 Genesis 12:1-4a www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2012%3A1-4a&version=NRSVUE
Psalm 121 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20121&version=NRSVUE Romans 4:1-5, 13-17 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%204%3A1-5%2C%2013-17&version=NRSVUE John 3:1-17 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%203%3A1-17&version=NRSVUE The focus passage for A Place of Grace this week is Romans 4:1-5, 13-17. All liturgy will be based on this passage. What in Romans 4:1-5, 13-17 encourages or inspires you? Share your thoughts here: www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1347074454128471&set=a.549399683895956.
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2/21/2026 0 Comments Prayers of the People, L1A God of grace,
Hear our prayers for mercy: Sin is not reckoned where there is no law, yet we have chosen not to follow your law while we hold others to it. We have chosen not to follow our own laws, while we hold others to it. We have chosen unjust laws that unfavorably harm those whom we label "enemy," stacking the deck against them while creating wealth and security for us and those who look like us. This, too, is sin, and we know it, yet we do it anyway. Hear our prayers, O Lord, for the marginalized among us, whose adherence to the laws we impose upon them still does not grant them safety or dignity. Hear our prayers for the lawmakers and the law enforcers that they might be oriented to justice for all and not for some. Hear our prayers, O God, for your people everywhere, that we might speak boldly in the face of injustice, and courageously speak truth to power, unsettling every space where comfort is guarded more fiercely than justice, and inviting people of diverse backgrounds to share their perspectives and bring wisdom and discernment. Be present in all spaces, Lord, where laws are made and enacted, that Love might become the supreme law and grace might override the instincts of those who grab for power. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. 2/20/2026 0 Comments Playlist, L1A2/18/2026 0 Comments Prayer of Confession, L1A Call to Confession
Behold we were brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did our mothers conceive us. (Psalm 51:5) Let us confess the sin into which we were born and seek God's mercy: Prayer of Confession God, forgive us. Out of our human propensity for sin we have caved to temptation and blamed our circumstances or the people around us or society's ills for our own failures to live in the light and love of Christ, whose life revealed welcome for the stranger, compassion for the broken, generosity toward the poor, grace for the imprisoned, freedom for the oppressed, and peaceable living with our enemies. The sin we have perpetuated has resulted in death -- not just of our own spirits, but the livelihoods, the spirits, and the very lives of our neighbors and friends and even our own. We have chosen death over life, following Adam instead of Christ. In your mercy, forgive us, we pray. Help us to live into the justification you have pronounced for us, binding us to you in Christ's name, as your children forever. Assurance of God's Grace Hear the good news: If death came through one man, life has come through One who is greater. Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more. Scripture declares, “God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) In Jesus Christ, you are justified — declared righteous — not by your striving, but by his obedience. In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven. Thanks be to God. Since God has forgiven us in Christ, let us also forgive one another. The peace of Christ be with you. Please extend the peace of Christ to all whom you encounter this week. *Photo credit to Crystal Holmes, who took this picture for A Place of Grace use. Thank you, Crystal!  Gather, you sinners.
Come in. Find grace. In Christ, we stand before God justified -- declared righteous -- not by our striving, but by God's mercy. Therefore, let us come boldly before the throne of grace and worship the God who justifies the ungodly. Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%202%3A15-17%2C%203%3A1-7&version=NRSVUE
Psalm 32 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%2032&version=NRSVUE Romans 5:12-19 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%205%3A12-19&version=NRSVUE Matthew 4:1-11 www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%204%3A1-11&version=NRSVUE The focus passage for A Place of Grace this week is Romans 5:12-19. All liturgy will be based on this passage. What in Romans 5:12-19 inspires or encourages you? Share you thoughts here: www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1340884548080795&set=a.549399683895956.  God of radiant glory and steady light,
you revealed your beloved Son not through rumor or legend, but through witness, memory, and holy testimony. You spoke on the mountain, and your voice still echoes in the Church. We pray for all who have been eyewitnesses to your majesty-- for those whose faith was formed through profound encounter, for those who have known unmistakable moments of your presence. Guard them from pride and from weariness. Keep their testimony gentle and true. May their remembering serve not themselves, but your glory. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. We pray for those who walk by faith and not by sight-- for those who follow the lamp shining in a dark place, trusting the prophetic word handed down through generations. When the night feels long, keep their hope steady. When certainty wavers, anchor them in your faithfulness. Let the morning star rise again in their hearts. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. We pray with compassion for those who have been drawn toward “cleverly devised myths” -- for those confused by persuasive voices, for those harmed by distorted gospels, for those who have trusted what could not bear their weight. Meet them not with scorn, but with mercy. Untangle what has been twisted. Restore trust where it has been broken. Lead them gently back to what is true and life-giving. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. We pray for teachers and preachers, for all who interpret the prophetic word. Keep us from speaking out of private impulse or bending truth toward our own advantage. By your Spirit, grant humility, clarity, and courage. May we remember that no prophecy originates in human will, but that women and men are carried along by your Holy Spirit. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. And we pray for your Church in this present darkness-- where misinformation spreads quickly and truth is often contested. Make us people of patient discernment. Teach us to test what we hear, to cling to what is good, and to speak the gospel with both conviction and kindness. Until the day dawns and your light fully breaks upon us, keep us attentive to your Word, steadfast in hope, and generous in love. We ask all this in the name of Jesus Christ, whose glory was revealed and whose light still shines. Amen.  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSZrsZWKXfo9ztgau3TeewuXANUtSZrRh
 Call to Confession
We have seen and testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. (1 John 4:14) Let us confess our sin and seek God's mercy: Prayer of Confession Majestic Glory, we come to you, humbled by our humanity, in awe of your majesty, and we seek your forgiveness. In our failure to understand the mysteries of your divinity, we try to explain what is too wondrous for our words. We cling to our own readings and assumptions forgetting that your word is living and deep, and we force our limited explanations on others in judgment and derision, thus contorting your Word to fit our own design. Send your Morning Star to rise in our hearts, O God. Open our eyes to the lamp that is shining in the darkness, that we might see more clearly the Love that lived among us in the personhood of Christ and be transformed by his presence still among us today in the light that shines through those who trust you with their very lives. Assurance of God's Grace God did not send God's Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:17) Hear the Good News: in the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven! Thanks be to God! Since God has forgiven us in Christ, let us also forgive one another. The peace of Christ be with you. Please extend the peace of Christ to all whom you encounter this week.  Come, you who are eyewitnesses
to the glory of God at work in the world! Come, you beloved, you children of the Most High God! Come for a mountaintop experience. Come for a moment of clarity. Come for a sense of peace. Come to be in the presence of the Holy. Whatever you need, come. God is waiting. |
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Julie participated in the 25th Seminar for Certified Zentangle(R) Teacher Training in June, 2019, trained by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. In addition to creating art as a personal spiritual practice, Julie also incorporates the Zentangle(R) method in Prayer Art Retreats in a variety of contexts, including church groups, friend gatherings, and at a local art gallery. Check out the Upcoming Events page for a calendar of events, or use the Contact Us page to inquire about scheduling an event with your group!
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