22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - A

Call to Worship

We are told that our love towards others
should be true and sincere;
which is difficult towards those
who are mean, dishonest, hateful.
We are asked to love all people
as if they were our sisters and brothers;
which suggests that all of us are one family,
there are to be no barriers between us.
We are implored to be patient, to rejoice,
and to never stop praying;
but we grow weary from our suffering,
our loneliness, our grief.
Why should we do all these things?
Because we are God's people,
called to lives that are different
and make a difference.

Prayer of the Day

God our Creator,
you are alive:
in the singing of geese flying south,
in the leaves gently stirring in the breeze,
in the stars that dance at night.

Christ our Brother,
you are in our midst:
in the lap of a grandmother,
in the cries of a newborn,
in the stillness of dawn.

Spirit of God,
you make all ground holy:
the classes where we fidget,
the sidewalks where we meet our neighbors,
the grass in our backyards.

God in Community, Holy in One,
hear us now, as we pray as we have been taught,
saying,
Our Father . . .

Call to Reconciliation

Holy places are not far away, they are wherever we meet God. Burning bushes are not only found in stories, but in our homes, our workplaces, our churches. But we are so broken, we cannot see the sacred which surrounds us. Let us confess our sin to God, who desires nothing more than to forgive us.

Unison Prayer of Confession

God of Moses and Miriam, your love for each of us can never be doubted, but our families and friends are often unsure of our affection for them. Your justice burns within us, God of Anna and Amos, but our frozen hearts cannot feel its touch. Your Word would call us to lives of denial and service, God of Peter and Phoebe, but we cannot keep from looking out for ourselves before anyone else.

Forgive us, God of sinners and saints. We would hear your call to service; we would hear your challenge to deny ourselves; we would hear your invitation to faithfulness, and we will listen and follow our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Silent Prayers may be offered

Assurance of Pardon

This is the good news, my friends. God comes to give us new life, as forgiven and redeemed people.
We sing our praises to the One who has made us whole. Thanks be to God. Amen.

(c) 2005 Thom M. Shuman

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time - A

Call to Worship

In a time of bitterness and pain,
God raised up Moses,
and changed the lives of a people.
From the shadow of death,
God raised up Jesus,
and changed the lives of all people.
In every time, and in every place,
God raises up witnesses,
people whose lives are changed forever.

Prayer of the Day

Like Miriam with Moses,
you watch over us,
Ever-seeing God.
You do not leave us
to drift on the currents
of the world;
you will not give us over
to the power of evil;
you have not left us alone
but gifted us with your Body,
the church.

Christ of Compassion:
you could have used the wise,
but you work through the foolish;
you could have chosen
the most gifted talkers,
but you speak through children;
you could command us
to do anything you wish,
but you beg us
to open our lives
to God's Wisdom.

Helper Spirit:
when we are reluctant
to part with our treasures,
you fill us with generosity;
when we are hesitant
to help others,
you make us passionate to serve;
when we are lonely and afraid,
you surround us with loving
sisters and brothers.

God in Community, Holy in One,
hear us as we pray as we have been taught,
Our Father . . .

Call to Reconciliation

We are so much like Peter. Jesus tells us what it will take to follow him, and we want to argue. Jesus shows us the way to the Kingdom, and we seek a smoother path. Let us put down all that keeps us from following Jesus, as we confess our sins to God.

Unison Prayer of Confession

We confess our struggle to be transformed into disciples, God of mystery. The desires of the world would shape us into people you would not recognize. The demands of our society pull us away from your heart. Our culture values the rich, the powerful, the successful, but you are on the side of the weak, the poor, the outcast, the oppressed.

Forgive us, Merciful God, for looking for you in the wrong places. Reawaken us with your voice that calls us to service; revive our weary hearts with your vision of creation; refresh our fatigued spirits that we might boldly proclaim Jesus as our Lord and as our Savior, and go forth to serve your people in Christ's name.

Silent Prayers may be offered

Assurance of Pardon

It's too easy to think like the world, that money will give us happiness, that power can provide grace. But Paul reminds us that if we think like Christ, and live like servants, we will find true freedom.
Not only our minds, but our hearts and spirits will be transformed into the likeness of Christ, enabling us to be faithful disciples. Thanks be to God. Amen.

(c) 2005 Thom M. Shuman

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time - A

Call to Worship
How good it is to gather as God's people!
Here, there are no barriers between us;
here, we make no distinctions among people.
When we come together as God's Family,
it is as if the sacred water of baptism
is once more running down our cheeks.
When we rejoice together,
when we pray together,
when we serve together,
we know the abundant life
God has promised to us.

Prayer of the Day
Welcoming God:
your covenant with your people
is never broken;
your call to us
is never taken back;
your invitation to all
to be a part of your Family
is never revoked.

Accepting Christ:
there is not any place
you will not go
to bring God's grace to others.
In you,
the enemy is made a friend;
the broken are made whole;
the orphan finds a family.

Embracing Spirit:
your gentleness falls upon us,
and our fears of rejection vanish;
your truth is whispered in our ears,
and our arms open to strangers;
your peace is poured into our souls,
and we are reconciled to those we have hurt;
your love opens our shuttered hearts,
and we recognize our brothers and sisters around us.

God in Community, Holy in One,
in you we receive life forever more.
Hear us as we pray as Jesus has taught us,
Our Father . . .

Call to Reconciliation
Even as we gather to praise God, we must remember that too often we prefer our way to God's. Because God can make us new people, we dare to speak to God of all that we have done this past week that did not reflect the Holy within us.

Unison Prayer of Confession

Given the chance, God of this day, we know we will choose to follow the world and not you. We show this in how we treat our families and friends. We reveal our choices in our desire for more and more of everything. We expose our lack of faith by our trust in the temptations of our culture, rather than in your call to obedience and service.

And so we come to you, Helper of the weak, looking for mercy. You do not give us the crumbs of your heart, but the fullness of grace. You do not turn your back on us, but run toward us to sweep us into your loving arms. You come into our broken world that we might be carried into your Kingdom of hope and joy You give us new life, life forever, through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

Silent Prayers may be offered

Assurance of Pardon
It is God who hears you, God who forgives you,
God who loves you, God who gives you new life.
Even now, God is with us, filling our hearts
with peace and joy. Thanks be to God. Amen.

(c) 2005 Thom M. Shuman

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time - A

Call to Worship
L: Scripture tells us of how Jesus once invited
Peter to step out in faith onto the deep waters.
P: We are also invited to step out of our safety,
our security and walk towards Jesus.
L: Of course, Peter became afraid and,
in his fear, began to sink.
P: Like Peter, we are afraid and cry out,
'Lord, save us!'
L: The One who has power over all creation
comes to save us.
P: We will be saved by the One
who is God's Son!

Prayer of the Day
All around us are signs of your presence,
God-in-Christ.
Where the oppressed receive justice,
you will be found;
where the hungry are being fed,
you are on the serving line;
when the blind receive their sight,
you show them the glories of creation;
where the stranger is welcomed,
you are holding out your arms;
when the prisoners are set free,
you step forward in hope with them;
where promises are broken,
you reach out to mend shattered hearts.

And you are not alone,
for you call us to work beside you
in every place were you are,
with every person you serve,
with every breath you give us,
with every gift with which we have been blessed.
Help us to love you and one another more
than any award, job, or recognition,
even as we pray as Jesus has taught us, saying,
Our Father...

Call to Reconciliation
God alone deserves our loyalty and trust. But often, our faith sinks and our trust is blown away by the storms of life. Let us tell God of our sins, that we might know forgiveness, and live forever with our God. Join me as we pray, saying,

Unison Prayer of Confession
Too often, Waiting God, we have so little faith that we begin to sink, and we trust the world to save us. We find it so easy to drown in the temptations of the world. And our boats seem so sturdy and safe, that we hesitate to step out of them into new ways of life.
Save us, Holy God, save us! Reach out your hand to those dying in fear and drowning in doubt. Reach out your hand, as Jesus did to Peter, not because we deserve rescue, but because you love us enough to save us, from ourselves, from sin, from death. This we pray, in Jesus' name.

Silent prayers may be offered.

Assurance of Pardon
L: We cannot avoid the truth that we are sinners. But
the greater truth is that we are forgiven sinners.
Through God's love in Christ Jesus, we set aside
all that is past, and step out, in courage and faith,
into God's future for us.
P: We trust God's promises, we trust Christ's resurrection,
we trust the Spirit who works in and through us.
Thanks be to God! Amen.

The Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
L: The Lord is with you!
P: And also with you!
L: People of God: lift up your hearts to the One
who invites you to daring discipleship.
P: We lift our hearts to the One
who calls us out of our comfort zones.
L: People of God: give thanks to the Lord our God.
P: We lift our hearts to the One who
enables us to walk the paths of pilgrimage.

To the one true and living God,
we can only bring our songs of glory and praise.
Through you, the light of creation
dispelled the shadows of chaos;
from you came the imaginative Word,
shaping the mountains that touch the sky,
scooping out the hollows for the seas;
by you the Spirit of beginnings breathed,
giving life to people
created in your image.
In love, you embraced us as your own,
giving us the freedom to make our own choices.
Our foolishness led us to believe
that we were wiser than Wisdom herself,
and greater than the Creator of the stars.
So we ran away from your glory
and into the arms of sin and disobedience.
But as a mother tenderly nourishes her children,
as a father welcomes home the wayward,
you did not abandon us to the powers of evil,
but in your graciousness, you came to us,
speaking through the words of the prophets
and the witness of the faithful.
When we continued to turn away from you,
you sent Jesus Christ, your true Heart,
that we might see your love face to face.

And so, we join the faithful of every time and place,
who, beholding the glory of your presence,
sing with countless throngs of angels,
hymns of unending praise:

P: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,
who is, who was, and who is to come.
Let us praise and glorify God forever.
You are worthy, Lord our God,
to receive praise and glory,
honor and blessing.

How wonderful are the works of your hands, Holy God,
and how gracious is the gift of your Son,
Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
When we were famished from eating
the empty promises of the world,
he came, breaking the bread of fullness;
when we hungered from the vain feast of fame,
he came, eating with the lost, the least, the little, the last;
when we found no nourishment in our disobedience,
he came, breaking bread with sinners and outcasts;
when we chose to nibble on death,
he came, to be broken on the cross of Calvary.

Giver of eternal life in Christ,
as we remember his life, his ministry, his gentleness,
his acceptance of all, his death, his life,
we would speak of that mystery of faith we claim as believers:

P: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive
divine power, wisdom, and strength,
honor, glory and blessing.
Let us praise and glorify him forever.

Breathe on us, Breath of God,
and upon these gifts of the bread and the cup.
As we join Christ at this Table,
to be strengthened by your gifts of grace and hope,
send us forth to be your faithful people.
Having tasted the Bread of Life,
may we go forth to bring healing
to every corner of our shattered world;
as we drink of the Cup of Salvation,
may we be poured out
in service to those who can find no life;
as you have broken yourself for us,
so we will do so for everyone in your kingdom.
Then, when all creation is healed,
and all people are one family,
we will gather around the Feast of the Lamb,
singing our praise to you, Holy God:
through Christ, in Christ, with Christ,
and in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever:
P: Praise our God all your servants,
honor God, you who would be faithful,
small and great, young and old.
Let us praise and glorify God forever.
Let heaven and earth praise God's glory:
all creatures in heaven, on earth,
and under the earth,
the sea and everything in it.
Let us praise and glorify God forever.
Amen.
- - - - -
(the responses of the congregation in the GreatPrayer of Thanksgiving are adapted from a prayerby St. Francis of Assisi)

(c) 2005 Thom M. Shuman