Texts: 1 Kings 3:5-12; Psalm 119:129-136; Romans 8:26-39; Matthew
13:31-33, 44-52
Call to Worship
L: Come and worship, proclaim
God's ways
of faithfulness and steadfast love.
P: We will tell of
God's love,
which unfolds in our lives.
L: Come and worship, for we
are God's
people, rejoicing in his graciousness.
P: God is always
with us, there is nothing
which can keep us apart.
L: Come to the
One who tells stories;
worship our God who keeps promises.
P: We
rejoice with God
who is with us always.
Prayer of the Day
In
this kingdom
where the hopeless
are thrown into
Lake Forgotten
forever,
you cast your net,
drawing them
into your
embrace,
cradling them in your heart.
In this kingdom
where
folks turn anorexic
gorging on greed,
while the poor scratch
in
famine's fallow fields,
you wander in,
offering top dollar
for
the pearls of grace
they uncover.
In this kingdom
where hope and
faith,
patience and peace
have been sold as showpieces
for fancy
museums,
you come,
purchasing them back,
polishing off the
dust,
handing them back to us
so we can see the reflection
of
that kingdom
your forged for us,
God in Community, Holy in One,
even as
we pray, saying
(The Lord's Prayer)
Call to Reconciliation
It is
not our past which keeps us from God,
for that is behind us. It is not our
present,
for God is with us on this day. And our future
is held tight in
God's hands. It is true - there
is absolutely nothing which can separate
us
from God. Whatever sins we have committed,
God's forgiveness and love
take them away
forever. Join me as we pray together, saying,
Unison
Prayer for Forgiveness
What can we say about our foolish lives,
God
of Love? Too often, we choose to worship power
when we could serve
others in humility. We toss
and turn at night, all those things over which
we
have no control keeping us wide awake, when we
could turn them over to
you. No matter how many
times we hear the news that death has lost its
power
over us, we dread that day and try everything we can
to postpone
it.
For believing that our sins are more powerful
than your mercy,
forgive us, Grace of the world.
You cast out your net of grace so that all
might be
gathered into your kingdom. Your Spirit carries
the whispers of
our hearts to you, and we are
embraced with your hope, blessed with your
love
through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Silence is
kept
Assurance of Pardon
L: Who has the right to judge us? Only
Christ. Yet
Christ died for us, Christ was raised for us,
Christ
reigns in power over us - Christ even prays for us!
P: This
is the love which binds us to god forever. There
is nothing is this
word, or beyond, which will keep
us from being God's children. Thanks
be to God. Amen.
Prayer of Dedication/Offering
We offer our gifts to
you, Steadfast Love, not because
you need them, but so others might be as
blessed as
we are by your presence, your power, and your peace.
Amen.
Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
L: May the God whose life is
stronger than death be with you.
P: And also with you.
L: Come to the
One who searches your hearts.
P: We open them to God, who justifies
us.
L: Let us give thanks to God who shows us steadfast love.
P: We sing
to the Lord, whose grace is kept in our hearts.
What then are we to say,
God of creative thought?
You carved mountains out of valleys,
poured
rivers to the seas,
created galaxies so numerous they cannot be
counted,
and shaped us from the dust of the stars.
You walked before
us in righteousness,
inviting us to follow in your footsteps,
but we
bought fields filled with fools' gold,
and threw out our nets until
they
overflowed with temptations.
Prophets came, to impart
wisdom to us,
but tears ran down their cheeks as
we continued to be
conformed to sin.
Turning to us, you were gracious enough
to send Jesus to
us, to help us in our weakness.
With those who listen and
understand,
with those who seek a discerning mind,
we sing our
thanksgivings to you:
P: Holy, holy, holy are you, God who justifies
us.
All creation rejoices in your steadfast love.
Hosanna in the
highest!
Blessed is the One who reveals your kingdom.
Hosanna in the
highest!
What then are we to say,
Searcher for God's most precious
possessions?
Like a farmer,
you plant seeds into insignificant
people,
watching them grow into servants.
Like a baker,
you
mix the least with the mighty,
the poor with the
rich,
the weak with the strong,
to shape your
inclusive kingdom.
Like a lover,
you withhold nothing from
those
you carry in your heart,
even dying so that we
might
have life forever with God.
As we rejoice that Jesus
gave us everything,
as we remember nothing stands between us and God,
we
speak of that mysterious faith which is ours:
P: Christ died, giving up
his own life for us;
Christ was raised, God's treasure brought
forth
from the potter's field;
Christ will intercede for
us, with joy and hope.
What then are we to say,
Spirit of the
Sights?
In the bread shaped for the healing,
you unfold the Word to
us,
feeding us on God's hopes
until we seethe over
the
injustices of our time.
In the cup prepared for the pouring,
you fill
us with light,
so we can journey into
the shadows of our
world,
searching for those thrown
aside by our
society.
And when time ends,
when there is nothing more to say,
we
will sing our praises to you forever,
God in Community, Holy in One.
Amen.
Sending
L: Go forth to proclaim God's constant love.
P: We
will live out that love for everyone we meet.
L: Go forth to unfold God's
Word to the world.
P: We will gather up the tears of those around
us,
as we offer the healing grace of Jesus.
L: Go forth to tell
stories of hope and peace.
P: We will spread the Spirit of life all around
us.
© 2014 Thom M. Shuman