GREETING (Psalm 139:23-24)
Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my thoughts.
See if there is any wicked way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
HYMN 524 “Beams of Heaven as I Go”
PSALM 130
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.
PRAYER (with references to Psalm 86:15 and Isaiah 40:28-31)
Father, whose patience and long-suffering are unequaled and without measure,
and who has demonstrated such qualities constantly on our behalf;
teach us to act with your patient restraint, tranquility and tenacity.
Brace us with steadfast love and acceptance for those who test people's patience.
Make us slow to grow angry and work quickly in forgiving others.
Remind us that we too have tested the patience of friends and family.
Open our eyes so that we can recognize the people around us as our companions.
Free us from seeing these many people as obstacles to our progress.
And keep us from pushing to get ahead of the people in front of us.
Give us the confidence to wait patiently and trust your answers to our prayers.
Build our stamina and persistence to stay the course in difficulties.
Instill within us a sense of serenity as irritations pile up around us.
And, God, please save us from the mistake of dragging tomorrow into today.
Instruct us in savoring where we are at this moment in our lives.
Focus our attention on the people with us and doing things right.
We are also terrible at waiting for anything. Teach us how to wait in peace.
Show us how to rest with faith and to surrender all control to you.
Plant in us the peace that trusts you to produce only good things.
Remind us always that those who wait on you will find their strength renewed.
Those who wait on your timing will rise up with wings like eagles.
And they will run and never grow weary, walk and never be faint.
We ask you for patience, God, because you have shown such patience with us.
Grant us tranquility and peace so we recognize all our blessings,
and so we walk in peace with you, your children and your world. 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 502 “Thy Holy Wings, O Savior”
CLOSING PRAYER
Father, as we lift our hands from this day’s work
put out the fires of any left-over anger you find in us,
let forgiveness wash away the wrongs done to us today.
Wrap our families in your strong, lasting protection,
and draw them deeper and deeper into your heart.
Close their eyes and hearts to every temptation that nears,
and give them peace, knowing your saving grace.
As we sleep, give our spirits peace, our bodies rest,
and our minds the dreams of those you truly love.
Help us listen in the quiet for the whispers of your Spirit,
who teaches us to walk in the ways of blessing.
And when we awake, God, in this world or the next,
let us do a better job worshiping you with our service,
in the new day you provide citizens of your kingdom. Amen.
Copyright 2020. Robert D. Ingram, 32746 Jourden Rd., Albany, Ohio 45710 (dr.bobingram@gmail.com). Used by permission.
