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Bulletin for Jairus’ Daughter

Welcome and Announcements Reader

Prelude:

Opening Prayer

Call to Worship*** Reader

One: Loving God, Many: we are yours.
We come as we are, with our cares and concerns.
We long to touch you and find healing in your embrace.
Strengthen our faith and heal our brokenness,
ALL: THAT WE MAY WORSHIP YOU WITH JOY. AMEN.

*Opening Hymn Leaning on the Everlasting Arms Red Hymnal, 366

*Call to Confession Reader Let us ask God to renew our confidence in God’s goodness and grace.

Prayer of Confession (unison): Holy God, you see us as we are.

We confess that we forget that all life comes from you. We do not always seek and do your will.

We do not live as your grateful children. We do not love as Christ loved us.

(Silent Confession)

In your mercy, forgive us, heal us and make us whole.

Set us free from our sin, and restore to us the joy of your salvation. Amen.

Words of Assurance (Romans 8:34)

Who is in a position to condemn? Only Christ, and Christ died for us,

Christ rose for us, Christ reigns in power for us, Christ prays for us.

Thank God for the Good News: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.

Gloria Patri: (Blue #579) “Glory Be to the Father” Passing of the Peace: The peace of Christ be with you. And also with you.

Prayers of the People/Lord’s Prayer (traditional) Blue Hymnal, p. 14

Celebration of Birthdays and Anniversaries Reader

Offering Hymn Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing Blue Hymnal, 356

* Doxology (Blue, #592) Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow

* Prayer of Dedication (unison) Pastor Len

God, use these gifts to heal and to honor you, In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Prayer for Illumination Blue Hymnal, 426

Lord, speak to me, that I may speak In living echoes of Thy tone;

As Thou hast sought, so let me seek, Thine erring children lost and lone.

Hebrew Scripture Reading: Psalm 121 Reader

Gospel Scripture Reading: Mark 5:21-4 Pastor Len

Message Pastor Len

*Confession of Faith (from the Brief Confession of Faith, 1983)

We trust in Jesus Christ, fully human, fully God.

Jesus proclaimed the reign of God: preaching good news to the poor

and release to the captives, teaching by word and deed and blessing the children, healing the sick and binding up the brokenhearted, eating with outcasts,

forgiving sinners, and calling all to repent and believe the gospel.

Unjustly condemned for blasphemy and sedition, Jesus was crucified,

suffering the depths of human pain and giving his life for the sins of the world.

God raised this Jesus from the dead, vindicating his sinless life,

breaking the power of sin and evil, delivering us from death to life eternal.

Thanks be to God!

*Closing Hymn What a Friend We Have in Jesus Blue Hymnal, 403

*Charge and Benediction Pastor

Postlude

*Stand in body and/or spirit

**Adapted from Bruce Prewer’s Prayers for the 21^st Century; http://www.bruceprewer.com/b_p21.htm

Seeds of Prayer Jairus’ Daughter Healed

Jairus’ Daughter Healed

Mark 5:21-43

Psalm 131

Bulletin Resource written by Barb Hedges-Goettl

Call to Worship

Lord, we are imperfect and unready

Yet, Jesus says, child come.

We will come, whenever you call, for you are full of grace and healing

Let us worship the one who is the power and the resurrection forever.

Call to Worship

Come let us contemplate the Lord together

God your works are too marvelous for me to comprehend

Yet, like a weaned child with it’s mother, we are comforted

Come let us put our hope in the Lord

Prayer of Confession: God, I confess that I am unable to fully understand you in all of your might. When I am overwhelmed, lead me back to you, comfort me, nuzzle me, calm and quiet my soul I pray. Amen

Prayer of Confession: God, today, like the woman who suffered for twelve years, I come to you with an open wound. No healing has taken place, and my pain is dripping on the floor, embarrassing me. Teach me to but touch you today so that the healing I need may start I pray. Amen

Prayer of Confession: My soul cries out for the Lord, like a child. I sit on the floor and I scream, feeling like nothing will every be right again. But then you pick me up, hug me, feed me and put me safely to bed, enveloping me in your love. Surround me with that comfort I pray.

Assurance of Pardon: God you are our comfort when the rest of the world is full of rocks and scrapes, no matter what scoop us down and put us back on our feet again and again. In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Assurance of Pardon: There is no mistake too big for God to forgive. That’s why God sent Jesus. Know the truth: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God, you leave the light on for all of your children. Help us to go out into the world and invite others into your love we pray. Amen.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: Lord, you will repeat your message of love as often as we need to hear it. Let us echo in our minds, hearts and souls we pray.

Prayer of Communion: Lord, what have I to fear from you. You who loved us into being, breathing life into us, gifting us with the entire world to take care of. Then when we stumbled, you sent Jesus to be our sibling and make us co-heirs to your kingdom. You have assured a place for us in your house, and you make us welcome with the Kingdom meal, even here and now on earth. Send your Holy Spirit upon this feast so that we may celebrate communion with entire family of God we pray.

Hymns: This is Our Father’s World, Blessed Assurance Jesus is Mine, God is My Rock

With Children: Create a picture/clay/image of a mother God comforting a baby. Look through parenting magazine and create a collage of all the mothers and babies/children. Runaway Bunny, You are My I Love You, Follow the Moon, Take turns “sleeping” and having Jesus wake you up as Jairus’ child. Interrupting Chicken books, Talk about Important interruptions

Other Weeks of Seeds of Prayer Narrative Lectionary Resources available here

Bulletin: Garasene Man

Prayers by Rev. Dr. Barb Hedges-Goettl please credit 🙂
Welcome and Announcements Reader
Prelude Go, Tell it On the Mountain (Blue, 29)
Opening Prayer**
O God, in this time of worship, speak a word to us:
a word of life, a word of encouragement, a sustaining, life-changing, word,
for we know that with your word you heal the sick, cure the infirm,
and even raise the dead.
So come into this house and speak, Lord—speak, for your children are listening.
In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Call to Worship (Romans 9:16, 26-28) Reader
One: Everything depends not on what we humans want or do,
Many: but only on God's mercy;
Not only from among the Jews but also from among the Gentiles
we are the people God calls.
God says, “the people who were not mine,
I will call ‘My People’
the nation that I did not love
I will call ‘My Beloved’
And in the very place where they were told, ‘You are not my people,’
there they will be called the children of the living God.”

*Opening Hymn God of Compassion, in Mercy Befriend Us Blue, 261

*Call to Confession Reader
Sometimes we are tossed and thrown by what goes on around us.
Let us renew our trust in God.
Prayer of Confession (unison)

God, the forces that pummel us are legion.
The things that call to us are like an unruly mob.
At times we are battered, hit left and right by tough situations.
At times we are bereft, falling into hopelessness.
At time we are bemused, not knowing what to make of it all.
Forgive us for not turning more constantly to you,
our constant help in times of need. (Silent Confession)

Words of Assurance:
See how much the Lord does for us, how he shows mercy on us.
We thank God for the Good News: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.

Gloria Patri: (Blue #579) “Glory Be to the Father”

Passing of the Peace: The peace of Christ be with you. And also with you.

Minute for Mission

Prayers of the People/Lord’s Prayer (traditional) Blue Hymnal, p. 14

Celebration of Birthdays and Anniversaries Reader

Offering Hymn God, Whose Giving Knows No Ending Blue Hymnal, 422

* Doxology (Blue, #592) Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow

* Prayer of Dedication (unison) Pastor

Prayer for Illumination Blue Hymnal, 11
Scripture Reading: Mark 5:1-20 Reader

Message

*Confession of Faith – The Apostles’ Creed (Traditional) Blue Hymnal, p.14

*Closing Hymn Live Into Hope Blue Hymnal, 332

*Charge and Benediction Pastor

Postlude O Master, Let Me Walk With Thee (Blue Hymnal, 357)

Rejected Sermon Titles: Jesus and the demons of our mind

Mark 5:1-20

Psalm 89:1-4

by Pastor Katy Stenta

“Legion: for We are many”

I think it is amazing that Jesus gets the man to name his demon…or the demon to name itself before Jesus expelled it from the poor man.

How many times do we need to name our demons before we can get rid of them? If it’s something that is (typically) smaller like jealousy or self-righteousness or something all encompassing like mental illness or addiction, so often we humans need to name a problem before we can even work on it.

And don’t we all have demon voices, terrible self-erasing voices in our heads twisting the way we see the world.

Whether they are the kind of demons that self-aggrandize (though I don’t think that is this demon’s way) telling us that we are better than everyone else, telling us we deserve more than others, dismissing others as meaningless, insignificant (or worse of all) dehumanizing them so that we don’t have to care for each other. There are strong echoes of the need for Anti-racists and Anti-Terf and Anti-Ageist work across the board. It’s the voice that tells us we are better Christians (or patriots or workers or whatever) and don’t need to listen to anybody else. Martin Luther King Jr looked towards the humanization of all people and basic humans rights, beyond the dehumanizing results of institutions and systems the include the church and capitalism and nationalism.

Or there is if it is the demon voice that points out every one of our anxieties and failings. It harps on our imperfections and plays our mistakes on repeat in our heads. It gets us to focus on all that is wrong with us and the world so that we cannot hear the voice of God anymore. We devalue ourselves, and can no longer see ourselves as the image of God.

Demons dehumanize.

They erase and X out our names and existence (Madeline L’engle covers this well in her Time Quartet)

When I hear the story of the man tormented by legion–even though no details are given as to how they are making him feel and act crazy only the side effects. When I hear he can’t stand still, and he is driven to live alone, uncleanly with the dead. When I hear that he is cast out as better to be with the dead than the living. I have no trouble hearing those doubting and harping demons in this man’s mind.

In essence that is what the Screwtape Letters is about. The demon has the human focus on the high pitch voices, the gum smacking neighbor and the squeaking shoe fidgeted until these people are no longer seen as community but as annoyances, and all of church is seen as annoying and there is no room to focus on God.

But when we name these problems in our lives, when we lift up our imperfections and sins for prayer, when we ask for support from others and talk about our insecurities. Then people can help us to name all that we did do that day, and how our imperfections are small compared to being a beloved child of God. They lift up that people care for us even when we make mistakes. And remind us of our friends and neighbors good qualities even when (especially when) they are driving us to distraction.

No photo description available.

Maybe then it is no surprise that Jesus restores the Gerasenes Man to his community. I do not think it is about if this man is good enough to follow Jesus, nor about his will to follow for he wants to follow Jesus. I think that Jesus has decided that to complete the healing, this man needs to be restored to his community–so he says “god back to your friends…” The community that hopefully can counter the years of bad and do a better job of nurturing and supporting this man. And I hope we as the church can do the same.

Rejected Sermon Titles: Jesus and disabilities

Mark 2:1-22

Psalm 103:6-14

There is a certain amount of mourning that goes on when you have a child with disabilities. Immediately you start to try to figure out “what went wrong” which is code for who to blame. Most people start with themselves. When I found out Westley had autism, I worried about my two week trip to Israel while I in the 2nd trimester of pregnancy. My mom pointed out that genes are formulated way before that.

My husband talked about his own worries “You know I”m neurotic, and I have ADD” for that matter people in my family have ADD too, and I didn’t eat most foods for most of my life because the textures bothered me, but sure it’s solely your fault that our child has autism.

I think in all societies there is a tendency to try to blame someone for disabilities and the imperfections. We try to find the sin that caused the sin. It is here that we can start to understand that it was more shocking for Jesus to forgive the paraplegic man than it was to see a bodily healing.

Eventually I have come to conclude that no human body is perfect. Not one of us has a body that works perfectly. We all have things that are different. And we are all sinners, we all are imperfect in that way too.

What causes this forgiveness and healing is the communal faith. The parapalegic faith, and his four friends. His friends who haul him up onto the roof, dig a hole in the grass and thatch and lower him down through the roof. Perhaps the lowering through the roof was less amazing than the fact that probably the friends had to touch this crippled man in order to get him to Jesus.

I wonder what that moment was like. I wonder if Jesus saw them trying to get through out of the corner of his eye, or if suddenly a man just appeared out of the sky, like an angel.

Like Jesus lowering himself to human level.

Like a miracle of community.

Then Jesus says because of all of their faith, not one, not another but all including the paraplegic man, he is forgiven…and then healed. Per usual in the Bible faith is used to describe the beliefs and actions of faith (as opposed to belief which is used in ref. to the individual). Not all of them had the same faith or beliefs, all of them had different bodies and skills, but together they formulated the faith for forgiveness and healing.

That is what we practice here in church. We pray for one another when our bodies don’t work well, when we sin, we work on forgiveness together. This church is a communal thing, because that is how we see Jesus.

Seeds of Prayer Liturgy Resource: Jesus and the Gerasene Demon

Mark 5:1-20

Psalm 89:1-4

Bulletin by Rev. Dr. Barb Hedges-Goettl

Sermon by Katy Stenta

Call to Worship

O God, Lord of hosts, who is as mighty as you?

Your faithfulness surrounds you.

The heavens are you, and the earth, the North and the South you created.

Let us extol your name all day long.

Call to Worship

Our God is the God of the covenant, the one who’s word never fails

God never comes too early or too late, God comes in God’s perfect time

Put your faith and trust in God

Praise the God of steadfast love

Call to Worship

Who is Mighty

The God of Love

What is the power of our Lord and Savior? What is this forgiveness?

Help us to proclaim the power of your love we pray.

Prayer of Confession: Steadfast Love, we so often fall short to show the vastness and extent of your love. As such we have as much trouble naming evil, as we have proclaiming good. Sort out our hearts, cast away all the is not a part of your covenant, and bathe us once again in your forgiveness we pray.

Prayer of Confession: Too often we task ourselves with sorting who is in and who is out. We cast out entire individuals, ignoring that which torments them. Teach us to be the neighborhood, community and people of faith who practice welcome and let us leave the sorting to you, we pray.

Assurance of Pardon: God is mighty, our rock and our salvation, so we can proclaim the truth: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Assurance of Pardon: God’s forgiveness is stronger than rocks and longer than history: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: Let us tell of your righteousness, God of steadfast love, covenant and forgiveness. This is the God we want to worship, this is the God who is a part of our lives. Let us go out and tell this news to the whole neighborhood we pray.

Communion Prayer: God you are our shade in the hot sun, our rock when things are unsteady, our shelter when we are under attack. From the beginning, you placed us in the garden and walked with us. When we missed your presence, you sent yourself as a teaching, healing, loving embodiment of your Love Jesus: the word, the covenant, the body, the presence. Send your Holy Spirit upon these elements so we can taste and see your love as a foretaste of the kingdom banquet we pray.

With Children: Create a contract of Love between the kids and God, Talk about what bad thoughts/feelings plague you: pray that they can be treated/controlled (maybe write them down and rip them up). Talk about why the people might have been afraid of the healing (bad treatment in the past? the fact that they blamed the man for his ills?), Ritually wash hands/talk about fogginess, burn sins (mini Ash Weds/precursor)

Caution: This passage also allows for Ableism particularly for those individuals with mental illness.

More Resources:

Mark 5:1-20

https://www.epriest.com/reflections/view/1383/en Reflections on sin and mental illness.

https://www.theologyofwork.org/the-high-calling/work-as-prayerful-relationships-mark-5-sermon-notes Jesus as making people uncomfortable

https://www.ministrymatters.com/all/entry/9038/preaching-with-the-storytellers-bible-june-24-2018 Stilling of the storm cf. the healing of the demoniac

https://www.theologyofwork.org/the-high-calling/live-so-others-may-flourish Living to set others free

https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1187 But pigs can swim…

https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1187 The demoniac as good soil—and God’s use of flawed humans

http://download.luthersem.edu/media/working_preacher/narrative/021WPNarrative.mp3 Podcast dealing with the good news of this pericope

https://preachingandworship.org/api/lc/d964f5f065b93c918f184b720e70a1b85e152d70d5124 The Gerasene demoniac and mental health

http://theafricanamericanlectionary.org/PopupCulturalAid.asp?LRID=419

A service of healing based on Mark 5:1-18

http://theafricanamericanlectionary.org/PopupWorshipAid.asp?LRID=419

Direct link to the worship resources for the service above

https://www.christiancentury.org/blogs/archive/2016-06/consequences-deliverance The cost of freedom/consequences of deliverance

https://www.facebook.com/Frederick.Buechner.Center/posts/todays-guest-quote-is-byjohn-ortberg-from-who-is-this-manone-day-jesus-drops-a-/712537528796785/

The response to Jesus on the wrong side of the tracks: the Gerasenes and the healed man

http://www.textweek.com/mkjnacts/mark5a.htm RCL-based resources

Includes http://www.michaelturton.com/Mark/GMark05.html#5.p.1.20 addressing chiasmic structure of the passage and the impossibility of it being historical

And http://www.michaelturton.com/Mark/GMark05.html#5.p.1.20 addressing the demoniac’s example of how to address the powers of darkness

And http://www.ekklesiaproject.org/blog/2013/06/declare-how-much-god-has-done-for-you/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=declare-how-much-god-has-done-for-you “Declare how much God has done for you.”

“tomb” https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G3419&t=KJV; cf. resurrection accounts. Root is μνήμη mnēmē remembrance, cf. mne·mon·ic, anamnesis, amnesia, etc. ttps://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?strongs=G3420&t=KJV

“unclean” cf. catharsis

ἀκάθαρτος

Transliteration

akathartos

Pronunciation

ä-kä’-thär-tos (Key)

Part of Speech

adjective

Root Word (Etymology)

From ἄλφα (G1) (as a negative particle) and a presumed derivative of καθαίρω (G2508) (meaning cleansed)

“torment”

Mar 5:7

And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment ^G928 me not.

TOOLS

Mar 6:48

And he saw them toiling ^G928 in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.

The KJV translates Strong’s G928 in the following manner: torment (8x), pain (1x), toss (1x), vex (1x), toil (1x).

Outline of Biblical Usage [?]

I.to test (metals) by the touchstone, which is a black siliceous stone used to test the purity of gold or silver by the colour of the streak produced on it by rubbing it with either metal
II.to question by applying torture
III.to torture
IV.to vex with grievous pains (of body or mind), to torment
V.to be harassed, distressed
1. of those who at sea are struggling with a head wind

Strong’s Definitions [?](Strong’s Definitions Legend)

βασανίζω basanízō, bas-an-id’-zo; from G931; to torture:—pain, toil, torment, toss, vex.

Other Weeks of Seeds of Prayer Narrative Lectionary Resources available here

Narrative Lectionary Prayer Resource, ordinary time, Year 2 Mark

Jan 12: Jesus Heals and Teachers-Mark 2:1-22, Psalm 103:6-14

Jan 19: Parables in Mark-Mark 4:1-34, Psalm 126

Jan 26: Jesus and the Gerasene Demon– Mark 5:1-20, Psalm 89:1-4

Feb 2: Jairus’ Daughter Healed-Mark 5:21-43, Psalm 131

Feb 9: Death of John the Baptist-Mark 6:1-29, Psalm 122

Feb 16th: What Defiles-Mark 7:1-23, Psalm 51:1-3, 6-7

Feb 23: Transfiguration-Mark 8:27-9:8, Psalm 27:1-4

Feb 26 Ash Weds Passion Prediction Mark: 9:30-37, Psalm 32:1-5 (order of worship/bulletin)

Seeds NL: Parables of Mark

Parables of Mark

Mark 4:1-34

Psalm 126

Image found here

Call to Worship

Lord give us the ears to hear and the eyes to see

Let our light shine!

Teach us the truth of your parables

Come let us learn about the Lord

Call to Worship

Plant the seed in our hearts

Let us tend it and let it grow

May our church be like the tree of heaven, with room for all

Come let spend some time at home with God

Call to Worship

The Lord has done great things for us

Let us rejoice

May those who sow in tears, reap with shouts of joy

Come, let us shout to the Lord, for he does great things.

Prayer of Confession: God, we know we have trouble letting everyone into the nest. We claim there is not enough room, or resources, or we discriminate against the odd ducks who look or act different than us. Remind us that the kingdom of heaven is like a tree of bounty with enough food and room for all, and teach us to be more open, accepting and to share more we pray.
Prayer of Confession: I confess that my tears do not feel like they are watering anything today. I have forgotten what seeds I have planted, and have lost hope that they will grow. You know what work has been done, you know that the tending counts, help the good things grow into harvest I pray.

Assurance of Pardon: God promises that we will come home with shouts of joy, carrying a harvest of grace, Know the good news: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven. Amen.

Eucharist Prayer: God, you planted the very first seeds with Adam and Eve and continue to tend the gardens of the earth. On the day of Jesus’ resurrection, the first thing he did was to kneel in the dirt, and be mistaken for a gardener, because he is the gardener. May this meal together plan the seeds of grace in our souls to be tended and grown. Send your Holy Spirit on these elements to nourish us and our community we pray. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication/Prayer of the Day: Lord let us tend what needs to be tending. Help us to root out the weeds, and water and nourish all that is good in the world, help us to grow we pray. Amen.

Hymns: To God Be the Glory; Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God; Somebody’s Knocking At Your Door; Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise;

With Children: Treasure Hunt: explain that finding the meaning of parables is like a treasure hunt; plant seeds/mustard seeds; cut out and glue lots of kinds of birds on a big tree/nest;

Image may contain: one or more people, possible text that says 'Be a lamp, a lifeboat, a ladder. Help someone's soul heal. Walk out of your house like a shepherd. RUMI ILAIDA TUMBLA COM'

Other Weeks of Seeds of Prayer Narrative Lectionary Resources available here

Seeds Resource for NL: Jesus Heals and Teaches

Jesus Heals and Teaches

Image result for jesus heals the paralytic

Mark 2:1-22

Psalm 103:6-14

Call to Worship

Bless the Lord, O my soul

Let all that is within me, bless his holy name

Bless the Lord all the angels that do his bidding and heed his word

Bless the Lord all of his work, bless the Lord O my soul.

Call to Worship

The Lord blesses and forgives

Bless God’s Holy Name

The Lord heals and comforts

Bless God’s Holy Name

Mighty is the God who loves us

Bless God’s Holy Name

Call to Worship

Those who wandered in darkness have seen the Light

God is good

Though we are dust God’s steadfast love is forever

All the Time, God is good.

Prayer of Confession: Lord we confess we are but dust, like dandelions in the field, we flourish and then quickly wither away. Because of this, we have trouble understanding that your love is forever. We live in fear of the day you stop living, hearing or acting. Remind us that your righteousness will extend to our children’s, children’s children we pray. Amen.

Prayer of Confession: Lord, we know so many humans who are suffering. We see how quickly life passes and we are afraid to act, afraid that we are too minuscule to matter. Remind us that love is everlasting, remind us that you are good all the time, remind us that we are but the seeds and that whatever we plant will be increased tenfold and a hundredfold past our time. Give us the courage to plant these seeds of healing we pray.

Assurance of Pardon: Grass withers and seasons change, but God’s love is from everlasting to everlasting; know the truth In Jesus Christ we are forgiven

Assurance of Pardon: God does not deal with us according to our sins but according to his love, which is mightier the the sun and longer than that seasons. Know the truth. Christ loves and forgives us.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: Lord help us to spread healing wherever we go, planting the seeds of love and giving the words of hope, we pray. Amen.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: Open us up to the Love of Jesus Christ, so that we can feel the hope of our ancestors and the energy of our children, continue to weave us together as a community so we no longer see our aches and pains, but our collective strength, we pray.

Communion Prayer: God, you created the world into being. Giving Adam and Eve gardens and animals and each other to take care of. When we faltered, and tried to climb mountains and build ladders to reach you, you stooped to earth in the form of Jesus Christ. Teaching us through love and healing and listening Jesus took the time to show us the value of grace and forgiveness. And when he ascended into heaven, he gave us this meal to celebrate our forgiveness, as many times as we need it. We ask you to send your Holy Spirit upon these elements so we might truly consume the bits of the Jesus Christ we need so that we can practice grace in the world. We pray this together. Amen.

Hymns: Great is Thy Faithfulness, Taize: Bless the Lord My soul, There’s a Sweet, Sweet Spirit in This Place, There is A Balm in Gilead, We Walk By Faith and Not By Sight, Take My Life

With Children: Practice Anointing with Oil/Praying for those who are sick, Make cards for those who are ill, Put band aids on a world map and pray for places in need (Venezuela, Syria, Australia, Iran are appropriate this week in my context), Talk about forgiveness and how that is a different kind of healing/go over the Lord’s Prayer, Go over the Apostles’ Creed Talk about the Christmas story: review you are in the middle of Jesus Life. Play Doctor, Give Forgiveness to one another: symbolize it with cool band aids.

Note: Be cautious of Ableist language and assumptions: Be sure to point out that God loves everyone exactly as they are and it’s more important to be a good person–be sure to emphasize that there is no such thing as a perfect body.

Other Weeks of Seeds of Prayer Narrative Lectionary Resources available here

Christmas Story

John 1:1-5

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was in the beginning with God. ³All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being ⁴in him was life,^* and the life was the light of all people. ⁵The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

Luke 1:26-30, 2:1-5

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.’ ²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. ³⁸Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. ²This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³All went to their own towns to be registered. ⁴Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. ⁵He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.

Luke 1:46-56

46 And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
⁴⁸ for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
⁵² He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵ according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’

56 And Mary remained with her for about three months and then returned to her home.

Luke 2:5-7

⁵He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. ⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Luke 2:8-12

8 In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: ¹¹to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’

Luke 2:16-20

¹⁶So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. ¹⁷When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Matthew 2:1-12

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ²asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’ ³When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; ⁴and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. ⁵They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
⁶ “And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.” ’

7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. ⁸Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’ ⁹When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. ¹¹On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ¹²And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Luke 2:13-14

¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,
¹⁴ ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’

John 3:16-17

16 ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.17 ‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.