Welcome to a Gathering of EChurch@Wartburg
Here is our Order of Worship
A Prayer of Ambrose (c 339-97) link
O Lord, who hast mercy upon all, take away from me my sins,
and mercifully kindle in me the fire of thy Holy Spirit.
Take away from me the heart of stone,
and give me a heart of flesh,
a heart to love and adore thee,
a heart to delight in thee,
to follow and to enjoy thee,
for Christ’s sake.
In Jesus name,
Amen
Prayer attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi link
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace
Where there is hatred, let me sow love
where there is injury, pardon
where there is doubt, faith
where there is despair, hope
where there is darkness, light
and where there is sadness, joy
O, Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console
to be understood as to understand
to be loved as to love
for it is in giving that we receive
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life
Amen
Scripture Reading: John 13:35 (NASB Bible Gateway)
By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
Prayer of St. Benedict link
O gracious and holy Father,
give us wisdom to perceive you,
diligence to seek you,
patience to wait for you,
eyes to behold you,
a heart to meditate upon you,
and a life to proclaim you;
through the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen
Father, thank you that you have revealed Your love to us today.
We invite You to send us out from here in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Fan into flame the gifts that you have given us,
Come reveal Your grace and truth to us each day.
For Yours is the Kingdom, the power and the glory,
Forever and ever.
God speaks so loudly in the quietest moments with a still small voice He reaches into the broken heart and mends the wounded soul. A bruised reed God will not break and a smoldering wick God will not put out. Jesus will breathe life into the embers of our lives to bring new flames of hope. I don’t always believe that often don’t see it, but God has never let me down, my view of God has, other people have but God has not.
I wish deeply I could take the pain away from all those that have suffered spiritual, physical, sexual abuse. Thank you to so many for sharing your hearts it is a blessing. Thanks for Echurch it really helps.
Not trying to improve on the prayer of St. Francis, just trying to make it more applicable to the work here.
“Where there is abuse and injustice, a way of escape and healing.”
And maybe this.
“Where there is an abuse of power, a revealing and a stemming of its ferocious tide.”
I know, they don’t fit in with the eloquence and simplicity in his prayer. I’m not suggesting them as a permanent addition. Just a little footnote or appendix for today only.
Mara wrote:
Praying along with you on this!
@ brian:
Thanks for your encouraging words. We are so glad EChurch is helping at this time.