The Prayer

I fall in love with this song every time I hear it! It is so beautiful and touched my heart as I look around and see the struggles in our world.

The world is not a very happy or calm place right now. The entire world is dealing with a pandemic. Right here in our own country there is arguing instead of compromise, fighting instead of handshakes or hugs. Families are struggling to find places to live and put food on their tables. Our children are being tossed about in a school situation that is awful (from personal experience – I was a teacher for 36 years). There is the feeling of being afraid of the future and being out of control. We have children shooting other children, parents abusing and abandoning their children, and discrimination aimed at anyone who is different that “us”. How did we get here?

There really is only one answer – and this of course is my personal belief – and that is FAITH. I have to believe that there is a God who sent His Son to help us through all of the horrible things that will happen in our lifetimes. No one is immune from struggle, but I believe there is a loving God who really is in control. If I can find that place of peace in my own heart, and trust that all is well I can make it through anything.

I have had my own personal struggles, from personal relationships that failed to overcoming cancer twice! I have always had a positive attitude and I do believe that came from my Mom whose motto was “Everything Changes”. The bad times will happen but they will go away and faith is what sustains me during the rough times.

I wish you that faith in tomorrow, that things will be better. This song is my prayer for all of my family and friends.

I have shared two versions of this song – enjoy!!!

I pray you’ll be our eyes, and watch us where we go
And help us to be wise in times when we don’t know

I pray we ‘Il find your light, and hold it in our hearts
When stars go out each night,
Remind us where you are
Let this be our prayer, when shadows fill our day
Help us find a place, guide us with your grace
Give us faith so we’ll be safe

A world where pain and sorrow will be ended
And every heart that’s broken will be mended
And we’ll remember we are all God’s children
Reaching out to touch you
Reaching to the sky

We ask that life be kind, and watch us from above
We hope each soul will find another soul to love
Let this be our prayer, just like every child

Who needs to find a place, guide us with your grace
Give us faith so we’ll be safe
Need to find a place, guide us with your grace
Give us faith so we’ll be safe

Advent 2021

Well, in just a few months it will be a full two years since the pandemic began. I must confess that with the pandemic and moving to Texas, I have not yet found a new church home. So, today on this first day of Advent 2021 I will practice “Forgiveness” on myself. Not attending a brick-and-mortar building does not mean I have moved away from my faith, on the contrary I still remain faithful in my beliefs but I do not yet have a faith community to share that with.

I have decided to use this Advent season to return to daily reflection and prayer. In my life music is very important for me so I will blog each day a seasonal song to share with you.

Today, the first Sunday of advent I have chosen the hymn “O Come, O come Emmanuel”. The term advent in Latin means “coming or arrival”. How appropriate those words are as we have spent almost the last two years waiting on an end to this pandemic and if you are like me feeling not at all in control of what is happening in the world.

Advent is a time of waiting and a time of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Christ. Before the birth of Jesus, the Israelites were waiting for a Savior to arrive! The arrival of this Savior was a child and that was not what they were expecting. The Son of God became a man like you and me. God did not have to do this – but He did. Those words strike a chord for me – He did not have to do it but He did! He did it for us so He could also become the sacrifice for our sins.

It took me listening to quite a few versions of this song to decide which one I would share. I wanted the pure sound of the lonely melody and the feeling of mourning and longing as we wait for the coming of a Savior to rescue us from all the ills of the world. Maybe this Advent we can remember that God saw our situation and sent the Christ Child. What we can learn from His birth and life is to wait patiently and know that God is in charge.

Kyrie Eleison – Lord Have Mercy

Do we need this now! I grew up reciting these words in church not paying too much attention to what they meant. The song was popular in the 80’s but I didn’t think about the religious implications then, but I sure do now. I heard this song on the radio yesterday and I thought “how timeless those words are”.

I am a Christian and I hold dear to my faith but I try not to close myself off from the world. There are gems like this out there that speak to me and others about life.

Not too much else to say about this song, so listen, enjoy and “Kyrie Eleison” on your journey through this day!

Kyrie eleison definition, the brief petition “Lord, have mercy,” used in various offices of the Greek Orthodox Church and of the Roman Catholic Church.

The wind blows hard against this mountain side
Across the sea into my soul
It reaches into where I cannot hide
Setting my feet upon the road

My heart is old it holds my memories
My body burns a gem-like flame
Somewhere between the soul and soft machine
Is where I find myself again

*CHORUS*
Kyrie Eleison
Down the road that I must travel
Kyrie Eleison
Through the darkness of the night
Kyrie Eleison
Where I’m going will you follow
Kyrie Eleison
On a highway in the night

When I was young I thought of growing old
Of what my life would mean to me
Would I have followed down my chosen road
Or only wished what I could be

How Can I Keep from Singing?

My life flows on in endless song;

Above earth’s lamentation,

I hear the sweet, tho’ far-off hymn

That hails a new creation;

Thro’ all the tumult and the strife

I hear the music ringing;

It finds an echo in my soul—

How can I keep from singing?

What tho’ my joys and comforts die?

The Lord my Saviour liveth;

What tho’ the darkness gather round?

Songs in the night he giveth.

No storm can shake my inmost calm

While to that refuge clinging;

Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,

How can I keep from singing?

I lift my eyes; the cloud grows thin;

I see the blue above it;

And day by day this pathway smooths,

Since first I learned to love it,

The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,

A fountain ever springing;

All things are mine since I am his—

How can I keep from singing?

Today is my 62^nd Birthday and I can hardly believe that I have lived over 6 decades. In so many ways I still feel 20, and optimistically I still have my whole life ahead of me! Reality is….I have lived a full life and am beginning to look back as well as ahead as I live day to day.

I hear some people talk about things they regret in their lives and I really do not regret a single thing. Most of my life decisions turned out to be good ones and even those paths I chose that may not have been the best, I can still see how they helped me grow and taught me things about myself and life.

This song is almost a mantra for me…I first fell in love with it when Enya sang it on one of her albums in the 1990’s. I fell in love with it more when my Mom was in hospice and the tune kept running through my head so I sang it to her in her hospital room. Even though we were so sad at the prospect of losing her, the fact was because of my faith I knew she would be in a much better place of peace.

We are living through a very strange time right now during the Covid Pandemic. I do not want to get into particular issues here but I can say with all my heart “How can I keep from Singing? And I have found that music has been a constant companion to me during this pandemic. I hope you enjoy this song.

“How Can I Keep From Singing?” (also known by its incipit “My Life Flows On in Endless Song“) is a Christian hymn with music written by American Baptist minister Robert Wadsworth Lowry. The song is frequently, though erroneously, cited as a traditional Quaker or Shaker hymn. The original composition has now entered into the public domain, and appears in several hymnals and song collections, both in its original form and with a revised text. Though it was not originally a Quaker hymn, twentieth-century Quakers adopted it as their own and use it widely today.