A Prayer for Strength as We Wait for the Return of the King

Welcome to this week’s edition of In the House of Tom Bombadil.

Samuel John Peploe (1871–1935), The Sands, Barra

A collect is a succinct prayer that gathers up, or collects, the prayers and intentions of a community assembled for worship. Collects have been used in Christian worship services for centuries. The collects Thomas Cranmer edited and created for the Book of Common Prayer are considered to be some of the finest examples of the form.

I’ve been meditating on the collect for Sunday included in the Anglican Church of North America’s Book of Common Prayer (2019).

O God our King, by the resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ on the first day of the week, you conquered sin, put death to flight, and gave us the hope of everlasting life: Redeem all our days by this victory; forgive our sins, banish our fears, make us bold to praise you and to do your will; and steel us to wait for the consummation of your kingdom on the last great Day; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

This short prayer touches on so many key biblical themes: God’s reign over all creation, Jesus’s resurrection from the dead—the beginning of the new creation, the fruits of Christ’s victory, and our need for courage and endurance as we wait for the consummation of God’s kingdom.

Simply beautiful!

A Poem

Stone Seeker
By Luci Shaw

My jacket pocket is heaven with pebbles,
each unlike any other. An inrush of tide,
a pulling back, and rills of water freshen
the gem stones with the signature of the sea.
So what is it makes me bend and touch and lift
from the millions glistening on the shore?

I shake the sand from my shoes, never
getting rid of all of it. I inquire of God
why he gave me delight in wide beaches
that hold, in the body of sand, these rounded
shards of slate streaked with quartz. Eyes
that catch my eye. Why did he tell each one to
call out “Pick me! Pick me!”—beads
to be warmed in my hand, to take home—
the detritus of mountains and oceans,
each stone still lodged in the sack of my mind
like a mouthful of stony fruit.

Driving north up the Big Sur I long to be
complicit with the soft gold dunes mantled
with ice plant, and further north, the tawny
lion’s-pelt hills, though, for a moment, I am
preoccupied with sun shining through sea oats.

It makes me wonder how to contain all
these surprises so fleetly come and gone.
How to embrace the world, one vision
at a time, holding it close in memory
the way Jesus’ friends did, telling the stories
later, writing down recollections being held
in the pockets of their minds, each knowing
he would never get it all. Like me,
catching at fragments of the world,
hoping to stitch the narrative together.

Olga Wisinger-Florian (1844–1926), Path in the Park

Around the Web

• In an article in Comment Magazine titled Unity in Diversity, Jessica Joustra gleans insights from Dutch Reformed theologian Herman Bavinck about how the imago Dei helps us understand and appreciate diversity.
• A small number of American artisans is keeping alive the art of hand-carving headstones.

San Dieguito Lagoon, Del Mar, California, November 2021

Reading

• Early Christian Worship: A Basic Introduction to Ideas and Practices by Paul F. Bradshaw
• Ancient-Future Worship: Proclaiming and Enacting God’s Narrative by Robert E. Webber
• The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature by Sue Stuart-Smith
• The Laws Guide to Nature Drawing and Journaling by John Muir Laws
• The Green Ember by S.D. Smith (re-read)

Check out more of what I’m up to in the reading department at Goodreads.

Creating

• Video of the Pacific Surfliner train in Encinitas, CA
• Video of an Orange-crowned Warbler enjoying my DIY birdbath/fountain

Listening

• “I Am Stretched On Your Grave” by Kate Rusby
• “Machine Gun (Live at Fillmore East, 1970)” by Jimi Hendrix. I’ve been a Hendrix fan since at least my middle school years, but I only recently discovered this gem.

Something to Watch

A Closing Quote

In Case You Missed It

Check out last week’s newsletter where I talk about finding the fall season up at Palomar Mountain State Park.