We are pilgrims each and every one of us! Our feet, souls, and hearts and God tell us this!

Good Evening Beloved Pilgrims on our Journey!

Happy Wisdom Wednesday! Today I spent another wonderful day at the Faith Factory a.k.a. St. Peter's Episcopal Church in beautiful Santa Maria, California! Some days God calls us to be on deck more than just sporadically and today was one of them. The ministerial hats that I wear are varied! Would you like a list ? Okay, here it is ! Today: I was Altar Guild member, Lector, Acolyte, Lay Eucharistic Minister, Prayer team member, Lay Eucharistic Visitor, Office volunteer, and Martha's Meals lunch distributor at the window! Yes, that does seem quite a bit but they all roll into one another like ripples in a pond. I feel energized. if you wonder why I'm writing early tonight it is because we didn't have our Community Circle tonight and will pick it up next week. When I walked home I did get in a short nap and then started to write to you and get us ready for tonight's worship. I am feeling really good! I have been walking every day for 5 months and I feel fantastic as do my feet. We are blessed with the way God recalculates our energy balance. I never thought I would be able to feel energized again writing this blog but I do. I love you all. So dear ones let us see what we have in store by reading complete passages of scripture and learn about John Bunyan of Pilgrim's Progress, fame. Here is his biography from Satucket Lectionary Page: John Bunyan




Let us begin with these quotes from John Bunyan to set the tone!

"Who would true valour see,
Let him come hither;
One here will constant be,
Come wind, come weather
There’s no discouragement
Shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent
To be a pilgrim." - John Bunyan

"Run when I can, walk when I cannot run, and creep when I cannot walk." - John Bunyan

"The spirit of prayer is more precious than treasures of gold and silver." - John Bunyan

"In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart." - John Bunyan

"You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you." - John Bunyan

"No man, without trials and temptations, can attain a true understanding of the Holy Scriptures." - John Bunyan

"His love is what makes us live, love, sing, and praise forever." - John Bunyan

"You have chosen the roughest road, but it leads straight to the hilltops." - John Bunyan

"In times of affliction we commonly meet with the sweetest experiences of the love of God." - John Bunyan

"Be of good cheer, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole." - John Bunyan


Our lives are long enough to learn what we need to learn, but not long enough to change anything. That is our flaw. Each age must learn everything afresh. Such waste!
Such waste – making all the mistakes once and again, each generation making the same mistakes, fumbling in ignorance and darkness.
This oak was already old when I was born.
Now I am old and soon to die, and this tree grows strong still.
We are small creatures.
Our lives are not long,
but long enough to learn.

Stephen Lawhead


Light of the World Phos hilaron

Light of the world, in grace and beauty,
Mirror of God’s eternal face,
Transparent flame of love’s free duty,
You bring salvation to our race.
Now, as we see the lights of evening,
We raise our voice in hymns of praise;
Worthy are you of endless blessing,
Sun of our night, lamp of our days

A Smudging Prayer

 Creator, our Father in heaven, we come to you as your children. We confess that we are weak and broken images of you. We pray for the forgiveness and healing you give in Jesus Christ. May his Spirit clean our spirits, minds, hearts, and bodies. We pray that your Holy Spirit will help us to worship in spirit and truth. We pray in the name of Jesus, so that his Spirit will carry our prayers to you. Amen.

In Lak 'Ech

Tú eres mi otro yo.

You are my other me.

Si te hago daño a ti,

If I do harm to you,

Me hago daño a mi mismo.

I do harm to myself.

Si te amo y respeto,

If I love and respect you,

Me amo y respeto yo.

I love and respect myself.

Luis Valdez

God we pray that we may be wholly yours and that we may hallow this time of vigil by the lighting of a single candle in unity with you, each other, ourselves, and the world that you lovingly created.
God we pray that we may get back to the basics and love you and each other as you have commanded us to do. God help us we pray to return to being the holy family you breathed in us to be. Help us this day to learn what it means to speak words, sentences, and phrases sensitively without hatred or slander. God turn our anger into loving words and deeds in service to your children who are our family members. Light up our hearts and spirits with empowering love energy that we may go forth and spread the good news of the Gospel that Jesus keeps telling us to do and follow. Help us we pray that as we follow Jesus we may not lie fallow, that the words and deeds we hallow may not ring hollow, and that we my be holy not holey. Transform us this day into your Soular* powered people and that we may bring to this world loving and comforting solace and Soulace*!The Love of God in me see the Love of God in you! Amen. 

*Soulace is my created word for calming of our souls.
*Soular is  my created word meaning that our souls are empowered by the spirit and love energy called Soular power!


Tonight we read and meditate upon the lessons in full with the lectionary texts in bold print. Let's see what we are missing! 

49 Audite hæc, omnes

1 Hear this, all you peoples;
hearken, all you who dwell in the world, *
you of high degree and low, rich and poor together.

2 My mouth shall speak of wisdom, *
and my heart shall meditate on understanding.

3 I will incline my ear to a proverb *
and set forth my riddle upon the harp.

4 Why should I be afraid in evil days, *
when the wickedness of those at my heels surrounds me,

5 The wickedness of those who put their trust in their goods, *
and boast of their great riches?

6 We can never ransom ourselves, *
or deliver to God the price of our life;

7 For the ransom of our life is so great, *
that we should never have enough to pay it,

8 In order to live for ever and ever, *
and never see the grave.

9 For we see that the wise die also;
like the dull and stupid they perish *
and leave their wealth to those who come after them.
10 Their graves shall be their homes for ever,
their dwelling places from generation to generation, *
though they call the lands after their own names.

11 Even though honored, they cannot live for ever; *
they are like the beasts that perish.

12 Such is the way of those who foolishly trust in themselves, *
and the end of those who delight in their own words.

13 Like a flock of sheep they are destined to die;
Death is their shepherd; *
they go down straightway to the grave.

14 Their form shall waste away, *
and the land of the dead shall be their home.

15 But God will ransom my life; *
he will snatch me from the grasp of death.

16 Do not be envious when some become rich, *
or when the grandeur of their house increases;

17 For they will carry nothing away at their death, *
nor will their grandeur follow them.

18 Though they thought highly of themselves while they lived, *
and were praised for their success,

19 They shall join the company of their forebears, *
who will never see the light again.

20 Those who are honored, but have no understanding, *
are like the beasts that perish.

"It is the poor man who clenches so tightly to the gold he is given - for fear of losing it. The man of wealth spends his gold freely to accomplish his will in the world. It is the same with life.' Suddenly ashamed of my conspicuous poverty, I lowered my eyes. But Scatha placed a hand beneath my chin and raised my head. 'Cling too tightly to your life and you will lose it, my Reluctant Warrior. You must become the master of your life, not its slave." - Stephen R. Lawhead


Job 33:14-19,26-28

Job 33:1- 28

Elihu Rebukes Job

33‘But now, hear my speech, O Job,
   and listen to all my words. 
² See, I open my mouth;
   the tongue in my mouth speaks. 
³ My words declare the uprightness of my heart,
   and what my lips know they speak sincerely. 
⁴ The spirit of God has made me,
   and the breath of the Almighty^* gives me life. 
⁵ Answer me, if you can;
   set your words in order before me; take your stand. 
⁶ See, before God I am as you are;
   I too was formed from a piece of clay. 
⁷ No fear of me need terrify you;
   my pressure will not be heavy on you. 

⁸ ‘Surely, you have spoken in my hearing,
   and I have heard the sound of your words. 
⁹ You say, “I am clean, without transgression;
   I am pure, and there is no iniquity in me. 
¹⁰ Look, he finds occasions against me,
   he counts me as his enemy; 
¹¹ he puts my feet in the stocks,
   and watches all my paths.” 

¹² ‘But in this you are not right. I will answer you:
   God is greater than any mortal. 
¹³ Why do you contend against him,
   saying, “He will answer none of my^* words”? 
¹⁴ For God speaks in one way,
   and in two, though people do not perceive it. 
¹⁵ In a dream, in a vision of the night,
   when deep sleep falls on mortals,
   while they slumber on their beds, 
¹⁶ then he opens their ears,
   and terrifies them with warnings, 
¹⁷ that he may turn them aside from their deeds,
   and keep them from pride, 
¹⁸ to spare their souls from the Pit,
   their lives from traversing the River. 
¹⁹ They are also chastened with pain upon their beds,
   and with continual strife in their bones, 
²⁰ so that their lives loathe bread,
   and their appetites dainty food. 
²¹ Their flesh is so wasted away that it cannot be seen;
   and their bones, once invisible, now stick out. 
²² Their souls draw near the Pit,
   and their lives to those who bring death. 
²³ Then, if there should be for one of them an angel,
   a mediator, one of a thousand,
   one who declares a person upright, 
²⁴ and he is gracious to that person, and says,
   “Deliver him from going down into the Pit;
   I have found a ransom; 
²⁵ let his flesh become fresh with youth;
   let him return to the days of his youthful vigour”; 
²⁶ then he prays to God, and is accepted by him,
   he comes into his presence with joy,
and God^* repays him for his righteousness. 
²⁷   That person sings to others and says,
“I sinned, and perverted what was right,
   and it was not paid back to me. 
²⁸ He has redeemed my soul from going down to the Pit,
   and my life shall see the light.” 

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"The path is revealed in the treading." - Stephen R. Lawhead

The Song of Hannah

1 Samuel 2:1-8

My heart exults in you, O God; *

my triumph song is lifted in you.

My mouth derides my enemies, *

for I rejoice in your salvation.

There is none holy like you, *

nor any rock to be compared to you, our God.

Do not heap up prideful words or speak in arrogance; *

Only God is knowing and weighs all actions.

The bows of the mighty are broken, *

but the weak are clothed in strength.

Those once full now labor for bread, *

those who hungered now are well fed.

The childless woman has borne sevenfold, *

while the mother of many is forlorn.

God destroys and brings to life, casts down and raises up; *

gives wealth or takes it away, humbles and dignifies.

God raises the poor from the dust; *

and lifts the needy from the ash heap

To make them sit with the rulers *

and inherit a place of honor.

For the pillars of the earth are God’s *

on which the whole earth is founded

Hebrews 4: 1-15

Hebrews 4:12-15

4Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest is still open, let us take care that none of you should seem to have failed to reach it. ²For indeed the good news came to us just as to them; but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.^* 3For we who have believed enter that rest, just as God^* has said,
‘As in my anger I swore,
“They shall not enter my rest” ’,
though his works were finished at the foundation of the world. ⁴For in one place it speaks about the seventh day as follows: ‘And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.’ ⁵And again in this place it says, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’ ⁶Since therefore it remains open for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, ⁷again he sets a certain day—‘today’—saying through David much later, in the words already quoted,
‘Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.’ 
⁸For if Joshua had given them rest, God^* would not speak later about another day. ⁹So then, a sabbath rest still remains for the people of God;¹⁰for those who enter God’s rest also cease from their labours as God did from his. ¹¹Let us therefore make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fall through such disobedience as theirs.

12 Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. ¹³And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account. 

14 Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. ¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested^* as we are, yet without sin.

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A Song of Christ’s Humility

Philippians 2:6-11

Though in the form of God, *

Christ Jesus did not cling to equality with God,

But emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, *

and was born in human likeness.

Being found in human form, he humbled himself *

and became obedient to death, even death on a cross.

Therefore, God has highly exalted him *

and given him the name above every name,

That at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, *

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, *

to the glory of God the Father.

"We are closest to Christ when sharing the world’s misery. Think you Jesus came to remove our pains? Wherever did you get that notion? The Lord came, not to remove our suffering, but to show us the way through it to the glory beyond. We can overcome our travails. That is the promise of the cross." - Stephen R. Lawhead

Matthew 7: 1-14

7‘Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. ²For with the judgement you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. ³Why do you see the speck in your neighbour’s^* eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? ⁴Or how can you say to your neighbour,^* “Let me take the speck out of your eye”, while the log is in your own eye? ⁵You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbour’s^* eye.

6 ‘Do not give what is holy to dogs; and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under foot and turn and maul you.

7 ‘Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. ⁸For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. ⁹Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? ¹⁰Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? ¹¹If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

12 ‘In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.

13 ‘Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy^* that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. ¹⁴For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

15 ‘Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. ¹⁶You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.¹⁹Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰Thus you will know them by their fruits.

21 ‘Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord”, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only one who does the will of my Father in heaven. ²²On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?” ²³Then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.”

24 ‘Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. ²⁵The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. ²⁶And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!’

28 Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, ²⁹for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.

A Song of Pilgrimage Priusquam errarem

Ecclesiasticus 51:13-16,20b-22

Before I ventured forth,

even while I was very young, *

I sought wisdom openly in my prayer.

In the forecourts of the temple I asked for her, *

and I will seek her to the end.

From first blossom to early fruit, *

she has been the delight of my heart.

My foot has kept firmly to the true path, *

diligently from my youth have I pursued her.

I inclined my ear a little and received her; *

I found for myself much wisdom and became adept in her.

To the one who gives me wisdom will I give glory, *

for I have resolved to live according to her way.

From the beginning I gained courage from her, *

therefore I will not be forsaken.

In my inmost being I have been stirred to seek her, *

therefore have I gained a good possession.

As my reward the Almighty has given me the gift of language,*

and with it will I offer praise to God.

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More quotes to meditate upon - Influenced by the Northumbria Community

"And he who is forever talking about enemies / Is himself the enemy!" - Christopher Logue

"If thou wouldst seek justice, thyself must be just." - Stephen R. Lawhead

As the tamed horse

still hears the call of her wild brothers

and as the farmed goose flaps hopeful wings

as his sisters fly overhead,

so too, perhaps,

the wild ones amongst us

are our only hope in calling us back

to our true nature.

Wild ones

who have not been turned to stone

by the far-reaching grasp of the empire

and its programme of consumer sedation,

the killing of imagination.

Where, my friends,

have the wild ones gone?

Joel McKerrow

‘Come to the edge’,

He said. They said,

‘we are afraid’.

‘Come to the edge’,

He said. They came.

He pushed them, and

they flew.

Christopher Logue

God of peace, you called John Bunyan to be valiant for truth: Grant that we, having endured as strangers and pilgrims on this earth, may at last rejoice with all the faithful in your heavenly city; through Jesus Christ our Savior, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

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.

Hymn

God be in my head, and in my understanding;

God be in my eyes, and in my looking;

God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;

God be in my heart, and in my thinking;

God be at my end, and at my departing.

The Lord’s Prayer or the alternative is said. (ANZPB)

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins

as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial

and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours

now and for ever.    Amen.

Eternal Spirit, 

Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver, 

Source of all that is and that shall be, 

Father and Mother of us all, 

Loving God, in whom is heaven:

The hallowing of your name echo through the universe! 

The way of your justice be followed by the peoples

of the world! 

Your heavenly will be done by all created beings! 

Your commonwealth of peace and freedom 

sustain our hope and come on earth.

With the bread we need for today, feed us. 

In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us. 

In times of temptation and test, strengthen us. 

From trials too great to endure, spare us. 

From the grip of all that is evil, free us.

For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, 

now and for ever. Amen.

Lord, 
it is night.

The night is for stillness. 
Let us be still in the presence of God.

It is night after a long day. 
What has been done has been done; 
what has not been done has not been done; 
let it be.

The night is dark. 
Let our fears of the darkness of the world and of our own lives 
rest in you. 

The night is quiet. 
Let the quietness of your peace enfold us, 
all dear to us, 
and all who have no peace.

The night heralds the dawn. 
Let us look expectantly to a new day, 
new joys, 
new possibilities.

In your name we pray.
Amen.

(ANZPB)

Let us imagine- A guided meditation that transforms into prayers 

Now let us begin our virtual transformation into the least of these and those affected by wildfires, hurricanes, flooding, life's challenges and struggles.

Let us imagine that we are wearing raggedy clothing and cannot look at another person in the eye.

Let us imagine that we are having to find places where food is distributed.

Let us imagine having to live as a transient and be cited for illegal camping.

Let us imagine being denied help just because we have a visible drug addiction and mental illness and that the church you have selected to go to has a nervous volunteer who shoos you away.

Let us imagine that we are outcasts and that the government you rely on for help is distant and thinks that we are lazy.

Let us imagine that we are homeless LGBTQ  youth and persons who haven't a place to go because family members have disowned you.

Let us imagine that we have come to this country by any means necessary(illegally) in  order to find a better life and that all our money goes to pay off the coyote who brought you here is in reality a brutal human trafficker.

Let us imagine that we are invisible and cower in the dark corners of buildings who are afraid to seek help and dig in dumpsters for food and that because we have a mental illness cannot go to shelters.

Let us imagine that we haven't anywhere to lay our heads and we are experiencing severe weather.

Let us imagine being discriminated against because of our lack of knowing how to speak and read English.

Let us imagine that we do not have sufficient medical, dental, vision, and mental health care and have to resort to using ERs.

Let us imagine being urban refugees with families seeking food, clothing, and shelter.

Let us imagine if only .....

Let us pray our responses to the above.

God we pray for all who are seeking warm clothing and the courage to look family members in the eye.

God we pray that we may have courage to share from our abundance food and clothing. We give thanks for Food banks and clothing distribution centers.

God we pray for shelters to meet the needs of all people and that housing may be built for our homeless and housing insufficient family members. 

God we pray for all who are mentally ill and in need of assistance from our government and social service agencies.

God we pray that our churches may be responsive and educate our personnel how to treat and care for homeless and indigent people. May our churches be a place of sanctuary.

God we pray for safety for our LGBTQ youth and especially the many cultures where being LGBTQ isn't safe and we are shunned by living authentically.

God we pray for all who come to this country by any means necessary(illegally)  and that we may welcome the strangers and help them out of dangerous situations. May we have courage to love our neighbors and the strangers in our midst.

God we pray this night for all the invisible ones who are living like true outcasts and on the the extreme margins of society. 

God we pray for all who are lacking sufficient shelter due to severe weather and natural disaster.

God we pray for our family members who are urban refugees who live in cars and on the streets we remember our poor families who do not have access to food, clothing, and shelter. 

God we pray that we may imagine, pray, and then act by showing each of us compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy. 

God we pray for good medical care for our family members who lack insurance and are financially unable to pay for good care. We give thanks for Medicaid and social programs designed to help them. 

God give us the courage to stand up and fight against injustice, bigotry, hatred, terror, racism, inequality and all things that seek to divide your family.

God we lift up our own prayers _____________________

God we give thanks and lift up these our prayers and petitions in the name of Jesus who taught us to love, wander like a homeless hippie, and care for the least of these. Amen.

Tonight we light our single candle in loving memory and in conscious knowledge of all the marginalized. We pray for the living and the departed ones whose names we do not know but you know O, God Amen.

Diversity is what makes unity possible, especially with love in our hearts! #RespectTheDignityOfEveryHumanBeing!

Matthew 5:1-12New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

The Beatitudes

5 When Jesus[a] saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely[b] on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you

A Prayer attributed to St. Francis

Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is

hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where

there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where

there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where

there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to

be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is

in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we

are born to eternal life. Amen.

The Song of Simeon Nunc dimittis

Luke 2:29-32

Lord, you now have set your servant free *

to go in peace as you have promised;

For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *

whom you have prepared for all the world to see:

A Light to enlighten the nations, *

and the glory of your people Israel.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *

as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Christ Has No Body by Teresa of Avila

 Christ has no body but yours, No hands, no feet on earth but yours, Yours are the eyes with which he looks Compassion on this world, Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good, Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.

To God the Creator,
who loved us first and gave this world to be our home,
to God the Redeemer,
who loves us and by dying and rising
pioneered the way of freedom,
to God the Sanctifier,
who spreads the divine love in our hearts,
be praise and glory for time and for eternity.(ANZPB) 

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more

than we can ask or imagine: Glory to God from generation to

generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever.

Amen. Ephesians 3:20,21

Let us close with these two modern songs and their lyrics:

I am a Pilgrim -Aaron Neville

I am a pilgrim and a stranger
Traveling through this wearisome land
I've got a home built
In that yonder city, good Lord
And it's not, not made by hand

I got a mother
A sister and a father
Them gone on now, to the other shore
And I'm determined
To go and see them good Lord
And to live with them forever more

When I go down to the river of Jordan
Just to bathe my, my weary soul
If I can but touch
The hem of his garment good lord
Then I, I know you'll make me whole

And when he lay me down for the last time
With his hard hand restin' on my breast
I don't want none
Of that weeping and crying over me
Because you know that I've gone to rest

Yes, I'm a pilgrim and a stranger
Traveling through this, this wearisome land
I've got a home in that yonder city, good Lord
And it's not, not made by hand

Click on this link - I am a Pilgrim

The Servant Song - Lyrics

Will you let me be your servant

Let me be as Christ to you

Pray that I might have the grace

To let you be my servant too

We are pilgrims on the journey

We are travellers on the road

We are here to help each other

Walk the mile and bear the load

I will hold the Christ light for you

In the night time of your fear

I will hold my hand out to you

Speak the the peace you long to hear.

I will weep when you are weeping

When you laugh, I'll laugh with you

I will share your joy and sorrow

Till we've seen this journey through

Will you let me be your servant

Let me be as Christ to you

Pray that I might have the grace

To let you be my servant too

By David Haas

Servant Song

Walk With You - Della Reese

When you walk down the road

Heavy burden, heavy load

I will rise and I will walk with you

When you walk through the night

And you feel like you want to just give up, give up, give up on the fight

I will come and I will walk with you

Walk with you

Until the sun don't even shine

Walk with you

I'll be there all the time

I tell you I'll walk with you

See you through

When you walk from this place

And you gotta go to meet Him face to face

Take my hand and I will walk with you

Oh, oh walk with you

Till the clouds fade away

I tell you I 'll walk with you

Each and every day

Oh yes I'll walk with you

Oh, oh oh when nobody cares

I'll be right there by your side

If all your hope is lost

I'm the one that's gonna help you see the light

Just look into my eyes

Please know you're not alone

I'm here, I'm here by your side

 Walk with you

Walk with you

Walk with you

I'll be there all the time, I'm gonna walk with you

Walk with you

I'll be there until the clouds just fade away

Walk with you

I'll be there every day, every day, every day, every day

Walk with you

I'll be with you all the while

Walk with you

Be right there through the longest mile

Walk with you

I will walk with you yes I will, yes I will, yes I will, I will

Walk with you

I will walk with you

I tell you I'll be there and I will

Walk with you

Believe me I'll be there and I'll walk with you, yes I will

+++++

Good Night Beloved Ones Remember this always :We pilgrims each and every one of us! Our feet, souls, and hearts and God tell us this! May our lives and footsteps foster compassionate, accepting, loving, and merciful change through out our days into this fragile and broken word. 

Here is John Bunyan's famous hymn modern version.

He who would valiant be 'gainst all disaster
Let him in constancy follow the Master
There's no discouragement shall make him once relent
His first avowed intent to be a pilgrim

Who so beset him round with dismal stories
Do but themselves confound - his strength the more is
No foes shall stay his might; though he with giants fight
He will make good his right to be a pilgrim

Since, Lord, Thou dost defend us with Thy Spirit
We know we at the end, shall life inherit
Then fancies flee away! I'll fear not what men say
I'll labor night and day to be a pilgrim

The original text from Pilgrim’s Progress:

Who would true valour see,

Let him come hither;

One here will constant be,

Come wind, come weather

There’s no discouragement

Shall make him once relent

His first avowed intent

To be a pilgrim.

Whoso beset him round

With dismal stories

Do but themselves confound;

His strength the more is.

No lion can him fright,

He’ll with a giant fight,

He will have a right

To be a pilgrim.

Hobgoblin nor foul fiend

Can daunt his spirit,

He knows he at the end

Shall life inherit.

Then fancies fly away,

He’ll fear not what men say,

He’ll labor night and day

To be a pilgrim.

Have a blessed and restful night don't let the hobgoblins bite! 

With love and prayers,

Sara

Resources:

Metis Aboriginal Ministries

Walk With Me On Our Journey

Various Occasions NRSV

Book of Common Prayer

Enriching our Worship

New Zealand Prayer Book

Quote sites for The Beatitudes and Christ Has No Body