Verse of the day
Listen! The wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
– James 5:4
Voice of the day
By fighting for better conditions, by crying out unceasingly for the rights of the workers, of the poor, of the destitute–the rights of the worthy and the unworthy poor in other words, we can to a certain extent change the world; we can work for the oasis, the little cell of joy and peace in a harried world.
– Dorothy Day
Prayer of the day
God of justice, open the ears of the wealthy and powerful. May we cry out unceasingly for the rights of all workers.
Dear God,
I am so afraid to open my clenched fists! Who will I be when I have nothing left to hold on to? Who will I be when I stand before you with empty hands? Please help me to gradually open my hands and to discover that I am not what I own, but what you want to give me. And what you want to give me is love—unconditional, everlasting love.
Amen.
Verse of the day
Contribute to the needs of the saints; pursue hospitality to strangers.
– Romans 12:13
Voice of the day
Should not our communion services be a time to connect our sharing in Jesus’ body and blood with contemplating how we might share food, justice, and community with people in need of them?
– Reta Halteman Finger, “Early Church Potlucks Were Surprisingly Subversive”
Prayer of the day
As we partake in your body and blood, may we contribute to one another’s needs and pursue hospitality toward all our neighbors.
“We are living in a down-is-up, war-is-peace world.”—Louis Menand
“Wisdom means we are given responsibility for making choices and often have to act without certainty of the outcome. This is an inherent aspect of life’s messiness.”
Christine Valters Paintner, PhD from Illuminating the Way: Embracing the Wisdom of Monks and Mystics
Can you open yourself to the wisdom hidden in the messy details of your daily life?
Join our self-study retreat Visionary, Warrior, Healer, Sage: Archetypes to Navigate an Unravelling World
While realizing that ten years ago I didn’t have the faintest idea that I would end up where I am now, I still like to keep up the illusion that I am in control of my own life. I like to decide what I most need, what I will do next, what I want to accomplish, and how others will think of me. While being so busy running my own life, I become oblivious to the gentle movements of the Spirit of God within me, pointing me in directions quite different from my own.
It requires a lot of inner solitude and silence to become aware of these divine movements. God does not shout, scream, or push. The Spirit of God is soft and gentle like a small voice or a light breeze. It is the Spirit of Love.
Verse of the day
So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.
– Galatians 6:9
Voice of the day
When you get into a tight place, and everything goes against you till it seems as if you couldn’t hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that’s just the place and time that the tide’ll turn.
– Harriet Beecher Stowe, “Oldtown Folks” (1869)
Prayer of the day
We cannot do the work of justice without the support of one another. Remind us that our freedom is dependent on the freedom of others.
“Peace does not mean the absence of conflicts; differences will always be there. Peace means solving these differences through peaceful means; through dialogue, education, knowledge, and through humane ways.”—Dalai Lama XIV
Verse of the day
My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.
– Isaiah 32:18
Voice of the day
Housing is stability. Housing is dignity. Housing is absolutely necessary, critical infrastructure.
– Raphael Warnock
Prayer of the day
Lord, we pray for all those who are without safe shelter. Embolden us to do all that we can to ensure everyone has the opportunity to experience secure dwellings, quiet resting places, and peaceful habitation.
“If we develop the force of will, we shall find that we do not need the force of arms. Acceptance of non-violence, therefore . . . is the most natural and the most necessary condition of our national existence. It will teach us to husband our corporate physical strength for a better purpose, instead of dissipating it, as now, in a useless fratricidal strife, in which each party is exhausted after the effort.”—Mohandas Gandhi, Young India, 1924-1926. (S. Ganesan. 1927. p. 31.)
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