Prayerful Tuesday – Why Have You Forgotten Me?

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Winter's Path
Winter’s Path

 

Psalm 42:9-11

9I say to God, my rock, “Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I walk about mournfully because the enemy oppresses me?”
10As with a deadly wound in my body, my adversaries taunt me,
while they say to me continually, “Where is your God?”
11Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.

I have to admit I haven’t always lead an exemplary life and the life I have led has been on roads and paths G-d might have preferred me to avoid.  Those bumpy roads led me to places where I felt abandoned and alone.  But, I have to remember that I choose those roads, I choose to ignore the sacred voice within and live outside of G-d’s love.  I choose to be there, even when the event that got me there was none of my doing I still choose NOT to recognize I wasn’t alone.  I couldn’t or wouldn’t see G‑d walking beside me every step of the way.  I choose to see only darkness; I simply refused to see the luminous darkness that was G-d.

Yes I blamed G-d for all the bad events in my life, isn’t that what every human does?  As a human being I saw the worst and assumed the worst.  I rolled around in my self-pity, yelling at G-d that life was unfair and therefore G-d either didn’t exist or didn’t care what happened to me. I yelled at G-d telling her “why are you doing this to me, why aren’t you there for me, why am I so alone.”  I was so busy trying to run from those comforting arms that I never recognized that it was G-d holding me up, that Jesus was the one helping my broken spirit and that the Holy Spirit was trying to dry my tears.  Because I did not recognize  G-d I was afraid, so afraid.  My bones shook with fear until I thought they would break. I could not see that what happened to me were the consequences I had to experience and live through in order to find my way back to a better place.

It wasn’t until I ran out of tears, ran out of words, until I ran out of myself that I was able to open the door and let you in, G-d.  Only then, O Divine One, did I feel your presence and finally rest in your outstretched arms.  I was still afraid, but I wasn’t alone any longer.  My fear was not as frightening because I knew you were there, and I know it now, in this moment of time I now live.

Why do I put myself through all of that? Why do any of us? Is the struggle to return to you G-d after I have rejected you so important to my understanding of you as unconditional love?  Well I think I know the answer to that question and it is yes.  Yes it is important to walk through the darkness in order to see the light.  Sometimes I have to test my own limits before I learn that you have no limits.

You, Oh G-d, will always welcome me back when I have strayed from your side.  I know you are always there in the dark with me but my eyes are blinded by your startling bright light and I cannot see.  Because I can’t see I fear you’ve left me to stumble in the darkness.   It is only when I regain some hope that you are there, that my eyesight begins to clear.  When I choose to hope, I choose you, oh G-d.  It is when I choose not to recognize you, there beside me, that I become hopeless and unable to see your glory all around me.

So I will choose hope, I chose you oh G-d, I am choosing you G-d.  I have made my choice and I choose to live in your light, your love, your hope.  Will I sometimes forget that choice, probably? In some future time I will again fail to see your presence in the dark and you will be there walking right beside me.  You will not leave me alone even if I believe you have.  But the big difference now is I know you forgive, I know you offer me grace and I will fall into your arms when the tears and words run out and you will comfort me.

O patient G-d I am grateful for your presence, even when I push you away.  Grant me my moments of struggle and suffering even though you suffer with me because, in my suffering I discover again your amazing love.   Amen

Ruth Jewell ©December 16, 2013

 

 

 

Prayerful Tuesday – “I the God of Israel will not forsake them”

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God moves in a mysterious way his wonders to perform; by Wm Cowper Picture by NASA
God moves in a mysterious way his wonders to perform        words by Wm Cowper
Picture by NASA

Isaiah 41:17-20
17When the poor and needy seek water,
and there is none,
and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the Lord will answer them,
I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

18I will open rivers on the bare heights,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
and the dry land springs of water.

19I will put in the wilderness the cedar,
the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive;
I will set in the desert the cypress,
the plane and the pine together,

20so that all may see and know,
all may consider and understand,
that the hand of the Lord has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it. 

Advent, a time of waiting, a gestation time of new beginnings, I have heard those words many times over many Advents.  And, while all this waiting is important I have a confession to make, I hate waiting!  Yes, my impatience frequently gets me into trouble, with G-d and with those around me.  I begin before the preparation has been completed and my task, while not a total failure, does not live up to its potential.  Patience is not one of the gifts G-d has seen fit to give me. It is something I have been trying to learn for 66 years and I am still not very good at it.

I admit to being one of those thirsty people in the desert who wants to have water and I want now!  If I had been with the Israelites in the Sinai I would have marched right up to Moses and said “I’m thirsty, I need water and I need it now!”  And I am sure Moses would have looked at me with a jaundiced eye and said “get a grip; learn some patience for crying out loud.  You are out of Egypt so be grateful for what you have and quite complaining!”  Yep that would have been me hearing those words.   Yet in Isaiah we hear that G-d will provide water and more to those who are poor and in need and it is not lost on me that G-d came through with food and water during the Exodus.  So yes I do believe G-d, in Her own good Time and Way, will provide.

The key to this waiting is “in Her own good Time and Way” G-d will offer the drink and food we need and it’s always in that perfect moment.  The moment when we not only need it the most but the moment when we are open the widest for hearing G-d’s voice speak the Word we so desperately thirst and hunger for.

For the last two and half years I have been in my own time of Advent, walking in a wilderness of my own making as I waited for G-d to give me a Word I could respond to about where my ministry would take me.  And in that time there have been many impatient moments.  Many times I have tried to hurry G‑d.  I have tried to guess what She will speak and tried starting a task with no direction from Her.  It rarely works out because you cannot hurry G-d.  G-d will speak when the time is right, when my heart is open the widest to hear G-d speak and not before.

Through out this time G-d has been allowing a ministry to begin gestating within me.  To grow in concept piece by piece, step by step while at the same time letting G-d open me up to whom I am and who She is. I am learning that G‑d is my greatest counselor, friend, lover, supporter, confidant, comforter, and confessor.  All I have to do is live a life that puts G-d first, keep our relationship strong and allowing the counselor, friend, lover, supporter, confidant, comforter, and confessor work through me in a working partnership with Her.

It seems as if it would be easy to do what G-d asks of us doesn’t it?  But it is not.  Ask the Israelites how hard it was to follow the path G-d laid before them.  Ask the disciples how hard it was to walk the path Jesus laid before them.  Each one will tell you it is not easy.  Yes G-d will provide for the poor and needy but verse 41:20 of Isaiah says it best.  We are to “… see and know … consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it.” We fail hopelessly in that understanding.  All too often we take G-d’s handiwork for granted and do not see what the Lord does for us.  I, just like the rest of the human race, all too often think we are entitled to the abundance we see around us.  We forget just where and who it comes from, where and from whom we come from.  It has taken me a life time to understand in a small way the meaning of verse 20.  And, it has only been in the last year and half that I have worked hardest to be patient and to let G-d speak when She is ready and not me.

And now G-d is bringing me closer to an understanding of what my role as Her partner will be.  And, somehow I feel it is appropriate that G-d picked Advent for this to happen, the time for me to begin to feel the movement of a baby ministry within me.  I am excited and scared about bringing into reality this ministry of my very own.  It takes courage for me to step out and claim my role as G-d partner a courage I do not always have.  I have many fears; will I be worthy of G-ds trust, will I hurry this up and as a result rush to completion what needed time to grow, will I give up saying “sorry G-d this to hard for me,” will I simply not be enough for the task.  There are so many fears, so much excitement, and so many hopes.  The future I do not know, only G-d does, so I will keep waiting, and listening, and moving with G-d’s time and moments.  Patience is really hard but I continue to learn to lean into the open arms and let G-d teach me.

This Week’s Spiritual Practice

Do you have something waiting to emerge from you?  Waiting is hard (just ask any 4 year old) but it can be done. So this week I simply ask that each day you find yourself a quiet place and sit in silence for 5 to 20 minutes.  Listen for a Word from G-d.  It might be a Word about doing something, or it might be G-d whispering “I love you.”  Just remember whatever happens let it happen in G-d’s time not yours and be grateful for the time spent with G-d.

Ruth Jewell, ©December 10, 2013

Prayerfull Tuesday, November 19, 2013

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Suzie
Suzie

Prayer

Yesterday seemed like a perfect day to read poetry.  The rain was coming down, the wind was blowing, Suzie was snuggled in my lap so I opened up two of my favorite books of poetry, Thirst by Mary Oliver,[1] and a book of Celtic prayers collected by Alexander Carmichael titled New Moon of the Seasons, Prayers from the Highlands and Islands.[2] A poem of Mary Oliver’s and a prayer collected by Alexander Carmichael struck me as I read them.  The first was a Celtic Prayer:

The Three
The Three who are over me,
The Three Who are below me,
The Three Who are above me here,
The Three Who are above me yonder;
The Three Who are in the earth,
The Three Who are in the air,
The Three Who are in the heaven,
The Three Who are in the great pouring sea

The Celtic people lived close to land and they cherished it as a gift from G-d. They saw the creator in every plant and animal and rock. They saw the grace of G-d in rain and snow, the roar of the sea and in the breath of spring air.  This simple prayer is an acknowledgment that G-d, Christ, and the Holy Spirit surround them.  G-d wasn’t “out there” looking down at them, no G-d was surrounded them in grace and blessings of many shapes and colors.  As I watch the rain fall outside my window and feel Suzie’s warm breathing in my lap I understood what this prayer of gratitude meant to fisherman, a farmer, a mother tending the hearth.  G-d is here, now, with me, with you, with us all.  For the Celts and for us today G-d lives beside and within each of us.

Mary Oliver’s poem Praying is a lovely companion to the Celtic prayer.  Praying reminds us that prayer doesn’t have to be framed with elaborate words.  Prays really happen in those moments when your mind has no words so your heart speaks.  Some of the greatest prayers are never written down; simple words of gratitude for the healing of a friend, or gasp of awe at the beauty of a sunrise, or joy of a laughing child are beloved prayers of the heart.  Here is;

 Praying
by Mary Oliver

It doesn’t have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just pay attention, then patch

a few words together and don’t try
to make them elaborate, this isn’t
a contest but the doorway

into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak.

I invite you to read the Celtic prayer, and Mary Oliver’s poem.  Look around you; do you see the work of G-d, Christ, and Holy Spirit in the everyday living of your life?   Where does your heart speak when your mind has no words?  Let the simple words of gratitude, sorrow, or joy shaped in your heart form the bases for a prayer that speaks to the Divine that walks beside you.  May the all surrounding presence of The Three be your comforter in times of crises and dance with them when joy rings in heart.

Ruth Jewell, ©November 19, 2013

[1] Mary Oliver; Thirst, Beacon Press, Boston, MA, 2006, pg 37

[2] Alexander Carmichael; New Moon of the Seasons, Prayers from the Highlands and Islands, Floris Books, Edinburgh, Scotland, Great Britain, 1986, pg 74

Prayerful Tuesday, November 12, 2013

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Prayers for the Philippines 

(Bullit Marquez/AP/NBC News) Bea Joy Ortega and her Mother Emily
(Bullit Marquez/AP/NBC News)
Bea Joy Ortega and her Mother Emily

As Typhoon Hayian struck the Philippines this last weekend I, like so many others, sent my prayers flying that the people would be safe.  Of course not everyone was.  People in the millions have had everything they know ripped from them by this storm, which so many say is the largest ever to form.  More than 10,000 people have lost their lives.  The survivors have little food or water, and no shelter.  As people from all over the world respond with aid the people of the Philippines, as people try to leave the islands for safer places a miracle occurs.  A woman gives birth in an airport. Bea Joy Ortega is born after her Mother Emily swims to safety.  A baby is always a sign of hope, a gift of promise.  In the hardest of times with death all around life still grows and makes her presence known.

I know there will be those who will say the people of the Philippines must have done something horrible to deserve this act of G-d.  I know there will be those who say G-d only does such acts to punish the evil deeds people do.  Well I say Bologna!  G-d doesn’t punish innocent people in such brutal ways.  No one ever deserves to be in the middle of a disaster.  We are not uneducated people who have to ascribe to everything that goes wrong in our lives, or the life of our planet, to some mysterious force we happen to call god.  G-d is much bigger than that.  G-d was with Emily holding her up and helping her swim to a safer place to give birth to a miracle, Bea Joy.

G-d was with each victim who died during the storm and heard their cries of fear and cried with them.  The G-d I know is with them still, in the lines waiting for food and water, in the hearts of mothers and fathers who hold their surviving children and family members, in the hearts of those who come bringing food, water, and medicines.  The G-d I know is in the hearts of people across the world reaching out with their donations.  G-d is in bodies of the volunteers, giving them strength and courage with support and comfort.

No G-d has not abandoned the Philippines rather G-d is in every hand that offers help in some way to a people who are in. So this Prayerful Tuesday I ask that each of you offer up a prayer of your own for the Philippines. G-d will hear and deliver those prayers.

This week the following prayer was posted on Facebook by Christians Tired of Being Misrepresented, a prayer that in the midst of disaster we hear the voice of G-d even in the worst of places and most difficult of times. I offer it to you as my prayer. It is a prayer of peace, a reminder that G-d is not punishing or delivering vengeance, rather G-d is there in your pain and sorry and when you are still you will hear G-ds voice and feel G-ds presence.

God Speaks to Man

I speak to you. Be still – Know I am God.
I spoke to you when you were born. Be still – Know I am God.
I spoke to you at your first sight. Be still – Know I am God.
I spoke to you at your first word. Be still – Know I am God.
I spoke to you at your first thought. Be still – Know I am God.
I spoke to you at your first love. Be still – Know I am God.
I spoke to you at your first song. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the grass of the meadows. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the trees of the forests. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the valleys and the hills. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the Holy Mountains. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the rain and snow. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the waves of the sea. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the dew of the morning. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the peace of the evening. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the splendor of the sun. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the brilliant stars. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the storm and the clouds. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the thunder and lightning. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you through the mysterious rainbow. Be still – Know I am God.
I will speak to you when you are alone. Be still – Know I am God.
I will speak to you through the Wisdom of the Ancients. Be still – Know I am God.
I will speak to you at the end of time. Be still – Know I am God.
I will speak to you when you have seen my Angels. Be still – Know I am God.
I will speak to you throughout Eternity. Be still – Know I am God.
I speak to you. Be still – Know I am God.

[God Speaks to Man – Essene Gospel of Peace]

Ruth Jewell, ©November 12, 2013

Prayerful Tuesday, October 29, 2013

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Sunset 08.22.2013

The Lord’s Prayer

These past two week have been difficult.  There are wildfires again in Australia, cyclones in the India, conflict in Chile, an early winter storm in Colorado, and the unwillingness of our government to govern, to name just a few.  All of these crises make my unhappiness with the gloomy skies that have settled over western Washington for more than a week seem pretty puny in comparison.

As I was praying about what to write for today I honestly couldn’t offer anything better than what Jesus gave his disciples when they asked him “teach us to pray.”  You see sometimes all you can do is pray, and when I can’t find the words I remember what my father always told me; “Ruth, you don’t have to say anything, G-d knows what’s in your heart, just sit and let your heart speak.”

So this week with no words to describe our hearts ache I ask that each of you to take five minutes out of your day and just sit, letting your heart speak.  If you wish you may end with the prayer Jesus taught his disciples so long ago.  Below is an English translation from the Aramaic, the language Jesus spoke, of the Lord’s Prayer.  In addition I have included a link to a beautiful singing of the Lord’s Prayer in Aramaic From the album, Sacred Ragas, by IndiaJiva. May you draw comfort from the Lord’s blessing and may they bless your day and coming week.

Shalom, Ruth Jewell

The Lord’s Prayer

(An English transliteration from the original Aramaic of Jesus)

 O Breathing Life, your Name shines everywhere!
Release a space to plant your Presence here
Envision your “I can” now
Embody your desire in every light and form.
Grow through us this moment’s bread and insight.
Untie the knots of failure binding us,
as we release the strands we hold of others’ faults
Help us not forget our Source.
Yet free us from (all unripeness) of not being in the Present.
From you arises every Vision, Power, and Song
From gathering to gathering

Amen.

May our future actions grow from here!

Prayerful Tuesday, October 01, 2013

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DSCF0561 a

A Prayer for Peace

October 1, 2013, the heading in the paper read, “GOV SHUTDOWN.” Today is Prayerful Tuesday and right now I am not feeling very prayerful, angry, frustrated but not prayerful. I want to run to Washington DC and ask our elected representatives what are you thinking, to shout angry words at them, I want to right them angry letters, I want to tell them there are more people in our country that need the Affordable Care Act than they are willing to poll or listen to. I want to … “sigh” … I don’t know what I want.

Prayer, how will prayer get me, all of us, through this time of crisis? Well, prayer offers us a time to look within and discover that even in the greatest of trials we are not alone. Even when we feel completely abandoned the Divine Spirit surrounds us and guides, all we have to do is to take a deep breath, wait, and listen. It is in the stillness of our hearts that our fears are known, our anger is known, and our guilt is known. John Phillip Newell wrote the following chant for Chanting For Peace (CD available from http://www.materialmedia.net):

Wait, wait, wait for God.
Wait, wait, wait for God.
Be strong and let your heart take courage.
Be strong and let your heart take courage.
Wait, wait, wait for God.

Waiting is hard, listening is even harder and sometimes I don’t know if I am up to it. To my regret I am all too often rash in speech and action. But Peace, Prayer, waiting, listening before I open my mouth or put to paper is what I am called to do. So today I offer this prayer”

A Psalm for Peace

Oh LORD, I wait upon you;
in this time of sorrow hear my cry.
My plea for my people is a just one,
for they are being assaulted by
those who would rob them
of peace and comfort.
Deliver us from our enemies,
who surround us, granting us
courage and strength of heart and being
to stand and speak your words of peace and justice.
Our world calls upon you, O GOD,
for we know you will answer us.
May we behold your face and feel your love
reflected in the face of our brothers and sisters,
in the morning light, the evening star,
the living earth and breathing sea.
May we, O LORD, Great Creator of all,
be the light that shines out and
brings peace to our hearts and world.

Ruth Jewell, ©October 1, 2013

Journey

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Tomorrow
Tomorrow

I am on a journey, a long journey
Begun before I entered my mother’s womb
To be carried on long after
I am finished with this clay pot

I stand on the moving head
of the pin of the now
Behind me is my past
In front of me my future

With every moment my now moves into my future of shifting possibilities
Leaving behind what was for. . . what is
Shadows of my life follow
Hazy outlines of what could be lie before me

I am like a piece in a strange board game
I cannot move backwards
Into the safe yesterday
I can only move forward into uncertainty

G-D the uncertainty frightens me
I want to go back, to the places that I know
I cannot see into the gray tomorrow
I want to know you will be there

My friend, do not be afraid, I am with you
now as I was in your past
I am in the now and travel with you,
I am there already

Ancient of Days I make my choice
I will take your hand
I will go into the shifting sands of uncertainty
My spirit will journey on, my friend calls, I come

Ruth Jewell ©September 28, 2013

PRAYERFUL TUESDAY, Sept. 24, 2013

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A PRAYER FOR PEACE

Genesis 9:13
Genesis 9:13

I have set my bow in the clouds and it will serve as a sign
of the covenant between Me and the Earth Genesis 9:13 (Torah)

This last past week has been especially disturbing with gun violence in so many places that I have lost track of where they all are.   I can’t even be sure that all have been reported by the ever present Sad News Division of our national media.  There have been simply too many acts of violence to report.

All I can do is offer prayers of comfort and safety for every person on the planet because I can’t name all the communities, families and individuals affected by gun violence this week.   I don’t think that has ever happened before.  One of my greatest fears is that massive gun violence, or violence in any form will become the “new normal” for our lives and we will begin to ignore these incidents because they become common.

Every day I pray to the Divine Spirit of us all that we will stop killing each other long enough to recognize we are brothers and sisters.  I pray that, knowing that while my prayers may be heard by the Spirit there is little hope of them being answered unless we all of us, hear that prayer and yell “ENOUGH!”   The killing will not stop until we, the people, say we have had our fill of guns in the hands of the mentally ill, of the glorifying war and banditry to entice our children into these acts as play, and of having our children shot, bombed, starved, and abused all for the glory of some pathetic so called religious or political despot.   So today on this our Prayerful Tuesday I would like to offer the following prayer of peace, petition and intercession. It is called the Caim, the encircling prayer, a form of prayer used by early Celtic Christians.

Circle Prayer of Peace, Petition and Intercession

Putting Ourselves in the Holy Spirit’s presence

Circle me, O Holy Spirit;
encircle me with your presence.
Keep joy within, keep bitterness out;
Keep generosity within, keep greed out;
Keep wholeness within, keep sickness out;
Keep wisdom within, keep folly out;
Keep strength within, keep weariness out;
Keep truth within, keep falsehood out;
Keep compassion within, keep hard-heartedness out;
Keep hope within, keep despair out;
Keep peace within, keep turmoil out;
Keep love within, keep self-seeking out;
Keep light within, keep darkness out.

In the name of the Sacred Three, the Parent, Child and Holy Spirit, Amen

Prayer for those in my heart

Circle, O Holy Spirit, (name[s]),
encircle them with your presence.
Keep joy within, keep bitterness out;
Keep generosity within, keep greed out;
Keep wholeness within, keep sickness out;
Keep wisdom within, keep folly out;
Keep strength within, keep weariness out;
Keep truth within, keep falsehood out;
Keep compassion within, keep hard-heartedness out;
Keep hope within, keep despair out;
Keep peace within, keep turmoil out;
Keep love within, keep self-seeking out;
Keep light within, keep darkness out.

In the name of the Sacred Three, the Parent, Child and Holy Spirit, Amen

Prayer for Peacemakers

Circle, O Holy Spirit, those who work for peace,
encircle them with your presence.
Keep wisdom within, keep folly out;
Keep strength within, keep weariness out;
Keep generosity within, keep greed out;
Keep truth within, keep falsehood out;
Keep compassion within, keep hard-heartedness out;
Keep hope within, keep despair out;
Keep love within, keep self-seeking out;
Keep light within, keep darkness out.

In the name of the Sacred Three, the Parent, Child and Holy Spirit, Amen

Circle those who are victims of violence and injustice

Circle, O Holy Spirit, (name people and places),
encircle them with your presence.
Keep truth within, keep falsehood out;
Keep compassion within, keep hard-heartedness out;
Keep strength within, keep weariness out;
Keep truth within, keep falsehood out;
Keep compassion within, keep hard-heartedness out;
Keep courage within, keep fear out;
Keep peace within, keep turmoil out;
Keep love within, keep hatred out;
Keep light within, keep darkness out.

In the name of the Sacred Three, the Parent, Child and Holy Spirit, Amen

Circle those who commit acts of violence and injustice

Circle, O Holy Spirit, (offer name[s]),
encircle them with your presence.
Help them to see the truth and to turn away from falsehood;
Help them to learn compassion and leave hard-heartedness behind;
Help them find the courage to turn away from evil;
May they feel your love in a world filled with hate;
Help them to see your light in the darkness.
In the name of the Sacred Three, the Parent, Child, and Holy Spirit, Amen.

Prayer of Blessing
The peace of the earth be upon you
The peace of the sky be upon you
The peace of the sea be upon you
The peace of the holy Spirit be upon you
upon you and all of G-ds creation

The love of the earth be yours
The love of the sky be yours
The love of the sea be yours
The love of G-d, Christ, and Holy Spirit be yours
and all of children of the Holy One.

AMEN

Ruth Jewell, ©September 24, 2013

Prayerful Tuesday, September 17, 2013

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Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of G-d.
Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of G-d.

 

Namaste

In the last few days it seems our world has slipped another cog on its sanity wheels.  There have been floods in Colorado, a devastating fire in New Jersey, children have gone missing, there are continuing world economic problems, people are dying in conflicts in the Middle East and South America . . . there are just too many to name.  Are you as overwhelmed as often as I am?

Sometimes I just have to stop and find something that reminds me that I am not alone in this world of many sorrows.  G-d walks with me through the pain and suffering I see all around me.  It is important for all of us to remember G-ds grace is in all things, all people, every moment even if we are to frightened or too busy see that amazing presence. On this Prayerful Tuesday I offer to you the practice of Visio Divina, a visual meditation on something in creation.

  • Sometime today pause and find something to focus on for a few moments; it could be a leaf, a sunbeam, the face of a friend or loved one, or you may use the picture of clouds above.  Pick something that reflects G-d’s presence to you at that moment.
  • Hold that image in your mind and meditate on the gifts God has given you.
  • You might take a moment to jot down any thoughts you may have for later contemplation.
  • When you have finished your contemplation offer your own prayers of intercession
  • End your time of prayer with a prayer of thanksgiving to the blessed creator.

My prayer for you this day is a “Prayer of Blessing” from John Phillip Newell’s book, “Praying with the Earth, A Prayerbook for Peace.”  

Prayer of Blessing

Peace where there is war
healing where there is hurt
memory where we have forgotten the other.
Vision where there is violence
light where there is madness
sight where we have blinded each other.
Comfort where there is sorrow
tears where there is hardness
laughter where we have missed life’s joy
laughter when we remember the joy.

(John Phillip Newell, Praying with the Earth, A Prayerbook for Peace,
William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, MI, 2011, pg. 44)

May you find your moment of stillness and may it fill you with peace. Namaste

Prayerful Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Posted on by a quiet walk
Into the Wilderness
Into the Wilderness

Into the Wilderness

An old Hebrew root for wilderness means “to speak,” {dabar – meaning “to speak” is a primitive root of midbar – meaning wilderness, a place where you can hear G-d speak}.  Those who traveled into the wilderness were outsiders, minorities, women and Judean peasants and they were the ones that heard G-d speak.  All too often we believe we have to be on the “inside” to hear G-d’s voice, we must “do it the right way” in order for G-d to notice us and accept us.  Yet that isn’t the way I’ve observed G-d work.  It is the outsider, the minority, the woman, the one who seems to be doing it all wrong that is called by G‑d.

How often do feel as if you are on the outside?  Might G-d be calling to you, inviting you into the wilderness, to hear the voice of the Creator? Today I invite to take this moment and breathe deeply.  Breathe out your burdens, worries, your cares and the responsibilities that weigh on you.  Sit in stillness and open up to G-d’s voice.  G-d will take your concerns and tend to them while you rest in G-d’s loving kindness and grade.  Breathe in G-d’s presence and love for you.  Remain still for 5 or 10 minutes in your inner silence and breathe the breath of G-d.

My prayer for you this day is that the stillness of this moment will remain within your heart all day letting you see G-d’s grace and blessings in all of the days tasks.

The Peace of G-d be upon you.

Ruth Jewell, September 10, 2013