katyandtheword

Narrative Lectionary, Year 2, Lent 4

March 10th, Lent 4
Mark 12:28-44 Great Commandment, Poor Widow
Psalm 89:1-4

Lent 4: Serving God: Love God exactly as you Are Don’t need to change Nothing (anything) first. How would the world be if we stopped worrying about appearances?

Breath Prayer Option
Inhale: I am imperfect
Exhale: I am ready to serve

Inhale: God loves me
Exhale: I am the Widow’s Mite

Inhale: God is faithful
Exhale: It’s Ok if I change

Call to Worship:
I will sing of your steadfast love, forever!
With my mouth, I will proclaim your faithfulness to all generations!
God made a covenant with David and his descendants
God is faithful, Come let us praise our faithful God!

Call to Confession: God knows us and loves us, come let us confess ourselves to our loving God.

Prayer of Confession: God we confess that it is hard to hear the story of the widow without judgement. Should we be the widow? Should the poor widow not have given her last mite? And yet, perhaps Jesus was just stating the facts that those who serve are going to be the poorest among us, because they get it. Help us when we judge how others use their money or how others serve, to instead just love and serve in our own ways, we pray. Amen.

Prayer of Confession: God we confess that the command to simply love God with all of our heart, minds and souls does not seem to be concrete enough for us. In what ways? Are there not specific hymns to sing or prayers to pray? We confess that it bothers us that Jesus does not say how we are supposed to love God, just that we should, and this means that we cannot judge each other. Help us not to judge, and to just love you the best we can we pray. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News, God loves us exactly as we are, so we know the truth In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God help us to remember that you have called us exactly as we are to serve you, encourage us to go and into the world ready to love and serve the Lord. Amen.

Hymn Suggestions: Just As I am Without One Plea

Taize Option: Wait for the Lord

Children’s Activity: Play Freeze (try not to move) or Red Light/Green Light. Talk about how God is always faithful even if you change/move.

Children’s Book: I’ll Wait Mr Panda by Steve Antony about how waiting for the results of hard work is worth it.

Entire Liturgy

Feel free to Email KatyandtheWord at Gmail for Text version for easy Copy/Paste Formatting
Suggested Donation for Entire Liturgy $75
(you can decide what is fair for portions)
Receipt Available upon request
Please give credit to Pastor Katy Stenta “KatyandtheWord”

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Narrative Lectionary, Year 2, Lent 3

March 3rd, Lent 3
Mark 12:1-12 [13-17] Wicked Tenants, Pay Caesar (Sacrifice)
Psalm 86:8-13

Kneeling with Christ
The Promise of a New Kin-dom
Breaking [A World Beyond] Capitalism

Lent 3: Serving God: Rendering to God what is God’s, What do you have to offer?

Breath Prayer Option
Inhale: Great is God’s Steadfast Love
Exhale: God delivers me

Call to Worship
God is great and wondrous
You alone are God
I give thanks to you, of you alone are God
Let us give our whole hearts to God
God’s steadfast love is eternal
Come let us glorify God’s name forever

Call to Confession: God allows us to sit in the Divine presence even when we feel uncertain, come let us confess ourselves to God.

Prayer of Confession: God we confess that we do not know what to render to you. It feels like everything belongs to society and Caesar: our bodies, our time, our work. We confess that it angers us in such a way that we might become like the tenants, ready to lash out even at those who come to with messages from God. Help us to move beyond the structures of this world, so that we can serve the Kingdom we pray. (Silent Confession) Amen.

Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News, the yoke of Jesus Christ is light, and He is ready to forgive, so we know the Good News of Christ’s grace In Jesus Christ we are Forgiven.

Communion Prayer: God you are here to serve us and to feed us. You stooped your divine self into human form–translating divinity into a body and Good News into a format that we can understanding, so that we can taste and see the Good News of your life, one of service and foot washing. Send your Holy Spirit upon these elements so that we can feel your holy presence as a moment of communion with you and understand your teachings as moments of grace and love, we pray in the name of your son Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God, we are here to dedicate ourselves to you, because when we do, our lives are more joyful and complete. Help us to recognize the ways you move and are in our lives, so that we might live more fully in service to you we pray. Amen.

Hymn Suggestions: We Give Thee But Thine Own

Taize Option: Ubi Caritas

Children’s Activity: Talk about offering and what it means, and why it is you give offering–and how one can give offering of money, time and talents. Arrange a service project–preparing food or toiletries or birthday kits for the community.

Children’s Book: The Power of One by Trudy Ludwig or Children’s Book: The Power of One by Trudy Ludwig how goodness has ripple effects or Thank You Mr Panda by Steve Antony about how waiting is hard but it can have good effects.

Entire Liturgy

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Rachel

A reflection on the ongoing violence in Gaza, CW: war, death violence against children

God
I hear her
in the middle of the night

Sometimes when my children
run around the house
in their ruckus game of Hide and Seek
(which I do not tell them they are too old for)
their teenage feet sound like
hippos
With the hunger to go with it
a trail of crumbs
going up and down the steps

I do not yell at them
for the noise
the chaos
the mess

I hear Rachel weeping
All the way from Gaza
it is a whispered
choking sound

Her snuffling lament
It sounds both angry
and full of hurt

And I can hear it
all too often
echoing across the oceans

Rachel is weeping
for her children

She refuses all comfort
I see her pacing
Unable to eat or sleep
because her children
are buried under rubble
or blown to pieces

Her children who were scrounging for food
and licking the rain off of gutters
Her children who she packed up
in the middle of the night

First to travel to one part of the world
and then another
In the bitter cold
In hats and gloves knitted by
an old Auntie, who unrolled all the wool they had
Just to cover the children

And then in a blink of violence

Rachel’s children are gone
And sometimes her eyes play tricks on her
And she thinks that she sees them
Out of the corner of her eye
or in the line marching towards a border
Blocked by soldiers
Even as her heart beats

They are gone
They are lost
I can’t find them

Rachel weeps
the tears flow
so that she does not notice them
any longer
she does not
notice…

Jeremiah 31:15 Thus says the Lord:
A voice is heard in Ramah,
   lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
   she refuses to be comforted for her children,
   because they are no more.

Picture of the wall written on by these students, which is lovely because it gives a fuller story of the conflict which is complicated by the terrorist group Hamas who wanted this war, the corrupt governance of Netanyahu and the anti-semitism throughout the world that begs for a safe place for Jewish people to exist and be (and this summary does not even do the situation justice, however this poem expresses some of the pain of this moment) https://lisaschirch.wordpress.com/2017/10/10/rachel-is-weeping-at-the-separation-wall/

With thanks to Rev Kyle Delhagan and Presbyterian Women for finding the image

Narrative Lectionary, Year 2, Lent 2

February 25, Lent 2
Mark 10:32-52 Son of Man to Serve, Heal Blind Bartimaeus
Psalm 34:11-14

Disciples want to get close to Jesus, Jesus continually points the disciples to look outward
Kneeling with Christ :When Jesus Comes Every Knee will bow,
Because Christ will return as he came, Kneeling to Serve
And we will Kneel to be Beside him
The Promise of a New Kin-dom
A World Beyond Capitalism, Breaking Capitalism

Call to Worship
I will bless the Lord at all times
Praise shall continually be in my mouth
Let my soul make its boast in the Lord
Let the humble hear and be glad
Let us hear the good news, and be warmed by it
Let us taste and see that God is good together
Come, magnify the Lord with me, for God is humble to be with us
Let us exalt the name of God together

Lent 2: Serving God: Whole Person/Confession & Serving God

Breath Prayer Option
God is with us
God Knows us

Call to Confession: Let us confess ourselves to Jesus Christ, the one who is human with us and for us, and so he accepts us as we are.

Prayer of Confession: God we confess that we are sometimes ashamed, we are afraid to come with our full selves. Afraid that we are incomplete, or not enough. We are afraid, and so we find it hard to serve. But you reassure us, that fear is part of the process, and that you will always answer and take care of us. Help us when we are afraid we pray. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon: Hear this, God answers and delivers us, forgiving us so that we are radiant with the good news: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Prayer of The Day/Dedication: God who sees us as complete and calls us by name in the midst of our struggles, lead us towards a faith that helps us to serve in a way that is not about ability* but about faith we pray. Amen.

Hymn Suggestions: What Does the Lord Require of You, Taste and See, Lift High the Cross

Taize Option: Lord Remember Me

Children’s Activity: Self Portraits–talk about how everyone is different and how God knows us and loves us exactly how we are, and how each of us have imperfections like most handmade work

Children’s Book: God Gave Us You by Lisa Tawn Bergren https://www.amazon.com/God-Gave-You-Lisa-Bergren/dp/0307729915

*Healing stories have a potential to turn ableist really quickly. Though it is amazing that Bartimaeus is healed, it is the fact that Jesus saw him as a full and complete person (notice how he is even named!), and took his faith as a priority that might be the most important aspect of this story.

Entire Liturgy

Feel free to Email KatyandtheWord at Gmail for Text version for easy Copy/Paste Formatting
Suggested Donation for Entire Liturgy $75
(you decide what is fair for portions)
Receipt Available upon request
Please give credit to Pastor Katy Stenta “KatyandtheWord”

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword@gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Lent 2024, Narrative Lectionary, Year 2

Themes:
Disciples want to get close to Jesus, Jesus continually points the disciples to look outward
Kneeling with Christ :When Jesus Comes Every Knee will bow,
Because Christ will return as he came, Kneeling to Serve
And we will Kneel to be Beside him
The Promise of a New Kin-dom
A World Beyond Capitalism, Breaking Capitalism

Feel free to Email KatyandtheWord at Gmail for Text version for easy Copy/Paste Formatting
Suggested Donation for entire Liturgy $75
(you can decide what is fair for portions)
Receipt Available upon request
Please give credit to Pastor Katy Stenta “KatyandtheWord”

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe, if you wish to send a check please contact me for info

February 14th
Ash Weds
Mark 9:30-37 Last, First, like a Child
Psalm 32:1-5

February 18th , Lent 1
Mark 10:17-31 Rich Man sell all
Psalm 19:7-10

March 3rd, Lent 3
Mark 12:1-12 [13-17] Wicked Tenants, Pay Caesar (Sacrifice)
Psalm 86:8-13

March 10th, Lent 4
Mark 12:28-44 Great Commandment, Poor Widow
Psalm 89:1-4

March 17th, Lent 5
Mark 13: 1-8, 24-37 End of age, Watch
Psalm 102:12-17

March 24th, Lent 6
Mark 11:1-11 Triumphal Entry
Mark 14:3-9 woman anoints Jesus
Psalm 118:25-29

Holy Week Book
Jesus, The Word by Mark Fracisco Bozzuti-Jones Image from here

Jesus, The Word book cover, rainbow Jesus with open hand by by Mark Fracisco Bozzuti-Jones

Also What is God Like
YouTube reading

What is God Like Book
Black kid riding a Narwhale Across the Universe

by Rachel Held Evans

March 28 Maundy Thurs
Mark 14:22-42 Words of Institution, Peter’s Denial foretold, Gethsemane Prayer
Psalm 116:12-19

March 29th Good Fri
Mark 15:16-39 Mocking, Forsaken
Psalm 22:1-2, 14-21

March 31st Resurrection
Mark 16:1-8 Empty tomb, Fleeing
Psalm 118:21-27

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe
if you wish to send a check please contact me for info

Narrative Lectionary, Year 2, Lent 1

Mark 10:17-31 Rich Man sell all
Psalm 19:7-10

Kneeling with Christ
The Promise of a New Kin-dom
Breaking [A World Beyond] Capitalism

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword@gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Lent 1: Serving God, Journey & Change

Breath Prayer Option
Breathe in: Jesus I will serve you
Breathe out: Jesus I will follow you

Call to Worship
Jesus we are following you into Lent
Your laws are perfect, so we follow you
Jesus we long to love and serve like you
Here we are, starting the journey into Lent, Journey with us God
Come let us journey with God
Come, let us make space for this holy time together.

Call to Confession
Jesus calls us to follow him, because we are heavy burdened, let us lay down what we are carrying to God, so we might find rest

Prayer of Confession: God we know that what you have to offer is more desirable than God and sweeter than honey, but we confess that we are not ready to give up all of our possessions and follow you. We confess that we find the idea of changing everything, difficult. We confess that we are uncertain, sometimes, what following you even means sometimes. Forgive us when we are afraid, teach us how to serve beside you in ways that are life giving and hopeful we pray. In the name of your son Jesus Christ. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News: Jesus promises that he is preparing a way full of grace and mercy for us, so we can be assured of the good news, In Jesus Christ we are forgiven, Amen.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: Let us go forth proclaiming the good news, that faith is not about who is first or who has the most. It is not even about being perfect. For it is God who will teach us to serve, and we will carry that throughout the world. Amen.

Hymn Suggestions: They will Know We are Christians By Our Love, I Wonder as I Wander

Taize Option: Veni Sancte Spiritus

Children’s Activity: Play Simon Says, Stoplight, Duck Duck Goose depending on Ages, talk about how these games who wins “it” the person in control, how you lose, and then play them backwards, where the loser WINS

Children’s Book:The Goblin and the Empty Chair https://www.amazon.com/Goblin-Empty-Chair-Mem-Fox/dp/1416985859 Talk about about how the disciples fought over where to sit as opposed to the empty chair where welcome was made for the Goblin

Entire Liturgy

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword@gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

A circular wooden table with wooden chairs, above is the Holy Spirit dove with a circle of arrows pointing everywhere

Ash Weds, Giving your Heart to God, a very brief reflection, Narrative Lectionary

Image from here and here

Entire Liturgy

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Ash Weds/Maundy Thurs Prayer

(Invitation to write something you want to give to on a valentine/heart: a hope or a burden. This can be written in the order of worship, and dropped in at the end)

Let us gather together in the name of God,
Happy are those who confess themselves to God
When we keep silent, our bodies feel heavy, we can feel them growing
We grown all day long, everything feels heavy upon me, but the weight of it all can be taken by God
How beautiful is it, that God knows us and loves us? We are the children of God.
Come let us gather close to God.

Read:
Mark 9:30-37

How wonderful is it to know that there is no competition for Jesus. We will all be fed by him. Let us approach God with the wonder and questions of children.
Come let us celebrate the feast of our Lord Jesus and

(Celebrate communion together in your tradition)

As we have all been fed and brought to God with one another, now we can remember that we belong to God in life and in death. We can give our heart to God, and accept the truth, that we are ashes, and to ashes we shall return.

(Imposition of ashes, bringing of hearts valentines or end of service with the passing of the plates)

Postlude

Entire Liturgy

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword@gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Venmo @Katy-Stenta (last four 7841), Paypal @KatyStenta, Google Pay Katyandtheword at gmail.com, Cash App $bookkats
GoFundMe

Let’s Write Liturgy

If you want an experiential, small group writing experience, here it is

Let’s Write Liturgy Workshop

Now Offered at Two Times, in the Eastern Time Zone

please email with your preferred date

Cost is $50

Do you want to learn how to write prayers and liturgy? Psalms and Calls to Worship? Confessions and Personal Prayers? This Zoom Workshop is designed for all levels and experiences for people to engage in prayer writing–using the scripture as your guide.

Led by Katy Stenta, Pastor, Writer and Educator

Who is ready for the next Liturgy Workshop?

Come and let’s have a writing experience together!

For more information to sign up, email Katyandtheword at gmail.com. Titled “Liturgy” indicate which date you want

Katy Stenta is a regular contributor to Sermonsuite, RevGalBlogPals, and is published in Enfleshed, Presbyterian’s Today and Outlook. She received her undergraduate in English and History and Minor on Philosophy at Oberlin, her M. Div. and MA in Christian Formation at Princeton Theological Seminary. She is all but dissertation for her Doctorate in Creative Writing as a Public Theologian at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. She also writes personal prayers regularly at katyandtheword.com.

Star Words, a Podcast

It was a delight to be invited to Holy Shenanigans Podcast! Artist and Pastor Tara Lamont Eastman invited me over to her podcast and we had an amazing conversation, do pop over and listen to this relaxing way to enter the new year.

What are “Star Words” anyway? Welcome to a brand new year of sacred (non-stuffy) Holy Shenanigans! This season is exciting, with opportunities for fresh starts, but can be a time of overwhelming pressure to persue perfection. Well meaning resolutions can go sideways – fueled by sales efforts of the “wellness industry” in service to capitalism.

There is another way to engage in new beginnings in ways that feed our hearts, minds and souls. 2024 can be a time to attend to and offer yourself spiritual practices that are supportive, compassionate AND sane! https://holyshenanigans.buzzsprout.com/…/14267535-star…#starwords#holyshenaniganspodcast

Join Rev. Tara Eastman, as she shares the spiritual practice of choosing an annual “Star Word” and gentle options for spiritual renewal with special guest, author: Rev. Katy Stenta.

Katy Stenta is a PCUSA pastor, writer, workshop leader and community builder. She is currently vice moderator for Albany Presbytery, regular contributor to Sermonsuite and leads workshops on writing, particularly prayer and liturgy. Her conversational prayers and psalms are used by people and churches all over the world from KatyandtheWord.com and she is all but dissertation from completing her Doctorate in Ministry in Creative Writing as a public theologian at Mr Roger’ alma mater Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

Dissertation/Book/Doctorate Update

In 1 month, I will need to have finished drafting the big one, a 25 page paper theologizing (really rationalizing in a theological way) my poetry. Here is a pic of the authors I am using ((3 are accurate))–though I will prob use a smaller work by Moltmann. I am currently at a coffee shop sitting down to try to get it together. Pray for me, and all of my classmates. We are not all graduating this year, but there are still THIRTY FIVE of us in the program. The exact same number that started. We have all stuck, and I believe in my soul that we are ALL going to graduate. So send us all your good spells, wishes and prayers please. As for me, I am REALLY trying to finish this year. Thank you for all of your support. Every donation from $5 to $500 has helped me to be able to WRITE, and to SHARE my writings! As you can see I’ve Almost completely fundraised through this final year! Can you believe it??? When I started I could not imagine asking for help for 3 years, much less receiving it. I have been overwhelmed!!! Thank you so much! I believe in my class, our work, and even me! https://gofund.me/6e3e45b9