Worship

Mother’s Day Prayer 2019

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

The origins of this prayer is from a blogger I stumbled across a while ago. I have since modified and added to this prayer over the years as I have discovered motherly vocations that I have omitted. If you have ideas for additions and/or modifications to this prayer, please let me know. This continues to be a work in progress, but here it is for 2019…

This Mother’s Day, we give thanks for loving, wonderful mothers, who have given their children so many invaluable gifts. We give thanks for new mothers, welcoming new life into the world. We give thanks for those who choose their children, responding to a unique calling; adoptive and foster parents, who model the adoptive love of God. We give thanks for aunts and godmothers and neighbors, who share maternal love with so many children; and for far too often overlooked stepmothers. We give thanks for those who choose to remain without biological children, sharing love with the world in many ways.

Together we pray for the many mothers who have had to bear the unimaginable burden of burying a child, and those who have born the silent grief of stillbirth or miscarriage. For those who have had hope seemingly ripped away from them through a failed adoption. We pray for those who struggle with infertility, whose desire for a child is met with frustration. We pray for the mothers of children with special needs and chronic illness, who know anxiety and exhaustion better than most. We pray for those who were given abuse and heartbreak by the ones called to love them. We pray for mothers who have made the difficult and loving decision to entrust a child to adoptive parents. We remember mothers who parent alone for a variety of reasons, who deal with challenges that many can not understand but do so with grace and love.

We remember all women, who function in roles, names and not named, even though they may not have children as the world defines it, yet they are mothers to many by showing a motherly love, that is tender, compassionate, caring in a way that only a mother can show. Lord, we thank you for the gift of mothers, of all kinds.

The Gift

/ The Pastor

This is the Great Thanksgiving liturgy I wrote for Holy Communion today, based on the preaching text from John 20:19-29…

It is indeed right and salutary
that we should at all times and in all places
give thanks and praise to you,
oh God,
Creator of life.
Your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ died on the cross
and rose from the dead that our sins would be forgiven.
This is awesome and incredible news,
but also unbelievable to our human brains.
For one thing we are sinners worthy of condemnation
and secondly dead people don’t come back to life.
But all thanks and praise to You
that You have given us the gift of Your Holy Spirit
that we can believe this Good News;
that Jesus is alive,
and thus be saved.
And so we join with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven
in singing Your unending praise…

You

/ The Pastor

“There is none holy like the Lord: for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.” [1 Samuel 2:2 ESV]

Holy God,
Father,
the Almighty,
there is indeed no one like You — not even close.
There is no one or no thing that can come close to comparing to You.
You are
Holy,
Sovereign,
Creator of all.
You are my God and thus I worship You.
You, oh Lord do I worship.
You
You
for You and You alone are worthy.
But what am I?
As the psalmist say, I am but a worm.
I am only worthy of condemnation and destruction.
Oh Lord, my God, have mercy on this worm,
a sinner,
wretched,
insolent
Have mercy, Lord, have mercy, in Jesus name.
Forgive me
Forgive me
Forgive me
May I sing Your praise day and night.
May I proclaim Your glory.
May I shout of Your salvation.
May I dwell in You.
For You are indeed my Rock and Salvation.
Ohhhh…
…there is no god like You,
for You are my Rock and Salvation.
You
You
only You.
You are my God.

Washed Clean

/ The Pastor

It is indeed right and salutary
that we should at all times and in all places
give thanks and praise to you,
oh God,
righteous King and Creator.
We are a sinful people; lost, corrupt and seekers of our own glory.
We have gone astray and sought after other gods.
We are deserving of Your wrath-filled judgment.
But You, oh God, are a merciful God.
You are holy and just
and so You sent Jesus to redeem our sin-filled selves.
He washed us clean with his blood;
taking our sins upon himself
and thus gave us entry into the Wedding Feast.
And so we worship You;
joining with Church on earth and the hosts of heaven
in singing Your unending praise.

The Cornerstone

/ The Pastor

The following is the Great Thanksgiving preface that I wrote for the Holy Communion liturgy for today. I was inspired by the Gospel text from Luke 20:9-18; the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. A church not built on Jesus will surely fall…

It is indeed right and salutary
that we should at all times and in all places
give thanks and praise to you,
oh God,
holy, mighty and awesome.
You built the Church on the foundation of Jesus,
Your anointed and only Son.
Through faith in him our sins have been forgiven
and thus we have been clothed in righteousness
and are justified in Your sight.
Oh God,
what an awesome thing to be at peace with You
and in You
for all eternity.
And so we shout out Alleluias each and every day
as we recall your amazing grace.
And so we join with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven in singing Your unending praise…

Undone

/ The Pastor

The following is the liturgy of repentance for tonight’s Lenten worship service. The scripture focus is Isaiah 6:1-8 — The Call of Isaiah. God is holy and we are not. In God;s presence; when compared to His moral perfection and purity, we have no standing. In the words of Isaiah, we are undone.

Holy, holy, holy, are You, oh God.
The whole world; all of creation, is filled with Your glory.
YOU are holy and…
I am not. I am but a worm. I am a sinner.
Unworthy
Unclean
In the words of the Prophet Isaiah, Woe is me! For I am lost.
I am undone.
I am undone.
Woe is me, oh Lord, for I have unclean lips.
Woe is me, oh Lord, for I live among those who are unclean.
Woe is me, oh Lord, for I am ruined.
I am undone.
Woe is me.
I am the epitome of uncleanliness.
I have no standing in Your presence, for…
YOU are holy, holy, holy.
But You have made me clean through Jesus.
You have made me worthy.
You have completed me.
You have forgiven me? WOW!
Oh God, I rejoice. Send me. Send…ME.
But first,
Oh Lord, my God, hear my cry: I repent…

Your Wings

/ The Pastor

The follow is something I wrote for the Great Thanksgiving in our Holy Communion liturgy based loosely on the preaching text from Luke 13:31-35…

It is indeed right and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, oh God. For through Jesus Christ You spread Your wings over Your children to provde shelter and refuge. You have saved us from the forces of evil and have redeemed our lives from the pit. You give us hope in a hopeless world. You give us peace in a world filled with hate and death. You are our life and salvation. And so with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven we join in singing Your unending praise…

Amen and Amen!

The Pastor -|—

You Reign

/ The Pastor

It is indeed right and salutary
that we should at all times and in all places
give thanks and praise to you,
oh God,
Sovereign King over all creation.
Your authority and reign stretches as far as the east is from the west.
Your power is without limit.
Your grace is without end.
You grant us what we need to withstand the attacks of the evil one.
You raise us up when we fall.
You dust us off as we prepare for another round.
And in the end,
You are victorious.
And so with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven
we join in singing Your unending praise…

The Pastor -|—

Wake-Up Call

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

[Based on Psalm 103:1-5]

Hey there soul,
wake-up and praise the Lord,
praise him with all that is in you.
Yes, you soul, praise the Lord,
and forget not all the Lord has done for you:
He forgives your sins.
He heals.
He redeems your life from the pit.
He crowns you with amazing love and mercy
He satisfies beyond anything this world can offer.
And He does all of this so that you can be renewed.
Oh soul,
wake up!
Worship and praise the Lord.
For He is awesome,
mighty in power,
great in mercy,
abundant in love.
The Lord is worthy of all praise.
Oh my soul, wake up and bless His holy name.

The Pastor -|—

Intercede

/ The Pastor

Holy God,
Your Word proclaims to us
that the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Intercede for us now, oh God, and teach us how we ought to pray.
We see the darkness of this world,
and the darkness within ourselves,
and become overwhelmed and convicted.
We know we ought to cry out, but words escape us.
Justice is being denied to many and we feel helpless.
Intercede for us, oh God, and then tune our ears to hear your voice.
Help us to help others.
Help us to cry out for others.
Help us to give justice to others.
Intercede for us, we beg You.
We especially remember those who can’t cry out for themselves;
the unborn.
Transform the hearts of those who feel no remorse
over the death of Your little ones.
Intercede, oh God, intercede.
We are Yours.
In Jesus name I pray,
Amen.

The Pastor -|—