Tuesday, November 24, 2009

2. GOD IS LOVE; GOD IS GREAT



Be Thou my vision (Celtic version)
Be Exalted O God (1960s song adapted from Psalm 57:5)

*****

God, my shepherd! I don't need a thing.
You have bedded me down in lush meadows,
you find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.

Even when the way goes through
Death Valley,
I'm not afraid
when you walk at my side.
Your trusty shepherd's crook
makes me feel secure.

You serve me a six-course dinner
right in front of my enemies.
You revive my drooping head;
my cup brims with blessing.

Your beauty and love chase after me
every day of my life.
I'm back home in the house of God
for the rest of my life.

*****

God claims Earth and everything in it, God claims the world and all who live on it.

*****

Bless the Lord my soul, And all that is within me, bless your holy name...
Lord in your mercy, Lord in your mercy, hear my prayer...
In the Lord I'll be ever thankful
Lift up your voices... the Lord is here...
(Taize songs and prayers)

*****

* What we believe about God is the most important thing about us (A.W. Tozer)

* God loves each of us as if there were only one of us (St. Augustine) To say that I am made in the image of God is to say that love is the reason for my existence, for God is love. Love is my true identity. Selflessness is my true self. Love is my true character. Love is my name (Thomas Merton)

* Saint Augustine wrote in his Confessions: 'You are my God, my Life, my holy Delight, but is this enough to say of you? Can any man say enough when he speaks of you?'

* 'In the beginning God...' That's the way the Bible begins. Our story starts with God. In fact, if God had not said, 'Let there be...' we would have had no story to tell... The much-maligned doctrine of the Trinity is an assertion that, appearances to the contrary withstanding, there is only one God. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit mean that the mystery beyond us, the mystery among us, and the mystery within us are all the same mystery. Thus the Trinity is a way of saying something about us and the way we experience God. [Frederick Buechner]

* There is a God-shaped vacuum in every heart... [And] tt is the heart which experiences God, not the reason. (Blaise Pascal)

* Some people want to see God with their eyes as they see a cow, and to love Him as they love their cow-for the milk and cheese and profit it brings them. This is how it is with people who love God for the sake of outward wealth or inward comfort.
(Meister Eckhart)

* I love you, Lord,
not doubtingly but with absolute certainty.
Your Word beat upon my heart
until I fell in love with you
and now the universe
and everything in it
tells me to love you... (Augustine).

* O God, I love thee, I love thee -
Not out of hope of heaven for me
Not fearing not to love and be
In the everlasting burning.
Thou, thou, my Jesus, after me
Didst reach thine arms out dying,
For my sake sufferedst nails and lance,
Mocked and marred countenance,
Sorrows passing number,
Sweat and care and cumber,
Yea and death, and this for me,

And thou couldst see me sinning:
Then I, why should not I love thee,
Jesus, so much in love with me?
Not for heaven's sake; not to be
Out of hell by loving thee;
Not for any gains I see;
But just the way that thou didst me
I do love and I will love thee:
What must I love thee, Lord, for then?
For being my king and God. Amen.

(Gerard Manley Hopkins)

*****

Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden:
Cleanse the thoughts of my heart
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that I may perfectly love you
and worthily magnify your holy name:
through Jesus Christ my Lord.
Amen.

*****

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
Bow down before him, his glory proclaim;
with gold of obedience, and incense of lowliness,
kneel and adore him: the Lord is his Name!

Low at his feet lay thy burden of carefulness,
high on his heart he will bear it for thee,
and comfort thy sorrows, and answer thy prayerfulness,
guiding thy steps as may best for thee be.

Fear not to enter his courts in the slenderness
of the poor wealth thou wouldst reckon as thine;
for truth in its beauty, and love in its tenderness,
these are the offerings to lay on his shrine.

These, though we bring them in trembling and fearfulness,
he will accept for the Name that is dear;
mornings of joy give for evenings of tearfulness,
trust for our trembling and hope for our fear.

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
bow down before him, his glory proclaim;
with gold of obedience, and incense of lowliness,
kneel and adore him: the Lord is his Name!

*****

O God,
light of the minds that know you,
life of the souls that love you,
strength of the thoughts that seek you:
Help me so to know you
that I may truly love you,
so to love you
that I may fully serve you
whose service is perfect freedom;
through Jesus Christ my Lord.
Amen.

*****

O most merciful Redeemer, Friend and Brother,
may I know you more clearly,
love you more dearly,
and follow you more nearly,
day by day. Amen.

*****

Faithful One, so unchanging
Ageless One, You're my rock of peace.
Lord of all, I depend on You.
I call out to You.
Again and again
I call out to You.
Again and again.

You are my rock in times of trouble.
You lift me up
when I fall down.
All through the storm
your love is the anchor

My hope is in you alone.

*****

Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill to all people.
I praise you, I bless you, I worship you, I glorify you, I give thanks to you for your great glory.
Lord, King, heavenly God, Father, almighty; Lord, the only‑begotten Son, Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit.
Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on me, you who take away the sins of the world.
Receive my prayer, you who sit at the right hand of the Father, and have mercy on me.
For you only are holy, only you are Lord
Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Each day I bless you, and I praise your name forever and to the ages of ages.



*****

MORE... OPTIONAL

The Nicene Creed (modern version)

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. AMEN.


Notes: Be Thou my Vision (Celtic Version), another version with beautiful graphics; Be Exalted O God;, Psalm 23, Psalm 24:1; Taize songs and prayers; O Worship the Lord; 'O Most Merciful Redeemer' is adapted from a prayer by Richard of Chichester; Faithful One - about the best song to come out of the Vineyard movement - try this for accompaniment or this for chords.

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