Pax et Bonum

The Online worship resource for St. James Parish

June 17, 2009

"Faith is the strength by which a shattered world
shall emerge into the light."
---Helen Keller---
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
 
Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.
---Reinhold Niebuhr---

Serenity: The healing of the Mind

This week’s gospel lesson comes from Mark. The disciples and Jesus are on their way across the Sea of Galilee, which is known for its tumultuous storms that pop up seemingly out of nowhere. As the disciples are sailing the boat across the lake, one of these unpredictable storms arises, and the disciples are afraid for their lives. The wind drives the ship, the sea comes over the small craft in terrifying waves, and the disciples cry out in fear.

And where is Jesus? He is asleep in the stern, riding out the storm without a care in the world.

The disciples awaken him, he says to the wind and waves, "Peace, be still," the storm dies down, and he asks the disciples why they still have no faith?

I have to ask myself that question sometimes. The storms we deal with in life are very real – they are not figments of our imagination that we can remove from our mind by some form of mental exercise. Illness, grief, financial stress and other problems all create a stormy atmosphere in which to live, and sometimes, wouldn’t it be nice if Jesus, who seems to be asleep in the boat, would DO something to fix the problem?

Yet the problems persist, and we get used to dealing with them, one way or another, on our own.

Still, Jesus calls to us, as he called to the storm, “Peace, be still.” It may not seem like a solution, but it is indeed what we need. We need to breathe in the faith that once seemed so strong. We need to breathe in the hope that comes as a byproduct of faith, and remember that, whether it seems like it or not, God is with us to comfort us in difficult times.

Allow yourself the mental vacation that the Peace of Go affords. The storm will rage, but you, in the center of it, can still rest peacefully in the palm of God’s hand.

Do not look forward to what may happen
tomorrow; the same everlasting Father who cares
for you today will take care of you tomorrow and
every day. Either He will shield you from suffering,
or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it.
Be at peace, then. Put aside all anxious thoughts and
imaginations, and say continually: "The Lord is my
strength and my shield. My heart has trusted in Him
and I am helped. He is not only with me but in me,
and I in Him."
---St. Francis de Sales---

"Stretch Out Your Hand"

Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. They watched him to see whether he would cure him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man who had the withered hand, ‘Come forward.’ Then he said to them, ‘Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save life or to kill?’ But they were silent. He looked around at them with anger; he was grieved at their hardness of heart and said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.
Mark 3:1-6

There are many references in both Old and New Testaments about stretching out one's hand. Moses stretches out his hand to part the seas, the man with a withered hand in the story above stretches out his hand to be healed- Jesus stretches out his hands on the "hard wood of the cross."

All of these hands are stretching for something divine, something to promote wholeness.

Reaching for the divine, the hand becomes a vessel that holds revelation. In the healing story in Mark, Jesus is surrounded by people-- some who are scrutinizing him, some who are wondering about him, and some who believe that he is from God.

Jesus' teachings are always presented in this context-to the wary and to the faithful.

As each of us experiences the need for healing, we too, come to Christ guarded, yet hopeful.

We join with all those who have gone before, reaching out for wholeness and health.

We stretch out our hands.

And we hope that they will be met by the healing touch of God.

But turn again to the story in Mark.

It was in the very act of stretching his hand that the man was healed.

Sometimes, all it takes is willingness to reach out and we are graced with wholeness.

Reach out this week. Allow yourself to be vulnerable. Welcome wholeness.

Blessings,
Debra

Daily Morning Prayer

Daily Morning Prayer

This Week at St. James

Prayers Etc.

For those on our prayer list:

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff--they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long.
---Psalms 23: 1-6---

In Closing:

May we discover through pain and torment,
the strength to live with grace and humor.
May we discover through doubt and anguish,
the strength to live with dignity and holiness.
May we discover through suffering and fear,
the strength to move toward healing.
May it come to pass that we be restored to health and to vigor.
May Life grant us wellness of body, spirit, and mind.
And if this cannot be so, may we find in this transformation and passage
moments of meaning, opportunities for love
and the deep and gracious calm that comes
when we allow ourselves to move on.
---Rabbi Rami M. Shapiro---

Pax et Bonum,
Loree+

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