Great Lent for Eastern
Orthodox Christians began on March 15. We are now into our journey toward
Pascha (Eastern Orthodox Easter) which includes fasting until Pascha on May 2
this year.
One blessing of Great Lent is
to focus on the life and ministry of Jesus. We do this as a Church through
increased church services and times of prayer together.
As my March blog post, I offer
this humble prayer poem to you my beloved InScribe family.
Hear Our Prayers, O Lord
In the noise of daily life
Busyness, activity, and human
strife,
Hear our prayers, O Lord.
By the resplendence of Your
unbounded love,
Holds us tight from Your home
above,
Hear our prayers, O Lord.
You left heaven to show us Your
presence,
Where we now realize Your
magnificence,
We consider the majesty of
your being,
We sit at Your feet, and on
you we are leaning,
Hear our prayers, O Lord.
With confession of our sin and
need,
By Your compassion You answer
our plead.
When our cries overwhelm, and
we give way to fear,
Remind us, O God, You are
near.
Hear our prayers, O Lord.
You desire our repentance,
And we rejoice in Your acceptance.
Your Resurrection calls us to praise,
And live renewed lives the
rest of our days.
Hear our prayers, O Lord.
Lord have mercy.
Lord have mercy.
Amen.
Alan lives in Deroche, B.C. with his wife, Terry. He contributed stories to Good Grief People by Angel Hope Publishing, 2017, Story by Story: The Power of a Writer, Unstoppable Writers Publishing, 2018, and Easter Stories & More, by InScribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship, 2021. He has also written articles for FellowScript Magazine. Blog: https://scarredjoy.ca. Alan is the Provincial Rep. Liaison and BC Rep for InScribe.
https://scarredjoy.ca/
I am beginning to appreciate more and more the lyrical quality of liturgy. Thanks for this Alan.
ReplyDeleteHi Tracy,
DeleteYes, after 40 years of being Baptist there was an adjustment for us. The liturgy of Eastern Orthodoxy is not only beautiful but incredibly meaningful.
Thanks, Alan, for your poem prayer that could well be mine. Blessings at Easter, Alan and Terry.
ReplyDeletePlease feel free to use the prayer poem as you seem fit. God's blessings on you, dear friend.
ReplyDeleteA beautiful prayer poem that I’ve now prayed through twice. Thank you, Alan.
ReplyDeleteHi Joy! I appreciate you can use the prayer. This post theme always gives me time to ponder and reflect. A prayer seemed to fit. Take care, Joy.
DeleteThanks, Alan. Reminds me of so many services from my younger days. I still find a certain degree of comfort as congregations pray together in this way. I also find these prayers wonderful and meaningful for uniting the body in ecumenical services.
ReplyDeleteHi Sharon! The liturgy we follow in the Eastern Orthodox Church has been used for centuries. I look forward to it every Sunday. The prayer I wrote here is my attempt at trying to capture the spirit of liturgical prayer. Thank you for your comments, my friend.
ReplyDeletewow - the depth of orthodoxy really comes through here Alan - the choice of words - really thoughtful - "resplendance" and "unbounded" "presence" - full of resonance with the Redemption. Really, really good - thanks for this Lenten poem.
ReplyDeleteHi Dayna! Thank you for the helpful and encouraging comments. Your support as a poet mean a lot to me. Blessings to you.
ReplyDelete