Lent daybook, 35: psalm prayers

My Lent daybook for these 40 days of prayer. Join me, won't you? (see previous Lent daybook 2016 posts here)

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look & listen

Poet and Pastor: Christian Wiman & Eugene Peterson from Laity Lodge on Vimeo.

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read

Every Riven Thing

God goes, belonging to every riven thing he’s made
sing his being simply by being
the thing it is:
stone and tree and sky, 
man who sees and sings and wonders why

God goes. Belonging, to every riven thing he’s made,
means a storm of peace.
Think of the atoms inside the stone.
Think of the man who sits alone
trying to will himself into the stillness where

God goes belonging. To every riven thing he’s made
there is given one shade
shaped exactly to the thing itself:
under the tree a darker tree;
under the man the only man to see

God goes belonging to every riven thing. He’s made
the things that bring him near,
made the mind that makes him go.
A part of what man knows,
apart from what man knows,

God goes belonging to every riven thing he’s made

Christian Wiman, from Every Riven Thing (2010). 

all readings for the day: Psalm 20; Judges 9:7-15; 1 John 2:18-28

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pray

Pray Psalm 20:

May the Lord answer us in the day of trouble!
    May the name of the God of Jacob protect us!
 May he send us help from the sanctuary
    and give us support from Zion!
 May he remember all our offerings
    and regard with favor our burnt sacrifices! Selah

 May he grant us our heart's desire
    and fulfill all our plans!
 May we shout for joy over our salvation,
    and in the name of our God set up our banners!
May the Lord fulfill all our petitions!

 Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed;
    he will answer us from his holy heaven
    with the saving might of his right hand.
 Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
    but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
 They collapse and fall,
    but we rise and stand upright.

 O Lord, save the king!
    May he answer us when we call.

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do

Write a poem prayer to God today. If you feel like you can't write your own words, use those of a Psalm or a poem and adapt it to your own life and desires.

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(see all Lent daybook posts from 2015 here)

A few reasonable words to start your weekend conversations. 02

Happy weekend, all! We're headed into a semi-normal weekend around here. Also, plenty of football. What are your plans?  

A dose of conversation-starters for all your weekend conversations. And if you and I happen to bump into each other in the next couple of days, I'd love to hear what you think after these reads! (or, you could always leave me a comment below!)

• A stunning essay on the beautiful humility of caregiving and how much God loves us, via Image Journal

• Free February Calendar Desktop and iPhone Wallpaper (which makes me want to shop Etsy for all the transferware) via Giants & Pilgrims

• Beautiful, even in winter. via The Box Canyon

• We've talked a lot here about Austin's new neighborhood for the chronically homeless. I found Portland's emerging solution to be somewhat similar to Community First! Village. I do think some of the differences in philosophy (e.g., the city of Portland does not allow residents of the tiny house village to stay longer than 2 years) via Yes! Magazine

• I'm as patriotic as the next girl, but this newly-formed Olympic team's going to be  hard to ignore in 2016! via The NY Times 

* You can talk about the Iowa caucus if you want, but maybe it'd be a good idea to read this first? via First Things

• Are you planning any sort of fast during Lent?  Apparently, a lot of people are, and here's a great suggestion from Pope Francis (especially if you're dreading giving up the regular sorts of things like chocolate or alcohol). via Time

• Five years ago this week, I wrote one of the early posts in my now-defunct Sacred Practice series. I also love that a book I talked about in 2009 and read in 2010 is going to (finally!) become a movie in 2016.  Just remember you saw it here first, folks!

Here's my happy playlist to get you in the mood for our next holiday:  For my funny Valentines playlist on Spotify.  What songs do you think I should add? 

If all else fails, here's the "Prevent Small Talk Question of the Week":

Repeat the following quotation to people you meet over the weekend, and then ask them to share some of the greatest lessons they've learned from hard experiences in their lives.

On the blog last week:

• Epiphany, week 4: promises to all nations, hope to all peoples
• Epiphany, the Presentation (Candlemas)
• What I'm Into Lately (January 2016 edition)
• What's In the Book Pile for 2016
• WALKING EPIPHANY in inner city Rochester: neighborhood notes from Suzanne Day
• WALKING EPIPHANY in suburban PA: neighborhood notes from Kaley Ehret

Christmas daybook, 6: Praise the Lord (yes, even you sea dragons)!

My Christmas daybook for these 12 days of celebrating. Join me, won't you? (see all of the Christmas daybook posts from 2014 here)

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watch & listen

No Lights -- Performance by Andrew Nemr and Max ZT

Box Canyon Sessions at Laity Lodge

source

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read

Psalm 148: Praise the Lord!

{all readings for the day: Psalm 148; Proverbs 9:1-12; 2 Peter 3:8-13 }

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pray 

O Pray the Psalm for today with gusto (out loud even if no one else is in the room): Psalm 148

Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, and your faithfulness to the clouds.  Amen.

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do

I dare you to dance today -- somewhere, anywhere, even if only for a few minutes 

12 ways to savor the 12 days of Christmas

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Five Favorites: Books I Read in March + great online finds this week

Before sharing the book list:

No Lights | Andrew Nemr and Max ZT

No Lights | Andrew Nemr and Max ZT from Laity Lodge on Vimeo.

A few weekends back I attend my fifth-annual retreat for Ministers to Artists at Laity Lodge. (read about previous years here).  I've been trying to describe to friends ever since the featured artists:  one of the world's premiere tap dancers and one of the world's premiere hammered dulcimer players, together.  Thankfully, the team at Laity Lodge captured some of the magic.

Five Favorites: my 2014 reading list

-- 1 --

6  This Is The Story Of A Happy Marriage by Ann Patchett: (Harper Collins, 2013. 306 pages) 

I've said it before: I'm in love with the essay as an art form.  With the exception of Flannery O'Connor's letters, give me any author -- Ann Patchett, say -- known for work in various genres and I'll, inevitably get to know them first in their essays.   So while I've never read any of  Ann Patchett's novels, I heard about the newly-released compilation of her published essays and snatched the book up at my library.  Then I read every word.  Of all the stories she tells about her childhood, marriage(s), and friendships, it's her words about being a writer that stand out more than any other.  "The Getaway Car: A Practical Memoir about Writing and Life" included paragraphs like this jewel:

"When I can't think of another stall, when putting it off has actually become more painful than doing it, I reach up and pluck the butterfly from the air. I take it from the region of my head and I press it down against my desk, and there, with my own hand, I kill it. It's not that I want to kill it, but it's the only way I can get something that is so three-dimensional onto the flat page. Just to make sure the job is done I stick it into place with a pin. Imagine running over a butterfly with an SUV. Everything that was beautiful about this living thing -- all the color, the light and movement -- is gone."

-- 2 --

7  Sober Mercies: How Love Caught Up With a Christian Drunk by Heather Kopp: (Jericho Books, 2013. 224 pages) 

My friend Andrea introduced me to this writer, often sharing posts from Heather Kopp's insightful blog: Sober Boots.  I was glad to discover Ms. Kopp's memoir had been released and it was available from my library!  I read through in one evening.  The best benefit of reading a good story of redemption told in the framework of a memoir is that I recognize the truth of the Gospel again.  In Heather Kopp's vulnerable telling of acknowledging her alcoholism and maybe even more than that, the pain underneath that sought to be numbed, I gave thanks for redemption.  

-- 3 --

8  Beyond Smells & Bells: The Wonder and Power of Christian Liturgy by Mark Galli: (Paraclete Press, 2008. 132 pages)

Our associate priest recommended this book to me for friends and family asking about my confirmation in the Anglican church.  In my previous life directing a worship and arts ministry without much direction to go by I've read several good books commending the practices of the historical church.  I'd add this book to the list.  Mark Galli writes in accessible, winsome language with an occasional poetic insight.  I'm looking forward to sharing this book. (go to my Book Pile page for a list of other books that guided me into a deeper desire to connect in worship with our Church family throughout history)

* Read my On Becoming Anglican page for more book titles I'd pass around if you were to ask me the question "What'd you do that for?"*

-- 4 --

9  Sanctuary of the Soul: Journey Into Meditative Prayer by Richard Foster: (IVP Books, 2011. 165 pages)

A lovely little book encouraging readers into the practice of undistracted prayer. This takes work!  I'm hoping to be a better practitioner after this read. 

-- 5 --

10  The Diary of a Country Priest: A Novel by Georges Bernanos (Macmillan Co., 1937. 298 pages)

My friend Katie handed me this book while we were on retreat together the day of my birthday -- after I'd only mentioned in passing that I'd seen the title in Laity Lodge's library and that I'd been searching libraries for years for this title!  She handed it to me without ceremony, but I cried all the same.  Now I'm reading a few pages most nights before Brian and I fall asleep.  I don't think he'll be a country priest, probably, but we're grateful for the dreams we're collecting during this little compline ritual.

Here's the Amazon blurb:

In this classic Catholic novel, Bernanos movingly recounts the life of a young French country priest who grows to understand his provincial parish while learning spiritual humility himself. Awarded the Grand Prix for Literature by the Academie Francaise, The Diary of a Country Priest was adapted into an acclaimed film by Robert Bresson. "A book of the utmost sensitiveness and compassion...it is a work of deep, subtle and singularly encompassing art." — New York Times Book Review 

*Go to my Book Pile page to see my reading lists from previous years.*

Other good words online this week

• Artists as Stewards of  Physical Reality: a photographic record at Diary of an Arts Pastor: More about the retreat - "If you have ever wanted to hang with kindred spirits, who love the arts, who love artists, who love thinking deeply about the arts, and who love to share good food and plenty of laughter, then you should consider coming...next May, where Jeremy Begbie and company will be exploring the relationship between art, artists, and the reception of artwork, on the one hand, and the emotions, on the other. Stay tuned."

• Flannery O'Connor [in honor of her birthday] at Razing the Bar:  "She could, from a distance, look a bit like a misanthrope, but she deeply loved humanity, even if she couldn’t always stand individual human beings. She was a devout Roman Catholic in the middle of the southern Bible Belt. She died far too young, at only 39, and she was always thinking about eternity. But here is where the contradictions ended: she was a moral compass. She pointed True North. Always."

• You Have Never Talked to a Mere Mortal at Yet Untold: "Christ stepped down and lifted the veil, and I was able to see, if only for a moment, myself and my neighbor as we truly are." I met Erin Humphries at the same Laity Lodge retreat and spent an entire delicious meal getting to know her and her fiance'.  It was one of the best decisions of my weekend.  I'm glad for the opportunity to get to know her better through her art.

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A book-filled weekend for us all, dear ones.

For more Five Favorites, visit Moxie Wife!