Samuel 16: 1-13; Psalm 23, 1-6; Eph 5: 8-14; John 9: 1-41

not as a human sees
but as God
beyond
appearance
into the heart
with the Lord
our shepherd
we shall
not want
and our eyes
shall be opened
to see
beyond
the law
beyond
the Sabbath
beyond
the ritual
to the Truth
the light
awakening us
from sleep
as we pass
from death
to life

Has Jesus healed your vision?
Do you see with God’s light?

Hosea 6: 1-6; Psalm 5: 3-21; Luke 18: 9-14

standing
in the margins
knowing our frailty
and sin
we ask
for mercy
and
a God of love
hears us-
our soul
once hardened
and dry
is refreshed
with rain
its darkness
flooded
with light
we live
in the grace
of God’s compassion

How do you experience God’s mercy?
How do you experience God’s love?

Hosea 13: 2-10; Psalm 81: 6-17; Mark 12: 28-34

spirit upon us
like the dewfall
we hear
love God first
with all
your heart
and mind
and soul
let no strange God
come among you
and take the love
of yourself
and neighbor from you
forgive
and let love
blossom
as freely
as the lilies
casting
as wide
a fragrance
as the cedars
and splendor
of the olive branch

Has a strange God come among you to take the love yourself and your neighbor?

Jeremiah 7:23-28; Psalm 95:1-9; Luke 11:14-23

today
we hear
His voice
and open
our hearts
singing joyfully
as we know
who we are
in the undivided
love of God
treasuring
the words
of the God
and the healing touch
of Christ
living always
in God’s presence
in our heartbeat
and breath

Do you open your mind to God’s voice?
What do you hear?

Dt 4: 1, 5-9; Psalm 147: 12-20; Matthew 5: 17-19

He comes
to fulfill
a law
once written
in statues
and stone
to one
that lives
in hearts
of flesh
breath
and bone
Spirit of love
once given
to a chosen few
now
given to all

Where does God live in you?
How do you share this love?

Dn 3:25,34-43; Psalm 25:4-9; Matthew 18:21-35

our hearts
troubled
by the ways
of the world
we look to God
and are answered
by the Holy Spirit
who lifts us up
we remember
the ways
of kindness
goodness
compassion
and truth
always merciful
to the contrite heart
we forgive
as we are forgiven
and embrace
the God’s Light and love

Where do you look when your heart is troubled?

2Kings 5: 1-5; Psalm 42: 2,3; 43: 3-4; Luke 4: 24-30

blinded
by familiarity
wealth
and power
yet longing
for healing
and thirsting
for the living God
we dare
to enter
our poverty
relinquishing
all
we enter
the light
and love
of God
seeing
God’s face
we are healed
and sing
in our gladness
and joy

Do you dare relinquish all for the mystery of God’s love?

Exodus 1: 3-7; Ps 95: 1-9; 2Romans 5: 1-8; John 4: 5-42

with no need
of worthiness
the water
and grace
of life
flow upon
the wanderers
with open
heart
ready to receive
the woman
hears
her Truth
and
a heart of stone
melts
into a heart
of love
singing
joyfully
knowing
that salvation
has come
to the weary ones
to the outcasts
all are loved
in this Spirit
and Truth

Do you tell God all of your needs?
Do you hear and respond to truth spoken into your heart?

Mi 7:14-20; Psalm 103:1-12; Luke 15:1-32

coming home
to the embrace
of the Beloved
all is forgiven
and forgotten
as we celebrate
and renew
our life
in the Spirit
of kindness
and mercy
even as another
may envy
the compassion given
a greater love
has taken us
beyond
what could be
imagined

Can you imagine a welcoming love that forgives all?

Genesis 37:3-4,12-12, 17-28; Psalm 105:16-21; Matthew 21:33-46

rejecting
who God has sent
our course
of destruction
is set
as we think
we know
what is best
in our envy
and jealousy
and greed
yet what is rejected
becomes
the cornerstone
of new life
opposing forces
create
a new way
a new path
for eyes
and hearts
and minds
that are open to God’s love
and set free

What is the path to freedom?
How does the Holy Spirit deal with rejection and betrayal?
How does God work everything for good?