A Plain Account

Our texts this week are here Our prayer for this week – “A liturgy before serving others” from Every Moment Holy (vol 1)  “All day long, as I watch the breeze toss these clothes in the wind, I imagine my prayers spinning away over the tops of the trees. This is good work, this prayer. This is good prayer, this work. So is digging in the garden, cleaning the chicken pens, washing the potatoes, doing the dishes. I know there are people who would give anything to do these things, people whose bodies have become too numb, too busy, too old or painful to do them. These are the practices that sustain life—not only my life and the lives entwined with mine, but the lives of all living beings.”  Barbara Brown Taylor, Altar in the World (p. 46-47) Tabitha-type projects worth checking out: Hookin' for Hope Project: https://olivebranchministry.org/faith-in-harm-reduction-1 Knitting for Peace Project: https://www.knitting4peace.org/what-we-do/patterns We’ll be spending the Easter season in the book of Acts. Between Megan & Alicia, we will be reading from several Acts commentaries, including – Acts by Willie Jennings (Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible) The NBBC Acts commentary by Richard P Thompson Acts For Everyone by N T Wright Acts by Beverly Gaventa. (Abingdon New Testament Commentaries) Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music.

Our texts this week are here Our prayer for this week is “Not Held” by Walter Brueggeman, from the collection Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth We highly recommend the book Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson Pádraig Ó Tuama reflects on Ilya Kaminsky’s poem, “We Lived Happily During War” in this episode of Poetry Unbound We’ll be spending the Easter season in the book of Acts. Between Megan & Alicia, we will be reading from several Acts commentaries. Commentaries mentioned – Acts by Willie Jennings (Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible) The NBBC Acts commentary by Richard P. Thompson Acts For Everyone by N. T. Wright Acts by Beverly Gaventa. (Abingdon New Testament Commentaries) Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music.

Our texts for this week are here Consider utilizing the resources for Earth Day Sunday provided by our friends at Nazarenes For Creation Care nazarenesforcreationcare.com We’ll be spending the Easter season in the book of Acts. Between Megan & Alicia, we will be reading from several Acts commentaries. Commentaries mentioned – Acts by Willie Jennings (Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible) The NBBC Acts commentary by Richard P Thompson Acts For Everyone by N T Wright Acts by Beverly Gaventa (Abingdon New Testament Commentaries) Prayer from Sarah Bessey – Prayer for Loving the World Again by Sarah Bessey from A Rhythm of Prayer: A Collection of Meditations for Renewal

Our texts this week are here Our prayer this week is from Daily Prayer with the Corrymeela Community, by Padraig O’Tuama Our sponsor this week: Nazarenes for Creation Care … Earth Day Sunday - April 24th 2022 - Nazarenes for Creation Care is offering this free resource to help congregations engage creation in meaningful ways this April 24th. This downloadable resource will include a special liturgy, Scripture readings, song suggestions, prayers, a bulletin insert, action items for engaging in caring for God's good creation, and more! https://www.nazarenesforcreationcare.com/earth-day-sunday.html Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music.

Our texts this week are here  Our prayer this week is here - "Palm Sunday" by Malcolm Guite  Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music. Earth Day Sunday - April 24th 2022 - Nazarenes for Creation Care is offering this free resource to help congregations engage creation in meaningful ways this April 24th. This downloadable resource will include a special liturgy, Scripture readings, song suggestions, prayers, a bulletin insert, action items for engaging in caring for God's good creation, and more! 

Our texts this week are here Sacrifice Zones: geographic areas that have been permanently impaired by environmental damage (especially from toxic pollution or economic disinvestment), or places where people are inevitably stuck in inhospitable places (for example, island nations suffering from sea-level rise). In Sacrifice Zones, Steve Lerner tells the stories of twelve communities, from Brooklyn to Pensacola, that rose up to fight the industries and military bases causing disproportionately high levels of chemical pollution. “We are called to prophetic work not nostalgic work” – Jo Saxton’s sermon at WHWC  Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music.

Our texts this week are here. Our prayer for this week is here: Blessed Be Our Table, by Neil Paynter (p 247) God, you have given us all kinds of plants, those that bear grain and those that bear fruit. O, taste and see that the Lord is good. You have given us, your word and law, sweeter than honey, sweeter than honey dripping from the comb O, taste and see that the Lord is good. You have given us manna in the wilderness of our wandering and daily bread to sustain O, taste and see that the Lord is good. For all you have given us, generous, loving God, we praise you. Amen. "Hoarding stinks." - Daniel Erlanger, Manna and Mercy: A Brief History of God's Unfolding Promise to Mend the Entire Universe Reflecting on eating locally: 100 Mile Diet: A Year of Eating Locally, by Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, by Barbara Kingsolver. Ways to pray for Ukraine– consider baking a Ukrainian bread recipe Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music.

Our texts this week are here. Our prayer for this week is here: “Revise our taking” from Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth by Walter Brueggemann Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music. Check out the Lenten Devotional! N4CC: How to Eat Together as a Church Walter Brueggemann writes about the geography of imagination in Israel’s Praise and how imagination must come before implementation in The Prophetic Imagination. “Isaiah offers us hope that is grounded, but not limited.” -Rev. Aaron Moschitto 

Our texts this week are here. Our prayer for this week is here. It is adapted from Justice for Immigrants, “Prayer and Liturgy Suggestions,” originally posted on the Justice for Immigrants website.  Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music. Check out the Lenten Devotional, The Way Through, and Alicia’s Spotify playlist

Our texts this week are here  “Food means everything if you don’t have it and nothing if you do.” - Germaine Jenkins (see the whole conversation here) Our prayer for this week is from the book titled Blessed Be Our Table (p 63) Other resources on our website: commentaries, discipleship, liturgics, music. Check out the Lenten Devotional "The Way Through"  Alicia’s Lenten playlist on Spotify