glory

receiving with humility

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

photo by KATRIN BOLOVTSOVA via Pexels

 
What do we have heavenly Father,
    that we have not received from you?
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above,
    coming down from the Father of lights.
And because everything we have is yours 
    – whether for body or soul –
    how can we be proud, boasting about things 
    that are not even our own?
And as you give, so you are also able to take away again.
And you will, when your gifts are abused, won’t you?
If we fail to acknowledge that you are the giver?
 
So take away all my arrogance and pride.
Instead, graft in true humility, 
    so I may know that you are the giver of all good things,
    and be thankful for them,
    and use them for your glory and the good of my neighbor.
Grant also that I may not glory in earthly creatures,
    but in you alone.
You bring mercy, equity, and righteousness on earth,
    and to you alone be all glory, amen.
 
Thomas Becon, 1511–1567, English Protestant reformer Norfolk
 
______________________________
 
 
Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, 
    coming down from the Father of lights, 
    with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change

Continue reading →

shepherd to the shepherds, help us

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
The Good Shepherd, 3rd Century Roman Catacombs
 
 
God of peace, 
    who has restored us to each other, 
    and made the two one:
  You who set kings upon thrones, 
    who raise the poor out of the dust, 
    and lift up the beggar from the dung hill.
  You who chose David and took him away from the sheepfold,
    though he was the least and the youngest of the sons of Jesse.
  You who gave the word to those who preach the gospel
    with great power for the perfection of the gospel.
Hold me by my right hand, 
    guide me with your counsel,
    and receive me with glory.
You who are a shepherd to the shepherds and a guide to the guides,
    help us to feed your flock with knowledge,
    not with the instruments of a foolish shepherd.
Help us to serve according to the blessing,
    and not according to the curse 
      pronounced against the men of former days.
Give strength and power to your people.
Present your flock dazzling and spotless, worthy of the fold on high,
    in the place of rejoicing and in the splendor of the saints.
Do this so that in your temple everyone,
    both flock and shepherds, together may say:
Glory in Christ Jesus our Lord, 
    to whom be all glory forever and ever!
Amen.
 
Gregory Nazianzen, 329-389, Archbishop of Constantinople
 
______________________________
 
 
So I exhort the elders among you, 
    as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, 
    as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 
 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, 
    exercising oversight, not under compulsion, 
    but willingly, as God would have you;
  not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 
  not domineering over those in your charge, 
    but being examples to the flock. 
And when the chief Shepherd appears, 
    you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Continue reading →

Prayer for Holy Saturday

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

Lamentation of Christ, Andrea Mantegna, via Wikimedia Commons

Today a tomb holds him who holds the creation in the hollow of his hand; 
    a stone covers him who covered the heavens with glory. 
Life sleeps and hell trembles, and Adam is set free from his bonds. 
Glory to your dispensation, whereby you have accomplished all things, 
    granting us an eternal Sabbath, your most holy Resurrection from the dead.

What is this sight that we behold? What is this present rest? 
The King of the ages, having through his passion fulfilled the plan of salvation, 
    keeps Sabbath in the tomb, granting us a new Sabbath. 
Unto him let us cry aloud: Arise, O Lord, judge the earth,
    for measureless is your great mercy and you reign forever.

Come, let us see our Life lying in the tomb, 
    that he may give life to those that in their tombs lie dead. 
Come, let us look today on the Son of Judah as he sleeps, 
    and with the prophet let us cry aloud to him: 
You have lain down, you have slept as a lion; 
    who shall awaken you, O King? 
But of your own free will you rise up, 
    who willingly gives yourself for us. 
O Lord, glory to thee
 
Mattins, Holy Saturday, Orthodox
The Oxford Book of Prayer slightly modernized
 
___________________________________
 
 
The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph 
    and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. 
Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. 
But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

Continue reading →

teach us to love what you have created

/ Eric Mathews / 1 Comment
 
Our Father, God, Creator of all your different children,
    teach us to love what you have created.
Teach us to see people one by one
    and to acknowledge them as our Father’s children,
    our brothers and sisters:
  not to pigeonhole them;
    not to hammer them into unnatural molds of our own making,
  but to rejoice in our differences,
    accepting people as they are
    – different but of equal worth –
    each one a part of God’s creation,
    showing something of his love and glory.
 
Sybil Phoenix, 1927-, Guyanese born British community worker
 
___________________________________________
 
 
May the God who gives endurance and encouragement 
    give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, 
    so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify 
        the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, 
    in order to bring praise to God.
 

Continue reading →

And now unto Him who is able

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
 
And now unto Him who is able to keep us from falling.
And now unto Him who is able to lift us from the fatigue of despair
    to the buoyancy of hope.
And now unto Him who is able to solve the race problem
    if we will cooperate with Him.
And now unto Him who is able to transform this cosmic energy
    into constructive force.
Now unto Him who is able to transform this midnight of injustice
    into a glowing daybreak of freedom and justice.
To Him be power and authority, majesty and dominion,
    now, henceforth, and forever more. Amen.
 
Martin Luther King, Jr. 1929 -1968, American pastor & civil rights leader
_____________________________________
 
 
Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, 
    and to present you faultless 
    before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
To the only wise God our Saviour, 
    be glory and majesty, dominion and power, 
    both now and ever. Amen.

Continue reading →

we celebrate the coming of our Saviour

/ Eric Mathews / 1 Comment
Adoration of the Magi, via Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0
 
Blessed are you, O Christ, our God;
    you were before time began,
    and came to the world to save us.
Blessed are you, Sun of righteousness;
    you shine with the Father’s love
    and illumine the whole universe.
Blessed are you, Son of Mary;
    born a child
    you shared our humanity.
Blessed are you, son of David;
    born to rule,
    you received gifts from the wise men.
Blessed are you, Son of Man;
    baptised by John,
    you saved us from ourselves.
Blessed are you, heavenly King;
    teaching and preaching, healing and comforting,
    you proclaimed the kingdom.
With all the voices of heaven
    we celebrate the coming of our Saviour.
Let heaven and earth shout their praise.
With all the creatures on earth
    we sing and dance at your birth.
Praise and glory to you, O Lord Jesus Christ.
 
David Beswick, 1933 – , Australian Minister and Professor
 
___________________
 
 
When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 
On coming to the house, 
    they saw the child with his mother Mary, 
    and they bowed down and worshiped him. 
Then they opened their treasures 
    and presented him with gifts 
    of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

Continue reading →

Glory to you who became lowly

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

The Nativity by Giotto © José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro / CC BY-SA 4.0

 
What mere human can declare the glory of the All-Life-Giver,
    who stepped down from majesty
    and humbled himself to become humanity?
 
You who lifted up humanity in your birth,
    lift up my weak mind
    to declare your birth and proclaim your grace.
 
How amazing is it that the Son dwelled completely in a body,
    that it was enough for him.
Your will was fully contained,
    yet your bounds reached wholly to the Father.
Blessed be he who, though without bounds,
    was bound!
 
Who can explain how,
    though you dwelled wholly in a body,
    you also dwelled wholly in all?
 
Your majesty is concealed from us,
    while your grace is revealed before us.
I will be silent, O Lord of majesty,
    and I will tell of your grace.
Your grace clung to you, 
    while it bowed you down to our worst.
 
Your grace made you a baby,
    and your grace made you a man.
Your grace straightened and enlarged your majesty.
Blessed is the might that became little . . .  and became great!
 
Glory to you who became lowly, 
    though your nature is lofty.
By your own will you became man,
    though you are God by nature.
Blessed be the glory which put on our image!
 
Your hope brought new hope
    when ours had broken down.
Blessed be the one who brought good news of hope!
 
Double was the happiness 
    of those who saw your birth and your day,
 yet also happy are those who have not seen,
    but who have believed.
Blessed is your happiness that added to us!
 
Ephrem the Syrian, c.306-373, Syrian hymn writer and theologian
_____________________________
 
 
For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.

Continue reading →

You rule this world

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
The Son of Man Enthroned, Lawrence OP, via Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
 
Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honour
and power and might
to you, Lord Jesus.

You rule this world
with love and grace.

There are days when we have a hard time seeing it
but you have promised that
you are moving all creation toward that time
when God will get what God wants —
a creation where peace and goodness and compassion
shape all of life.

And you give us good work to do
in the time that is ours:
prayer and praise and hope and truth.

We are not always sure how what we do is serving your holy purposes
but we submit our lives to you.
We trust you, our crucified and risen Lord,
to take what we offer and transform it
so that it glorifies you. Amen
 
Christine Jerrett, minister in the United Church of Canada
_______________________
 
 
After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude 
that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, 
standing before the throne and before the Lamb. 
They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 
And they cried out in a loud voice:

    “Salvation belongs to our God,
    who sits on the throne,
    and to the Lamb.”
 
All the angels were standing around the throne 
and around the elders and the four living creatures. 
They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying:

    “Amen!
    Praise and glory
    and wisdom and thanks and honor
    and power and strength
    be to our God for ever and ever.
    Amen!”

Continue reading →

Your kingdom come, here and in heaven

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
 
Thy kingdom come, Lord!
Raise, Lord; enlarge, Lord; establish your kingdom!
Yours is the glory.
And unless you want your glory confined only to heaven,
   or account the praises and eternal hallelujahs of saints and angels
       enough adoration for your great name, Lord,
   have regard to this poor decaying kingdom.
For only in it, and in heaven is your glory celebrated.
 
And if you leave this kingdom to be overrun 
    by the agents and ministers of the devil,
  or if idolatry and the profane gain ground here 
    so as to push you off your throne,
        would that not be giving your glory to another –
        which you have promised not to do?
 
Lord, you are still the same God.
Your essence is eternal.
Your attributes will never change.
Your power, wisdom, and mercy are the same as ever.
So in your mercy, grant us the same favor.
Amen.
 
Ezekiel Hopkins, 1634–1690, Anglican minister
_______________________
 
 
The thought of my suffering and homelessness
    is bitter beyond words
I will never forget this awful time,
    as I grieve over my loss.
Yet I still dare to hope
    when I remember this:

The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
    His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
    his mercies begin afresh each morning.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance;
    therefore, I will hope in him!”

 

Continue reading →

You are my God, my Life, my holy Delight

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
image via Pixabay
 
 
What, then, is the God I worship? 
He can be none but the Lord God himself, for who but the Lord is God? 
What other refuge can there be, except our God?
You, my God, are supreme, utmost in goodness: 
    mightiest and all-powerful, most merciful and most just. 
You are the most hidden from us and yet the most present amongst us, 
    the most beautiful and yet the most strong, 
    ever enduring and yet we cannot comprehend you. 
You are unchangeable and yet you change all things. 
You are never new, never old, and yet all things have new life from you. 
You are the unseen power that brings decline upon the proud. 
You are ever active, yet always at rest.
You gather all things to yourself, though you suffer no need. 
You support, you fill, and you protect all things. 
You create them, nourish them, and bring them to perfection. 
You seek to make them your own, though you lack for nothing. 
You love your creatures, but with a gentle love. 
You treasure them, but without apprehension. 
You grieve for wrong, but suffer no pain. 
You can be angry and yet serene. 
Your works are varied, but your purpose is one and the same. 
You welcome all who come to you, though you never lost them. 
You are never in need yet are glad to gain, 
    never covetous yet you exact a return for your gifts.
We give abundantly to you so that we may deserve a reward; 
    yet which of us has anything that does not come from you? 
You repay us what we deserve, and yet you owe nothing to any. 
You release us from our debts, but you lose nothing thereby. 
You are my God, my Life, my holy Delight, 
    but is this enough to say of you? 
Can any man say enough when he speaks of you? 
Yet woe betide those who are silent about you! 
For even those who are most gifted with speech
    cannot find words to describe you.
 
St. Augustine of Hippo, 354-430
 
_________________
 
 
Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, 
    that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.

Continue reading →