Breathe I hear the Holy Spirit whisper as I try to figure out what it is I am feeling
Anxiety? Excitment? Grief? Fear?
I am trying to catalogue
Natural Disasters Wars
Politicians Name-Calling Which let’s be honest God, the last two are the same thing (usually)
Now this violence
Breathe, I hear God And I think about how my family, where allergies and asthma runs prevalent says joking but not
that breathing is highly
Underrated
Breathe, says Jesus laying down a pillow Inviting me in to take sanctuary to rest
But I don’t have an answer a solution I haven’t even figure out how to tell the story of what is going on
In the universe and how to relate to it all
God nods And I nod and sigh and my eyes begin to droop
And I realize that God knows all of these things are important
Breathe in: God will see to the humans Breathe out: It’s ok not to have the answers
Amen
Image of breaths in Blues and slight pinks and yellow “Breathe on me breath of God” “Vene Sancte Spiritus” “Bo Ruach Elohim” Entitled: The Promise of the Holy Spirit from https://boruachelohim.com/tag/breathe/
Communion Prayer: God you come to us in so many ways, in our gathering together in your name you promise to be particularly present. You promise to be present in the beginnings and endings of things—in transitions, when things are ephemeral and hard. And yet again, you promise to be particularly present in the bread and the cup, so that we might taste and see that you are good. Send your Holy Spirit to transform this meal into a feast of your blessing we pray. Amen.
Communion Prayer: Jesus Christ as we celebrate this time of coming together with one another, may you transform this communion into a prayer of reconciliation with one another and our community, so that we might learn how to pray as we eat, breathe and walk among the world. As we taste this bread and cup, let us remember that you sent your son Jesus Christ to live a human life and teach us how to live the life of embodied prayer, one where teaching, serving and loving can all be active ways of praying our way through life. May this communion that we celebrate be an act of prayer as well. Send your Holy Spirit to transform these elements into the embodiment of this communion with all those who have come before, all those who will come, and the entire church who is praying now and forever in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Feel free to Email KatyandtheWord at Gmail for Text version for easy Copy/Paste Formatting Suggested Donation for Entire Liturgy$75 (you decide what is fair for portions) Receipt Available upon request Please give credit to Pastor Katy Stenta “KatyandtheWord”
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Breath Prayer you find yourself and then orient/reorient yourself.
So you ground down and then ground up; Or Root down and then root down more firmly; Or Orient yourself up/then Outward, or orient yourself in yourself and then yourself in God; or figure out where you are and then where you are in community; or find where you are in community then differentiate yourself within the community.
Inhale: God can work with emptiness Exhale: it is enough to exist today
Inhale: There is time Exhale: God sits with us
Inhale: I am a Divine Image Bearer Exhale: God creates through me
Inhale: Peace Exhale: Love
Call to Worship Praise God, we are in God’s sanctuary Let everything that breathes praise the Divine Praise God, the mighty firmament, grounding us down Praise God to the heavens, the deeds that lift us up Praise God with trumpets, with the gentle lute and heart Praise God with every breath, for God is worthy of Praise
Call to Worship God breathed life in the first humans It is enough to be present with God Whether we need to feel grounded or more supported God will orient us in the ways we need to go Teach us to pray in the ways we need to pray Breathe into us today God, Holy Spirit Come!
Call to Confession: God breathed life into us, and taught us to pray. Thus we are able to lay anything that troubles us at the feet of God, come let us confess ourselves to God.
Prayer of Confession: God, I confess I do not yet know how to pray without ceasing. I confess that sometimes my breath catches in my throat, and I feel stuck. Remind me that your pneuma, breath flows through my body, and that when I do not know what to pray, the Holy Spirit prays on my behalf. Teach me the rhythms of breath and prayer I pray. (Silent Confession) Amen.
Prayer of Confession: God, we confess that we struggle to feel present. Shopping lists, worries and distractions overcome and overwhelm us. We forget that you know all of these trouble, and that you want us to slow down, to take stock, and to breathe. Teach us to take the time to Sabbath and breathe we pray. (Silent Confession) Amen
Assurance of Pardon: God breathes forgiveness into all things, know the truth In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.
Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God breathes life into all things, reminding us that God is present in the empty spaces, and that some days existing is enough. Let us be present with God today. Amen.
Included: Two Communion Prayers to use as Needed Sermon Seeds for Each Week Breath Prayer of the Day Traditional Prayers Prayer Activities for each week Taize for worship or to sing/play during the Prayer Activities (obviously if you are just playing background music live is fine, but watch your streaming licenses) Creative Holy Week Worship Ideas
Additional Ideas: Prayer Journal Leave a Space on the Bulletin for Prayers to be written Pass out Hearts for Joys & Concerns to be written on All of Lent
Workshops following this Lectionary $50 to Brainstorm available Feb 6th at 10am-Noon Eastern time, and February 9th at 12pm-2pm Eastern time–please email me to register KatyandtheWord at gmail
Please note a lot of these texts are in Mark but most do not overlap the lectionary, if they do they are only 1 of the stories so you can choose the other one to preach on later
Feel free to Email KatyandtheWord at Gmail for Text version for easy Copy/Paste Formatting Suggested Donation for Entire Liturgy$75 (you decide what is fair for portions) Receipt Available upon request Please give credit to Pastor Katy Stenta “KatyandtheWord”
Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail, Cash App $bookkats GoFundMe, if you wish to send a check please email me for info
Lent 2 Themes: Breath Prayer, Orientating Yourself (to God) Mark 4:25-41 or Matthew 11:28-29 Psalm 150 or Psalm 46
Lent 3 Confession, Placing oneself in community Mark 2:1-5 Psalm 30
Lent 4Assurance of Pardon/Words of Grace Psalm 103 or Psalm 23 (this is an option for lament week) Mark 2:7-12
Lent 5 Prayers of the People & Joy Psalm 97 or Psalm 122 Mark 4:30-34
Lent 6 Prayers of the People & Lament, Hosanna, Save me Psalm 23 as a Lament or James 5:1-6 Revelation 21:1-6 or Mark 11:12-14 Imprecation: Psalm 55 or 58
Easter Sunday: Prayer of the Resurrection Mark 16:1-8 Psalm 118
Feel free to Email KatyandtheWord at Gmail for Text version for easy Copy/Paste Formatting Suggested Donation for Entire Liturgy$75 (you decide what is fair for portions) Receipt Available upon request Please give credit to Pastor Katy Stenta “KatyandtheWord”
Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail, Cash App $bookkats GoFundMe
if you wish to send a check please contact me for info
“Where true inner freedom is, there God is. And where God is, there we want to be…When we meet a truly free person there are no expectations, only an invitation to reach into ourselves and discover there our own freedom.”
Henri Nouwen
We have been practicing breath prayer of “Freedom, in Christ” some thoughts for that…
hesychasm in tradition has been the process of retiring inward by ceasing to register the senses, in order to achieve an experiential knowledge of God. It is often repeated continually as a part of personal ascetic practice, its use being an integral part of the eremitic (hermit) tradition of prayer known as Hesychasm (Ancient Greek: ἡσυχάζω, hesychazo, “to keep stillness” stillness, rest, quiet, silence). The prayer is particularly esteemed by the spiritual fathers of this tradition (see Philokalia) as a method of opening up the heart (kardia) and bringing about the Prayer of the Heart (Καρδιακή Προσευχή). The Prayer of The Heart is considered to be the Unceasing Prayer that the apostle Paul advocates in the New Testament. St. Theophan the Recluse regarded the Jesus Prayer stronger than all other prayers by virtue of the power of the Holy Name of Jesus.
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