Come join the circle, for Jesus is calling,
We join in this gathered community of worship to pray and sing and listen for God's voice.
This is a place where God can be met, a place where God's love can be experienced.
This is a place where all are welcomed openly and freely, a place where everyone can become a part of the circle.
As God has welcomed us,
so may we welcome others.
Welcoming and challenging God,
once again You have brought us together in this place.
As we sing and pray and listen this morning,
refresh us, open our hearts, minds and souls to Your Word of Life, empower and prepare us to go back out to the world where we live and serve.
We pray in the name of the One whose name we bear, Jesus the Christ, who taught his friends to pray by saying...
PRAYER FOR AND ASSURANCE OF GRACE
Gracious God, the circle of your love and community is wider than we can imagine,
for those times we want to draw it closer, forgive us.
The circle of your love and community is always open,
for those time we accidentally close it, not letting others in, forgive us.
You call us to welcome all Your children,
and yet sometimes, both intentionally and unintentionally, we act in ways that make that welcome hard to find.
For those times when our hospitality is lacking, when we fail to share the Love and Life you have given us,
forgive us we pray.
...time of silent prayer...
God calls us to a New Life. God calls us to a New Way. When we stray from the path, God calls us back, not with judgement but with forgiveness. We are a forgiven people.
Thanks be to God! Amen.
