Do Not Fear: Lent Daybook 28

Take a few deep breaths, settle your body, mind, and heart into a quiet space, and let’s begin with prayer.

Opening prayer for the fourth week of Lent:

O Lord, this holy season of Lent is passing quickly. I entered into it with fear, but also with great expectations. I hoped for a great breakthrough, a powerful conversion, a real change of heart; I wanted Easter to be a day so full of light that not even a trace of darkness would be left in my soul.

But I know that you do not come to your people with thunder and lightning. Even St. Paul and St. Francis journeyed through much darkness before they could see your light. Let me be thankful for your gentle way. I know you are at work. I know you will not leave me alone. I know you are quickening me for Easter - but in a way fitting to my own history and my own temperament.

I pray that these last three weeks, in which you invite me to enter more fully into the mystery of your passion, will bring me a greater desire to follow you on the way that you create for me and to accept the cross that you give to me. Let me die to the desire to choose my own way and select my own desire. You do not want to make me a hero but a servant who loves you.

Be with me today and in the days to come, and let me experience your gentle presence. Amen. (Henri Nouwen, A Cry for Mercy: Prayers from the Genesee)

Look: Walking On the Water, Roman Barabakh - Source

Listen: Nothing to Fear, The Porter’s Gate - Lyrics | Spotify | YouTube

Read: Psalm 97, 99-100; Psalm 94; Jeremiah 17:19-27; Romans 7:13-25; John 6:16-27

Excerpts:

The Lord is king! Let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad! Clouds and thick darkness are all around him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. Fire goes before him and consumes his adversaries on every side. His lightnings light up the world; the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, before the Lord of all the earth.

The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples behold his glory.

*

The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples. Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he! Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. Extol the Lord our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he!

Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the Lord, and he answered them. He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees and the statutes that he gave them.

O Lord our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them but an avenger of their wrongdoings. Extol the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain, for the Lord our God is holy.

*

Understand, O dullest of the people; fools, when will you be wise? He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see? He who disciplines the nations, he who teaches knowledge to humankind, does he not chastise? The Lord knows our thoughts, that they are but an empty breath.

Happy are those whom you discipline, O Lord, and whom you teach out of your law, giving them respite from days of trouble, until a pit is dug for the wicked. For the Lord will not forsake his people; he will not abandon his heritage; for justice will return to the righteous, and all the upright in heart will follow it.

Who rises up for me against the wicked? Who stands up for me against evildoers? If the Lord had not been my help, my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence. When I thought, “My foot is slipping,” your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.

*

Thus said the Lord to me: Go and stand in the People’s Gate, by which the kings of Judah enter and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem, and say to them: Hear the word of the Lord, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem who enter by these gates. Thus says the Lord: For the sake of your lives, take care that you do not bear a burden on the Sabbath day or bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath or do any work, but keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your ancestors. Yet they did not listen or incline their ear; they stiffened their necks and would not hear or receive instruction.

*

Did what is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin that was working death in me through what is good, in order that it might be shown to be sin, so that through the commandment sin might become sinful beyond measure. …

So I find it to be a law that, when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched person that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

So then, with my mind I am enslaved to the law of God, but with my flesh I am enslaved to the law of sin.

*

When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.

*

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing.

Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him; bless his name.

For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever and his faithfulness to all generations.

—Psalm 97:1-6; Psalm 99; Psalm 94:8-19; Jeremiah 17:19-23; Romans 7:13, 21-25; John 6:16-21; Psalm 100

Pray: A Body Prayer from Julian of Norwich (adapted from this source)

Read the brief introduction and then, knowing that you are held body, mind, and emotions in the presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit hold each pose of the prayer for 1-2 minutes. You can pray this prayer from your bed, your exercise mat, or wherever you find yourself today.

“An interesting example of Christian body prayer comes from Julian of Norwich, who lived during the time of the plague in England in the 14th c. Julian experienced severe bodily pain when she was thirty years old, during which she received visions, which she later recorded in Revelations of Divine Love. Julian wrote, "The fruit and the purpose of prayer is to be "oned" with God in all things."

Julian's Body Prayer is comprised of four poses and intentions: Await, Allow, Accept, and Attend.

The first pose, Await, is a posture of receiving, held with cupped hands extended at the waist to receive the presence of God.

The second pose, Allow, is a posture of opening, reaching up with the hands open to the coming of God's presence.

The third pose, Accept, takes in whatever comes, standing with hands cupped at the heart, head bowed.

The final posture, Attend, is assumed with hands extended and palms open in willingness to act on what has been given.

Once you have completed each pose, consider signing the cross over your head and heart in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and go back into your day with peace.

Do: This week, ask the Spirit of Christ to open your eyes to the times you become offended by the words and actions of others. Acknowledge the feeling and then ask God to help you release the offense quickly.

During the week, choose one person (or group) to forgive and to release from your expectation of apology or restitution.  If appropriate, write them a note passing the peace of Christ through a simple few words.

Once you’ve done this, talk with a trusted friend today, and ask them to pray for you to remain in the place of peace and forgiveness in your heart and mind. Bask in the love and forgiveness of our friend and brother, Jesus, who has reconciled us to God.

If it’s helpful, here’s a recent reflection I shared on some common roadblocks to forgiveness. (scroll to the bottom of the post)

*Sunday Scripture readings are taken from Year A of the Book of Common Prayer 2019 (Anglican Church of North America). Daily Scripture readings are taken from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer and include both Morning and Evening Psalms (Year 12\)