7 th Sunday of Easter

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After Jesus was taken up, they went to the upper room.
All these joined in continuous prayer.
They knew he had risen from the tomb.
But could they go out and dare.
The time between the Ascension and Pentecost.
A time of fear , hope and waiting.
How often do we wait, counting the cost.
But they went on believing and praying.
Perhaps if we did less murmuring.
And more praying.
Giving patiently rather than taking.
It might be more worthwhile waiting.
But for us the endless wait continues.
We still have to resolve issues.
…. …..
After the Ascension.
They went to the upper room
They waited and prayed
…….
See Acts 1: 12-14

Saturday of the 6 th week of Easter

Ask and you will receive.
And so your joy will be complete.
With such gifts there is no need to grieve.

There is only joy to greet.

When that day comes you will ask in my name.
I do not say I will pray to the Father for you.
So he said, but when we pray we need to use his name.
For he tells us the Father loves you.

We have an intercessor.
God and man.
Knowing us to our very core.
And our every plan.

So to him we keep praying.
In the hope he keeps answering.

……..

Ask and you receive
And your joy will be complete
Answering prayer

……..

See John 16 : 23-28

Friday of the 6 th week of Easter

Do not be afraid to speak out.
Nor allow yourself to be silenced.
So much easier to remain silent than your truth shout.
And assume all truth anyway is nuanced.I have so many people on my side in this city.
That no one will even attempt to hurt you.
Thus said St Paul in Corinth’s city.
And all this applies to to me and you.

Well eventually he got his head cut off.
But his indomitable courage still inspires.
But I suppose I’ll go on remaining silent rather than sound off.
Courage and spirit tires.

So Paul stayed there preaching.
And we keep on hesitating.

……….

Speak, be not afraid
And you must not be silenced
Whoever says no

………

See Acts 18: 9-18

Thursday of the 6 th week of Easter

 

 

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Go therefore make disciples of all the nations.
Baptise them in the name of the father and of the son.
When I read these words I knew our true foundations.
And what despite all , we have won.

It’s amazing what a few words can do .
And these seemed to breathe confidence.
It all seemed so immediate and true.
This was something beyond all sentience.

Know that I am with you always.
Yes, to the end of time.
He is with us on and in all our ways.
On our ending and in our prime.

And he will return.
And in him we will take our turn.

……..

I’m always with you
Now and to the end of time
That is his promise

…….

See Matthew 28 : 16-20

Wednesday of the 6 th week of Easter

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It is in him that we live.
And move and exist.
Through him we thrive.
And thus penetrate the celestial mist .I was at a service of commemoration.
80 years after the Dambusters raid.
We remembered those in the air and in the inundation.
And we did all we could do , we prayed.

Our hymns rang out in prayer.
I vow to you my country.
For those in peril in the air.
We saluted courage humbly.

It was a long time ago.
But remembrance should grow.

……..

It’s in him we live
And through him move and exist
And through him we thrive

…..

See Acts 17

Tuesday of the 6th week of Easter

 

 

 

 
Suddenly there was an earthquake.

That shook the building to its foundations.
They were prepared to give up all for his sake.
Without reservations.
Sometimes too with us all seems lost.
And then an earthquake happens.
We thought we could not count the cost.
Suddenly they seem true, all those sermons.
All the doors flew open.
And the chains fell from all the prisoners.
If only we knew it, our world is never broken.
As long as we remain listeners.
We will lose our chains.
And will find cleansed all our stains.
……..
An earthquake happens
And everything is changed
And unexpected
….  ..
See Acts 16: 22-34

Monday of the 6 th week of Easter

And you too will be witnesses.
Because you have been with me from the outset.
Helping with so many stresses.
And from our final debt.Let them praise his name with dancing.
And make music with timbrel and harp.
All this is so entrancing.
What are we to carp.

For the Lord takes delight in his people.
He crowns the poor with salvation.
Even us lay people.
Until we are all one nation.

So the people can rejoice in their glory.
As they read of his story.

…….

We are witnesses
We’ve been there since the outset
And praising his name

……..

See John 15 and psalm 149

6 th Sunday of Easter

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Love me , keep my commandments.

And my Father will give you another advocate.
These are our hope inspired sentiments.
This is our will and our fate.
I was up very early for the dawn chorus.
The air misty, the garden vibrant with life.
In May all is growing , sonorous.
Still , mind filling , with no stress or strife.
And later I stood in front of the Coates rood screen.
A lone survivor from before the the  Reformation.
Here too in deep countryside,  the senses were keen.
Here we create our own little holy Zion.
And thus the  past and present merges.
And early summer hope surges.
……..
Keep my commandments
I give you an advocate
This is his promise
……..
See John 14 : 15 – 21

Saturday of the 5 th week of Easter

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So the churches grew strong in the faith.
As well as growing daily in numbers.
But is our belief as light as a wraith.
Despite his manifold wonders.
I am touring The  Lindsey Open Churches Festival.
A feast of architectural beauty.
So much here is epochal.
And reminding us of our greater duty.
I stand inside the magnificence of the Church at Stow.
Here is its towering nave and chancel.
No greater beauty can bestow
Here is all Saxon and Norman substantial.
And these rural churches stand to faith witness.
And to history an eyewitness.
……..
The churches grow strong
In faith as told in the Acts
Now they bear witness
………
See Acts 26 : 1-10

Friday of the 5 th week of Easter

We hear that our members disturbed you with demands.
And have unsettled your minds.
They came from many lands.
Brought by many winds.The apostles send greetings to brothers of pagan birth.
In Antioch , Syria and Cilicia.
All should be welcome from the whole earth.
Commoner and patricia.

It has been decided by the Holy Spirit.
Not to saddle you with any burden beyond these essentials.
We should welcome all, with or without merit.
Or any burdensome credentials.

Are we welcoming.
Or are we resisting.

…….

Their demand disturbed
And unsettled people’s minds
Do we do the same

……

See Acts 15 : 22-31

Thursday of the 5 th week of Easter

It would only provoke God’s anger if you imposed on the disciples.
The very burden that neither we nor they were able to support.
We must lay aside our scruples.
Despite occasionally things being fraught.This silenced the whole assembly.
And they listened to the wonders worked through pagans.
Hope is never empty.
For all our daughters and sons.

I shall return and rebuild the house of David
I shall rebuild it from its ruins.
Hope is never faded.
For escape from all our sins.

In the early days God made his choice among you.
He read your heart , you too.
……..
Lay aside our scruples
We impose on all people
And then just have faith
………
See Acts 15 : 7-21

Wednesday of the 5 th week of Easter

They told how the pagans had been converted.
And this news was received with the greatest satisfaction.
By God, they knew they never would be deserted.
Theirs was not a belief based on abstraction.The letters of Dionysius were read at mass .
Explaining that as Christians they followed local customs.
They were people of heaven, voyaging through a spiritual pass.

They were not part of the usual temporal systems.

And thus we are part of society.
Yet set apart , looking to another world.

In all our variegated variety.
Young or old, smooth  or gnarled.
The early church was prepared for martyrdom.
Our own beliefs and courage are more random.
………
Part society
And part people of heaven
In variety
………

See Acts 1-6

Tuesday of the 5 th week of Easter

The Prince of this world is on his way.
He has no power over me.
Over him no one has any sway.
He is the eternal ever present key.

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The King holds the sovereign’s sceptre with cross.
Representing the monarch’s temporal authority.
But his gain is not the greater’s  loss.
There is an ultimate greater superiority.

Jesus said, I am going to the Father.
For the Father is  greater than I.
Even a King cannot see any  further.
Nor see through the ultimate mystical eye.

Before the eternal being .
We all , Kings and commoners lack seeing.

….. ..

The Prince of the World
Is now on his way to us
By authority

…….

See John 14 : 27-31

Monday of the 5 th week of Easter

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Anyone who receives my commandments and keeps them.

Will be the one who loves me .

This is the holy income.
Which makes us truly free.
At the coronation the King receives the golden spurs.
Symbol of knightly virtues and chivalry.
With them he proves he is truly yours.
Subject to service and the Trinity.
Melted down by Cromwell .
Remade for the second Charles.
Thus can be reforged all that is not well.
And now given to the third Charles.
Thus nothing is destroyed for ever.
We can always rejoin what we sever.
……..
Receive his commandments
And then always keep them close
Is one that loves him
………
See John 14 : 21 -26

5 th Sunday of Easter

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The Lord is the living stone.
Chosen by God , yet rejected by men.
But with him we are never alone.
More inspiring even than meditative zen.

At mass today they sang Zadok the Priest.
And a Te Deum in honour of the king.
Of music and liturgy a veritable feast.
And so we honour as we sing.

To think that Zadok anointed King Solomon.
And that is still used in our coronation ritual.
And then the Supertunica is put on.
To emphasise that the King’s coronation is spiritual.

Thus we are all a royal priesthood.
And still at the anointing, time stood.

…….

The Lord living stone
Rejected by men , chosen
By God and by us

…….

See 1 Peter 2 : 4-9

Saturday of the 4 th week of Easter

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If you ask for anything in my name.
I will do it.
We must keep alive the devout flame.
And follow his holy writ.

I am watching the King’s coronation.
How wonderful to see the Christian symbolism.
A ceremony, almost as old as the nation’s creation.
An exposition predating any ism.

How moving the anointing.
The king in a simple shirt.
Vows, honestly given, the wellspring.
And then with orb and sceptre girt.

And finally holy communion.
With the nation in communion.

……

Ask for anything
In my name, I will do it
So then let us ask

……..

See John 14 : 7-14

Friday of the 4 th week of Easter

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Do not let your hearts be troubled.
Trust in God still and trust in me.
So our spiritual efforts are redoubled.
We make this plea on our knee.
I was really irritated by something.
And then I read these words.
A calming bell will ring.
We forget past and future like high flying birds.
And in the church today.
All was quiet .
No more to say.
A holy diet.
Calm the mind.
Forget the grind.
………
Do not let your hearts
Be troubled, trust in God still
And then trust in me
………
See John 14 : 1-6

Thursday of the 4 th week of Easter

Stephen filled with the Holy Spirit
Saw Jesus standing at God’s right hand.
We are listened to whatever our merit.
And whatever our land.I am looking at Zurbaran’s portrait of St Francis.
How can we match his ecstasy.

Leading us from the abyss.
To him , this was no fantasy .
As I watched him surrender everything.
I too wondered if this was not the route to happiness.
Prayer could take wing.
Leading to greater tenderness.
I left the exhibition on St Francis’s art.
Strangely moved and struck to the heart.
………
Stephen filled with the
Holy Spirit saw Jesus
Standing at God’s hand
………
See Acts 7 : 55-60

Wednesday of the 4 th week of Easter

Philip said, Lord , let us see the father.
And then we shall be satisfied.
Why do we persist with all this bother.
Don’t we know we truly have our guide.
But I persist in asking for proof.
Jesus’ ministry is not enough.
There he teaches, here I stand aloof.
And this question is not small stuff.
Have I not been with you all this time, Philip.
And still you do not know me.
But I would like a bit more of a fillip.
Before I can clearly see.
To have seen me , is to have seen the Father.
So how can you say, let us see the father.
……..
Let us see Father
But see him, see the Father
Yet still we question
………
See John 14 : 6-14

Tuesday of the 4 th week of Easter

How much longer are you going to keep us in suspense.
If you are the Christ tell us plainly.
You are going where , you come from whence.
We continue to ask this sincerely.I have told you before but you do not believe.
The works I do in my father’s name are my witness.
And for us , if we ask, we will receive.
It has nothing to do with our own fitness.

The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice.
I know them and they follow me.
We only ourselves have to make the choice.
And we do not have to pay any fee.

I give them eternal life.
They will never be lost in this or the next life.

…….

Tell us are you Christ
Do not keep us in suspense
Told, we must believe

…….

See John 10 : 22-30

Monday of the 4 th week of Easter

I am the good shepherd.
The one who lays down his life for his sheep .
To understand , we do not need to be lettered.
His gift is ours to keep.The hired man, since the sheep do not belong to him.
Abandons the sheep and runs away .
He acts on on a personal whim.
He does not know or understand the way.

As soon as he sees a wolf coming.
The wolf attacks and scatters the sheep.
For them there will be no homecoming.
And we all , will weep.

I know my own and my own know me.
Just as the father knows me.

…….

He’s the good shepherd
He knows his own and knows me
But do I know him

…….

See John 10 : 11-18

4 th Sunday of Easter

Anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate.
But gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand.
Let there be an end to all hate.
Let faith be quickened .
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The one who enters through the gate.
Is the shepherd of the flock.
Our turn will come, we just have to wait.
And to knock.

The gatekeeper lets him in.
One by one he calls his own sheep.
And one day too we will be let in.
This is a promise he most certainly will keep.

The sheep know his voice.
But we have to make our choice.

……..

You must use the gate
To enter in  the sheepfold
Is that not the way

…….

See John 12 : 1-10

Saturday of the 3rd week of Easter

 

 

God is light.
There is no darkness in him at all .43845252-37D0-4E8F-B091-3A53CD96C1B4
We only have to keep this in sight .
And we can walk tall .

If we live our lives in the light.
We are in union with one another .
Our prayers will rise like a kite .
And it will be as light as a feather .

The blood of Jesus , his son
Purifies us from all sin.
His vision as bright as the sun .
As supple and strong as tin.

As long as we keep him in sight.
We are surrounded by light.

……..

We know God is light
There is no darkness in him
So keep him in sight

……..

1 John 1 : 5-2 : 2

Friday of the 3rd week of Easter

Immediately it was as if scales fell away from Saul’s eyes.
And he could see again.
Thus we can overcome all our minds’ lies.
And all is mounting gain.As I heard these words at mass , carefully listening.
It was if I too truly believed for the first time.
The story of the road to Damascus is so convincing.
And the outcome so convincingly sublime.

Suddenly you are listening to a biblical story.
And something clicks .
An opening in the clouds to glory.
A house built with solid bricks.

And then the moment passes.
And to see, we need better spiritual glasses.

…….

Scales fall from  our eyes
Suddenly we see again
And we know the truth

…….

See Acts 9 : 1-20

Thursday of the 3rd week of Easter

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No one comes to me .
Unless he is drawn by the father.
We do not have to pay any fee.
We only have to try to see furtherI was at the early mass in the Cathedral.
And these words penetrated.
Here is a message for all people.
And where all our lives are weighted.

And I will raise him up at the last day.
It is written in the prophets.
There is nothing to pay
But we receive all the profits.

As I left I thought, if only you can believe.
You will receive.

…..

No one comes to me
Unless drawn by the father
Thus we can follow

…….

See John 6 : 44-51