St. Francis' Prayer

“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.”

St. Francis of Assisi

This was my mom's favorite prayer when I was young.

My Prayer was Answered!

Well, my prayer was answered yesterday... It was a simple prayer but none the less, important to me.
Our first Apple Pie Ministry apple pie was delivered to a new visitor/prospective member at Epworth UMC. From start to finish, we have worked hard on these pies and the ministry is such a welcoming, friendly beginning for new people trying to make friends.
So upon completion of the first pie, I began to worry that our new friend Bill might not make it out in all this snow and yucky weather. I didn't want the fruit (pie) of our labor to begin to spoil...that would not make a welcoming gesture-presenting a rotting pie!
So I prayed yesterday. I prayed that God would allow me to deliver this pie without intrusion or too much time delay... (by intrusion I mean taking the pie and my two nutty kids to his house trying to deliver it in haste).
But God responded...he guided Bill to our Wednesday Night Dinner where we were able to safely give him his pie.
This is not the first time my spoken prayer has been responded to, but it definitely was the quickest.
Now, this may not seem like the most profound use of prayer in one's life...but the point is we are opening our lives to God's time line. We worry so much about getting everything done in the shortest amount of time...
God will help us get done what REALLY NEEDS to get done, according to a plan that we know nothing about and a time-frame we can not understand.
And, as a mom with a need to control, stimulate and fill my children's time with activities of all kinds, this idea of "not on my time" is actually comforting. :)

ACTS for Lent

I am so happy to have co-authors to drive content!
I just logged on to find Pastor David's January Newsletter content designed to introduce us lay persons to the discipline of prayer.
As I am reading his description of catechumen and Lenten penance, I am reminded of what my parents raised me with as a child. As I was a child I had no reference for penance or the suffering Christ did for me. To me, Lent was the time before Easter when I had to give up potato chips because my mother gave them up every year. It was when we always had fish sticks for lunch on Fridays and were actually expected to fast THREE DAYS of the year!!
My mother still gives up potato chips every year, and I now know why! She is practicing her discipline. By praying, fasting, sacrificing and simplifying she was bringing herself closer to God. Her small efforts were the best way to impart these acts of prayer to God, and her family too.
So I will ACT this Lent!
I will adore-Thank you God for I love my life and family!
I will confess- I don't know your plan and that can be troubling...
I will thank- Thank you for supplying my life with love and solid ground
I will ask- That you continue to help me learn to listen and hear your spirit.

And, I will embrace my Lenten-sacrifice heritage and give up my favorite things in the world that I have all the time and just don't know if I'll be able to live without........check back to see how it goes.....