GREETING (adapted from Psalm 118:24)
This is the day that you have made, O God.
We rejoice and are glad in it.
HYMN 653 “Christ the Victorious”
PSALM 6
PRAYER
(Think back to the beginning of this day. Start there, and mentally walk through the day again, while you thank God for the day's blessings and God's continuous work of love. Confess and repent of those times when you forgot, ignored or rebelled against God. Continue to pray with your personal prayer list.)
SCRIPTURE LESSON
(Choose a passage of scripture to read. It can be a chapter, a paragraph, or a particular story. Daily lectionaries are available online or in print that assign a lesson each day from the gospels, epistles, Old Testament and psalms on a three-year cycle. Or you can create a plan to read a book of the Bible, or the whole Bible. Then follow the steps below.)
Read a passage of scripture. Read it out loud, very slowly and carefully as if for the first time. Continue reading until a word, phrase or sentence captures your attention. Stop there to repeat the word, phrase or sentence over and over, listening to it deeply in your heart.
Reflect on why the passage got your attention. Consider the area of your life to which this may apply. Is God saying something to you in this passage? Take time to listen carefully to whatever God may be saying to you.
Respond to God in prayer (or with journaling, music, art or whatever you choose) about what you have heard. Ask questions. Open yourself to God’s will for you.
Rest in God’s company. Be still and quiet. Move beyond thinking, practicing interior silence. Let yourself be open to God’s presence. Savor this moment with God.
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
(Declare your faith by repeating “The Apostles’ Creed” (882) or “The Nicene Creed,” (880) or use the following affirmation.)
We believe in a loving God who cares,
who gets involved in the details of people’s lives
who turns things around for the blessing of God’s children.
We believe in a loving God who overrules,
who reverses the accomplishments of every evil,
who brings order and good back from chaos and tragedy.
We believe in a Savior who intervenes,
who pulls great powers from their high thrones,
who lifts up the broken souls that others have beaten down.
We believe in a Savior who gives his life,
who wins back the lost lives of the people he loves,
who never forgets those that are among the smallest and least.
We believe in a Spirit who brings blessing,
who plants joy, peace and hope where none existed,
who gives power and wisdom to those with neither of these.
We believe in a Spirit who walks with us,
who resurrects our lives from the rubbish heaps,
who returns us to the loving blessings of our heavenly Father. Amen.
GLORY BE TO THE FATHER 70 or 71
Sunrise follows sunset.
Spring follows winter.
Harvest follows planting.
Experience and depth follows youth,
understanding follows diligent study,
and rest follows days of heavy work.
In the same way, God of Resurrection and Life,
you have ensured that laughter follows mourning,
and feasting in your kingdom follows our wakes.
Laughter follows grief,
because you are mercy,
and your love is eternal.
Your will prevails in the end, God,
and all your servants find their hope
in your great gentleness and strength.
You want your children with you in the kingdom,
and Christ is the One who can open that door to us.
Because of him, resurrection will follow our deaths.
Grace follows his passion.
Glory follows submission.
Thrill follows redemption.
Absolute jubilation bends our knees
to the first-born of all resurrections,
to the One who is life, way and truth.
In Christ our Savior, creation found its beginning;
in receiving him now, we are also received by you;
and in knowing Christ’s love, we know you, Father.
Surprise follows our end.
Greetings follow goodbye.
Radiance follows darkness.
As you gather your loved ones together,
familiar faces will wrap arms around us,
and we meet faith-heroes from yesterday.
There will be long stories to tell, with plenty of time,
and celebrations around your endless banquet tables.
We will be family like never before, all in holy love.
Home follows departing.
Rejoicing follows death.
Doxology follows petition.
To you, Heavenly One, we lift praise.
Loved ones left in grief and mourning,
will soon sing in the kingdom chorus.
Everywhere, in the beauty and peace of heaven,
the blessed will dance and play in your company.
Celebration most assuredly follows our mourning.
Infinity follows our time.
The new follows the old.
Faith follows our doubt.
What is today vision and promise,
found in passing moments of light.
soon follows as a total new reality.
Never-ending is the coming grand celebration
you have planned for all your kingdom children,
where your blessing follows this world’s suffering.
Unity follows separation.
Praise follows petitions.
Life follows our death.
Your boundless company hallows
the exhilarating and blissful days
that you have established for us.
As indestructible optimists we await Christ.
May we live as those who are already with you
until we sing your praises with all the saints above. Amen.
SILENCE AND COMMITMENT
(Pause to reflect and listen. Work to push out of your mind any distracting or irrelevant thoughts. Concentrate your thoughts on the words of the hymns and choruses you have sung, the prayers you have spoken and the scriptures you have read. Be aware of what you are feeling. Listen for anything that God might be saying to you in this time you have spent together. As God responds to your prayer-time, seek guidance for how you can best respond to God’s will. Then commit to serving God’s will for you.)
HYMN 709 “Come, Let Us Join Our Friends Above”
CLOSING PRAYER
Tonight, God, we rest in your blessing.
Every blessing you give flows from your love.
Such blessing, a high and holy privilege, is rooted in grace.
Knowing we are held in your blessing,
we sleep the sleep of peace and contentment.
We trust you to, once again, turn our night into glorious day. Amen.
Copyright 2020. Robert D. Ingram, 32746 Jourden Rd., Albany, Ohio 45710 (dr.bobingram@gmail.com). Used by permission.
