For November 3, 2019 -- Proper 26C

CALL TO WORSHIP

May the Peace of Christ be with you.

And also with you.

What has brought us here today

We come in search of the One they call Messiah

Jesus is here, waiting to eat with us, wanting to be both host and guest in our lives

We gather with Jesus at the table, we open our hearts to his love and wisdom.

As we gather for worship we greet our neighbour with words and signs of Christ’s peace...

Opening PRAYER

God, like Zacchaeus we want to meet Jesus

and so we come together in worship.

God, here we open ourselves to be transformed by meeting Jesus,

and then live our lives as changed people with new priorities.

God as we worship, move in our hearts,

sending us back out as people of hope and faith, committed to live as citizens of the Kingdom.

Amen.

COMMISSIONING:

Zacchaeus climbed a tree so he could see...and so he was seen.

With the result that he was changed.

We have come to see Jesus, we have been seen by the God active in Jesus

As we go out may we also be ready to be changed by seeing and by being seen.

The God who invited us to the table, the Christ who proclaims the Kingdom, the Spirit who sustains us along the way,

is with us as we live and serve and grow and love. Amen.

Opening Prayer for a FUneral

God, you give us so many gifts. And so we say thank you.

One of the greatest gifts you give us is life, life in abundance.

In our lives you bless us with joy and laughter,

In our lives you comfort us when we are sad or when we hurt, or when we are afraid. And again we say thank you.

Today we come to say good-bye to NAME.

And as we say good-bye we celebrate everything that made her who she was, and we say thank-you for the gift of her.

God you are always with us. You are wonderful and compassionate and mysterious.

You protect us like a father with a new baby.

You watch over us like a mother on the playground.

You comfort us like a warm hug from a grandparent.

Today, as we come to share our sadness and our grief,

be with us, strengthen us, hear our tears.

As we say good-bye, as we say thank you, as we share our tears,

remind us that we are not alone, that you are with us.

Amen.

REsources for October 20, 2019 -- Proper 24C

Opening PRAYER

God who writes on our hearts,

we open ourselves to let your pen do its work.

God who bangs incessantly on our doors,

we open our ears that we would hear your plea for justice.

God who calls us to follow the truth

strengthen us that we would persist in the quest for love’s truth.

We pray in Jesus’ name, as we share the words he taught his closest friends...

PRAYER FOR PERSISTANCE

God you continue to whisper in our ears

Calling us to make the world a place of justice.

God you ask us to whisper in the ears of others,

Speaking on behalf of those whose voices have been silenced.

God you share with us a vision of a world where all have abundant life.

Help us to see the vision, to hear the whispers.

God you write the covenant of love on our hearts

Help us read those words with our whole soul

...time of silence...

God whispers, God shouts, God pleads for justice. God moves in us, transforming us and, through us, the world.

Thanks be to God. Amen.