The Call to Prayer May God direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ. 2 Thessalonians 3:5 The Request for Presence Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing word, for I have put my trust in you. Teach me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. Psalm 143:8 The Greeting Because of your great love, O God, we are not consumed, for your compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Adapted from Lamen

“Many others have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events which have been fulfilled among us, exactly as those happenings were passed on to us by the original eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word. I too have investigated everything carefully from the beginning and have decided to set it down in writing for you, noble Theophilus, so that you may see how reliable the instruction was that you received.” - Luke 1:1-4 We will be studying the Gospel of Luke from Christm

The Call to Prayer Sing to YHWH, you who love God! Praise God’s holy name! ...There may be tears during the night, but joy comes in the morning. Psalm 30:4-5b The Request for Presence For in you our hearts find joy; we trust in your holy name. Psalm 33:21 The Greeting You changed my despair into a dance—you stripped me of my death shroud and clothed me with joy. That’s why my heart sings to you, that’s why I can’t keep silent—YHWH, you are my God, and I will thank you forev

Joy. Joy is both exciting and elusive. We all want joy because we yearn to feel happy, to feel good. But, often joy seems just out of reach as we grasp for it. We yearn nostalgically for days past when we remember feeling joy at Christmas. We remember the colourful lights, the sweet cookies, the shiny presents. But none of that is where the joy we remember came from. All of those things came and went, but that’s not joy’s nature. Joy grows from a deep foundation, a ro

The Call to Prayer Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication 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 minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 The Request for Presence Come, Lord Jesus, and speak peace to those who are far off and peace to those who are near, for through you we all have access in one Spirit to the Father. Adapted from

“They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” Isaiah 2:4 In this verse about peace, the word peace does not appear, but the actions described embody peace. Laying down weapons in order to transform them into farming tools beautifully describes the change from conflict to teamwork: swords we swing at each other, plowshares we use side-by-side and share

The Call to Prayer The eyes of YHWH look on those who stand in reverence, on those who hope in God’s love. Psalm 33:18 The Request for Presence And so we wait for YHWH, our help and our shield. Psalm 33:20 The Greeting May your love be upon us, O God, as we place all our hope in you. Psalm 33:22 The Hymn Come, thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free; from our fears and sins release us; let us find our rest in thee. Israel’s strength and consolation, hope of all

“Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not be faint.” - Isaiah 40:31 The hope of God is an unending well of infinite hope. This year, Stacey Abrams inspired me to hope. I wrote the following, inspired by her perseverance in the face of constant adversity. There comes a time in everyone’s life when they will be knocked down. When you fall prone like this, the q

The Call to Prayer The righteous cry and YHWH hears them, and delivers them from all their troubles. YHWH is near to the broken-hearted and saves those whose spirits are crushed. Psalm 34:17-18 The Request for Presence Be pleased, O God, to deliver me. O YHWH, make haste to help me! Psalm 70:1 The Greeting Let your steadfast love, O YHWH, be upon us, even as we hope in you. Psalm 33:22 The Hymn Out of my bondage, sorrow and night, Jesus I come; Jesus I come; into thy freedo

“Trust in God always, my people; pour out your hearts before God our refuge.” - Psalm 62:8 On Sunday we will begin a new liturgical calendar in the church. It is like the Christian New Year, in a sense. We spend the beginning of the liturgical calendar preparing for Jesus’ birth. One way to prepare to celebrate Jesus’ birth is to add a spiritual practice to your life. This year, as we enter winter with the pandemic’s second wave upon us, adding a practice of daily prayer