33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time/Proper 28 - A

Texts:  Judges 4:1-7; Psalm 123; 1st Thessalonians 5:1-11; Matthew 25:14-30

Call to Worship
L: This is the Lord's Day, the day of wonder and grace.
P: This is the day to worship the One who calls us here.
L: This is the Lord's Day, the day we are given joy and peace.
P: This is the day promised to us, the day of healing and renewal.
L: This is the Lord's Day, and it has come just in time!
P: This is the day we gather with hope, with faith, with love.

Prayer of the Day
Now,
in the silence,
when we struggle
control our lives,
may we, once again,
empty ourselves of our pride and fears,
to be filled with your hope.
Now,
in these moments,
when we cannot let go
of our worries and doubts,
may we, once again,
open our hands to hold your faith.
Now,
on this day
which is only and always
your gift to us,
may we, once again,
live into your kingdom.

Now, as we lift our hearts to you,
God in Community, Holy in One,
we once again pray as we have been taught saying,
Our Father . . .

Call to Reconciliation
When we remember all the mistakes we have made, all the careless words we
have spoken, all the contempt we have given to those around us, we have
trouble looking God in the eye.  But God gazes at us with mercy and love,
waiting to forgive us, even as we hesitate to speak of the brokenness of our
hearts.

Unison Prayer of Confession
Again we must confess, Master of the Universe,
our struggles to be faithful disciples.
Entrusted with all your gifts,
   we become fearful once again of misusing them,
   missing the chance to be a blessing to others.
Invited to dance in the light of your love,
   we stand against the wall once again,
   keeping company with our old friend, sin.
Called to be emptied for those who struggle in life,
   we fill ourselves once again, with scorn
   for the poor choices they make.

Have mercy, Journeying God, have mercy on us.
Once again, open our eyes to your kingdom in our midst,
so we might discover that your day of hope and grace has
already come in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

Silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon
L: This is the good news: God intends for us to find
life, to embrace hope, to receive forgiveness through
Jesus Christ, our Servant.
P: The end our our journey is not rejection and emptiness,
but the fullness of grace and hope in our God.  Thanks
be to God, we are forgiven.  Amen.

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
L:  May the God of promises be with you!
P:  And also with you!
L:  Rejoice in the One who surprises us, people of God.
P:  We lift our hearts to God who brings us salvation.
L:  Children of God, join in glad song to the Giver of mercy.
P:  Our voices join in praise to the God of love and hope.

When you had
had enough of chaos,
Covenant God,
you cried out in love
and creation burst forth in joy.
You shaped us into images of you,
that we might be children of light,
but we were drawn into
the shadowy life of sin and death.
You sent people like Deborah
to call us back into your light,
but we were scornful of their words.
Then you sent Jesus,
who came to fill us
with your love and hope.

So, with servants and sinners,
with judges and those who endure injustice,
we lift our voices, our hearts, our eyes
singing to the One enthroned in our hopes:

P:   Holy, holy, holy, God enthroned in the heavens.
      All creation looks to the hand of the Creator.
      Hosanna in the highest!

      Blessed is the One who walked the dusty paths of earth.
      Hosanna in the highest!

Holy are you, God of Wonder,
And blessed is Jesus Christ, our Lord.
When the proud hurled
their contempt at him,
he humbly knelt to serve them.
When friends urged him
to play it safe,
he crawled out onto faith's limb,
trusting it would hold him.
When death wrapped him
in it's cold shadows,
he burst forth into the light
of resurrection joy,
that we might live
in the kingdom with you.

As we remember his mercy and hope,
as we celebrate the feast he has prepared,
we speak of that mystery we call faith:

P:  Christ died on that day of shadowed hearts;
     Christ rose on that day when death was surprised by love;
     Christ will come to us on that day of light and love.

Your grace showers down
upon the seeds you have planted,
your hope warms the harvest
planted in our hearts.
As the Spirit gathers your gifts
and prepares them for your Table,
make us ready to receive them
with joy and gratitude.
As you send us forth
to serve your people,
may our faith and love
be transformed into winter coats
we can give to the homeless;
may our hope become
the meals we fix for the hungry.

And when that long-awaited Day comes,
when all times and seasons have ended,
we will gather at your Feast,
joining our voices with our sisters and brothers,
as we sing to you through all eternity,
God in Community, Holy in One.  Amen.

© 2011 Thom M. Shuman