those places that rise in your heart)

(From http://whenlightenters.wordpress.com/)

One:  Do we dare to hope?

Many: Amen

Tuesday Prayer 11/13/12: A Call to Worship

Call to Worship:

One: Shhhhhhhhhh...

Many: (Silence)

One: Shhhhhhhhhh...

Many: (Silence)

One:  (Quietly) God fills every nook and cranny of this place; every pew, every corner...

Many: (Quietly) ... every broken heart, every healing soul...

One: (Quietly) If you listen carefully, you can hear Her...

Many: (Quietly but growing louder) God is still speaking and crying and healing and loving and giggling and dancing and playing and calling...

One: (in full voice) ...and insisting on works of peace; and insisting on just relationships with the earth; and calling for prophets and activists...

Many:  (in normal voice) ...and teachers and healers and poets and preachers and students and leaders and care-givers and visionaries...

One:  God is calling us - yes, us - from every nook and cranny of this place; every pew, every corner...

Many: (Quietly) ... every broken heart, every healing soul...

One: Shhhhhhhhhh...

Many: (Silence)

One: Shhhhhhhhhh...

Many: (Silence)

All: (Whispered) Amen.

Marriage Equality in Washington State!

Dear sisters and brothers!

Hallelujah!

I can't stop smiling.  I can barely believe its true.  Yesterday, Washington State voted to affirm marriage equality which means that, starting today, gay and lesbian couples who chose to marry have the same access to the privileges and protections that come with state law as do straight couples.  What an amazing, amazing day!  

You all did this.  In Washington State, we built the largest religious coalition of marriage equality supporters ever.  The number of public statements – from wearing a button, to phone banking, to advertising, to preaching, to organizing concerts – all added up.  The monies and time you shared all added up.  This is a beautiful day; an amazing day!  We have come so far…

…and, of course, we still have a ways to go.  Celebrate today but plan on organizing tomorrow.  Approving 74 is an incredible continuation of victories in other parts of the country and world and there is still more to do.  Other states are going to consider similar laws and they'll need our support.  Other religious communities are going to form in other places and, in the same way many of them supported this effort with time and finances, we'll need to support them, as well.  Eventually, the country as a whole will be ready to support marriage equality or, by court order, recognize marriages of same gender couples.  Our experience can help our sisters in brothers within other areas and other religious traditions find their voice in the same way we found ours.

But today, I'm going to just keep grinning.  Sometime, in the not too distant future, many of us clergy are going to have that same grin on our face as we sign some certain marriage licenses…  

Thanks be to God!

Peace.

Mike

Best prayer I know of for days like today and the days to come...

Here is the original version of the Reinhold Niebuhr prayer that eventually evolved in to the Serenity Prayer:

God, give me grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
Courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the Wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.