Month: May 2022

August 24, 2025

Lectionary Texts

Jeremiah 1.4-10 — Jeremiah’s call. “I am too young.” … “I am with you. I have put my words in your mouth.”

Psalm 71.1-6 — I take refuge in you. You are my hope, from my youth.

Hebrews 12.18-29 — You have not come to something that can be touched…You have come to the assembly of the firstborn, and to Jesus. Don’t refuse God. We’re receiving a kingdom that can’t be shaken.

Luke 13.10-17 — Jesus heals the bent over woman.

Preaching Thoughts

Jeremiah
     God gives a Word to each of us, regardless of our age or training. (Note how both Jeremiah and the Psalmist give encouragement to youth as vessels of God’s Word and will.) We don’t all have an authoritative word that is “appointed over nations, to pluck up and pull down,” but each person’s truth carries weight. Your calling then is to discern: what is God’s Word in you? How is God present in you? How does God’s grace shine forth in your life?
     By the way, none of us has words that are “appointed over nations, to destroy and overthrow.” God’s word has that power; we’re only the messengers, the vessels. Again note our temptation toward judgment and destruction. God’s word doesn’t actually overthrow particular nations, but it overthrows Empire: human power structures and oppressive systems.

Hebrews
       Looking for God’s self-disclosure? Don’t expect all the Hollywood special effects we get in the Bible. Look in a community of love. “See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking.” That takes patient, prayerful listening. True faith involves more listening and less posturing. This is an invitation to   humble, willing discernment, not a lot of pronouncements. How do you discern God’s voice in your life? In the life of your community? God’s voice won’t be a literal sound, but a “warning” (v. 25), a nudge, from heaven. God’s voice shakes things up, but the Realm of grace remains steadfast, a “kingdom that cannot be shaken.” You know those moments when you quietly got the sense there was a different reality afoot than you had thought—and it changes everything? In this way God is quiet, and yet also a “consuming fire.”

Luke
       Jesus has a wonderful way of asking “Where does it hurt?” He walks into the synagogue, looks around, and sees a wound, a point of pain. Two, in fact. Well, three: the bent over woman, and also the ruler of the synagogue, and also the hurting people under his rule. Healing the woman, he gets the ruler’s attention and engages him as well. We don’t know if the ruler’s hurts (that lead him to be so hurtful) are healed, but at least they’re addressed. And the people’s hunger for grace is addressed: the crowd rejoices at the wonderful things he’s doing. Presumably it’s not just that the woman is healed but maybe Jesus has instigated a renewed sense of freedom, healing and compassion in the community.
      Imagine being “bent over.” Imagine the pain. Imagine not being able to “stand up” for what you care about. Imagine not being able to look anyone in the face, but only seeing the ground. Imagine being in a permanent posture of subservience. Imagine feeling there’s “something wrong with you.” Imagine you’re in a wheelchair. Imagine what all of this might do to your relationships with other people… and maybe with God. Imagine being told that your healing is inappropriate, or less significant than a religious tradition. Imagine all the religious traditions that keep us bent over. Think how many dimensions of this woman’s life Jesus heals
       The woman is an icon for us all. Where are you bent over? What’s limited, suppressed, in pain? What cuts off your ability to look people in the eye, or allow them to see you face to face? What makes you wonder if God is punishing you, or why, at least, God doesn’t help you? What are the voices that prevent your healing, that consider your well-being not important? Where are we as a culture bent over, repressed, distorted, in pain? What are the voices that say, “Come back later for healing?” Remember the people who told Martin Luther King, Jr. that he was moving too fast. Or people who respond to calls for justice that the change would be too much, too soon.
      Jesus schools the synagogue ruler on how to do Bible study: not by ‘splaining, but by enacting it. It’s not just a literal transliteration (“It says here don’t work on the Sabbath”) but listening for God’s Word. What is your lived experience of Sabbath? You let your animal go free. Remember Deuteronomy 5.12-15: “The seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you… or any of your livestock…. Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt… Therefore the Holy One your God commanded you to keep the sabbath day.” The Sabbath is about liberation. Well then, “ought not this woman whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the sabbath day?”According to scripture setting this woman free is exactly what Sabbath is all about. Any questions, class?
      Jesus isn’t “refuting” the scripture; he’s both digging deeper and also applying it. Rules aren’t for their own sake. (“The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath” [Mk. 2.27]). They’re for the sake of love. So he asks in Mk. 3.4, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life or to kill?” Everything is for the sake of love. Everything.
     In our joy over the woman’s healing it’s easy to overlook the significance of the ruler’s objection. This story encourages the bent-over woman in us and among us; it also convicts the disapproving ruler in us. How is the ruler of the synagogue bent over, bound by Satan? Where is he in me? In what ways to I resent or impede the healing of others? How do I feel about the liberation of people I look down on? When in my mind do religious, political or cultural traditions or values outweigh other people’s need for wholeness or freedom? Who are the people I’m happy to keep suppressed because I don’t want to have to face them eye to eye?

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Holy Mystery, we are your children.
All: We turn to you in wonder and in need.
Loving Christ, you lay your hands on our wounds.
We come bent over, and rise in praise.
Holy Spirit, you give us power to heal.
Touch us; change us; send us out as new people.

2.
Leader: God of life, our breath is your praise.
All: God of love, our joy is your name, and we honor you.
Brother Christ, our healing is your passion.
Virtuoso of love, our wholeness is your doing, and we thank you.
Holy Spirit, you breathe in us, and give us beauty.
Spirit of Love, our life is your glory and we worship you. Alleluia!

3.
Leader: Creator God, light of the sun and summer’s embrace,
warmth of our lives and beauty of each day:
All: We praise you! We stand in awe.
We open our hearts like a morning meadow to your light.
Risen Christ, brother and teacher, prince of healing and presence of God:
We greet you. We bow in humble thanksgiving.
We open our minds to your wisdom like a river drinking from a spring.
Holy Spirit, power of love and light of grace within and among us:
We welcome you. We open our bodies to you like breath, like food.
Enter us, and re-create us in your grace.
Alleluia! Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

4.
Leader: Creator God, we praise you.
All: Risen Christ, we greet you!We were been bent over, but you raised us up.
We were wounded, but you healed us.
We were oppressed, but you set us free.
Alleluia! Come again, Jesus! Heal us, and set us free!
Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
Gracious God, Jesus healed the bent over woman. Speak your Word and heal what is bent in us. Lay your hand on us and grant us your grace and mercy. By your Spirit may we rise in gratitude and praise you with lives of love and service. Amen.

2.
God of healing, there is much in us that is bent down, that is distorted, that is not free. Reach out and touch us with your Word: heal us, and make us new by your grace. Speak to us as we hear your scripture, as we reflect, and as we re-direct our lives, in the spirit of Christ. Amen.

3.
God of gentle mercy, we worship you not because you lord it over us, but because you raise us up. We come to you bowed down with cares and fears, with wounds and needs, and with hunger for your grace. Speak your Word and lay your hand upon us, so that we may be made whole again. We pray in the name of Jesus, your healer and your Presence. Amen.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

Gentle God,
our souls are bent over.
Lay your hand on us,
set us free,
and give us power to stand
in your light.

Prayer of Confession

1.
Pastor: The grace of God is with you.
Congregation: And also with you.
Trusting in God’s tender mercy, we open ourselves in honesty to God.
God of love, help us to see ourselves with the eyes of love,
to see what is in us that is loving,
and what is not loving.
God, we recall when we have received your gift of healing, and we give thanks.
[silent prayer…]
We recall when we have resisted your healing for ourselves or others, and we seek your grace. [silent prayer…]
We call to mind those places where we still need healing, and where we may be called to be a healing presence for others, and we open our hearts to your Spirit. [silent prayer…]
God of mercy, in Christ you have touched us, healed us, and set us free.
Touch us, make us whole, and perfect your love in us,
that we may be wounded healers in this broken world. Amen.
[Silent prayer… The Word of Grace]

2.
Pastor: The grace of God be with you.
All: And also with you.
Trusting in God’s tender mercy, let us confess our sin to God with one another.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you,
that our hearts are bent over and we are quite unable to straighten ourselves.
Forgive our sin,
heal our hearts,
and set us free from what prevents us
from living in your perfect love,
in the Spirit of Christ.
[Silent prayer… The Word of Grace]

3.
God of grace,
we confess that we are uprooted from your love,
and that we do not know how to live.
Our spirits are bent over and unable to stand straight;
our faith is weak; our vision is dark;
our hearts are wounded; our desires are amiss.
Receive us with mercy, God;
forgive our sin, heal our hearts,
and restore in us your Spirit,
so that we may live in the present moment with joy,
walking in your ways and delighting in your will.
O God, we surrender to your perfect grace.
[Silent prayer… The Word of Grace]

4.
God, we confess we are bent over.
Our compassion is stunted, bent by forces within us and around us.
Lay your hand on us and raise us up.
Heal what is broken; set free what is repressed.
Confront the voices that tell us our healing shouldn’t be.
Disarm the voices that say others shouldn’t have what we have.
Disturb the powers that keep hearts bent down.
Confront the powers that keep people “in their place.”
Raise up your Spirit in us, that we may attain the stature of Christ,
that we may stand boldly for justice,
for healing of this bent-over world.
Lay your hand on us, Jesus, and make us whole by your grace.

Response / Creed / Affirmation

      We’ve been set free! Therefore we trust in God, Creator of all, who in the beginning set light free into the world, who rescued us from slavery and liberated us from exile, who overthrows the power of injustice and oppression, who redeems all Creation.
      We’ve been healed. Therefore we follow Jesus, child of God and brother to all, teacher and healer, who resisted the power of evil and set people free in body, mind, heart and soul, as persons and as a community. He was crucified and was raised, and in his rising defeated the oppression of death itself. We entrust ourselves to his grace and his leading, as he lays his hands upon us.
      We’ve been empowered. Therefore we live by the Holy Spirit, the presence of God in us. We live by the grace of forgiveness and the power of resurrection, as one church, the Body of Christ. We devote ourselves to the way of liberation, healing and grace, for the sake of the transformation of the world, in the name and the spirit of Christ. Amen.

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.

Loving Creator, we thank you for the gift of this world.
We thank you for the gift of Sabbath,
that we may rest and be free.
Lovely One, we praise you for the mystery of our bodies,
for their beauty and abilities, and how they hold us.
You give us one another, to bear us up when the flesh is weak.
Beautiful Savior, you heal us; you make us whole.
You condemn oppression and confront injustice;
you release us from all that binds us, and set us free.
Therefore with all Creation we sing your praise.

            [Sanctus, spoken or sung:]
        Holy, holy, holy One, God of power and might,
        heaven and earth are full of your glory.
        Hosanna in the highest.
        Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
        Hosanna in the highest.
               [or alternate version]

Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ,
who healed the sick and fed the hungry,
who lifted up those who were bent low.
He noticed the downtrodden, and reached out to the hurting.
For his opposition to the powers of oppression
he was crucified; but you raised him from the dead.
We rejoice in the wonderful things he is doing.

     (The Blessing and Covenant) *

As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.
Therefore, remembering these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Spirit on us,
that we may be for the world the Body of Christ,
healed by you grace,
and empowered to undo the yoke of slavery
and to set free all who are bowed down,
for the sake of the wholeness of the world,
to your glory.

           [Spoken or sung]
      Amen.

____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace, and use them according to your will. You have healed us, set us free, raised us up, and given us strength and stature. Send us into the world now, trusting in your grace, to heal and to set others free, for the sake of the transformation of the world, in the name and the Spirit of Christ. Amen.

Prayer after Communion

God, we thank you for this mystery in which you have given yourself to us. May we, who have been healed and set free, never oppress others, but work for the healing of the world, in the name and the Spirit of Christ. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)

Becoming Whole       (Original song)

We are a broken people becoming whole again.
We are a wounded people being healed again.
We are a hungry people being fed again.
We are a captive people walking free again.
…plus additional verses


Christ our Healer        (Tune: Ode to Joy or HOLY MANNA)

Christ, our healer, you have touched us, reaching through the dark divide,
healing broken hearts and bodies, casting death’s old shroud aside:
raised us from our bed of sorrows, put your arm around our pain,
raising us to new tomorrows, bringing us to life again.

Christ, our teacher, in our healing you have given us your gift:
grace to bless, your love revealing, pow’r to heal and hope to lift.
In your Spirit, your forgiveness, your compassion we embrace
ev’ry wounded, shamed or silenced child of God with gentle grace.

Christ, our savior, you are going on to every town and field,
on to every land and people, on until the world is healed.
Use us in the whole world’s mending, use us as your healing hands,
’till as one the world, made whole, takes up its mat with joy and stands.


God, we are broken      (Tune: Be Thou My Vision)

God, we are broken, for all flesh is weak.
Grant us the healing and peace that we seek.
For all that pains us, beyond our control,
grant us your healing, our bodies made whole.

God, we are broken; our hearts are not one.
Sometimes it seems that our souls come undone.
Bring us renewal and calm in our soul.
Grant us your healing and make our hearts whole.

God, we are broken: for families and friends
suffer when love fails and faithfulness ends.
May your forgiveness and grace play its role.
Grant us your healing; make covenants whole.

God, we are broken, for many are poor,
and we ignore those who lie by our door.
God, may your justice like great rivers roll.
Grant us your healing; make all people whole.

God, we are broken for hate and all war
wound us so we are not free anymore.
Make us one people from pole to pole.
Grant us your healing, and make the world whole.


Jesus, My Healer (Tune: Fairest Lord Jesus)

Jesus, my healer, come to me and touch me;
lay your hand upon my soul.
All of my woundedness gently embrace and bless
and, though I’m broken, make me whole.

Source of our healing, God, our Re-Creator,
your deep joy is to raise and bless.
Your faithful promises and all our trusting hope
are stronger than our dark distress.

Spirit of healing, move among your people
to bear the blessing that flows from you:
with tender love to bless the world’s brokenness
and share the grace that made us new.


Prayer Song (Original song)

God, you hold us in you care
as we turn to you in prayer.
You hear our yearning by your grace;
we return your warm embrace.
We await your revealing,
your love and your healing.
All things shall be whole again. Amen. Amen.

God, you hold them in your care
whom we name now in our prayer.
Use the blessing of our soul
by your grace to make them whole.
We await your revealing,
your love and your healing.
All things shall be whole again. Amen. Amen.

God, we hold you in our care;
We receive you now in prayer.
Let us listen; let us tend.
Rest here, welcome, holy friend.
We await your revealing,
your love and your healing.
All things shall be whole again. Amen. Amen.

Amen, amen, amen.


Song of Healing – (Tune: Finlandia)

O God of love, O God of grace unending,
come heal your people, body, mind and soul:
those who know grief, whom sorrow is befriending,
the sick and struggling, who know sorrow’s role.
Heal those whose backs beneath their loads are bending;
come set them free. Come heal and make them whole.

Use us, O God: complete the nations’ mending:
make us your hands; show us our healing role;
make us your eyes, your light in all defending;
let healing flow; O, let your justice roll.
Help us, O God, your Holy Spirit lending,
to heal and bless, to make the dear world whole.


With our Bodies (Tune: Finlandia)

Creating God, we praise you with our bodies,
this miracle in love you have designed,
these mysteries that see and feel and listen,
that move and breathe, and cradle heart and mind,
that, old or young, and awkward, lithe or graceful,
bind us to earth, and to all humankind.

Oh dancing God, we praise you in all movement,
in hands that heal, create things, or caress,
in wombs that birth, in feet that humbly bear us,
in throats that sing, and lips that love confess.
Oh, may our bodies praise you in their being,
with joy embrace, and touch and dance and bless.

August 17, 2025

Lectionary Texts

Isaiah 5. 1-7 — I planted a vineyard… but it yielded bad grapes. I will dismantle the vineyard.

Psalm 80 — A cry from exile: Restore us; let your face shine, that we may be saved. Why have you let your vineyard languish? Restore us.

Hebrews 11.29 – 12.2 — Faith: crossing the Red Sea, Jericho, Rahab… the (gruesome) suffering of the saints… Cheered on by a cloud of witnesses, we press on

Luke 12. 49-56 — “I came to bring fire…. Households will be divided…. Look at the signs of the times.”

Preaching Thoughts

Isaiah
      The “chosen people” are not chosen to be God’s favorites: they’re chosen to do a task, which is the work of justice. When we fail that task we betray our chosenness.

Hebrews
      The list of heroes and martyrs could include people in our own centuries who have suffered for the sake of justice and healing. Like those in the text, none of them saw the final fruits of their labor, for the struggle for justice continues—and will long after we are gone. “So great a cloud of witnesses” is a fine reassurance, often cited at funerals, but in this context it’s not about people welcoming us into an eternal winner’s circle; it’s our cheering squad urging us on to do what they did: to spread love and work for healing and justice, to “run with perseverance the race that is set before us.” Jesus is not just the object of our faith; he is the pioneer of our faith, the leader we courageously follow behind, joining in his work.
       The gut-wrenching list here of various manners of death and torture might seem too much to recite in worship. But it’s important to acknowledge the extent of human capacity for cruelty, and that torture just this gruesome goes on in our world every day. Ideological suppression, genocide, abuse and assault occur more than we want to acknowledge—some of it perpetrated in our name, on our behalf. The good news, in the words of the United Methodist baptismal vows, is that we are called to “accept the power God gives you to resist evil, injustice and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves.”

Luke
     “I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! — We might be tempted, as James and John were in Luke 9.54, to think of it as the fire of judgment that just happens to favor us and target others—and that we have the power to control. Neither is true. It’s the fire of the Holy Spirit. Jesus does not have kind words for our fondness for conflict, judgment and destructive behavior, even—or especially—in the service of our perceived righteous cause. God’s fire isn’t destructive; it’s purifying, like a refiner’s fire. The fire Jesus is talking about is energy, not destruction.
     “I have a baptism with which to be baptized, and what stress I am under until it is completed!” — We get a glimpse of Jesus’ very human concern to pass on his message and his way of being while he still has time—mindful of what probably awaits him in Jerusalem.
     “Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division!” — Again our temptation may be to suppose Jesus is asking us to create division, but he’s simply lamenting divisions already among us: the truth is upsetting to people who rely on the accepted illusions of the culture, and they will resist such truth. Think of the push-back against critical care theory or the climate crisis. In speaking of family divisions Jesus echoes Micah 7.6: “The son treats the father with contempt, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; your enemies are members of your own household.”

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Eternal God, you set all Creation before us.
All: In wonder we praise you.
Loving Christ, you save us, heal us, lead us and encourage us.
In awe we thank you.
Holy Spirit, you fill us with your beauty and power.
In gratitude we worship you.
We open our hearts to you. Transform us by your grace. Amen.

2.
Leader: Holy One, you are present for us.
All: We come to be present for you.
You create us and sustain us.
Each of us is your miracle.
By your Spirit help us be true to the miracle you have created.
Shape us, guide us, and fill us with your grace. Alleluia!/

3.
Leader: Creator God, we are the vine you have planted. You created us to bear good fruit.
All: We thank you, and pray that your beauty may ripen in us.
Christ, you are the vine and we are your branches.
We praise you, and pray that we may be faithful to you, deeply rooted in your love.
Holy Spirit, you are the miracle of growth and fruitfulness within us.
Alleluia! We worship you and pray that you will fill us
and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

4.
Leader: Creator God, we praise you!
All: Risen Christ, we greet you!
Holy Spirit, we are one body by your grace.
You alone are holy, and we worship you.
Glory be to you, O God of all Creation.
Thanks be to you, O Christ, for our salvation.
Strengthen us in our faith, O God,
and stir up our love for you, our passion for life,
and our desire to be present in this moment.
Alleluia! Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

5
Leader: Creator God, you have made us in your image.
All: Our being is your praise.
Loving Christ, you have blessed us with your mercy.
Our lives are your thanks.
Holy Spirit, you fill us with your grace.
Our service is our worship. In the power of your presence,
we bear your grace into the world, in the name of Christ.

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
God of abundant grace, you spread out Creation like a feast before us. You pour out your love like rain upon us. You stir in our souls like the molten earth beneath our continents. Help us to receive. Help us to trust. Help us now to listen for your Word, and be renewed in your Spirit. Amen.

2.
true to your love, true to the glory that is our own souls. Bless us that we may not conform to this world, but be transformed by a new mindfulness, the mind of Christ. We pray in the grace of your Spirit. Amen.3.
God, we know how to pay attention to many things, to all sorts of news and noises. Help us now to pay attention to you, to pay attention to the present moment, to listen for the truth in scripture, in our worship, and in ourselves. Amen.

4.
God of Truth, you are who you are, not who we want you to be. Jesus was who he was, not who others pressured him to be. Your Spirit is in us as it is, not as others wish. You know us as who we are, not what others think of us. Speak to us now your truth; call us to your Word, that coming close to you we may come close to ourselves, and live out our true calling in this world. We pray in the name and the company and the courage of Jesus. Amen.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

Living God,
we are your vine,
planted in your love
and rooted in your grace.
We sink our roots deep in you;
may your Spirit may flow through us,
and your love bear fruit in us.

Prayer of Confession

1.
Pastor: The grace of God be with you.
All: And also with you.
Trusting in God’s tender mercy, let us confess our sin to God with one another.
God of abundant life,
we are the vineyard you have planted to bear fruit,
but we are full of weeds.
Forgive us.
Pull our weeds, strengthen your vine,
and make us more fruitful,
by your loving grace. Amen.
[Silent prayer… The Word of Grace]

2.
God of grace,
we confess that like uprooted vines
we are not grounded in your love;
that we do not know how to live.
Our faith is weak; our vision is dark;
our hearts are wounded; our desires are amiss.
Receive us with mercy, God;
forgive our sin, heal our hearts,
and restore in us your Spirit,
so that we may be rooted in your presence,
and bear the fruit of your love.
God, we surrender to your perfect grace.

Response / Creed / Affirmation

      We trust in you, God, Creator of all; you have made each living being as an utterance of your Word; you call us to be true to the Word in which you have created us.
     We follow Jesus, who fulfilled his calling as your Anointed One and embodied your love. He fed the hungry and healed the broken. He taught your truth when others did not want to hear; he loved and forgave those whom others rejected. He stood against systems of injustice, and for his resistance he was killed. But you raised him from the dead, and he reigns with you, and his mercy is our only judge.
      We live by the power of your Spirit, enabling us to forgive unendingly, to trust radically the power of resurrection, to serve the world humbly yet fiercely as the Body of Christ. We thank you and we give ourselves to you, that in all things we may be true to the Gospel, by your grace. Amen.

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.

God of the swirling stars, the flowing brook, the loving heart,
you call us to your table.
God of the awakened soul, of healed flesh and forgiven hearts,
we come with joy and thanksgiving.
You create all things in your love. You claim us in love. You set us free for love.
And so we come to this table, a table like no other,
that unites us, blesses us, and makes us new.
So we sing your praise, with joy and gratitude,
in one voice with all creation.

            [Sanctus, spoken or sung:]
        Holy, holy, holy One, God of power and might,
        heaven and earth are full of your glory.
        Hosanna in the highest.
        Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
        Hosanna in the highest.
               [or alternate version]

Blessed are all who come in your name, and blessed is Jesus, your Christ.
He loved and taught, healed and blessed all people.
True to your love and grace alone,
and not conforming to the fears and desires of those around him,
he embodied your grace, and gave himself in love.

             [The Blessing and Covenant….] *

Whenever we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection until he comes again.
Remembering these, your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving
as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Holy Spirit on us, that receiving the Body of Christ,
we may become anew the Body of Christ.
By your Spirit in us, may we be shaped by your Word,steadfast in your truth and living with your love.
Make us one with Christ, one with each other,
and one in ministry to all the world,
to your glory and your delight.

           [Spoken or sung]
      Amen.

____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

1.
Gracious God, we give you our lives, symbolized in these gifts. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. You have given us all we need to face our challenges, to live with courage and beauty, and to work for justice and healing for the sake of the wholeness of all Creation. Send us now to do your will, by the power of your Spirit, in the name of Christ. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)

Do Justice (Original song)
Do justice, love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
O help us humbly live
your justice, your love, your mercy.

Vine and Branches       (Original song)

You are the vine and we are your branches,
one with your life and rooted in your heart.
Flowing with grace, with life you fill us,
strengthened that nothing can break us apart.

You are the vine and we are your branches.
Deep in our hearts your life is flowing through.
Rooted in you, we grow and flourish.
You live within us, and we live in you.

You are the vine and we are your branches.
One common blood flows though all of our veins.
We all are part of one another.
We all are branches of one living vine.

You are the vine and we are your branches,
flowing with power greater than our own,
bearing your fruit to all Creation,
till all the seeds of your love have been sown.

Alleluia.

August 10, 2025

Lectionary Texts

Isaiah 1.1, 10-20 — God says “I don’t want your religious words and rituals. Do good, seek justice, rescue the oppressed and advocate for those who are powerless.”

Psalm 50 — God says “I don’t need your sacrifices. I want your faithfulness.”

Hebrews 11.1-3, 6-16 — Faith is the assurance of unseen things. The examples of Noah and Abraham.

Luke 12. 32-40 — It is God’s god will to give you the kingdom. Let go of your possessions. Where your treasure is, there your heart will be. Be alert servants ready for the householder’s return. The Human One is coming unexpectedly.

Preaching Thoughts

Isaiah
     Again the prophet rails not against private sins but corporate ones: systemic injustice, particularly against the poor. (Note verse 10: this is the sin of Sodom: not sexual perversity but economic perversity.) Isaiah has nothing against worship and ritual. He’s simply asking that it reflect our desire for justice, not just trying to get good with God. In Mt. 9.13 and 12.7 Jesus quotes Hosea’s version of it: “I desire mercy, not sacrifices.” He says the same in Mk. 12.33 as well.

Hebrews
      “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” — For Christians hope isn’t about the future; it’s not just wishful thinking. It’s trust in what’s already here, but unseen. We trust God not because we think God will act but because we know God is acting. Hope is trusting in that unseen grace; faith is reaching out to connect with it even when we can’t see what’s next.

Luke
     “Do not worry…” — We often say “There’s nothing to eat,” or “I don’t have a thing to wear” when that’s not really true. Most of us are nowhere near the abject poverty we claim to be afraid of. No doubt you’ve heard people complain that tithing would make them so poor they’d be be a burden—when in fact they’d only be 10% closer to the way many other people live quite comfortably. If we’re worried, it’s probably a sign we’re addicted. If we’re seeking God’s love and justice, what we need will be provided.
     Most of us are addicted to money. We think we need it to be happy, and we can’t let go of it. We’re exactly like drunks who say “Oh, I could give up drinking any time, I just haven’t yet…” But until we quit, we’re hooked. The only way to sober up in our addiction to money is to quit: give it away. “Sell your possessions and give generously.” Until then we’re just whining about something we haven’t even lost. People resent preachers “asking for money,” but in fact the preacher is showing you how to get free.
     Jesus is not only talking about letting go of our materialism and our addiction to comfort. He’s also getting at how we place all sorts of other values ahead of love. Whatever we cling to—reputation, familiarity, entitlement—is our “drug of choice,” and we need to let go of it.
     Churches worry about what to eat and wear—that is, budgets and buildings—but not about their mission and ministry. “Seek the kingdom,” Jesus says. That’s why it’s not the change of subject it seems to be when Jesus talks about the coming of the householder and the unexpected thief. We need to be ready to serve, and put our possessions at God’s disposal, at a moment’s notice. Otherwise the thief of our selfishness will sneak in and commandeer our stuff. Whether a church or an individual, we need to ask always: Am I putting my treasure to God’s use, or clinging to it?
     “It is your Abba God’s good pleasure to give you the whole empire.”— We whine about the little things we want, but God has given us everything. Wow. Beyond all our talk about “seeking” the Realm of God, it’s actually right here in our laps. It’s given, in both senses of the word. If we seek to create a community of love, healing, reconciliation and justice, we will have what we need. External conditions will remain external.
     “The Kingdom.” The Realm of God has three dimensions: 1. The absolute sovereignty of God, the reliable mystery that Love, our Abba-Amma God, is the Creator, center, power and law of life and the universe. We may ignore it but we can’t escape it. To “receive the Realm of God” is to awaken to this blessed reality. 2. A field of love, like a magnetic or electrical field. When we live in harmony with it we “have life, and have it abundantly.” In disharmony, we find ourselves in a “outer darkness.” 3. God’s hope for the world. God is still creating a world of justice and wholeness, attested to by Jesus and the prophets, but not yet fulfilled. It is still “coming.” We don’t have the power to force or prevent it, only the choice to live in harmony with it or out of tune with God’s delight. For God to “give us the Realm” doesn’t mean we have ownership or control, but we have access and belonging.
     “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” — Notice it’s not the other way around. Don’t wait till you feel like being generous. You may never. Sometimes we have to move our treasure—to give it away—to awaken our hearts to what we really care about.

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Creator God, we praise you!
All: Risen Christ, we greet you!
Holy Spirit, we are one body by your grace.
You alone are holy, and we worship you.
Glory be to you, O God of all Creation.
Thanks be to you, O Christ, for our salvation.
God of grace and abundance,
you give us all things, even your whole Realm.
We eat from your hands; we rest in your lap.
Deepen our gratitude, trust and compassion.
Alleluia! Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

2.
Leader: Eternal God, provider of every good thing, we praise you.
All: We are in awe; this is our worship.
Loving Christ, your grace is overflowing.
We are grateful; this is our worship.
Holy Spirit, you empower us to do justice and join the work of love.
We are ready; this is our worship.
It is your good pleasure to give us the whole Realm.
How can we but serve you, in joy and love?

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
God of abundant grace, you spread out Creation like a feast before us. You pour out your love like rain upon us. You stir in our souls like the molten earth beneath our continents. Help us to receive. Help us to trust. Help us now to listen for your Word, and be renewed in your Spirit. Amen.

2.
Gracious God, it is your pleasure to give us your Spirit, to give us your grace, to give us your whole Realm. Open our hearts so that we may always be ready to receive and to share your blessings. We pray in the name of Jesus, fountain of your grace. Amen.

3.
God of love and justice, we are not here to impress you with a good worship service. We are not here for our own sake. We are here to hear your Word, to be set to work doing justice, caring for our neighbors, and serving others. Shape our lives according to your Word, guide us by your Spirit, and send us forth in the name and the company of Christ, for the sake of the mending of the world. Amen.

Listening prayer

1.
Holy Mystery of Love,
you are our treasure;
our heart is with you.
You offer us the whole world of your grace.
By your Spirit may we receive.

2.
God of love,
we are your willing helpers,
ready to be set to service.
Come to us,
speak to us,
and put us to work
in the Realm of your Love.

Prayer of Confession

Pastor: The grace of God is with you.
Congregation: And also with you.
Trusting in God’s tender mercy, we open ourselves in honesty to God.
God of love, help us to see ourselves with the eyes of love,
to see what is in us that is loving,
and what is not loving
God, we recall when we have been in harmony with you, or with life, and we give thanks. [Silent prayer…]
We recall when we have been out of harmony, and we seek your grace. [Silent prayer…]
God of mercy, in Christ you have shown us your grace.
Forgive us, heal us, and perfect your love in us.
[Silent prayer…]
Dearly Beloved, by the grace we know in Christ,
I proclaim that all your sins are entirely forgiven,
and you are set free to live by the grace of the Holy Spirit
now and to eternal life. Amen.

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.

Abba God, it is your good pleasure to give us your whole Empire.
All of Creation you give to us, and all of your grace that surrounds us.
You seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, and care for the widow.
You ask us to do the same.
Consider the ravens: who neither sow nor reap;
they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet you feed them.
Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin;
yet, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.
You shower us with your grace and nourish us with your love.
Therefore with all Creation we sing your praise.

            [Sanctus, spoken or sung:]
        Holy, holy, holy One, God of power and might,
        heaven and earth are full of your glory.
        Hosanna in the highest.
        Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
        Hosanna in the highest.
               [or alternate version]

Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ,
who gave us your riches and shared with us us your abundance.
He offered us unfailing treasure in heaven,
where no thief comes near and no moth destroys
He fed the hungry, healed the sick, and included the rejected.
He freed us from worry and taught us to trust your grace.
He stood against the powers of Empire,
promising instead your Empire of Grace.
For his resistance he was crucified, but you raised him from death.

     (The Blessing and Covenant) *

As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.
Therefore, remembering these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Spirit on us, that we may be for the world the Body of Christ,
dressed for action, with lamps that are lit.
By the strength of these gifts empower us to do your will,
to seek justice, rescue the oppressed,
defend the orphan, and care for the widow,
for the sake of the healing of the world,
to your glory, in the name of Christ.

           [Spoken or sung]
      Amen.

____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

Gracious God, we give you our lives, symbolized in these gifts. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. You have given us all we need to face our challenges, to live with courage and beauty, and to work for justice and healing for the sake of the wholeness of all Creation. Send us now to do your will, by the power of your Spirit, in the name of Christ. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)

All of the Gifts I Have (Tune: Fairest Lord Jesus)

All of the gifts I have, all that is within me,
you give to me, O God, with care;
all of my prayers and skills, passions and energies
you grant to me to freely share.

Here are my hopes and dreams, attitudes and deepest loves,
all of the treasure to which I cling.
I will not hold them in, stilling my ardent song,
but serving you I’ll freely sing.

In all I keep or give, may I do my very best
in everything I say and do,
in harmony with you, only to love and bless,
with joy, to serve and honor you.


Communion Song (Tune: Amazing Grace)

Dear Jesus, when we break our bread with those who are in need,
we then by grace commune with God, and it is you we feed.

When we sit down and eat with those who hunger and who thirst,
we know that we are also poor, and you have fed us first.

So call us to your table, Love, your grateful children, call:
where we receive your grace, unearned, and turn to share with all.

Do Justice (Original song)

Do justice, love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
O, help us humbly live your justice,
your love, your mercy.


Giving Heart (Tune: O WALY WALY, or The Water is Wide- Gift of Love)

O God of grace, you set us free
and feed us all abundantly,
so help me trust the gifts you give,
with giving heart and hands to live.

Come, Spirit, come, and set me free
from all I cling to fearfully.
Come heal my heart, my fears relieve,
so I may give as I receive.

Your Bread of Life transforms us, Lord,
so we become your living Word.
Our lives no more are ours to hold,
but yours to share with all the world.


Set Me Free (To Love) (Original song)

From all that binds me, Love, set me free.
From all that binds me, Love, set me free.
Set me free, Love, set me free.
Oh Love, set me free for love.

From what I fear, O Love set me free….
From what I cling to, Love, set me free…
To live in perfect love, set me free….

August 3, 2025

Lectionary Texts

Hosea 11.1-11 — When Israel was a child I loved him, but my people are bent on turning away from me. …Yet.. how can I give you up? I will not execute my anger. I am God, and not human.

Psalm 107 — A series of vignettes of God’s saving grace. Some wandered hungering in deserts; God feeds the hungry (vv. 4-9). Some sat in darkness; God shatters the doors (10-16). Some were sick; God healed them (17-22). Some sailed in ships; God brought them to safety (23-30). God raises up the needy.

Colossians 3.1-11 — You have been raised with Christ. Seek the things that are above. You have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. Put to death selfish passions. You are clothed with a new self.

Luke 12.13-21 —Be on your guard against greed. The parable of a rich man would build bigger barns—but dies instead.

Preaching Thoughts

Hosea
       This scene is a great rejoinder to the idea of hell. Sure, God is upset with us, but she will never reject her children. She loves us, and nothing is stronger than that. We readily anthropomorphize God, making God into a really big human being, with human emotions. But— “I am God and not human.” Even God’s wrath is loving, and not just “tough love,” but deeply kind and desiring of connection. God’s love is not self-serving, but actually love—concern for our sake. God always draws us us closer, and never pushes us away.
       It’s also one of those places where scripture offers us a feminine image of God. It doesn’t actually indicate a gender, but it sure sounds like what a mom does, doesn’t it? Go with it.
      If God is our parent we are all one family. We are all equally loved, equally belonging. Our nasty little sibling rivalries are pointless— all the ways we separate ourselves, create distinctions, privilege and exclusion, insiders and outsiders, saved and unsaved. God is loving, and angry, but still loving to all of us.

Colossians
     You have been raised with Christ; seek the things that are above. — God rescues us from the fear-and-anxiety world we live in, a deadly world of having to be good enough and failing and pretending we’re good enough anyway. God raises us with Christ: lifts us out of that death-world and into a new reality, a world in which we are loved and free. Having been delivered into a new world we’re invited to exercise a new kind of consciousness. To “set your mind on things above” doesn’t just mean to daydream about heaven. It means to focus on the love of God and not the things of the world. It means to practice a God-oriented consciousness: accepting, free of dualistic judgment, open to paradox, mindful of grace in everything, avoiding illusions that reinforce our biases but seeking the truth, and rooted in love. We see things as Christ sees them. When we focus our mindfulness on God, and devote ourselves singularly to the work of being vessels of God’s grace, everything else falls into place; priorities align, and we are free from the burdensome distractions of our fears and desires.
     You have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. — Meditate on that for half an hour. Or a lifetime. Once you thought of yourself as an isolated individual, but now you know you’re part of Christ. Your former self, your old way of life, taken. Your new life hidden. You don’t have to explain it or justify it. People won’t get it anyway. You can’t see it. It’s there, shining, but hidden. Don’t look for it; just be it. You are with Christ. In good company, in in safe hands. You are in God. You don’t have to look for God; you won’t see God anyway. You are inside God. Such a vision of God’s intimate love, enveloping us, transforming us, bearing us, birthing us…It’s like being in the womb of God with Jesus.
     When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory. — Christ is not just a model for your life; Christ is your life. Christ is living in you, through you. As ordinary and imperfect as your life is, it shines with God’s glory, since God is in it. It’s not arrogant to see the glory of God in you. It’s in everybody. Part of what it means to “set your mind on things above,” to live with a Christ consciousness, is to see this.
     Put to death whatever in you is earthly. — Don’t get hung up on sex. “Passion and evil desire” and even “fornication” isn’t just about sex. It’s about wanting stuff for ourselves that isn’t ours, or that hurts other people. Sill, anger, slander, malice and abusive language mean what they say. Do not lie, because lying comes from fear, and we’ve been set free from fear. (Imagine if our politicians were all actually Christian!)
     You have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. — Faith is not just about being—being saved, being a Christian. It’s about becoming. God is continually transforming us. “Renewed” doesn’t mean restored to a former state. It means being made new.
      There is no longer Greek and Jew…—Certainly there are differences, but what Paul is pointing to is hierarchies and divisions of privilege and exclusion. God loves everybody exactly the same. All of us, with all our differences, are equally part of Christ. Being in Christ asks us to give up our notions of who’s more or less deserving.

Luke
       In the Gospel of Thomas this parable ends (like, often, death itself) more abruptly. After the rich man’s speech to himself, it says, “These were the things he was thinking in his heart—but that very night he died.” Boom.
       All that stuff you obsess about, all the Things you gather, hoard, protect, cherish— really, do they matter? What are you actually grasping at? Security? Power? Esteem? Protection from want? Everything with which you fill your barns or your hands or your mind or your time, every bit keeps you from filling your life with love, with generosity, with God.
       If you know you are about to die soon, what do you most care about? Well then that’s what you actually care about. Why not care about that right now? What are the worldly things—fears, desires and attachments— that keep us from loving perfectly?

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Creating God, you breathed life into us, and made us yours.
All: Our breath is yours.
Loving Christ, you heal us, guide us, and give yourself to us.
Our blood is yours.
Holy Spirit, you pulse through us with the energy of your love.
The fire in our eyes is yours.
We worship you with our silence and our voices, our presence and our lives.

2.
Leader: Generous God, you give us abundant life.
All: We thank you. We praise you.
Gentle Christ, you heal us in mercy and grace.
We love you. We serve you.
Holy Spirit, you breathe your song of beauty in us.
We open ourselves to you. We worship you. We cry, Alleluia!

3.
Leader: Loving God, you have raised us with Christ.
All:We have died, and our life is hidden with Christ in you.
Give us minds shaped by your grace.
Clothe us in the new life.
Renew your image in us.
Spirit of love, transform us by your grace. Amen.

4. [Hosea]
Leader: Mothering God, you birthed us in love.
All: You called us by name.
You lifted us to your cheek.
You bent down to us and fed us.
You taught us to walk.
You led us with love.
And yet we run from you.
Still, you reach out to us in love.
Your compassion grows warm and tender.
By your grace, we turn back to you.
You return us to our home.
We worship you in humility and gratitude.
Hold us in your loving arms.

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
God of love, in this complicated life we cling to many things. Release our grip on all that Stuff. Give us grace to let go, to be present here with you, to listen for your Word, and to receive your grace. We pray in the name and the company of Jesus. Amen.

2.
Extravagant God, you have been rich toward us with many gifts. Of all the things you have abundantly provided for us, we become attached to many things. Help us to let go of them all and cling only to your love and grace. We seek you in your Word, and we seek our own souls in your love. Open our hearts and help us be present for you, who are infinitely present for us. Amen.

3.
Gracious God, we thank you for this time with you. Help us to let go of our attachments to what we think we want, long enough to listen to you. Help us to set our minds on your grace. Prepare us to be changed, and to listen to you, so that we may trust and follow and serve. Amen.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

1.
God of love,
we have died, and our life is hidden
with Christ in you.
We rest in that mystery,
and open ourselves to your loving presence.

2.
God of grace,
all that we cling to
we now let go.
In poverty of spirit,
we open the hands of our hearts
to you and your Word of love.

Prayer of Confession

1. (Col. 3)
Pastor: God of grace, you have raised us to new life.
We call to mind those times we have clothed ourselves in the new self,
and we give thanks.
[Silent reflection…]
We call to mind those times when we have fallen into the old life,
and we seek your grace.
Heal us, God, forgive us, and continue to renew us in the image of our Creator.
[Silent reflection…]
Dearly beloved, by the grace we know in Christ,
I proclaim to you that your sins are forgiven.
You have died, and your life is hidden in Christ.
When Christ, who is your life, is revealed,
then you also will be revealed with him in glory. Amen.

2. (Luke)
Pastor: God of grace, you have given us all good things.
We call to mind those times we have let go of the goods and values of this world
and clung to your love alone.
We remember and give thanks.
[Silent reflection…]
We call to mind those times we have clung to the goods and values of this world
as if they were ours, as if they were us.
We confess, and we ask your forgiveness.
[Silent reflection]
Dearly beloved, by the love we know in Christ,
I proclaim to you that your sins are forgiven;
by God’s grace you are free to live by the Spirit alone,
now and to eternal life. Amen.

Readings

Colossians 3.1-11, my paraphrase

Since you have been raised into new life with Christ, let your consciousness be shaped by that life, intimately close to Christ, close to God. Set your minds at a higher level, on essential things, not on meaningless distractions. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ— who is your life— is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Christ in glory.

Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is self-centered: grasping for what is not yours, betraying your true nature, being controlled by selfish passions and desires and greed (after all, that is the true nature of idolatry). God’s fierce desire for our transformation burns in us when we live by these energies. These are ways we all once followed, when we were living that life.

But now you must get rid of all such things—anger, wrath, malice, slander, and disrespect. Be truthful with one another, seeing that you have stripped off your old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with a new self, which has a whole new frame of mind, reflecting the image of its creator. In this renewal there is no longer insider and outsider, religious and non-religious, native and immigrant, superior and inferior; but Christ is all and in all!

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.

We thank you, God, for you create us in your image.
You claim us, and you are faithful to us.
You are abundantly generous to us.
You have raised us up to new life in Christ.
You walk with us toward a new world of mercy and justice.
You set us free from all that oppresses,
and call us to end all oppressing.
You offer us true abundance of life—
not possessions, but love that cannot be taken from us. We thank you and with all Creation we sing your praise.

            [Sanctus, spoken or sung:]
        Holy, holy, holy One, God of power and might,
        heaven and earth are full of your glory.
        Hosanna in the highest.
        Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
        Hosanna in the highest.
               [or alternate version]

Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ.
He taught and healed; he fed the hungry and restored the outcast.
He showed us the wonders of your grace,
so, forsaking all others, we might give ourselves to you.
He gave himself completely, dying for his stand for mercy and justice.
But you raised him from the dead, and still he calls us to life.

     (The Blessing and Covenant) *

As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.
Therefore, remembering these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Spirit on us, that we may be for the world
the Body of Christ, clothed in the new life, vessels of your love,
generous with our lives and rich toward you,
for the sake of the wholeness of the world,
in the name and the Spirit of Christ.

           [Spoken or sung]
      Amen.
____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. You give us our lives as your gift to us. We give them to the world as our gift to you, in the name and Spirit of Christ. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)

Always New    (Tune: Gift of Love (“Water Is Wide”) or Tallis’ Canon)

O God, you make me always new.
Each breath I breathe is life from you,
a gift of love that sets me free.
Beloved, breathe new life in me.

O Christ, you call me to new birth
like God’s creation of the earth,
to leave the things I’m fastened on
and walk into the rising dawn.

O loving Spirit, live in me.
Forgive my sin and set me free.
Give me new birth, life from above,
that I may live in your deep love.

Children of the Heavenly Mother        (Tune: Children of the Heavenly Father)

Children of the Heavenly Mother,
gather gladly with each other,
for you call us to your table
bringing gifts as we are able.

You have held us and caressed us,
washed and taught us, healed and blessed us;
now you cherish and adore us
and you set our lives before us.*

You have birthed us, and have freed us;
with your body now you feed us.
In this grace, O loving mother,
we are one with one another.

So we praise you, heavenly Mother,
Holy Spirit, Christ our brother,
All Creation sings together
honor, thanks and praise for ever.

* With communion: “and you set this table for us.”

O Faithful God (Tune: Finlandia)

O faithful God, whose steadfast love is sure,
O Loving Father, Mother kind and strong:
your Covenant forever will endure;
you bind us to your heart our whole life long.
No matter how rebellious is your child,
in you we are brought home and reconciled

You hold us, God, in kinship with each other.
We have been loved and held when we would run.
We all are siblings, all born of one Mother;
though we would flee, you join us all as one.
Our deepest wounds come from our deepest love,
and so our highest hope for life above.

So teach us God, to bravely love each other,
for all belong within your house of grace,
to give our enemy, who is our brother,
our steadfast mercy, and a wide embrace;
for in our love, though we be right or wrong,
we know the grace to which we all belong.

July 20, 2025

Lectionary Texts

Amos 8.1-12 — A basket of fruit, which will soon rot.

Psalm 52 — Critique of those who seek refuge in wealth. “I am a green tree,” a living creature, receiving life from God and bearing fruit in God’s spirit.
—or—
Psalm 82 — A cry for God to condemn the wicked and bring justice to the world.

Colossians 1.15-28 —The eternal cosmic Christ, in whom all things are reconciled to God.

Luke 10.38-42 — Martha and Mary.

Preaching Thoughts

Amos
      Prophets do not foresee the future; they see God’s will—and, seeing the current situation, they can tell where it’s going. The point, of course, is not whether the prophet is right about the future, but about the present moment. As is almost always the case with the prophets, Amos makes it clear that the issue at hand is not individual piety but social justice, systemic evil: “you trample on the needy, and bring to ruin the poor of the land” (8.4). Prophetic judgment is seldom aimed at individuals, but at nations and systems, and people who collude with them, especially people in power. The weight of Amos’ judgment (and the proper focus of our attention) is not the terror of the doom he sees coming in the future, but the tragedy of the injustice we are perpetrating right now.

Colossians
         The idea of the Holy Trinity had’t been invented when Paul wrote, but this material sure sets the stage. Paul sees a cosmic Christ, eternal and divine: “the image of the invisible God… before all things… in whom the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.” Christ is divine presence and energy, with, equal to, and part of God. (Sounds like the Second Person of the Trinity, huh?) Yet that infinite life takes on a finite, mortal form in Jesus. It’s as if Jesus the human person plays the role of Christ the divine person—like Julie Andrews plays Mary Poppins so definitively that you can’t imagine Mary Poppins any other way than as played by Julie Andrews—so we can’t imagine Christ except as played by Jesus. Yet Paul says that we, too play that same role: Christ is the head of the Body, the church—that’s us. We participate in Jesus’ embodiment of the divine role of Christ.
         Christ is God’s presence with us, and the nature of that presence is healing and reconciling: “all things” (not just Christians) are reconciled to God through Christ. Our “estrangement and hostility” both toward God and toward each other is abolished: we are one in Christ. Our temptation is to revolt against Christ’s reconciliation by creating divisions among us, but those divisions are an illusion. We are one whether we like it or not.
        The “mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages” is Christ in you. Sit with that. Not just Christ reigning over you, but Christ living in you-all. It’s plural. Christ is in us, not just in your own private little Jesus, but our living-together, our love for each other, our reconciliation and unity.

Luke
       This story is a parable. It’s not a fact, and not a fable. Like all of Jesus’ parables, we dumb it down when we find “the moral.” It’s a gem with many facets, many dimensions. Among them:
—It’s a story about the importance of actually listening to Jesus, not just saying we believe in him.
—It’s about the balanced interdependence of action and contemplation. We’re not “supposed” to be Mary instead of Martha; we each have, and need, both of them in our hearts.
—It recognizes different ways of honoring Jesus. All forms of service are sufficient.
—It’s about Jesus affirming Mary’s violation of accepted gender boundaries by “siting at his feet listening” that is, studying as a student learning from a rabbi—a calling expected not of females but of males in that society (…and still sometimes ours….).
—It affirms your devotion to Jesus will “not be taken from you” by tasks of daily living.
—It’s an invitation to mindfulness, to not be “worried and distracted by many things,” but focused on “one thing.”
—It’s about Jesus avoiding being triangulated between the sisters.
—It’s about how he honors Mary’s calling and refuses to tell her what to do.
—As a story about hospitality it resonates with the sense in the Colossians passage that God offers us cosmic hospitality, welcoming us and inviting us to be at home in God’s divine Being.
       We tend to pick on Martha is if she’s too selfish or anxious, but remember she’s the one who welcomed Jesus into her home. She shows hospitality. Maybe she’s inviting Mary to show some, too. Meanwhile Mary shows a different kind of hospitality: to listen, to receive someone. Sometimes the best hospitality we can show is not to “entertain,” but to listen.
        Bethany, the home of Mary and Martha, was Jesus’ safe place, a place of rest and renewal. He went there often. It was his home away from home, especially in his last days in Jerusalem. This story is a glimpse into his personal life: Jesus at ease among friends.
       By the way there’s no Lazarus here. But Martha is till real. Recent scholarship has suggested that a character named Martha in John’s story of the raising of Lazarus was possibly borrowed from this story and inserted in John: in John’s original text there was no Martha. She was added in the second century by male scribes, to diminish Mary Magdalene’s significance, in deference to Peter. But. That’s about John. It doesn’t take away from Martha in Luke’s gospel. She’s still legit. But still, there’s no Lazarus in Luke.

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Creator God, you welcome us into your home.
All: You receive us and serve us, and we receive your grace.
You sit with us and share quiet moments.
You speak your Word to us, and we are changed.
You feed us with the energy of your love, and give us courage.
So we sit with you; we listen to you;
and, changed, we go forth with your good news into this world.

2.
Leader: Jesus, our teacher, we come to sit at your feet.
All: We are listening, open to your wisdom and your truth.
Jesus, our healer, we want to be near you.
We are still, satisfied to simply be, and to be near you.
Jesus, our companion, grant us your Spirit.
May your peace go with us always. Amen.

3.
Leader: Jesus, our savior, you have come to us.
All: We who are distracted by many things
let go of our tasks and come to sit at your feet.
Jesus, our teacher, you impart to us a wisdom different from what the world preaches.
We open our hearts to your grace. Bless us, and change us.
Jesus, our healer, you offer us yourself.
We come to be with you, to be present for you,
so that in all we do we may be close to you.
Our hearts cry out to you.
Jesus, I love you. Come be with me.

4.
Leader: Creator God, we praise you!
All: We thank you, and we worship you.
We gather to listen to your Word,
to meditate upon your Word,
to be shaped by your Word.
Show us your ways, O God, and teach us your paths
The unfolding of your Word gives light
Alleluia! Your word is a light unto our feet
and a lamp unto our path. Alleluia!

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
From the haste and pressure of the world we come into your gentle silence.
From the loneliness of our separate cars and houses we come into your presence.
From the noise and shouting of the world we come to listen to your voice.
Speak to us, God. Beloved, sit with us and change our hearts. Amen.

2.
God of truth and wisdom, God of love and presence; we are worried and distracted by many things, but one thing is needed. Hold us in your light and speak to us, that we may hear and be filled with your love. Amen.

3.
God of love, people of power and wealth trust in their riches. But our confidence is in you. Give to us now the power of your Word and the riches of your grace. We open our hearts to you. Speak your living Word to us, for we are listening. Amen.

4.
Blessed God, when Jesus visited Martha and her sister, Mary sat at Jesus’ feet and listened to what he was saying. Bless us that we may chose the better part and sit with you to listen to what you are saying to us today in our worship. Help us always to treasure your companionship and live with listening hearts. Amen.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

1.
Loving One,
I let go of my distractions,
my many things,
even my beliefs,
even my prayers,
and sit at your feet
only to be with you,
and to listen.

2.
God, I am concerned with many things,
but there is only One Thing,
and it is you.
Be my One Thing now
and always.
May I always be at your feet,
listening.

Prayer of Confession

God of love,
sometimes we have served you
in ways that are true to our gifts and callings;
and sometimes we have submitted
to other people’s expectations of us.
Help us be true to who you create us to be,
to love in the ways you give us,
to befriend you in peace and in harmony with your delight.

Readings

Psalm 52 (My version)

Leader: Why do you boast, O powerful ones,
       of mischief done against the powerless?
All: Your plots bring destruction;
       your words are sharp razors,
       and you work treachery.
Your desires are evil and not good;
       your words are lies and not truth.
But God will break you down forever
       and uproot you from the land of the living.
The righteous will see, and fear,
       and will laugh at the evildoer, saying,
“See the one who would not take refuge in God,
       but trusted in abundant riches,
       and sought refuge in wealth!”
But I am like a green olive tree
      in the house of God.
I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.
       I will thank you forever,
       because of what you have done.
In the presence of the faithful
       I will proclaim your name, for it is good.

Response / Creed / Affirmation

1. [May also be used as the New Testament reading]
         Colossians 1.15-23, 26

Leader: Christ is the visible appearance of the invisible God,
       the beloved older sibling of all creation.
All: All things in heaven and on earth were created in Christ,
       everything visible and invisible,
all cosmic and human powers and dominions—
       everything was created through Christ and for Christ. Christ, God’s presence, came before anything,
       and in Christ everything holds together.
Christ is the head and the church is the body.
Christ is the Source of life, and has turned even death into a birth:
       so Christ is first in every way.
In Christ God lives completely.
Through Christ God reconciles us to God—
       all of us, and everything on earth and in heaven:
in dying on the cross, Christ brought God and humanity together.

Once, our evil thoughts and deeds got between us and God.
But in Jesus God has occupied our earthly body and our death,
       so that now we are brought into relationship with God.
And since we are in Christ, God sees us
       as holy and irreproachable and blameless.

Stay faithful to this good news.
May we be strong and steadfast in our trust,
       and hold on to our confidence in God’s promise.
We have heard the good news,
       news that’s been proclaimed to every creature in the world.
       It’s the gospel for which we each are made a minister.
This is the mystery, hidden for ages but now revealed:
       that Christ is alive in us. Alleluia!

2.
       God, we give ourselves to you and rely upon you: Creator of all things, ruler of this world and all that is to come.
       Jesus, we love you and entrust ourselves to you: Christ, the Beloved. You are the image of the invisible God. In you all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, all powers and dominions. You are before all things, and in you all things hold together. You are the head of the body, the church. In you all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through you God was pleased to reconcile everything to God.
       Holy Spirit, we live by your power. Through you Christ is alive in us, and we enter into the life of love and beauty. In you we give ourselves to lives of justice, forgiveness and hospitality, for the sake of the healing of the world Amen.

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.

Gracious and loving God, thank you for inviting us
into your lovely house, to your beautiful table.
You provide for us abundantly, and welcome us sweetly.
You establish justice, and care for those who are oppressed.
You sit at our feet and listen lovingly to us.
You set us at peace with you, and give us harmony and belonging.
Therefore with all Creation we sing your praise with one voice.

            [Sanctus, spoken or sung:]
        Holy, holy, holy One, God of power and might,
        heaven and earth are full of your glory.
        Hosanna in the highest.
        Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
        Hosanna in the highest.
               [or alternate version]

Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ,
the visible appearance of your invisible presence.
He embodied your love,
and created a home in you for us.
Crucified and risen, he reconciled us to you.
He blessed our many ways of serving.
And he led us to the one necessary thing:
your love, flowing through us eternally.

     (The Blessing and Covenant) *

As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.
Therefore, remembering these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Spirit on us, that we may be for the world the Body of Christ.
May the fullness of your grace be in us.
May we be strong and steadfast in our trust in your promise.

           [Spoken or sung]
      Amen.
____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

Gracious God, we give you our lives, symbolized in our gifts. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. You have received us with blessing and changed our hearts with your presence. Send us now with that grace to share it with all the world, in the name and spirit of Christ. Amen.

Prayer after Communion

God, we thank you for this mystery in which you have given yourself to us. You have offered us the deepest hospitality. Send us now into the world to offer hospitality to all, in service and in friendship,in the company of Christ. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)

At Your Feet (Original song)

Jesus, at your feet I bow. I am yours completely now.
By your mercy show me how to be loving.

Jesus, Master, you who save, you have served me as a slave.
This the perfect gift you gave: to be loving.

In each hurting one I meet it is you, O Christ, I greet.
Make my faithfulness complete, to be loving.

July 13, 2025

Lectionary Texts

Amos 7.7-17 — God’s plumb line. Doom for Israel oppressing the poor.

Psalm 82 cries out for justice for the poor and oppressed.

Colossians 1. 1-14 — The gospel has been bearing fruit among you…. May you be made strong to endure… God has rescued us from the power of darkness.

Luke 10. 25-37 —The good Samaritan.

Preaching Thoughts

Amos
      There are three parts to this passage, and three dimensions of the prophetic message.
1. God won’t be bent. We’re tempted to somehow distort God’s demand for justice to fit our desires, but the plumb line will hang true.
2. Oppressive powers, and all who participate in them, will object. That’s not just the king, or those in power; there’s a part of us that doesn’t want to disturb or sacrifice our comfort, security, power and belonging to bring about justice for the poor and rejected.
3. The prophet speaks out anyway. Jesus notes that to be a prophet isn’t just to speak for God, but to speak under threat, and often to pay a price. We should not expect differently. (Those who complain about a “war on Christianity” forget that there is always a war against truth. Those who feel entitled and aggrieved probably aren’t proclaiming God’s truth, but something more selfish.)

Colossians
         If it’s true that “God has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the realm of God’s Beloved” (1.13) then that whole thing about the war between good and evil, light and darkness, is baloney. It’s over. Sure, we have to wrestle with our own shadows, our selfish fears, desires and habits—but even when we fail (and often we do), we’re already, and always, in the realm of God’s light. The anxious language of a “battle” against evil only makes us more anxious and concerned with our own strength—and therefore more susceptible to evil. Instead the invitation is to live in the light, and trust the power of the light to change the darkness. Many good Christians are “worried about going to heaven,” when the promise is that we already have “redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (1.14). The challenge is not to be good enough to deserve to get into the realm of grace but to be faithful enough to look around and appreciate it, and act like it.

Luke
        The usual sermon on this text says, “The Samaritan was a good guy. Go be like him.” yes, we should be generous and compassionate, even to strangers and foreigners. But it’s easy to overlook the fact that a Samaritan was a “bad guy,” despised by Jesus’ people. There are many ways that I, a white, male, middle class, straight Christian, can’t just go and be a Samaritan, good or otherwise. I’m too privileged. That would have been true for Jesus’ audience as well. Maybe Jesus is inviting us to both acknowledge our privilege and to find ways to be in solidarity with those who are treated as second class citizens.
         We often preach about choosing between being the priest, the Levite or the Samaritan. But we are also the man in the ditch. We easily forget how broken we are, how needy we are, how dependent on others. The parable invites us to trade our smugness for gratitude. Before we decide “who is our neighbor” (as Jesus is asked) we need to realize who has been neighbor to us (as Jesus describes): who has helped us—especially those we ignore or discount, like poor laborers, immigrants, and endangered “essential workers.” We are dependent on the very Samaritans we want to exclude. Who have been those unsung helpers and heroes in your life—especially the ones you don’t want to acknowledge?
        The parable suggests that God comes to us in ways and in people we detest. This message feels uncomfortable—but it probably should be at least as hard for us to swallow as it would have for Jesus’ hearers. Even unwelcome experiences may be “Samaritan moments” for us: times when what we want to reject actually bears God’s grace for us.

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Holy One, you provide for us in ways we never know.
All: Alleluia! We praise you!
Loving Christ, you heal us, accompany us and set us on our feet when we have fallen.
Alleluia! We thank you!
Holy Spirit, you empower us with gratitude and compassion, with humility and courage.
Alleluia! Shape us by your grace, that we may bear your love into this world.

2.
Leader: God of generosity, you provide for us abundantly.
All: We open our hearts to your presence.
Loving Christ, you grant us deep, deep mercy.
We open our hearts to your healing.
Holy Spirit, you fill us with compassion and grace.
We open our hearts to your power.
By your grace, make us grateful and merciful people. Amen.

3. (Colossians 1.9-14)
Leader: Alleluia! God has rescued us from the power of darkness
and transferred us into the Realm of the Beloved!
All: Alleluia! In Christ we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Siblings in Christ, may you be filled with the knowledge of God’s will,
in deep spiritual wisdom and understanding.
May we lead lives worthy of the Loving One, fully pleasing to God,
as we bear fruit in every good work and as we grow in the knowledge of God.
May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from God’s glorious power.
Prepare us, Beloved, to endure everything with patience,
while joyfully giving thanks to you;
for in you, with all the saints, we inherit your light. Alleluia!

4.
Leader: Holy One, giver of Life, you breathe us into being.
All: With all living things we thank you. With all beings we praise you.
Living Christ, you save and heal all people alike, without distinction.
You open your heart as a safe place for us.
With all who are grateful we honor you.
With all who long for life we turn to you for blessing.
Holy Spirit, you gather us in one body and fill our hearts with joy.
With all who follow Christ we sing your praise,
and we open our hearts to you.
Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

5.
Leader: Loving God, amidst our evil you set a plumb line of justice.
All:We praise you.
In our brokenness you heal us.
We thank you.
You enfold us in your light.
We worship you. Fill us with your love. Alleluia!

6.
Leader: Creator God, we greet you!
All: We praise you; we worship you!
You have rescued us from the power of darkness
and brought us into the Dominion of your Beloved.
Joyfully we give you thanks, and ask your blessing.
Grant your peace to all who worship you here today.
Grant your peace to all the world,
to those in need who await your rescue.
Bless your Church, that in the Spirit of Christ
we may love our neighbors and serve them with humility and compassion.
Alleluia! Empower us in our worship to do your will. Alleluia!

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
God, in a world driven by fear and greed, you set a plumb line in the midst of your people by which you determine justice and discern what is good. Speak your Word to us, that though the world resist and our hearts grow faint we may see clearly, act justly, and live faithfully by your grace. Amen.

2.
God of love, your come to us in many ways. Open our hearts to hear and receive. Open our minds to wonder and grow. Open our souls to embrace and be changed. Speak your Word to us, and make us whole. Amen.

3.
God of grace, when our souls are bruised and weary, you come to us. When we are broken and destitute, in spirit or in flesh, you come to us, heal us, and care for us. Speak your healing word to us now, that we may be made whole by your grace, and restored to our neighbor in love, in the power of your Spirit. We listen for your Word, and we await your grace. Amen.

4.
Gracious God, we pray that we may filled with the knowledge of your will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so that we may lead lives worthy of you, bearing fruit in every good work and growing closer to you. Bless us with open hearts and minds, that as the scriptures are read and your good news proclaimed we may hear with joy what you are saying to us today. Amen.

5.
God of truth, we wonder about the meaning of our lives, and wander about this earth searching. Set among us a plumb line, a direction, an anchoring place, a starting place. Speak your Word and give clarity to our lives. In Scripture, in prayer, in silence and the Word, show us your way. Show us our lives. Heavenly Lover, we open our hearts to you. Amen.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

1.
Holy Mystery,
we cannot know or control
how you come to us.
We open our hearts,
Samaritan God,
to heal us even when we don’t welcome you.

2.
God of healing,
more often than we admit,
we are the poor man in the ditch,
wounded, bereft, and in need.
You come to us in grace.
Heal us, revive us,
and enable us to love
without limitations.

Prayer of Confession

Holy Mystery,
we confess that we reject you
even though you come to heal us;
we ignore you even though you save us.
Samaritan God, forgive us,
overcome our smugness,
and restore in us
a spirit of gratitude and compassion.

Readings

1. (Colossians 1.1-14)
Leader: Since the day we heard of your love, we have not ceased praying for you,
that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will,
in deep spiritual wisdom and understanding.
All: May we lead lives worthy of Christ,
to God’s great delight, as we bear fruit in every good work
and as we grow in the knowledge of God.
May you be made strong with all the strength
that comes from God’s glorious power,
and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience,
joyfully giving thanks to the Holy One,
who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.
God has rescued us from the power of darkness
and transferred us into the Realm of the Beloved,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Amen and alleluia!

Response / Creed / Affirmation

         We give our hearts to God, Creator of all that is and all that shall be, Lover of the Universe, Womb of Grace.
         We follow Jesus, the Beloved, who embodied God’s love and mercy, who emptied himself and became one who was humble, poor and rejected. He taught and healed; he lived among the poor and lifted up the lowly. He proclaimed God’s prophetic call for justice, and opened our eyes to God’s presence in the neighbor, in the stranger, in the enemy. For his love he was crucified, and in love he was raised, and lives among us now, still among the poor and outcast.
         We live by the power of the Holy Spirit, God’s love alive in us. We serve in the power of forgiveness, the mystery of resurrection, the light of eternal life. In God’s Spirit we are one body, the church, sent in love for the healing of the world, in the name of Christ, who with the Spirit lives and reigns with God forever. Amen.

2.(Colossians 1.1-14)
Leader: Our Father, our Mother, we give thanks to you,
for you have delivered us from the power of darkness
and instilled in us the light that all your children receive.
All: Alleluia! God, we praise you, and we want to grow closer to you.
You have brought us into the Realm of your Beloved, who sets us free,
Christ, who forgives us and gives us life again.
Alleluia! Christ, we thank you.
Give us your strength, your patience and your wisdom.
You fill us with faith and hope and love that bears fruit among us.
Alleluia! Holy Spirit, we open our hearts to you,
that our hope may bear fruit, that we may discern what gives you delight,
and that we may live in harmony with you. Alleluia!

A prayer of Blessing

[Colossians 1.1-14. A baptismal blessing; may be adapted for leader and congregation, or the congregation in two groups speaking to each other, substituting “Beloved” for the name.]

Sponsor: (Name), we do not cease praying for you:
All: May you always discern God’s delight.
May the Spirit give you a loving vision of the world.
May you be in harmony with the Holy One,
your life a gift to God.
May you continually grow closer to God.
Your life be full of loving deeds.
God’s grace be strong in you.
May you be prepared to endure everything with patience.
May gratitude to God fill your heart:
for as with all her children, her holy ones,
the Loving One has claimed you
and given you her light.
She has rescued us
from the dark tombs that encase us
and brought us into the realm of her Beloved,
in whom we have life again,
and we are set free. Alleluia!

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.

We thank you, God, for your faithful love,
for you come to us in ways we seldom recognize.
You heal us, often in ways we do not welcome.
You set among us a plumb-line of justice,
that all who are oppressed be set free.
You have delivered us from the dominion of shadows,
from fear and selfishness.
You have brought us into the light
of the Realm of your Beloved,
in whom we know our forgiveness and belonging.
Therefore with one voice, together with all Creation,
we sing your praise.

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ,
who held fast your plumb-line of justice:
he fed the hungry, healed the broken,
and showed us your grace among the outcast and rejected.
He proclaimed our redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
He confronted the powers that oppress.
For his resistance he was crucified;
but you raised him from the dead,
and with him delivered us from the shadowy powers.

     (The Blessing and Covenant) *

As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.
Therefore, remembering these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Spirit on us, that we may be for the world the Body of Christ.
May we lead lives worthy of the Beloved,
fully pleasing to Christ, as we bear fruit in every good work,
growing ever nearer to you.
May we be made strong with all the strength
that comes from your glorious power,
prepared to endure everything with with patience,
joyfully giving thanks to you.

           [Spoken or sung]
      Amen.

____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

1.
Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. You have blessed us in ways we have not expected, not even seen. Now send us out as your unnoticed angels to bless others, even our enemies, in the name and Spirit of Christ, for the sake of the healing of the world. Amen.

2. (Colossians 1.1-14)
Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace, and use them according to your will. By your grace may we be filled with the knowledge of your will, in deep spiritual wisdom and understanding. May we lead lives worthy of you, fully pleasing to you, as we bear fruit in every good work and as we grow in our knowledge of you. May we be made strong with all the strength that comes from your glorious power. Prepare us, O Lord, to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to you; for in you, with all the saints, we inherit your light. Send us into the world now, not as benefactors to the poor but sisters and brothers with them, sharing your grace and love in the name and the Spirit of Christ. Amen.

3.
Gracious God, though we have turned against you, you have bent over us in tender compassion and healed us. And so, grateful for your mercy and radiant with your love, we give you our lives, symbolized in these gifts. Receive them with love, bless them with grace, and use them according to your will. Send us into the world to extend compassion to our neighbor, and even to our enemy, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, and in the name of Christ. Amen.

4.
Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace, and use them according to your will. Send us into the world to proclaim your nearness, to heal the broken and cast out evil, to stand up for justice and to share your peace with all Creation, for the sake of the transformation of the world, in the name and Spirit of Christ. Amen.

Prayer after Communion

God, we thank you for this mystery in which you have given yourself to us. You have come to us as one unknown; yet you have healed and nourished us. Send us now in your Spirit, guided by the light of your love and the plumb line of your justice, to love our neighbors, in the name of Christ. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)

Angels in Disguise (Original song)

For the angels in all disguises who have loved us in so many ways,
we have come to expect your surprises; we have come to sing your praise.
         [Refrain:] God, you have loved us more than we believed.
                          Help us to be humble; help us to receive.

We have asked for your Word’s revealing without listening to all that you say,
and the ones who would bring us your healing we have pridefully turned away.

When we dare to be unprotected from a foe of Samaritan cast
when we welcome the ones we rejected, then we meet you, God, at last.

Have we enemies? Love them dearly, for the pones we reject or despise
are the ones we will some day see clearly as your angels in disguise.


Do Justice (Original song)

Do justice, love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
O, help us humbly live your justice,
your love, your mercy.


Let Me Feel Your Wounds (Original song)

Risen Christ, let me feel your wounds
in the heart of the One whom I have crucified.
May I feel your forgiving,
and begin brand new living.
May I know your rising there.

Risen Christ, let me feel your wounds
in the hands of the lonely and despairing ones.
May I love with your caring.
May I hope with your daring.
May I know your rising there.

Risen Christ, let me feel your wounds
in the feet of the poor and homeless wandering.
May I weep with their weeping.
May I give without keeping.
May I know your rising there.

Risen Christ, let me feel your wounds
in the marks of our violence upon the world.
May I bless and heal.
May your peace be my seal.
May I know your rising there.


You are the Nerve (Tune: Finlandia)

O God, your Christ is risen in your people.
On earth Christ has no body now but ours.
We are the flesh and blood of your compassion:
moved by your Spirit, with its loving powers.
God be our heart, and we will be your Body,
serving in love in all our days and hours.

We are your feet, that go with joy to others
to share your love, the gospel we confess.
We are your eyes that see what is and may be,
that see each person’s need and loveliness.
We are your hands, that work with strength for justice,
your hands that shelter, heal and feed and bless.

Love, move in me, and guide me by your Spirit,
even when I don’t see or understand.
My life is yours, to be your living Body,
that I may love and serve at your command.
This is my life, my purpose and my power:
you are the nerve, and I your willing hand.

June 29, 2025

Lectionary Texts

2 Kings 2. 1-2, 6-14 — Elijah is taken up into heaven. Elisha follows and receives his prophetic spirit.

Psalm 77 — In the day of trouble I seek you. Has God forgotten to be gracious? You are the God who works wonders, as in the exodus.

Galatians 5.1, 13-25 — Christ has set us free. Stay free, but not for self-indulgence: through love become slaves of one another. Live by the Spirit, not the flesh. The fruit of the Spirit.

Luke 9.51-62 — A Samaritan village rejects Jesus. His disciples want to retaliate; Jesus won’t have it. Foxes have holes… No one puts a hand to the plow and looks back…

Preaching Thoughts

Elisha
       Elisha is deeply moved to follow his mentor Elijah to the end, despite being given permission to go home, and being warned that he’ll face deep loss. Poignantly he continues on with Elijah at every stage of the journey. Maybe you’ve seen people of faith who pursue their calling despite resistance, sacrifice and loss. God does that to us. What is it that calls you that strongly? Is there something you’ll stick with “through thick and thin?” How do you encounter God in that?

Galatians
        Flesh and spirit. What Paul means by contrasting “flesh” and “spirit” is not a contrast of “physical” and “spiritual.” They’re both physical. We are subject to the profoundly convincing illusion that we are separate individuals contained in our bodies. Paul calls this “living by the flesh.” It doesn’t mean there’s something evil about our bodies, or about sensual pleasure. It means we think we’re defined by and limited to our flesh. But in fact we—our “selves””—are not separate islands of being. We are part of one vast, immeasurable Being, in the one Spirit. We are all members of one living organism, seemingly separate but actually one being, like different fingers of the same hand, or cells of the same body, living in seemingly separate bodies but actually united in one Spirit. Mindful of our oneness, we live “in the spirit.” The contrast between flesh and spirit isn’t physical versus non-physical; it’s separate versus united. It’s the difference between living according to “I, me and Myself” and living as a member of the Body of Christ. Watch Paul’s vocabulary: pretty consistently by “flesh” he means self-centeredness; by “body” he means the body of Christ.
        Fruit of the Spirit. Here’s a pretty good snapshot of the christian life. What else might it mean to follow Jesus but to live with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control? Notice it’s one fruit, not a list of fruits. If you;re living by the Spirit you should experience all of these. They’re not “spiritual gifts,” which, in their various combinations, are unique to each of us. These describe the fruit we all experience from living in harmony with the Spirit. You might think of these qualities as the “vital signs” of a living faith. If you’re short on one of them, you could commit to practicing it—but it’s a symptom of living in harmony with God’s energy. Don’t try to have joy; try to live by the Spirit and you’ll receive joy. When we open ourselves to God’s love, these qualities are the natural fruit.

Luke
         Jesus is not welcomed because “he set his face toward Jerusalem.” That might be a form of regional or religious discrimination: the locals are Samaritans, who see folks from Jerusalem as categorically suspect. But it may also be because as a critic of the authoritarian powers, centered in Jerusalem, Jesus is walking toward certain death,—and nobody likes a loser. Of course the disciples want to avoid being losers, so they want to retaliate. They sound like Christians who complain about a “war on Christianity” and seem to want to call down fire on their opponents. Jesus says no. I’m sure he rebuked them partly for thinking God would want such violent behavior, and partly because Jesus is trying to teach them humility and acceptance, and to let go of their sense of superiority. And he likely also rebuked them for thinking—not only how mean, but how vain!—they they could call down fire from heaven. Before we judge them for being so arrogantly mean-spirited, we need to observe how much of our energy (fire from heaven) we spend defending ourselves and our sense of being if not superior, at least right. One thing we have to sacrifice to follow Jesus is our smugness.
         And that’s not all: you’ll surrender your sense of belonging (“nowhere to lay his head”) and be asked to tend to the work at hand. When Jesus says “Let the dead bury the dead” I don’t think he’s asking us to abandon our families. He’s inviting us to be in the present moment, not the past. To put your hand to the plow and not look back is like looking forward while you’re driving. You can’t plow straight lines if you’re not looking ahead. Again, it’s not about denying your memories, but about being in the present moment, and forging ahead even when it’s hard. (Like Elisha.)

       4^th of July. In the US there’s often an expectation that a preacher will say something patriotic the Sunday before the 4^th of July. Galatians says something about patriotism and Independence Day: our freedom is not permission to do whatever we want, but care for the community. That’s the real meaning of patriotism. Not America-first-ism, but being servants of one another—and the flip side of that is seeing to other people’s freedom, so that no one is forced into servitude. Jesus’ reaction to the disciples’ tribalism is a good corrective to the nationalism that masquerades as patriotism. Jesus resist creating any form of insider-outsider schemes. Everyone is included. Patriotism is not only loyalty to the whole nation, including those not like us, it’s also upholding a vision of a nation that’s not only there for itself but for its neighbors as well.

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Spirit of Creation, you make us in your image.
All: Spirit, bear your fruit in us.
Christ, you call us to be your messengers.
Spirit, bear your fruit in us.
Holy Spirit, breathe your grace in us, that we may shine with your light,
live with your love, and give of your gifts in us.
Spirit, bear your fruit in us.
Fill us, Holy Spirit, as we worship you. Amen.

2.
Leader: “My people, I call to you.”
All: We look to the halls of power, to the weapons of the mighty, the tools of the merchants, but we do not hear your voice.
“My people, I call to you.”
We look to the confident and the secure, but we do not see your grace.
“My people, I call to you.”
We look to the poor, and you are present. We listen to the voiceless, and you speak to us. We open our broken hearts, and you enter.
“My people, I love you, and I am with you.”
We give you thanks. We give you our lives, and we worship you. Alleluia!

3.
Leader: Creator God, we praise you!
All: Risen Christ, we greet you!
We call to mind your deeds, O God, and meditate on your ways.
Your way is holy, O God; you redeem your people with a mighty arm.
There are no distinctions or divisions;
in Christ we are all your children through faith.
Alleluia! In Christ we worship you as one.Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1. (from Psalm 77)
I will call to mind the deeds of the Holy One;
I will remember your wonders of old.
I will meditate on all your work, and ponder your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy.
I will listen with my heart, for you are a God who redeems. Amen.

2.
Gracious God, we open our hearts to you, that your Spirit may flourish and bear fruit in us. May we be a garden of love, joy, and peace. May we blossom with patience, faithfulness and self-control. May our gentleness, kindness and generosity bear fruit in the lives of those around us. Help us set aside all that hinders us from perfect love, by the grace of your Beloved, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Prayer of Confession

God of love, we long for you, yet we are distant from you;
we know some of the things that keep us from you,
and others are hidden.
Open our hearts to see ourselves clearly,
to name what turns us from you,
and to allow you to forgive us, heal us and bring us back to you.

Reading

Galatians 5.1, 13-25 (My version)
       Christ has set us truly free. Sand, firm, then, and don’t let yourself be enslaved by anything. But remember: freedom isn’t for the sake of selfishness. Freedom is the power to love each other deeply. After all, the whole law is summed up this one thing: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” If you bite and devour one another, you’ll be eaten up by your selfishness. Live by the Spirit that makes us one. Beware of the fearful desires born of thinking you are an isolated unit contained in your flesh. That way of thinking is opposed to the Spirit. The Spirit sets you free from your solitary confinement that prevents you from living fully. If you are led by the Spirit, you are free from having to be good enough.
       Now the works of our fearful, self-centered desires are obvious: using other people, clinging to possessions, making enemies, fighting over trivial things, jealousy, temper tantrums, fighting, competition, and all kinds of addictive behaviors. I’ve said before, this is not the way to experience the realm of God. But listen: when the Spirit lives in you it bears fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There’s nothing wrong with that, is there? When we live in Christ we let our self-centered desires and attachments die. We live by the Spirit and the Spirit living in us guides us.

Response / Creed / Affirmation

1. (Ephesians 4. 1-16)

      Leader: I beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called,  with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
      All: There is one body and one Spirit, just as we were called to the one hope of our calling, one Chief, one faith, one baptism, one God and Parent of all, who is above all and through all and in all.
      Each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Beloved of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.
      We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into the one who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

2. (based on Galatians 5.22-23. I encourage silence after each response…)
Leader: God, you love us deeply.
All: Give us love.
You delight in us.
Give us joy.
You are patient with us.
Give us patience.
You are kind with us.
Give us kindness.
You are generous with us.
Give us generosity.
You are faithful to us.
Give us faithfulness.
You are gentle with us.
Give us faithfulness.
You are full of grace toward us.
Give us self-control.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

Holy Mystery,
foxes have dens, birds have nests,
but the Beloved has no place to rest,
except in my heart.
I will be a nest for your Anointed One,
a resting place for the Beloved.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

1.
Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace, and use them according to your will. In the power of your Spirit give us grace to follow Christ, to go with your Beloved to the broken places in this world with the news of your love and the light of your presence, for the sake of the healing of the world. Amen.

2.
Gracious God, we thank you for your grace. You have made us one in Christ, gathered us as your children, and fed us with your word. Send us into the world as one, to break down the barriers that divide us, to reach out to those who are outcast, and to proclaim in word and deed the miracle of your grace for all people. Send us in the name of Christ and the power of your Holy Spirit to do your will, for your glory. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)

God, I Surrender (Original song)

God, I surrender myself to you,
all that I have and all I do.
All my desires I give to you.
Take them from me and make me new.

God, I surrender myself to you,
all that I have and all I do.
Trusting you wholly I follow you
Take my life and make me new.


I Belong to You (Tune: Water is Wide / Gift of Love)

Beloved, I belong to you.
You give me birth; you make me new,
your image formed, by Spirit stirred.
You are the Song; I am your Word.

Whatever pains I may endure,
I still belong. Your love is sure.
Since I am yours, your will I do.
I trust and give myself to you.

I am your coin to richly spend,
so spend me, God, as you intend.
You bless my end; you hold my worth;
send me to love throughout the earth.

Beloved, I belong to you.
Do with me what your love will do.
Bear me, and I, through ease or strife
will find in you eternal life.

June 22, 2022

Lectionary Texts

1 Kings 19. 1-15 — Elijah flees to the wilderness. At Mt. Horeb, he encounters God in utter silence. God sends him back to Damascus to get to work.

Psalm 42 — “As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul thirsts for you.” Hope in God, who gives us life.

Galatians 3.23-39 — The law was a disciplinarian, but we are justified by God’s love. In Christ you are children of God— no Jew or Greek, male or female…

Luke 8.26-39 — Jesus heals the Gerasene demoniac.

Preaching Thoughts

Elijah
         Elijah has fled to the wilderness for escape, but retreat turns into encounter. Sometimes we need to “get away.” But we’re not getting away from God. No such thing. In our retreat we are given the strength, wisdom or power to return to the work of loving the world.
         None of this is Elijah’s doing. It’s all gift. He receives food for strength; he receives a vision of God; he receives instructions. So often, when we’re ready to quit, some angel says, “Here’s what you need to go on.”
         God doesn’t come to Elijah in dramatic special effects. God doesn’t speak to us in that great, booming bass voice of the movies, but in the quiet, in silence, “God’s first language.” If Elijah hears actual words we’re not told of them. Just a tiny, calm voice. God’s “Word” is presence, not words.
         The assurance Elijah might want—protection from the danger he’s in—is not given; only instructions. As if what matters is not our sense of security but our faithfulness to God’s quiet whispers in us; God will take care of our fate. And always, we are sent back into the world, into service.

Galatians
       It’s hard for us to trust that God really, really doesn’t “judge” us. God’s judgment is that we need more love—all of us. No one is actually “better” than anyone else in God’s eyes. Oh, we so desperately want to be better than somebody… Thank God for Hitler—at least we can say God loves us more than him, right? Well, no. God does not love him any less than anybody. We’re all God’s children. We are not “justified” by our goodness, but by God’s. Paul invites us to stop comparing and just receive God’s grace and be grateful. So there are no distinctions: Jew or Greek, Christian or atheist, red or blue, straight or queer.

The Gerasene demoniac
         What a rich story. Jesus has brought the disciples to the “other side”—of the lake… of the tracks… of the border wall…of the aisle… of our consciousness…. This is gentile territory. When we confront our shadow side, the parts of ourselves we can’t see or won’t look at, we encounter the demonic—but also healing and miracles!
         The demon recognizes Jesus for who he really is: not just a healer but a destroyer of evil forces. Jesus’ healing isn’t just the cure of individuals: he’s assaulting the cosmic power of evil itself. He demon’s name is “Legion”— not only meaning many, but specifically a platoon of the Roman Army. In the demon Jesus is also confronting the evil of Roman occupation. A large herd of swine would be unlikely to belong to anyone but a large organization to feed lots of people—like the Roman army. When the swine drown in the lake it’s an image of the power of evil being sent back to the waters of the chaos of Creation, back to square one. Jesus has performed a cosmic healing.
         When the locals see the formerly tormented man “sitting at the feet of Jesus” (that is, learning from him), clothed and in his right mind, they are afraid. They want him to leave. We’re threatened when people we’re accustomed to labeling as unfit, unworthy or deserving to be excluded turn out to be real people. As is often the case, we’re not always comfortable with miracles and healings, both because it disturbs our sense of “everything the way it is,” and also because, like people working for the Roman army, we derive some benefit from our collusion with the structures of oppression. We hate to surrender that benefit, even for the good of others. The demon lives in all of us.
       Jesus’ instructions to the man to go home is itself a great healing: Jesus restores him to his community, to being accepted and respected. Sometimes our greatest call is to go home.

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: Eternal God, by your Word you create us.
All: Give us grace to listen to your creating Word.
Loving Christ, you speak your Word and we are healed.
Give us grace to listen to your loving Word.
Holy Spirit, you speak in our hearts in the sound of sheer silence.
Give us grace to listen to your silent Word.
We open the ears of our hearts; and we worship you.

2.
Leader: Holy One, you your Spirit breathes in us.
All: The heart of your love beats in our hearts.
We breathe in the pain of the world.
We breathe out your mercy.
We breathe in the sorrow of the world.
We breathe out your mercy.
You breathe your mercy in us.
Your deep mercy we breathe for the sake of the healing of the world. Amen.

3.
Leader: The thunder of daily news crashes about us.
All: But God, you speak in a still, small voice.
The earthquakes of our lives rattle us.
But your quiet, persistent whisper stays with us us.
The fire of our fears and desires roars within us.
But your gentle silence invites us in.
We still ourselves, that in the quiet we may hear.

4. ( Based on Psalm 42)
Leader: Living God, as the deer longs for flowing water,
so our souls thirst for you.
All: Fountain of life, well up in us and overflow with your grace.
Risen Christ, when shall we come and behold your face?
Here and now, for you are among us!
Holy Spirit, by day you pour out your steadfast love,
and at night your song is with us.
Alleluia! Come, Holy One, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

5.
Leader: Creator God, we praise you!
All: Risen Christ, we greet you!
Holy Spirit, we are one body by your grace.
Mystery of Love, we worship you.
God, you do not speak to us in earthquake, wind or fire,
but in a still, small voice that whispers.
Help us to listen in stillness.
You are unchanging, but you transform our lives.
Alleluia! Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

6.
Leader: Creator God, we praise you!
All: Risen Christ, we greet you!
You heal us of our brokenness and restore us to full living.
You rescue us from our isolation and restore us to community.
You overpower the forces of evil, and establish your dominion on the earth.
Alleluia! We gladly tell of the wondrous things you have done! Alleluia!

7.
Leader: People of God, awaken!
All: We awaken to you, O God, and open our hearts to your presence.
Beloved of God, come!
We gather in your spirit, O Christ, and open our hearts to your love.
Body of Christ, arise!
We cross the threshold into your Realm, O Spirit, and open our hearts to your Word.
Draw us into your mystery, nourish our souls, and send us out again
to be and to proclaim your grace for the world. Amen.

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
God, your Spirit murmurs in our hearts, low and quiet.
Help us listen, beneath the noise of this world,
to hear the still, small voice of your presence. Amen.

2.
Loving and gentle God, amid the shouts in the streets and the voices in our heads, we want to hear your still, calm voice. Speak to us, heal us with your Word, and call us to new life in the name of Christ. Amen.

3.
God of truth, from you no secrets are hid. You hear what is on our minds; you know what is deep within us. We long to know your Word, to hear your voice, to feel your presence. We long to know you as you know us. As we wait in your presence now, speak to us— in scripture, in words, in silence, in song. May your whispering voice come to us and touch our hearts. Amen.

4.
Gracious God, we long for your peace. Voices of power shout at us with words of fear. But in your silent, whispering voice you speak your peace to us. You calm our fears. You heal our wounds. You overcome our demons. Help us to listen in hope, to receive in trust, and to live in faith, by the power of your Spirit. Amen.

5.
God of Truth, the prophet Elijah on the mountain beheld a great wind, and an earthquake, and fire, and finally a soft, murmuring sound. We turn from the rush and roar of the world to listen in the silence for your gentle voice. Open our hearts, so that as the scriptures are read and your good news proclaimed, we may hear with joy what you are saying to us today. Amen.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

1.
God, from the raging noises of this world
call us forth to listen
to your still, small voice.
From the voices of the demons in our own heads
shield us, that we may hear
your perfect, loving silence.
Whisper to us, God.
In the silence, be with us.

2.
God of love,
     we come to listen for your voice,
not the voice of power,
     but the voice of love,
not the voice of fear,
     but the voice of love.
In your, small, still voice, speak.

Prayer of Confession

1.
Pastor: The grace of God is with you.
Congregation: And also with you.
Trusting in God’s tender mercy, let us confess our sin to God with one another.
God of love, we need you. This world needs you. We are broken.
Spirits of hate and fear haunt us.
Demons of violence and injustice possess us.
We are part of a hurting and hurtful world.
We are horrified by evil and yet we contribute to it,
though we know not how.
Forgive us, for we know not what we do.
Forgive us, heal us and grant us your mercy,
in the name and the Spirit of the crucified and risen Christ.

2.
God of Love,
from our demons deliver us.
From our fear of our demons rescue us.
From the armies of oppression
and the powers of injustice save us.
Restore us to the beloved people you create us to be,
and to the beloved community.
Jesus, we cry out to you.
Heal us, and set us free.

3.
God, you know the difference between my demons and my soul.
Help me see the demons, the selfish fears,
the attachments and desires that drain life away.
Help me face them, name them, and allow you to transform them.
Though I am beset by faults and brokenness,
help me treasure my soul as you do, and set it free.
Forgive me, heal me, and create me anew.
I open myself to your grace. Amen.

Response / Creed / Affirmation

1.
         We entrust ourselves to God, maker of all that is and all that shall be, Divine Mystery, Heavenly Lover, Eternal Presence.
         We follow Christ, the Word of God made flesh, the Silence of God made real.
In love he taught and healed, cast out demons, and acted with justice and mercy.
He has undermined the power of evil, for he loved in the face of violence; he was crucified by the powers of injustice, and on the third day rose from the dead, and still lives among us, blessing us and calling us to follow.
         We live in the Holy Spirit, God’s love at work in us for others, the Spirit that makes us one Body: one in forgiveness, one in faith, one in ministry to the world.
We go, therefore, nourished by God’s grace, to serve the world in the name of Christ.

2.
       We believe in God, Creator of all, who is not in earthquake, wind or fire, but who is Mystery.
       We trust in Jesus, who is the Christ, who is Love. He taught and healed; he cast out evil and saved the wretched. He heard your word in the poor and the powerless, and in the ordinary things of life. By the forces of violence and oppression he was killed; by God’s grace he was raised again, and lives among us, healing, blessing and speaking God’s Word of love to us.
       We listen to the Holy Spirit, God’s presence in us, who guides and sustains us, who makes of us one body, the Body of Christ. In the power of this Spirit, trusting in the reality of resurrection and the mystery of eternal life, we forgive one another, embrace the outcast, resist evil, listen devoutly for God’s quiet grace, and bless all Creation, for the glory of God. Amen.

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.

God we thank you. For you create us in your image,
and call us as your own.
You set us free from all that oppresses,
both the forces of injustice around us
and the voices of shame within.
Even when we act like monsters you see our divine beauty;
you touch us and heal us, and we thank you.
So with all Creation we sing your praise:

            [Sanctus, spoken or sung:]
        Holy, holy, holy One, God of power and might,
        heaven and earth are full of your glory.
        Hosanna in the highest.
        Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
        Hosanna in the highest.
               [or alternate version]

Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ,
who loved and taught and fed the hungry.
He confronted the powers of evil,
both within us and in our systems and structures.
Those powers killed him, but you raised him from the dead,
confirming his covenant to be with us in blessing always.

     (The Blessing and Covenant) *

As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.
Therefore, remembering these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

             [Memorial Acclamation, spoken or sung:]
        Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
                     —or—
        Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restores our life.
        Christ will come again in glory.
             [or alternative]

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ,
otherwise the journey would be too much for us.
Pour out your Spirit on us,
that we may be for the world the Body of Christ,
moved by your still, small voice,
healed by your grace,
and sent forth to confront the powers of evil and injustice
in whatever forms they present themselves,
in the name and the spirit of Christ.

               [Spoken or sung]
     Amen.

____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

1.
Gracious God, we give you our lives, symbolized in these gifts. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. Send us into the world, attentive to your voice, listening for your will, ready to serve for the sake of the healing of the world, in the name of Christ. Amen.2.
Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace, and use them according to your will. Send us out into the world to tell people the wonderful things you have done. Send us out into the hurting places to heal, into the lonely places to bring love. Send us out into the world of war and violence to enact your Reign of gentle peace. Make us one in Christ, and one in ministry to this broken world, in the power of your Spirit. Amen.

Prayer after Communion

God, we thank you for this mystery in which you have given yourself to us. You have healed us with your miraculous grace; you have spoken to us in your loving whisper; you have fed us for the journey. Send us now in the peace and the power of your love to aid you in the healing of the world, in the name of Christ. Amen.

Suggested Songs

(Click on title to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)


Listen (Elijah Version) (Tune: The water Is Wide / Gift of Love)

“Not in the earthquake, fire or wind
will you find me, your faithful friend;
but in the silence is my Word:
it is not spoken, but is heard.

“For when you listen and attend
in silence deep, you meet your Friend,
whose voice no words can catch or hold,
and yet whose love is clearly told.

“And listen well with love’s deep art,
to what is in your neighbor’s heart,
for there I dwell, and there I speak;
and there I hide, for you to seek.

“My glory shines in every face
of my beloved human race.
So listen well with wond’ring care:
behold my glory shining there.

Lectionary Texts

In 1 Kings 21. 1-21 King Ahab wants Naboth’s vineyard, his ancestral inheritance, for himself. Ahab’s wife Jezebel gets Naboth killed so that Ahab can take the vineyard. The prophet Elijah confronts Ahab about his evil.

Psalm 5. 1-8 is a lament, crying out to God for justice and protection against the malice and deceit of enemies.

In Galatians 2. 15-21 Paul says we are saved not by our fulfillment of the law, but by God’s grace, which we trust because of Christ. We have “died to the law,” that is, we do not seek life from our efforts to fulfill the law. Instead we live to God: our life comes from God loving in us. So “it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” InLuke 7.36 – 8.3 a woman who is a “sinner” anoints Jesus’ feet inappropriately, but Jesus accepts her gift and tells his dinner host a parable about forgiveness. Since she has been forgiven of much, she loves much. Subsequently many women join his ministry.

Preaching Thoughts

Call to Worship

1.
Leader: O God, in your infinite grace, you forgive us perfectly.
All: God of grace, we praise you.
O Christ, in your deep love, you receive our gifts.
Loving Christ, we thank you.
O Holy Spirit, you give us new life.
Spirit of God, fill our hearts with the power of your love,
that with gratitude, humility and compassion
we may welcome, forgive and bless others
as we have been so blessed, in the name of Christ, to your glory. Amen.

2. (Based on Psalm 5)Leader: O Heart of Heaven, Listening One, hear our cry!
All: Through the abundance of your love we enter your house.
Facing your holy presence we worship you in awe.
O Righteous One, you destroy all falsehood, but you bless those who turn to you.
Lead us in your righteousness. Make your path clear before us.
In the morning we bring our praise to you, and we listen for you.
Alleluia! You cover us with favor as with a shield.
Come, Holy Spirit, and transform us by your grace. Alleluia!

3.Leader:Creator God, we praise you!
People: Risen Christ, we greet you!
In mercy you bestow your forgiveness upon all people;
all humanity is one in our sin and one in your grace.
May the earth be filled with your peace
Alleluia! God of forgiveness, may we worship you always
by being forgiving, in the name of Christ Alleluia!

Collect / Prayer of the Day

1.
God of grace, you come to us and make your home with us in all our joys and sorrows. You are present, in love and mercy. We open our hearts to you, to listen for your voice, to receive your grace, to become your people. Only say the word, and we shall be healed. Amen.

2.
Gracious God, a woman anointed Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. We bring to you our sorrow and our gratitude, our amazement and our joy. And you receive us with grace and love. Still and silent at your feet, we open our hearts to your Word. Speak, and call us to new life.

3.
God of grace, we do not live our lives by ourselves: you live in us. Arise now from within and among us, and give voice to our worship. Give ear to our prayers. And give flesh to the Gospel of your grace, so that we might hear your Word and be changed. Amen.

Prayer of Confession

1.
Pastor: The grace of God be with you.

Congregation: And also with you.

Trusting in God’s tender mercy, let us confess our sin to God with one another.

God of love, for all that is broken in us,

forgive us;

open our hearts to your grace,

that we may forgive as we have been forgiven.

2.
Pastor: The grace of God be with you.

All: And also with you.

Trusting in God’s tender mercy, let us confess our sin to God with one another.

Gracious God, we confess our sin: we have not loved you with all our heart, mind, soul and strength, nor have we loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. Have mercy upon us: forgive our sin, heal our hearts, and renew your Holy Spirit within us, that being born anew by your grace, we may live in the light of your love, in the name of Christ.

Silent prayers of Confession…

RESPONSE

The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

The lord does not deal with us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is God’s love for us.

As far as the east is from the west, so far does God remove our transgressions from us.

We thank you, O God!

Show us your ways and teach us your paths,
that we may live in the light of your grace. Amen.

Readings

Psalm 5 — My parpahrase

let the sigh of my heart lie against your chest.
Hold my cry like your child—
you who are Life and all Being,
the One to whom my prayers belong.
You hear me before my day dawns;
in the morning I put my desire in your hands
and I wait.

Evil is like darkness in your light;
in you my deadliness dies.
The closer I draw to you
the farther behind I leave my falsehood.

You see through our arrogance like glass,
and like glass you shatter our wrongdoing.
Your grace destroys our lies,
and our deceit evaporates in your truth.

Your mercy draws me into you;
your presence awes and awakens me.
Lead me, O Love, in your way of blessing,
despite those who would pull me elsewhere:
maintain the path so I don’t miss it.

There are those who are gushers of lies,
deep wells of hurt and destruction.
Their greed is a grave;
their fear is disguised as power.

Don’t let me fall for their deceit.
Let their disguises unravel about them.
Strip them naked of their lies
so that I can stay true to your grace.

Those who nest in you are safe forever;
our lives are songs of joy.
Surround us in your presence,
set free our joy in your embrace.
Your blessing is our inescapable gravity.
You hold us to you with love
as the earth holds us
and the air gives us breath.

Poetry by Steve Garnaas-Holmes

Response / Creed / Affirmation

1.
God of love, Creator of all that is and that shall be, we trust in you. You are our Life and our Being, our Source and our End. For your people you have overthrown the powers of injustice, set us free, and given us a place of belonging in this world.

Christ, we follow you. Living Word, embodying God’s love, you taught and healed and performed prophetic acts of justice and mercy. You embraced the outcast, forgave sinners, freed us from all condemnation, and created among us a community of grace and kinship. Dying and being raised, you sowed the Reign of God, and you live among us still, calling us to lives of humble service.

Holy Spirit, beauty of God in us, you open to us the depth of eternal life, the power of forgiveness, and the mystery of resurrection. Making us one as the Body of Christ, you empower us to give of our gifts, to love all people, to forgive, and to serve you in lives of hope and joy, for the sake of the healing of the world, in the name of Christ. Amen.

Listening Prayer

(suitable as a Collect, preparation for hearing scriptures, or invitation to prayer)

Eucharistic Prayer

[The body of the prayer may be read responsively or by the presiding leader(s) alone.]

God is with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your heart.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Holy One, our God.
It is good and beautiful to give God our praise.


     (Sanctus)

Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ,

     (The Blessing and Covenant)
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.
Therefore, remembering these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves as a living and holy sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:
     (Memorial Acclamation)

Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Spirit on us, that we may be for the world the Body of Christ,
(Amen.)

____________
* The Blessing and Covenant
[I usually don’t print the words. I want people to be looking at the bread, not their bulletins.]

On the night in which he gave himself for us
Jesus took bread, blessed it,. broke it, and gave it to his disciples,saying,
“Take and eat; this is my body.”
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup,
blessed it with thanks and gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of this, all of you. This is my blood,
poured out for you and for many, in a new Covenant,
which is the forgiveness of sin.”
As long as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection, until he comes again.

Prayer of Dedication / Sending

Gracious God, in thanksgiving for your mercy, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace, and use them according to your will. As Jesus has accepted us and blessed the gifts that we have offered, send us into the world in a ministry of acceptance: to honor people as they are, to appreciate and bless their gifts, and to support them in the ministry to which you call them. We pray as we live, in the name of Jesus Christ, and in the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Prayer after Communion

God, we thank you for this mystery in which you have given yourself to us.

Suggested Songs

(Click on titles to view, and hear an audio clip, on the Music page)