how do I worship in spirit?

August 18, 2022August 17, 2022 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

O God, what is Spirit?

How do I worship in spirit and in truth?

I am such a solid, earthly creature,

my feet planted firmly on the ground,

my life based upon material things.

I like to touch and feel and see before I believe.

I am accustomed to dealing with houses, land, and money,

with bread, meat and potatoes,

with objects handled, weighed, and valued

by my own standards.

I am uncomfortable with what cannot be analyzed

or dissected or given a market value.

What is Spirit?

Yet, O Lord, the very things I handle and see

lose meaning when they become ends in themselves.

They are all given meaning by the things of the spirit,

by love and hope and faith.

I know when I come down to it,

if I have all kinds of earthly goods

and have not love,

I have nothing.

I need the mystery beyond the tangible.

I need the things of the spirit

to give meaning to the material things I prize.

I cannot divide life up,

you have made it whole.

If I avoid love, diminish hope, deny faith,

my appreciation of my house and land,

my meat and potatoes, shrinks,

And I become a little man

with little aims and little power.

Kenneth Phifer

A Book of Uncommon Prayer

————————————

John 4:23-24

But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—

when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth.

The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.

Continue reading →

May we encounter You today

January 13, 2022January 12, 2022 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

_{image / Harold Copping / Wikimedia Commons}

Loving God, our faithful father, you who created us in your image and likeness, and are willing to meet with us here, as market vendors, barbers, mothers and fathers.

We confess that in our sweat and toil, we often forget your presence. In our struggles and weariness and frustration we are often lukewarm. Forgive us.

Tabernacle with us.

We need you now more than ever. Drained of strength and energy we come, that we might be re-energized and filled.

So come Lord. Come as the wind, blow your breath gently over us, blow the dust off our lives. Come as the fire, burn out all the hate and anger we feel towards those who oppress us and treat us unfairly. Come as the water, wash the dirt of poverty off our stalls, the marketplace, and our lives.

Come as the dove – settle all matters concerning us. Let peace reign.

May we encounter you today. Ignite our hearts to worship and serve you. Take your place and rule and reign in Jesus’s name as we leave our struggle at the foot of the cross and liberate us to worship you. Amen.

complied by Claudio Carvalhaes, professor of worship in New York City

Liturgies from Below: Praying with People at the End of the World

_________________________

Psalm 27:8

You have said, “Seek my face.”
My heart says to you,
“Your face, Lord, do I seek.

Continue reading →

Shine brightly, star of God

December 31, 2021December 29, 2021 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

i_{mage / Stern von Betlehem / wikimedia commons}

Shine brightly,

star of God,

and guide our wandering world

to where a prince of Peace is born.

Where children wish upon a star

or wise men scan the universe in hope

let your bright beams

surround their dreams

and guide their hesitating feet

to where a miracle is born.

Enable each of us

to make a New Year’s journey

leaving behind the prejudices and fears

of yester-year,

embracing a fresh openness

by which we welcome all world pilgrims

whose journeys end in worship and humility.

Be a sign today

of mercy and of love

like a rainbow in spring

or the bright summer sun,

and show us how our lives

can include the forgotten and forlorn,

the grieving and the hurt.

And we will offer

to our God

now seen and touched in straw-filled bad

the best gifts in the world:

our joy, our grief, our life.

David Jenkins, minister in the United Reformed Church UK

The Westminster Collection of Christian Prayers

____________________________

Matthew 2:10

When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.

Continue reading →

You, Who Are

October 6, 2021October 5, 2021 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

_{Transfiguration / Giovanni Bellini / Wikimedia Commons}

You, who are over us,

You, who are one of us,

You, who are –

Also within us,

May all see You – in me also,

May I prepare the way for You,

May I thank You for all that shall fall to my lot,

May I also not forget the needs of others,

Keep me in Your love

As You desire that all should be kept in mine.

May everything in this, my being, be directed to Your glory

And may I never despair.

For I am under Your hand,

And in You is all power and goodness.

Give me a pure heart – that I may see You,

A humble heart – that I may hear You,

A heart of love – that I may serve You,

A heart of faith – that I may abide in You.

Dag Hammarskjöld, 1905 – 1961, Swedish diplomat, UN Secretary General

Markings freely modified

___________________

Psalm 24:1-6

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
for he founded it on the seas
established it on the waters.

Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord?
Who may stand in his holy place?
The one who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not trust in an idol
or swear by a false god.

They will receive blessing from the Lord
and vindication from God their Savior.
Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek your face, God of Jacob

Continue reading →

God of the high and holy places

August 24, 2021August 23, 2021 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

God of the high and holy places
where I catch a glimpse of your glory,
above the low levels of life,
above the evil and emptiness which drags me down,
beyond the limits of my senses and imagination,
you lift me up.

In the splendour of a sunset,
in the silence of the stars,
in the grandeur of the mountains,
in the vastness of the sea,
you lift me up.

In the majesty of music,
in the mystery of art,
in the freshness of morning,
in the fragrance of a single flower,
you lift me up.

Awe-inspiring God,
when I am lost in wonder
and lost for words,
receive the homage of my silent worship
but do not let me be content to bear your beauty and be still.
Go with me to the places where I live and work.
Lift the veil of reticence behind which I hide.
Give me the courage to speak of the things which move me,
with simple and unselfconscious delight.
Help me to share my glimpses of glory
until others are drawn to your light.

Rev. Jean Mortimer, Minister in the United Reformed Church, UK

The Complete Book of Christian Prayer

______________________________

Psalm 19:1-4

The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.

Continue reading →

resplendent Jesus, have mercy

August 9, 2021August 9, 2021 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

O Lord; O King, resplendent in the citadel of heaven, all hail continually;

and of your clemency upon your people still have mercy.

Lord, whom the hosts of cherubim in songs and hymns

with praise continually proclaim, upon us eternally have mercy.

The armies aloft, O Lord, sing praise to you;

those to whom the seraphim reply, ‘have mercy.’

O Christ, enthroned as king above,

whom the nine orders of angels in their beauty

praise without ceasing,

upon us, your servants, ever have mercy.

O Christ, hymned by your one and only church throughout the world,

to whom the sun, and moon, and stars, the land and sea,

ever do service, have mercy.

O Christ, those holy ones, the heirs of the eternal country,

one and all with utter joy proclaim you in a must worthy strain:

have mercy upon us.

O Lord, O gentle son of Mary free;

O King of kings, blessed redeemer;

upon those who have been ransomed from the power of death,

by your own blood, even have mercy.

O noblest unbegotten, yet begotten Son, having no beginning,

yet without effort (in the weakness of God) excelling all things,

upon this your people in your pity, Lord have mercy.

O sun of righteousness, in all unclouded glory,

supreme dispenser of justice,

in that great day when you strictly judge all nations,

we earnestly beseech you, upon this your people,

who here stand before your presence,

in your pity, Lord, then have mercy on us.

Dunstan, c. 909 – 988, English monastic and bishop

2000 Years of Prayer

_________________________

Hebrews 4:16

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence,

so that we may receive mercy

and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Continue reading →

restoring worship

July 13, 2021July 12, 2021 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

_{image / Lawrence OP / Flickr / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0}

O God, be Thou exalted over my possessions.

Nothing of earth’s treasures shall seem dear to me,

if only You are glorified in my life.

Be Thou exalted over my friendships.

I am determined that You shall be above all,

though I must stand deserted and alone in the midst of the earth.

Be Thou exalted above my comforts.

Though it means the loss of bodily comforts

and the carrying of heavy crosses,

I shall keep my vow made this day before You.

Be Thou exalted over my reputation.

Make me ambitious to please You

even if as a result I must sink into obscurity

and my name be forgotten as a dream.

Rise, O Lord, into Your proper place of honor,

above my ambitions, above my likes and dislikes,

above my family, my health and even my life itself.

Let me decrease that You may increase;

let me sink that You may rise above.

Ride forth upon me as You rode into Jerusalem

mounted on the humble little beast, a colt, the foul of a donkey,

and let me hear the children cry to You, “Hosanna in the highest.”

A. W. Tozer, 1897 – 1963, American pastor, author and spiritual mentor

The Pursuit of God, slightly modernized

______________________

John 3:30-31

He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.
He has come from above and is greater than anyone else.

We are of the earth, and we speak of earthly things,

but he has come from heaven and is greater than anyone else.

Continue reading →

Risen Lord, we come to you

April 14, 2021April 13, 2021 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

_{At the Throne of Grace / Lawrence OP / Flickr / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0}

Risen Lord, we come to confess our sins.

Our hearts are full of impatience, frustration,

and sometimes even bitterness with one another.

We find it hard to be accepting.

Break the seals, Lord, roll away the stone,

rip open the protective bandages.

Breathe the breath of life into our cold, dead hearts.

Risen Lord, we come to petition you.

Our minds are so often full of doubt

and we are shy about sharing

the good news of your resurrection.

Break the seals, Lord, roll away the stone,

rip open the protective bandages.

Breathe the breath of life into our cold, dead hearts.

Risen Lord, we come to adore you.

We desire to know you as living Lord

and to experience your vitality within us.

Break the seals, Lord, roll away the stone,

rip open the protective bandages.

Breathe the breath of life into our cold, dead hearts.

Risen Lord, we come to worship you.

The world waits for your coming through us.

We want to be filled with joy

and to have the freedom to be your true disciples.

As we come, we thank you that you do break the seals, Lord,

you roll away the stone and rip open the protective bandages.

You breathe the breath of life into our cold, dead hearts,

and by your resurrection we are made new.

prayer from New Zealand

A Procession of Prayers: Prayers and Meditations from Around the World

__________________

Acts 4:33

With great power the apostles were giving testimony

to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,

and great grace was on all of them.

Continue reading →

to celebrate Christ’s victory

January 4, 2021January 3, 2021 / Eric Mathews / Leave a comment

Thanks be to God, the almighty,

the king of the universe, for all his mercies,

and heartfelt thanks to the Savior and Redeemer of our souls,

Jesus Christ, through whom we pray

that his peace may keep us stable and unshaken

from troubles outside and troubles within the heart.

Let me obediently sing aloud the new song,

because after those terrifying dark sights and stories

I was now privileged to see and celebrate such things

that many righteous men and martyrs of God before us

desired to see on earth and did not see,

and to hear and did not hear.

But they attained far better things in heaven; whereas I,

acknowledging that even my present lot is better than I deserve,

have been more than amazed at the bountiful grace of its author,

and am duly filled with wonder,

worshipping him with my soul’s full strength.

Eusebius of Caesarea, c. 260- c.340, Christian historian and bishop

2000 Years of Prayer freely modified

_________________________

Revelation 12:10-12

And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

Continue reading →