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MEDITATION:

Written by Dallas Willard  (1935-2013), an American philosopher and writer on Christian spiritual formation.  This is an excerpt from his work “Renewing the Christian Mind: Essays, Interviews, and Talks.”

Every person should have regular periods in life when he or she has nothing to do. Periods of solitude and silence are excellent practices for helping us learn how to do that. The law that God has given for our benefit tells us that one-seventh of our time should be devoted to doing nothing—no work, not by ourselves or any of our family, employees, or animals. That includes, of course, religious work. This is Sabbath. What do you do in solitude or silence? Well, so far as things to “get done,” nothing at all. As long as you are doing “things to get done,” you have not broken human contact. So don’t go into solitude and silence with a list. Can we enjoy things in solitude and silence? Yes, but don’t try to. Just be there. Don’t try to get God to do anything. Just be there. He will find you. Even lay aside your ideas as to what solitude and silence are supposed to accomplish in your spiritual growth. You will discover incredibly good things. One is that we have a soul. Another, that God is near and the universe is brimming with goodness. Another, that others aren’t as bad as we often think. But don’t try to discover these, or you won’t. You’ll just be busy and find more of your own doings.

The cure for too-much-to-do is solitude and silence, for there we find that we are safely more than what we do. Thus, the cure of loneliness is solitude and silence, for there we also discover in how many ways we are never alone. When we go into solitude and silence, we need to be relatively comfortable. Don’t be a hero in this or in any spiritual discipline. You will need rest. Sleep until you wake up truly refreshed. And you will need to stay there long enough for the inner being to become different. Muddy water becomes clear only if we let it be still for a while. You will know that this finding of soul and God is happening by an increased sense of who you are and a lessening of the feeling that you have to do this, that, and the other thing that befalls your lot in life. That harassing, hovering feeling of “have to” largely comes from the vacuum in our soul, where we ought to be at home with our Father in his kingdom. As the vacuum is rightly filled, we will increasingly know that we do not have to do many of those things—not even those we might want to do.

PRAYER:

Written by Ray Simpson, a contemporary author. The prayer is from his book Liturgies from Lindisfarne, which are drawn from early and contemporary Celtic devotion, Anglican, Orthodox, Reformed, and Roman Catholic resources.

Eternal Spirit of God, breathe on us that we may know quiet and contented minds and lay all our burdens on Christ; take from us all anxiety and disquiet and draw our hearts to the Father by the power of your love; lead us to the peace that passes all understanding, to the silence which reveals you among us. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Richard M. Gula, a contemporary Sulpician priest involved in seminary education, a lecturer, and author.  This is from his book “To Walk Together Again.”

 We must not so stress our relationship with God that we forget our relationship with one another. And we must not so stress our relationship with one another that we have no need to look to God for forgiveness. Reconciliation involves both God and neighbors. Anyone committed to living a life of reconciliation must attend to the dynamics of love in relationship with God, others, self, and the world.

PRAYER:

This is a prayer of the religious order of the Sisters of Mercy, who are members of a religious institute of Catholic women found in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland.

Good and gracious God, who loves and delights in all people, we stand in awe before you, knowing that the spark of life within each person is the spark of your divine life.

Differences among cultures and races are multicolored manifestations of your light. May our hearts and minds be open to celebrate similarities and differences among our sisters and brothers.

Please send your healing and reconciling Spirit in order to bind the wounds created by racism and racial hatred, and to promote understanding, justice, and love.

We place our hopes for racial harmony in our committed action and in your living presence in our neighbor. May all peoples live in peace! Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by John Mogabgab (1946-2014), a theologian, teacher, and author.

To be immersed in the world means also to suffer fatal divisions between human beings. The self that is severed from its inborn connection with God readily becomes a “heart turned in upon itself.” If the “divided self” characterizes our inner life, the “heart turned in upon itself” is a telling image of our alienation from one another. The self-seeking conveyed by Augustine’s phrase fills our field of vision with the shapes of our own desires, eclipsing the profile of our neighbor’s need. The “heart turned in upon itself” isolates us because it conceives of self-fulfillment in individual terms. It will not acknowledge that our truest fulfillment is found only within the texture of mutuality God has chosen for authentic human life.  It is difficult to imagine how greatly our immersion in the world pains God. This is not the pain of a regent disobeyed but the anguish of a loving parent spurned by a child in desperate want. We glimpse a vivid portrait of this divine passion in Psalm 81. After recounting the chapters of Israel’s faithlessness in the wilderness, a voice still unknown to the psalmist utters this remarkable lament, “O that my people would heed me, that Israel would walk in my ways!” Here is the heart’s desire of our God, and the wellspring of that reconciling love that would gather into one new creation all the scattered, shattered creatures so treasured by their Creator. As we are awakened to the ingathering love of God, the brokenness that divides us from ourselves and others begins to mend.

PRAYER:

This prayer is a traditional Scottish blessing.

If there is righteousness in the heart,

there will be beauty in the character.

If there is beauty in the character,

there will be harmony in the home.

If there is harmony in the home,

there will be order in the nation.

If there is order in the nation,

there will be peace in the world. So let it be.  Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Ann Carr, a contemporary professor of theology.

What if one were to envision God as friend rather than father or mother? What if God is friend to humanity as a whole, and even more intimately, friend to the individual, to me? A friend whose presence is joy, ever-deepening relationship and love, ever available in direct address, in communion and presence? A friend whose person is fundamentally a mystery, inexhaustible, never fully known, always surprising? Yet a friend, familiar, comforting, at home with us: a friend who urges our freedom and autonomy in decision, yet who is present in the community of interdependence and in fact creates it? A friend who widens our perspectives daily and who deepens our passion for freedom—our own and that of others? What if? Jesus’ relationship to his disciples was that kind of friendship, chosen friends; he was rather critical of family ties. His friendship transformed their lives—both women and men—expanded their horizons; his Spirit pressed them forward. Can we pray to the God of Jesus, through the Spirit, as friends?

PRAYER:

Written by Blair Monie (1948-2018), an American Presbyterian minister and professor of theology.

May the Living Lord go with you;

May he go behind you, to encourage you,

beside you, to befriend you,

above you, to watch over you,

beneath you, to lift you from your sorrows,

within you, to give you the gifts of faith, hope, and love,

and always before you, to show you the way. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Craig Denison, a contemporary author and publisher of First15, a daily devotional.

Relationships are one of the parts of life that can most rob us of our peace in the Holy Spirit. Our lives are all in some way impacted by one another. If I am counting on someone and they don’t come through, it can profoundly impact my circumstances. If I truly love someone and they wound, neglect, or reject me, it can undoubtedly hinder my ability to enjoy the peace of God. But God offers us peace in the midst of all circumstances. The pathway to peace with others begins with choosing to die to yourself. We are completely unable to control anyone. Each person has a will and the power to love us or reject us. Even believers will consistently fail you. If the people of God could stand in the presence of God incarnate and shout, “Crucify him,” you can know others will reject you. But when you choose to continually humble yourself before others and serve, you will be filled with the “peace of Christ.”   When we choose to put on “compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” regardless of the actions of others, we position ourselves to continually bear the fruit of peace. We find our greatest example of this in the person of Jesus. Just as he could ask forgiveness from his heavenly Father by saying, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” as the soldiers who nailed him to the cross gambled for his clothing, you will have a supernatural peace when you choose to live selflessly in love. The Holy Spirit will fill you with peace in your relationships when you choose to live like Jesus. Take time today to put on a “compassionate [heart], kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.” Choose to die to yourself and live for Christ. And watch as the Holy Spirit anoints you with the fruit of peace and love to live like Jesus did. May your relationships be filled with patience today as you live in obedience to the word of your loving heavenly Father.

PRAYER:

This prayer is an ancient collect from the 6^th century.

May our Lord  Jesus Christ

be near you to defend you,

within you to refresh you,

around you to preserve you,

before you to guide you,

behind you to justify you,

above you to bless you;

who lives and reigns

with the Father and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Sheri Rose Shepherd, a contemporary Christian author, speaker, and humorist.

I believe if The Lord was going to write you a personal letter about battles this life brings it may read like this….

My Child, the enemy of your soul wants to divide you against members of your own family. If you’re not careful, you will end up falling prey to his plan of attack and wound loved ones. Even if you win the argument, you will lose if you’re not fighting for the good of the relationship. Before you engage or entangle yourself in a war you cannot win with words, stop and call out to Me. When you feel anger welling up inside, remember that love is your greatest weapon in any conflict. Because your flesh will fail, you will need to be controlled by the power of My Holy Spirit. Remember you are a family–My family. You are on the same team and fighting the same enemy. So, fight by doing what is right in my sight, and you will win.  Love, your Heavenly Father

It’s not who you’re fighting with, it’s what you’re fighting for that matters.

PRAYER:

Written by Rachel Wojnarowski, a contemporary author, speaker, and writer.

Dear Father, When I look up to you in this moment,
I feel like I can only see stars. My angry heart is frustrated and I can’t understand the situation. In a world where things are messy and hurtful, today’s circumstance just makes me angry and I find myself asking “Why?” Help me, Lord. I need you. I need the reminder that I am not the one in control, and although others may seem out of control, You are always in control. I need the reminder that while my heart is fighting a battle, though others may intend to do evil, You make everything good. May your glorious grace flood my heart to wash away the madness. May your redeeming love replace my anger, flowing through me as a light on a hill, shining brightly for you. Again. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Eugene H. Peterson (1932-2018), an American Presbyterian minister, scholar, theologian, author, and poet.  He is known for his translation of the Bible called “The Message.”  This is an excerpt from his book “Earth and Altar.”

We can no more have a private prayer than we can have a private language. A private language is impossible. Every word spoken carries with it a long history of development in complex communities of experience. All speech is relational, making a community of speakers and listeners. So too is prayer. Prayer is language used in the vast contextual awareness that God speaks and listens. We are involved, whether we will it or not, in a community of the Word—spoken or read, understood and obeyed (or misunderstood and disobeyed). We can do this in solitude, but we cannot do it in private. It involves an Other and others. The self is only itself, healthy and whole, when it is in relationship, and that relationship is always dual, with God and with other human beings. Relationship implies mutuality, give and take, listening and responding.

PRAYER:

Written by Teresa of Avila (1515-1582), a Spanish Carmelite nun, reformer, theologian and author.

Let nothing disturb you.

Let nothing frighten you.

All things are changing.

God alone is changeless.

Patience attains the good.

God alone fills all our needs.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Gustavo Gutierrez, a contemporary Peruvian philosopher, theologian and Dominican priest.  This is an excerpt from his book “We Drink From Our Own Wells.”

The initial encounter with the Lord is the starting point of a following or discipleship.  The journeying that ensues is what Paul calls “walking according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:4). It is also what we today speak of as a spirituality. The term “spirituality” is a relatively recent one in the history of the church. It came into use around the beginning of the seventeenth century in French religious circles at a time that saw a wealth of contributions and works on the subject. Everything that had to do with Christian perfection fell under the heading of spiritual life, whereas reflection of the subject yielded to spiritual theology.  Every great spirituality is connected with the great historical movement of the age in which it was formulated. This linkage is not to be understood in the sense of mechanical dependence, but the following of Jesus is something that penetrates deeply into the course of human history.

PRAYER:

Written by Kevin Halloran, a contemporary pastor who is working with the Unlocking the Bible ministry.

Lord, I long to walk by Your Spirit, continually communing with You in the Triune community of love that I can access by the blood of Your Son. I long to know You more and be used by You to minister the gospel to a world that desperately needs You.

Make my thoughts, words, attitudes, and actions testify beautifully that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in me. May Your truth mightily flow from my lips for the encouragement of the discouraged, the edification of Your body, and the evangelization of the lost. May the way I live, lead, and love make Your grace obvious, praised, and greatly treasured. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Hans Urs von Balthasar (1905-1999), a Swiss theologian and Catholic priest. This is from his book “Prayer.”

We contemplate Christ, his world, his truth, in order to encounter God and “see” him. We do this with the eyes of faith, but they are genuine, objective eyes; and they are the eyes of our mind and senses, but they have been enlightened interiorly by the Holy Spirit dwelling in us. We have already spoken of this illumination. Now we are concerned with the object of our contemplation: God. Everything else, creation, humanity, salvation history, is considered within the context of God in order that we may find him there. But this finding is to be a spiritual and personal encounter in which, by faith, we become aware of the “life” which God gives to the believer objectively in the form of grace, i.e., in the form of a participation in the divine nature, with its triune exchange of life and love. 

PRAYER:

Written by Margaret Grun Kibben, contemporary Chaplain to the US House of Representatives and former Chief of Chaplains for the US Navy

We pray Your kindness to fall upon us, O Lord, that the work of our hands would have effect and that our well–intended actions serve Your ultimate purpose. May we in all that we encounter this day and all days, have the faith to proclaim, “the grass withers and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God endures forever.”

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MEDITATION:

Written by Ken Shigematsu, a contemporary pastor and author. This is an excerpt from his book “God in my Everything.”

As Celtic monks drew close to God in the sixth century, they intentionally built their monasteries close to the “world” – near settlements, on well-known hilltops, or on islands by established sea lanes – so they could reach out to people with the hospitality of Christ. The monasteries not only provided a place of prayer but also served as hotels, emergency shelters, hospitals, libraries, universities, centers for the arts, and mission-sending bases. Although our values will differ from those of mainstream society as we are guided by the Spirit we will not withdraw from the world or disconnect from people who don’t know the living God. Just as Christ was sent by his Father into the world, when we are in Christ and Christ is in us, we will seek to obey him by being “in the world, but not of the world.”

An important first step in becoming people who share the gospel is to pray for people around us who don’t know Christ and to trust God to work in their lives. As we turn to God in prayer, we are reminded that God is preeminent in all of this, preparing people’s hearts to receive him. Communicating Christ is not primarily about our competencies; it is something the Holy Spirit does through us.

PRAYER:

Written by Rev. Charles Lewis Slattery (1867-1930), Bishop of Massachusetts in the Episcopal Church.

Almighty God, thank you for the job of this day.

May we find gladness in all its toil and difficulty,

its pleasure and success,

and even in its failure and sorrow.

We would look always away from ourselves,

and behold the glory and the need of the world

that we may have the will and the strength to bring

the gift of gladness to others;

that with them we stand to bear

the burden and heat of the day

and offer you the praise of work well done.

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