FAITH CONNECTION – FARMERSVILLE UMC
Ministry Updates for Friday, August 7th, 2020
Facebook Live Worship—Sunday, August 9th, at 9:30 a.m.
Please join us as we again worship through Facebook Live. Use this link to watch the service. And please consider passing it along.
https://www.facebook.com/events/610361529605173
Scripture:
Romans 12:12 – Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.
Reflection – On the Prayer of St. Francis
I wanted to share the Prayer of St. Francis, which some scholars believe was a prayer written not by him, but as a reflection of who they perceived him to be.
When I first read the prayer, I found it beautiful, but hard to pray. What I did not realize is that when we want to be instruments of peace or sowers of love, for example, we need God’s help to do so.
My natural state may or may not contain peace, love, pardon, faith, hope or light. But even if I do have those within me, I need God’s help to release them. And if I do not have those within me, then I am asking God for a gift that I can share with others. James says if you don’t have wisdom, ask God for it, and you will have it (paraphrase).
I do believe in giving we receive. But for me it is not about receiving human praise. I just want to know God smiles on me as I give. I do not know if this is asking too much, but it is what I hope for.
Prayer – The Prayer of St. Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.