Day 31: Returning to God with Our Hearts

What I'm about to say may not make me popular with some, but here goes: I'll admit that I'm a bit gun-shy when we talk in church about doing anything with our "hearts." I think the term gets used far too often, and–perhaps because of nothing more mature than trying to be macho–I always have my radar up for things that are going to require me to do something "touchy-feely." Whenever something shows up as a blip on that radar, I usually try to avoid it, and one of the primary indicators to me that I might want to avoid something in church is if its title includes the word "heart." (If, in addition to the word, there is also any sort of heart clip art, I will almost certainly steer clear.) I'm not proud of this, and I realize that it's not a particularly holy tendency, but at least I'm being honest.

So I admit that machismo rather than maturity is mostly to blame for my anti-heart reaction, but I think there's also another level to it: usually we have very little sense of what we're talking about in church when we talk about doing things with the heart. Most of our associations with it have to do with our feelings or emotions (which explains my avoidance of anything pointing in that direction), so any suggestion that we should do things such as praying with our hearts, or reading the Bible with our hearts, or even loving God with our hearts meet my initial defenses.

Again, thanks to Dallas Willard's work in Renovation of the Heart, I've come to see that loving, reading, and praying with our hearts are all things that should have a very concrete, practical meaning. In the book, Dallas proposes that–according to the images in the scriptures–talking about doing something with our hearts isn't actually talking about our feelings or emotions, but rather about our wills (to which the macho me heaves a sigh of relief).

Dallas makes the case that references in the scriptures to the heart, the spirit, and the will are all referring to the same part of us, essentially the part of us that chooses. Regardless of whether or not you share my disinclinations toward the touchy-feely, this is actually very good news for all of us. I'll see if I can explain why.

Think for a moment of someone who, in your estimation, is "world-class" at something, perhaps a professional athlete, musician, or some other kind of performer. We normally think of such people as not only being talented, but also having tremendous willpower. They have made the difficult decisions, day after day and year after year, which have resulted in their world-class abilities.

But what if I told you that I know something surprising about whichever great performer you have in mind: that, rather than having tremendous willpower, they actually have none at all? What if I told you that neither do I, and neither do you?

This makes sense if, instead of thinking of the heart as something indefinite but related to our feelings, we think of the heart in the context of a human life as we're considering it this week (again, thanks to Dallas). If we look at the heart, spirit, will as the part of us that chooses, and we understand the ground we covered yesterday about the role that our minds play in shaping everything about who we are, we can let ourselves off the hook about not having enough willpower to do certain things, because we'll realize that the will actually has no power. Instead, it is pointed in some direction(s), and makes decisions accordingly.

Back to your world-class performer: It's undeniably true that they indeed have made the tough decisions over years and decades to refine their talents into world-class abilities. But if what I'm saying is true, they didn't make those decisions based on tremendous willpower. Rather, they put the right things into their minds, and directed their minds to dwell on those things, so that whenever big or small decisions were presented to them, their hearts/wills/spirits chose accordingly, and all of those choices added up over time to turn into remarkable abilities.

So here comes the good news: the ability we are after is the ability to live our lives according to God's desires for us, namely that we would be people with the character of Jesus who participate in his kingdom in our everyday lives. This does not rest on our willpower. More concretely: your ability (or lack thereof) to actually live without anger, lust, deception, vanity, greed, and worry–to bless those who curse you and be completely free of the need to judge others–does not depend upon you having a world-class amount of willpower. No one does. We're all off the willpower hook.

What does matter, tremendously, if we seriously want to return to God with our hearts, is that we do the things that will naturally–over the course of months, years, and decades–point our hearts/wills/spirits to choose in the direction of that kind of life.

So, if you want to live a life completely in God's will five years from now, the question is not whether you have a five-year strategic plan to get you there. The question is whether, today, you are putting the things in your mind that will shape your thoughts and feelings in such a way that, when decision times come over the next five years, you will consistently choose in that Godward direction. And–the biggest surprise is–rather than requiring tremendous willpower, it won't even be difficult. (See Matthew 11:28-29.)

A Prayer for the Day:

Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.*

A Prayer for the Week:

Almighty and everliving God, in your tender love for the human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ to take upon him our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross, giving us the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant that we may walk in the way of his suffering, and also share in his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.*

Click here for this week's scripture readings.

*From The Book of Common Prayer

[This is part of 40 Days of Prayer: Daily Emails for Lent]

Day 30: Returning to God with Our Minds

If we are going to fully return to God–as individuals, families, churches, communities, and beyond–the place that change will begin is in our thoughts. Though that might sound simple enough, we normally don't act as if it is true. Think of how many times someone has tried to urge you to change something, not by altering the way you think about it, but by some other means–primarily our emotions and our wills. Though innumerable attempts are made at guilting us into things, or getting us to grit our teeth and just try harder, neither of those are sufficient for lasting change. (If this is too abstract, just think about the the last time someone tried to convince you to do something solely by saying you don't do that thing enough–whether exercise, buying jewelry, going to church, saving for your retirement, or anything else. Even if you've acted on one of those appeals in the past, did the behavior last for you?) Tomorrow we'll discuss why the appeals to our willpower don't work, but since we're approaching this week's theme of returning to God in a step-by-step manner, we can never underestimate the primary power of what we put into our minds. In Renovation of the Heart (which provides the framework for all of this week's reflections), Dallas Willard says, "The ultimate freedom we have as human beings is the power to select what we will allow or require our minds to dwell upon." He also says, "Thoughts are the place where we can and must begin to change."(1)

Why is this the case? Because our lives inevitably follow the course of the things we think about. We live at the mercy of the stories, images, and ideas that fill our minds. They affect everything about the kind of person we are becoming. And, as Dallas said, we have tremendous freedom in selecting the things that we allow in to our minds and what our minds will dwell upon.

To make this a bit less theoretical, hopefully a recent experience of my own can help you make a connection with similar ways that your thinking affects the entirety of your life:

I recently had a stretch of seven business days, six of which contained some medical test, procedure, or minor surgery. Everything ended up just fine, but even though my attitude was very positive when the appointments began, I had about a day and a half when my resolve had worn down and my attitude crashed. It seemed like every test keep leading to something else to be done, and suddenly a multitude of "what ifs" bombarded me. Rather than redirecting my mind to other things, which would have been the wise and more sensible thing to do, I let my mind dwell on the "what ifs," and fear began to sink its claws in. "What if...my wife... What if...my kids... What if... our income..." While the what ifs and their accompanying fear were bouncing around in my mind, I found myself being anxious (which I'm usually not), impatient with others (which I am too often, but have made good strides in learning to avoid), and unmotivated by things that are normally very life-giving to me.

Thankfully, I was fresh off of a good discussion in our Apprentice Group about worry and how, in God's kingdom, we can actually learn to live without it. So, even though more of my mental energy than normal was going toward worry, I was aware–with good information still fresh in my mind–of what was going on and was able to counter it. I am very grateful that one of the things we do in those Apprentice Groups is to memorize chunks of Scripture–not just an isolated verse or two, but long passages. With those passages stored in my mind, I was eventually able to redirect my mind to them rather than my worries. When my mind was occupied in more positive ways, the fear and anxiety subsided and I began again to enjoy the people and activities that are such gracious gifts in my life.

Hopefully you can identify. Our emotions follow our thoughts. Then our wills make decisions largely based on those emotions. Then we enact those decisions in physical ways (some of which we're aware and some we are not), which inevitably affect others around us. All of this, over the months, years, and decades of our lifetimes adds up to a soul that is either able to live well with God, itself, and others, or one that is not.

I've heard Dallas say something along the lines of, "You are already in the process of becoming the kind of person you will be forever." That's true, and of all the things we'll talk about this week that we can do as part of our road map for returning to God, today's is the most foundational: everything about who we are begins to go in a Godward direction, or away from God, beginning with what we put into our minds and what we allow them to dwell on.

Consider these:

• "What are three 'thoughts' that have occupied your mind this week? Why those thoughts, and not some others? What have their effects on your life been?"(1) 
• Begin to train your mind to dwell on God more often by slowly memorizing a passage of scripture, such as Colossians 3:1-17, Psalm 23, John 14:1-27, or Romans 8:1-15. (I know what you're thinking, but yes, you can do it. God will help.)
• Or, find a time this week to read through one of the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke or John) in one or two sittings. If you're crunched for time, Mark is the shortest–you can probably read it in about an hour and a half or less.

A Prayer for the Day:

O God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.*

A Prayer for the Week:

Almighty and everliving God, in your tender love for the human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ to take upon him our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross, giving us the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant that we may walk in the way of his suffering, and also share in his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.*

Click here for this week's scripture readings.

*From The Book of Common Prayer (1) See Dallas Willard, Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ

[This is part of 40 Days of Prayer: Daily Emails for Lent]

Day 29: A Road Map for Returning to God

Having tried to lay good foundation by this point of what Lent is, including spending time the past three weeks in three practices that have long been central to Christians during this season, we turn a corner this week. Now, as one final preparation for Holy Week, we take a step-by-step look at how to do what Lent ultimately invites us to do: return to God. At this point in his story, Jesus is resolutely headed toward his death in Jerusalem. Hopefully, by this point in Lent, we are resolutely denying ourselves, taking up our crosses, and following him. I'll be borrowing the framework for much of this week's postings from Dallas Willard's landmark book, Renovation of the Heart. In that book, he brilliantly describes the parts of a human person and how we can go about resubmitting each of them to be transformed by God. In the course of about one page, he sets out the following two lists, and any of us could spend the rest of our lives working out their implications.

After identifying the parts of a person (which we will spend the remainder of this week exploring) he says that in life away from God, our lives function in this order (pp.40-41):

• Body
• Soul
• Mind (Thoughts/Feelings)
• Spirit
• God

In other words, when we live apart from God, it is practically inevitable that our bodies become our main concern. If you don't believe me, scan the headlines in the magazine rack of the check-out aisle the next time you're in the grocery store. Everything focuses on our bodies–how they look, how they feel, how to get more pleasure out of them–basically, a million and one ways for our bodies to make us happier. Jesus made the same observation as he was midway through the Sermon on the Mount, noting that it is natural for the Gentiles (those who knew nothing about God or his ways) to be preoccupied with what they eat, what they drink, and what they wear–to live lives centered on their bodies rather than God's kingdom.

In life apart from God, every other part of who we are serves our bodies. Our souls (the "operating system" of our lives, where most things happen at a level deeper than our awareness) orient themselves around serving our bodies. Our minds–our thoughts and our feelings–fall in line, focusing on our bodies. Our spirits (our hearts/our wills/the parts of us that decide) follow suit, making decisions to please our bodies. Then, finally, in life apart from God, God is only useful as he can add something that ultimately brings us bodily pleasure. Maybe God can get us a nicer house and a safe and comfortable life, or perhaps he'll reverse all of the bad choices I've made over decades about the things I do with my body [even while I continue in them], or surely at least I can expect him to keep me out of anything painful. (Yes, we undoubtedly have our "Christianized" versions of the grocery store check-out magazine headlines.)

This is what Paul described as "the mind set on the flesh [which] is death" (See Romans 8:5-7). Life, ultimately, does not work this way, which is precisely why God wants something else for us.

One of the best, very biblical, definitions of holiness is "a way of life that works," and Dallas identifies the order of a life under God (a holy life) like this:

• God
• Spirit
• Mind
• Soul
• Body

In this order, the body is still not bad, but rather than being the focus of everything it becomes our ally, the vehicle through which all other aspects of our lives with God can take place (which is precisely why we should properly care for it). "The body serves the soul; the soul, the mind; the mind, the spirit; and the spirit, God... The life 'from above' flows from God throughout the whole person." God is in God's proper place, rather than the body being there. (Remember all of those warnings in the Bible about idolatry?) Then the door is opened for us to actually become people who love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is the way that Paul describes as "life and peace."

"Okay, now that we have all of that figured out..." No, you don't, and neither do I. But we have a wealth of guidance available to us on how we can proceed. We will spend the remainder of our week being specific and practical about how we can, really, move our lives toward God and experience more of the goodness of a way of life that works.

A Prayer for the Day:

O God, the King eternal, whose light divides the day from the night and turns the shadow of death into the morning: Drive far from us all wrong desires, incline our hearts to keep your law, and guide our feet into the way of peace; that, having done your will with cheerfulness while it was day, we may, when night comes, rejoice to give you thanks; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.*

A Prayer for the Week:

Almighty and everliving God, in your tender love for the human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ to take upon him our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross, giving us the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant that we may walk in the way of his suffering, and also share in his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.*

Click here for this week's scripture readings.

*From The Book of Common Prayer

[This is part of 40 Days of Prayer: Daily Emails for Lent]

Fifth Sunday in Lent

Readings for the Fifth Sunday in Lent:

Isaiah 43:16-21 Psalm 126 Philippians 3:4b-14 John 12:1-8

A Prayer for the Day:

O God, you make us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious resurrection of your Son our Lord: Give us this day such blessing through our worship of you, that the week to come may be spent in your favor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.*

A Prayer for the Week:

Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.*

*From The Book of Common Prayer

[This is part of 40 Days of Prayer: Daily Emails for Lent]

Day 28: A Kind of Fasting You Might Need More Than Fasting from Food

A large part of the reason that Christians throughout history have continued to follow Jesus' instructions when he said, "When you fast...," is that fasting can have the effect of increasing our ability to pay attention to God. In our Apprentice Groups, we practice a kind of fasting that has nothing to do with food: a 48-hour media fast. I've heard the author of the Apprentice Series, James Bryan Smith, explain this by saying that in generations past, fasting from food was one of the most effective ways that Christians could train themselves to deal with the things that distract us from God. Today, however, our options for distraction have multiplied so dramatically that fasting from food may not be the best place for many of us to start, but instead he gives the suggestion of a 48-hour fast from media. Here is part of his description of the exercise:

This week I am asking you to consider fasting from all media for two days. This will be challenging, but don't be alarmed: so far no one has died from it. The forty-eight-hour media fast includes

• the internet
• television
• newspapers and magazines
• radio stations
• video games
• iPods, mp3 players and stereos

What will you do with your time? How will you entertain yourself? Try playing a board game or card game with your friends. Read a book... Take a walk, get coffee with friends, exercise. You are beginning to change your mind, which has been filled with false narratives about who you are and what life is about. For forty-eight hours free your mind from the junk; give some space to the Holy Spirit to renew your thinking. This is your way of saying, "I am not under the dominion of the media. I am going to show that I can live without it." (1)

I think he's on to something that is profoundly wise. Some of us may have attempted "normal" fasting (from food), considered ourselves to have failed at it, and given up on it. There could be a variety of reasons for this. For me, for much of my life, one reason has been that I've eaten so badly and been addicted to unhealthy foods that fasting was a more intense fight against the addiction than I could handle. Whether or not that is also the case for you, perhaps another place to start is to do what Smith suggests and free ourselves from the noise of all of the kinds of media that constantly surround us. That opens up space for God to work in us, which is the goal of any kind of fasting–or any kind of spiritual practice.

Again, as we have already done a couple of times this week, I invite you to consider this kind of fasting as you look ahead to Good Friday. How will you want to shape your life that day? From which things will you want to free yourself so that you can give your attention more fully to God?

A Prayer for the Day:

Almighty God, who after the creation of the world rested from all your works and sanctified a day of rest for all your creatures: Grant that we, putting away all earthly anxieties, may be duly prepared for the service of your sanctuary, and that our rest here upon earth may be a preparation for the eternal rest promised to your people in heaven; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.*

A Prayer for the Week:

Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.*

Click here for this week's scripture readings.

*From The Book of Common Prayer (1) See James Bryan Smith, The Good and Beautiful Life: Putting on the Character of Christ

[This is part of 40 Days of Prayer: Daily Emails for Lent]

Day 27: Wesley's Sermon & Chilcote's Prayer

One of my favorite books to use for prayer is also one of my favorites for getting to know John Wesley and early Methodism. Paul Chilcote has written a book, titled Praying in the Wesleyan Spirit: 52 Prayers for Today, which takes each of Wesley's standard sermons and turns them into 2-3 page prayers. They are very useful for giving shape to our prayers and very helpful in communicating the beliefs and practices that gave rise to early Methodism. In the context of this week's discussion on fasting, I was reminded of how helpful I have found Chilcote's prayer-adaptation of Wesley's sermon on the passage we're considering this week, when Jesus said, "When you fast...." (Click here for more information on this excellent book.)

Blessed God,

Your witness to us in scripture is filled with allusions to fasting, and I know that this spiritual discipline is closely connected to prayer.

I know that fasting is much more than simply abstaining from food for one day or parts of days or on special days. Fasting is an attitude, a discipline of the spirit; it has to do with my longing to be closer to you, my dearest friend.

When I am overwhelmed by sorrow because of the hurtfulness of my words and actions, fasting can be the food for my healing.

When I have fallen into a pattern of overeating and have harmed my own health because of it, fasting can remind me that food is a gift and my body, your temple.

When foolish and hurtful desires well up within me, fasting can refocus my energies and my life on what is truly noble.

When I have abused your good gifts of any kind, fasting can restore a proper perspective toward your many blessings in my life.

When I am struggling in my life of prayer, fasting can draw me closer to you in my efforts to share my deepest longings and my heartfelt desires.

When I need to hear your voice, your corrective as well as your comforting words, fasting can open my ears to your still, small voice within.

When, in the midst of my blindness, you offer me a precious treasure to lift my soul, fasting can open my eyes to perceive your blessed presence in all things.

Certainly, it is important for me to fast, as it were, from sin, from pride, vanity, foolishness, and anger, but you also call me to discipline my spirit by self-denial, so that these unholy attitudes and actions cannot take root in my soul.

Teach me then, O Lord, how to fast in a proper way that will enable your loving spirit to shape and guide my life. Keep my heart and mind focused on you at all times. Remind me that fasting is a means to an end, not an end in itself. Enable me to be attentive to the inward and spiritual gift. Guard me from extremes that drive love out of my efforts to draw closer to you. Empower me to pray much and to translate my self-discipline into acts of kindness and mercy to others.

When I fast, O Lord, come to me in all the fullness of your love. Change my heart; clean up my life; conform me completely to your will and to your way; make me zealous to glorify you and offer myself up to you anew for your service. Above all else, make me more loving. Amen.(1)

A Prayer for the Day:

Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.*

A Prayer for the Week:

Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.*

Click here for this week's scripture readings.

*From The Book of Common Prayer (1) See Paul Chilcote, Praying in the Wesleyan Spirit: 52 Prayers for Today

[This is part of 40 Days of Prayer: Daily Emails for Lent]

Day 26: Fasting in the Method of the Methodists

In Scot McKnight's book, Fasting, which I talked about yesterday, he repeatedly mentions Methodism's founder, John Wesley, because of the central place that fasting had in Wesley's life and in what he taught to the early Methodists. In the book, McKnight says:

The great preacher John Wesley made an observation about fasting that reminds of how customary fasting was in a former era: “While we were at Oxford the rule of every Methodist was (unless in case of sickness) to fast every Wednesday and Friday in the year, in imitation of the primitive church, for which they had the highest reverence.” But fasting among the Methodists began to shift noticeably even as Wesley aged.

"And I fear there are now thousands of Methodists, so called, both in England and Ireland, who, following the same bad example, have entirely left off fasting; who are so far from fasting twice a week (as all the stricter Pharisees did) that they do not fast twice in the month. Yea, are there not some of you who do not fast one day, from the beginning of the year to the end?"

And he cut the Methodists of his day no slack because fasting was for Wesley symbolic of spirituality itself: “Since, according to this, the man that never fasts is no more in the way to heaven than the man that never prays.”

Ouch. (If you're a Methodist reading this–and most of you are–please direct any complaint emails to our founder, not to me.) Even though it's uncomfortable to say, and difficult to believe in today's Methodism, there is no way that we can call ourselves Methodists (in any meaningful sense that has an ongoing connection to what it meant to be a Methodist in our beginnings) if fasting in some form is not a regular part of how we shape our lives with God.

In John Wesley's sermon on the passage which we are looking at this week, when Jesus said, "When you fast...," Wesley observed, "Of all the means of grace there is scarce any concerning which men have run into greater extremes, than... religious fasting. How have some exalted this beyond all Scripture and reason; -- and others utterly disregarded it."

Wesley urged his Methodists to be part of neither of those extremes, but rather (as he did with so many aspects of the Christian life) to find the wisdom of the way in between them. To aid his people in trying to accomplish this, he gave them sound, practical guidance on fasting, which is still very valuable to us today.

Wesley wanted to practice fasting as it was represented in the Bible and in the majority of Christian history. Though he recognized that fasts of different kinds occurred in scripture, he saw the normal fast as abstaining from food for one day. As McKnight mentioned above, early in Wesley's life, he and the Methodists practiced fasting twice per week, on Wednesdays and Fridays. Later, the teaching was reduced to once per week, on all Fridays.

Wesley's own regular practice was to begin his fast on Thursday after supper. This was a weekly way of connecting with Jesus' experience in the Garden of Gethsemane. He would then end his fast on Friday afternoon, to mark the time of Jesus death on the cross, when he said, "It is finished!" (Wesley allowed himself to take liquids during the fast, and taught the Methodists to do so as well.)

Wesley countered that extreme (those who had "utterly disregarded" fasting) by making it such a central practice in his own life and in the method he taught to the early Methodists. He countered the other extreme (those who had "exalted this beyond all Scripture and reason") by making room for other kinds of fasting–particularly in being careful to never value fasting above one's health. As one alternative to the normal, no food, fast, Wesley suggested what he called "abstinence," which meant that someone would abstain from all foods except those necessary to their health. Another option, which it appears Wesley himself practiced and taught–at least later in his life–was to forego all kinds of "pleasant" foods during the fast.

Whatever the details of it, and whatever the frequency, if we want to find a methodism that has similar effects in moving us toward God as experienced by Wesley and his early Methodists, it is certain that he would insist that our routines include fasting.

As I said yesterday, perhaps a good place for us to start is in thinking ahead toward Good Friday. What will be a natural, whole-person, methodical way for you to respond to all that Good Friday represents?

A Prayer for the Day:

Heavenly Father, in you we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray you so to guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life we may not forget you, but may remember that we are ever walking in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.*

A Prayer for the Week:

Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.*

Click here for this week's scripture readings.

*From The Book of Common Prayer

[This is part of 40 Days of Prayer: Daily Emails for Lent]