Sunday, March 23

Psalm 95

1 O come, let us sing to the Lord;
   let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
   let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
3 For the Lord is a great God,
   and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;
   the heights of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it,
   and the dry land, which his hands have formed. 
6 O come, let us worship and bow down,
   let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
7 For he is our God,
   and we are the people of his pasture,
   and the sheep of his hand. 

I chose this reading because it is one that is included in the office of Morning Prayer in the Book of Common Prayer. I had the privilege of doing Morning Prayer with a small, but dedicated group of people at Canterbury Chapel for several years. And it changed me and made me a better person when I was doing it several times a week.  I miss it now, but my work has changed and the mornings are busy.  I have also found that it is not the same reading Morning Prayer by myself. I need to do it in community to make it fill my heart.

At first, I was not willing to be take time out of my day to stop and do Morning Prayer, but with a little exhortation from Gus, I began to attend Morning Prayer a few mornings a week before I drove to Livingston to work.  I was blessed to be able to take time for this 30 minute pause and start to my day because I didn’t have to be at work until 10 or so.  I found that during some of my hardest days that beginning with Morning Prayer helped set my sights on what was really important. 

Morning Prayer was also shared with Gus, Camilla, and Lee for a long time and those connections are dear to me.  I read once a week and others read on other days.  Then, when it was just Camilla and me, we read it every other day.  Our commitment to be there for each other and start our day that way was something I didn’t know I would miss so much until I moved from Tuscaloosa to Huntsville.

So with today’s Psalm I remember and rejoice in my times reading Morning Prayer at Canterbury Chapel in Tuscaloosa. I hope to be able to add this discipline back to my rule of life in the future.