Readings
Psalm 96
Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Galatians 4:21-31
Mark 8:11-26
Psalm 132
Song
Great In Power
Praise Him, you heavens and all that’s above
Praise Him, you angels and heavenly hosts
Let the whole earth praise Him
Praise Him, the sun, moon and bright shining stars
Praise Him, you heavens and waters and skies
Let the whole earth praise Him
Great in power, great in glory
Great in mercy, King of Heaven
Great in battle, great in wonder
Great in Zion, King over all the earth
“Great in Power,” words and music by Russell Fragar
©1998 Russell Fragar/ Hillsong Publishing
Used by Permission. CCLI License 66885
Prayers
Pray for the hungry and thirsty
Pray for the poor
Pray for TILT
Pray for the Church in Canada and world wide
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Once-A-Day | January 31
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Week of January 29 | Community Prayer
Check in here regularly to see what is happening in TILT's community, specifically with respect to prayer. Prayer is about relationship - first and foremost with God, but also with one another. In many situations, there is not greater way to love a person than to pray for them earnestly before God. We want to hear what is happening in your life and how we can pray for you! Simply add a comment to do so [unsure about comments? Read this].
Prayer this week:
- Jen-Mai's focus on Sunday was praying for the impossible? What are those impossible things that you hardly dare to pray to God about? Pray for them!
- a continued and growing understanding of how we are first called to God, not to an activity or place
- responding to the challenge of Sabbath - how can we meaningfully practice the Sabbath and obey God's command?
- our city - always so much going on - garbage crises, violence
- our country - the furor over global warming - may our politicians actually do something meaningful about this!, the Robert Pickton trial - may justice be served, protection for jurors, families affected and even the general public as they hear and listen to some horrifying things
Please, post comments here. They can even just be filling the TILT community in on a small thing that happened in your life, where you need prayer or are thankful for God's presence and action. (NOTE: when filling in comments, just select "Other" as your identity and put in your name!)
Once-A-Day | January 30
Readings
Psalm 12
Isaiah 52:1-12
Galatians 4:12-20
Mark 8:1-10
Psalm 36
Song
Your Love, Oh Lord
Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens
Your faithfulness stretches to the sky.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
Your justice flows like the ocean’s tide.
I will lift my voice to worship You, my King.
I will find my strength in the shadow of Your wings.
“Your Love Oh Lord,” Words & Music by Third Day ©1999 New Spring Publishing Inc.
Used by permission CCLI #66885.
Prayers
Pray for the grieving
Pray for peace
Pray for a family member or friend
Pray for Toronto
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Divine Offices | Week of Jan. 29
If you aren't into using the Divine Offices Calendar (see link on right near top of sidebar!), then here are the Offices for the week.
Once-A-Day | Week of January 29
If you would like to have the 'once-a-day' approach all in one file for the entire week, look no further! Here is the Once-A-Day Approach for week of January 29. Put your comments up as God speaks through prayer, reading of Scripture and songs of worship.
Once-A-Day Jan. 28
Readings:
Psalm 108
Isaiah 51:9-16
Hebrews 11:8-16
John 7:14-31
Psalm 66
Song:
Lord, Most High
Men: From the ends of the earth, (Women echo)
From the depths of the sea,
From the heights of the heavens
All: Your name be praised!
Men: From the hearts of the weak, (Women echo)
From the shouts of the strong,
From the lips of all people
All: This song we raise, Lord.
Throughout the endless ages
You will be crowned with praises,
Lord, Most High!
Exalted in every nation,
Sovereign of all creation,
Lord, Most High!
Be Magnified!
“Lord Most High,” words and music by Don Harris and Gary Sadler
©1996 Integrity’s Hosanna! Music
Used by Permission. CCLI License 66885
Prayers:
Pray for the persecuted
Pray for someone from the TILT community
Pray for a world event
Pray for the prisoner
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Once-A-Day Jan. 26
Readings:
Psalm 88
Isaiah 50:1-11
Galatians 3:15-22
Mark 6:47-56
Psalm 6
Song:
FALL ON ME
Fall on me
Ever so gently
Breathe on, breathe on
These dry bones
Shower me
In Your love
Washing, washing
My filthy stains
And break these chains
Break these chains
Set me free
“Fall On Me,” words and music by Lisa Welbanks and Ron Wilding
©2000 Vineyard Songs Canada
Used by Permission. CCLI License 66885
Prayers:
Pray for peace
Pray for a family member or friend
Pray for Toronto
Pray for the hungry and thirsty
Once-A-Day Jan. 25
Readings:
Psalm 143
Isaiah 49:13-26
Galatians 3:1-14
Mark 6:30-46
Psalm 81
Song:
HOLY SPIRIT RAIN DOWN
Holy Spirit rain down, rain down
Oh Comforter and Friend,
How we need Your touch again
Holy Spirit rain down, rain down
Let Your power fall, let Your voice be heard
Come and change our hearts, as we stand on Your Word
Holy Spirit rain down
No eye has seen, no ear has heard
No mind can know what God has in store
So open up heaven, open it wide
Over Your church, and over our lives
“Holy Spirit Rain Down,” words and music by Russell Fragar
©1997 Russell Fragar/Hillsong Publishing
Used by Permission. CCLI License 66885
Prayers:
Pray for the leaders of TILT and Spring Garden
Pray for Canada
Pray for those without shelter or clothes
Pray for the grieving
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Divine Offices Thoughts
It is Day 3 of implementing this new spiritual discipline in our lives (for those of us trying to do so of course!). The challenge for me is already not to "plow through" each office as I'm speeding to my next activity, but to truly "pause" and hear what God is saying through the Scripture and in prayer.
I was struck by Psalm 125:3 in Vigils this morning: "The wicked will not rule the land of the godly, for then the godly might be tempted to do wrong." The godly are those whose trust is in the Lord, who security is guaranteed forever. I love this because the verse is saying that the godly have complete sovereignty because of the Lord's protection - we will never be forced or tempted to do things that go against the will of God.
Please, comment as you go through the Offices, or any sort of meditation/spiritual discipline.
Once-A-Day Jan. 24
Readings:
Psalm 65
Isaiah 49:1-12
Galatians 2:11-21
Mark 6:13-29
Psalm 125
Song:
In Christ Alone
In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand
In Christ alone who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
‘Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For ev’ry sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on m
For I am His, and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the pow’r of Christ in me
From life’s first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No pow‘r of Hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
‘Till He returns, or calls me home
Here in the pow’r of Christ I’ll stand
“In Christ Alone,” words and music by Stuart Townend and Keith Getty
©2001 Kingsway’s Thankyou Music
Used by Permission. CCLI License 66885
Prayers:
Pray for someone from the TILT community
Pray for a world event
Pray for the prisoner
Pray for social justice
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Jan. 23 - 1 A Day
Readings:
Psalm 54
Isaiah 48:12 to 21(22)
Galatians 1:18 to 2:10
Mark 6:1 to 13
Psalm 28
Song:
Faithful One
Faithful One, so unchanging,
Ageless One, You’re my rock of peace.
Lord of all, I depend on You,
I call out to You, again and again.
I call out to You, again and again.
You are my rock in times of trouble,
You lift me up when I fall down.
All through the storm Your love is the anchor,
My hope is in You alone.
“Faithful One,” words and music by Brian Doerksen
©1989 Mercy Publishing
Used by Permission. CCLI License #66885
Prayers:
Pray for TILT
Pray for the Church in Canada and world wide
Pray for politicians
Pray for the persecuted
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Week of January 22 - Community Prayer
This is the weekly post in which we'll put up some prayer requests and also hear about how God has answered specific prayer. (Do you ever wonder how many things you pray for and then never look for or listen to the answer?) So, these posts will never go away, so it'll be great to look back on them and see how God answers prayer!
Please, by clicking on "Comments" at the bottom of this post, put your own prayer requests/God responses up on the blog so we can pray as a community together. The requests below are just off the top of my head at 11:30 on a Saturday night, so please, really do add your requests.
TILT Community as a whole:
o Continually seeking God's vision for the community;
o Opportunities to engage the community around us with the Good News of God's Kingdom;
o Finding ways people can become involved in the worship gatherings and leading the community in other areas;
o Seeking the true, scriptural meaning of "God's Call" as we go through the series Reconstructing the Call.
Specific People:
o Barbara Erochina is going to Scotland to do some ministry at the University of Edinburgh - pray for help in raising support and being able to impact people in Scotland;
o Pregnant moms-to-be at TILT (I didn't ask for permission yet, so no names, but if you go to TILT, you know who these people are hopefully!);
The City:
o An Out of the Cold shelter was approved for opening in the Beaches (I mean, The Beach) area - awesome! Pray for volunteers, community support;
The World:
o Isn't this overwhelming sometimes?
o Iraq / U.S. situation;
o AIDS in Africa;
Once-A-Day | Week of January 22
Although we will post the Once-A-Day approach each day on the blog, you can also view the whole week as a PDF document.
For the week of: January 22.
The Once-A-Day Approach
Everyone it seems has a different way of spending time with God in a day. Words like “devotionals” or “quiet times” are used to speak about intentional time designated in a day for spending with God. Some of the most common ways this time is spent is in prayer, worship, and reading Scripture or devotional guides. We wanted to be able to provide a resource for these daily designated times for God for those who do not have one, are looking for something different, or to supplement something else you may be doing. Obviously, you are welcome to use this in any way you want! Of course, prayer, worship and Bible reading are not an end in and of themselves. They exist solely to foster an intimate relationship with God.
We have set these up so that each day has a Lectionary Scripture reading for the day (see below for what a Lectionary is!), part or all of a worship song, general prayer suggestions, and links to prayer requests.
There are many denominational traditions in the Christian Church who, for the purpose of being united with one another across the globe, will use what is called a Lectionary, which is essentially set Scripture readings for each week or each day over either a two year or three year cycle (i.e. you read the entire Bible in two years or three years. We’re using the 2 year one). Although when TILT gathers together for worship we don’t plan our time around the Lectionary, it is still a great devotional resource for us.
Divine Offices
If you would prefer to have the whole week of the Offices in one document rather than using the online calendar, we'll provide a document each week. It is 7 pages, so if you don't have to print it, that would be a nice bonus. We'll work on a smaller table format!
The Divine Offices for the week of: January 22nd.
How do I use the Divine Offices?
We have set up the offices in a calendar format, with the 8 offices laid out each day. Each office is at a suggested ballpark time (e.g. upon waking up, coffee break, lunch, etc.) - they can take as little as 2 minutes to go through or as long as you desire to meditate upon them.
To use the Divine Offices calendar, simply click on the Divine Offices link on the sidebar under "Urban Monks@TILT links". The calendar will show up in an agenda format on today's date. Simply click on the desired office. There will be a designated scripture, prayer topic and a link to Bible Gateway for the scripture verses. That's it!
Note, if you are using Internet Explorer and have pop-up blocker on "High", you will notice an information bar comes up when you try to open a specific office. Click on the bar and select "Always Allow Pop-ups from This Site...". Or click CTRL as you select an office with your mouse to override the blocker function. Email TILT if you have a problem.
Still wondering: What are the Divine Offices? How do I set my version to the New Living Translation?
What are the Divine Offices?
Originating from Jewish tradition of praying throughout the day, the Divine Offices/hours developed early in the history of Christianity with the first followers of Christ and continues today. By pausing regularly throughout the day to pray and read scripture one is able to pattern all of life in worship and prayer.
Based on scriptures such as Psalm 119:164, “Seven times a day I will praise You”, Psalm 63:6 “on my bed I remember You; I think of You through the watch of the night”, and similar verses (Psalm 1:2, Psalm 16:7, Psalm 119:97, etc.), 8 different times of the day emerged, 7 during the day and one during the night. The most well known and time-honoured development of this is “The Rule of St. Benedict” (which we have loosely followed) written by the well-known monk himself in the 6th century. He wrote it in order that the rhythm of life for the monks in his monasteries would be based and centred on worship and prayer, but it can also be a great tool for us in the city who seek to do the same in the midst of an urban lifestyle.
If you’re interested in reading it, you can find the rule in its entirety here.
We’ve tried to set this up in such a way that from a computer at home or work you can easily pause to read scripture and simple prayer. Recognizing that very few of us find it easy to carve time out of our day, these are set up in such a way that you could read/pray through them in as little as 2 minutes or you can take longer to meditate and pray through the scriptures and prayer suggestions. In this way we can increasingly give time to God throughout our day as we seek to pattern our lives in prayer and worship as urban monks.
May the Lord be with us as we seek to give all of our days to Him!
Still wondering: How do I use the Divine Offices @ TILT?
Prayer Requests & Responses
The beauty of a blog is being able to comment on any posts. So, we will have a weekly post on the subject of community prayer. The post will have prayer requests, but using the comments function, anyone can add their own prayer requests to the post. Thus, as we are praying through the Divine Offices, we can quickly link to the community prayer and view what needs prayer. Of course, we pray in expectation of God answering, and so it's always amazing to hear how God responds to our prayer and see how He is moving in the TILT community.
If you want to know how to use comments, check out the How-To Post.
NOTE: All comments must be approved by the TILT webmaster prior to being published on the blog. Thus, if you would like a prayer request to remain private and seen only by TILT Leadership, please say so in your comment.
Toronto City Mission: Willowtree Housing
Naomi and Colleen work for the Toronto City Mission (TCM), which exists to share the love of God and to break the cycles of poverty in Toronto. In particular TILT & Spring Garden have partnered with TCM at the Willowtree Housing Community. There are always ways to be involved in this community. For contact info, visit here.
The Scott Mission
Jay works at The Scott Mission, which is located downtown at Spadina and College. The Scott Mission is a Christian, non-denominational service to the homeless, poor, lonely, and lost in the city of Toronto. There are ministry opportunities in most of the ministries at the mission, including Men's Ministry, Food Services, Camp and Youth (afterschool programs) and Meals on Wheels. Drivers are especially needed for the meals on wheels program.
More opportunities can be found here.
There are also job opportunities at the summer camp, located in Caledon. More information on camp can be found here.
Athletes in Action
Mon and Becki work for the university division of Athletes in Action, which is a Christian sports organization that seeks to build a community of athletes on university campuses, helping these athletes incorporate their faith and sport. We always need people to be involved through prayer and financial support (Mon and Becki both have to raise their own salaries for this ministry!). Providing snacks for weekly meetings or atlhetic spiritual mentors may be places where people can serve as well. If you want to know more, go to the AIA website. Or, email Monica or Becki. Becki can also be found @ Facebook.
NOTE: Internet Explorer users...The links here open up a new window, which is fine. If you have pop-up blocker activated, press "CTRL" while clicking on the link.
Using the New Living Translation
For reading Scripture, there is a plethora of translations available, all with various strengths and weaknesses. For ease of reading, inclusive language, and expressive language, we prefer to use the New Living Translation (NLT). If you are doing the Divine Offices and would like Bible Gateway to automatically show your verses in the NLT, follow these steps:
1. Go to www.biblegateway.com;
2. Select "Preferences" from the sidebar on the right;
3. Scroll down to "Default Version". Select "New Living Translation" under English;
4. Choose "Always use my preferred version";
5. Scroll down to the bottom and select "update my preferences".
6. Done!
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