It’s uncontrollable!
And my person
is
barely even
knowable
But it is.
By joy
satisfaction
contentment
You.
Church Year & Holy Days
Holy Saturday | Meditation for Holy Week (2019)
From Liberti Church’s Lent & Easter Prayerbook
Easter Oratorio
excerpt, by N. T. Wright
On the seventh day God rested
in the darkness of the tomb;
Having finished on the sixth day
all his work of joy and doom.
Now the Word had fallen silent,
and the water had run dry,
The bread had all been broken,
and the light had left the sky;
The flock had lost its shepherd,
and the seed was sadly sown,
The courtiers had betrayed their king,
and nailed him to his throne.
O sabbath rest by Calvary,
O calm of tomb below,
Where the grave-clothes and the spices
cradle him we did not know!
Rest you well, beloved Jesus:
Caesar’s Lord and Israel’s King,
In the brooding of the Spirit,
in the darkness of the spring.
~give time for silence, prayer, & meditation~
For Holy Saturday: “The Elements” [a poem]
Welcome, hello
Come in.
Take your shoes off
Set down your suitcase
And hang your jacket
Enjoy the fire; enjoy the tea
Rock the chair, back and forth
That’s all you can do right now.
Rest.
Your items will still be there when it’s done.
Your shoes–
the mud will be dry, they’ll feel like new
to aid you on your way
Your suitcase–
is not all that important, frankly
take it or leave it
it doesn’t do much
Continue reading
For Good Friday: “Gabriel Came on Friday (Magnificat)” [a poem]
Pierced–
Not of flesh nor will of man
But of heart by will of Him.
Deep within a shot was cast and burrowed in the bow
The fine line of ecstasy and horror homoousion‘d among
And within
Obedience was found on worthy lips, blessing bestowed for ages come.
Yet the blessing’s joy was as a bell in the mist:
Neither found or seen. Until the rocks came.
Continue reading
Good Friday | Meditation for Holy Week (2019)
From Liberti Church’s Lent & Easter Prayerbook
Go To Dark Gethsemane
James Montgomery
Go to dark Gethsemane,
You who feel the tempter’s pow’r;
Your Redeemer’s conflict see;
Watch with him one bitter hour;
Turn not from his grief away;
Learn of Jesus Christ to pray
Learn of Jesus Christ to pray.
Follow to the judgment hall;
View the Lord of life arraigned;
O the worm-wood and the gall!
O the pangs his soul sustained!
Shun not suff-ring, shame, or loss;
Learn of him to bear the cross
Learn of him to bear the cross.
Calv’ry’s mournful mountain climb
There adoring at his feet,
Mark the miracle of time,
God’s own sacrifice complete:
“It is finished!” Hear the cry;
Learn of Jesus Christ to die
Learn of Jesus Christ to die.
~give time for silence, prayer, & meditation~
For Maundy Thursday: “Tired” [a poem]
“Yes
it is time
to think about Christ
again.
I keep putting it off.”
Longing and lusting
Raging and seizing
Continue reading
Maundy Thursday | Prayer & Readings for Holy Week (2019)
Prayers & Readings from
Liberti Church’s Lent & Easter Prayerbook
Opening Prayer
My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
–from Psalm 121.2
~silence~
Scripture Reading
Luke 22.14-38 (msg) Continue reading
Wednesday | Prayer & Readings for Holy Week (2019)
Prayers & Readings from
Liberti Church’s Lent & Easter Prayerbook
Opening Prayer
My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
–from Psalm 121.2
~silence~
Scripture Reading
Luke 21.25-38 (msg) Continue reading
Tuesday | Prayer & Readings for Holy Week (2019)
Prayers & Readings from
Liberti Church’s Lent & Easter Prayerbook
Opening Prayer
My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
–from Psalm 121.2
~silence~
Scripture Reading
Luke 21.1-19 (msg) Continue reading
Monday | Prayer & Readings for Holy Week (2019)
Prayers & Readings from
Liberti Church’s Lent & Easter Prayerbook
Opening Prayer
My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
–from Psalm 121.2
~silence~
Scripture Reading
Luke 19.29-48 (msg) Continue reading
Palm Sunday or, “Oh, the Glory, the Beauty, & the Tragedy of Being Human!”
This past Sunday was Palm Sunday, the Christian holiday that ushers in Holy Week. It celebrates the “triumphal entry” of Jesus into Jerusalem (Mk 11:1-11). In hindsight, though, this is one of the oddest “triumphal entries” one could imagine. It is the triumphal kick-off for what would be the death of the Son of God for the sins of the world.
Even now, millennia removed from the events of this week, we still wonder at how this all works. How does one person’s death–however good they are–account for every sin of every human in all of history?
It only begins to make some sort of sense when we acknowledge that this great exchange is not between to equals. Jesus, the Good and Innocent human, cannot merely be “another man” dying for another.
For Palm Sunday: “The Emperor Has No Clothes” [POEM]
I feel far, Lord.
But I know you’re here. I know it.
(Do I?)
(Can I?)
It’s the nature of the matter; a matter of nature, I suppose.
Perhaps only now I feel at the deepest existential depths:
“I believe! Help my unbelief!”
Continue reading
Of Saints & Suicidal Ideations
Warning: this post talks about self-harm and suicidal thoughts. If you are experiencing this, you can chat online with the Suicide Prevention Lifeline or call at 1.800.273.8255.
We are in the final weeks of the Christian season of Lent: a time where we focus on the fact that we are not yet who we will be, and that we still live in much darkness, weakness, and self-obsession. On its own, this could become masochistic or over-indulgent depending on your personality. But this is why Easter comes on the other side as a call to cast off the brooding and soul-spelunking to rise into the highest heights of celebration and freedom the Resurrection offers.
But still, this time lends itself to sadder reflections. The other day, my coworkers and I were sharing stories of social work clients we’ve worked with over the years and I was brought back ten years to my first time encountering a suicidal client when I was brand new to the field.
I Am Ascended with Him (Happy Ascension Day)
Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled:
“Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
“Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
~ 1 Corinthians 15.51-58
I Am Healing, Growing, & Changing
the long way home 