Month: September 2020

Holy One, in whose love we live and move, we bow our hearts before you.

The beauty of autumn landscapes, bounty of crops, and tartness of apples reveal your goodness and how you hold all of creation in your loving and sustaining hands.

Holy One, your desire is for shalom – wellness and wholeness for all creation,

You yearn for our wellbeing, emotional, relational, spiritual, physical

We pray for a world rocked by conflict and war;
a world that lives uneasily in a climate of fear

We pray for a world that thinks less of others than of self;
a world where division between nations, race, religion,
neighbour, and family leads to distrust and divisions.

We pray for a world that is short on gratitude,
too busy to enjoy this world you have created,
too preoccupied with living to appreciate life.

We pray for a world ravaged by COVID, injustice, racism and institutional oppression.

We pray for a world where spiritual wellness is sought through things which do not satisfy or quench the deeper yearnings of the heart: love, belonging, connection.

We pray for a world groaning due to overuse and mis-use of natural resources and for all the ways our life-styles contribute to climate change.

We pray for our needs for healing, hope and wholeness.

We pray for the sick, those waiting surgery dates, those who have received a hard diagnosis.

We pray for those who wait for strength to be restored, those who are lonely and isolated.

We pray for Inspiring Minds here in Wellesley amidst outbreak.

We also pray for our Households of Faith.

Holy Listening One, may your love and care restore the broken places of our world,

our lives, our communities, our hearts.

May your love flow as a life-giving stream for the restoration of all creation.

Quench the parched places of this world and our lives with peace, with hope, and with joy.

Amen.

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to release and a time to embrace……” (Ecclesiastes. 3: 1-8)

Fall has arrived in all her glory! Trees have begun to turn shades of crimson, orange, and gold. Apple trees are ripe with fruit and farmers are busily harvesting corn and beans. We are on the cusp of a new season. Summer blossoms have been kissed by frost. Daylight hours are shortening. Fall scents fill the air and the flavours of fall dance on our tongue.
What autumn sights and sounds and smells capture your attention and create a sense of awe, praise, thanksgiving?

Spiritual writer Joyce Rupp reflects upon lessons learned in the seasons of the year. She suggests each season teaches us by her natural turning about the fine art of loss and new life.
Find a quiet spot today. Take several slow, deep breaths to settle your body and calm your mind.
Be open to the Holy Spirit’s nudgings and reflect upon the lessons of autumn: releasing and embracing, letting go and new life.
Invite God’s Spirit to show you what has served its time.
What is God’s Spirit inviting you to let go in order for new life to emerge?
May God’s grace be abundant as we continue to journey this holy path.
For everything there is a season… a time to release; and a time to embrace.
Pastor Kara
* There will be no Friday prayer this week. See you next Friday!

God, as your people through all generations, we too have known Your generosity and love, and have experienced Your care and provision. You call us to extend Your love to the world around us—to care for others as deeply as we care for ourselves. And so we bring the needs of our world before You now.

Lord, hear our prayer.

We pray for those who do not have what they need in order to survive;

those without enough food to eat, or shelter to keep them warm;

those without employment, or enough money to pay their bills;

those without access to medical care, or medicine to keep them healthy

including migrant workers.

We pray for those who have more than enough to meet their needs,

but who continue to feel empty inside;

who struggle to find meaning and purpose in life,

who numb their pain through substances or other destructive behaviours

We also pray for our households of faith for this week.

We give thanks for the generous ways they share their gifts and lives amongst us. May their lives be blessed by love. May each day bring joy and fulfillment.

We pray for safe travels. May these days be gentle.

We also pray for all who are battling life-threatening disease or injury, those who are living with chronic pain or facing death.

We pray for all affected by covid, the sick, the grieving, the fearful.

God of the first and the last, and all those in between, Your grace and generosity is extended to all.

You call us to faithful discipleship, to work together with one mind and one purpose, to reach out in love to those in need.

Strengthen us so that we might live in a manner worthy of the Good News we have received, offering our lives to the building up of Your upside-down kingdom, where the last are first, and the first are last, and there is grace enough for all.

All these things we pray in Jesus’ name who taught us to pray:

Our Father…

Wednesday greetings,

Today’s inspiration comes to us from Lillian Daniel, a spunky pastor whose writings I enjoy and find inspiring.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect. – Romans 12:2 (NRSV)

Relationships are a constant and continual renegotiation. What you say on your twelfth birthday, your retirement date, or wedding day may not be your plan ten years later. And yet, to the other person, it can be a total surprise. They defend the old plan, saying, “You can’t change your mind now. That was not what we agreed.”

“You said you wouldn’t go back to work until the kids were in junior high,” says the mom with the more-than-full-time job, to her husband in charge of the everyday chaos at home. “Yes, but four years into this, I feel differently,” he says. “Don’t lock me in.”

In an unhealthy relationship, we do lock each other in. We hold each other hostage to some past version of ourselves, cutting down each other’s dreams.

“How are you going to cook for the homeless, when you don’t even cook at home?”

“You wanted to go to law school. You can’t change careers at your age.”

“You want to sing songs from the 18th century? This family doesn’t have time for you to pursue your own amusement.”

But it’s cruel to tell another person that they are not allowed to change their mind. It’s terrible to feel boxed in to a previous version of yourself.

Renegotiating isn’t easy. But the heart of the gospel is this: everyone gets to grow and change. Discerning the will of God isn’t about doing whatever you want or making the other person do whatever you want. Discernment disrupts our best-laid plans.

Prayer:

When the next negotiating session begins, remind me “God is still speaking.” And not only to me.

Amen.

Gracious and Gentle God we give thanks for coming to earth in flesh to dwell amongst us and to teach us how to live and how to love. We give you thanks for the power of your love revealed in Jesus.… love to help and heal when nothing else can, love that lifts up and liberates when nothing else will. Having been blessed by the power of your love, we want to freely give what we have been freely given.

Let your healing love be known this day by all who suffer physically, distress of mind, agony of spirit, or brokenness of relationships. Let your forgiving love be known this day – we ask for forgiveness for harm we have done to one another and to your creation. Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. Reveal the power of your love and bring new life to all.

Let your intimate love be known today we pray, by all who feel forgotten or lost, and all who are walking in the dark valley of despair. We pray for all suffering due to covid – the sick, the grieving, the under-resourced, and front-line workers.

May your gracious presence provide comfort and strength. We pray for our households of faith. May their lives be filled with love, health and joy. Reveal the power of your love and bring new life to all.

Let your fierce love this day redress the wrongs of all who suffer exploitation, injustice, abuse, neglect, or violence. Amidst global black lives matter movement we pray that the voice of the voiceless be honoured and that racism and systems of oppression be dismantled. Reveal the power of your love and bring new life to all.

Let your nurturing love today encourage families as a new school year is launched. Grant energy and joy, safety and peace. Let wisdom fill educators, support staff in their important roles. May places of learning whether in-person or virtual classrooms be safe. Let your strengthening love uphold congregational leaders amidst decision making and rolling out health and safety protocols.

Reveal the power of your love and bring new life to all.

Let your reconciling love today gather together where divisions are deep. Make your church aware of the fellowship and mission of the one, universal body of Christ. Reveal the power of your love and bring new life to all.

Thank you for hearing us, loving God. With the whole body of believers, we want to love, praise and serve you and transformed by the power of your love in whose name we pray.

Amen

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself,
and the fact that I think I am following your will
does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you
does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that, if I do this,
You will lead me by the right road,
though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore I will trust you always
though I may seem to be lost
and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

Amen

Good and gracious God, here we are standing at a threshold.

A new church year lies before us.

A new school year lies before us.

The fall season including cooler days and autumn flavours lies before us.

You join with us at this threshold of new opportunity, as routines change and as congregational ministries and programs are launched anew. You join with us amidst the unknowns, the possibilities, each step of the journey.

You join with us and accompany us, providing strength and vision to step forward into familiar and unknown places to further Your mission.

At this threshold we give thanks for opportunities to serve, to worship, to teach, to learn, and to grow. Continue, we pray to make all things new. Give us courage and humility to faithfully follow You wherever you lead.

Bless Your church, amidst the challenges of this season and amidst creative out-of-the-box thinking. Make us bold to release that which has served its season and fill us with courage and vision to embrace the future you have prepared for us. We pray for wisdom, grace, and open hearts. We pray for the ministries of this congregation, congregational leadership and staff and ask your blessing upon all we do in your name. We pray for Leah Reesor-Keller as she begins her new position as MCEC Executive Minister. Direct and guide her.

Hear our prayer for those who stand in need of healing, hope and wholeness. Hear our prayer for those suffering due to emotional, relational, physical or spiritual pain. Hear our prayer for all impacted by covid, the sick, the grieving, health care providers, those waiting to return to work. May Your embrace of love be wide and strong.

We also pray for our Households of Faith. May their days be filled with meaning and purpose, their home a place where love dwells.

Good and gracious God giving thanks for all Your good gifts and Your promise to be with us, we offer all our prayers in the name of Jesus the Christ.

Amen