There are two sides to every picture, the front and the back, looking out and looking in; the picture is seen differently from different perspectives. I remember a time of waiting – a time of frustration and of hope, a time of planning and re-planning, a time of not knowing. I remember thinking, ‘What do […]
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God, fill me to overflowing. Empty me of the bile of disdain, the sour taste of harsh judgement, the hurtful bite of sarcasm, the sharp nettle of scorn. Open my mouth and my hand that all the bile juices might flow out and away, that I might be free, left clean. Fill me now with […]
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By your side There is peace, A quiet place Of beauty and realisation, Where wisdom Seeks reason and understanding, Where myth is laid to rest By the reality of knowledge. By your side There is hope, That arrogance and greed Will not destroy, That selfless love Will prevail. By your side Life is sacred, A […]
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Today’s lament What’s this pit in my stomach, God? Where has my equilibrium gone? Why does my trust waver? Events, some which have not yet transpired, fill me with fear. The writing – bold crude graffiti – seems to be on the walls Surrounding my thoughts Love, break through Hope, shine relentlessly into this darkness […]
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Water falls from the ledge, Cascading rhythm. Marking time, pacing life, Upstream, downstream. Flowing shower, rainbow maker. Sunshine splinters, renegade drops That glitter on leaves, flowers, ferns And plunge roaring into the depths Where waves pulse the shore Dancing to the tune Of your perfect time. Summer flower birthed from the spring button Warmth and […]
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Light of the world, illuminate our darkness. Horrific images of hate and vengeance bombard us. On-going destruction of your creation deflates us. Where are you? We don’t see you. Fear fills us. Where are your angels? The refrain, ‘Do not be afraid,’ rings hollow, Empty, false. The dream of peace shattered. The promise of justice […]
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Inspired by a ‘Shamanic Journey’ into the Dordogne Caves of France to respectfully view the 30,000 year-old prehistoric art, paintings and etchings buried beneath mud, perhaps from a landslide, for 18,000 years. This might be used in an Eco-spirituality service, inviting participants to reflect on their experiences of God through/in nature and history. The animal […]
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What is it about a gentle breeze Is it the breath of God stirring your senses? What is it about the sound of birds greeting the morning that reminds you you are not alone? What is it about the sound of rushing water that soothes the soul – washing away any negative thoughts that are […]
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What of colour and faith? What colour would you assign to love or to peace? What colour symbolises God or Jesus? What colour comes to mind at mention of the spirit? How would you use colour to describe the feelings and emotions of trust, joy, anger, depression, dreams, hope, loneliness, or thankfulness? David explains: ‘As […]
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Yesterday, I took my tears to the trees, and walked through the woods crying, and singing. Four intentions ground me today. God help me: Feel my feelings, and help them flow. Be in movement; move in rhythm with life around me. Remember: while the feeling of love may come and go, the Love that is […]
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Where do you live, God? Where can I find you abiding? I find you in moments of awe – breathing in the odour of lavender I find you in moments of wonder – looking across the icy waters toward the snow-covered hills I find you in moments of anxiety—lighting the flame of a devotional candle […]
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inspired by Romans 12.1 Beloved, we are all one in this. The Spirit is yearning in you, the mercy of God birthing in you. Give all of yourself to God, not just your mind: your hands and eyes, your breath and loins, your hungers and your energies, your skin and its secrets, your frailties and […]
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Womb of light from whom we shine, but whom we cannot see but by looking away, only the unseen hides you, eye of darkness, ring of light, mystery of day’s bright night. We too are you, eclipsed. Let our horror of losing you remain. What conceals you reveals you, but only the merest edges of […]
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You have walked with me in the shadows and held for me the light I couldn’t see You have struck for me the blows and suffered the pain which striking them must bring you for the sake of my soul You have honoured me with your ruthlessness and comforted me with your tenderness You have […]
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It is enough, what I have here But only if your voice is heard Above the clamour of the world That still, small voice may fade away Unless I make a place for it Pulling aside the curtains of my mind Holding onto the voice that has a root in me A place where it […]
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Light and shadow carve the stone of the cliff face morning and evening. The light is stronger than the stone. Each day sun and wind work their art on the sea, a different masterpiece every day. Creating God, I am your canvas. Your light, your wind, your grace raining down paint your Word on me, […]
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The Revelations of Ashley All religious scriptures are the words of humans about God, not God’s words to humans. They were written by humans no holier than you or I. Just because lots of people believe a scripture is absolutely true, that doesn’t mean that it should make any more sense to you than a […]
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I am the wick You are the flame I am the silence You are the presence I am the space You are the stillness I do not know how to pray as I ought But I hold still and you pray in me. I am the seen You are the rest Visit Steve’s blog, Unfolding Light, […]
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God of my breath, may the leaves of your trees in their billions open in me. The waves of the sea eternally bowing in prayer move in me. The cry of the hawk echoing in the canyon resound in me. The blessing rain coming down like tears, like hair, like a mother’s milk, come down […]
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Matthew 18:21-35 To forgive you will pass through the sea. You will leave much behind: what is owed, obligations, the heavy chains of your master anger. Just leave them. You will be tempted to turn back and fight but that is the slavery you are escaping, the lie of superior and inferior, the cruel economy […]
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A tool to use while walking through Lent: the Stations of the Cross, responding to 14 questions from Jesus Ideas for using this tool during Lent: Idea: engage with the questions by contemplating them as Stations of the Cross. Participants might be invited to write their reflections on papers and put them in baskets or […]
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Teach me the habits that love you Show me the visions that ring true Shower on me the light that shines through In all of this hold me Give me the courage to reach out Help me to challenge where I find doubt Let me grow so I am curious about How you are holding […]
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Loving God, Help me savour the season Of foliage falling all around Bearing beauty in dying Slowly turning the green Into yellow, red, and orange A Holy Fire of sense and spirit. Let it pause me into wonder At cycles revealing life large An outer and inner motion Bearing birth and death In constant conversation […]
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Along the dirt path, past golden grasses nodding in the breeze and stubby juniper trees studded with pale blue-green aromatic berries, through narrows the water rushes, falling over steeps in smooth sheets. Around bends it tumbles, creating backflows that spin into eddies. We are whirlpools in the stream of the universe, eddies consisting of eddies […]
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Just being. This is a time for just being. Time is a gift, just as nature is a gift – a gift for just being; being one with the chatter of birds, the hum of the freeway in the distance, one with the sunlight through the gnarled oaks playing patterns on the path, one with […]
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Distract us From overthinking situations Beyond our control Distract us From being led astray By the lure of temptations Distract us From the vain pursuit of fame Wealth and status Focus our hearts On following and nurturing Shepherd us well A version for personal devotion: Distract me From overthinking situations Beyond my control Distract me […]
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Be still Let the sound of nothing absorb you Be still Let time be motionless and free Be still Let clouds roll by in an unending sky Be still Don’t let thoughts intrude – let go Be still Grasp the precious freedom of now Be still This is just us, you and I, in communion […]
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Inspired by Genesis 32: 22-32 God, thank you for your love which perseveres, touching our lives, not just in an hour of worship but every day. Your persistent love attends the world, day in and day out, year in and year out. Grant us perseverance, like Jacob, to stand steadfast in our convictions, to hold on […]
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O Blossoming Love, Creator of all that is Unfold my life… Revealing less of me And more of Thee In my planning Less of me And more of Thee In my worrying Less of me And more of Thee In my hoping Less of me And more of Thee In my creating Less of me […]
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Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground without God. —Matthew 10.29 God does not go around pulling birds out of the air. God is not sitting at a control panel. God does not “plan” your victory or defeat, cancer, your accident, the moment of […]
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Loving God Creator God Accepting God Forgiving God Guiding God Encouraging God Restoring God Transforming God Leading God Blessing God Inspired by a pilgrimage to Iona, Scotland
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God is Love, the cosmic creativity present everywhere and in everything, Gently urging all toward the good. To transcending Love, we raise our awestruck praise! Jesus embodied the Love that is God. He loved the poor, the sick, the outcast, He loved the unpopular, and even his own enemies. He loved so completely, he loved […]
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This might be used as a corporate prayer, substituting ‘we’ for I’. It might also be used at a service of affirmation — an induction, ordination, baptism, re-commitment or confirmation, substituting ‘you’ for ‘I’. May I…. Hands at third eye centre: May I see things as they really are, and not as how I want […]
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Wild God – words to Jesus It seems to us that things would be much easier if you would just do what we ask, Jesus, If you were more compliant and co-operative, more flexible and adaptable, more open to follow agendas other than your own. But frustratingly, you refuse to be tamed, Jesus. You won’t […]
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Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. –Paul’s letter to the Romans 8:26 My newborn grandson in my arms, Asleep in guileless peace – Heaven brought to earth afresh In sighs too […]
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The doors open the doors close *behind us, the world *before us, sanctuary *and the stillness of God Be prayer quiet Share quiet Shore up the noisy clanging *in your soul *on your lips Allow God to find you *bind you up *in [God’s] peace Unwind your spirit Let it float *on the song of […]
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This reflection might be read on Easter morning, or during a time of meditation, having distributed a hazelnut for each participant to hold. Text: Wee, wizened pod of latent life, dormant hope protecting, I hold your power entire within my hand and wonder […]
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Before you know it, your kid’s childhood is over and she’s gone off to college. Before you know it, your vacation is over and it’s time to go back to work. Before you know it, the storm has passed and the sky is clear. Before you know it, way too much of your life has […]
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Care. Tender care. Soul care. Spiritual care. Material care. Collective care. Not self care, no. Or, rather, not only self care. Because no self is separable from the multitude of our relations, and we are made for murmurations, and our lives and legacies and futures are bound up together, even now, even now. So, yes, […]
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Loving is sharing in beauty. Living is sharing in the earth’s great cycles–life and death, crucifixion and resurrection, germination and bloom, sorrow and wonder and solace. Our sorrow is deep. Our connection, pulsing too. Practicing resurrection is recognizing the love that flows through the heart of the world. Being alive is a gift. Tuning into […]
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