 Opening PrayerEven in our weaknesses and limitations, we know that you, Holy Spirit are here with us. Help us to see that prayer is trusting Jesus will make good on the promise once made to Paul: "My grace is sufficient for you. My strength is manifested in your weakness" -Jean Vanier (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleYou uphold all who fall, O Lord, and lift up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing -Psalm 145: 14-16 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinWho can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression. -Psalm 19:12-13 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusIn your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.” They said to him therefore, “Where is your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come. -John 8:17-20 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersI call to you, O LORD, every day; I spread out my hands to you. -Psalm 88:9 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerDear Father in heaven, we thank you that we are your children and that your eyes watch over us and see all that is in our hearts. You hear the request of each heart, and you will answer at the right time. Stretch out your strong hand to us, for we are weak and often heavy-hearted, not knowing what to do nor how to find you. But you are with us in every need in spite of all our faults and shortcomings. You are with us; you lead us through everything to our life’s true goal, until each of us can rejoice over all you have done, to the praise of your name, our Father. Amen. -Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Bruge, Belgium Bottom: Wurzburg, Germany
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 Opening Prayer“I came that you might have life, and have it abundantly” -Jesus (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleI will give thanks to you, Lord, for you are good; your lovingkindness endures forever. I will give thanks to you for your unfailing love and your wonderful acts to all your people, for you satisfy the thirsty soul and fill the hungry soul with good things -Psalm 107: 1, 8,9 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinI know, O Lord, that my life is not my own; it is not for me to direct my steps. O Lord, correct me, but with justice—Not in Your anger, lest You reduce me to nothing. -Jeremiah 10:23-24 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusJesus answered, “Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one. Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me. -John 8:14-16 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersI know, O Lord, that my life is not my own; it is not for me to direct my steps. O Lord, correct me, but with justice—Not in Your anger, lest You reduce me to nothing. -Jeremiah 10:23-24 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerHoly Spirit, powerful Consoler, Sacred Bond of the Father and the Son, Hope of the afflicted, descend into my heart and establish in it Your loving dominion. Enkindle in my tepid soul the fire of Your Love so that I may be wholly subject to You. We believe that when You dwell in us, You also prepare a dwelling for the Father and the Son. Deign, therefore, to come to me, Consoler of abandoned souls, and Protector of the needy. Help the afflicted, strengthen the weak, and support the wavering. Come and purify me. Let no evil desire take possession of me. You love the humble and resist the proud. Come to me, glory of the living, and hope of the dying. Lead me by Your grace that I may always be pleasing to you. Amen. -Augustine of Hippo (354-430) Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Harare, Zimbabwe Bottom: Ettal, Germany (Ettal Abbey)
 Opening PrayerMay the light of God illumine the heart of my soul. May the flame of Christ kindle me to love. May the fire of the Spirit free me to live now and always -Celtic Blessing (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleWhere shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you. -Psalm 139: 7-12 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinGod did in Christ himself reveal, To chase our darkness by his light, Our sin and ignorance dispel, Direct our wandering feet aright, And bring our souls, with pardon blest, To realms of everlasting rest. -Charles Wesley (1707-1788) (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of Jesus Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” -John 8:12 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersMay we be deeply devoted to one another, honoring one another above ourselves -Romans 12:10 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerClosing Prayer Lord, Lord, Open Unto Me Open unto me, light for my darkness, Open unto me, courage for my fear Open unto me, hope for my despair, Open unto me, peace for my turmoil Open unto me, joy for my sorrow, Open unto me, strength for my weakness Open unto me, wisdom for my confusion, Open unto me, forgiveness for my sins Open unto me, tenderness for my toughness, Open unto me, love for my hates Open unto me, Thy Self for myself, Lord, Lord, open unto me! -Howard Thurman (1899-1981) Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Arat Plain, Armenia (Khory vrap monastery) Bottom: Yeghegnadzor, Armenia
 Opening PrayerSurely you are my salvation, O God; I will trust and not be afraid. For you are my strength and my song, and you have become my salvation. -Isaiah 12:2 (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleI have set you, Lord, always before me. Because you are at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my body also will rest in hope. You will make known to me the path of life; in your presence is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forever -Psalm 16: 8-9, 11 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinJesus, hope of the penitent, how kind you are to those who ask, how good you are to those who seek. What must you be to these who find? -Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusAnd once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.” -John 8:8-10 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersOut of the depths I call to you, O Lord. O Lord, hear my voice and let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications -Psalm 130: 1-2 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerLord Jesus Christ, you have taught us to be merciful like the heavenly Father, and have told us that whoever sees you sees Him. Show us your face and we will be saved. Your loving gaze freed Zacchaeus and Matthew from being enslaved by money; the adulteress and Magdalene from seeking happiness only in created things; made Peter weep after his betrayal, and assured Paradise to the repentant thief. Let us hear, as if addressed to each one of us, the words that you spoke to the Samaritan woman: “If you knew the gift of God!” You are the visible face of the invisible Father, of the God who manifests his power above all by forgiveness and mercy: let the Church be your visible face in the world, its Lord risen and glorified. -Pope Francis (1936- ) Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Cologne, Germany Bottom: Vatican City, Rome
 Opening PrayerO Lord, I pray that your children may come to feel your presence and be immersed in your deep, warm, affective love. And to me, O Lord, your stumbling friend, show your mercy. Amen -Henri Nouwen (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleO Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. -Psalm 139: 1-6 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinMay I sow righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up my fallow ground; for it is time to seek You, O Lord, until You come and rain righteousness on me. -Hosea 10:12 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusThe scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” -John 8:3-7 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersDevote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. -Colossians 4:2 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerDear Father, we thank you with all our hearts because we know you are holding us by your hand and leading us on all our ways, in spite of all contradiction, strife, distress, and confusion within ourselves. What are all these compared to your love, which does not let us go but watches over us and finally brings us to what is good? Release us from our many burdens. Free our spirits and our souls more and more until we can do nothing but give praise and thanks with heart, soul, and strength for all you are to us. Amen. -Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt (1842-1919) Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Vatican City, Rome Bottom: Yeghegnadzor, Armenia
 Opening PrayerO God, you are my God; Earnestly I seek you; My soul thirsts for you; My body longs for you, In a dry and weary land Where there is no water. -Psalm 63:1 (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleGod gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. -Isaiah 40:29-31 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinO Lord, you have blotted out my transgressions like a thick cloud and my sins like the morning mist. I will return to you, for you have redeemed me. -Isaiah 44:22 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusOn the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified -John 7:37-39 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersO Lord, hear my prayer; listen to the voice of my supplications. In the day of my trouble I will call upon You, for you will answer me -Psalm 86: 6-7 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerGod, help us to see others not as our enemies or as ungodly but rather as thirsty people. And give us the courage and compassion to offer your Living Water, which alone quenches deep thirst. -Henri Nouwen (1932-1996) Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Lille, France Bottom: Darmstadt, Germany (Evangelical Sister of Mary Kanaan)
 Opening PrayerBe still, my soul! The Lord is on thy side; bear patiently the cross of grief or pain; leave to thy God to order and provide; in every change He faithful will remain. Be still, my soul: your best, your heavenly friend through thorny ways leads to a joyful end. Katharina Von Schlegel (1697-1768) Hymn: Be Still my Soul (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleCome and hear, all you who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for my soul. I cried to him with my mouth, and high praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But truly God has listened; he has attended to the voice of my prayer. -Psalm 66: 16-20 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinMay You, O Sovereign Lord, deal well with me for Your name’s sake; because of the goodness of Your mercy, deliver me -Psalm 109:21 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusSome of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, “Is not this the man whom they seek to kill? And here he is, speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ? But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from.” So Jesus proclaimed, “You know me, and you know where I come from. But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know. I know him, for I come from him, and he sent me.” -John 7:25-29 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and Others Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. Selah -Psalm 62:8 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerO Lord, help us not to be deceived or led astray by what is false but instead may we follow what is pure and undefiled. You have instructed us that true religion is to visit orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep ourselves unstained from the world. Amen -Adapted from James 1:27 Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Yeghegnadzor, Armenia Bottom: Trosly, France (L'arche original community)
 Opening PrayerI say to God, my rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why I must walk about mournfully because the enemy oppresses me?” -Psalm 42:9 (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleThe words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times. You, O Lord, will keep them; you will guard us from this generation forever. On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among the children of man. -Psalms 17: 6-8 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of Sin“The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light” -Romans 13:12 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusThe one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood. Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why do you seek to kill me? Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man's whole body well? Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.” -John 7: 14-19, 23-24 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersBe cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens -I Thessalonians 5:17 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing PrayerLord, give me a pure heart—that I may see Thee, A humble heart—that I may hear Thee A heart of love—that I may serve Thee, A heart of faith—that I may abide in Thee -Dag Hammarskjold Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Belgrade, Serbia Bottom: Nuremberg, Germany
 Opening PrayerOh Lord, You have loved me with an everlasting love; You have drawn me with lovingkindness -Jeremiah 31:3 (silent reflection) Prayer of the BibleThere is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. O God you have made everything beautiful in its time. You have also set eternity in human hearts. -Ecclesiastes 3:1, 11 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinCome, O thou all-victorious Lord! Thy power to us make known; Strike with the hammer of thy word, And break these hearts of stone. O that we all might now begin, Our foolishness to mourn; And turn at once from every sin, And to our Savior turn! Give us ourselves and thee to know, In this our gracious day; Repentance unto life bestow, And take our sins away. -Charles Wesley (1707-1788) Hymn: Come, O Thou All Victorious Lord (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusAbout the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching. The Jews therefore marveled, saying, “How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied?” So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. -John 7: 14-17 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersThey all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. -Acts 1:14 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing Prayer“Blessed Spirit of God, come to us in all Thy fullness and power, to clothe us in our nakedness, to enrich us in our poverty, to inflame us in our feebleness. Be closer to us than breathing, nearer than hands or feet. As lovers live each in each, so live in us and we in Thee. As the fire gives of itself to the molten iron, so give Thy presence to us. Compass our minds with Thy wisdom. Saturate our souls with Thy righteousness. Fire our wills with Thy might. Melt our hearts with Thy love. Do everything at all times to make us wholly Thine until Thy wealth is ours and we are lost in Thee” -Charles Henry Brent (1862-1929) Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Sens, France Bottom: Taize, France
 Opening PrayerIn the silence of the early morning your Spirit hovers over the brink of the day and new light pierces the darkness of the night. In the silence of the morning life begins to stir around me and I listen for the days’s first utterances. In earth, sea, and sky and in the landscape of my own soul I listen for the utterances of your love, O God. I listen for utterances of your love. -Celtic Benediction (silent reflection) Prayer of the Bible Blessed are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O LORD, in the light of your face, who exult in your name all the day and in your righteousness are exalted. -Psalm 89: 15-16 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of SinFor from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” -Mark 7: 21-23 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of JesusAfter this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Now the Jews' Feast of Booths was at hand. So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” For not even his brothers believed in him. Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil. -John 7: 1-7 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayer for Ourselves and OthersIt is God’s will that we learn to bear one another’s burdens, for none of us have the wisdom or strength to bear them alone. -A2J Community (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing Prayer O my God, I ask of you for myself and for those whom I hold dear the grace to fulfill perfectly your holy will, to accept for love of you the joys and sufferings of this passing life, so that we may one day be united in heaven for all eternity. Amen -Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897) Go, sent by the Father into the world to love & serve in the name of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit  photos taken--Top: Gozo, Malta Bottom: Bad Staffelstein, Germany
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