Encounter: In The Stillness Of My Heart

Ruach Breath of Life

Music: From the Oboe Concerto by Cimarosa Musicians: Thomas Herzog, (oboe) Francis Cummings, Suzanne Herzog, Chian Lewis Lim, Corinne Frost, Jo Garcia (strings) In the stillness of my heart, Lord, I wait for You. I long to hear Your voice and to follow You. Help me to recognise and harness those emotions which are creative and to avoid those which are destructive. When I’m feeling angry, let it make me more prayerful – but let it not consume me with resentment or leave me bent on vengeance. Deliver us from our fears, Lord, but help us to recognise which ones need to be resisted and which may be telling us something important about ourselves. May no lack of courage cause us to miss the opportunities that You send our way. Thank You that You guide us carefully and gently. If You had not refreshed us, we would not have made it this far. Help us to resist the many accusations and the guilt which the Accuser of the Brethren sends our way. Help us to overcome the nagging thought that we have nothing much to offer, for this makes us so much less willing to attempt things for You. Keep us from a “hardening of the oughteries” – that nagging sense that we ought to be doing more than we are, or be doing something else altogether. Develop within us a deeper sense of steadfastness and gratitude as an antidote to these restless and compulsive thoughts. When I’m feeling hesitant and uncertain Lord, rebuke the fear. You are so much greater than my fears and dismal forebodings. Help me to notice who is fearful and drifting, and to go out after them, just like a sheep dog rounding up sheep. We declare war on those fears and worries which make us believe that all is at an end, when, in reality, You still have so much to do in and through our lives.