St. Patrick's Breastplate

I bind unto myself today . . .

The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same
The Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this today to me forever
By power of faith, Christ’s incarnation;
His baptism in Jordan river,
His death on Cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spiced tomb,
His riding up the heavenly way,
His coming at the day of doom
I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself the power
Of the great love of cherubim;
The sweet ‘Well done’ in judgment hour,
The service of the seraphim,
Confessors’ faith, Apostles’ word,
The Patriarchs’ prayers, the prophets’ scrolls,
All good deeds done unto the Lord
And purity of virgin souls.

I bind unto myself today
The virtues of the star lit heaven,
The glorious sun’s life giving ray,
The whiteness of the moon at even,
The flashing of the lightning free,
The whirling wind’s tempestuous shocks,
The stable earth, the deep salt sea
Around the old eternal rocks.

I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, His shield to ward;
The word of God to give me speech,
His heavenly host to be my guard.

Against the demon snares of sin,
The vice that gives temptation force,
The natural lusts that war within,
The hostile men that mar my course;
Or few or many, far or nigh,
In every place and in all hours,
Against their fierce hostility
I bind to me these holy powers.

Against all Satan’s spells and wiles,
Against false words of heresy,
Against the knowledge that defiles,
Against the heart’s idolatry,
Against the wizard’s evil craft,
Against the death wound and the burning,
The choking wave, the poisoned shaft,
Protect me, Christ, till Thy returning.

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the Name,
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.
By Whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
Praise to the Lord of my salvation,
Salvation is of Christ the Lord.

Rock Water

As I was perusing some liturgy readings this morning, one struck me as so appropriately perfect for my struggling attitude toward life right now. Exodus 17:1-7 - I am one to often compare myself to a rebellious Israelite, not compliant and willing to follow the leader who was chosen by God to guide them out of wilderness and into the Promiseland.
What a daunting task, to lead a grumbling nation who doubted you . . . Moses was doing what God had called him to do. He had no special wisdom, no super power in and of himself to even know where the next step would take them.

He didn't feel equipped to do it, but God was equipping him as he went. The people cursed him and balked his leadership. And yet, he trusted. He trusted the God of his fathers, and he believed that God would get them there.

I may not be a grumbling nation, but I can be a grumbling wife to my own Moses. When I complain and test my husband, I make his road harder. His is a road full of great responsibility and roadblocks that he has to overcome, and the desire of my life is to encourage him and strengthen him through this journey by serving him. But I am a poor example of this. I only fall on my knees once again and ask for his forgiveness and God's forgiveness.

And then I remember how faithful God is, to a grumbling nation -

All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin
by stages, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, but
there was no water for the people to drink. 2Therefore the people quarreled with
Moses and said, "Give us water to drink." And Moses said to them, "Why do you
quarrel with me? Why do you test the LORD?" 3But the people thirsted there for
water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, "Why did you bring us up
out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?" 4So
Moses cried to the LORD, "What shall I do with this people? They are almost
ready to stone me."

5And the LORD said to Moses, "Pass on before the people,
taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff
with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6 Behold, I will stand before you there
on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of
it, and the people will drink." And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of
Israel. 7And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the
quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the LORD by saying,
"Is the LORD among us or not?"

**He, the faithful God who gave the Israelites water from the rock, is our Rock who sent his Son to be struck so that His saving blood would flow over us, cleansing and purifying our sinfulness and lack of faith.**

Wrapped around my finger

Beloved

This is the meaning of my name - Amy - and what a precious reminder to me.

Sometimes I manage to forget that I am chosen, called, and beloved of God. How could I ever doubt any of these is beyond me, but there it is. I forget, or rather, I disbelieve.

Remembering a moment of tearful doubt, I once confessed to my husband that I was having a really hard time believing in the love he had/has for me. This was a painful admission, and a weak moment that Satan delighted in, took opportunity in, and pounced upon.

My warrior fought for me when he told me to look at the set of rings on my finger. The shape of round. Circles that endlessly turn, continuous until breaking for a beautiful diamond tightly clenched in the middle. The diamond is the love that the Lord perfects as we grow more united in marriage, and the band is the commitment that we have made to each other, and that God has made to us.

And this is how the Lord loves His children.

Amy, I am never letting you go. I love you, you are My beloved.

The Need

21Jesus went away from there, and withdrew into the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed." 23But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, "Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us." 24But He answered and said, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." 25But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, "Lord, help me!" 26And He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs."27But she said, "Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table." 28Then Jesus said to her, "O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed at once.

Looking at this passage for this week's lesson for bsf seemed like perfect timing. My soul is weary.
This past month has been incredibly difficult, with many reasons I cannot convey to you. All that I can convey is that God took us through a storm and we are now in a calm again. Through this time of testing, I was tempted to turn away from God with my lack of faith. But His hold is secure on His chosen, and He bolted me firmly.

Going back to this passage, it emotionally overwhelms me that God acknowledged the faith of a Canaanite, one not of His chosen, and yet she believed. She had persistent faith- she had quick wit to say that 'even the master's dogs feed on the crumbs . . . ' She was so eager for anything, anything that the Lord would give to her. And what she desired was not for herself, but her daughter.

"O woman, your faith is great"

Oh to be like that - to tug at the robe of Jesus, daily in prayer. I have needs, I have anxieties and concerns, and I hunger for righteousness. I have doubts, and I have sin but He collects that garbage and folds me in His embrace.