Good Evening Dear family of Love and God!
Happy Last Sunday after the Epiphany! Wow we began with Jesus being visited by the Magi as the Manifestation to the Gentiles and today we see Jesus' true nature and being manifested to Peter, James, and John on the mountaintop. There were quite a number of mountain top experiences in today's lessons from Moses on Mount Sinai to Jesus on the Mount of the Transfiguration. These mountain top experiences always follow with times where we will be going on a journey into unknown territory for a particular reason. The season of Lent is just like that we begin today coming down from the mountain top and then going into a kind of pilgrimage that will lead us to Jerusalem, the Last Supper, The Cross and Resurrection. A few weeks ago I mentioned that we are to get ready for Lent by deciding what to pickup and what to lay down. Have you decided what this might look like? If you haven't no worries. On Ash Wednesday we will begin a Season of Psalmody where we will spend 40 days and 40 nights meditating upon the psalms using the Psalms for evening and an extra set for the morning the next day. We will have our vigils and prayers as usual. Tonight let's review our Lenten readiness guide:
Those of us in faith communities celebrated our final Sunday in the Epiphany season. We are officially counting down to our 40 day dial in with God, each other, our enemies, and ourselves! People Lent isn't just about giving up it is about taking on and refocusing our lives and journey with Jesus. This year I would like everyone to think of this period as a time where there can be little epiphanies each day that we dial in with God. I would like us to journal our Lenten journey. Start each week with these themes:
Week 1: Taking on and laying down.
Week 2: Taking time by serving the least of these by taking on________________?
Week 3: Challenging ourselves to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us. How can we be of help to them.
Week 4: Putting that Love your neighbor thing into practice! Can you name your next door neighbor's names.
Week 5 Journeying With Jesus during Holy Week and beyond.
Tonight we should be getting ourselves ready for this spiritual adventure by spending time in quiet contemplation. Tonight we will feature the lessons from today and the Feast day of Emily Malbone Morgan. Here is her biography and a link to the Manual of the of the Society of the Companions Holy Cross:
Biography of Emily Malbone Morgan
MANUAL OF THE SOCIETY OF THE COMPANIONS OF THE HOLY CROSS
Tomorrow: Buy your journal and a blank calendar page that we will be turning into a kind of Lenten Advent Calendar. You will get a series of words for the week to place in the squares on Sundays. Each of those words will be our meditation words for the week.
Shrove Tuesday : Clean out the cobwebs in our spiritual selves and get it ready for Ash Wednesday. This is the annual Carbo Load before we take on tight control of the carbs in our lives.
Ash Wednesday: Let's begin with worship and the reminder "Remember that you are Dust and to Dust you shall return" a good time to remember and honor our mortality and if you haven't updated your advanced directives and end of life decisions it would be a good time to do so. Beginning on Ash Wednesday we start our 40 days of Psalmody with the Featured daily prayers from Forward Movement's A season of prayer : 40 days in the Desert.
That's just for starters there is more to come!
Let's engage in our "Be Stills"
Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know.
Be still.
Be.
Slowly inhale.
Hold.
Slowly exhale
Pause. Count to 10.
Repeat 4 times!
Now sit quietly and reflect up the day past and enjoy your visit with God. Open wide your heart homes and feel God filling you up with Love Energy.
Dear Ones, it is time to turn to our nightly Virtual Candlelight and Prayer Vigils. Let us light our candles and be at prayer. Tonight we pray for all those who are suffering anxieties and worries. We pray for those who are living with chronic illnesses and pain. We pray for safety, peace, and love in our world. May we ever be mindful of the least of these. May we pray that we may remember this " Be Still and Know that I am God" and keep being CALM (Compassionate, Accepting, Loving, and Merciful)
From the rising of the sun to its going down, *
let the Name of the Lord be praised.
From the rising of the sun to its going down,
let the Name of the Lord be praised.
From this time forth for evermore:
Let the Name of the Lord be praised.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
From the rising of the sun to its going down,
let the Name of the Lord be praised.
V. The sun knows the time of its setting:
R. You make darkness that it may be night
Psalm 134 Ecce nunc
Behold now, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, *
you that stand by night in the house of the LORD.
Lift up your hands in the holy place and bless the LORD; *
the LORD who made heaven and earth bless you out of Zion.
Psalm 119:137–144
Justus es, Domine
137 You are righteous, O LORD, *
and upright are your judgments.
138 You have issued your decrees *
with justice and in perfect faithfulness.
139 My indignation has consumed me, *
because my enemies forget your words.
140 Your word has been tested to the uttermost, *
and your servant holds it dear.
141 I am small and of little account, *
yet I do not forget your commandments.
142 Your justice is an everlasting justice *
and your law is the truth.
143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, *
yet your commandments are my delight.
144 The righteousness of your decrees is everlasting; *
grant me understanding, that I may live.
Psalm 2
Quare fremuerunt gentes?
1 Why are the nations in an uproar? *
Why do the peoples mutter empty threats?
2 Why do the kings of the earth rise up in revolt,
and the princes plot together, *
against the Lord and against his Anointed?
3 "Let us break their yoke," they say; *
"let us cast off their bonds from us."
4 He whose throne is in heaven is laughing; *
the Lord has them in derision.
5 Then he speaks to them in his wrath, *
and his rage fills them with terror.
6 "I myself have set my king *
upon my holy hill of Zion."
7 Let me announce the decree of the Lord: *
he said to me, "You are my Son;
this day have I begotten you.
8 Ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance *
and the ends of the earth for your possession.
9 You shall crush them with an iron rod *
and shatter them like a piece of pottery."
10 And now, you kings, be wise; *
be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11 Submit to the Lord with fear, *
and with trembling bow before him;
12 Lest he be angry and you perish; *
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
13 Happy are they all *
who take refuge in him!
Psalm 99
Dominus regnavit
1 The Lord is King;
let the people tremble; *
he is enthroned upon the cherubim;
let the earth shake.
2 The Lord is great in Zion; *
he is high above all peoples.
3 Let them confess his Name, which is great and awesome; *
he is the Holy One.
4 "O mighty King, lover of justice,
you have established equity; *
you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob."
5 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God
and fall down before his footstool; *
he is the Holy One.
6 Moses and Aaron among his priests,
and Samuel among those who call upon his Name, *
they called upon the Lord, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud; *
they kept his testimonies and the decree that he gave them.
8 O Lord our God, you answered them indeed; *
you were a God who forgave them,
yet punished them for their evil deeds.
9 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God
and worship him upon his holy hill; *
for the Lord our God is the Holy One.
Exodus 1:15–21
The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, “When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live.” But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live. So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this, and allowed the boys to live?” The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” So God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.
Canticle 15
The Song of Mary Magnificat
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in you, O God my Savior, *
for you have looked with favor on your lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
you, the Almighty, have done great things for me,
and holy is your name.
You have mercy on those who fear you *
from generation to generation.
You have shown strength with your arm *
and scattered the proud in their conceit,
Casting down the mighty from their thrones *
and lifting up the lowly.
You have filled the hungry with good things *
and sent the rich away empty.
You have come to the help of your servant Israel, *
for you have remembered your promise of mercy,
The promise made to our forebears, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Exodus 24:12-18
The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there; and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God. To the elders he had said, “Wait here for us, until we come to you again; for Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a dispute may go to them.”
Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.
Canticle M
A Song of Faith
1 Peter 1:3-4,18-21
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, *
by divine mercy we have a new birth into a living hope;
Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, *
we have an inheritance that is imperishable in heaven.
The ransom that was paid to free us *
was not paid in silver or gold,
But in the precious blood of Christ, *
the Lamb without spot or stain.
God raised Jesus from the dead and gave him glory *
so that we might have faith and hope in God
Romans 16:1–6
I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church at Cenchreae, so that you may welcome her in the Lord as is fitting for the saints, and help her in whatever she may require from you, for she has been a benefactor of many and of myself as well.
Greet Prisca and Aquila, who work with me in Christ Jesus, and who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert in Asia for Christ. Greet Mary, who has worked very hard among you.
2 Peter 1:16-21
We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.
So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, because no prophecy ever came by human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.
Canticle Q
A Song of Christ’s Goodness
Anselm of Canterbury
Jesus, as a mother you gather your people to you; *
you are gentle with us as a mother with her children.
Often you weep over our sins and our pride, *
tenderly you draw us from hatred and judgment.
You comfort us in sorrow and bind up our wounds, *
in sickness you nurse us and with pure milk you feed us.
Jesus, by your dying, we are born to new life; *
by your anguish and labor we come forth in joy.
Despair turns to hope through your sweet goodness; *
through your gentleness, we find comfort in fear.
Your warmth gives life to the dead, *
your touch makes sinners righteous.
Lord Jesus, in your mercy, heal us; *
in your love and tenderness, remake us.
In your compassion, bring grace and forgiveness, *
for the beauty of heaven, may your love prepare us.
Luke 10:38–42
As they went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”
Matthew 17:1-9
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
Prayers for today
O God, who before the passion of your only begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Gracious God, we give thanks for the life and witness of Emily Malbone Morgan, who gathered women to devote themselves to intercession, social justice, Christian unity, and simple lives: Make us, with her, companions in prayer and in faithful living, dedicated to the Holy Cross of our Savior, Jesus Christ; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Listen to these pieces of music if you'd like: Phillip Aaberg - Out of the Frame or Taize Mix
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God who loves and protects us ,from harm we pray for all who are victims of domestic violence and abuse that they may be relieved of all suffering and trauma and that they may find safe shelters away form their abusers.
God who loves us, may we never seek to be judge and jury of others with whom we differ and let go and let you be God.
God who loves us, we pray for all who are ill in body, mind and spirit we pray that they may be healed.
God who loves us, we pray for peace in this world. May we with you shower all of our family members with love and blessings and yes, God we know that this means our enemies and those who hate us and wish us harm.
God who loves us, we pray for all faiths where extremism has hijacked the true tenets of their beliefs for their own gain and violent intentions. God help all of us take back our faiths and practice what you modeled for us in the loving name of Jesus .
God who loves us, we pray for all who have died remembering especially and we remember all who mourn their loss.
God who loves us, let us lay down our burdens tonight and prepare for You Matter Monday tomorrow. God help us to place our worries, anxieties, fears, and anything else that separates us from you in our Worry/ Sabbath box so that we may be completely focused on you!
God who loves us, we lift up our additional prayers and thanksgivings in the Name of your Son Jesus. Amen.
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Today's wish is that you all may be showered with blessings and love this day!
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Prayers for tomorrow:
God we pray that we never take time for granted and treat each minute of the day as sacred.
God we pray for our family members who are stressed out with worry may we step up and love and help them in any way that we can.
God we pray for peace in the world that we may take time to pray and give voice for the voiceless who are afraid to speak for themselves in these violent and war torn areas of the world.
God we pray for sound education that is fair and for those who teach and those who learn. May their course work be unbiased and truthful.
God we pray for sound government where division may cease and that every one may seek to serve all humanity for the good of all.
God we pray for all who are ill may they receive your healing balm and that we may rise to help them.
God we pray for all who have lost pets and loved ones that they may mourn with confidence and know that they are loved beyond all measure.
God we pray for all who are artists may we appreciate their God given talents and as we gaze at the painting or photo, listen to the sound of voice or orchestra. May we see your touch and inspiration O, God.
God we pray for all who are in need and especially for the least of these. May we rise to be their family members and their keepers.
God we pray that no one is to be ignored and be treated as invisible. May we love everyone with courage and strong hearts and open heart homes.
God we lift up these our prayers in the Name of Jesus. Amen.
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Today's wish is that we all take time to rest, relax, and renew our bodies, minds, and spirits! Be refreshed in Love, Joy, Hope, and Peace!
Holy incarnate Word,
Holy abiding Spirit,
Bless us for evermore. Amen
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Good Night Dear Ones! I love you hope that you will have a restful and peaceful sleep. Thank you for being you.
Love, hope, and peace,
Sara
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