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4/5/2019 0 Comments Prayers of the People, Lent 5C So many of your children, Lord,
are still stuck in Egypt, mourning losses, enslaved by fear, fatigued from fighting demons they cannot fully identify. Their past has formed their present and the future looks impossible. Hopelessness overtakes them, and they feel so betrayed they dare not put their trust in you. Surround them with your love, O God. Grant them a community with patience and strength enough to carry them through the darkest of their days until they can see the path you have made that leads them to newness of life. So many of your children, Lord, are poisoned by the water they drink, water unfit for human consumption, water contaminated by pollutants of all kinds. Disease is rampant. People are dying. Creatures are dying. Governments are failing to provide what you called good at the beginning of time. Empower your people to speak out against greed and neglect and raise up from among us leaders who will protect that which has been gifted to us and placed in our charge. So many of your children are longing to see the new thing you have promised. Some can envision it, but there is much disagreement about how it is accomplished. Remind us to listen, Lord, to you and to each other. Calm our anxious spirits, and help us sit with one another in openness and compassion, and look for the ways in which your will might be done for the manifestation of the common good.
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4/3/2019 1 Comment Prayer of Confession, Lent 5C Call to Confession
God made streams come out of the rock, and caused waters to flow down like rivers. Yet they sinned still more against God, rebelling against the Most High in the desert. They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved. They spoke against God, saying, “Can God spread a table in the wilderness? Even though he struck the rock so that water gushed out and torrents overflowed, can he also give bread, or provide meat for his people?” Psalm 78:16-20 Let us confess the ways in which we have sinned against our God and seek God's mercy. Prayer of Confession, Lent 5C Here we sit, Lord, wallowing in our history, nursing our pain. We refuse to open our eyes, to look beyond our tunnel vision, to accept our shortsightedness is keeping us from seeing the new thing you are doing in our midst. Where we see impossibilities, you see infinite possibilities. Where we see hopelessness, you see hope. Forgive us, we pray, and enlarge our vision, that we might become integral parts of the kingdom work you are doing on earth, and we won't forget to praise you with every living creature. Assurance of God's Grace 2Corinthians 5:17 So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! 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 day. 4/2/2019 0 Comments Call to Worship, Lent 5C Our God is Liberator, who frees the slave
and brings justice to the oppressed. Our God is Creator, who forms the earth and all that is in it, who calms the waves and makes rivers flow in the desert. Our God is Sovereign, and is worthy of glory and honor and praise. Let us worship God! |
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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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