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Thank you for connecting with us here on the web!

Those of you who have been away this summer missed out on a series of sermons which I'm told surprised people pleasantly! We have spent the season meditating on the Ten Commandments with our eyes on two questions: first, if God says "Thou shalt NOT" do something, what are the positive goals and choices we can make to live in the spirit of his will? And more importantly, what kind of joyful, serene people might we become if we simply had the grace to take a few of God's suggestions?

As I was searching out music for the services, I came upon this prayer in the Methodist hymnal. The author's name is Howard Thurman. It touched me; maybe you'll find it meaningful, too!

Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart.
Here is the citadel of all my desiring,
where my hopes are born
and all the deep resolutions of my spirit take wings.
In this center, my fears are nourished,
and all my hates are nurtured.
Here my loves are cherished,
and all the deep hungers of my spirit are honored
without quivering and without shock.
In my heart, above all else,
let love and integrity envelop me
until my love is perfected and the last vestige
of my desiring is no longer in conflict with thy Spirit.
Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart.
Amen.