 "We can do more than pray, after we've prayed, but we cannot do more than pray, until we've prayed." Our St. Andrew Labyrinth is pictured above. Who made our labyrinth? Our labyrinth was Steven Reimer's Eagle Scout Project. Steven Reimer, a member of Troop 438, under the direction of Scoutmaster Mario Montano, completed the labyrinth in December 2004. Steven organized and led a team of 43 volunteers, working over 900 hours, in building our outdoor labyrinth. Guidelines for walking - Walk with or without shoes, take a minute and become aware of your breath. Allow yourself to find the pace your body wants to go. You may "pass" people or allow others to step around you whichever is easiest. The path is two ways. Those going in will meet those coming out. Do what feels natural. Feel free to stop and rest at any time along your walk. How do you walk a labyrinth? There are three stages of the walk: Releasing - is letting go of the details of your life - roles, stresses, worries, etc. This is an act of shedding thoughts and emotions that keep you from communicating with God. Receiving - is when you reach the center - a place of meditation and prayer. Stay there as long as you like. Receive what is there for you to receive from God. Exit when you feel ready. Returning - is joining God, and being empowered by God to move back out into the world, replenished and directed. What you have received can synthesize with your life to help you discover your calling. Each time you walk the labyrinth you become more empowered to find and do the work you feel your soul reaching for. What's unique about this Labyrinth? You will notice that around the outside of the labyrinth are the traditional 112 stones, called "Lunations." Many of these stones are inscribed with dedications. These dedications helped fund the building of our labyrinth. You will also see four mosaic stones in the labyrinth. These were made by Jennifer O'Camb, a church member. They represent the four parts of our church's mission statement. We are people of prayer, lifelong learners, faithful witnesses and world servants for Christ! What is a Labyrinth? In a busy and chaotic world it's hard to find time to pray. God invites us to find sacred time, sacred space and sacred movement... things we can find on the labyrinth because it is a place of prayer. The labyrinth is an archetype, a divine imprint, found in all religious traditions in various forms around the world. Our labyrinth is a replica of the Chartes Labyrinth, laid in the floor of Chartes Cathedral around 1220. Unlike a maze, a labyrinth has only one path so there are no tricks to it and no dead ends. The path winds throughout and becomes a mirror for where we are in our lives; it touches our sorrows and releases our joys. A labyrinth is, essentially, a metaphor for life's journeys and our spiritual journey. Labyrinths are most commonly used as a path for a walking prayer and meditation. Like other forms of prayer and meditation, they have the unique capacity to bring one's awareness or attention into the present moment. Some benefits of prayer and meditation you may experience on the labyrinth: Communion with God Stress Management Pain Management Coping Skills Accessing Creativity Healing JER 6:16a This is what the LORD says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." We pray for peace in our world and God's wisdom for the leaders of the world, especially our President George Bush and his staff, and our congress. We pray especially for Israel, Palestine, Afghanistan, Iraq and surrounding areas. We pray that God's glory and presence would be made known through every people group in every nation, that all people would be drawn to the Lord Jesus. Please join in an ecumenical prayer vigil for the Christian communities in Jerusalem, for all those who are suffering in the Holy Land, for Palestinians and Israelis, and for peace in the Middle East and the world. Organized by state, the vigil began in Alabama and New York the First Sunday in Advent, December 3, 2000, shifted to Alaska and North Carolina on December 4, Arizona and North Dakota on December 5, and so on. Here in California, our prayer vigil day is the 7th of each month. The vigil is coordinated by "Peaceful Ends through Peaceful Means: A Christian Witness for Peace in Israel and Palestine." The vigil will continue on the same day each month in each state until the violence in the Middle East ends and all can celebrate a just and lasting negotiated resolution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Our hope is that individuals and congregations across the USA will continue to join in this ecumenical vigil until the cycle of violence ends. Suggestions for implementing the vigil include: * praying together as a family, as office colleagues, or parish staff on the date each month designated for your state. * inviting the pastors and congregations in your area to join in this prayer vigil on the date assigned to your state. * partnering and collaborating with other churches located within the same state. * sharing prayers and worship resources you have developed. * organizing or promoting participation in an ecumenical or inter-religious prayer service in your area. We pray for our neighboring congregations: Salem Lutheran and their supply pastors; Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church and Pastor Heidi Hester; Prince of Peace Lutheran in La Mirada; and Lutheran Church of the Master in La Habra; Emanuel Lutheran in La Habra with Pastor Dennis Laherty. We also pray for our Pacifica Synod Bishop Murray Finck and his staff, our presiding Bishop Mark Hanson and his staff in Chicago, and leaders throughout the country and world. To receive the daily prayer from ELCA Prayer Ventures, send an email to PRAYERS@LISTSERV.ELCA.ORG. When there is a fifth Sunday in the month we have Service of the Word for Healing at each of the services. We have a prayer emphasis called "God's Heart for the Nations." A key verse for us is Matthew 9:37-38. We pray for people near and far who are unreached for Christ. Special times of prayer here at St. Andrew are every Sunday morning at 7:30, as we pray for the morning worship services, and for worship around the world this day. We invite you to these times of prayer, and we thank you for your prayers in daily life for St. Andrew. You are in our prayers as well. We pray for our staff and for our missionaries each day. Our Global Mission Connections include the work of Sister Emilia in Peru, one of our own families, now ELCA Missionaries in Senegal, Louis and Mytch Dorvilier family, and prayers for Mark, Kathi, Andrew and Joel Williams in Davao City, Philippines. Thank God for our five (and a half!) mission trips to Peru, and now as we daily provide lunch for 160 children in Pachacamac, Peru, each day. God works a miracle with each $35 a day gift! Pray for raising $20,000 for a bakery and sewing co-op in Pachacamac. Remember First Samuel 12:23 "As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you." And Jesus' prayer for his followers: "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."  |