Original Prayers, June 2021

06 june

We come as the body of Christ, courageous in our ministry to reveal you to the world. Send your blessing on those who lead in your church, that their care for your people may build up the community, extend peace and unity on the congregation, and promote the gift of being your people in prayer and praise.

Gracious Lord, Hear our prayer.

Eternal Wisdom, hear our prayer for all who govern; for the Queen and her family, for our elected and appointed officials, for all who bear the mantle of responsibility for your peoples. Grant the leaders of the nations wisdom and skill, energy and initiative to govern with integrity, vision, and compassion, that we may live together in unity, peace, and goodwill.

Gracious Lord, Hear our prayer.

Ageless God, you have always guided humanity to your truth; help us to continue to live our lives by your grace and with good judgement, always rejoicing as we seek your face in our midst. We pray for those whose work seasons are ending, and those just beginning, we pray for those businesses still in the midst of phased-in transitions, we pray for those who do all in their ability to lift up our local community.

Gracious Lord, Hear our prayer.

Prince of peace; your peace was given to us all, and left with us all to share. Guide us in that peace, that we may care for your world, seeing in it the presence of Your kingdom both for today and for the future. Help us to overcome conflict, greed, and destructive practices that inhibit the fellowship of your love.

Gracious Lord, Hear our prayer.

Healer, we beg your help. We ask that you would reveal yourself to the sick, the lonely, the dying. Care for those who care for us; comfort those who grieve, refresh those who are exhausted, inspire all whose ministries benefit us all. We hold in our hearts and minds the people and situations known to us that need your healing; we remember those names that we have forgotten, and those situations that you alone know about.

Gracious Lord, Hear our prayer.

We sing your praises, generous God, for all the gifts and blessings of this life. For the people whom we love, for the safety and security of our homes, for the daily reminders of new life that you are showing to us. Remind us to see you in the moments of grace that are laid before us, this day and forever more; and to be thankful for the goodness of this life.

Gracious Lord, Hear our prayer. Amen.

20 june

Lead us, Holy One, through the storms of our lives. Help us to recognise your mastery over all things, and to celebrate your peace when it stills our hearts and minds. Increase our faith as we call upon you in prayer, saying Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for the church; for the leaders who guide us to your glorious reign. For our Primate Linda, Bishop Sandra, Archdeacon Simon. For the ministries that will change and grow as we begin to dream what our post-COVID church can do to give greater glory to you.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for the leaders of the nations, their advisors and governments, their families ands friends. We ask you to guide the hearts of all in authority, that the decisions they make, which impact all of your creation, including your people, be made in the interest of your peace and goodwill.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for the world, still battling the storm of COVID, while still being tossed about by wars, famine, prejudice, and injustice. Help those who suffer from immediate natural devastations and from the effects of human-influenced climate change; comfort those who are displaced by conflict and strife; speak peace to the hearts of all who struggle.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for our community, and for all who live and work here. Inspire us to new ways of seeing ourselves as your holy family, called to contribute to the well-being of all, upholding the dignity and respect of every individual. Remind us that we need each other, and help us to bring out the best versions of ourselves as we journey together in this life.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for all who struggle and suffer, in mind, body, and spirit. Comfort the afflicted, relieve the carers, refresh the overwrought. Free us from the grips of fear, release us from bonds of pain, release us from our denial of your healing powers. As we seek wholeness and healing,

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray with awe and thanksgiving for the wonders of this life; for the blessings that you shower us with, for the opportunities to grow in spirit and in truth, for the privileges of connecting with you and with each other. Keep our hearts open to your grace, that we may delight in being conduits of your love.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.Amen.

27 june

We pray with confidence to the God who loves us and leads us, saying, Lord, hear our prayer.

We pray for the church: for the church of all times and places; for the leaders who guide us, for the ministries we offer. We lament the sins of the past, we strive to do what is right for today, we pray that your truth will be known in the future. That the church will offer an outpouring of grace and praise,

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for those in authority, for the queen, for government officials, and for community leaders. That they will use wisdom and discernment to govern your people in justice; that they will support systems and structures to increase peace; that they will listen and engage in the difficult and unpopular tasks that strengthen the unity of all,

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for the world, for your presence to be known in places of conflict, for your joy to be known in places of peace, for your healing touch to be known in places of brokenness. Inspire us to actions that celebrate all of creation as an environment for praise.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for this community, and for all who live and work here, honouring all who have called this place home. We hold before you the people who serve us in hospitality, those who labour in industry, those who visit and support our town. Empower us to bless all we meet with kindness and compassion.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray for those who are sick and suffering in body, mind, and spirit, that they may be comforted by your love in their hearts. We ask you to empower those who use their energy and gifts to care for those in any need or distress; to renew the passion for caring, through which so many reveal your example of love.

Lord, Hear our Prayer.

We pray with deep gratitude, for all the blessings of this life. Open our eyes and hearts to see and appreciate the gifts of family and friends, of abundance and opportunity, of grace and goodness. In small mercies and in grand excitements, remind us that all good things come from you and are worthy of praise and thanksgiving.

Lord, Hear our Prayer. Amen.

Sermon, Pentecost +5

      One of the beauties of our liturgical tradition is the lectionary: it’s an intentional collection of rich scriptures, put side by side, as we do our best to understand the world in today’s context. We draw on the history, teachings, and prayers that have revealed God’s presence throughout generations and over millennia – and continue to speak to us here, today. AND – thanks be to God – will continue to mean much in the years of the future.

So let’s start with the depth of the emotions we hear in the readings – because in all of them, there is a desire – a desperation even – for healing. And healing starts when we acknowledge the wound.

In the passage from Samuel, we are hearing grief. Raw, powerful, painful grief. David is crying – Saul and Jonathan have died in battle. And David laments.

Ah, lament – such a loaded word – evoking the feelings of deep, profound loss. It’s a word we can all understand, because we have all, at some point, experienced that soul-piercing grief.

And that is where David speaks to us from today.

And… it’s awkward, isn’t it? Uncomfortable. Because we don’t like seeing other people’s grief. We try to avoid their pain – if we’re honest, we’re a society that doesn’t like dealing with our OWN pain.

So lament feels… off. Weird. Turn away and don’t engage, kind of thing.

Yet: we know, that grief is part of the process of healing. It’s the first step; if we don’t know what the hurt is, we can’t start to recover from it. So David’s lament over this loss of life needs to be honoured. And recognised for what it was – because David has not lost his best-ever friend, these two were often at odds – but still: human life was lost, and as a result the family, the community – was diminished.

And David lamented.

This is the same lament that we feel when we hear of loss. Of diminished community. Of unnecessary violence.

It’s the same lament that the psalmist begins with, when we hear the need to have that grief seen, heard, recognised: Out of the depths have I called you, O Lord. Hear my voice.

And it is the same faith that carries us into hope. The psalmist continues: I wait for you; my soul waits for you; in your word is my hope.

So let’s continue delving deeply into God ‘s words.

For the words of God, the Bible, are not limited to our English language – they are bigger and more involved that anything we can put on a page, and translate… and this richness of lexicography – the words – this expands the hope and grace that is being offered to the people of God – that is, to us all.

The word to excel (now as you excel in everything) in the Greek means to abound or overflow – so these gifts of faith, speech, knowledge, eagerness, and love – these are more than just excellent qualities; they are overflowing from the community.

The word for grace can at times be translated as favour, privilege, generous action, blessing – again there’s more to is, as this is the life-giving power of God. Jane Lancaster Patterson describes grace as “the power that is saving and reconciling the world, a power with its origins in God, its channel through communities of believers, and its goal in every place where brokenness, suffering, and destruction reign.”

Paul is writing to a community that knows this brokenness – and he is inviting them to consider new expressions of social and economic justice – they’re being invited to use their money and goods to extend God’s grace. And the Koine Greek uses some word play and rhythm to convey the message in a way that our English falls a little short. For the words of poverty and poor are written in a way that are messy – a PT sound that’s very… well, (spitting sounds) not attractive.

And these contrast with softer, more elegant sounds for grace, joy, thanksgiving. The rhythm of the Greek conveys a message of moving towards dignity for all. And this is done by the grace of God, and sometimes despite the actions of the people – because God’s grace is a gift for all. God’s grace heals.

Which brings us nicely to the Gospel passage today, where we hear the pattern of two miraculous and gracious healings in Jesus’ ministry, sandwiched into one passage. In both of these stories of healing, the culturally acceptable thing would have been to not get involved.

And a big part of this was a concept of ritual purity: if I touch the unclean, then I will BE unclean. And a dying girl, or a hemorrhaging woman: both were considered unclean by society.

And let’s think about them for a moment. They’re ill. Depleted. A woman bleeding for over a decade – she’s likely anemic, exhausted, possibly abandoned by her husband when she couldn’t produce an heir… unemployable, dehumanised, all her money long gone to doctors who could not heal her. And she risks being out in the crowd – alone – to be near Jesus.

In the midst of a crowd that could reject her and punish her; yet she persisted. And touching the hem of his cloak was enough to bring her relief – physical, emotional, spiritual relief. And when she could remain hidden in the immense crowd, she does the right thing by admitting her actions, apologising, accepting accountability.

Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace.

And a child – an innocent child, whose father has such faith as to request that the rabbi risk societal and religious defilement by laying his hands on her. And Jesus doesn’t hesitate – even when he hears that the child has died (and is therefore more of a threat to Jesus’ standing in the4 community) – he goes. It is the right thing to do. He acknowledges the emotional depth of the lament, and is ridiculed when he says their timing is off. And alas – touching the dead girls’ hand, she is reanimated – and hungry.

Daughter, parents, neighbours, your faith has made you well. Go in peace.

When we come to Jesus, our faith makes us well.

When Jesus comes to us, our faith makes us well.

Jesus is the catalyst of grace; and amazes with this pattern of healing; a celebration of inclusion in community; an outpouring of grace; a gift of wholeness. And throughout all ages, this is what we seek: health. Well-being.

Health, of course, is not a destination – we don’t ‘arrive’ at health – it’s an ongoing process and journey. Health of body; health of mind; health of spirit. We seek the spiritual wholeness that comes through the mercy of God.

And so we journey through the realities of life, rooted in the Good News of God:

weaving together emotional depth in rhythm and word and pattern. And revealing for us truth beyond our imagination; grace beyond our comprehension; forgiveness beyond our capacity; and hope beyond belief. And: the promise that the journey is not finished.

Because as long as we know ourselves to be striving for the kin-dom of God, we know that forgiveness is promised, that our voices are heard, that our presence is welcomed, and that our health and salvation is assured.

Siblings in Christ, our faith is making us well. Go in peace.

Sermon, Pentecost +4

 This morning we are IN the boat.

Well, in the Gospel we are. We are in the boat with Jesus!

And… God bless Him, Jesus does what so many people may like to do in that circumstance after a long day of teaching… he takes a nap.

However, the others don’t.

They’re staying awake, watching, sailing, likely chatting.

And worrying.

Because: the sudden gale has come up. And waves are beating the boat. And they are taking on water.

This is a reasonable time for concern!

But I’d also like for us to consider the perspective…

The Sea of Gallilee isn’t the Atlantic Ocean. It’s a reasonable size, to be sure… large enough to get some good wind from. It’s about 21km long and 13 wide. At its deepest it’s 141 feet deep. So it’s big – but there’s the perspective to remember that wherever you are on this sea, you can see the shore.

It’s why so many of the scripture passages tell us of going from one side to the other – relatively quickly and easily.

So! There they are, all in the same boat.

…

And this is where it might be helpful to recall that they are NOT, in fact, in the same boat.

Jesus and his friends are in one boat. “Just as he was” is how he entered that situation.

And: OTHER BOATS WERE WITH HIM. There’s more people following and accompanying. That’s important – we know that when one boat goes down, we rely on other boats for salvage. To help us out of the waters. To lift us back to the place we’re meant to be.

I’m speaking, of course, both literally and figuratively.

The multiple boats mean there is an increased sense of safety for the folks. They are not alone.

There’s a lesson for us there too – that when a community is following Jesus, no one gets left alone. No one is out there without backup. No one is without interconnection… which also means that no one is free from responsibility… to reach out to others who need it. To assist as able when life’s storms overtake. To provide the physical, emotional, and at times spiritual support to help buoy one another up when the storms of life are raging.

Ah, yes, The storm.

THE storm. Egads, gadzooks, the storm.

The storm arises – what one academic refers to as “apocalyptic boat ride from hell.” – and the folks are trying to deal with it as best they can. And when storms are raging, this is when people can feel at their most alone. The storm can make us forget the other boats that are along us.

Because we’re busy dealing with the storm. We’re focused so much on how we are doing that we can lose sight of how others are doing.

And each boat may be dealing with the storm in very different ways… a larger boat with higher sides may think of it as an inconvenient rough patch; a dorey may be entirely wrecked.

Life is like that. The storms hit, but we have different responses – depending on how we are doing. COVID, for example, is showing us the different resiliencies that we all have; the different resources that we all tap into.

And by US I mean each of us as individuals, as families and households, as communities, as churches. And as a global community.

And we can reflect on how COVID is not the only storm that we face: we have a world where war and conflict are present, where ageism and sexism are daily realities, where racism is systematically rampant. The storms are raging.

So it’s good for us to worry about our own boats…

But it’s also good for us to “open wide our hearts” as Paul writes to the others in our midst, to see and respond to the impacts of life’s storms affecting us all in different ways.

And how do we do THAT?

Well, we turn again to the example in the Gospel.

As the folks alongside Jesus did in their moment of fear: they turn to Jesus. Even when they don’t know that THIS is the Song of God in their midst.

And – as always – Jesus saves.

Salvation is at hand.

Beautiful, confusing, eternal, undeniable salvation: standing right there before these disciples.

So amazing that they don’t even realise it – hence the “who IS this guy?” when they receive the gift that Jesus – and Jesus alone – brings.

So let’s talk about what salvation looks like. Because it’s way more complicated and complex and absolutely BEAUTIFUL than a downed Philistine or a nice day on the waters.

Salvation is what is being revealed by Jesus as he rebukes the wind.

True salvation that can only come from God – because salvation is not about having a nice comfortable 3-hour cruise; salvation is about the deliverance of the soul from sin and its consequences.

And THAT is how Jesus reveals himself – and God’s promise fulfilled – in one simple act of calming the waters – and the people – with one command for peace and stillness.

And while there is a broad range of ideas and theologies around the concept of salvation – it’s a field of study called soteriology – one constant is that salvation is about our souls. Our spirit. Our very being.

NOT about the body; which we understand through biology as being continuously adapting, as we shed cells and build new ones.

Don’t get me wrong – there is no harm in asking for physical help and saving when we’re caught in physical danger. We all do it!

But salvation – the holy salve – the spiritual protection! That comes from God – and God alone. Salvation of our souls.

This is what we cry to God for. This is more precious and desirable than just harm reduction for our bodies.

And it’s not always easy – because the storms of life can be fervent. Persistent. Overwhelming.

And the connection of body and soul is our normal – it can be a challenge to discern the distinction of soul and body when we live IN our bodies.

But the truth God’s salvation continues:

The Psalmist declares: that those who know the name of God will put their trust in God, and God will not forsake those who seek God.

Paul assures the Corinthian church that “now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!” – and that every day is the day of salvation.

And Jesus reveals himself to be the physical embodiment – the true and undeniable incarnation – of God’s real and amazing presence on earth, connecting with people and embedded in communities, as his divinity is demonstrated in calling for people to have faith and not fear, for their salvation is already assured.

So here we are, as I said at the start: In the boat. With Jesus. And with each other. Standing together to overcome whatever storms may be raging around us.

It reminds me of the hymn by Charles Albert Tindley – the first verse reads:

When the storms of life are raging,

stand by me; (stand by me)

when the storms of life are raging,

stand by me. (stand by me)

When the world is tossing me

like a ship upon the sea,

thou who rulest wind and water,

stand by me. (stand by me)

Peace. Be Still.

Truly: this is the Good News of God.

Amen.