CALL
TO WORSHIP
May
the Peace of Christ be with you
And
also with you.
We
have been called together in this place
To
celebrate God's presence, to listen for God's wisdom, to be renewed
as God's servants
As
we gather to worship, let us greet each other with God's peace...
OPENING
PRAYER
God
of life, who calls us to be the church,
we
gather together as a community to listen for how you are speaking to
us today.
God
of justice, who calls us to live lives of love,
we
gather as a community of people who try to understand what that means
day to day.
God
of promise, who calls us to be people of hope,
we
gather as people who are looking for signs that the Kingdom is being
made real in our midst.
In
this time of worship,
refresh
us, challenge us, renew us.
We
pray in in the name of the one who taught about the way of love, who
challenges us to serve each other, and who taught us to pray by
saying...
PRAYER
FOR AND ASSURANCE OF GRACE
God,
when we look around we see so much need.
And
we wonder how best to respond.
God
we hear your voice in the old stories.
Challenging
us to feed the hungry, to visit the lonely, to comfort the suffering.
Not
in search of reward or payback,
but
simply because it is the loving thing to do.
God
of grace, we hear the voice, we understand the challenge,
but
we find it hard to live out. God of grace, give us the grace to live
the way of love.
...time
of silent prayer...
God
challenges us to be people of love. In grace God helps us along the
way. In mercy, God works with us through our mis-steps and our
mis-understandings. We are forgiven, set back on the path, and urged
to try again. This is Good News.
Thanks
be to God! Amen.
