iTalker » Street Prayers

Christmas means…

italker — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 10:37:07 +0000

Christmas means…
God has not forgotten us
We are not on our own
“God is with us”
He holds time and eternity in one hand
And ours in the other

Christmas means…
God is in conversation with us
He has spoken a Word
A huge Word
An all-encompassing Word
A Word that makes all other words sound redundant
This spoken Word became a human being
Jesus
His life was The Word lived out in time
For eternity

Christmas means…
God is waiting for our reply
So have we heard The Word?
Believed The Word?
Received The Word?

Are we waiting for another Word?
There is no other Word
The first and final Word is matchless
It is both Alpha and Omega

Christmas means…
God keeps His promises
While we live through
Broken promises
Empty dreams
Losing heart
God keeps his promise
His Word is true
I will redeem you
I will restore your life
You are FORGIVEN

Christmas means…
We can hope again
We can trust again
We can love again
We can begin all over again

Christmas means…
We believe in miracles
“God is with us”
Right beside us
His presence brings Peace
His Peace brings Love
His Love casts away Fear
Christmas means…
We are encircled with the Expectations of God

Looking For Meaning

italker — Tue, 10 May 2011 12:51:02 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

We leave no stone unturned
Looking for meaning
Searching for more
We often become the stones ourselves
Frantically looking
Patiently hoping to see
Someone
Something
Longing
To recognize a familiar
Sign
Or saying
Or smile
But everything looks the same
Yet nothing remains the same
Everything is turning
Changing but remaining empty
Our hearts beat faster
Time is ticking away
We are still seeking and searching
But never finding.
Facing
Disappointment
You me, all of us
Surrender
Give up the search
Slow down
Stand still
And
In the silence
You hear a voice
Calling your name
And all is well.

It was you.
You were lost.
But now you’ve been found
Its quite amazing the things you discover
About yourself
In the Resurrection garden
Looking at stones.
Turning
Rolling
Changing

Sharing Communion on the street on Good Friday?

italker — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 01:24:24 +0000

Today I started to put together a number of articles for the Parish Network. Its the new name we’re giving to our church broadsheet that we distribute around the parish. It go me thinking about some of the things we might plan for Holy Week. Before long I was reflecting on the amazing experience I had a few years ago when I took the bread and the wine out into the streets on Good Friday. It was a a profound experience. Taking Christ to the busy street on Good Friday. Literally standing with Christ and watching people pass by. It brought to my mind the verse in Lamentations 1.12 “Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look around and see. Is any suffering like my suffering that was inflicted on me, that the LORD brought on me in the day of his fierce anger?” Take a moment and click on the video to the right of the website. Its entitled “God so loved the World” you will see for yourself the responses of people as they walk past.

On another occasion on Good Friday i took to the streets and offered the public the opportunity to take the bread and the wine. I was taking the idea a step further, what does it mean to be a church without walls. A church that offers men and women on the street the healing symbols of forgiveness.

The question hanging over my actions was is this cheap grace? Am I by my actions demeaning the body and blood of Christ or could I by this very action be highlighting the communion service as a service of conversion and redemption? Am I encouraging in the words of Paul, men and women to be eating and drinking the bread and wine unworthily? The truth is I can’t look into the heart of a man or a woman even if they take communion in church. How do I know the state of a soul before Almighty God?

One thing I do remember a good number of people came forward and accepted the bread and wine. I have no doubt in my mind thatthey were were sincere and reverent as they approached to take the cup. Each in turn spoke of their faith in Christ. Many had tears running down their checks. This was not cheap grace. I wonder if non believers screen themselves. Perhaps many have more respect for the bread and wine than some might think.

In my experience, being involved in this action was everything that I believed about Jesus. God had come into our neighbourhood and the cross with all its power was once again being released on to the streets. The words of Jesus came to mind ” If I am lifted up I will draw all people unto me.” In a world where the visual language speaks louder than words Christ on the street in bread and wine spoke with great authority.

I don’t know what it is but there is something incarnational about sharing Communion on the street. It brings tears to my eyes. Perhaps we have locked up the most powerful symbols of the gospel for too long in our churches. Perhaps on the right occasions during the Christian festivals there is a place for the sacraments to be not only displayed but shared as a witness to the power of God come among us in Christ.

I’m looking to see what response will come from this post. I wonder if other ministers around the world might be willing to take Christ into the streets this year on Good Friday. If you are interested or want to discuss its merits feel free to add to the post. I’d love to see the story of Good Friday enacted on the streets of the world this year and what better way than communion. If your going to do it drop me an email or comment at the end of this post.

Its A New Dawn Its a New Year

italker — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 01:55:24 +0000

O Lord,
It’s a new day
It’s a new dawn
Can I have a new start
I’d like to start from the inside out
You know not so much style more substance
So could I please have a new attitude?
Help me be the change maker
in my family
in my workplace
in my church
Among my friends
Guard my lips
Teach me how to listen
Not only to others but to myself
It’s not what I say that causes offence
Its how I say it
Lord
One more thing
I’m sorry about my prayer life
It’s not been working for years
I keep forgetting to share with You
My thoughts, my plans, my dreams
My worries, my troubles, my hurts
Lord, its good to talk, its even better to pray
Thank you for a new dawn, a new day and a new year!

CHEESED OFF

italker — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 00:06:30 +0000

Look see me
I’m browned off
Brassed off
cheesed off
I mean it
I’m really cheesed off
I don’t like this feelin

I’m cheesed off
With God – why me – why all this suffering ?
I’m cheesed off
With work – why me – why all this pressure ?
I’m cheesed off
With my credit card – the interest rate is too high!
I’m cheesed off
With my family – surely its not always my fault
I’m cheesed off
With religion – they’re all hypocites
I’m cheesed off
With friends – all of them are takers
I’m cheesed off
With life – everything about me is so predictable
I think
is this it ?
My life
I mean
I’m lookin for more
I want to enjoy life
You know what – I want cake
I’m lookin for more – cheese cake
Yeah
I want lemon cheese cake
That’s the kind of life `I want
A lemon cheese cake life
Jesus says” I have come that you might have life more abundantly” John 10.10.
Lemon cheese cake? You’ve set your sights too low

Remembrance Sunday

italker — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 19:40:40 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

Cold damp November Sunday morning
Boots and berries
Top and toe,
comrades who once fought a common foe.
They march in solidarity to remember
what they have tried to forget.
Its sixty five years for some
since the guns fell silent.
For others the guns still pound
in their heads and in their hands
Their wounds are still fresh
Flesh and blood bind them together
Like brothers and sisters
in each others arms
They love
They fight
They give themselves to each other
To protect the other
Actions speak louder than guns
In the face of struggle
They act as one
No one turns back
All have placed their life on the line

Cold damp November Sunday morning
bodies lie limp and useless
Under a warm downie
They sleep
They rest
They snore
they dream
They can’t forget
They won’t remember
They’ve closed their eyes
And in their sleep
They become
The silent majority
Who stand for nothing
And fall for anything
Who turn their head
And ignore
The plight of a Mandela
Or a Suu Kyi
Or a soldier in the crossfire
Cold damp November Sunday
Just two minutes
Too busy
Too late
To Remember

Guard the Good Feed the Seed

italker — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 23:49:24 +0000

Here are some prayers we will use at Sanctuary First later on this evening.

Sower God
You sow seeds on our path
On our Journey
On our lives
Dreams
Hopes
Ambitions
Everything you sow is good

Help Us Guard the Good
Keep out the Doubt
We will not allow the darkness to steal our light.

Sower God
You never give up sowing the seed
Forgive us when we promise so much
And deliver so little
When we stand so tall one day
And wither in the heat of the next day
Make us fertile soil for your word

Guard our hearts give us staying power
Help us to follow without counting the cost

Sower God
Guard our hearts and minds
Protect us from our fears
Give us courage to hold on to your word
Even when we face opposition
Restore to us the joy of trusting your promises

Help us “Guard the Good”
Keep out Fear

Sower God
Remove the spirit of uncertainty from our souls
Reap a harvest in our lives
Let the fruit of your Spirit grow up
Harvest peace
Harvest joy
Harvest love

Help us “Guard the Harvest”
Grow in grace and share the fruit

Sower God
Set up Godly scarecrows in our lives
Chase evil from our door
Open our heart to your seed
In the stillness of the darkness
Stir up the gift of faith
Break open the seed into life

We will guard the good
And feed the seed

Sower God
Break up the rough ground in us
Plant you seed deep in our hearts
Take root and grow

We will guard the good
Feed the seed

Sower God
Water the seed and cause your face to shine on us
Let you word grow up tall in our lives
As we reach to touch the Son

We will guard the good
Feed the seed

Inchcolm Abbey

italker — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 08:43:41 +0000

Here is sanctuary
Gulls are singing praise to God
Stone and wood
Touch earth and sky with grace
The river laps the sand with ease
Ancient sounds of monks are heard in the breeze
Singing songs and chants of praise
Holy Holy is the Lord
Colm’s island speaks of God
Hermit prayers can still be heard
Saints and sinners voices cry
Amidst the ruins of our time
Forgive our sins, redeem our lives
We cry for sanctuary
Prayer never ceases it cannot die
It descends as peace to guard the soul
It fills the air around this ancient holy island
And holy men still prevail
Prayer lives on to be fulfilled
Colm’s voice still calls on God
To calm the tumult of the soul
Look around this holy place
Remove the guns and signs of war
Restore this to a place of prayer
Where troubled souls retreat
Without fear
To be at one with God.

This amazing island just a few miles down the river from where we live in Bo’ness. Some call it the iona of the East . Finally after many years of always meaning to go and visit I made the trip yesterday.
The Abbey is hidden away on a small island on the Firth of Forth a few miles down river from the famous Forth Rail Bridge. You have to take a sail from South Queensferry. This island has had holy men shelter and pray on it for centuries. The Abbey was built by David 1 of Scotland to give thanks to God for the island and the holy men who gave sanctuary to his brother who once sheltered from a raging storm in 1123. Centuries later it was used as a battlement in the Forth as part of the war efforts at the turn of the twentieth century. These instalations are still to be seen around the island. So here is a question. Could this be a venue for our U2 acoustic eucharist?

Cross Spaced Shape

italker — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 22:10:05 +0000

If your reading this blog and live near Bo’ness why not make a date and come and worship with us on Sunday 2 May at 6.30pm and share in our next Sanctuary First Service. If you live on the other side of the planet why not log in and share with us here in Bo’ness as we stream out live our contemporary multimedia worship service. www.standonline.org.uk
Just press the live stream button.

If you are looking for worship that is creative and biblical, reflective and theological, participatory and challenging, then Sanctuary First may well be for you. During the month of May we are going to reflect upon the result of living in ‘ A Cross Shaped Space” each day. You’ll be able to down load all your daily Bible readings and prayers from the Sanctuary First site. We’d love to have you join with us and engage with this service. Here is a taste of some of the material you will encounter. Have a listen to this meditation A Cross Shaped Space

Now have a read at one of the reflections relating to the barriers we put up preventing us from moving through the cross. I wrote this with the story of the poor widow in mind who ended up giving her all at the temple treasury. it got me thinking about the times when we putup our weakness and poverty as barriers to trust and faith in God.

A POOR WOMAN AT THE CROSS SHAPED SPACE

It’s strange isn’t it?
We all do it.
We make excuses
I mean we use our
Perceived weakness
Like a barrier
to keep people out.
To hide from ourselves.
We use
the things
the feelings
the attitudes
we have inherited
to define us.
Then we say
Sorry I can’t
I’m hopeless
I’m different from you
I’m not educated
I’m poor
I ‘m schizophrenic
I’m homosexual
I’m single
I’m married
I’m just a partner
I’m working
I’m tired
I’m not in charge
I’d love to but ..
I can’t

Its strange isn’t it
Something
Clicks and you
Simply change
You do something
You go out on a limb
You make a promise
You give something away

That’s what I did
I literally gave my poverty away
I opened my purse
I gave all I possessed to God
I can still hear it clinking in the box
Two little pennies
I had no more excuses left
I gave my weakness away
I walked through
A cross spaced shape
Into freedom
I felt strong
For the first time
In my life.

Mary Always Knew

italker — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 23:32:09 +0000

Mary always knew
there was more to Him than met the eye.
And now, she was looking into his eyes.
in a way that only a mother can.

She wasn’t going to make a scene
She detested violence
The voices were raised
The crowd was jostling
This was not about her.
She knew that.
This was always bigger than her.
Bigger than she could ever be
She smiles and cries and feels the pride well up
He looked dazed but not defeated
She thought
Tired but not exhausted
If only she could give him something to eat.

Her emotions were running riot
She wanted to take him home
Talk sense to him.
Everyone mother should have her son home for Passover.

She felt a tinge of anger well up.
He should have stayed a carpenter like his father.

Oh Joseph
I miss you Joseph,

Why was this happening to her son?
She blamed the crowd he had got mixed up with.
Prostitutes and publicans
Peter and James should have know better.
As for Judas she had never liked him
She had told Jesus on a number of occasions
She had warned him about the company he was keeping.
In fact his whole family had told him.
He was going too far
He had become too radical
She should have reigned him in.

Tears from no where streamed down her face
As she looked him over
He was his own man
God’s man
Son of Man
She smiled
She sighed
She knew
More than most
There was more to him than met the eye

She remembered the words of the old man Simeon
More than thirty years ago
The sword he spoke of was now “piercing her heart”

So many regrets
Memories flood back
In a flash
She remembered
Her fear
Her joy
Her shear naivety

When heaven entered her kitchen
She was just a girl
She had sang a song
And called Him her Saviour
What she knew
She always knew
He was never really her son
He was never really hers
He was always for everyone
The Light of the world
The Bread of Life
The way
The Truth
The Life
She knew it all to be true
She knew it
All from a mother’s glance