Kalthoma, a refugee from Darfur, is part of a group resettled through One Great Hour of Sharing funds.
Since 1949, Presbyterians have joined with millions of other Christians through One Great Hour of Sharing to share God’s love with people experiencing need. Our gifts support ministries of disaster response, refugee assistance and resettlement, and community development that help people find safe refuge, start new lives and work together to strengthen their families and communities.
Recognizing that the hope we have in Christ is lived out in our hope for one another, we respond with gifts that help our sisters and brothers around the world find the hope for a brighter future.
Where does the money go?
The Presbyterian Hunger Program receives 36 percent of undesignated One Great Hour of Sharing gifts, while the Self-Development of People and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance each receive 32 percent.
When is the offering received?Most congregations receive the offering on Easter Sunday, Palm Sunday or both, while many receive it throughout Lent.
Individuals may send their contributions to:
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)Church Remittance ProcessingP.O. Box 643700Pittsburgh, PA 15264-3700
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Jesus, Abide with Us
Lord, who throughout these forty days
For us didst fast and pray,
Teach us with Thee to mourn our sins.
And close by Thee to stay.
.As Thou with Satan didst contend
And didst the victory win
o give us strength in Thee to fight,
In Thee to conquer sin.
We don't know a lot about the forty days Jesus spent in the desert before His temptation. We know it was a time of fasting and probably of prayer. When the devil came to Him, the conquering words of Scripture were quick to Jesus' tongue, so it may have been a time of meditation, a time of special communion; with his Father.
This song–"A Lenten Hymn"--draws the comparison between Jesus' forty days in the desert and the forty days of Lent. Traditionally, the Lenten season is a time of fasting. People "give up" something for Lent. The idea is not punish ourselves, but to put aside something that may distract us from our communion with God. It is a time for special devotion to God, a time when He may "abide with use" in a special way. Lent is a time to refocus on our relationship with Christ.
Lent is a season of intensified self-examination and repentance. While these practices are part of regular Christian life year-round, we give them special attention during Lent to assure they do not devolve into mere rote activities.
One of the long-established spiritual practices in Christianity, championed by Ignatius of Loyola (a Spanish reformer and contemporary of John Calvin, who sought to reform the Roman church from within), .is a discipline of self-examination and repentance Ignatius called examen. Lent is a most appropriate season for Christians to engage this daily practice of taking inventory of our lives and resolving prayerfully to grow spiritually.
In his daily spiritual exercises, Ignatius invites us to begin each morning reminding ourselves of the "defects" in our lives we hope to amend today. At midday we take a first inventory. How has today gone so far with regard to the amendments we are seeking to make in our lives? Finally, at the end of the day, a full examen is undertaken: Where today did we experience a special awareness of Christ's presence and· transforming power, and where did we feel absent from him? We thank God for the places where we can discern our Lord's presence with us, and repent for those' places where we strayed from the way of Jesus.
Lent offers an opportunity to begin a daily practice of examen that might not be so thorough but is nevertheless powerful. This "entry-level" practice might consist at first of taking time each evening in Lent to list the consolations and desolations of the day, lifting them up to the Lord in prayers of thanksgiving, confession, and repentance. Some will find it helpful to share their consolations and desolations with friends or family members who serve as prayer partners; others will want to keep a daily journal listing the flow of consolations and desolations they have encountered.
For us didst fast and pray,
Teach us with Thee to mourn our sins.
And close by Thee to stay.
.As Thou with Satan didst contend
And didst the victory win
o give us strength in Thee to fight,
In Thee to conquer sin.
We don't know a lot about the forty days Jesus spent in the desert before His temptation. We know it was a time of fasting and probably of prayer. When the devil came to Him, the conquering words of Scripture were quick to Jesus' tongue, so it may have been a time of meditation, a time of special communion; with his Father.
This song–"A Lenten Hymn"--draws the comparison between Jesus' forty days in the desert and the forty days of Lent. Traditionally, the Lenten season is a time of fasting. People "give up" something for Lent. The idea is not punish ourselves, but to put aside something that may distract us from our communion with God. It is a time for special devotion to God, a time when He may "abide with use" in a special way. Lent is a time to refocus on our relationship with Christ.
Lent is a season of intensified self-examination and repentance. While these practices are part of regular Christian life year-round, we give them special attention during Lent to assure they do not devolve into mere rote activities.
One of the long-established spiritual practices in Christianity, championed by Ignatius of Loyola (a Spanish reformer and contemporary of John Calvin, who sought to reform the Roman church from within), .is a discipline of self-examination and repentance Ignatius called examen. Lent is a most appropriate season for Christians to engage this daily practice of taking inventory of our lives and resolving prayerfully to grow spiritually.
In his daily spiritual exercises, Ignatius invites us to begin each morning reminding ourselves of the "defects" in our lives we hope to amend today. At midday we take a first inventory. How has today gone so far with regard to the amendments we are seeking to make in our lives? Finally, at the end of the day, a full examen is undertaken: Where today did we experience a special awareness of Christ's presence and· transforming power, and where did we feel absent from him? We thank God for the places where we can discern our Lord's presence with us, and repent for those' places where we strayed from the way of Jesus.
Lent offers an opportunity to begin a daily practice of examen that might not be so thorough but is nevertheless powerful. This "entry-level" practice might consist at first of taking time each evening in Lent to list the consolations and desolations of the day, lifting them up to the Lord in prayers of thanksgiving, confession, and repentance. Some will find it helpful to share their consolations and desolations with friends or family members who serve as prayer partners; others will want to keep a daily journal listing the flow of consolations and desolations they have encountered.
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