Jesus

may the Holy Spirit work in the Church today

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
 
Heavenly Father, in the mighty name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
    we want to thank you for the Church which is your own creation.
We want to thank you for the way you have enabled your servants,
    by the power of the Holy Spirit, 
    to propagate your Gospel throughout the world.
We thank you for the zeal that you implanted 
    in the hearts of those early missionaries
    who brought the good news to foreign lands like Africa.
It is our prayer, Almighty God, 
    that the power of the Holy Spirit may work in the Church today, 
    that the hearts of the people may grow from strength to strength,
    that they may be able to withstand the obstacles that come their way
    in their endeavors to make your word reach all corners of the world.
Revitalize your Church and let your presence 
    be with all who are called by your holy Name.
Help each of us to live according to your will 
    so that your glory may be found in your Church.
Let everyone in the Church have zeal to exalt your Name.
 
Prayers Encircling the World, slightly modified
 
________________________________
 
 
So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria 
    had peace and was being built up. 
And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, 
    it multiplied.
 

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Come Holy Spirit

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
Pentecost Light by Lawrence OP via flickr CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
 
Come, oh come, most gracious comforter of afflicted souls
    and helper in tribulations.
Come, cleanser of sins and healer of wounds.
Come, strengthener of the weak,
    comforter of the downtrodden.
Come, teacher of the humble
    and destroyer of the proud.
Come, devoted father of the orphan,
    gentle protector of widows.
Come, hope of the poor, reviver of the sick.
Come, stay of the navigator,
    post of refuge for the shipwrecked.
Come, singular glory of those who live,
    singular salvation of those who die.
 
Come, most Holy Spirit, come,
    and have mercy on me.
Make me fit for you.
And graciously reach down to me 
    so that my insignificance 
    may be pleasing to your greatness,
    my weakness to your strength,
    according to the multitude of your mercies
through Jesus Christ my Savior
who lives with the Father in unity 
and reigns forever and ever. 
Amen.
 
Anselm of Canterbury, c. 1033-1109, Benedictine monk and archbishop
 
________________________
 
 
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, 
    how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

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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.

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for those suffering the anguish of inner darkness

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

photo via pixabay CC0

 
Lord Jesus, 
as you bowed your head and died,
a great darkness covered the land.
 
We lay before you
the despair of all
who find life
without meaning or purpose,
who suffer the anguish
of inner darkness
that can only lead them 
to self-destruction and death.
 
Lord,
in your passion, you too
felt abandoned, isolated, derelict.
 
You are one
with all who suffer
pain and torment
of body and mind.
 
Be to them the light
that has never been mastered.
Pierce the darkness
which surrounds and engulfs them,
so that they may know
within themselves
acceptance, forgiveness, and peace.
 
We pray for those who,
through the suicide
of one close to them,
suffer the emptiness of loss
and the burden of untold guilt.
May they know
your gift of acceptance,
so that they may be freed
from self-reproach
and mutual recrimination,
and find in the pattern
of your dying and rising,
new understanding, and purpose
for their lives.
 
Neville Smith, retired Anglican priest and hospital chaplain
 
______________________
 
 
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
    and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
The righteous person may have many troubles,
    but the Lord delivers him from them all

Lord of ultimate power

/ Eric Mathews / 1 Comment

photo by Christian Lue via unsplash
      

Father, source of all power, 
We confess that we do not always use the powers you have given us as you intend. 
Sometimes we are afraid of the power we wield, 
        and so do not use it at all; 
  at other times we are careless in our use of it and harm others; 
  at yet other times we deliberately misuse it to achieve our own selfish ends. 
We confess our misuse of our God-given powers, 
    and ask for your grace to use them properly in the future.
 
We think of the power of the nations of the world. 
In international affairs it so often seems that events are out of our control, and rule us. 
Father, help us to see how national power can be wielded for the fulfilment of your will.
 
We think of the power of economic systems. 
Often we feel enmeshed in a system which is not fair 
    and yet cannot be changed without causing immense hardship. 
Father, help us to become masters of economic forces 
    and to order them for the purposes of justice.
 
We think of the power of governments. 
They now touch our personal lives at so many points. 
Father, may politicians and civil servants use their powers responsibly 
    and respect the rights of individuals.

Give us the courage to challenge them when they are wrong, 
    and willingness to share in the processes of government ourselves. 
May the power of governments everywhere be used for the good of all.

Father, yours is the ultimate power. 
We see evidence of it everywhere in the world, 
    but most of all in Jesus Christ. 
In him we see the power of your love: 
    weakness and death did not destroy him and you raised him from death. 
May that same power of love be in us.

Caryl Micklem, 1925 – 2003, English minister and hymn writer
 
______________________________
 
 
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, 
    through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,
    by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, 
    so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, 
    having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

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love for the Eternal Trinity

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The Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine of Siena, Giovanni di Paolo, via Wikimedia Commons

 
O Eternal God! O Eternal Trinity!
Through the union of your divine nature you have made so precious
    the blood of your only begotten Son!
O eternal Trinity, you are as deep a mystery as the sea,
    in whom the more I seek, the more I find;
    and the more I find, the more I seek.
For even immersed in the depths of you,
    my soul is never satisfied, always famished and hungering for you,
    eternal Trinity, wishing and desiring to see you, the true light.
 
O eternal Trinity, with the light of understanding
    I have tasted and seen the depths of your mystery
                         and the beauty of your creation.
In seeing myself in you, I have seen that I will become like you.
 
O eternal Father, from your power and your wisdom
    clearly you have given me a share of that wisdom
    which belongs to your only begotten Son.
And truly the Holy Spirit,
    who proceeds from You, Father and Son,
    has given to me the desire to love You.
 
Catherine of Siena, 1347 – 1380, Italian Dominican mystic
 
____________________________
 
 
Hear me as I pray, O Lord.
    Be merciful and answer me!
My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”
    And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”

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Father, give us all your Holy Spirit

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

​Veni Sancte Spiritus, by Lawrence OP, via  Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

 
Dear Heavenly Father, we ask you now to give us all your Holy Spirit,
    and to give him continually, that he might awaken, enlighten, encourage,
    and enable us to dare to take the small and large steps of moving 
    out of the comfort with which we can comfort each other 
    and into hope in you.
Turn us away towards you!
Do not allow us to hide from you!
Do not let us do anything without you!
Show us how glorious you are and how glorious it is to trust and obey you!
 
We would ask the same for all people,
    that nations and governments may bow to your Word,
      and that they will be willing to work for justice and peace on earth,
    that your Word may be understood and taken to heart
      by all those who are poor, sick, imprisoned, troubled, oppressed, and unbelieving;
    that through word and deed your Holy Spirit may be made known to them;
      and that you may be perceived by them as the answer to their sighs and cries;
    that all Christian churches and confessions may learn to recognize him anew 
      and serve you with renewed faithfulness;
    that your truth may remain bright in all of humanity’s error and confusion,
      until such a time as he shall ultimately enlighten all people and all things.
 
You are glorified, you who make us free in Jesus Christ, your Son,
    by confessing and standing on this: that our hope is in you. 
Amen.
 
Karl Barth, 1886 – 1968, Swiss Reformed theologian
Fifty Prayers, slightly modified
 
______________________________
 
 
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, 
    so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
 

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Spirit, breathe your story of truth into ours

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
image by Geralt via Pixabay
 
Truth-telling, wind-blowing, life-giving spirit –
    we present ourselves now
        for our instruction and guidance;
    breathe your truth among us,
        breathe your truth of deep Friday loss,
            your truth of awesome Sunday joy.
 
Breath your story of death and life
    that our story may be submitted to your will for life.
We pray in the name of Jesus risen to new life –
        and him crucified.
 
Walter Brueggemann, 1933 -2025,  American Protestant Old Testament theologian
Prayers for a Privileged People
 
________________________________
 
 
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. 
He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, 
    and he will tell you what is yet to come. 
He will glorify me because it is from me
    that he will receive what he will make known to you. 
All that belongs to the Father is mine. 
That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.
 

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How do I kill time?

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
image via pixabay
 
 
How do I kill time?
Let me count the ways.
 
By worrying about things
over which I have no control.
Like the past.
Like the future.
 
By harboring resentments
and anger
over hurts
real or imagined.
 
By disdaining the ordinary
or, rather, what I
so mindlessly
call ordinary.
 
By concern over what’s in it for me,
rather than what’s in me
for it.
 
By failing to appreciate what is
because of might-have beens,
should-have-beens,
could-have-beens.
 
These are some of the ways
I kill time.
 
Jesus didn’t kill time.
He gave life to it. 
His own.
 
Leo Rock, SJ 1929-1998, Jesuit priest, author and spiritual director
 
________________
 
 
So be careful how you live. 
Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. 
Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. 
Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.

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Praise to God in heaven

/ Eric Mathews / Leave a comment
The Throne In Heaven, by Davin Arries, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
 
 
How small a part of you do we see, God?
Only a partial picture.
 
Who can understand the thunder of your power?
Touching the Almighty, we cannot comprehend you.
You are excellent in power, judgment , and justice.
You are exalted far above all blessing and praise.
 
You have prepared your throne of glory in the heavens, high and lifted up.
Before you the seraphim cover their faces.
 
And in compassion to us you hold back the face of that throne,
    spreading a cloud upon it.
 
You make your angels spirits, and your ministers a flame of fire.
Thousands of them minster to you, 
    and ten thousand times ten thousand stand before you,
    to do what you ask.
They excel in strength, and obey your word.
 
And we come by faith, hope and holy love into spiritual communion
    with the innumerable company of angels,
    and the spirits of just people made perfect.
We come to the general assembly and church of the firstborn,
    in the heavenly Jerusalem.
 
You are worthy, O Lord, to receive blessing, and honor, and glory, and power.
For you have created all things.
You created them to do your will and to praise you.
 
We worship the one who made heaven and earth,
    the sea and the fountains of waters.
The one who spoke and it was done.
Who commanded, and it stood fast.
The one who said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
 
And you made it all very good, and it continues this day according to your word,
    for everything serves you.
 
The day is yours, the night is yours.
You have prepared the light and the sun.
You have set all the borders of the earth.
You have made summer and winter.
You uphold all things by the word of your power,
    and by you all things exist.
 
The earth is full of your riches; so is the great and wide sea.
The eyes of all wait upon you, and you give them their food in due season.
You open your hand and satisfy the needs of every living thing.
Amen.
 
Matthew Henry, 1662 – 1714 British Presbyterian minister and author
 
________________________________
 
 
But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, 
    the heavenly Jerusalem. 
You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 
    to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. 
You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 
    to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, 
    and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
 

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