Yes to God with Joy
Say Yes to God with joy -
but not just with words
but with your life –
with your decision
within the suffering that comes your way,
with the lows and the highs,
the celebrations and the periods of slogging boredom.
Say Yes to God with Joy.
Come and join Abraham, Moses, John the Baptist,
Mary and Joseph, Simeon and Anna
who all said Yes at some vital moment;
when God’s plan was on a knife edge.
Say Yes with all the countless numbers of people
who have tried to respond to God’s simple
but sometimes mysterious invitation.
Within their Yes they all found
that God did not disappoint them;
that he was always faithful
even when their own will clouded their response.
They found that God always lifted their prayer
on to a higher plane – purifying it in the fire of his love.
That God took up all they offered him
and did more than they could plan for or imagine.
For the creativity of God knows no bounds.
They could say Yes to God
because they were attentive to his word
and believed he was speaking to them.
Their Yes led them to joy in God,
to know that all of heaven rejoiced with them.
So say Yes to God
with your lips but also with your will,
with your heart and with your body
and God will rejoice in your surrender to him.
You will become a channel of his grace,
A light in someone’s darkness.
You will bring joy not only to yourself
but to those around you.
Say Yes to God with joy
and join in the Song of praise of Zechariah and Mary
of Simeon and Anna..the Song that will never end…..
CPS
Say Yes to God with joy -
but not just with words
but with your life –
with your decision
within the suffering that comes your way,
with the lows and the highs,
the celebrations and the periods of slogging boredom.
Say Yes to God with Joy.
Come and join Abraham, Moses, John the Baptist,
Mary and Joseph, Simeon and Anna
who all said Yes at some vital moment;
when God’s plan was on a knife edge.
Say Yes with all the countless numbers of people
who have tried to respond to God’s simple
but sometimes mysterious invitation.
Within their Yes they all found
that God did not disappoint them;
that he was always faithful
even when their own will clouded their response.
They found that God always lifted their prayer
on to a higher plane – purifying it in the fire of his love.
That God took up all they offered him
and did more than they could plan for or imagine.
For the creativity of God knows no bounds.
They could say Yes to God
because they were attentive to his word
and believed he was speaking to them.
Their Yes led them to joy in God,
to know that all of heaven rejoiced with them.
So say Yes to God
with your lips but also with your will,
with your heart and with your body
and God will rejoice in your surrender to him.
You will become a channel of his grace,
A light in someone’s darkness.
You will bring joy not only to yourself
but to those around you.
Say Yes to God with joy
and join in the Song of praise of Zechariah and Mary
of Simeon and Anna..the Song that will never end…..
CPS
“Come follow me”
Come to the waters of life
to seek cleansing from the stream
that flows from the side of Christ,
that takes our old selves
and gives us a new life.
The Church gives birth to her new children
conceived of by God and delivered a second time
in water through the descending Spirit.
The stream that flows from Christ
has the power to wash the whole world
and give it new life, new joy in Christ.
No one should ever think that they are
beyond God’s notice, or their pilgrimage
of faith too early or too late;
for birth in this all-powerful stream of grace
opens the door of their life to blessings for evermore.
Let Christ take you by the hand
and lead you down into the tomb
so that you might rise with Him in glory
today, on this your birthing day
and for every day that God shall give you.
Come and hear God welcome you by name.
Know that God’s name is written on the palm of your hand,
and your name on the palm of God’s hand.
God will always be faithful to you
even when you deny or disown Him.
Only you can turn away from this new relationship.
Come to the anointing oil of gladness
to receive your royal seal,
your share in the priestly role of Christ,
your acceptance of the saving Cross of Christ,
upon the crown of your head,
upon the whole of yourself,
marked out to be crucified with Christ
and liberated through His glorious resurrection.
Come to the light of Christ
the light that can penetrate the most terrible darkness.
Your small light is important to the Risen Lord.
Let your light so shine with the glory of God
that others may see and be nurtured by that same light,
and give glory and thanks to God.
Come and hear the community of faith welcome you,
for this is also our faith, our celebration,
a time to renew our commitment,
a time to embrace the one love that can set us free,
now and for all eternity.
A time to renew our “Yes Lord”
to Christ’s invitation: Come follow me.
For God’s love always comes first,
is given unconditionally.
Your Yes is your freedom (given by God) to respond
or to turn away.
Come to the very fountains of life and drink
and never be thirsty again.
Stir us, O God, with your vibrant desire.
Move us, O God, to work for your justice.
Inspire us, O God, to active service.
Keep us, O God, from complacent indifference.
Challenge us, O God, with your compassion and mercy.
Take and shape us, O God,
So that we might live as Christ would have us live
to your praise and glory. Amen
Come to the waters of life
to seek cleansing from the stream
that flows from the side of Christ,
that takes our old selves
and gives us a new life.
The Church gives birth to her new children
conceived of by God and delivered a second time
in water through the descending Spirit.
The stream that flows from Christ
has the power to wash the whole world
and give it new life, new joy in Christ.
No one should ever think that they are
beyond God’s notice, or their pilgrimage
of faith too early or too late;
for birth in this all-powerful stream of grace
opens the door of their life to blessings for evermore.
Let Christ take you by the hand
and lead you down into the tomb
so that you might rise with Him in glory
today, on this your birthing day
and for every day that God shall give you.
Come and hear God welcome you by name.
Know that God’s name is written on the palm of your hand,
and your name on the palm of God’s hand.
God will always be faithful to you
even when you deny or disown Him.
Only you can turn away from this new relationship.
Come to the anointing oil of gladness
to receive your royal seal,
your share in the priestly role of Christ,
your acceptance of the saving Cross of Christ,
upon the crown of your head,
upon the whole of yourself,
marked out to be crucified with Christ
and liberated through His glorious resurrection.
Come to the light of Christ
the light that can penetrate the most terrible darkness.
Your small light is important to the Risen Lord.
Let your light so shine with the glory of God
that others may see and be nurtured by that same light,
and give glory and thanks to God.
Come and hear the community of faith welcome you,
for this is also our faith, our celebration,
a time to renew our commitment,
a time to embrace the one love that can set us free,
now and for all eternity.
A time to renew our “Yes Lord”
to Christ’s invitation: Come follow me.
For God’s love always comes first,
is given unconditionally.
Your Yes is your freedom (given by God) to respond
or to turn away.
Come to the very fountains of life and drink
and never be thirsty again.
Stir us, O God, with your vibrant desire.
Move us, O God, to work for your justice.
Inspire us, O God, to active service.
Keep us, O God, from complacent indifference.
Challenge us, O God, with your compassion and mercy.
Take and shape us, O God,
So that we might live as Christ would have us live
to your praise and glory. Amen
Say Yes to God
Mary’s Yes to God resounds through all our lives.
We often think our faith in God is the result of our activity.
It is Mary’s Yes to God that makes our Yes possible.
Mary’s Yes was an act of great trust
In a plan she could not comprehend.
Our daily Yes to God is also a response of trust
to the way God is guiding us when we are willing to surrender
to his will as Mary was.
The Spirit of God filled Mary;
and the fruit of that surrendered heart
was the Saviour’s birth.
The Spirit longs to fully embrace us
and if we are willing to say with our lives
Let it be to me according to your word
Then Christ will be born in us today.
What is Mary’s prayer for us today?
Not look at me and sing my praise-
But come and join me by saying yes to God with joy
And respond not only with your lips but every part of yourself.
Come receive the Christ I am still holding out before you.
As Elizabeth welcomed me so I will welcome you
to our family home-into the joy of the Saviour’s Kingdom.
here and now-with your feet firmly rooted where God wants you to be;
and into the glory of Christ’s presence when all is brought to completion.
And there will be great rejoicing…..
Mary’s Yes to God resounds through all our lives.
We often think our faith in God is the result of our activity.
It is Mary’s Yes to God that makes our Yes possible.
Mary’s Yes was an act of great trust
In a plan she could not comprehend.
Our daily Yes to God is also a response of trust
to the way God is guiding us when we are willing to surrender
to his will as Mary was.
The Spirit of God filled Mary;
and the fruit of that surrendered heart
was the Saviour’s birth.
The Spirit longs to fully embrace us
and if we are willing to say with our lives
Let it be to me according to your word
Then Christ will be born in us today.
What is Mary’s prayer for us today?
Not look at me and sing my praise-
But come and join me by saying yes to God with joy
And respond not only with your lips but every part of yourself.
Come receive the Christ I am still holding out before you.
As Elizabeth welcomed me so I will welcome you
to our family home-into the joy of the Saviour’s Kingdom.
here and now-with your feet firmly rooted where God wants you to be;
and into the glory of Christ’s presence when all is brought to completion.
And there will be great rejoicing…..
The Go-Between God
Holy Spirit: our sacred Go-between,
come and open eyes that are closed,
hearts that are unaware,
and minds that shrink from too much reality.
There is no mission to the world
no Gospel to proclaim;
until we can see the living Christ
beckoning to us.
The first disciples needed to have their eyes opened,
across the Passover table, in the garden, on the lake,
and on the Damascus Road.
As you opened their lives and gave them a fiery energy;
so come to us and sweep aside our doubts
and our uncertainties;
so that we may hold out to ourselves
and to all who would listen:
the Gospel that is life.
Go-between Spirit you went with Ananias
to open the eyes of a sworn enemy,
and transform Saul to Paul;
give us the same new sight,
that we might see the sick person
as more than a patient waiting for a cure;
the child in the classroom
as more than an empty vessel to overfill
with information;
the elderly resident
as more than a confused person
waiting in the queue for their final turn:
but as individuals
touched for ever by the Creator's finger
with amazing potential for good or for bad,
and with an eternal destiny
freely given in the very moment of conception.
Spirit of God,
You go between my shadowy side
and the part of me presented to the light;
You move between all that is myself,
and all that is the other,
between what is and all that might yet be.
And all the time you seek to draw me to the Christ
who alone can bring me safely to the Father.
Come Sacred Go-Between
A Reflection greatly indebted to John V. Taylor's: Go between God
Holy Spirit: our sacred Go-between,
come and open eyes that are closed,
hearts that are unaware,
and minds that shrink from too much reality.
There is no mission to the world
no Gospel to proclaim;
until we can see the living Christ
beckoning to us.
The first disciples needed to have their eyes opened,
across the Passover table, in the garden, on the lake,
and on the Damascus Road.
As you opened their lives and gave them a fiery energy;
so come to us and sweep aside our doubts
and our uncertainties;
so that we may hold out to ourselves
and to all who would listen:
the Gospel that is life.
Go-between Spirit you went with Ananias
to open the eyes of a sworn enemy,
and transform Saul to Paul;
give us the same new sight,
that we might see the sick person
as more than a patient waiting for a cure;
the child in the classroom
as more than an empty vessel to overfill
with information;
the elderly resident
as more than a confused person
waiting in the queue for their final turn:
but as individuals
touched for ever by the Creator's finger
with amazing potential for good or for bad,
and with an eternal destiny
freely given in the very moment of conception.
Spirit of God,
You go between my shadowy side
and the part of me presented to the light;
You move between all that is myself,
and all that is the other,
between what is and all that might yet be.
And all the time you seek to draw me to the Christ
who alone can bring me safely to the Father.
Come Sacred Go-Between
A Reflection greatly indebted to John V. Taylor's: Go between God
Lord hear my prayer
For I continue to pray:
Even when the weather is overcast and dreary,
even when my heart is not in it.
When my feelings are far from the spirit of my words,
even when my head is buzzing with all the things on my do-it-today list,
that now will not be done on earth even though they may get done in heaven.
Lord hear my prayer:
For I continue to pray
despite feeling your cold absence, rather than the hoped for warm presence.
Despite ticking the box: dull and boring.
I continue to pray
because I think of better days when it did seem worthwhile
and people even thanked me for praying for them.
I continue to pray because try as I may
I cannot ignore your heart- rending request:
Will you not watch with me one hour?
Especially because I picture you alone in the Garden of Betrayal.
I am also aware that you know perfectly well
that the weather is oppressing me,
my rheumatism is playing up,
my mind is overloaded,
my emails have just been invaded,
that I would gladly welcome the slightest distraction;
or think of something more important to do,
to happily absolve any dregs of guilt.
And yet despite all that you say to me, (and not three worn out Apostles).
Will you not watch with me one hour?
Whatever my unreliable feeling might register
I know you are not asking me to pray alone.
Even in the emptiness you lift up my prayers
to the very heart of the Father.
And I don’t need to worry whether I am praying
in the right way or for the right things;
for in the lifting up you will edit and clean up
my jumbled attempts at offering my weary body,
my sometimes fractious mind, and my elusive spirit.
So why don’t you come and join me and the Lord of Prayer?
Will you not watch with me for just ten minutes?
Even when the weather is overcast and dreary,
even when my heart is not in it.
When my feelings are far from the spirit of my words,
even when my head is buzzing with all the things on my do-it-today list,
that now will not be done on earth even though they may get done in heaven.
Lord hear my prayer:
For I continue to pray
despite feeling your cold absence, rather than the hoped for warm presence.
Despite ticking the box: dull and boring.
I continue to pray
because I think of better days when it did seem worthwhile
and people even thanked me for praying for them.
I continue to pray because try as I may
I cannot ignore your heart- rending request:
Will you not watch with me one hour?
Especially because I picture you alone in the Garden of Betrayal.
I am also aware that you know perfectly well
that the weather is oppressing me,
my rheumatism is playing up,
my mind is overloaded,
my emails have just been invaded,
that I would gladly welcome the slightest distraction;
or think of something more important to do,
to happily absolve any dregs of guilt.
And yet despite all that you say to me, (and not three worn out Apostles).
Will you not watch with me one hour?
Whatever my unreliable feeling might register
I know you are not asking me to pray alone.
Even in the emptiness you lift up my prayers
to the very heart of the Father.
And I don’t need to worry whether I am praying
in the right way or for the right things;
for in the lifting up you will edit and clean up
my jumbled attempts at offering my weary body,
my sometimes fractious mind, and my elusive spirit.
So why don’t you come and join me and the Lord of Prayer?
Will you not watch with me for just ten minutes?
Wilderness Wandering
The image of life being like a journey is a good one, and is certainly one which the Christian takes to heart!
In the first reading from the book of Deuteronomy we hear how God led Moses and the People of Israel from slavery to freedom, from toil and oppression to a land where milk and honey flow. Today, with faith in God who guides us, we take strength from Jesus who embraced the wilderness and, despite temptation, remained obedient to God.
Whatever life throws at us, wherever our journey takes us, we are reminded in the letter of St Paul to the Romans that ‘The word, that is the faith we proclaim, is very near to you, it is on your lips and in your heart. If your lips confess that Jesus is Lord and if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, then you will be saved.’ Whatever happens in the wilderness, in whatever way we are challenged, however we struggle, we confess that Jesus is Lord and we know, in the words of the Psalm, that he will be with us in our distress and keep us in his ways!
In the first reading from the book of Deuteronomy we hear how God led Moses and the People of Israel from slavery to freedom, from toil and oppression to a land where milk and honey flow. Today, with faith in God who guides us, we take strength from Jesus who embraced the wilderness and, despite temptation, remained obedient to God.
Whatever life throws at us, wherever our journey takes us, we are reminded in the letter of St Paul to the Romans that ‘The word, that is the faith we proclaim, is very near to you, it is on your lips and in your heart. If your lips confess that Jesus is Lord and if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, then you will be saved.’ Whatever happens in the wilderness, in whatever way we are challenged, however we struggle, we confess that Jesus is Lord and we know, in the words of the Psalm, that he will be with us in our distress and keep us in his ways!
Time to Pray
Lead us Lord to the quietness
that will still our rushing distracted minds.
Lead us to the stillness
that will allow your word to speak from deep within
to the very surface of our lives.
May we welcome your sacred presence
in broken word and in the breaking of the Bread,
in the beauty of this prayed-in place,
in the flowing life-giving waters of Baptism,
and in this shared time
within our common purpose;
so that we may be renewed and refreshed
to discern your will for us
and to live more deeply in response
to all your many blessings.
So may our lives proclaim:
THIS IS OUR FAITH
WE BELIEVE AND TRUST IN ONE GOD
FATHER SON AND HOLY SPIRIT.
Amen
that will still our rushing distracted minds.
Lead us to the stillness
that will allow your word to speak from deep within
to the very surface of our lives.
May we welcome your sacred presence
in broken word and in the breaking of the Bread,
in the beauty of this prayed-in place,
in the flowing life-giving waters of Baptism,
and in this shared time
within our common purpose;
so that we may be renewed and refreshed
to discern your will for us
and to live more deeply in response
to all your many blessings.
So may our lives proclaim:
THIS IS OUR FAITH
WE BELIEVE AND TRUST IN ONE GOD
FATHER SON AND HOLY SPIRIT.
Amen