“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink;
or about your body. . . . Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap
or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you
not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a
single hour to your life?” – Matthew 6:25–27
“Save us from the time of trial . . . “— The Lord’s Prayer
“To this day, especially in times of ‘disaster,’ I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers ― so many caring people in this world.” – Mister Rogers
“All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well” – Julian of Norwich
As the National Cathedral states “Social Distancing does not have to mean Spiritual Isolation.”
Here are some aids to help with this trying time…
New Links for March 29
1. “Please and Thank You” -Adult Christian Formation from the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas
A post from author Brian McLaren leads Marjorie George into a look at the Psalsm “The Hebrews knew about storms and anxieties and frequently brought them before God in their psalms. The history of the Hebrew people is one of oppression, exile, and slavery. ‘
“Of the 150 psalms, about a third are psalms of lament. Mostly they follow a predictable pattern: a call upon God, a recitation of the complaint, a petition for help, and – and this is important – an expression of trust that God will indeed relieve their plight.” She goes into the composition of Psalms of Lament and encourages us to write our own
Back to Brian McLaren from “Praying in Crisis” – “Anxieties can gray the whole sky like cloud cover or descend on our whole horizon like fog. When we rename our anxieties, in a sense we distill them into requests. What covered the whole sky can now be contained in a couple of buckets. So when we’re suffering from anxiety, we can begin by simply holding the word help before God, letting that one word bring focus to the chaos of our racing thoughts. Once we feel that our mind has dropped out of the frantic zone and into a spirit of connection with God, we can let the general word help go and in its place hold more specific words that name what we need, thereby condensing the cloud of vague anxiety into a bucket of substantial request. So we might hold the word guidance before God. Or patience. Or courage. Or resilience. Or boundaries, mercy, compassion, determination, healing, calm, freedom, wisdom, or peace. . . . [2] ”
There is an article on the condition of Brain Fog that may be relevant
2. Understanding Grief That Discomfort you are feeling is grief
3. On Being interview with Ross Gay
“He spent a year writing an essay each day about the small joys he encountered, like two people carrying a grocery bag together, the act of giving someone a nickname, and a red flower growing through on a curbside. For him, delight is important precisely because it grows alongside our sorrow and our ephemerality, much like a flower out of asphalt. It’s in the midst of shared difficulty, he says, that “something will happen between us. There’s some kind of tenderness that might be possible.”
4. Healing – Bearing with one another in Love
One example
“Keep us, good Lord,
under the shadow of your mercy
in this time of uncertainty and distress.
Sustain and support the anxious and fearful,
and lift up all who are brought low;
that we may rejoice in your comfort
knowing that nothing can separate us from your love
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Amen.”
6. Habits of Grace from Bishop Curry
“As we learn how to adjust our lives given the reality of the coronavirus and the request to do our part to slow its spread by practicing social distancing, I invite you to join me each week to take a moment to cultivate a ‘habit of grace.’ A new video meditation will be posted on Mondays through May.”
Earlier Links
Get Outside!
Virginia State Parks are OPEN! Here are two relative close parks in our area of Virginia
1. Caledon State Park
Get ready for the Eagles!
2. Westmoreland State Park
Hikes along the Potomac River. Find some fossils!
3. Just take a walk in your neighborhood. We are into spring and the daffodils, pear and cherry blooms have been out. Here are some pictures
Courses
1. Prayer and Worship in our homes (Church Next)
2. 3 Week Virtual Study of the Psalms
Articles
5. 7 ways to improve your spiritual wellness
6. Get some resources for your spiritual journey
Books
Services
1. National Cathedral
National Cathedral services are live 7am and 7pm daily and 11:15 on Sundays
Daily Inspiration
1. Episcopal Cafe – Speaking to the Soul
5. Faith at Home
Lectionary based resources for all ages
6. Rebecca Solnit
Falling Together from OnBeing
“When all the ordinary divides and patterns are shattered, people step up to become their brothers’ keepers,” Rebecca Solnit writes. “And that purposefulness and connectedness bring joy even amidst death, chaos, fear, and loss.”