Immigrant God
Be with us
Be with those separated from families
Teach us how to make room at the inn
Remind us
That you translated
Yourself into Humanity
Because you understood
That we humans
We hate translating
Teach us to keep at this translation work
of human to understand divine
of cultural understanding
of the beauty of change (we humans aren’t so good at change)
Translate us
into a Christmas people
we pray
Amen
God I know I don’t need
To look for you
Advent is in
a minor key
Because
Christ is already here
In the ICE prisons
Christ is already here
with the unhoused
Christ is already here
at the wartorn rubble
Christ is already here
But it’s hard
to see the face of Jesus
Fear not
You say
And you coax us to
free the prisoners
To distribute food
without worry about who is deserving
As you remind us
What peace and wholeness means
Fear not
The Holy Spirit
Inspires us
Laying Groundwork
for the key change
to take hold
We wait with you God
Because we want the miracle
of Christmas
To be about
the seeds that are
planted
to mean
Universal flourishings
Feel free to use/share/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
God,
I just saw
Superman
And I pray for
the day
when
movies
don’t hit
home
So hard
And the brown
children
in the midst of
war
waving a flag
Don’t break your
heart
And the world
Splitting in two
of a “Natural
Disaster”
doesn’t
make
your jaw clench
And God
I pray that
when people
cry because
the Lex Luthers
of the world
Make them
feel bad
And the immigrants
are the Superheroes
That the Holy Spirit
Keeps
Tapping them
On the shoulder
nipping
Them
in the
Ear
And
touching
them on their
heart
Because
Maybe art
Isn’t the one
Way through
But I’ll take
Blood,
Sweat,
Tears,
Votes
And
your favorite
Pop
Character
Because
At this point
Anything
To Welcome
people
to there revelation
God help us
Walk until
everyone
can see
the Superpuppy
as cute
and all earthlings
as Beloved
We pray.
Amen.
Feel free to share/adapt/use with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
with thanks to my middle child Westley who loves all movies, and honors remakes and sequels, etc and more of the thing he loves and teaches a deep appreciation of all art–it’s good remember to take joy in all things (This movie was really good, but it is truly fun to walk in to everything with the attitude of, this will be fun)
My God is the Immigrant God
The son of a slave
(I’m sorry do we usually translate Mary as a servant?)
The God of the found Family
the God of Queer Joseph
prancing around
in their lady’s cloak..
coat of many colors
God sees and hears the trauma
In the stories and sees the perspectives
we miss
Holding our hand
as we untangle the narrative
that we need to hear
Helping us to
get to a place of
true sanctuary
community
and Shalom: wholeness, defragmentation, peace
Our God is the accessible God
not contained to Jerusalem
Ephraim
God can be worshipped anywhere
even in
Samaria
And so God says–remember
I am the immigrant God
And when David says
Solomon says
humans say
I’ll build you a building
God says
Why would
I
EVER
Want to be
Contained in that
I’m really glad we listened to you on that one
Our God is the expanding God
The one who turns the “bad Moabites” sterotype
on it’s head with Ruth
The one who contrasts the evil people from Uz
with blameless Job
the one who shows the wholeness of personhood
Of foreigners and eunuchs
(God of immigrants)
with the magi and the baptistism of the African Eunuch
And the Samaritans, those neighbors too like the Hebrews
become “Good” in the neighbor parable of Jesus
God is a protest God
who sends yelling Prophets
and Fighting Judges of Justice
and Well Endowed Women to back
Jesus and his disciples
God is many things
a mover
a shaker
a creator
an artist
someone helping those
in the corner of your eye
Affirming the full personhood
of all those you meet
What God is not is
a Kingmaker
A wealthproducer
An institution creator
a power propper
The Divine has no interest in
human machinations
they are but
wisps
and string
Unimportant
God is interested in
how people
and relationships will flourish
Giving life and personhood
to all….
Moving in
Unexpected ways
(Which is probably why
we think the Divine is so mystery)
Thank God
for that!
Feel free to use/share/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta
*with thanks to Aemina Razzina for her book and discussions about “Healing Together” to help inspire this prayer https://www.everand.com/book/813879316/Healing-Together-Trauma-Informed-Care-for-Spiritually-Integrated-Communities
God of Chosen Names
Jesus
Yesu
El Shaddai
God of Many Breasts;
Y/Know the God of Many Mountains-Able to be Worshiped anywhere
Otherwise translated as Almighty
Abundant God
Merciful God
Purveyor of Peace
Everlasting Guardian
King of Kings
Ruler of All
Kin-dom Creator
God of Chosen Fam
Sibling Maker
Creator of Heirs
The One who makes us all Heirs
of Love
Creator of Peace
the one who faces
Trauma
Hard Family Dynamics
Gossip
Rocky Friendships
And walks with people
With dirt between your toes
and washes our feet
dries our tears
Sits with us
In silence
Waits
And calls us
By our Chosen name
God of Compassion
Empathy
God of the in-between
God of Grays
Twilights
Sunrises
Sunsets
Dragonflies
Amphibians
Marsupials
Fungi
Duck-Billed Platypi
God of the Blackholes
Stardust
God the quarks and leptons
You are inst and amongst the rainbows
Encouraging personification of self
Co-creation, Naming
You celebrate our being
the Imago Dei
and the DEI
Diversity
Equity
and Inclusion
You are proud of all of your children
You oo and ahh and shout with joy
Proclaiming the fullness of
your Trans*
Queer
Lesbian
Gay
Ace
Nonbinary
Intersex
and Pansexual Children
You send angels
before them
(canonically nonbinary
themselves)
Proclaiming
That they are
Fierce
And Wonderfully Made
Saying
Make way
for them
For they
are Children of God
May the world
Have ears to Hear
And Hearts to Understand
The beauty of your Creation
Amen
Amen!
Feel free to use/share adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
April 20
Resurrection
Luke 24:1-12
Psalm 118:17, 21-24
Call to Worship:
This day is marvelous
Because it is the Lord’s doing
What day is that?
Today, is the the day that the marginal stone, that the builder’s rejected became chief cornerstone for equity
This is the day, this must be the day that the Lord has made
Let us rejoice and be glad in it
Call to Worship
We must recount the deeds of the Lord
We give thanks to God who has become Salvation
Salvation and Liberation, for are they not the same thing?
God is marvelous in our eyes
This is the day that the Lord has made
Let us rejoice and be Glad in it.
Prayer of Confession: God we confess that your resurrection is too hard to believe. We confess that some days it is hard to talk about the good news, that sometimes the message seems to get lost. Help us to live in such love and relationship that we can understand the Good News we pray.
Prayer of Confession: Jesus, we confess that we are perplexed. Your love is too deep for us to understand. Teach us to be an Easter people we pray. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon: Here the Good News, Jesus loved us, came for us, died for us and is the Resurrected living Christ, thus we know in our Hearts the Good News of Easter: In Jesus Christ, we are Forgiven. Alleluia. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News, all sins have already been washed away, we have the promise of the resurrection and so we can sing the Good News to one another. In Jesus Christ we are forgiven, Alleluia, Amen.
Prayer of the Day/Dedicaiton: God, we are an Easter People, and we get to celebrate it every Sunday. May we go into the world with the promise of Resurrection in our hearts we pray. Amen.
Children’s Story: Summarize Velveteen Rabbit. (Being made more real/human by God’s Love)
April 13
Lent 6
Passion/Palm Sunday
Luke 19:29-44
Psalm 118:19-23
Triumph Entry, Jesus Weeps
Lost Peace? God weeps with you
Call to Worship
Let God open the gates of Equity
Whenever God opens them, I give thanks
When God opens the gates Justice will enter
I thank God who answers prayers—and becomes Liberation
The stone that the builders reject will become the chief cornerstone, it is God’s doing
God’s steadfast love endures forever, Praise God!
Call to Worship
When God opens the Gates, we shall know
Equity, Justice and Liberation will flow in the form of Lovingkindness
All that seemed marginal and rejected before, will become marginal
In God’s world, everything will be upside down, and peace will finally be prioritized
We love God who is all about love, salvation and redemption.
How can you no praise that kind of God? Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Prayer of Confession: God, we confess that we get tangled up in our words, thinking that this story is all about judgement instead of empathy. We confess that too often we are looking for the bad guys, instead of the purveyors of peace. Forgive us, teach us how to plant, sow and understand peace we pray. Amen.
Prayer of Confession: Jesus, we confess that sometimes we want to weep without stopping. We feel stuck in the Good Friday moment, and we do not feel like a resurrection people at all. Sit with us when we cry, and teach us how to get up, walk and take the next steps we pray. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News: Nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus Christ, nothing in the present, past or future. No angels, demons, laws, rules, governments, powers, principalities, churches or anything else. So hear and know in your hearts the Good, Good News. In Jesus Christ we are forgiven. Amen.
Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God send us into the world, remembering that Jesus became fully human to walk and be with us. May we try to be fully present in love with one another too. Amen.
Children: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Viorst (bad things don’t take away from the good things, but good things don’t take away from the bad things in life) https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/alexander-and-the-terrible-horrible-no-good-very-bad-day_judith-viorst/253652/?resultid=b18ddc0d-6f7a-42ac-81a1-e6f4798e79ad#edition=2284278&idiq=4130587
April 6
Lent 5
Zacchaeus
Luke 18:31-191:10
Psalm 84:1-4, 10-12
Lost Sight of Things? God calls You
Call to Worship
How our souls long for God
My heart and flesh sing for the joy to the living God
Even the Sparrow (Freest of Birds) finds a home, and the Swallow (Smallest of Birds) a nest for herself.
Happy are those who live in your House, Singing your Praises God.
A day in God’s house is better
A day in your courts, are better than a thousand elsewhere
Come let us keep the door for God
Come let us listen for God, our sun and our shield, today.
Call to Worship
We long for you God
We want to feel your presence
Even when we can’t see you
God you see us and call us
Be with us
God, be with us today
Prayer of Confession: God I confess that it is hard to see Jesus. We look and cry out, and sometimes Jesus is not there. Teach us to be open to Jesus so that when he invites himself over to dinner, we may be able to open our doors to him we pray. Amen
Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News, Jesus is looking for us, and loving us into being. Thus we know the truth: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.
Prayer of Confession: Jesus, we confess that we hate not knowing and feeling lost. We feel like we need to know the way. Allow us trust that it is ok to feel blind, and help us when we stumble and fall we pray. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News, Jesus is the Good Shepherd, and will never lead us astray, so we know the truth. In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.
Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God teach us to be ok with following Jesus, even when we feel lost along the way. Teach us to trust and follow we pray. Amen.
Children’s Book: Red by Michael Hall https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/red-a-crayons-story/9128924/all-editions/?resultid=8c659c58-dc2a-4647-8ab4-e5ea74a40596 Knowing how to see yourself (how God sees you) even when other’s don’t
March 30
Lent 4
Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus
Luke 16:19-31
Psalm 41:1-3*
Verse 3: Lord sustains them in their sickbeds could be translated as God sustains them mutually in sickness or health
Lost Life? God reminds you what really matters
There is a theme of mutuality and community
As well as an interesting theme about weeping here: weeping wounds, weeping from sadness, etc.
Call to Worship
Blessed are those who consider the Poor
God protects
For God delivers them trouble
God sustains
God provide mutuality, in sickness or in health
God restores
Blessed be the Divine
From Everlasting to Everlasting, Blessed be God
Call to Worship
God we look to you in mourning
You love us
God of resurrection, You are rich beyond compare
You are the God of Love
You remind us to live in Love
May we greet one another in Love today
Prayer of Confession: God we confess that we are a country that hoards things: goods, power, influence. We are not good at sharing. And you are honest with us, resurrection and life and the Good News are sometimes not enough for us to hear. We confess that we are afraid of losing things. Teach us to live into love, relationships and community and to embrace joy and good whenever we can, so that we do not miss the riches we have we pray. Amen.
Prayer of Confession: Jesus we confess that we worry, we worry sometimes that we are the Rich Man, other times we worry that we are Lazarus with weeping wounds unable to help others. Help us when we are uncertain or scared of the outcomes, to remember that Christ is with us, doing the work of resurrection.
Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News Jesus came for us, loved us, taught us, died for us and is resurrected for us, so we know the truth: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.
Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God your Good News calls us towards a Resurrection that is beyond riches. Teach us to hear and believe your Good News we pray. Amen.
Children: https://a.co/d/evgvo9h The Golden Goose Laughter and Joy over Money) Or the Selfish Giant The Kingdom of Heaven is sharing not Hoarding https://a.co/d/dJq9XqJ There are a million editions of both of these stories–and they could be told with figures too or cutouts as well
March 23
Lent 3
Lost Sheep, Coin, Son
Luke 15:1-32
Psalm 119:167-176
Lost? God searches, and searches and finds you (Instead of You Finding God)
Call to Worship
God, you seek us
Even when we feel lost and alone
You not only find us, you celebrate
God, help us to find you
God wants us to find each other
Come let us find one another and celebrate with God
Call to Worship (based on Psalm 119:169-176(
God’s hand is ready to help
We long for God’s liberation
Let us live, so that we can praise God
When we have gone astray, seek us out God, for you are our shepherd
My lips will pour forth praise, and you will give me understanding of your Word
Come let us sing of God’s promises together.
Call to Worship
God we may lose you
But you will find us
God sometimes I feel all alone
God you are the shepherd, the widow who never stops searching
God, you are the father who throws pride aside and runs and runs to greet his child
Come let us be with a God who wants to spend time with us
Prayer of Confession: God, I confess that I find myself searching. Sometimes I am not sure if I’m the one who is lost, or if it is others. Then I realize, it doesn’t matter, for we all belong to God. You just want us to find one another and you. Whether we are the sheep, shepherd, widow, elder or younger child or the parent in the story this week; help us to find and rejoice with one another we pray. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon: God promises that if we knock, the door will open, so we know whenever we ask, God will forgive, so let us proclaim the truth In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.
Prayer of Confession: God, we confess that the last minute stories of you finding and forgiving people make us uncomfortable. We are the people who are here on Sunday, worshipping, doing due diligence. Forgive us, teach us the unbridled joy of the Widow, Shepherd and Parent who rejoice, hug and dance when they find what they have been looking for we pray. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon: Hear the Good News: Jesus Christ loves us and give us grace to learn and be found again and again, let us rejoice together saying: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.
Prayer of the Day/Dedication: May we go into the world continuing to seek communion with one another and God in the world wherever we go we pray. Amen.
Children: Are You My Mother (Note how the mother is looking too) https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/are-you-my-mother-by-pd-eastman/253060/all-editions/?resultid=4b79a176-20d6-45a9-b71b-9761563b534f, Alternative Where’s Waldo book (any)
katyandtheword 