Come …..

We ask for all
In trouble
Not knowing where to turn
We ask for a miracle
Come break through
Come dawn
Breath
Deep peace
Love diving
Grace unbound
Relieve your children's
Burden and pain
Come fill us
Center us in
Prayer
Silence
Companionship
Shared space

by
Annette Joseph
Strong, Maine

Joseph, Annette. "Come." Lifting Women's Voices: Prayers to Change the World. Ed. Margaret Rose, Jenny Te Paa, Jeanne Person, Abagail Nelson. NY: Morehouse Publishing, 2009. 264.

Christmas Eve

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness on them light has shined. (Isaiah 9:2)

Contemporary Mother and Child

Several contemporary images of Mary and the baby Jesus have surfaced on the web recently …this is one of them.

Letting the mud settle …..

Artist Melanie Weidner says of this painting that it is "Based on a quote from the Tao Te Ching: "Do you have the patience to wait until your mud settles and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving until the right action arises by itself?" (By the way, if you havent been to her site yet, check out Melanie's other beautiful work here.)

Question: Do you “do Thanksgiving” or really give thanks?

Prayer For My Family Robert Louis Stevenson

Lord, behold our family here assembled,
We thank thee for this place in which we dwell,
For the love that unites us,
For the peace accorded to us this day,
For the hope with which we expect the morrow,
For the health, the work, the food,
And the bright skies that make our lives delightful,
For our friends in all parts of the earth,
And our friendly helpers everywhere.

Give us courage, joy, and the quiet mind.
Spare to us our friends, soften to us our enemies.
Bless us, if it may be, in all our innocent endeavors;
If it may not, give us the strength to encounter that which is to come.

May we be brave in peril, constant in tribulation,
Temperate in wrath, and in all changes of fortune,
Down to the gates of death, loyal and loving to one another.

As the clay to the potter, as the windmill to the wind,
As children of their sire, we beseech of thee this help. Amen.

Friday Five: Winter’s On the Way

This week we were asked to think about the upcoming winter weather. Praying fervently that we don’t have a repeat of the scene above – 26” in two days.

Hard exercise to do since it is 65 degrees here today … still, we know it’s coming …

 

1. What is your favorite movie for watching when curled up under a wooly blanket?

Holiday Inn – I know it’s really a Christmas movie but it’s still a winter favorite.

2. Likewise, what book? – No particular book that I reread but a good mystery is always a good thing on a cold day.

3. What foods do you tend to cook/eat when it gets cold?  Chili definitely ranks high on the list as does a roast, potatoes and carrot menu or cranberry pork roast cooked in the crock pot.  I also love potato soup on a cold winter day.

4. What do you like to do if you get a "snow day" (or if you don't get snow days, what if you did)?

Snow days are definitely meant for hunkering down and just having a good excuse not to do anything except enjoy the day …. sometimes that means a PJ day – staying in them all day without a hint of guilt.

5. Do you like winter sports or outdoor activities, or are you more likely to be inside playing a board game? Do you have a favorite (indoors or out)?

Can’t say that I like winter sports – although a day of sled riding around a fire is a treat.  More likely to find me inside around a board game if there’s someone available to join me. If not, computer Scrabble is fine.

Friday Five: The Perfect Blendship

If you're ever in a jam, here I am.
If you're ever in a mess, S.O.S.
If you're so happy, you land in jail. I'm your bail.
It's friendship, friendship, just a perfect blendship.
When other friendships are soon forgot, ours will still be hot.


I'm thinking a lot about friends these days, the ones who rush to you in times of trouble, with a casserole or a socket wrench or an invitation for coffee or lunch or a trip to the foot sanctuary. We meet friends in school or on the playground or at church or in the workplace and even on the Internet. Even as blogging has experienced some decline, the community here has been strong.
For today's Friday Five, some questions about friendship.

1) Who is the first friend you remember from childhood?

Lilly Dean Sutton – pastor’s daughter – and Terri Lawver – another friend from church.  We have pictures of us dressed as angels. Lilly moved to Nebraska and we made a trip to visit. After that, we haven’t seen each or again.

2) Have you ever received an unexpected gift from a friend?

Many times. I have the best of friends!  The most recent friendship is with my clerk of session who continually finds ways to rejuvenate my spirits – often with tickets to the Pittsburgh Pops or the River City Brass Band.

3) Is there an old friend you wish you could find again? Or have you found one via social media or the Internet?

Facebook has definitely made staying in touch easier…. too many to name but I have particularly enjoyed staying in touch with Denise and Joyce… friends from the past who it always seems easy to fall right back into our conversations.

4) Do you like to get your good friends together in a group, or do you prefer your friends one on one?

I think I prefer one on one with an occasional group outing.

5) Does the idea of Jesus as a friend resonate with you?

I suppose friendship with Jesus is a piece of the relationship but that designation seems to fall way to short of explaining the steadfast faithfulness of the Triune God.