If you are looking for miracles,
look no farther.
The God of the resurrection is working miracles
before your very eyes.

If you are hungry for righteousness,
feed on the Word.
The Bread of Life is before you.
Take and eat.

If you are feeling tossed about
in the darkness
on a choppy sea of uncertainty,
do not be afraid.
The same Lord who speaks calm to the wind and sea
is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 

​Let us worship the Lord our God.

Weary disciples,
worn out from the constant juggling
of expectations and demands
that others place on you
and that you place 
on yourself,
come to a place of renewal
and rest.

Scattered sheep,
wandering aimlessly,
hurting and hungry,
hopeful and hopeless
and in need of healing,
come to a place of welcome
and be restored.

Your God is waiting.
​Come and worship.

​Come, you who've read the headlines
and you who haven't.
Come, you who've experienced the miracles
of the prophet, priest, and king
at work in your life,
and you who have been witnesses,
and you who are longing for miracles of your own.
Come, you sinners
and you saints
and offer your praise
for the Holy One of God
​in worship.

Call to Confession

Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 3:2) Let us confess our sin before God, repent from our wicked ways, and seek God's mercy.

Prayer of Confession

Son of God,
forgive us.
We are your siblings,
co-heirs of the kin-dom,
yet we are also the ones who cut you down.
We laugh at your teachings,
we respond with sarcasm
and disbelief.
We refuse to welcome those you send out
in your name ...
your prophets,
your friends ...
and we refuse to be among them --
the called,
the equipped,
the sent.
It boils down to trust, Lord,
and we claim that our DNA
is that of distrust.
It is how we are made, we say,
yet we were made in your image,
in the image of love,
in the image of mercy,
in the image of wisdom.
Open our ears, we pray, that we might hear.
Open our eyes, we pray, that we might see.
Open our hearts, we pray, that we might trust --
in you
and in one another --
and find hope and healing in the Good News.

Assurance of God's Grace

God has promised that when we confess our sin, God who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins, removing them as far as the east is from the west and remembering them no more. 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 today.

Come.
Bring a friend.
Leave your staff, your bread,
your bag.
All you need for worship
is your heart.
​Come.

Normally, I would tie the spiritual practice of the month to the focus passage for the week, and in some ways, what I'm about to share does tie in in that the people in the gospel story for this week showed up with an expectation, with a hope, with faith. But today's sharing is much more personal. Today, I'm headed out for two retreats: the first is a Mission Madness Workshop at Belk Park in Wood River. For three years, we worked side by side with local agencies at least twice a month to support their work in the community and to offer our embodied prayer through mission work. We have continued that work in the last year remotely, working in our homes, checking in via Zoom, and it has been good, but we long to be back together in person and to work alongside those agencies again. It is hard, with varying policies in place during the transition and folks in different places with comfort levels around vaccinations for various reasons. We are excited to be able to work together outdoors to keep our commitments to those working diligently in our community for those who are in need. Showing up in whatever way one can to do what God has called us to do is obedience.  

The second retreat is a Prayer Art Retreat at Von Dell Gallery & Studios, also in Wood River. I have one person registered. One. It takes me back to five years ago ... four years ago ... even three years ago when I was working hard to get A Place of Grace off the ground. I can't count the hours I spent alone waiting for someone to come or the number of retreats I led with one participant. After a year of COVID, it feels like I'm starting all over when I had literally just gotten this thing off the ground. I'm not the only one. Small business owners/ministry leaders such as myself all over the world are struggling with the same challenges: How do we welcome with hospitality those who are feeling anxious about being out and in group settings? How do we combat Zoom-fatigue, particularly in weather that lures people into their yards vs their dining room tables or offices? I don't have the answers to those questions. Like everyone else, I'm trying my best to figure it out. But obedience to this call, obedience to the One who has remained faithful through this challenging time, requires that I show up.

It would have been easy to stay home today, to decide it wasn't worth loading my van to the gills to move from one thing to the other and unload and reload multiple times. So easy. But obedience is not about taking the easy path. Obedience is about showing up. Obedience is about loving our neighbors and doing our best to provide safe spaces for them to share in community. Obedience is about proclamation of the Word and the shelter and nurture of humankind. So today, I'm showing up, and like the father of the dying girl and the woman who has been bleeding for years, I am trusting God will be present ... that God will provide ... that God will heal what is broken. Where is obedience calling you to show up this week?

Gather, you faithful.
Gather around the teacher,
around the hope he offers,
around the proclamation of the Good News.

Come, you believers.
Press in.
Name the healing you desire
for yourself 
and others.

Fall at the feet of the Savior.
In fear and trembling, touch the garments ...
speak your truth.
Do not fear ...
only believe.