The beginning of Lent

 














O Lord,
The house of my soul is narrow;
enlarge it that You may enter in.
It is ruinous, O repair it!
It displeases Your sight.
I confess it, I know.
But who shall cleanse it,
to whom shall I cry but to You?
Cleanse me from my secret faults, O Lord,
and spare Your servant from strange sins.

St. Augustine of Hippo (AD 354-430)

Shrove Tuesday



Trinity UMC

Oxford UMC

Oxford UMC

a UMW member @ Oxford UMC sports her Mardi Gras look

We had a wonderful time tonight at two Shrove Tuesday pancake suppers. 

First, we went to Trinity UMC where we enjoyed some very tasty pancakes and sausage.  Becky Thaxton, one of Charles' 2-year Academy for Spiritual Formation companions, who is on the staff at Trinity,  presented Charles with a button for his collection.

Following a spell at Trinity, we made our way to Oxford UMC where Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) was in full-swing!  The UMW members were such good sports, wearing Mardi Gras masks!  They had five different flavors of pancakes and desserts, what a great group of people

A Prayer for Shrove Tuesday (Palm Burning)

Often the palms from the previous Palm Sunday are burned on this day to be used at the Ash Wednesday services.

Holy God, Your Son Jesus rode with pilgrims into Jerusalem, and excited crowds threw branches in His path. These palms have been to us a reminder of His reign all year. Now as we prepare for Lent, and recall, through the work of Your Holy Spirit within us, that we have fallen short of Your will for us, we burn these palms to make ashes that will mark us with the sign of mortality and repentance; and we remember that though “sorrow may spend the night, Joy comes in the morning”, and out of death comes resurrection, through our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. 

(prayer by the Rev. Jennifer Phillips)

Prayer for Transfiguration of the Lord Sunday

Church of the Transfiguration - Mt. Tabor

Lord,

You have put your wonderful hope in us born of the spirit of Jesus.

This hope empowers us to be your servants in this world

bringing light into darkness.

Hope into despair.

Warmth into coldness.

Friendship into loneliness.

Food into hunger.

Care into trouble.

We are out in the open, not hidden away with shame for our beliefs and love of you.

We practically shine brightly with your spirit in us as we bring a healing touch, a shoulder to lean on, an arm around a person who is hurting, a hand to lift someone up, a ride to the grocery story or the Doctor’s office, or ourselves being present.

Lord Jesus let us remember that after you were transfigured and you were blessed by God as his chosen son, you came down off the mountain. You didn’t stay up there, you came down among your people. And the first thing you did was to heal someone. Lord, you are still in our midst. You are still healing. You are still touching lives. And so we pray that you will do so today in our midst.

Lord we pray for those who are overwhelmed with the snow, cold and no electricity in the North East. We pray for those who live in places of drought. We pray for those who live in areas of flooding. And we pray for those who don’t have clean water for drinking.

We pray for the violence in our world to end. We pray for the countries that are torn by civil war. We pray for the children who are taken into slave trade and trafficking. We pray that your light would shine and transform our world.

Amen.

  http://revgalprayerpals.blogspot.com/

 

Out on the town

We joined friends of ours, Ann and Jay Brown and John Hargis for supper at Little Italy, one of the Brown's favorite restaurants here in San Antonio.  What a fun time!  It was nice to have some time out of the routine and to hang out with some nice people and good food!

A new button!

Charles had a treat today in the mailbox, a button!  Belinda's friend, Nancy Harrell, sent Charles a "cool" button from the 2013 Saint Paul (MN) Winter Carnival.  Any day with a button is a good day!

A lovely day in San Antonio

Wesley and Belinda enjoying the afternoon air

It's been a nice week here in San Antonio, nothing extrordinary to report, just a nice week at work and relaxing evenings at home! 

This morning we attended worship at Oak Meadow UMC where we'd attended twice before.  This is a lovely group of people!  After the service we joined the congregation for its monthly covered dish lunch, fantastic food and great company!