Come summer with me, Lord

Good Tuesday morning, my friends.

Tomorrow I will be travelling with my family to New Brunswick, so it is unlikely you will be receiving a message from me.  We will be spending a few weeks unwinding, relaxing (he says hopefully), and enjoying some time together.  As I looked for a prayer this morning, I was struck by how appropriate this one was.  Join me in offering this coming season of summer to our God. (Your prayers for safe travel are greatly appreciated.)

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you,

Bruce

Come Summer With Me, Lord

I offer you these months, Lord, 

my heart's July and August days... 

Come summer with me, Lord; 

summer deep down in my soul; 

restore my faith in summer's time, 

in rest, in joy, in play, in you... 

Summer in my heart, Lord,

and dwell there 

as if time would never end,

as if all time were children's time, eternal time

when school is always out and joy is ever in…

And let others summer in my shade, Lord,

and share whatever summer's peace is mine to give,

whatever summer's light is mine to shed,

whatever summer's warmth is mine to share...

Good God of every season and every day this week,

come summer with me, Lord, and let the child in my heart

spend this summer in your love...

Amen.

excerpted from a prayer on the Concord Pastor Comments blog

(http://bobhostetler.blogspot.com/2010/06/come-summer-with-me-lord.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Which Jesus do you follow?

Good Monday morning, my friends.

This weekend I heard Todd Agnew singing "My Jesus".  If you don't know this song, or haven't heard it in a while, have a look/listen here.

Listening to the song got me thinking about the message I sent out on Friday about being more "Christlike".  If we are to become more like Him, then what exactly do we think He is like?  In the song above, Agnew challenges me and you to look at our lives.  Do they (or do they not) reflect the true life of Christ:

Which Jesus do you follow?

Which Jesus do you serve?

If Ephesians says to imitate Christ

Then why do you look so much like the world?

That stings a bit.  But the message here is not to beat up on ourselves for our past, but to reflect on it and change course if necessary.

C.S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity:

I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: "I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.

Jesus said to his disciples "Who do you say I am?" (Matthew 16:15) and He asks us the same question.  So ... Who do you say that He is?

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

God, our Father, 

You redeemed us 

and made us Your children in Christ.

Through Him You have saved us from death 

and given us Your Divine life of grace. 

By becoming more like Jesus on earth, 

may I come to share His glory in Heaven. 

Give me the peace of Your kingdom, 

which this world does not give. 

By Your loving care protect the good You have given me. 

Open my eyes to the wonders of Your Love 

that I may serve You with a willing heart. 

Amen. 

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Make me a dispenser of grace

Good Friday morning, my friends.

What does it mean when we say we want to be more "Christlike"?  It sure sounds good, but how does it actually play out in our lives?

I like the way the prayer below spells it out. Make me a lover of souls.  Make me a dispenser of grace.  I like that.  (Please substitute gender references as necessary.)

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

Make me more and more like you, Lord. 

Make me a servant, like you. 

Make me a lover of souls, like you. 

Make me a shepherd, like you. 

Make me a rod in your hand, 

a cedar of Lebanon, 

a man of integrity. 

Make me a mighty man of valor. 

Make me a healer of hurts, 

a dispenser of grace, 

a fount of compassion, 

Like you.

Amen.

(http://bobhostetler.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-and-more-like-you.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Irritations

Good Thursday morning, my friends.

My lovely wife, Rosemary, forwarded me Charles Swindoll's devotional for today.  In it he talks about "irritations" such as traffic jams,  long line-ups, incompetent people, etc.  (I would add to that list breakfast servers who do not come to the table with a pot of coffee in their hand!).  Here is part of what the devotional says:

When it comes to irritations, I've found that it helps if I remember that I am not in charge of my day . . . God is. And while I'm sure He wants me to use my time wisely, He is more concerned with the development of my character and the cultivation of the qualities that make me Christlike within. One of His preferred methods of training is through adjustments to irritations.

(You can read the entire article here.)

The irritations have a purpose, whether we see it or not.  God may be looking for us to adjust our schedule in order to accommodate what He is trying to accomplish in us; and in doing so He is trying to build our character, because the ONLY thing we take with us when we leave this world is our character.  (I guess I can wait a few more minutes for my coffee ...)

Amazing Grace and Peace that surpasses ALL understanding be yours today,

Bruce

Lord, teach me to be patient - with life, with people,and with myself. 

I sometimes try to hurry things along too much, and I push for answers before the time is right. 

Teach me to trust Your sense of timing rather than my ownand to surrender my will to Your greater and wiser plan. 

Help me let life unfold slowly, like the small rosebud whose petals unravel bit by bit, and remind me that in hurrying the bloom along, I destroy the bud and much of the beauty therein.

Instead, let me wait for all to unfold in its own time. 

Each moment and state of growth contains a loveliness. 

Teach me to slow down enough to appreciate life and all it holds. 

Amen.

(http://acatholiclife.blogspot.com/2006/05/prayer-for-patience-in-accepting-gods.html)

Bruce MacPherson  macpherson@celtic.ca / Blog: The Celtic Christian / Home: 613.489.4174 Cell: 613.720.0821 You are receiving this email because you have requested it or I felt you would be interested in this material. If you would like to be removed from this email list, please do not hesitate to contact me at the above email address.  Likewise, if you know of someone else who you believe would appreciate receiving these messages, please let me know.

No strings attached

Good Wednesday morning, my friends.

Have you ever had someone do something for you, or buy you something, and then everytime you have a disagreement with them they remind you of "all they have done for you"?  When we give to one another, there are often strings attached.  The Bible warns against this in Proverbs 6:3-5:

  then do this, my son, to free yourself, 

       since you have fallen into your neighbor's hands: 

       Go and humble yourself; 

       press your plea with your neighbor!

  Allow no sleep to your eyes, 

       no slumber to your eyelids.

  Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, 

       like a bird from the snare of the fowler.

But God gives us gifts with no strings attached.  He freely sustains our life, and gives us undeserved salvation.  Paul put it this way in Romans 5:8:

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

That's the kind of present that blows me away.  And it is one I can open it every day!

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace be yours today,

Bruce

Allow me, Father, to always wonder at the amazing gifts you bestow upon me.

Gifts that are neither earned nor deserved.

Remind me to emulate you when I give to others - that I never ask for anything in return - that my left hand would not know what my right hand is doing.

Remind me, as you did the Israelites, that I am blessed to be a blessing to others.

And help me to always retain the wonder of what You have done for me.

In Jesus holy name I pray.  Amen.

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Be still

Good Tuesday morning, my friends.

Well, summer is upon us.  Yesterday marked it's first day - the longest day of the year.  Wouldn't it be better if the longest day was around the first of September?  As the summer progressed, the days would get longer rather than shorter.  Who could I speak to about that?  Oh, yeah - Him!  But I digress.  Summer is typically a time for family vacations, some time off, some relaxing.  If you are happen to be one of these lucky people (and even if you aren't), put the words of Psalm 46:10 into practice -

"Be still, and know that I am God; 

       I will be exalted among the nations, 

       I will be exalted in the earth."

Be still.  Be still and know that He is God.  And you (and I) are not.  That is one of the greatest stress relievers I know.  To remember that Someone else is in charge.  Someone who knows so much better what is good for me and what isn't.  So why not let Him be in control?  (He actually is anyways, no matter how much we try to delude ourselves!)  Accept the peace that comes from being still.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

You have taught us 

that in returning and rest 

we shall be saved,

in quietness and confidence 

we shall be strengthened. 

By your Spirit 

lift us to your presence 

where we may be still 

and know that you are God. 

from the Book of Common Prayer

(http://bobhostetler.blogspot.com/2010/06/prayer-for-quiet-confidence.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Father's Day

Good Monday morning, my friends.

Yesterday was Father's Day, and my family made it very special for me.  I am reminded that being a father is an incredible honour.  Just as our Governor General is the representative of the crown, the head-of-state here in Canada so also are we fathers the representative of God in our families.  We are a substitute, a proxy, an imperfect copy, placed here until our Abba - our Heavenly Father - makes his home among us.  Paradoxically it makes me both humble and filled with pride.  And not a little fear!

Lift this prayer for the fathers in your life.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you,

Bruce

Heavenly Father we come to you this day remembering first that we call you Father

.. you are our Abba

.. our Dad. 

We intercede for ourselves and all of the fathers that we know asking you to make them like you. 

Help us to believe in our children and let them go. When they err give us hearts that run to them at the appropriate time. 

Help our children to always know we accept them and that they can come home. 

Cause us to love dear Father and be like you. 

Thank you so much for our fathers and the fathers that we have in our lives. 

We ask you to bless them today in the name of your son Jesus.

(http://praying.kansasbob.com/2010/06/prayer-for-fathers.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Prayer as a conversation

Good Friday morn ... er ... afternoon, my friends!

I had an interesting prayer time this morning on my way to work.  I started, as I usually do, with "Good morning, God" and was about to move on to my next stock line about thanking him for my blessings, when I stopped and said "How are you today?".  And all of a sudden everything changed - it became a conversation.  I ended up asking him a series of questions, rather than just asking for a series of blessings.  Below are some of the questions I asked Him, and I challenge you to try this.  Use this list, or make up your own, just try it - see how it works out.  And if you are up for it, let me know how it goes.

• Do you love me?
• How have I disappointed or offended you today?
• Will you bless me today?
• Will you bless my family today?
• Will you bless my co-workers today?
• How can I best serve you today?
• Will you please help me to be a better husband?  A better father? A better friend?
• Can I win the Lotto Max draw tonight?  (nah, just kidding)

What would be on your list of things to ask Him?  Do you let Him tell you what is on his heart?

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you,

Bruce

God, my Father, may I love You in all things and above all things. 

May I reach the joy which You have prepared for me in Heaven. 

Nothing is good that is against Your Will, 

and all that is good comes from Your Hand. 

Place in my heart a desire to please You 

and fill my mind with thoughts of Your Love, 

so that I may grow in Your Wisdom and enjoy Your Peace. 

(http://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=798)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Manifesto!

Good Thursday morning, my friends.

The words below are a manifesto.  A declaration.  As you read them, take a stand for God.  You will find (as I did) that some of the words stick in your throat.  You will be afraid to pray them, fearing you will not be able to live up to them.  Just remember, these words reflect our desire to be perfected, as Jesus is perfect.  These words are a declaration of our goal, our intention.  Tell God this is who you want to be, and ask Him to help you be that person.  

Amazing Grace and Eternal peace to you today,

Bruce

Dear God,

Lord, You know my hurts.

You know who I really am.

You know the best and the worst of me.

And You know I am sick of talk.

I demand, instead, a revelation.

Fill me with your energy; help me decree I am transformed.

Help me keep my thoughts aligned with Your Immense Joy.

Reach into my heart and awaken me to the truth of You.

For You know everything there is to know about me.

Still you love me still, and never will You stop loving me.

You will remain with me throughout eternity, for you delight in me.

You are my closest friend—

—my steady companion throughout life and after death.

So from this day forward,

I shut my mouth before condemning others using Your name,

For your name is a blessing.

From this day I cease believing those

Who would use Your scripture 

To justify bigotry, violence or selfishness.

From this day, only good issues from me, for I am born of You.

Gently, You teach me to choose love over fear

And forgiveness over condemnation.

I see how everything is a call for love, a call for compassion,

And a call for giving.

I choose to be a clear channel for Your good.

I choose to vibrate with Your Truth.

I choose to open myself to love.

And You are so proud of me.

Your faith in me is absolute as You teach me faith in myself.

You sent Your Son believing that I can learn

And I vow to fulfill this destiny.

I use Your power as Jesus taught—

—to raise the world out of want and into joy.

O, Lord, I always love You even when I feel anger or hurt.

I thank You - humbly - for always, always loving me.

I feel You close to me, closer than my own breath.

I know You are ready to intervene on my behalf

In love and goodness.

I know You are ready to create a new world for my delight.

Your patience and love fills me.

Your glory and magnificence thrills me.

You created me, You know me, You believe in me. And You love me.

Words are inadequate to tell You of my love for You.

Listen, instead, to the beating of my heart.

Thank You, God.

Amen.

(Adapted from http://www.prayerforce.org/god-prayer.htm)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca