The Pastor's Garden

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

I went to my Morning Prayer time this morning fuzzy headed and barely awake. Yes, it was after 9 am, but yesterday was long and last night's many meetings were difficult and unruly. I was -- I am -- tired and fuzzy headed. God didn't seem to mind, but was not willing to be quiet today. I am continuing with the devotional book Pilgrim Road, and it continues to challenge the most basic parts of my faith and spiritual journey. But hey, that's what God does to and for us each day. I am sure that God always guides, always directs, always speaks. I think we don't often stop to listen.

The lectionary passage from Jeremiah this morning talks about the things we do because we think God wants us to, that are the farthest things from God's mind. The people were doing human sacrifice, offering their children, killing them to appease a God who did not ask for this sacrifice. Not children. Not human sacrifice at all. And yet the people felt that what they were doing was out of respect and honor to God.

I have to wonder what rites and rituals and practices we have set up in our lives and churches that we have established to honor God, and God looks down and says, "the thought was never in my mind". That is my prayer this morning: to seek what pleases God, and not to do empty ritual because I think God requires it.

Does this relate to Morning Prayer, a human ritual? I think we do Morning Prayer to help US, the humans, relate to God, to keep a space and time in our lives SPECIFICALLY devoted to God, more than the quickly uttered prayers in the shower and on the road while we are driving. I think it helps US to center and focus on listening for God's holy speech in our lives. I intend to keep up the prayer, the time alone with God. I don't intend to sacrifice children or bulls or rams, but to keep a space of time for God. After all, this was taught to us by Jesus, who himself went away to speak to his Father.

May our prayer time be rich and full of an awareness of God's presence.

1 comment:

Unknown said...: I understand your need to devote time alone as life gives you too many distractions. I usually talk to him all day but my prayers are usually at night.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and ideas.; March 10, 2010 at 11:51 AM

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Pastors' Bookshelf

What do you need that someone else in the Presbytery has on their bookshelves standing idle? Each of us has bookshelves filled to varying degrees with wonderful, useful books and tools for ministry that we are not currently using. Some of us have discussed finding a way to share these materials. So I decided to attach this to my blog. So, tell us what you need, tell us what you want. We'll look at our shelves and see what we can share. Here's what we need from you, THE BORROWER: 1) the title, author OR subject matter of the resource you need. 2) your timeframe: Do you need it for a class you are teaching tomorrow? Is this future planning, and you need it, say, after the next Presbytery meeting? 3) how shall we get it to you? At the Presbytery meeting? leaving it at the Presbytery office for you to pick up the next time you are there? by mail (will you pay?) will you pick it up at the owner's church or home? do you want to meet in the middle to get the resource? 4) do you want a review of the material, or notes from how the owner has used the piece before? Here's what we need from the OWNER of the material: Listing that you have the material probably means you are ok with sharing it. So answer these questions: 1) the title of your book or material? 2) How fast can you loan it out, and when do you need it back? 3) While we all will be careful with each others' materials, some of us have special rules about our books or papers. Like, my daughter, Kate, will NOT allow anyone to break the spine on her paperbacks, while I fold my (emphasis on MY) own books in half to read them more comfortably. What are your rules? (No coffee spills is just a no-brainer) 4) How are you willing to get the materials to the borrower? (see #3 for borrowers) 5) Are you willing to review the materials for the borrower, or share notes or uses for the material? Email your needs to pastorsgarden@optonline.net, and I will get the word out to the Presbytery's pastors. I am willing to wager that we get a lot of use out of The Pastors' Bookshelf.