liturgy w/communion for December 29, 2024 (Christmas 1 - C)

 Texts: 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26; Psalm 148; Colossians 3:12-17; Luke 2:41-52

Call to Worship

Snow-capped mountains and sand castles on beaches,
comets flashing across the night, meteors crashing into moons.
Dolphins playing tag in the ocean and trout resting on river bottoms,
storks nesting on chimney tops, and doves cooing in the mornings.
Children making angels in the snow, teenagers knotting in hallways,
grandparents watching favorite movies, nervous singles on a first date.
All creation joins in one song:
Praise the Lord!

Prayer of the Day

Wrap us in the shawl of compassion,
God of holiness,
so that this season of goodness and giving
might last longer than
the after-Christmas sales.

Slip our hands into the gloves of humility,
Brother of the overlooked,
so we might join in your work of
rebuilding communities,
feeding the hungry,
embracing the outsiders.

Teach us your patient ways,
Wisdom from on high,
so we would learn to notice
what we have in common with others,
rather than what divides us;
so we might offer kindness
in the face of bitterness and hurt.

May all we do with our hands, our hearts,
our minds, our feet, our lives be done
in the name of the One who taught us to pray, saying,
(The Lord’s Prayer)

Call to Reconciliation

Before we put away the ornaments and put the tree out by the curb, before we toss the cards and wrapping paper into the recycling bin, before we store the movies and music back in the closet, let us confess how quickly we forget the true meaning of this holy season, as we offer our prayers to our God, saying,

Unison Prayer for Forgiveness
   How patient You are with us, Loving Creator, and how hard we find it to put up with the foolishness of others.  In humility, You became one of us, and we keep wanting everything to be about us.  You model a life of meekness in service to others, and we are convinced life is all about power and success.  All creation sings of Your kindness, while we hurl angry words at those we say we care about the most.
   Yet, rather than becoming frustrated with us, Joy of Christmas, You continue to forgive us.  Clothe us with Your love, we pray, so we might be more compassionate towards others.  Touch us with Your grace, so we might become more gentle people.  Fill us with that peace which longs to reside in our hearts, even as we seek to continue our journey with the Child of Bethlehem, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

Silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon
In these moments, let God’s peace dwell in your hearts.  For God gives us hope, gives us peace, and gives us new life in the forgiveness of God’s grace.
We will be thankful, for in receiving God’s forgiveness, we are enabled to live as faithful followers of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Prayer of Dedication/Offering
You bless us with an abundance of gifts, God of this holy season, not as a reward for doing good, but as a means to reach out with healing to the broken, to clothe those who shiver in winter, and to bless others with the hope which has been ours.  As we offer our gifts to you, we do so in the name of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving

May the God of Christmas be with you.
And also with you.
Let us open our hearts to the One who would clothe them in garments of service.
We offer our hearts to be swaddled in compassion, kindness, and humility.
Join in singing glad songs of praise to our God.
With our lips and with our hearts, we offer thanksgiving as we exalt our God.

Originator of all that is good and beautiful,
You clothe meadows with wild flowers
and spin rings around planets,
You illuminate waves with a winter moon
as tiptoe shadows across lawns for kittens to chase.
You did not create these wonders for Yourself,
longing share them with those formed in Your image,
inviting us to follow You into these delights,
   but we stayed behind, learning as much
   as we could from the elders of death.
Those we call prophets, women and men of hope,
came to place Your words in our hearts,
   yet we turned a deaf ear to them,
   preferring the siren songs of sin.
So You sent your Child to us,
who was willing to be involved in
Your business of redemption.

With songs of praise that are always in our hearts,
with silence which walks with us each day,
we offer thanksgiving to you in these moments:

Holy, holy, holy are you, Author of all life.
Creation joins with those of every age and place in praising You.
Hosanna in the highest!

Blessed is the One who teaches us songs of wonder.
Hosanna in the highest!

You are holy, God of eternity, yet

in a little baby, You set aside holiness
   to wrap yourself in a caregiver’s humility;
in a young boy, You planted the seeds of hope
   so we might learn compassion for others;
in a young man, You placed the gift of patience
   so we would discover how to put up
   with those who drive us to distraction;
in brokenness on a cross, You put on love,
   not staying behind in the grave,
   but coming forth singing the refrain of resurrection.

As we move on from the celebration of a Birth
to learning what it means to follow Jesus into life and death,
we seek to proclaim that mystery called faith:

Dying, Christ sought to do everything in God’s name;
raised to new life, Christ gave thanks to God;
returning to us, Christ will clothe us in resurrection’s grace.

We come to Your meal once again,
praying that You pour out Your Spirit
not only upon those who have gathered this day,
but on the bread and the cup, the symbols of life for us.
As we set aside our fears and doubts
to eat of the bread which is broken,
we ask to be clothed in Your compassion,
   so others might find hope in us;
to be swaddled in Your humility,
   so we might serve in Your name.
We would drink from the cup
that Your grace might fill us
   so we might use our hands to lift up the fallen,
                  our feet to walk with the lonely,
                  our heads to solve the problems of poverty,
                  our hearts to love those hated by others.

And when all time comes to an end,
no one will stay behind, but all Your children
will be gathered around Your Table of grace and live,
where we will sing canticles of hope and wonder to You,
God in Community, Holy in One.  Amen.

Sending
Let us go to praise our God!
We will sing of God’s hope as we offer compassion to the hurting.
Let us go to praise the Brother of the poor!
We will offer psalms of passion as we seek to lift others to new life.
Let us go to praise the Spirit of humility.
We will join in canticles of conciliation and peace for our broken world.

(c) Thom M. Shuman

Christmas Day liturgy

 Texts:  Isaiah 62:6-12; Psalm 97; Titus 3:4-7; Luke 2:1-20

Call to Worship

One: In snow-capped churches,
and on sand-strewn beaches,
All: God’s people gather in joy
to celebrate a birth.
One: With hopes littering our hearts
like wrapping paper under a tree,
All: We offer our thanks and praise
for the gift of grace swaddled in love.
One: With eyes wide open like little children,
with hearts full of wonder and laughter,
All: We join our lives with Mary and Joseph,
with the shepherds who ran to tell the good news.

Christmas Morning Prayer

Grace dawned this morning,
   streaking our bleary eyes
   with bright shafts
   of beauty and goodness.

Joy sang us awake

with carols of wonder
   written by the shepherds,
   the tunes composed by children
      who could not sleep.

Hope was fixing breakfast
for us while we slept,
   toasting the Bread and
   slathering it with jam,
      pouring us a cuppa
      steaming grace.

We rejoice and give thanks
God in Community, Holy in One,
our Grace, our Joy, our Hope,
even as we pray as your Child taught us,
(The Lord’s Prayer)

Call to Reconciliation
On this morning of love and joy, of laughter and families, we must remember and confess how we dampen the spirits of others, speak hurtful words to those we love, turn our backs on those in need.  Join me, as we pray together saying,

 Unison Prayer for Forgiveness

   Manger-dwelling God,
      we heard the songs of the angels,
         yet we easily tune-out the cries of the needy;
      we feel the breath of our children on our faces,
         yet remain untouched by your Spirit of peace;
      we are surrounded by gifts as precious as those
      brought by the Wise Ones,
         yet have trouble sharing with those
         who are from other countries, other faiths.

   Forgive us, Grace swaddled in mystery.
      We believe in Christmas,
         help us to believe in you even more;
      we hunger for happiness,
         feed us on your peace;
      we long for community and acceptance,
         surround us with our siblings
         we find in all those, of every age and every place,
         who follow and serve alongside our Lord and Savior,
         Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate this day.  Amen.

Silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon
One: Born that day was grace – for the broken and bereft;
born that day was hope – for the vulnerable and forgotten;
born that day was love – for all of us!
All: Thanks be to God, we are forgiven!  We will go to tell others of all we have seen, heard, experienced, and know.  Amen.

Prayer of Dedication/Offering

May the gifts we share be from the heart, just as yours was that day, God of Bethlehem.  ay they serve those who look for welcome,

those who struggle with loss and grief,

those who need to be blessed by hope

This we pray in the name of your Child, Jesus.  Amen.

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving

One: Now, may Bethlehem’s Child bless you!
All: And also bless you!
One: Now, may the children of God open their hearts.
All: We offer them to the One who loves us each and every morning.
One: Now, may we join in the songs of the angels.
All: We join our voices with those of every time and place.

One: In the silenced night of chaos,
creation rejoiced with the carols of wonders
you had composed, God of surprises:
   as joy sparkled in the sky,
   as rivers swarmed with fish,
   as turtles plodded through meadows.
The Word gently gathered up earth’s dust
and the Spirit breathed life into those
shaped in your image, so we might
be at peace and be with you in joy.
   But we were tempted by sin’s decorations
   and death’s commercials of life without you. 
Time and again, you sent folks to call us home.
Miriam and Micah, Ruth and Habakkuk
spoke of your hopes for of us,
   yet we found rebellion the better
   road to take in our journey through the years.
Finally, you chose to offer yourself
in that Child born into poverty,
that little One who would strengthen all.

With those who gathered on that first morning,
with all who have celebrated with songs and service,
we sing carols of praise to you:

All: Holy, holy, holy are you, God of all turned away by the world.
Creation joins the angels in praising you.
Hosanna in the highest!

Blessed is the One who clears the Way for us to walk.
Hosanna in the highest!

One: In the silence of the night, God of holiness,
your Child crept in among us,
so small no one would notice,
so poor no one would care.
But those who are forgotten by the world,
   like shepherds and the disabled,
   come to worship, and to tell us the good news.
Those who have no money to their name,
   gift us with their hopes and love,
   even as he did so long ago.
Those children who are overlooked by culture,
   sing to us of the One given to us,
      so we might find our way home;
   of the One who gives himself to death,
   so resurrection love might destroy sin’s power,
      and we might be swaddled in grace.

On this morning when we celebrate his birth,
in the days to come when we follow him to Jerusalem,
we sing carols of that mystery we call faith:

All: Christ was born, so we might have life;
Christ died, so we might have forgiveness;
Christ was raised, so we might have resurrection;
Christ will be born again, to gather us together with him.

One: In the silence of these holy moments,
pour out your Spirit upon
those gathered on this morning
and on the gifts of the Feast of Joy.
As we are welcomed here,
   may we remember and include
   all rejected by the world.
As we are fed by the bread,
   may we be strengthened
   to go and bring tangible hope
   to all who are famished by despair.
As we drink from grace’s cup,
   nourish us, so we may go
   to overflow with love and peace
   for everyone we meet in every season.

And when all history and time ends in silence,
and we are gathered with our siblings
around the feast of the lamb,
we will join the angels in singing carols to your forever,
God in Community, Holy in One.  Amen.              

Sending
One: Let us go,
All: to join the angels in singing
of God’s glory and grace.
One: Let us go to share the good news,
All: that Jesus, the brother
of the vulnerable and forgotten
is in our midst still.
One: Let us go to offer
peace and goodwill to everyone,
All: joining the Spirit in telling
of all we have seen and heard.

(c) Thom M. Shuman

Christmas Eve liturgy

 Texts: Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-20

Call to Worship

With eyes wide open

and our ears on edge,

we look for shepherds

and listen for the songs of angels.

In the light of winter’s moon,

with the Southern Cross lighting the way,

we gather outside the door of a mystery,

wondering if we dare go enter.

With folks and friends we love,

with strangers we have just met,

we gather, becoming the holy family

for this time and in this place.

Christmas Eve Prayer

Now in the silence,

whisper of joy which comes

into every life.

Now in the comfort of carols,

sing of hope which

takes away the despair

which envelops us.

Now in familiar words heard anew,

speak to us of grace

which is born into barren lives,

of peace which is birthed

in war’s shadowed fears.

Now leaning next to those

who have always been a part of us,

and those from whom we have been apart,

remind us of your heart

which always accepts us,

always welcomes us.

Now in the love which is ours forever,

draw us closer to your heart,

so we can be surprised by wonder,

swaddled in serenity,

embraced by tenderness.

Now touch us once again with Christmas,

God in Community, Holy in One,

as we join in praying as we are taught,

(The Lord’s Prayer)

Call to Reconciliation

This is the night we are reminded that God loves to be with us. Yet all too often – by our choices, our words, our silence – we choose not to be with Go. Join me as we pray on this holy night to the One who was born to gift us with mercy and hope.

Unison Prayer for Forgiveness

This was going to be the year, God of silent nights, when we were going to give away more than we spent, but we didn’t. This was going to be the season when we spent more time with others, but we filled our calendars with meetings. This was going to be the Christmas when we wrote personal letters to friends and family, but spent too much energy filling out our to-do lists. This was going to be a truly holy season, but it just got too harried and hurried.

Forgive us, Love Gifter, and draw us closer to the Baby born not into wealth and power, but into poverty and weakness; to the One who loves unconditionally and welcomes all; to the Child who gathers other children to him, to bless them and serve them; to the One who drew near to us, so we might be drawn to your heart – Jesus Christ, our Brother, our Lord. Amen.

Silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon

Into the valleys of our death, Jesus comes with life;

into the shadows of our world, Jesus brings light;

into the brokenness of our lives, Jesus brings forgiveness and peace.

Thanks be to God for the gift of the Baby of Bethlehem, who brings joy and peace to us in these moments of forgiveness and in all the days to come. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication/Offering

Now, on this night of giftedness, remind us of those who struggle to put food on the table, to buy a single gift for their child, to wrap a warm blanket around a grandparent, so we might realize how blessed we are and share from our abundance. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving

May the God of silent nights be with you!

May the God of herald angels be with you!

Open your hearts to the One born in the little town of Bethlehem.

May Emmanuel come to abide in our hearts.

Join all believers in singing of our joy this night.

May our voices blend with those of the angels and shepherds.

You crept into chaos so long ago,

Star-shaper,

so creation might be born:

sheep gathering on hillsides,

stars glittering in the night skies,

sea horses frolicking in warm waters.

Silently, you gathered up the dust,

shaping us in your image

as the Spirit breathed life into us.

All the gifts of your heart were for us,

but we slammed the door of our hearts,

saying there was no room for you in our lives.

Prophets came time and again,

scattering your clues throughout the Story,

but we were too busy enjoying

the sleights of hand done by sin and death.

When you saw we could not

understand the Mystery on our own,

you sent Jesus, to reveal everything to us.

As we gather with children dressed in bathrobes,

as we join with the voices around us,

we sing praises to you this Christmas night:

We will not be afraid,

for great joy is ours this night;

we will look for the signs of your presence,

grace swaddled in hope,

love wrapped around broken hearts.

Glory to you, God in the highest heavens!
May peace fill the lives of all your children!
Leaving your side, God of holiness,
your Child came to walk with us
through the cold streets of our lives.
Born in poverty’s shadows,
he is the light which illumines
your heart for us.
Unwrapped from glory’s embrace,
he gathers us from all the corners
of our confused choices to make us one with you.
Placed in a rude feeding trough
layered with our fears and doubts,
he breathes in your hopes
and lives your will, until
he is placed in death’s cold embrace,
waiting in the silence,
where he breathes in resurrection’s breath,
and brings forth life for all who follow.

On this night, when we sing of the baby in the manger,
as the shadow of the cross is cast by the stars,
we proclaim that mystery called incarnation:

Christ is our light,
and we will join the angels in singing the good news;
Christ is our life,
and we will join the disciples in telling the Story;
Christ is our promise,
and we wait for the joy of his return.

Here in the silence and the singing,
with children, carols, and candlelight,
we gather around the Table of joy,
as you pour out your Spirit upon
the most precious gifts of bread and cup.
As we feast upon the bread,
we remember a young pregnant girl,
and would serve those who are expecting,
those who cannot have a child,
those who have lost children.
As we drink from the cup,
we think of a worried father,
and would be with those who assemble toys this night,
as well as those who will work this night
to pay for food and medicine for their families.
As we are surrounded by family and friends,
we would care for
those whose closest companion is loneliness,
those separated from loved ones,
those who hear no music, joy, or hope in their lives.

And when all time and history becomes silence,
we will be gathered with our siblings
from Bethlehem and Gaza, from Cairo and Kyiv,
from Capetown and Istanbul, from Sydney and Shanghai,
from every corner and moment of every universe,
to join the angel choirs in forever singing your praises
as we dance to the Table of wonder and grace,
God in Community, Holy in One. Amen.

Sending
Let us go to be the gift another needs,
sharing God’s blessings of love and grace,
running to tell the Story we heard from the shepherds.
Let us go to be the comfort which can swaddle others,
sharing Jesus’ compassion with the poor and needy,
welcoming the holiness offered by the most vulnerable we meet.
Let us go to kindle the lives around us,
sharing the Spirit’s peace with all the broken,
learning the language of hope from the children in our midst.

© Thom M. Shuman

Liturgy w/communion for December 22, 2024 (Advent 4 - C)

 Texts:  Micah 5:2-5a; Psalm 80:1-7; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-55

Call to Worship

We come to glorify God,

to rejoice in the One who saves us.

God comes, so we might believe,

so we might be blessed.

Our hearts leap for joy!

For God is coming to us in a child.

God comes for those who hunger for hope,

for those who thirst for grace.

Holy is the One who comes in God's name,

who fulfills every promise of God.

God comes to walk with those who follow in faith,

to bring peace to a shattered world.

Prayer of the Day

Holy God,

scattering the proud,

you look with favor

on those the world ignores.

For you,

we wait for the One

who will feed us;

for you,

we wait for the One

who stands with us

in our loneliness and pain.

For you, we wait.

Jesus Christ,

born in a backwater town:

in you,

God fills the hunger

of our hearts;

in you,

God lifts us

from our hopelessness;

in you,

all the promises come true.

For you, we wait.

Holy Spirit,

Hallower of God's people:

from you comes faith,

    so we might believe;

from you comes belief,

    so we might be blessed;

from you come all blessings,

    so we might give them away.

For you, we wait.

God in Community, Holy in One,

for you, we wait, even as we pray:

(The Lord’s Prayer)

Call to Reconciliation

Every notion we have about power, success, wealth and achievement, God takes and tosses out the window.  More importantly, God comes to us, to upset our idea that we must save ourselves.  In Jesus, God comes to us, removing our sin, our failures, our expectations, so we might have life.  Please join me as we pray together, saying,

Unison Prayer for Forgiveness

   We confess we are not the people you hope us to be, Advent God.  The very ones you favor?  All too often, we ignore them, or worse fill them with ridicule.  The ones you knock off their pedestals?  We continue to admire them, seeking to emulate their ways.  The drumbeat for more and more?  We give into the rhythm so easily, we risk being sent away empty.

     Forgive us, Mighty God who comes in the weakness of a baby.  Look with grace upon us, so we might see your love shining down.  We could live secure in your hope, we could be the ones of peace for our world, we could learn to do your will, if we but welcome Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, into our hearts and into our lives.

Silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon

God passes the heirloom of mercy down

from generation to generation, always loving,

always forgiving, always calling us to new life.

As we open our hearts to God, we are filled

with the joy that was sung at the Birth, 

with the Hope that walked among us, 

with the Grace which is always with us.  

Thanks be to God, we are forgiven!  Amen.

Prayer of Dedication/Offering

In these moments, God who comes, remind us of those who are yearning to be lifted to their feet, those who hunger for hope, those who look for peace, and may our gifts be used to serve them.  In Jesus’ name, we pray.  Amen.

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving

May salvation’s Rock be with you!

May that foundation be with you!

As God approaches, let us lift our hearts in hope.

God comes to strengthen them with grace.

May our songs tell of God’s love which never ends.

We will sing of God’s faithfulness which lasts forever.

With patience, with gentleness,

you entered the emptiness of chaos,

God of wonder and awe,

spreading the rich soil of creation

from which sprang flowers and fields,

vegetables and trees, our ancestors in life.

You looked with favor upon them,

doing wondrous things for them.

But they wandered far from you,

losing themselves in the maze of thoughts

crafted by temptation and death.

You would not give up on them,

time after time sending prophets

with words of welcome and hope,

but they could not do your will.

So you sent Christ into the world,

filled with the Holy Spirit,

exclaiming with a living cry

of our salvation for all time.

With all those who trusted in what was unseen,

and those who believed the best would come,

we join our voices in singing your Advent praise:

Holy, holy, holy, God of holiness and peace.

All creation waits for your purpose to be revealed.

Hosanna in the highest!

Blessed is the One who comes to do your will.

Hosanna in the highest!

You are holy, God of unending glory,

and blessed is Jesus Christ, Hope of the world.

He came with haste, leaving your side

to set out on his journey for us.

The joy of your heart,

he come to proclaim your love;

the Word of your hope,

he came to call us home;

the fruit of your grace,

he was born to offer himself

for our salvation and freedom

from the power of sin,

making us your holy people

by his death and resurrection.

As we prepare to celebrate his birth,

as we remember the gift of his resurrection,

we would tell of that mystery we call faith:

P:    Christ was born, that we might see

            hope in the flesh;

        Christ lived, that we might hear

            grace spoken aloud;

         Christ died, that we might feel

            the breaking of God's heart;

        Christ is risen, that we might know

            that the promises are true;

        Christ will come again, that we

            might be blessed as God's children.

Pour out your Spirit

upon the gifts of this Table

and upon your children

who gather for your feast.

In this place, we are filled

with the strength of hope,

so we may serve those

who hunger for goodness and grace.

Restored by the Cup of life,

we can dare to go out

to empty ourselves for those

who wander the streets of life,

unnoticed by the rest of the world.

And when our journey has ended,

when your Advent has come to gather us home,

we will join with Elizabeth and Mary,

with Joseph and John the Baptist,

with our sisters and brothers from all time,

forever singing our joy to you,

God in Community, Holy in One.  Amen.

Sending

O come, Child of the covenant,

to lead us to the heirs of the promises made long ago.

We will go with you to those who have been forgotten,

to lift all those knocked down by life to their feet.

O Come, salvation’s servant,

to show us the way to the joy of this season.

We will go with you to welcome the outsider,

and to throw our arms around those whose hearts are broken.

O Come, Lover of the lowly,

to fill our hands with the shawls of grace and peace.

We will go to wrap them around those who grieve,

to place them on the shoulders of those damaged by violence.  

(c) Thom M. Shuman

Liturgy w/communion for December 15, 2024 (Advent 3 - C)

  Texts: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Isaiah 12:2-6; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18

Call to Worship
Come, let us rejoice this day in the God 
who is near in everyone around us.
We will sing glad songs of the One
who is rebuilding neighborhoods in our midst.
Come, let us rejoice always in Jesus 
who baptizes us with hope and compassion.
We will join in choruses of praise of the One
who brings justice to the forgotten in our midst.
Come, let us rejoice again and again in the Spirit
who offers us new life in every moment.
We will sing full throttle of the One
who fills us with gifts to share with everyone in our midst.

Prayer of the Day
Holy God,
when we believe it is enough
that we have sung in choirs,
remind us that it is
the lullabies to little children,
the acceptance sung to teenagers,
the welcoming songs to strangers,
the oldies hummed with older folks
that matter the most.

Jesus, our uncomfortable Brother,
when we believe it is enough
to have been in church every week
remind us that it is
the kindness we share on Monday,
the justice we work for on Tuesday
the tutoring we offer on Wednesday,
the meals we serve on Thursday,
the blood we donate on Friday,
the rides we give on Saturday,
the grace we live every day
that matter the most.

Spirit of wisdom,
when we believe it is enough
to have taught Sunday School
for so many years, remind us that it is
the words of forgiveness we offer,
the books we open for children,
the skills we share without recompense,
the arms we open to others
that matter the most.

When we believe our lives faithfulness are enough,
remind us that there is always more we can do,
God in Community, Holy in One,
even as we pray as we are taught,
(The Lord's Prayer)

Call to Reconciliation
Why should we fear? Whatever we have said or done; whoever we have neglected or whatever we refused to do, surely God has washed away with the waters of life, flowing into that crystal sea of forgiveness.  Let us bring our lives to the One who comes to give us hope and life, in this and in every season, as we pray together, saying,

Unison Prayer for Forgiveness
   We admit, God of Advent, that it is easier to trust a politician's glib words than yours which were spoken so long ago.  We know how afraid we are of tomorrow, because of what we do today, ignoring what you brought about so long ago.  We, who have been given so much from your heart, find it hard to share even a smidgen from  our abundance.
   Forgive us, God our hope, and have mercy on us.  Lift us to our feet; draw us close into your loving embrace; drench us the buckets of grace drawn from the deep wells of life, so we will have the courage to declare you as our God, as we follow Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with the Holy Spirit.

Silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon
As plain as the heart in our chests, the good new is this: God is our hope.  God is our life.  God is our future.
We will sing aloud, our voices at full throttle.  We are forgiven, we are saved!  Thanks be to God.  Amen.

Prayer of Dedication/Offering
We will not be afraid, Loving God, to offer our hopes, our hearts, our treasures to you, but do so willingly, trusting that you will use them to bring life, joy, grace, and peace to all around us.  We pray in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
May the God who saves us be with you.
May the God of redemption be with you.
Let us offer our hearts to our God of grace.
We open them that God may fill them with life and hope.
Come and sing glad praises to the God who is with us.
With great joy and hope, we join in glad choruses of praise.

Out of the dried up well called chaos,
Divining God, you brought forth
creation gushing with living waters,
   that ran through valleys towards oceans,
   that sprinkled flowers on forest floors,
   that gave nourishment to birds, to animals
and to those shaped in your image,
who were offered all the gracious gifts
which flowed from your heart.
We could have lived with you 
in that garden of wonder and delight,
   but we listened to the temptations
   offered to us by death and sin,
   choosing to share our lives with them.
The prophets came, time and again,
their words sung full throttle
in the courtyards of cities and
from the rooftops of villages,
   but we were like those trees
   which look so healthy on the outside,
   but are hollowed out by decay.
In your love, and with your hope,
you chose to become one of us,
Jesus being born into our lives.

With those who rejoice always and again,
with those who long to be brought home,
we lift our voices to you:

Holy, holy, holy are you, God who saves us.
We rejoice with all creation in praising you.
Hosanna in the highest!

Blessed is the One who comes to baptize us 
   with new life and with the Spirit.
Hosanna in the highest!

Though you are holy being knowing,
God of this season, you chose hope
to be embodied in Jesus, your Child.
Rejecting power,
   his weakness raises the fallen to their feet;
refusing to be afraid,
   he whispers to us to trust as deeply
   and faithfully as he did;
unable to exclude the forgotten,
   he welcomes his sisters and brothers
   shoved to the side and forgotten by us;
doing all he could for others,
he finally let his executioners 
untie the thongs of his sandals,
so that by his death and resurrection,
we might be shod in resurrection love,
walking home to be with you at last.

Surely his resurrection gives us new hope and life,
surely we bear the fruit of his grace and life,
even as we proclaim that mystery we call faith:

Surely, on that day, Jesus gave his life for those he loved;
surely, on that morning, Jesus was raised to new life;
surely, in that time to come, Jesus will gather us to new life.

O holy God of the ages, may your Spirit
descend upon those of us gathered 
and on the gifts which fill the sacred table.
Here, may the broken bread feed us
and reshape our fragmented lives
so we may see those around us,
   giving our extra clothes
      to those who have too few;
   emptying our pantries
      to feed those who are hungry.
Here, may we draw compassion 
from the deep wells of the cup of grace,
so we may go forth to serve others:
   as crossing guards at schools,
   as caregivers for the vulnerable,
   as your peace which brings healing.

And when all time and history has ended
and we are brought home at the last,
we will sing full throttle with our sisters and brothers,
with great joy, hope, wonder, and praise
of your enduring goodness and grace,
God in Community, Holy in One.  Amen.

Sending
Setting aside our fears and worries, let us go.
We will go as God's people on this day,
to remind everyone that God is as close
to them as the beats of their hearts.
Setting aside our prejudices and assumptions, let us go.
We will go as Jesus' followers this day,
to gather up the forgotten and bring them home,
to embrace the lonely as sisters and brothers.
Setting aside our expectations and demands, let us go.
We will go as those graced by the Spirit,
to share with others the waters from grace's deep wells,
to offer that peace which never comes to an end.

(c) Thom M. Shuman