June 21, 2011 Prayer Call

The following is a sample from a “word release” prayer writing exercise from June 18, 2011, where the leader spoke out preselected words periodically for the writers to incorporate. Everyone was first instructed to write their favorite name for God at the top, and then begin their prayer. Used by permission.

Leader reads the plain text, group reads response in bold.

Jesus, my brother,

Sow across the sky like an airplane over boundless earth

Dropping potential like leaflets of peace indicate the end of wars.

Sow across mountain and beaches, deserts, jungles, tundra and prairies

Rolling your thunder into the earth like dough, rising with yeast

Becoming bread of life.

Rest upon the water, crushed of wars,

out of bloody streams you bring wine, sweet, new,

the tannins a jewel in the deltas and pearls in the gulfs,

restoring,

wash away decay and pollution,

restoring life in the marshes and bogs.

The swamps rise to meet you and glory in your name, brother,

as you pass over the whole earth in your living kindness.

Accept my prayer today.

I dream of a planet of art without propaganda and billboards of truth,

advertising nothing but connection with each other.

I dream of a river flushing selfishness to the seas, freezing into a berg and drifting to the unknown arctic never to be seen again.

I dream a king so powerful and humble that each servant grows like a spreading oak,

standing strong and growing to their full height.

I dream a church of wonder, surprise, waiting with suspended breath for creation renewed, for dances with stars, for the songs of the planets to reach the earth telling your greatness even afar, at such distance you’ve flown and sown and grown and been known.

Accept my prayer today.

Jesus my priest and king after the order of Melchizedek,

Dive now in your mighty flying craft and retake the world and make your dreams reality.

Come accept my prayer today.

Jesus my wisdom and shelter,

hold me in the palm of your hand.

My sailboat struggles against sky and wave and I know so little of sailing and of future. Brilliant sun, softer moon, and Northern star are only glimpses of your direction,

East and West, southern heat, alive with the scents of bougainvillea and curry, flour and corn tortillas,

draw and quarter me as I hang on to what’s called of me right at home.

Be my anchor, be my travel, be my sense of smell,

be my seven wonders of the world, and make me alive.

Accept my prayer today.

Over the fields of ripening corn and beans, mint, hops, orchards of apples and peaches, berry farms and even over tended golf courses your breath infuses the world.

Meditation

Prayer for others

Benediction

You are oxygen.

You are blood in the aorta

you are breath,

you are pulse

you are life abundant.

You are silent presence

you are all open spaces and endless vistas

all virility and all healing.

You are all barren landscapes pointing to the creator,

you are the lushness of all creation growing in the cracks of cities,

in the cracks of rocks, in the cracks of sidewalks, the cracks of deserts,

the cracks of dawn and dusk, growing.

Thank you! Accept my prayer today.

May 17, 2011: Prayer Reading for Third Tuesdays Call

The following is based on several versions of the book of common prayer, and A Place Apart readings compiled and altered for Third Tuesdays Prayer. Leaders read plain text, group reads response in bold.







O Lord, let my soul rise up to meet you

as the day rises to meet the sun.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Come, let us bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

We who believe in freedom : cannot rest until it comes.

Psalm 86:6 – 10

Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer : and attend to the voice of my supplications.

In the time of my trouble I will call upon you : for you will answer me.

Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord : nor anything like your works.

All nations you have made will come and worship you, O Lord : and glorify your name.

For you are great; you do wondrous things : and you alone are God.

We who believe in freedom : cannot rest until it comes.

Holy ever present God
Nothing can separate me from your love
I receive fully the giftedness of life
I enter into the great mystery of being
Unafraid
Engulfed in the happiness of being
Connected to all life
Loving
Living in the victory won in Christ Jesus

It all ends now.
We are just plain sick of it.
Sick of the lie
Sick of the game
Sick of the systems
Sick of ourselves
Sick of the maintenance
Sick of being afraid
The yearning
The longing
The aching
To be alive
Begins
To overpower
Fear.
I will begin here

I will no longer be afraid
Of being afraid
Now the healing begins
Now the curtain is torn
Now the veil is lifted
Holy Healing God
I open myself to your healing of my fear

Meditation

Prayer for Others

Loving God, into your healing presence we bring those who suffer physical pain and ill
health, with them we bring their families and friends and all who care for them…….
May they be held in the deep peace of Christ.
Loving God, into your healing presence we bring those who suffer emotional and mental
pain, who experience anxiety and depression, suffering in mind and spirit, and all those
who love and care for them……
May they be held in the deep peace of Christ.
Loving God, into your healing presence we bring the suffering people of the world, those
experiencing oppression, injustice, poverty, division, violence and war……
May they be held in the deep peace of Christ.
Loving God, into your healing presence we bring those struggling to overcome addiction
and those suffering from abuse, those who love them and all who support and work with
them……..
May they be held in the deep peace of Christ.
Loving God, into your healing presence we bring those facing loss through the physical
death of loved ones, and those who have experienced loss through broken
relationships…..
May they be held in the deep peace of Christ.
Loving God, into your healing presence we bring those whose names and needs are not
known to us, but are known to you.
We name in our hearts those who are close to us.
May they be held in the deep peace of Christ.

Benediction

God of Hope
Fill us with Joy
Fill us with Peace
Fill us with Love
Holy Healing God
Thank you. Amen.

April 19, 2011: Prayer Reading for
Third Tuesdays Call

The following is based on several versions of the book of common prayer, and A Place Apart readings compiled and altered for Third Tuesdays Prayer. Leaders read plain text, group reads response in bold.




Shona stone sculpture

Holy of Holies
Father of order, mother embracing,
Son leading,
Spirit empowering;

Give us this day The bread of the earth for our bodies,
The bread of your body for our Earth.
Help us to enter the hours In reverent worship,
The day in constant prayer
We pray your blessing on our communion,
Upon the bread,
Your body broken for us,
Upon the wine,
Your blood shed for us.
As these elements enter our physical bodies
Dispersing to organs, cells, muscle and bone,
So let your presence
Disperse to touch each aspect of our
Individual spiritual bodies
And our body life within community.
Bless the work of our hands
Open us to the giftedness of our work.
May our work be a blessing to the community
In service to Christ Jesus.

Psalm 96:1 – 4, 11 – 13

Sing to the Lord a new song : sing to the Lord, all the whole earth.

Sing to the Lord and bless his name : proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.

Declare his glory among the nations : and his wonders among all peoples.

For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised : he is more to be feared than all gods.

Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea thunder and all that is in it : let the field be joyful and all that is therein.

Then shall all the trees of the wood shout for joy before the Lord when he comes : when he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world with righteousness : and the peoples with his truth. Amen.

Meditation

painting by Mark Daniels

Benediction:

Holy God
Holy communion
Holy order
Holy hours
Holy days
Holy seasons
Bless my sisters
Bless my brothers
The rhythms of the day
The work of my hands
My study
My prayer
The stranger you send to my door

A Place Apart Home www.apartvermont.org

March 15, 2011: Prayer Reading for Third Tuesdays Call



The following is based on several versions of the book of common prayer, and A Place Apart readings compiled and altered for Third Tuesdays Prayer.
Leaders read plain text, group reads response in bold.



Holy, Holy, Holy
Creator God
Beyond Comprehension,
Beyond mystery,
Present within every created thing,
Nurture the mystic within me.
Nurture the mystic within us.

Holy God,
Baptize me in your Holy Spirit
To speak in both human and angelic tongues.
Holy Spirit
Consume me in your holy fire.
Nurture the artist within me.
Nurture the artist within us.

May the work of my hands,
Impart the essence of my soul.
We offer our hands to you.

Allow me to enter into:
The song of the hermit thrush on the lower branches,
The beating heart of the winter wren on the stone wall,
The flight of the kittywake off the cliff’s ledge above the waves,
The eyes of the barred owl in the winter night.
Allow us to enter in and be changed.

Lord, let my soul rise up to meet you
as the day rises to meet the sun.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Come, let us bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Cleanse our hearts, Lord, by your Spirit : that we might praise your holy name.

(Based on Psalm 78:34 – 39)

Let us remember that God is our rock : and the Most High God our redeemer.

But we flattered You with our mouths : and lied to You with our tongues.

Our hearts were not steadfast toward You : and we were not faithful to Your covenant.

But You are so merciful that You forgive our sins and do not destroy us : many times You held back Your anger and did not permit Your wrath to be roused.

For You remember that we are but flesh : a breath that goes forth and does not return.

Cleanse our hearts, Lord, by your Spirit : that we might praise your holy name.

By FLORENCEandTUSCANsYtour

Benediction:

Remove the stone from the entrance
To the cave that shelters my heart,
To see as you see,
To love as you love,
To embody in my life
The message of the gospel
Revealed and set free in Christ.
After drawing my last breath
My body will merge into the earth
To be taken by spring rains
Into the streams flowing into rivers
To the oceans that touch every shore,
As my soul O God
Flows into you.

Holy God unite me
To the heartbeat of God,
The glowing heartbeat of life.
In your Spirit’s presence
I am fully alive.

Second Prayer Call Report

The second prayer call went well. Megan reiterated vision for these calls and then Jonathan led the prayer reading (that Megan created). We had visual art too, which was great, to reflect on. Jonathan introduced the silent prayer time with a quote from "the Practice of the Presence of God."

We then broke into two groups and prayed for the following things:
1. DSC Conference may 13-15.
2. DSC Groups:In TX, IN and OH. One excerpt from those prayers: "We ask for new confidence for the risk of being creative in front of others. Protection, bolstering of who they are. Equip them to overcome obstacles and the things that fill our time and keep us from the creative purposes you have for us."
3. Greenhouse Arts in CO.
4. Adam Fleming's coaching clients
5. Anna P's: Solo art exhibit
6. Jonathan Reuel's upcoming album
7. Zac's finances

1. Our Vision for the Third Tuesdays DSC Prayer Call call is that the love and purposes of God will mature in us and through us as we learn and pray together. We want to:
a. Follow Jesus in prayer - learn from what Jesus said re: prayer and what he modeled.
b. Pray in and for community - pray as a group, pray for the wider DSC community, the wider body, and beyond.
c. Pray creatively - practicing various forms of prayer including practicing the presence, personal house of prayer model, using images, silence, meditation, read prayers.

"If sometimes she becomes a little distracted from the divine presence, God gently recalls Himself by a stirring in her soul. This often happens when she is most engaged in her outward chores and tasks. She answers with exact fidelity to these inward drawings, either by an elevation of her heart to God, or by a meek and fond regard for Him, or by such words as love forms on these occasions. For instance, she may say, "My God, here I am all devoted to You," or "Lord, make me according to Your heart."

It seems to her (in fact, she feels it) that this God of love, satisfied with such few words, reposes again and rests in the depth and center of her soul. The experience of these things gives her such certainty that God is always in the innermost part of her soul that she is beyond doubting it under any circumstances." (From "the Practice of the Presence of God." Gender changed to reference us as the bride of Christ)

Feb 15, 2011: Prayer Reading for Third Tuesdays Call

The following is based on several versions of the book of common prayer, and A Place Apart readings compiled and altered for Third Tuesdays Prayer.
Leaders read plain text, group reads response in bold. Images of paintings by Mark Daniels.

O Lord, let my soul rise up to meet you
as the day rises to meet the sun.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.

Holy, Holy, Holy
Creator God
Beyond Comprehension,
Beyond mystery,
Present within every created thing,
Nurture the mystic within me.

Nurture the mystic within us.

Help me to awaken
From empty dreaming
So that I may become
One with you
And all creation.

Lord, Awaken us.

Source of all creativity, we are made in your image.

Thank you for giving us our creative natures. Thank you for giving us the ability to grow in skill and expertise.

Holy Spirit walk with me
As you walked with Christ
Into the desert,
The vast and empty space.

Lord, walk with us.

Walk me through the Valley
Of the shadow of death.
Expose my clinging
To the half-life,
To fear.

Lord, walk with us.

Shepherd us, Lord, with a faithful heart : and guide us in the way of truth.
You built your sanctuary like the heights of heaven : like the earth which you founded for ever.

Comfort me in my loneliness
So that I may comfort the lonely.

Holy Spirit, Let it be.

Through my suffering
Lead me to those who suffer.

Lamb of God, let it be.

Anoint my weeping
that I might weep with the brokenhearted.

Son of David, Let it be.

Use even my darkness
To bring forth light.
In my healing
Anoint me to heal.
Fill me with such abandon
That laughter becomes my second language.

Raiser of the Dead, Let it be!

So you shepherd us with a faithful and true heart : and guide us with the skillfulness of your hands.

Shepherd us, Lord, with a faithful heart : and guide us in the way of truth.

(Genesis 31:25 – 50 Hebrews 7:1 – 28)



Benediction:
Holy God unite me
To family and friends
To my community
To my enemies
To the poor
To the rich
To the hungry
To the filled
To the privileged
To the despised
To all humanity
To myself.
In your Spirit’s presence
I am fully alive.
In your Spirit's presence, we are fully alive.

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you : wherever he may send you;
may he guide you through the wilderness : protect you through the storm;
may he bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders he has shown you;
may he bring you home rejoicing : once again into our doors. Amen.

First Call Great

We just finished the first of our Third Tuesdays conference calls focused on prayer. We hope to do these every month.

We had a very small group of 5 which was good since we're working out how praying over the phone works. The call had a good balance of structure and creativity. We used a written prayer culled from several different daily prayer resources (including excerpts from A Place Apart's daily prayer cycle). We spent some time in silence, working on practicing the presence of God. We also took time to pray for the DSC groups in Ohio, Indiana and Texas. The TX group has their first regular meeting tomorrow, so the timing was good.

As a leader in the DSC for years I feel very relieved to see this happening and excited to be a part of it. It feels a bit like when your back has been slightly out of whack and it gets put right. This is something we need. This is good. This is part of who we are meant to be and we are becoming it -- steadily and surely -- because Someone patient and trustworthy is initiating and sustaining the process.

- Jonathan

Come join us on the third Tuesday of February.