Texts:
1 Kings 19:4-8; Psalm 34:1-8; Ephesians 4:25 – 5:2; John 6:35, 41-51
Call to Worship
You
are the One for whom we search, O God,
and we worship you
because you have found us.
You
are the hope for which we yearn, O Christ,
and so we follow you to
serve at your side.
You
are the peace which can calm us, Holy Spirit,
and so we open our
brokenness so you might fill us.
Prayer of the Day
In
the touch of a lover’s hand,
in
the tickling fingers of a child,
in
the brush strokes on a canvas,
in
the notes played on a violin,
You
Are the grace of life
in
our hearts.
In
the meals neighbors bring during grief,
in
the cold lemonade of children on the corner,
in
the cookies and milk offered after school,
in
the sacks of groceries shared with the homeless,
You
Are the Bread of life,
in
our moments.
In
the gentle showers of summer,
in
the cool breezes of autumn,
in the brittle stars of winter,
in
the butterflies of spring,
You
Are the Spirit of life,
in
our midst.
In
our midst, in our hearts, in our moments,
You
Are, God in Community, Holy in One,
and
so we lift the prayer we are taught, saying,
(The Lord’s Prayer)
Call to Reconciliation
We
say we know you, and what you hope for us, but our words and actions, our
silences and failures to care, show that we have so much to discover about our
God. Let us gather up our foolish lives
and offer them in prayer to the One who longs to forgive us and save us from ourselves.
Unison Prayer for
Forgiveness
If we are to speak truth in these moments, Giver
of the Bread of life, we must admit that we are not very gracious folk, with
our words or with our actions. It seems
enough to hold grudges, not to speak grace to those who hurt us. It seems enough to get into arguments with
others, rather than find paths of peace.
It seems enough to pour out bitterness to those around us to drink,
rather than cool cups of love.
Forgive us, Merciful God, so we might live
in love, as your children. May the grace
which was in Jesus fill us with grace.
May the hope which was in Jesus fill us with hope. May the life which was in Jesus fill us with
life. As Jesus was your heart to us, may
we be your heart to those around us.
This we pray, even as we offer our lives to you in silence.
Silence is kept
Assurance of Pardon
When
we love others, we imitate God. When we
help others, we imitate God. When we
offer mercy to others, we imitate God.
May others continue to see God in us, even as we are loved, helped, and
forgiven by our God.
We see God’s grace in
the eyes of a child; we taste God’s goodness in a meal with friends; we live
God’s peace when we offer justice as a sacrifice for others. Thanks be to God, we are forgiven. Amen.
Prayer of
Dedication/Offering
Too
often, we think it is enough to offer the spare change we have on our dresser,
or the few dollars returned after paying for dinner. But you offer us grace, hope, mercy in
abundance beyond imagination, and call us to be as generous and loving as
you. Receive our gifts, and make as more
giving, we pray. Amen.
The Great Prayer of
Thanksgiving
May
the God of fragrant offerings be with you;
and also with you.
Children
of God, taste and see the goodness offered to you.
We offer our hearts to
the One who fills us with wonder.
People
of faith, join in singing glad songs to our God.
We will rejoice in the
One who shelters us in grace and love.
Creation
is the fragrant offering
shared
with us from the moment chaos shattered
and
the tangy smells of the ocean,
the sweet breath of pines,
the perfume of roses and crocuses
filled
us with wonder and peace.
These
gifts and so many more were intended
for
your children shaped from dust,
but we preferred the aftershave of sin
and the stench of death in our lives.
Time
and again you sent prophets,
those
women and men who spoke
your
words of truth to us, but
we continued to mutter under our breath,
refusing to listen to their words.
Then
you sent your Child to us,
so
that we might know where he came from,
your
heart which was broken over us.
With
those who know the sting of harmful words,
with
those whose speak grace and hope,
we
offer our praises to you:
Holy, holy, holy are
you, God who searches for us.
All creation tastes and
sees how good you are.
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the One who
shows us the way to you.
Hosanna in the highest!
Hope
is the fragrant offering
you
pour out for us in Jesus, our brother.
We
think we know who he is,
but discover him abiding
in the most vulnerable among us.
We
think we know where he comes from,
until we see him in the Separated Ones
at the border of fear and anger.
We
think we know why he comes,
and then watch him embrace death,
challenging sin’s dread power over us,
and singing “I AM the resurrection”
as he breaks free from the tomb.
As
we remember that he came because you called,
as
we seek to be faithful to our call,
we
whisper of that mystery we call faith:
The Bread of life was
broken on the cross;
the Bread of life was
made whole in the resurrection;
the Bread of life will
come from heaven,
and
we will rejoice.
Life
is the fragrant offering
given
to us at this table
as
your pour out your Spirit
on
your people gathered in these moments,
and
on the bread and cup which are made ready.
The
broken bread is more than enough
to
strengthen us so we might
speak hope to those who need it;
show wonder to those who wander;
gather children into our hearts.
The
cup of grace is more than enough
to
fill us, so we might empty ourselves
of grudges which keep us from forgiving;
of fears which prevent us from welcoming;
of doubts which keep us from serving.
And
when we no longer need to search,
but
are gathered up in your love
with
our sisters and brothers from all time,
we
will taste and see your grace
at
the great feast of the Lamb,
as
we sing your praises forever and ever,
God
in Community, Holy in One. Amen.
Sending
The
God of gentleness sends us forth,
so we may go to offer
words of grace
to those who need them
most.
The
Bread of Life has fed us,
so we may go to offer
justice
as a gift to those held
captive by fears.
The
Spirit of peace gifts us with truth,
so we might speak out
against cruelty,
so we might offer good
news to the broken.
©
2018 Thom M. Shuman
