line 1: “O (image/metaphor for god) god

line 2: description of the above mentioned attribute of god

line 3: cry for the particular kind of help that is provided by the above attribute of god.*

were the early church mothers and fathers rolling over in their graves last night? surely not! i think our prayer captured the true spirit of the old antiphons, which were designed to expand our ideas of the character and capabilities of god.

so, without further rambling, here is our prayer. may your advent season be blessed with hopeful longing. may your christmas bring renewed wonder at the newborn king.

antiphon prayer by THE BEND

dec. 8, 2011

     o artist god,

you provide the color for our life’s palette.

come, help us paint your perfect masterpiece.

     o bread from heaven,

you provide sustenance for our souls.

come, give life to our beings.

     o artistic drawer,

you create beauty in our world.

make us beautiful expressions of your love.

     o comforter,

you keep our hearts warm with your love.

come, be a soft pillow to lay our weary heads.

     o fertile farmer,

you bless our crops and provide for us.

help us trust in your provision.

     o goodness,

you continually forgive us.

come teach us your goodness, that we may forgive others.

     o holy one,

you are reverent in nature

stop us from destroying the beauty you have created.

     o joyful one,

you fill the world with happiness.

keep our hearts warm and open.

     o keeper of kids,

you show us the way.

come show the kids of the world your way.

     o love,

you always love us unconditionally.

come love us for we are not worthy.

     o magical god,

you act in ways that we don’t understand.

come, help us to understand.

     o nature,

you speak to us in turning leaves and falling snow.

come, show us your beauty.

     o omniscient god,

you knew us even when we were in our mothers’ wombs.

come, give us knowledge.

     o patient leader,

you lovingly show us the way.

come, show us the way in our deepest times of need.

     o quotient,

you are the answer to all of my longings.

come, help us with our problems.

     o wise one,

you do what is best for us, even though we may not know it in the moment.

help us to understand your reason.

     o holistic x-ray,

you see all that ails us.

meet us, even in our most vulnerable places.

     o zookeeper god,

you keep all animals and know them by name.

protect their habitats and keep them from extinction.

AMEN.

*trust me. this is easier than it seems.

When the Holy One stepped from endless order
into the chaos of our days, it was winter.
Weather blew everywhere.  Time itself was dying.
The squirrel, with a tail soft as breath,
curled inside the maple trunk.

The cold stayed.  Five-fingered leaves pressed the ground,
their stems perpendicular, thin wrists above each flame-tipped palm.
Cataclysm scanned the days; like any future, like our own.
The Holy One took face and voice, beginning with an infant cry,
took food and sleep, nestled in arms not unlike yours.

He listened to the dropping rain, watched it bead the naked twigs,
saw it polish stones and faces, stood once under this lift of sky
and still, in a word, understands.

are we making our god too small?

isn’t god supposed to be grand, all-powerful, and far beyond the limits of our perception? if we narrow our scope on a starfish, for example, are we setting our sights too low?

poet patricia campbell carlson writes:

Down in the gutter by Immaculate Conception school, I discover a tan, two-inch, plastic figurine of Jesus.

“Jesus-of-the-car-tire,” i call him:

His pedestal and fancy mantle,
chipped and flecked with grime,
clearly aren’t in the pristine condition
some Christian toymaker intended.

His right forefinger still points to heaven,
though, and his left hand rests just below
a brightly shining sacred heart.

Don’t think he earned either gesture until he dropped from some pupil’s pocket, got stepped on, ignored, and eventually run over.

Yet that child tearfully searched
hours for him, combed the whole route
from home to school:

not because the Lord looks regal in His heavenly robes and sovereign stance but because he’s light and small enough to nestle in someone’s pocket.

perhaps there is some element of grandeur that is lost when we look for a jesus who is light and small enough to fit in our pockets.

(or is there?)

it seems that it would be worse to risk missing the face of god here:

or here:

or here:

or here:

or even here:

there are places we go expecting to see god…

and then there are the places we would never dream of looking:

but the point is for us to “comb the whole route from home to school.”

perhaps by doing this, we will see that jesus is not so small at all. the world is full of bright shining signs of god’s presence. these signs are the big things. and somewhere along the way we’ve forgotten.

…these are just a few of the places god manages to find us. just like the splintered stable, they bear the divine. and like the baby’s family did so long ago, we huddle together in the dark and watch.

here are some of the moments we’ve experienced “god with us” since we met last thursday at THE BEND:

But Jesus or “Emmanuel,” which means “God with us,” was not what the people expected.

His entrance into the world was ordinary and humble. He did not spring from the head of a god, as did the son of Zeus. Nor did he rise to power in the way that was customary of ancient kings.

From the very beginning, Christianity has been about the power and love of God shining through the most insignificant objects, substances, events, people, and circumstances. A stable, a baby, bread, wine, loaves, fish, water, a murderer-turned-prophet, blood, darkness, and light. These are just a few of the commonplace vehicles in our midst and in our sacred story that carry signs of hope and transformation.

So…

As we anticipate the coming of the Christ child, as we seek Emmanuel, or God with us, perhaps we might do well to broaden our scope beyond what is expected and what is customary.

Is it possible to see evidence of the divine in a warm cup of coffee, sun streaming through fall trees, a friend laughing uncontrollably, or a note from a friend?

In the coming weeks, I invite you to look for “God with us” in life’s little details. And when you catch a glimpse of the divine in an ordinary setting, snap a picture. You may then text it to me (901.481.0103) or email it (presbyplace@gmail.com), and I will post it on THE BEND blog (http://presbyplace.wordpress.com) for the group to enjoy. You may include an explanation or let the shot speak for itself. You can submit photos anonymously or let us know that they are yours. Submit as many pictures as you like!

If this works, if we train ourselves to pay divine attention to what’s around us, we will be bombarded with reminders that God is always present. The Christ child may be born anywhere where hope contends with fear, light contends with darkness, creativity contends with boredom, joy contends with sorrow, order contends with chaos, and beauty contends with busy-ness.

 Phrases to Inspire:

“For me, the Incarnation is the place, if you will, where hope contends with fear.” –Kathleen Norris, Amazing Grace

 “Each little flower that opens, each little bird that sings, God made their glowing colors, and made their tiny wings.” – Cecil Frances Alexander, All Things Bright and Beautiful

“majestic words in an unlikely setting…” – Norris

“The purple-headed mountains, the river running by, the sunset and the morning, that brightens up the sky.” — Alexander

“The Holy One took face and voice, beginning with an infant cry, took food and sleep, nestled in arms not unlike yours.” – Penelope Duckworth

“majestic words to an unlikely person…” – Norris

“O that you would tear open the heavens and come down” – Isaiah 64:1a

“He listened to the dropping rain, watched it bead the naked twigs…” – Penelope Duckworth

“The cold wind in the winter, the pleasant summer sun, the ripe fruits in the garden:  God made them every one.” — Alexander

“as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil– to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence!” – Isaiah 64:2

The beauty of small things…

“A light shines in the darkness, and the darkness shall not overcome it” – John 1:5

“O Star of wonder, star of night; Star with royal beauty bright; Westward leading, still proceeding; Guide us to thy Perfect Light.” – John Henry Hopkins, We Three Kings

“I lift up my eyes to the hills—  from where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” – Psalm 121: 1-2

]]> http://presbyplace.wordpress.com/2011/11/07/emmanuelproject/feed/ 0 presbyplace1 a.v.t retro.camera1 mccooltyedye greenline.1 http://presbyplace.wordpress.com/2011/08/25/move-in-day-cookout/ http://presbyplace.wordpress.com/2011/08/25/move-in-day-cookout/#comments Thu, 25 Aug 2011 12:14:05 +0000 presbyplace1 http://presbyplace.wordpress.com/?p=221 ]]> come by THE BEND (corner of patterson and midland) tomorrow (friday the 26th) from 11-1 for a free cookout in the side yard. we’ll also be around before and after the lunch hour offering free temporary parking, cold water, restrooms, etc. come see us!

For God didn’t give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control. – 2 Timothy 1:7

The late William Sloan Coffin, peace activist and chaplain atYaleUniversity, was known for saying that “the opposite of love is not hate but fear.”

There are normal, useful, fears, of course, which prompt us to do things such as escape from danger, pay our bills, and even study for exams. But these fears and others, when allowed to grow out of proportion, begin to act as shackles that prevent us from fully living life and expressing love. When we are enslaved by fear and the compulsions fear generates, we can no longer live in service to God.

As evidenced by the scripture above, even our ancestors of the faith struggled with what to do with fear. They were not rehearsing abysmal scenarios in their heads of failed classes, angry parents, or repeated semesters, but they knew something of legitimate fear and also of debilitating, disproportionate fear.

So perhaps Paul’s words to them can apply to us as well; perhaps we too can find our way out of fear with power, love, and self-control.

As exam week drags on, ask yourself what power you have to steer you away from poor performance. What measures of self-control could you take to ensure that you are ready, in mind, body, and soul, for the challenges set before you? Use your sense of agency to escape from the spirit of fear and its compulsions. Then, even in exam week, you can be free to live life fully and express love.

after all, our location at the corner of patterson and midland is a bend of sorts. and “the bend” evokes a sense of flexibility and mystery (you never know what’s around the bend!). the image is a play on the road signs posted on curvy thoroughfares:

only the twists and turns of life are often more complicated than the above sign depicts. the bend is a place where these complications are honored and explored in an honest and authentic way. wherever you are headed, and from wherever you’ve come, we hope your journey brings you to the bend along the way.

He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” — Luke 10:27

These words are the meat in a scripture sandwich that is held together on one end by a lawyer who is testing Jesus, and on the other end by Jesus’ story of the good Samaritan. The lawyer has memorized the rules of religion and society, as referenced in the passage above. He states them succinctly in the process of trying to trump Jesus with his impressive, nitpicky, knowledge.

Jesus, on the other hand, does more than recite the facts. He gives these truths a narrative. He fleshes out their meaning with a story that is less simple but more beautiful.

As readers of these scriptures, we have the opportunity to move beyond recitation and memorization and into the complicated Jericho road journey, where neighbors need our help. The characters in Jesus’ story had to move beyond their understanding of good religious practice and into a world where cleanliness laws, time parameters, and the threat of danger came into play. This required a completely different kind of knowledge than that of the lawyer who tested Jesus – a kind that is less simple and more beautiful.

As college students, you are required to arm yourselves with the kind of knowledge you will need to do well on your exams. But don’t stop there! Apply what you have learned to the stories of your lives, where you can live out long, rambling answers that are less simple and more beautiful. Perhaps this is what it means to love the Lord your God with all your mind.

In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.  – Philippians 4:6-7

Contemporary writer and lay theologian, Anne Lamott, reports that in her fervent prayer life, she really only prays two prayers. The first is “thank you.” The second is “HELP!”

There is really no time and place to better learn the intricacies of the “HELP” prayer like final exam week in college. Even after sharpening the mind with hours of study, one is often left to survey the large gap between one’s abilities and the goal at hand. Beyond college, these gaps continue to make themselves known. We are only human. The world is full of great expectations, our own and those of others. How can we cover that ground between where we are and where we want to be? We can’t do it alone. Why else would the “HELP” prayer be so popular?

Paul instructs the Philippians to temper their anxieties with prayer, not just occasional prayer, but prayer “in everything.” These don’t have to be complex prayers. We don’t have to craft poetry. In our prayer lives, there are no exams or final grades. Sometimes the most sincere prayers are the simplest.

Why not try some one-word Anne Lamott prayers in the coming days? Grades and test performance do matter but there is something else at work that matters too. May you glimpse the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding this week. And may it guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.