Happy New Year's Day! The day we start anew and pay it forward!

Good Evening Dear Family of Love!

Happy New Year's Day! See, I did remember the apostrophe! This is the day where we start anew for a whole new year. I encourage each and every one of us to not, I repeat not make any resolutions just yet but get a feel of what this new year feels and looks like. Pressuring ourselves only leads to disappointment. Are we going to have a them this year? You might be asking. Not just yet. I want to experience this new year first. I would like us to pay it forward this week in some kind of manner. Today, a kind person paid for my meal at Maya Mexican Restaurant. I was humbled and certainly surprised. So let us pay it forward in the name of Jesus and bless someone who cannot repay you. 
Let us begin with our first worship of the year together. Our lessons come from the Feast of the Holy Name or Circumcision of Our Lord. 


Let us ponder these quotes about paying it forward and generosity!

"Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire." ~ St. Catherine of Siena

"No one has ever become poor by giving." ~ Anne Frank

"It is important that we learn humility, which says there was someone else before me who paid for me. My responsibility is to prepare myself so that I can pay for someone else who is yet to come." ~ Maya Angelou

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

"Sometimes you can't pay it back, so you just have to pay it forward." ~ Randy Pausch

"Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity." ~ Simone Weil

"If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one." ~ Mother Teresa

"Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves." ~ James M. Barrie

"The greatest gift you ever give is your honest self." ~ Fred Rogers

"Just smiling at someone walking down the street can make the person's day. It's all about paying it forward." ~ Mariska Hargitay


"The poor are great! The poor are wonderful! The poor are very generous! They give us much more than what we give them." ~ Mother Teresa

"To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To you, respect." ~ Oren Arnold

"We thought: we're poor, we have nothing, but when we started losing one after the other so each day became remembrance day, we started composing poems about God's great generosity and our former riches." ~ Anna Akhmatova

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Stay with us, Christ, for it is evening.
 People Make your Church bright with your radiance.

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

We give you thanks, O God, we give you thanks, calling upon your Name and declaring all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 75:1

There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among us by which we must be saved.Acts 4:12

You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:21

God is Spirit, and those who worship must worship in spirit and in truth. John 4:24

Christ has shown forth his glory: O come let us worship.


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.

Anthem at the Candle Lighting: (BOS)
The Word was made flesh, * and dwelt among us.
The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.
He was with God in the beginning:
And dwelt among us.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.
V. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord:

R. God is the Lord; he has shined upon us.

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.

"I will light candles this Christmas, Candles of joy, despite all sadness, Candles of hope where despair keeps watch. Candles of courage where fear is ever present, Candles of peace for tempest-tossed days, Candles of grace to ease heavy burdens. Candles of love to inspire all my living, Candles that will burn all the year long." ~ Howard Thurman

We continue to hold sacred space for all who mourn and remember in this healing circle of love: We continue to remember and as in the African Proverb:
"IF YOU SPEAK MY NAME, I WILL LIVE FOREVER."

We speak these names before you this night: 

Jakelin Caal Maquin, Felipe Alonzo-Gomez, Adrian Alvarez:

Help us to remember this as we pray and make vigil tonight:

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

For the Human Family

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us
through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole
human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which
infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us;
unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and
confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in
your good time, all nations and races may serve you in
harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ

our Lord. Amen.

"Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone's face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love?' These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will be many fruits, here in this world and the life to come." - Henri Nouwen

Let us confess our need for God’s healing grace.

Silence

Compassionate God,

we confess our weaknesses and our need for your

strengthening touch.

We confess that some illnesses stem from our own fault,

while others are beyond our control.

We turn to you, source of life,

and ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ

for the gifts of true healing and life in you. Amen.

May the God of love visit us in our times of trial and weakness,

and raise us to newness of life, through Jesus Christ, in the

power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us start the year off right with our smudging prayer :

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 peace we walk and carry the light of Jesus as we begin our year of holy pilgrimage.  May we set our feet upon the path of the pilgrim way of Jesus. 



8 Domine, Dominus noster

1 O Lord our Governor, *
how exalted is your Name in all the world!

2 Out of the mouths of infants and children *
your majesty is praised above the heavens.

3 You have set up a stronghold against your adversaries, *
to quell the enemy and the avenger.

4 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, *
the moon and the stars you have set in their courses,

5 What is man that you should be mindful of him? *
the son of man that you should seek him out?

6 You have made him but little lower than the angels; *
you adorn him with glory and honor;

7 You give him mastery over the works of your hands; *
you put all things under his feet:

8 All sheep and oxen, *
even the wild beasts of the field,

9 The birds of the air, the fish of the sea, *
and whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea.

10 O Lord our Governor, *
how exalted is your Name in all the world!

Exodus 34:1-8

Moses Makes New Tablets

34The Lord said to Moses, ‘Cut two tablets of stone like the former ones, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets, which you broke. 2Be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai and present yourself there to me, on the top of the mountain. 3No one shall come up with you, and do not let anyone be seen throughout all the mountain; and do not let flocks or herds graze in front of that mountain.’ 4So Moses cut two tablets of stone like the former ones; and he rose early in the morning and went up on Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tablets of stone. 5The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name, ‘The Lord.’* 6The Lord passed before him, and proclaimed,
‘The Lord, the Lord,
a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger,
and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 
7 keeping steadfast love for the thousandth generation,*
forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin,
yet by no means clearing the guilty,
but visiting the iniquity of the parents
upon the children
and the children’s children,
to the third and the fourth generation.’ 
8And Moses quickly bowed his head towards the earth, and worshipped.

We Praise You, O God Te Deum laudamus

We praise you, O God,
we acclaim you as Lord;
all creation worships you,
the Father everlasting.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,
the cherubim and seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you.
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you:
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship,
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the king of glory,
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you took our flesh to set us free
you humbly chose the Virgin’s womb.
You overcame the sting of death
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God’s right hand in glory.
We believe that you will come to be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people,
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints
to glory everlasting.

Romans 1:1-7

1Paul, a servant* of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures, 3the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit* of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of his name, 6including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,

7 To all God’s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

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.

Philippians 2:9�13


9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
   and gave him the name
   that is above every name, 
10 so that at the name of Jesus
   every knee should bend,
   in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 
11 and every tongue should confess
   that Jesus Christ is Lord,
   to the glory of God the Father. 

Shining as Lights in the World

12 Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

A Song of True Motherhood
Julian of Norwich

God chose to be our mother in all things *
and so made the foundation of his work,
most humbly and most pure, in the Virgin’s womb.
God, the perfect wisdom of all, *
arrayed himself in this humble place.
Christ came in our poor flesh *
to share a mother’s care.
Our mothers bear us for pain and for death; *
our true mother, Jesus, bears us for joy and endless life.
Christ carried us within him in love and travail, *
until the full time of his passion.
And when all was completed and he had carried us so for joy, *
still all this could not satisfy the power of his wonderful love.
All that we owe is redeemed in truly loving God, *
for the love of Christ works in us;
Christ is the one whom we love.


Luke 2:15-21

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ 16So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. 17When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; 18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. 19But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. 20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
21 After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

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.




The Holy Name January 1

Eternal Father, you gave to your incarnate Son the holy name
of Jesus to be the sign of our salvation: Plant in every heart,
we pray, the love of him who is the Savior of the world, our
Lord Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy
Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
We thank you, Lord God, for the gift of your Son
whom you commanded to be called Jesus;
grant that we may so honour his name on earth,
that others may be led to him who alone is Lord and Saviour.

Praise to you, Christ our Redeemer
for you were circumcised this day
and given Jesus as your name.
Praise to you, Jesus, well are you named 
for you save us from our sins.

NEW YEAR’S DAY
Eternal God,
to whom a thousand years are no more than a moment;
renew us in your Holy Spirit,
so that we may serve you with courage
while we have life and breath;
through the grace of Jesus your Son.

God of time and eternity,
as we enter this new year
day by day
open us to your new age.


Let us pray:
Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.

God may we resist the need to put labels, letters, brands, and such on your children.
May we be one.

God may we resist using these labels, letters, brands to harm, hurt, discriminate and hate.
May we be loving and united.

God may we resist the need to use labels, letters, brands in describing our family members.
May we see each family member as you see us.

God may we seek to see you in each of our enemies faces and do good to them by remembering they are part of our family too.  May we seek to follow the example Jesus set and look to Him as our role model in our family and in our faith.

God may we continue to widen the circle of our family by expanding and tenderizing our hearts and  loving each other fully without fear and suspicion. 

God we pray for all of our family members who are ill, need, danger, homeless, hungry, and especially these our family members we now name before you________________

God we pray for all our family members who are in nations where there is danger remembering Afghanistan, Yemen, Iraq, South Sudan, Syria, The Ukraine, and all other parts of  the world where there is danger and especially those places that are on our hearts____________________

God we pray for rain and a gentle return to normal weather patterns throughout the world. and in our nation.

God we pray for those who have died today and this hour that they may feel your warm embrace as they begin a new chapter where they are truly one with you.  We pray for all who continue to grieve losses of  any kind regardless of time. We remember especially_____________________________

God we give you thanks for our family members and all our many blessings and especially all those many blessings _______________________

God we celebrate those special times , family members birthdays, and special saints and persons who are on our calendar and hearts today remembering especially_____________________________

God we wrap these our prayers into a Sabbath Box and know that you are already at work responding to these our prayers, receiving our thanksgivings, acknowledging those special celebrations and consoling us as we remember those who are near and dear to us who now reside with you.  All this we ask in Jesus' Name. Amen. 


"Hear O, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One". May we all be one!


The Lord's Prayer
(traditional)

Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done in earth,
As it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
The power, and the glory,
For ever and ever.
Amen.

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.

Let us bless the God our Creator, Jesus our Redeemer, the Holy Spirit our Advocate and Guide.
Thanks be to God.

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Our bonus pieces from the Northumbria Community:

Monday – The Aidan Compline

Aidan came to Lindisfarne from Iona in the year 635 at the request of King Oswald. He was a man of deep prayer who meditated on the words of Scripture, equipping himself in quiet for an active and highly effective apostolate. He remained at Lindisfarne for 16 years. In 651, Aidan was taken ill at Bamburgh and died. Cuthbert, who was a that moment looking after his flock of sheep on the Lammermuir hills, saw a vision of angels taking Aidan’s soul to heaven.

If this Compline is being used in a group setting the * notation indicates a change of reader; words in bold are said all together; words in bold italic are said by each person in turn; and + indicates where you might make the sign of the cross.

+ (silently)

* O Christ, Son of the living God,
may Your holy angels guard our sleep,
may they watch over us as we rest
and hover around our beds.

* Let them reveal to us in our dreams
visions of Your glorious truth,
O High Prince of the universe,
O High Priest of the mysteries.

* May no dreams disturb our rest
and no nightmares darken our dreams.
May no fears or worries delay
our willing, prompt repose.

* May the virtue of our daily work
hallow our nightly prayers.
May our sleep be deep and soft
so our work be fresh and hard.

I will lie down and sleep in peace
for You alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.

My dear ones, O God, bless Thou and keep,
in every place where they are.

* Into Your hands I commit my spirit;
I give it to You with all the love of my heart.

* How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake, I am still with You.

I make the cross of Christ upon my breast,
+ over the tablet of my hard heart,
and I beseech the Living God of the universe –
may the Light of Lights come
to my dark heart from Thy place;
may the Spirit’s wisdom come to my heart’s tablet
from my Saviour.

* Christ without sin, Christ of wounds,
I am placing my soul and my body
under Thy guarding this night,
Christ of the poor, Christ of tears.
Thy cross be my shielding this night,
O Thou Son of tears, of the wounds, of the piercing.

I am going now into the sleep:
O be it in Thy dear arm’s keep,
O God of grace, that I shall awake.

* My Christ! my Christ!
my shield, my encircler,
each day, each night,
each light, each dark.

* My Christ! my Christ!
my shield, my encircler,
each day, each night,
each light, each dark.
Be near me, uphold me,
my treasure, my triumph.

Circle me, Lord,
keep protection near
and danger afar.

* Circle me, Lord,
keep light near
and darkness afar.

* Circle me, Lord,
keep peace within;
keep evil out.

The peace of all peace
be mine this night
+ in the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen

Today’s Meditation
If I chose to hide you away, it is for a reason.
I have brought you to this place.
Drink in the silence. Seek solitude.
Listen to the silence.
It will teach you. It will build strength
Let others share it with you.
It is little to be found elsewhere.
Silence will speak more to you in a day than the world of voices can teach you in a lifetime.
Find silence. Find solitude – and having discovered her riches, bind her to your heart.
           Frances J. Roberts

Telemachus (?-391) January 1st

Telemachus the hermit of the East, devoted his life to prayer: in serenity of heart, knowing the wonder of the intimate presence of the Almighty God at the heart of every day. Then God wrenched him away to alien Rome, to greed and cruelty, to people baying for the blood of other human beings, like jackals lusting for their prey. There in the Coliseum he witnessed gladiators struggling with each other, taking each other’s lives, for the sport of the crowds. Casting fear to the winds, Telemachus ran out to the centre of the arena and struggled with them, trying to keep them from hurt or death, and was himself hurt and done to death as a result.
Emperor Honorius looked on, bewildered and aghast at what he saw, and from that day decreed that the bloody games should take place no more. Telemachus changed history, saved lives, laid down his own life to encourage others to find serenity of heart, and ever since has been revered as a martyr.
Lord of serenity, show us how we may bring Your peace into the lives of others and be agents of change in the places where You bring us, regardless of our own comfort and desires. Amen.

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Dear Ones, Have happy and safe evening tonight and know that you are loved and have a Happy New Year. Rabbit Rabbit.

But wait we still have other action items from our Celtic Advent Calendar to Consider!

Today:

January 1

Matthew 5:14-16 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

14 “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

Tomorrow:

John 8:12 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Jesus the Light of the World

12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”I love you! May we continue to walk, pray, talk, give hope, make peace, bring  joy,  and give love ,all in the Key of Jesus!

With love and blessings!

Sara

Resources:

A to Z Quotes

Book of Occasional Services 

Satucket Lectionary Page  -Holy Name

Book of Common Prayer

Enriching our Worship 1 

Northumbria Community

Metis Aboriginal Ministries

A New Zealand Prayer Book

Walk With Me On Our Journey

Contemplative Cottage

Here is a helpful calendar that will lead us through the season: Celtic Advent Calendar 2018