 Gather 'round,
you elders of the people, you who are willing to be witnesses to God's activity in the world. Gather 'round, you complainers, crying out for the powerless, making your voices heard. Gather 'round, you fearful ones, living in the tension between frustration and hope. Gather 'round, you leaders of the people, anxious and exasperated and needing to be led yourselves. God is here. God is listening. God will provide. Let us worship God.
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Living Water, We come before you this day,
lifting before you those who need your healing touch, your comforting presence, your reassuring word .... Sunday Prayer: a haven for the hungry, posted: https://revgalblogpals.org/2020/09/20/sunday-prayer-a-haven-for-the-hungry/  Call to Confession
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. Let us humble ourselves before the Lord and confess our sin to God. Prayer of Confession We are guilty, O God, of complaining against you because of our hunger for more, because of our desire for comfort, because of our impatience. We are guilty, Rock of Ages, of failing to trust in your provision, in your covenant, in your faithfulness. We are guilty, Pillar of Light, of surrendering our wills, not to you, but to resentment and to frustration and to anger. Forgive us, we pray, and renew a right spirit within us, that we might know that we are your people and you are our God. Assurance of God's Grace I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. (1 Cor. 10:1-3, NRSV) In the name of Christ, we, too, are forgiven, and restored to wholeness. 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.  You who are wandering in the wilderness,
come, for in the barrenness of the landscape, God's mystery is inspiring. You who are feeling abandoned, resentful, and confused, come, for in the midst of community, God's compassion is restorative. You who hungry and aching to be fed, come, for God does provide for God's people. Let us worship God! In dark cells
and pits of despair ... held captive by clanging chains and by agonizing grief and by debts that cannot possibly be repaid ... Prayers of the People, P+15, A, posted: https://revgalblogpals.org/2020/09/12/sunday-prayer-have-mercy/  Call to Confession
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (James 4:18) Let us confess our sin before God and seek God's mercy. Prayer of Confession God in Heaven, the standards you have set! Your children literally feed on bitterness and anger and wrath and wrangling and slander. We seethe aloud on social media. Our self-righteous rants are our calling cards. You want us to release our siblings in Christ from responsibility? You want us to forgive? to cancel debts? Who will hold your people accountable, God, if you are so quick to forgive .... ? O, God, have mercy on us. We have refused to obey. We have stiffened our necks and enslaved ourselves to an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. We are so focused on the speck in our neighbor's eye that we cannot see the plank in our own. Hear our cries for mercy, O Lord, and open our hearts to the cries of our neighbors, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Including us. Train us in the way of mercy, according to the example set by your son, Jesus, that we might forgive as we have been forgiven. Amen. Assurance of God's Grace Our Lord is compassionate, forgiving our iniquities, and choosing not to destroy us. (Psalm 78:38 pp) In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven! Thanks be to God! Since God has forgive 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/Zoom-counter today. ;)  Come in humility and with tender hearts.
Bring forgiveness and gratitude with you. Your debt has been canceled. Canceled. Your entire debt ... erased. Come prepared to kneel before the One who has paid it all. The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Come prepared to release the debts you hold for others. Come prepared to worship with praise on your tongue and thanksgiving in your heart. Be present, Great Shepherd,
Reconciler, and Redeemer, with the one who has gone astray and cannot seem to find the way home ... https://revgalblogpals.org/2020/09/05/sunday-prayer-in-sinfulness-and-in-reconciliation/ *On odd months of the year, the Prayers of the People are published under "Sunday Prayer" on the RevGalBlogPals website as part of a clergy community. You are invited to click on the link to continue reading the prayer.  Call to Confession
Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. (Mark 11:24) Let us approach the throne of grace with confidence and seek God's mercy. Prayer of Confession, Pentecost +14, Year A God, forgive us. We are far better at war than we are at peace, far better at hate than we are at love, far better at conflict than we are at reconciliation. When someone hurts us -- friend or stranger -- that person becomes an enemy. Sometimes, that person's entire community becomes a target. We do not pay attention to the steps you have outlined for conflict-resolution and reconciliation. Neither do we acknowledge when we are the ones who inflict pain, who cause hatred and division, who refuse to listen. We would rather nurse our grudges or hold on to our power than forgive and restore a relationship to rights. Yet we come to you expecting you to absolve us, to facilitate our repentance, to give us grace to grow. Teach us gentleness, Shepherd God. Teach us humility, and help us overcome evil with good. Assurance of God's Grace Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. (Matthew 7:7) Through Jesus Christ, our prayers have been answered, our redemption secured. People of God, 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.  Where two or more are gathered ...
wherever they are gathered: in a building ... in a park ... on Zoom ... or Facebook ... wherever they are gathered in Jesus' name, Christ is there: over them ... under them ... around them ... beside them ... within them ... among them. Wherever two or more are gathered in Jesus' name, Christ is in the midst of them. 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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