03 FEB -
No Excuses!
Jeremiah, in today's passage, speaks
to God in a way that so many of us can relate to. In trying to be humble and respectful of God
and the elders, he makes an excuse. "I am only a boy" he says. We
hear other excuses come from our own lips... "that's not my area of
expertise" or "I don't have time" or "I'm too tired"
or...
God's response to Jeremiah is just
as it is to each of us. Rather than accepting an excuse, God reminds us that we
have been given exactly what we need to be messengers of grace and love. It is
our privilege to live out our baptismal vows, for the glory of God.
May we go in loving service,
bringing God's Good News to all who will listen!
(Jer 1.4-10)
10 FEB -
Without knowing Paul's story, his
letter to the Corinthians may seem rather emphatic and self-congratulatory.
Yet, Paul had experienced such dramatic change in the trajectory of his life as
a result of knowing the risen Christ. The resurrected Christ brought Paul
himself to a new life, transformed and joy-filled. Paul's desire was that
everyone might embrace that grace-filled faith, and so he worked tirelessly to
share it. May we be just as excited by Jesus in our lives, that we direct
others to the Good News!
(1Cor 15.1-11)
17 FEB -
Many of us are
familiar with the Sermon on the Mount, told in the Gospel of Matthew. Today's
Gospel passage shares the same teachings, but Luke has Jesus situated "on
a level place" among the crowd.
It doesn't change the meaning of what Jesus is saying, but the location matters
for Luke. The word "level" was quite nuanced at the time for the
Jewish community, with some of the prophets using it to represent a negative
reality: a cemetery, a place of desolation, grief, and misery.
For Luke, this emphasizes the Good News. Jesus is amidst the difficult earthly
reality of "the level" where the people are gathered, and where they
live their lives. And in stark contrast to this, he proclaims salvation through
the Son of Man. He assures them of the promise of renewal in the Heavenly and
eternal realm.
Though this is a difficult teaching, it invites us to hear it in our own
lives, our own places: it's easy to focus on the struggles and sorrows of this
life, but Jesus calls for us to live in the faith that bears the Good News. It
is an invitation to see the "level" places in the world around us,
and to work to overcome them as a foretaste of the Kingdom.
(Lk 6.17-26)
Prayers of the People 17 feb
Let us quiet our
minds, and open our hearts, as we bring to God our prayers; saying "Lord,
hear our prayer."
Loving God, we
pray for the church: the beautiful assembly of your people. We hold before you
our Primate Fred, our Archbishop Ron, and all who wear the mantle of
leadership. We ask that your Holy Spirit will guide us into action, that we may
live out the mission your Son has laid for us. May we, the church, find ways to
love you with our whole hearts, and to love our neighbours as ourselves.
We pray:
Lord,
hear our prayer.
We pray for the
Queen and her family, that they may honour you. We pray for our governments and
authorities; that they may honour your people through careful decisions and a
genuine desire for the benefit of all. In times and places of political unrest,
we ask for your calming presence to bring peace.
We pray:
Lord,
hear our prayer.
We pray for the
world, for all the mysteries of your creation. Help us to acknowledge the
delicate relationships between all species, to realise the honour of being
stewards of your creation. May we be leaders in our community, as together we
work to sustain and protect the world for generations to come.
We pray:
Lord,
hear our prayer.
We pray for
ourselves: for our home of Lunenburg and surrounding communities, for the
cities and towns where our loved ones live, that they may be safe and
welcoming; that all may know they are friends and neighbours, embraced with the
peace of Christ and greeted with delight. May everyone know your welcome through
us.
We pray:
Lord,
hear our prayer.
We pray for those
in any need of mind, body, or spirit: holding before you in our hearts those
who are sick, suffering, grieving; those who are isolated and lonely; those who
are unemployed and underemployed; those
who feel unloved or unheard. We ask you to open our eyes to the needs of those
around us, and to stir within our hearts a compassionate response.
We pray:
Lord,
hear our prayer.
We bring you
these prayers, O God, knowing that you hear the words of our lips and the
whispers of our hearts. We ask you to answer these prayers, as may be best for
us, that we may glorify your name at all times.
We pray:
Lord,
hear our prayer. Amen.
24 FEB -
Grudges are fascinating: they begin
with an offence, which causes lingering pain or anger, and they are carried
exclusively by the one who was offended. The burden does not linger with the
one who committed the offence; it weighs on the injured party and influences
how they view the world. They can become more cynical and critical, and
therefore miss out on the joys of everyday life.
This is why forgiveness is so
powerful: when an injured party decides that the pain has had enough time and
influence in their life, and refuses to let it cast a negative shadow on the
present and future. Again, the one who committed the offence is not necessarily
impacted, but the grudge-bearer finds a spiritual liberation, a freedom from
that burden. It does not suggest that the offence itself has become acceptable,
but that the person offended will no longer be weighed down by the injury
caused.
This is the message of our Genesis
reading today: the gift of forgiveness. Joseph, despite all the challenges in
his life caused by his brothers, has forgiven them. He has refused to continue
to in the hurt of their betrayal, and so is able to welcome them in their time
of need. He has chosen reconciliation over resentment, and so is able to engage
with the world around him with compassion and love. He has chosen a holy
response to an unbearable situation; to cast aside any previous grudges and
embrace the grace that God has brought before him.
What a beautiful message of
forgiveness Joseph teaches: to his brothers, to his community, and to people of
faith throughout history.
(Genesis 45:3-11, 15)
