Almighty Father, whose most dear Son, on the night before he suffered, instituted the Sacrament of his Body and Blood: Mercifully grant that we may receive it in thankful remembrance of Jesus Christ our Savior, who in these holy mysteries gives us a pledge of eternal life; and who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, on God, for ever and ever. Amen.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” (John 13:34)
My regular daily office reading has me in the Gospel of Matthew currently and today was Matthew 25.
It is still hard for me to read this passage and not have my upbringing in Bible reading flood my thoughts. In the past I was sure Matthew 24 and 25 were about the “end times” as in: “Are you rapture ready?” They are about the end times… and we are living in those times.
Continue reading “Kingdom resources in the time of coronovirus”Almighty God, whose blessed Son was led by the Spirit to be tempted by Satan: Come quickly to help us who are assaulted by many temptations, and, as you know the weaknesses of each of us, let each one find you mighty to save; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, on God, now and forever. Amen.
My Lenten Scripture reading is HERE.
Today leads me to Psalm 103. I am reminded to rejoice in his mercy!
Continue reading “Lenten Reading — Rejoice in his great mercy”
O God, Creator of heaven and earth: Grant that, as the crucified body of your dear Son was laid in the tomb and rested on this holy Sabbath, so we may await with him the coming of the third day, and rise with him to newness of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
We have plenty of opportunity to replicate the principles of the footwashing in our daily lives:
Continue reading “Maundy Thursday — take up the basin and the towel”“Draw us, Lord, toward you, toward your way of self-giving love. Draw us away from all that is not love — from the forces of greed, fear, anxiety, and brutality. In this Lenten experience of so being drawn toward you and away from the powers of the world, may we come to find that new life that is the meaning of Easter. Amen.” — Walter Brueggemann, A Way Other Than Our Own
“The church at Corinth is not called to pious, romantic, goosey religion but simply to practice the memory of Jesus and to let that memory be fully present tense… Christians sort these matters out around Jesus, because we are endlessly seduced by imagining the glory is to be found in our technology, in our brightness, in our achievement, in our power, in our wealth, in our loveliness, or in our fitness. No, no, no! It is found in the face and body and life and story of the one who suffers in and with and for the world.” — Walter Brueggemann, A Way Other Than Our Own
Last Sunday in worship I realized how long Lent really was, even though I’ve worked to walk through Lent the last several years. The liturgy on Sunday in the Anglican Church amplifies that longing. We don’t sing as many songs. The songs are more “mournful” in a way. Lent gets long and I’m thinking, “Wow! Could we hurry this up?” Continue reading “Longing for Passion Week”
