A Night of Lenten Prayer

Ashford Sanctuary

EVERYONE WELCOME!

Prayer Stations with Labyrinth Walk

Come as you are and pray as you need to 

Ashford United Methodist Church

2201 S. Dairy Ashford, Houston, Texas

April 3, 2012

6:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Special Prayer Service @ 7 pm  

becoming who you are ...

“Healing may not be so much about getting better, 
as about letting go of everything that isn’t you - 

all of the expectations, all of the beliefs - 
and becoming who you are.” 

~ Rachel Naomi Remen

The beginning of love ...

The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves. 

~Thomas Merton 

i call mySelf mosaic watercolor

© i call mySelf mosaic Self-image watercolor by Cindy Serio February 2012

I call mySelf mosaic

I call mySelf mosaic

I lay gently burrowed, shimmering in the snow drifting on the landscape of my winter soul

I see beauty as I peer upon the brokenness I call my life

Each tiny piece of mySelf a colorful glassy light shining in the depths of the darkness found within me

Joy bleeds along deep rosy red lines into my pain spreading warmth to the cold wet earth beneath the blanket of snow

Guide me O mySelf with sparkle and moon-shine along the lighted pathway into the unknown inner expanse

Deep blue awe bubbles up soundlessly to surprise me as wonder sends fingers of delight to rub across my ageless wounds

Scars tingle, the body remembers with melancholy behind dingy lace curtains torn in the mind

Holy fear and dormant terror from ages long gone rise like mist and monsters on the bayou beyond

Earth quakes, snow globe shakes, body breaks ... fragile memories weep and watch the holy pieces gather in silence and community

I see beauty as I peer upon the brokenness of my life 

 
I call mySelf mosaic

© Poetic Self-image by Cindy Serio February 2012

Let's Alleviate World Hunger and Poverty!

Let's make February 2012 the month we more closer to alleviating hunger and poverty in our world.  

I plan to give more to my local food pantry:  West Houston Assistance Ministries (WHAM Link) The WHAM Food Pantry collects, and distributes non-perishable and perishables food. In 2010, more than 145 tons of food, worth $725,082, helped out 16,584 individuals. Items are provided through regularly scheduled food drives conducted by individuals, churches, schools, businesses and civic and service organizations.

I plan to support our Ashford UMC (Church Link) Youth Group as they celebrate Souper Bowl of Caring (Caring Link) during which youth across the nation working to fight hunger and poverty in their own communities around the time of the Super Bowl football game.  

I've made a donation to the United Methodist Committee on Relief Advance #982920 (UMCOR-Link) Supporting programs that address the root causes of hunger and poverty in the US and the world ... Hunger does not exist because the world does not produce enough food. We have the experience and the technology right now to end the problem. The challenge we face is not production of food and wealth, but more equitable distribution. Poverty is the condition in which a person lacks the essentials for a minimum standard of life, such as food.  

“If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one."
~Mother Teresa~ 

Justice, Righteousness and Martin Luther King, Jr!

"Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children"

~Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.~

 

"True heroes make us better by challenging our misplaced priorities, 

expanding our vision of a better world, and inspiring us to pursue the vision.

Martin Luther King did that for me and countless others, 

and he continues to be one of my heroes."

~United Methodist Retired Bishop Kenneth L. Carder~ 

Read Bishop Carder's Reflection on the Ministry with* the Poor Blog

"Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream."

The Prophet Amos (5:24)

When I think of Martin Luther King, Jr. I immediately think of these words of Amos and the vivid and powerful imagery they represent.  Dr. King quoted these prophetic words, among others in his Letter from Birmingham Jail dated 16 April 1963 addressed to his fellow clergymen.  It is a beautiful, long and poignant letter that challenges me with every reading, especially now as I am a clergywoman.  

I am challenged to deepen my love of others and to allow that love to move me to action born of extreme love.   Dr. King poses the rhetorical question: Was not Jesus an "extremist" for love?    Personally, I have never liked the word "extremist" because it made me fearful of being overwhelmed by something I could not control.   That has never been more true than today.   As I ponder this deeper call to love and non-violence, I wonder ... am I strong enough to let God's love fill me to the point of "extreme!"

Trembling I realize that love and non-violence requires letting go of control, consciously giving control over to others, and praying fervently, fearfully, and strongly "that justice will roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream." 

Life ...

“Listen--are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?” ~Mary Oliver

World AIDS Day 2011

Today, I remember my friend, Clel, who died of AIDS over 20 years ago.  I miss you, beautiful artist and gentle soul.   I find joy in my memories of you and sadness as I remember your life that was way too short.

In your honor, I whisper prayers of remembrance for the 30 million lives that have been claimed by this disease over the last 30 years; and sing prayers of healing for those still living with and affected by HIV and AIDS around the world.

In your honor, I donate to the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund which represents the commitment of United Methodists to end HIV/AIDS in our world through prevention, treatment, care and support. 

Thank you, dear friend, for inviting me so long ago to be a more compassionate person to all people.

In the River of My Life

sitting in the silence of the night

getting a sense of stirrings within

darkness calling

unknown spaces

deep places

sad little girl

who are you?

wondering ... wandering

so much pain in the world

so so much pain inside that little girl

crying ... crying ...crying

deep flowing waters

moving upward

bursting outward

womb of God

fount of birthing

shatters with a piercing cry

pushing forth the healing waters

salty tears ... deep red fears

mix together

flowing along

the river of my life

dear sweet tree

growing so strong

in the river of my life

let your roots drink deeply

of tears, fears and pain

draw them together

into the womb of God

into the center of my soul

into union so mysterious

let my life bloom

with nourishing leaves

of prayers and worship

along the labyrinth

of music and delight

let my life fill to overflowing

with loving relationships

and beauty divine

let me create my life with you

and color the world

with drawings and poetry

that speak of the soul

let my life be a retreat

into the silence of true rest

let my life be a journey

into the action of love so true

dear sweet tree of God

in the river of my life ...

may i always live

MY life and no other

© Image and Poetry by Cindy Serio Nov 2011