Atlanta Update Eight...
“We thank Thee that Thy church, unsleeping,
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night.”
--John Ellerton.
THE SERVICE OF Evening Prayer and Eucharist begins every Wednesday at 6:30 in the Evening. I affectionately call this service, “Masspers.” It has the Psalms, the two readings from scripture, the two Canticles (Songs of Mary and Simeon - both from Luke) and the prayers from Evening Prayer. Then, after a short sermon, the exchange of Peace, and the offertory, we head straight into the Eucharist. It is a wonderful way to end a day of service to God. After the service, a Church in the diocese provides a meal and everyone goes home well fed. For this service I assist at the table, read the scriptures, and preach.
WHILE SITTING IN my chair to the right of the Altar and roasting in my robes, I watch the western light filter through the solid blocks of color on our “stained glass” windows. Often, this evening light seems to make the Church glow, before the florescents overpower its soft hues. Much like the smell of baking cookies or the hug of an old friend, Evening Prayer is a great comfort to me. There, as light dies in the west and my body begins to feel the day heavy upon its shoulders, I pause and invite Him once again to invade my life.
THE PSALMIST ONCE wrote: “Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments. (119:164).” Many Christians sought to praise the Lord seven times a day, especially in the monastic communities where they sought to “redeem the time (Ephesians 5:16)” not only for themselves, but also for the Church and for the world. Inspired by their witness to the cross and resurrection, I tried to praise the Lord “seven times a day” too. But life would more than often get in the way and I would end up praising the Lord once or twice a day. In a few words, I let the temptation of quantity to overwhelm the quality of my prayer life.
THE PRAYER BOOK, however, took the very Judeo-Christian concept of seeking after the Lord at intermittent periods and simplified it to be used by those who are “in the world.” Just because one’s vocation prevents one from keeping the seven-times-a-day scheme, does not mean that a Christian’s vocation to prayer is any less important or powerful. The Anglican order of services focuses primarily on Morning and Evening Prayer (with the ’79 Episcopal additions of Noon Prayer and Prayers before Bedtime).
WHEN ALL WAKE and stretch towards the rising sun, we pray for the Church and the world. We pray and look to God to invade our day and to help us keep our focus continually on Him as the sun sends its life-giving life onto the face of the earth. When the sun begins its rapid descent into the horizon and most begin to head home, we pray for the Church and the world. We ask for the forgiveness of our many sins, not seeking to “dissemble or cloak them” but to open our hearts fully before the one who is our advocate. We pray that our work is not futile but that in all we do, our work may be a an “offering, pleasing to the Lord.” And through the prayers of the Church, the world is blessed.
I ENCOURAGE YOU, therefore, in the morning and at evening to bless the Lord. In the morning, turn towards the rising sun, open your Bible and pray a few Psalms, ask the Lord to bless your family, friends and your enemies. In the evening pause after your meal and recall the day. Ask forgiveness of your sins, pray a few Psalms and ask the Lord to be with all that are in need. Whether your prayers are liturgical or extemporaneous, use the Morning and the Evening as an excuse to turn to the Lord and the sun as a marker of his mercies. This is all a part of being a “living sacrifice (Ro. 12:1).”
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night.”
--John Ellerton.
THE SERVICE OF Evening Prayer and Eucharist begins every Wednesday at 6:30 in the Evening. I affectionately call this service, “Masspers.” It has the Psalms, the two readings from scripture, the two Canticles (Songs of Mary and Simeon - both from Luke) and the prayers from Evening Prayer. Then, after a short sermon, the exchange of Peace, and the offertory, we head straight into the Eucharist. It is a wonderful way to end a day of service to God. After the service, a Church in the diocese provides a meal and everyone goes home well fed. For this service I assist at the table, read the scriptures, and preach.
WHILE SITTING IN my chair to the right of the Altar and roasting in my robes, I watch the western light filter through the solid blocks of color on our “stained glass” windows. Often, this evening light seems to make the Church glow, before the florescents overpower its soft hues. Much like the smell of baking cookies or the hug of an old friend, Evening Prayer is a great comfort to me. There, as light dies in the west and my body begins to feel the day heavy upon its shoulders, I pause and invite Him once again to invade my life.
THE PSALMIST ONCE wrote: “Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments. (119:164).” Many Christians sought to praise the Lord seven times a day, especially in the monastic communities where they sought to “redeem the time (Ephesians 5:16)” not only for themselves, but also for the Church and for the world. Inspired by their witness to the cross and resurrection, I tried to praise the Lord “seven times a day” too. But life would more than often get in the way and I would end up praising the Lord once or twice a day. In a few words, I let the temptation of quantity to overwhelm the quality of my prayer life.
THE PRAYER BOOK, however, took the very Judeo-Christian concept of seeking after the Lord at intermittent periods and simplified it to be used by those who are “in the world.” Just because one’s vocation prevents one from keeping the seven-times-a-day scheme, does not mean that a Christian’s vocation to prayer is any less important or powerful. The Anglican order of services focuses primarily on Morning and Evening Prayer (with the ’79 Episcopal additions of Noon Prayer and Prayers before Bedtime).
WHEN ALL WAKE and stretch towards the rising sun, we pray for the Church and the world. We pray and look to God to invade our day and to help us keep our focus continually on Him as the sun sends its life-giving life onto the face of the earth. When the sun begins its rapid descent into the horizon and most begin to head home, we pray for the Church and the world. We ask for the forgiveness of our many sins, not seeking to “dissemble or cloak them” but to open our hearts fully before the one who is our advocate. We pray that our work is not futile but that in all we do, our work may be a an “offering, pleasing to the Lord.” And through the prayers of the Church, the world is blessed.
I ENCOURAGE YOU, therefore, in the morning and at evening to bless the Lord. In the morning, turn towards the rising sun, open your Bible and pray a few Psalms, ask the Lord to bless your family, friends and your enemies. In the evening pause after your meal and recall the day. Ask forgiveness of your sins, pray a few Psalms and ask the Lord to be with all that are in need. Whether your prayers are liturgical or extemporaneous, use the Morning and the Evening as an excuse to turn to the Lord and the sun as a marker of his mercies. This is all a part of being a “living sacrifice (Ro. 12:1).”