Worship Prayers June 16

 CENTERING PRAYER

 

God, you are the gardener of all creation. You planted this world with the seeds of your love and grow them with your faithfulness. We are your harvest; we find our meaning and sustenance in you. May our minds listen to you calling, may our hearts be attuned to your will, may our feet follow you in the world, through Jesus, the Word become flesh. Amen.

 

 

CALL TO WORSHIP

 

The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed,

which is the smallest of seeds on earth;

it grows up and becomes the greatest of shrubs,

and the birds of the air make nests in its shade.

Give thanks to God, whose promised reign is coming.

Thanks be to God!

 

 

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

 

Holy God, the parable of the mustard seed teaches us a little faith can produce great work in your kingdom. Yet, we are too timid to bear the fruit of your righteousness, for we walk by sight and not by faith. Forgive us, Lord; we do not uphold the poor or the oppressed. We do not advocate for the powerless or the voiceless. We do not sacrifice ourselves for the needs of our neighbors. Renew us with the love of Christ so we live no longer for ourselves, but for Christ who became the seed of your righteousness in us. (Silent Confession)

 

 

AFFIRMATION OF FAITH - Confession of 1967 – 9.07

 

In Jesus Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself. Jesus Christ is God with humankind. He is the eternal Son of the Father, who became human and lived among us to fulfill the work of reconciliation. He is present in the church by the power of the Holy Spirit to continue and complete his mission. This work of God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is the foundation of all confessional statements about God, humans, and the world. Therefore, the church calls all people to be reconciled to God and to one another.

 

 

OFFERING

 

Invitation to the Offering

 

God provides us with all we need. It is our privilege to give back to God. In the spirit of reconciliation, let us return a portion of what God so freely gives us. Let us humbly bring our gifts to our Lord.

 

 

Prayer after Offering

 

Let us pray…Bless, O God, the gifts we bring this day, that they may be a sign of our commitment to your kingdom and a pledge of our love for you and your world. Multiply the work done by our time, treasures, and talents, that your presence and compassion may be known in all the earth. Amen.

Scripture for June 16

 

2 Corinthians 5:16-21

16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin[b] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

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Photo by Melanie Stander on Unsplash

Daily Prayer June 14

"My word shall accomplish that which I purpose," says the Lord, "and succeed in the thing for which I sent it."

Daily Readings for Friday, June 14, 2024

• Morning Psalms 84; 148
• First Reading Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:14
• Second Reading Galatians 5:25-6:10
• Gospel Reading Matthew 16:21-28
• Evening Psalms 25; 40

Eternal God, as we are baptized into the death of Jesus Christ, so give us the grace of repentance that we may pass through the grave with him and be born again to eternal life, for he is the One who was crucified, dead, and buried, and rose again for us, Jesus our Savior. Eternal God, you sent us a Savior, Christ Jesus, to break down the walls of hostility that divide us. Send peace on earth, and put down greed, pride, and anger, which turn nation against nation and race against race. Speed the day when wars will end and the whole world accepts your rule. God of mercy, you are full of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in mercy, and always ready to forgive. Grant us grace to renounce all evil and to cling to Christ, that in every way we may prove to be your loving children. (Add your prayers.) Amen.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit.

(Opening sentences, prayers, and blessings are from the Book of Common Worship. Readings are from the daily lectionary in Daily Prayer. Both are published by Westminster/John Knox Press.)

Worship Prayers for June 9

 

CENTERING PRAYER

 

God of days, we praise your name, for your grace sustains us. We wait for you, Lord, for your word strengthens us. Our outer nature is wasting away day by day, but our inner nature is being renewed by your daily bread. Grant us the eyes to see what cannot be seen and to gaze on what is eternal. May we revel in your work and be a visible witness or your invisible kingdom. In Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

 

 

CALL TO WORSHIP

 

O give thanks to the Lord with your whole heart.

On the day I called, you answered me.

God’s steadfast love endures forever.

Thanks be to God!

 

 

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

 

Gracious God, have mercy on us, for we fail to be faithful to you, though you are always faithful to us. You show us your wisdom, but we prefer to go our own way. Our broken relationships with you and one another create poverty in us and our neighbors. In your mercy, reconcile us to you and one another for the work of justice, peace, and love, through Jesus Christ, our redeemer. (Silent Confession)

 

 

AFFIRMATION OF FAITH – The Apostles’ Creed

 

 

OFFERING

 

Invitation to the Offering

 

Let us continue to worship the LORD through our gifts of talents, tithes, and our very lives.

 

Prayer after Offering

 

Let us pray… Eternal God, Jesus teaches us that a house divided cannot stand. Together, we offer ourselves and our gifts, that they may be used to extend your grace to others for your glory, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Scripture for June 9

 Mark 3:20-35

Jesus Accused by His Family and by Teachers of the Law

20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. 21 When his family[a] heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”

22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”

23 So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house. 28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”

30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

33 “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.

34 Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

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The Loudest Song

 “O sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth” (Psalm 96:1, NRSV.) 

There’s a song happening all around us, but none of us know the words. It starts out quiet enough in the morning, and it tapers off in the dusk. When the sun is at its highest, the song is the loudest. I am not talking about the popular music played on the radio, the sacred hymns sung in church, or the ubiquitous Muzak filling the air in offices, elevators, and phone trees. This song emerged a few weeks ago, and, according to experts, it will be with us most of June. I speak, of course, about the beautiful sound of our cicada guests. 

I know most of you are praying for the day when you can make your way from the front porch to the car without being divebombed by the insect armada. They are everywhere, and they have no regard for personal space or the basic decorum of a civilized society. 

The only one in our family who likes them is our dog, Knox, and we are doing our best to keep him inside. If you cannot see them, you can certainly hear them. Most people describe the irritating noise as an incessant scream, but it’s actually the male variety singing out a mating song. It’s loud, it’s annoying, and it’s everywhere. I think there’s something more there. 

There is something beautiful about a creature crawling up from the darkness into the light. There’s a hopeful message in the shedding off of the exuvia (yes, I had to look it up) and the emergence as a new creation. I suggest there is unique beauty in the cacophonic symphony happening all around us right now. I’m not prepared to call this the gospel according to the cicadas, but I think there is a lesson for all of us here. Theirs might not be the longest song, but it’s the loudest. 

The author John Berger writes, “Do you know the legend about cicadas? They say they are the souls of poets who cannot keep quiet because, when they were alive, they never wrote the poems they wanted to.” 

All of us are given a certain number of days. What are we going to do with them? We can be silent, we can scream, or we can sing. In the white noise of our world, there is a new song all around us. With everything God has done, how can we keep from singing?

 In Hope and Confidence, Pastor Dave

Worship Prayers

 

CENTERING PRAYER:   Lord God, who brings us mornings and beginnings, touch our heart to hear your call today. Grant us faith to rely on your extraordinary power in us that the life of Jesus may be made visible as we glorify you alone. Amen.

CALL TO WORSHIP:    The God who has searched us and knows us, who is acquainted with all our ways; that God calls us each by name. Speak, Holy One, your servants are listening! The God who liberated slaves from Egypt, the Lord of the Sabbath who bids us rest; that God empowers us to make Jesus’ life visible in our very bodies. Speak, Holy One, your servants are listening! Let us sing aloud to God, our strength, and shout for joy to the God of Jacob.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION:    God who formed our inward parts and knows our hearts, forgive us. Instead of acknowledging you as our God, we make our own idols. Instead of proclaiming Jesus Christ as our Lord, we proclaim ourselves. Instead of turning to the Holy Spirit, we attempt to attain your way in our own understanding. Redirect our wrong ways and lead us to the ways that make Jesus visible in our lives. (Silent Confession)

Scripture for June 2

 Mark 2:23-3:6

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

25 He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? 26 In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.”

27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Jesus Heals on the Sabbath

3 Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. 2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.

5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

*Christ and his Apostles, Tiffany stained glass, 1890*