Service of the Longest Night

Living God, we come to you during this pre-Christmas season, just as we are, each of us with our own kinds of sadness and loss… each of us with our own strengths, our own measure of resilience. Come and visit us, God, through the words of our readings and songs and through the prayers and presence of one another. In your name we pray… amen.

First Reflection:  Feel  by Chicago
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJn7azWR2i8

So everybody's pulling you in all directions
You don't know how much longer to take it
So you've learned how to fake it
That smile on the outside's fading fast
Like the things that you thought for sure would last
But they didn't
You know something's missing
Is it your life you're not living?

[Chorus:]
Your heart is cold, your soul is numb
You don't like who you've become
You played the game and paid the cost for long enough
So grab the reins, yeah, take the wheel
Lose what's not and keep what's real
It's not too late,
Just close your eyes and feel, feel

You can't tell if you're happy or sad
Can't tell the good from bad
It's senseless
To waste your senses
Maybe stop thinking with your head
Start using your heart instead
Just try it
You just might like it
Aren't you dying to start livin'?

[Chorus]

Every breath that's going thru you
Take each day that's given to you
To love back the ones who love you

[Chorus]

You can't tell if you're happy or sad
Can't tell the good from the bad
Feel and stop thinking with your head
Start using your heart instead

Lord Jesus, you were born into our world feeling all the same emotions we feel, suffering all the kinds of losses that we suffer. And you know how we tend to bottle up our negative stuff so we can function our way through the day. Give to us a safe place to feel now what it is that we need to feel… whether that is loneliness or fear or anger or confusion… or peace and strength and gratitude… or just a wild mix of emotions. Thank you for songs that give us permission to feel and for those who write and perform them. In your name we pray…amen.


Second Reflection:  Pre-Christmas Grief a la Psalm 42
 by Kari Henkelmann Keyl
As a deer leans forward, aching for water,
     so am I thirsty for you, O God.
I so need to know that you haven’t dumped me.
     I have to somehow see your face.
I’ve sobbed myself dry; still relief eludes me.
    I ponder good times, but they feel far away.
Christmas songs in the air
     leave me breathless with loss.
Deeper I sink, ‘til there’s just nothing left,
     nothing but you, God, nothing but you.
I grope in the darkness, some presence is there.
     I remember you once were a rock in my storms.
I’ll give trust a try; I’ll peek out of this hole,
But you, God — oh please, God —
     must make a move, too.
Hum your tune as I sleep,
     so I’ll wake warmed with song.
Let me feel my wounds healing,
     and I’ll know you have come.
Confident once more,
     I’ll have hope for tomorrow,
My whole life a prayer, to the God of my soul.

Like that thirsty deer, O God, we are leaning toward you. We need to know that you are here… that you are here for us. Refresh us with your Spirit. Energize us with your healing. Give us courage to lean further, into a hopeful future, with you by our side. In your name we pray… amen.

Third Reflection: Matthew 11:28-30 
(from Eugene Petersen's The Message)

Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

Friend Jesus, sometimes we can't handle all that weighs us down. Do as you have promised in your words. Help us to breathe freely. Give us your kind of peace… so we'll be strong enough to care for others. Amen.

Your love has brought me to my knees Oct 29 bfyj let by Heidi Jakoby

Below are the Reflections and prayers from last nights bread for your journey.

First Reflection: Taken from the Eulogy of Eunice Kennedy Shriver written by Maria Shriver (follow this link for the complete eulogy http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/08/maria_shivers_e.html )


Now if you had told me a few years ago that at the end of my mother's life she and I would sit in a room and just be, I would have said you were crazy. If you had told me that at the age of 52, I would finally get up the nerve to crawl into bed with my mother, hold her, and tell her that I love her, I would have said you were nuts. And if you had told me that Mummy and I would write poetry together, I would know for sure you that you'd lost your mind. But all those things really happened, as Mummy learned to let go. At the end of her life, she was strong and vulnerable, she was tired and tireless, determined and also ready to surrender to God. She did it all, she lived it all, and she loved us all.

To be honest, I think it's impossible for each of us to think about our life without Mummy. It's interesting, as we've talked amongst us the last couple of days, each of us felt like an only child. Each of us felt as though our mother was our best friend. Each of us talked to her every day, and sometimes more than once. And of course, I think if I said to my mother, which I often did, "I can't go on without you, I don't know how to live without you," she'd say, "You're fine, I've raised you well, now get out there, I don't want to hear one more yip, get going, your brothers will be nice to you."

And so I will, we all will, get up and get going.

But I wanted to leave you with this little poem that my mother and I wrote together in a hospital room in Boston. I read it to her several times, and she liked it, a lot. It has no name but I thought she would like me to share it with you. It goes like this:

Thank you Mummy, for giving me the breath of life.

Thank you for giving me a push over and over again.

Thank you for doing your best.

Here we are, you and me.

Now it’s you, needing the breath of life.

Now it’s you, needing the push.

You did it to me, let me do it for you.

Your love has brought me to my knees, I cannot breathe without you, I cannot think without you, I am lost without you.

Here we are, you and me, the clouds are gone, the sky is clear.

You are the star in my sky, you are the music in my heart.

Do you hear it? Listen. Listen. Mummy, you are the trumpet of my life.

Prayer: Loving God, as we mourn for all those who have taught us so much over the years, as we miss them , help us to remember their life, their smile and the lessons they taught us. Be with all those who are feeling lonely and let them know your love. Amen

Second Reflection:

Soul Cakes by Sting off his Winter’s Night CD Just released
http://www.onlylyrics.com/hits.php?grid=7&id=1038045

Prayer: God of the world thank you for the many souls who have come before us for their faithfulness and love. Thank you for your love and care in each of our relationships. Help us to honor those who came before us by teaching those who will come after us about your love. Amen

Third Reflection: John 11:32-44 (The Message)

29-32The moment she heard that, she jumped up and ran out to him. Jesus had not yet entered the town but was still at the place where Martha had met him. When her sympathizing Jewish friends saw Mary run off, they followed her, thinking she was on her way to the tomb to weep there. Mary came to where Jesus was waiting and fell at his feet, saying, "Master, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died."

33-34When Jesus saw her sobbing and the Jews with her sobbing, a deep anger welled up within him. He said, "Where did you put him?"

34-35"Master, come and see," they said. Now Jesus wept.

36The Jews said, "Look how deeply he loved him."

37Others among them said, "Well, if he loved him so much, why didn't he do something to keep him from dying? After all, he opened the eyes of a blind man."

38-39Then Jesus, the anger again welling up within him, arrived at the tomb. It was a simple cave in the hillside with a slab of stone laid against it. Jesus said, "Remove the stone."

The sister of the dead man, Martha, said, "Master, by this time there's a stench. He's been dead four days!"

40Jesus looked her in the eye. "Didn't I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"

41-42Then, to the others, "Go ahead, take away the stone."

They removed the stone. Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and prayed, "Father, I'm grateful that you have listened to me. I know you always do listen, but on account of this crowd standing here I've spoken so that they might believe that you sent me."

43-44Then he shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" And he came out, a cadaver, wrapped from head to toe, and with a kerchief over his face.

Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him loose."

Prayer: Loving God we thank you for your son and the example he set for us. We thank you for his humanness and his deep feelings for others. Grant us wisdom and strength to follow you and to celebrate the gift of each day with joy. In the name of your son Jesus Christ we pray. Amen