Texts: Ruth 1:1-18; Psalm 146; Hebrews 9:11-14; Mark 12:28-34
Call to Worship
You are welcome in this place,
where God meets us in love.
Why are we here?
We are here to love God
with all that we have and all that we are.
You are welcome in this place,
where God loves us as children.
Why are we here?
We are here to love ourselves
as deeply as God loves us.
Welcome to this place,
where God serves us at the
Table of love and grace.
Why are we here?
We are here to be sent forth
to love others as deeply as
we love God and ourselves.
Prayer of the Day
Living God:
when there is a famine
in our souls,
you feed us with grace;
when there are pockets of poverty
in our love for others,
you bless us with generosity;
when we are empty and alone,
you move into our hearts.
Jesus, Bearer of the good things
which have come to us:
you bend down
to lift us from despair;
you embrace those
who haven't a friend in the world;
you open the eyes of those
struck blind by arrogance and ambition.
Eternal Spirit:
you walk with us
wherever we go;
you take the fragments of our lives
and reshape us into holy people;
you are with us,
and not even death can separate us.
God in Community, Holy in One,
hear us as we pray
as Jesus taught us, saying,
(The Lord’s Prayer)
Call to Reconciliation
The world teaches us many ways to love, but all are based on selfish desires and needs. God teaches us how to love: completely, uniquely, unconditionally. Let us confess our difficulty to be as loving as God teaches us, as we pray, saying,
Unison Prayer for Forgiveness
We are hesitant to confess, Holy God, how hard it is to love as you wish. It is easy to love you with all that we are, except when you ask us to love our neighbor with all that we have. We find it hard to love our neighbor, when it is linked to the way we love ourselves. And it is difficult to love anyone - even You - more than we love ourselves.
Forgive us, Love Eternal. As you took a risk in creating us, help us to take risks to love others compassionately, to love ourselves genuinely, and to love you as completely as you love us in Jesus
Christ, our Lord and Savior.
Silence is kept
Assurance of Pardon
In God's Kingdom, all are loved for who they are, not what they do;
in God's Kingdom, all are forgiven for what they do, and don't;
in God's Kingdom, all are welcomed and fed by God's grace and hope.
Forgiven, loved, sent forth -
we are not far from God's Kingdom!
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Prayer of Dedication/Offering As we offer our gifts, our hearts, our lives to you, may we see your kingdom of hope and wonder, of healing and kindness unfolding in our midst. This we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Prayer of Dedication/Offering As we offer our gifts, our hearts, our lives to you, may we see your kingdom of hope and wonder, of healing and kindness unfolding in our midst. This we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
My beloved sisters and brothers, may the Lord be with you.
And also with you.
My beloved brothers and sisters, lift up your hearts.
Our hearts are lifted high to God.
Beloved of God, let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
Thanksgiving is in our hearts, and praise is on our lips.
We will sing praises to you all life long,
O Lord our God,
maker of the earth, the heavens, the seas,
and all that dwell in them.
You made us in your image
so we might be your people
and worship you forever.
But blinded by the seductions of the world,
we wandered far from your Kingdom,
putting our trust in those powers that cannot save us.
Despite our turning our backs on you,
you have clung to us in grace and love,
determined to be faithful to the covenant
you established with us.
Therefore, we join our voices,
with the saints of every time and of every place,
singing our praises to your heart:
Holy, holy, holy are you, Lord God of our souls.
Heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them
glorify your name forever.
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the One whose help is in you.
Hosanna in the highest!
We praise you, Holy God,
and bless your Son, Jesus Christ,
our Help, our Hope, our Lord.
He opened the eyes of the blind,
so we might behold your grace;
he loosed the bonds of the captive,
so we might follow in freedom;
he watched over strangers,
so we might become brothers and sisters;
he lifted up those who had fallen,
so we might walk the streets of the Kingdom;
he gave his heart to those ignored by the world,
so the widow and orphan might find
their heart's home in you;
he endured death's embrace,
so we might be welcomed
into eternal life with you.
His life, his words, his death, his resurrection
are mysteries we may not understand completely,
but which we will proclaim with faith:
Christ died, loving us more than himself;
Christ rose, loving God with all that he was;
Christ will come again, loving all God's children,
so we might be neighbors forever.
As we break the Bread of Life
and drink from the Cup of Salvation,
pour out your eternal Spirit
upon these gifts
and those who will receive them.
Despite our unfaithfulness,
we are determined to go with you;
despite our weakness,
we are resolved to worship you;
despite our fears and prejudices,
we are unfaltering in our commitment
to justice and hope for others.
Through your Son, Jesus Christ, who is our grace;
through the Spirit, who is our hope;
we honor and glorify your love
for all people in creation,
Great God, our peace and our joy,
now and forever. Amen.
Blessing
As you leave this place, go with God.
We will go wherever God goes.
As you depart to serve, go with Christ.
We will not turn back from following Jesus.
As you live the coming days, go with the Spirit.
God's people will be our people,
and we will share our lives with them.
(c) Thom M. Shuman
(c) Thom M. Shuman
