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Where Life and Worship Intersect

8/31/2017 0 Comments

Prayer of Confession, OT 22A

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Call to Confession

The Psalmist reassures us that God regards our distress when God hears our cries, and for our sake remembers God's covenant and shows compassion according to the abundance of God's steadfast love (Ps. 106:44-45). Let us confess our sin before God and seek God's mercy.

Prayer of Confession

Liberating God,
you call to us not from burning bushes
but from simple choices
as well as life-changing choices,
from a friend's invitation
as well as headline news,
but we fail to stop ...
to pay attention.
Instead, we hide our faces,
fearful,
frantic,
faithless,
listing excuses
rather than stepping up
and answering with confidence,
"Here I am."
Have mercy on us, O God.
Open our eyes.
Grant us courage.
Increase our faith.
We want to follow
even when where you lead is beyond our imagination.
Maybe especially.
In Jesus' name we pray,
Amen.

Declaration of Forgiveness

"'This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days,' says the Lord; 'I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.'" 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 pass the peace of Christ to all whom you encounter this day.
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8/29/2017 0 Comments

Call to Worship, OT 22A

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Call to Worship

Child of God!
Remove the shoes from your feet
for the place where you are standing
is holy ground.
The God of your ancestors --
of Abraham and Sarah,
of Isaac and Rebekah,
of Jacob and Rachel,
is here,
calling to you from burning bushes
disguised as invitations to serve
in ways you have never imagined,
ways that kindle your passion
and spark a new direction
for your life.
Child of God,
I AM
is calling you.
Stop,
and worship.
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8/25/2017 0 Comments

Prayers of the People, OT 21A

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Prayers of the People

God of Mercy and Compassion,

We come before you this day, lifting before you those who need your healing touch, your comforting presence, your reassuring word. Hear our prayers, we pray, and make us agents of healing in your name.

Hear our prayers for those living under oppression, those fearing for their own lives and the lives of their children, desperate to protect the ones they love. Strengthen your church, O God, that we may be courageous enough to stand in the gap for those who have no voice or power.

Hear our prayers for those who grieve, devastated by the slaughter of innocents. Comfort them in their agony. Envelope them in community that they may be supported in their pain.

Hear our prayers for those brave life-giving souls who birth new hope by their courage. Surround them with divine protection, O God, that they may continue to do the work you have called them to do, rescuing those in need from the egocentric fear of tyrants.

Hear our prayers for those engaged in corrupt government who strive to rise above the fray and make bold moves toward a reign of justice. Embolden them to use their privilege to make a difference on behalf of those who are helpless.

Hear our prayers also for those we name below and for those whose names are in our hearts and on our minds, and for those whose names we do not know and may never know. Surround them with your steadfast love, we pray. Touch them with your infinite mercy, and fill them with a peace that passes all understanding. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray, Amen.
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8/23/2017 0 Comments

Prayer of Confession, OT 21A

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Call to Confession

God said, "In your distress you called, and I rescued you; I answered you in teh secret place of thunder; ... Hear, O my people, while I admonish you; O Israel, if you would but listen to me! ... I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt." (Psalm 81, selected verses) Let us confess our sin before the God who has delivered us.

Prayer of Confession

Forgive us, O God,
for we have forgotten ...
forgotten how you heard our cries for mercy ...
forgotten how you listened to our pleas for deliverance ...
forgotten how you intervened on our behalf.
Forgive us, we pray,
for our whining,
for our impatience,
for our lack of courage
in the face of oppression
and murderous threats
to our people
Strengthen us anew,
that we might stare down injustice
and find creative ways
to accomplish your purpose.
In Jesus' name, we pray.
Amen

Declaration of Forgiveness


"Open your mouth wide," God said, "and I will fill it." (Psalm 81:10) The Lord our God who brought us out of slavery has delivered us again in Jesus Christ, in whose name 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 pass the peace of Christ to all whom you encounter this day~
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8/23/2017 0 Comments

Call to Worship, OT 21A

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CALL TO WORSHIP

Gather round, 
you fearless,
you brave!
Gather and worship
the One who gives you strength
to birth new life,
to ask for what you need,
to liberate the imprisoned.
Gather round,
you trembling,
you tired!
Gather and be restored
in the midst of the community
where hope runs like a river
carrying life 
in defiance of death.
Gather round,
you powerless
and powerful,
stranger and neighbor!
Gather and sing praise
to the One who holds the future
and gifts us with today.
Gather round!
Let us worship God!

​(c) Julie Gvillo, August 22, 2017

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    Author

    Julie served as a Commissioned Ruling Elder in a Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation for thirteen years. She now absolutely delights in filling the pulpit for colleagues upon request, and looks forward to opportunities to do so. Her reformed perspective is sprinkled with humor and presented with authenticity, and she is open to creatively deconstructing worship as a means to helping congregants explore worship in transformational ways.

    Julie and her husband, Ray, are parents of three adult children, and grandparents of four energetic and imaginative little people. She is an introverted-with-enough-extrovert-balance-to-keep-her-social, perfectionistic-with-hopper-tendencies, time and goal-oriented, kaleidoscopic, and insatiably curious child of God.

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    All Call To Worship Ordinary Time 23A Prayer Of Confession Prayers Of The People

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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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