Author: katyandtheword

Pastor Katy has enjoyed ministry at New Covenant since 2010, where the church has solidified its community focus. She now works at Capital CFO plus as the Non Profit Director. All opinions expressed on this blog are her own and do not reflect those of Capital CFO plus. Prior to that she studied both Theology and Christian Formation at Princeton Theological Seminary. She also served as an Assistant Chaplain at Trenton Psychiatric Hospital and as the Christian Educational Coordinator at Bethany Presbyterian at Bloomfield, NJ. She is an writer and is published in Enfleshed, Sermonsuite, Presbyterian's today and Outlook. She writes prayers, liturgy, poems and public theology and is pursuing her doctorate in ministry in Creative Write and Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. She enjoys working within and connecting to the community, is known to laugh a lot during service, and tells as many stories as possible. Pastor Katy loves reading Science Fiction and Fantasy, theater, arts and crafts, music, playing with children and sunshine, and continues to try to be as (w)holistically Christian as possible. "Publisher after publisher turned down A Wrinkle in Time," L'Engle wrote, "because it deals overtly with the problem of evil, and it was too difficult for children, and was it a children's or an adult's book, anyhow?" The next year it won the prestigious John Newbery Medal. Tolkien states in the foreword to The Lord of the Rings that he disliked allegories and that the story was not one.[66] Instead he preferred what he termed "applicability", the freedom of the reader to interpret the work in the light of his or her own life and times.

Links of Prayer: Narrative Lectionary for Lent

Links of Prayer Resources for Lent.

A broad number of prayers from a variety of pastors/denominations. All variations of theology and kinds of prayers were accepted to show the vast richness of God’s work.

These prayers are meant for personal spiritual practice or for congregations who follow the narrative lectionary.

They include a Call to Worship/Opening Prayer, Prayer of Confession, Assurance of Pardon, Communion Prayer, Prayer of Dedication/Offering and Some are Paired Psalm-Prayer Station Guide by Rev. Shea Zellweger

Feel free to use/edit. Credit to the original author (i.e. based on prayer written by XXX) appreciated.

March 1st Ash Wednesday by Rev. Mary Austin

March 5th The Good Samaritan by Rev. Dr. Robyn Provis

March 12th The Lament Over Jerusalem by Rev. Courtney D. Arntzen

March 19th Lost Coin, Lost Sheep, Lost Son by Rev. Mike Williams

March 26th Rich Man and Lazarus by Rev. Tracy Spencer-Brown

Apr 2nd Zacchaeus by Rev. Katy Stenta

Apr 11th Triumphal Entry/Palm Sunday by Rev. Jeanne Gay

Apr 13th Last Supper by Rev. Amy Fetterman

Apr 14th Crucifixion by Rev Lee Ann Higgins

Good Friday Liturgy of the Nails http://wp.me/p2rhxZ-25W

Apr 16th Resurrection/Easter by Rev. Dr. Barb Hedges-Goettl

The Good Samaritan: Narrative Lectionary Lent Prayers

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Invitation to Community by Rev. Dr. Robyn Provis

Feel free to use/edit. Credit to the original author (i.e. based on prayer/prayers written by Rev. Dr. Robyn Provis) appreciated.

Luke 10:25-42 and Psalm 15 or Psalm 15:1

Call to Worship

Good and merciful God, you call us to gather along the road we know as community,

With our neighbors all around, speak to us in these complicated times.

We are people of the covenant, called to care for one another without exception.

Within and beyond our walls, our neighbors are struggling. Within and beyond these walls, we may be the one who is struggling.

Just as Jesus lived a commitment of coming near, abide in with and through us. Send us. Encourage us to come near in your name.

We are ready to open our hearts to receive new strength and to open our lives to new understanding. Gather us near.

Invocation

Holy God, as we come together in this house of prayer, we open ourselves to your spirit. Who is our neighbor and who was this Samaritan called good? Bring fresh understanding to why he alone drew near to danger, unafraid, giving compassion, and bringing hope. Guide us in being open to helping the stranger, the outcast, and the one without community. Amen.

Call to Confession

God calls us to relationships of trust and hope. As your children we are drawn to the good and the holy. We come now to confess that we sometimes have too narrow a view of what is good, missing the holy even when we are in its midst.

Prayer of Confession

God we pray, inspire courage and compassion and open us beyond the usual boundaries that come with fear and privilege. We name that we have failed to see our neighbors unless it is convenient and scheduled. We know that the Good Samaritan comes near as one who knows the Kin(g)dom is near. And the Kin(g)dom of God comes near when we do the same. But Creator God, coming near is not easy. It’s easier to withdraw and to hide in our homes. The division that plagues our nation will require a new kind of coming together in understanding and love. Forgive our hesitation and make bold our faith. Make bold our witness. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon

Be at peace as the people of God who daily find strength in hope. Be at peace knowing that God draws near; that God is omnipresent and walking with us in our struggle to follow boldly. May we be bold ambassadors of courage and Christ.

Communion Prayer

From these simple gifts of grape and grain, you have consecrated us as your children, called and sent to share your extravagant love with others. Open our eyes that we might see you near. Open our lives that we might be agents of hope and love for our world. When we forget our holy calling, speak anew to our hearts and draw us back. This is our prayer in the name of all that is holy. Amen.

Offering Prayer/Prayer of Dedication Gathered we have given in your name– blessed to be a blessing. Generous God, bless and consecrate these gifts and use them to bring hope and healing to our community and beyond. Enliven us to share even ourselves with the world you love. Amen.

Prayers of Intercession

God of love, give us a deep love for you, so that we can see the world as you see it, feel the compassion you feel, and be a people whose lives mediate your love to others. God in your mercy. Hear our prayer

Open our eyes that we might see what the Good Samaritan saw. Grant us the insight to see the need in others, the wisdom to know what to do, and the will to do it. God in your mercy. Hear our prayer

We pray for all those people, who in many and various ways, have been stripped, beaten and left for dead. We pray for children who are growing up in the most awful of circumstances, especially for those starved of love or food, shelter or security. May they receive the future you have planned for them. God in your mercy. Hear our prayer

We pray for those we might cross the road to avoid, those who have been excluded socially because of their race, financial status, or history. May the dignity that is theirs be restored to them. God in your mercy. Hear our prayer

God give us a deep love for you, that we might see your love at work in this world, and that we might go and do likewise. God in your mercy. Hear our prayer

Prayer Station by Rev. Shea Zellweger

Psalm 15

1 Lord, who may be a guest in your home?

Who may live on your holy hill?

2 Whoever lives a blameless life,

does what is right,

and speaks honestly.

3 They do not slander,

or do harm to others,

or insult their neighbor.

4 They despise a reprobate,

but honor the Lord’s loyal followers.

They make firm commitments and do not renege on their promise.

5 They do not charge interest when they lends their money.

They do not take bribes to testify against the innocent.

The one who lives like this will never be upended.

Guide:

Read the psalm once, and ponder it for a moment.

Using one of the tools in the sandbox, or your own hands, create a shape in the sand which signifies the Lord’s home.

Read the psalm a second time, this time looking for a single phrase which speaks especially to you.

Select a rock. Allow the rock to represent you. Hold it in your hand as you contemplate the phrase you found.

Place the rock inside the Lord’s home. God has welcomed you home.

Read the psalm a third time as a prayer of thanksgiving.

More Narrative Lectionary Lenten Themed Prayers

Narrative Lectionary: Ash Wednesday Links of Prayer

Ash Wednesday

“Invitation to Lent” Author Rev. Mary Austin

Feel free to use/edit. Credit to the original author (i.e. based on prayer/prayers written by Rev Mary Austin) appreciated.

Luke 9:51-62 and Psalm 5:7-8 or Psalm 5:8

Call to Worship

We are dust and ashes,

bone and breath,

full of frailty and limitation.

Lent calls us into reflection and repentance,

drawing closer to God.

Lent calls us to see ourselves as dust and ash,

alive only with God’s breath.

Lent invites us to be pilgrims,

moving with Jesus toward the truth.

In Lent, we travel with Jesus,

moving toward an end and a beginning.

Let us worship the God of glory,

with all that is within us.

Call to Confession

Keeping up appearances is exhausting. Pretending to be something we are not takes a toll on our spirits. The illusion of perfection makes us weary. Lent invites us into a place of freedom. Let us speak the truth about ourselves, and know the truth about God.Trusting in God’s abundant, living mercy, let us pray. (time for silent reflection)…Amen

Prayer of Confession

God who breathes life into dust,

and fills ash with glory,

we come to you knowing that we are broken,

not by your doing,

but by our own.

Forgive us for chasing shiny gods,

instead of turning to you.

Forgive us for trusting our own abilities

more than your goodness.

Forgive us for seeing other people as stepping stones,

instead of as your beloved ones.

Breathe life into our dust again, we pray,

and claim us once more as your own.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Assurance of Grace/Pardon

Who are we, that God is mindful of us? God’s fingers have shaped us, and God’s breath gives us life. God’s abundant mercy follows us with each step. In the life of Jesus Christ, we see a new way to live. In following him, our lives are redeemed. Through Jesus Christ, we are all forgiven. Be at peace in God’s grace.

Invitation to Communion

My friends, dust and ash we are, and also God’s beloved people. Jesus, who knows both death and resurrection, invites us now to the table. Here, even on this day, we see a glimpse of God’s table. At the table of God, there is hunger is no more, and all of God’s people feast together. There death is no more, and we see our beloved ones and God’s people of all the ages. There tears are no more, and we rejoice in the presence of God’s living grace.

In the name of Jesus our host, Jesus whom we follow into Lent, Jesus who gives us living bread, we are all invited to come and share in the feast.

Prayer after Communion

Holy God,

with the taste of ash still in our mouths,

you have fed us with the bread of heaven

and the cup of new beginnings.

Lead us now, we pray,

into a Lent of somber reflection

and committed service,

spreading the taste of your love to all people.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Offering Prayer / Prayer of Dedication

Merciful God,

our gifts are as limited as our lives,

but we offer them to you with gratitude,

knowing that they really are your gifts,

loaned to us.

We offer them with praise,

that you invite us to share in your work.

We offer them with hope,

knowing that you can transform them

into instruments of love and justice.

In Jesus name, Amen.

More Narrative Lectionary Lenten Themed Prayers

A Short Good Shepherd Ash Weds Service

NazarethFirst? Nah!

The first time the people riot in Luke is in response to Jesus preaching in his hometown. (hinting at his eventual crucifixion by the state) There he proclaims the word of the Lord to the poor, lost, forgotten and marginalized.

He talks about that the Word of God, he says he is there to fulfill the word of God

and the People of Nazareth say “Great, me first”

Jesus says, “Nah”

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Then they get mad, because they want to be first. Because they think that if they don’t go first God won’t get to them.

It should be NazarethFirst or JewsFirst or AmericaFirst: Those who are the most entitled should go first in the human world.

Not to Jesus, tho, for Jesus says I’m helping the most needy ones, the forgotten ones.

During the inauguration speech the only piece I felt like struck home was when Donald Trump said was “No one will ever be ignored again”

Do not be confused, we humans often look for a human savior/king. Lots of the Old Testament is about humans begging God for a King they don’t need. When Donald Trump did his alter call for patriotism, insisting that it negated all prejudice, we Christians all shook our heads and said. Only JESUS does that. God calls not to nationalism, but to the forgotten ones.

Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help. When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.–Psalm 146

Because people DO feel forgotten! About 3 million women gathered on all 7 continents and march to draw attention to all that gets ignored. If that isn’t a counter to blind nationalism I don’t know what is.

These women marched for a variety of reasons, and yet the same thing

They marched for

Women’s Rights, Black Lives matter, the queer community, the Muslims, the immigrants, poor in the rust belt, Flint water, Indigenous rights, survivors of assault, climate change, sex workers, the poor, the disabled, poor.They marched

They marched for their children and husbands and communities.

But most of all, they marched for the forgotten & ignored.

Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith for ever; who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.–Psalm 146

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Our God is the one who fights on behalf of these people. Our God is not a human or a politician, our God is the God of the marginalized, the lost and forgotten.

Jesus made that clear. Its not about being first or getting the most. Its about making sure NO ONE GETS IGNORED.

We need to do this work, the time has begun.

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Luke 4: 14- 30

14 Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. ¹⁵He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

16 When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, ¹⁷and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

¹⁸ ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives

and recovery of sight to the blind,

to let the oppressed go free,

¹⁹ to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’

²⁰And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. ²¹Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ ²²All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, ‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’ ²³He said to them, ‘Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, “Doctor, cure yourself!” And you will say, “Do here also in your home town the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.” ’ ²⁴And he said, ‘Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s home town. ²⁵But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; ²⁶yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. ²⁷There were also many lepers^* in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.’ ²⁸When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. ²⁹They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. ³⁰But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.

Why Evangelism Needs a New Metaphor by Emily Rose Proctor

More #faith thoughts #christianity

Background photo: Tawnyowl/Pixabay, CC0.
Manipulation and design layout: Elizabeth Stark

Emily Rose Proctor is a pastor and poet who grew up in South Alabama, escaping to the frozen North to attend Williams College, where she was awarded the Bullock Prize for Poetry by the Academy of American Poets in 2003. Her poetry has since been accepted for publication by The Christian Century, Slippery Elm Literary Journal, Poetry Breakfast, Rogue Homilies, Columbia Theological Seminary’s Journal for Preachers, and Presbyterians Today Magazine, among others. She is a winner of the West Florida Literary Federation’s 2016 Foo Foo Festival poetry contest, and one of her poems was recently nominated for the Pushcart Prize. She currently works as a children’s librarian and Community Chaplain in Santa Rosa Beach, FL, where she lives with her drummer-priest husband and infant son, and enjoys co-hosting Just Sayin’, a monthly open mic night and live…

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“I don’t believe it, but I’m sticking to it. That’s my definition of faith.”

“I don’t believe it, but I’m sticking to it. That’s my definition of faith.”My Brief Theology of Belief vs. FaithBelief is individualFaith is communal Belief is confessionalFaith is God given Belie…

Source: “I don’t believe it, but I’m sticking to it. That’s my definition of faith.”

#reading 2017

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#fantasy culture and #faith & what it means

In the long history of Christianity, Western literature changed after Jesus came upon the scene, then fairy tales…

(also, too I’d love to do a long history of anime and its reflection/fascination with the Christ story…letme know if you ever get to studying that!!)

Fairy tales: you know, where people are loved into being/transformed into what they really are supposed to be.

Fairy tales, where resurrection and happy endings are possible.

Cupid & Psyche is the last myth (Petty Greek Gods who are messing with humanity)

and the First Fairy Tale: Beauty and the Beast

Since then, fantastic literature has tended to mirror spirituality

the Discovery Mythos (think Gulliver’s Travels) about Christianity “taking over” and “conquering” the world civilizing people<–NOTE we are still not recovered and must Decolonize both our theology and our fantastique literature (Sci-Fi/Fantasy etc)

But Also there was the mythology of Human progress…the myth that science and humanity would continually evolve into perfection–that religion/God/magic will become inconsequential and fade like the elves of Lord of the Rings & the invisibility of Oz.

Today the fantastique myth talks about parallel and intersecting realities of magic and reality. Think Muggles & Wizarding Folk, Urban Fantasy, Neil Gaiman

On the whole I find it a more (w)holistic stance.

and so no I don’t think faith and church will die out, I think it will become more (w)holistically part of our lives…

This is my good news for 2017 🙂

Have hope

PS someday I may write a complex thesis on all this..but for now I continue to purport it in conversation that the few who are fluent in religion and or fantasy lit understand…

#Dancing (#story)

She danced.

Her and her sisters, danced around the ambassadors and the senators. Never saying anything serious, yet looking like everything that was said was being seriously considered.

She danced as she put on her clothes, dancing to the mirrors, periodically checking her front for stains, floating her hands ever so gently to her head surreptitiously checking every hair was in place.

Then she danced through the family, the eldest, she made sure the youngest were behaving, that the middles were saying their please and thankyous. She danced back and forth because it was her job to make sure everyone was doing as her parents needed.

Then she fell asleep on the couch, feet sore, hat askew, glasses barely blearily taken off and sort of clipped her collar.

Dreaming of the dance, dancing into dreams.

Not sure when she learned the steps.

Doomed to do them tomorrow, and the next day. Invisible steps to the invisible burden that her and all her sisters were doomed to do.

Unnoticed except for the traces of tattered slippers that appeared in the trash.

#2016 #fuckthisShit and #lookout2017

I don’t know about you, but 2016 was a rough one for me!

I guess this is being an adult, when national news effects your daily life

Starting with Police shooting minorities, to the bathroom needs of transgender people, the election and celebrity deaths.

Carrie Fisher really got me….like really got me. Princess Leia broke so many barriers and Star Wars was my constant companion, getting me through the hell that was Jr. High. The fact that she opens up by spitting in the face of evil (Governor Tuck) and then getting the hell out (Somebody has gotta save us kids) helped me..I watched Star Wars almost every day in Junior High.

Then there is Carrie Fisher herself, opening up about toxic family relationships, addiction and mental illness. Putting a name and a face to the reality so many struggle with–once again busting through the barriers.

I don’t know about you, but every time I hear someone has died, I’m like #fuckthisShit! No more 2016. No more brown and black women lying dying on the street. Every time I hear about a hate-crime or bigotry being enabled, I’m like #fuckthisShit.

#God do I need #Jesus. I need #Jesus because we humans are fumbling at best, with our simple platitudes and our inane struggle to communicate and be community.

I need the #HolySpirit, so I can hear the strong leadership of my #queer sibs, who have taught me about strength and hope in a new way.

I need the #HolySpirit, so I can be angry about the institutionalized racism that I cannot help but to be a part of…and every time the #HolySpirit helps me to listen more and talk less, its a gift.

I’m going to do #2017. As my colleague Katie Mulligan is apt to say, the work is still the same. Whether things seem rosy and happy or dark and terrible, the binding of wounds and feeding of the hungry are still the basis of our work, and our existence.

#FuckthisShit I will not be defined by what has not yet been done, I will not let death have the final say–didn’t Jesus step out of the tomb and say Ta-Da! Didn’t he throw life in the face of death, betrayal, hatred & darkness? This is what I’ll be doing.

I’ll raise my children, and love my church, and open myself to be in relationship over and over and over again.

I will not let evil have the last word

#FuckthisShit, because I know of a better way and a better truth, and a better way out of here.

I will spit in the face of evil, I will fight for the rights of every human being, and I will continue to love.

#lookout2017

(PS #fuckthisshit is an online advent study about the real/harsh/viscereal exp of living human life. The language, tho offensive, is not that different from Psalms were we to translate the actual words…. as you know I curse very sparingly, but have found this super helpful)