Lent Daybook, 3: Rabbi (Teacher)
Welcome to a Lent daybook for these 40 days of prayer. You can see all the previous Lent daybook 2019 posts here.
Is this your first time to practice Lent? Here's a simple introduction.
Look: The Washing of the Feet, Cerezo Barredo
Listen: “Come and Listen” from A Collision, David Crowder Band
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Read: Psalm 32; Deuteronomy 7:12-16; Titus 2:1-15; John 1:35-42
Excerpts:
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my eye upon you.”
*
”And because you listen to these rules and keep and do them, the Lord your God will keep with you the covenant and the steadfast love that he swore to your fathers. He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your wine and your oil, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock, in the land that he swore to your fathers to give you. You shall be blessed above all peoples.”
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”For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.”
*
”The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).”
Sunday Scripture readings are taken from the Revised Common Lectionary (Year C). Daily Scripture readings are taken from the Book of Common Prayer (Year 1) with the Psalm for the Morning Office.
Pray:
Taken from Evening Prayers For Every Day of the Year by Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” Psalm 32:8, NIV
”Lord our God, we come into your presence and ask you to help us. Help us in every part of our lives, even when we do not understand. Be with us with your Spirit. Guide and lead us with your hand. Let your will be done in all things, even if we must bear suffering. Your will is for good alone and you will set everything right. Help us. Bless us through your Word, through everything we are allowed to hear from you, our God and our Father. Amen.”
Sit in silence for at least 5 minutes, praying only the “Jesus Prayer”.
As you enter this time of prayer, find a comfortable position. Quiet yourself in your mind, heart, and body. Don’t worry about inner and outer distractions. Notice them and let them point you toward the words of the Jesus Prayer. For example, “Oh, there’s my noisy neighbor. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner.” Or, in response to galloping thoughts about an upcoming event, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner.” Even, “My neck and wrists are sore from bending over a screen too long today. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner.”
If you’re able to sit quietly without distraction, notice your breathing and occasionally breathe in “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God” and exhale “have mercy on me the sinner”.
The Jesus Prayer is one of the best known traditions within Orthodoxy.
Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστέ,
Υἱὲ Θεοῦ,
ἐλέησόν με τὸν ἁμαρτωλό
Its words say simply:
Lord Jesus Christ,
Son of God,
have mercy on me the sinner.
The Jesus Prayer is a short, simple prayer that has been widely used, taught and discussed throughout the history of Eastern Christianity.
In order to enter more deeply into the life of prayer and to come to grips with the Scriptural challenge to pray unceasingly, the Orthodox tradition offers the Jesus Prayer – which is called the “Prayer of the Heart” (Καρδιακή Προσευχή) by some Church Fathers – as a means of concentration and as a focal point for our inner life.
The exact words of the prayer have varied from the most simple possible involving the name “Jesus,” or “Lord have mercy,” to the more common extended form: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
(from Spirituality: an introduction to the Jesus Prayer (2015) by Patrick Comerford)
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(See all Lent daybook posts from 2018 here.)