Staying Safe and Staying Connected
Good Morning Saint Stephen’s Church,
We continue our life of daily prayer. The Lord be with you!
Today’s Prayer
O my God, be pleased to work in me, what Thou hast commanded should be in me. Lord, I am a dry tree, who neither have brought forth fruit unto Thee and unto holiness, nor have wept out salutary tears, the instrument of life and restitution, but have behaved myself like an unconcerned person in the ruins and breaches of my soul; but, O God, Thou art my God, early will I seek Thee; my soul thirsteth for Thee in a barren and thirsty land where there is no water. Lord, give me the grace of tears and pungent sorrow, turn my sin into repentance, and let my repentance proceed to pardon and refreshment. Support me with thy graces, strengthen me with thy Spirit, soften my heart with the dew of heaven, with penitential showers.
Jeremy Taylor, 1667
Jeremy Taylor is recognized with a feast day on August 13th. Taylor was a seventeenth century bishop. Early in his career, he served as a chaplain to Charles I and to the royalist army in the English Civil War. Following the war and Charles’ defeat, Taylor was imprisoned multiple times before being allowed to resume a quiet life in Wales, where he focused on his writing. Some of his most well-known texts are The Rules and Exercises of Holy Living and The Rules and Exercises of Holy Dying. When the monarchy was restored in England, Taylor was appointed as a bishop in Ireland, of Down, Connor, and Dromore.
From Our Prayers of the People
Today, let us pray:
For the just and proper use of your creation: for the victims of hunger, fear, injustice, and oppression.
For comfort and healing for all who are affected by the Coronavirus: for physicians, nurses, and all others who minister to the sick and the suffering, may God grant them wisdom and skill, sympathy and patience, and may God keep them healthy and safe.
For all essential workers: for police, firefighters, EMTs, postal workers, sanitation workers, grocery personnel, delivery and transport workers, and all who must report to work because what they do is essential for our well-being, health, and safety.
For those on the Parish Prayer Chain Mary Frances, Jim, Eunice, Jane, Bruce, Pauline, John, Bill, Stephanie, Hank and Nancy.
For those who are homebound: Stephen, Pauline, Joan, Janet and Marilyn.
Our Government Leaders: Donald Trump, President of the United States; Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York State; Gary McCarthy, Mayor of Schenectady
Our Church Leaders: Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop, William Love, and Daniel Herzog our bishops; James and Dennie our priests; Pat our deacon and Allison our Lay Reader
Those who are imprisoned: those particularly vulnerable at this time, especially the women in the Schenectady County Jail.
For those in need of healing: Sid, Vicki, Jean, Cindi, Mary Frances, Debbie and Joe.
For all the blessings of this life.
For our dioceses in the Anglican Communion: Karnataka Central (South India), Karnataka North (South India), Karnataka South (South India).
For all who have died: especially Anita, Elizabeth, Joanne, Joseph, Peter, Donald, William, Robert, Julie and Cynthia.
For one another.
Something to share
In London Town
It was a bird of Paradise,
Over the roofs he flew.
All the children, in a trice,
Clapped their hands and cried, ‘How nice!’
‘Look–his wings are blue!’His body was of ruby red,
His eyes were burning gold.
All the grown-up people said,
‘What a pity the creature is not dead,
For then it could be sold!’One was braver than the rest.
He took a loaded gun;
Aiming at the emerald crest,
He shot the creature through the breast.
Down it fell in the sun.It was not heavy, it was not fat,
And folk began to stare.
‘We cannot eat it, that is flat!
And such outlandish feathers as that
Why, who could ever wear?’They flung it in the river brown.
Mary Coleridge
‘A pity the creature died!’
With a smile and with a frown,
Thus they did in London town;
But all the children cried.
Reminders
If you have an update/news, a prayer or poem or something inspirational you would like us to share with the congregation, please send it to us. Please also send us any prayer requests. We will incorporate these into the Morning Prayers as best we can.
If you need a prayerbook, and are not in a position to purchase one, please contact me: james.ross.mcd@gmail.com. I will make sure you have your own Book of Common Prayer.
Prayerbook Morning Prayer in Zoom – each morning. Join Dennie and me for an inter-active service of Morning Prayer at 9 am. Time to bring your prayer concerns will be provided. (contact me for the link: james.ross.mcd@gmail.com)
Our church campus is closed, except for our Eucharistic Ingathering on Sundays at 9:00 am. Please see our website for further information: https://st-stephens.church. All other parish meetings and gatherings are canceled and postponed until further notice.
Our goal is for all of us to stay in touch and connected in this time of isolation.
Share this news, and spread some love, not the virus!
Irish Blessing
May the road rise up to meet you,
May the wind be at your back,
May the sun shine upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon soft upon your fields,
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.
Be of good courage. We are in this together, and we will be together again soon. God bless you and may God be with us in the days ahead.
Peace,
James+