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Monthly Archives: June 2015

Make Grace Real

28 Jun
From Northwest Community Church UCC in Las Vegas, NV

From Northwest Community Church UCC in Las Vegas, NV

Great physician, bring healing to all that are here today. We cannot heal our selves so let Your Spirit wash over the wounds of our hearts and minds. Fade away the anger, the resentment and the ignorance that we’ve allowed into our lives. “Take the mess of our past and turn it into a message” (Christine Cain) by shifting our hearts and minds into a new chapter where ordinary people do extraordinary things. Write our destiny so that we can make Grace real to everybody and that all people can live in the full experience of humanity, dignity and respect.

Nothing in creation can make us any less human. We are all sinners redeemed by the same loving Creator. So “let us find words that comfort rather than congratulate. Let us seek to be a community of grace and forgiveness rather than of protest. Let us use our hands not to (applaud) but to wipe away every tear” (UCC General Synod) from the brokenhearted people right next to us. Let us be heroes and champions of the gospel and not it’s opponents.

 
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Posted by on June 28, 2015 in Conversations with God

 

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Shift our thinking

21 Jun

Creator of all, we come in through these doors because we need You to reopen the doors of our hearts and community onto the mission of Christ. Let this church be reborn and let the Holy Spirit unleash the power of healing that resides within all of us.   Teach us to not just communicate with each other but to commune with each other.

As generations and cultures crash into each other, shift our thinking to rediscover the ancient unity of all sinners that was revealed on the cross at Calvary. Strengthen us to hold onto this union, this commonality, that we all share as children of God. Remind us, that even through the greatest storms of life, we are never alone.

“Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them” (Scott and Kelli KLOVE). For those of us celebrating with our families today, we give thanks to God. For those of us grieving the loss of a loved one, we pray for compassion and understanding that “grief never ends…it changes. It’s a passage, not a place to stay. Grief is not a sign of weakness, nor a lack of faith…It is the price of love” (Scott and Kelli K-LOVE).

 
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Posted by on June 21, 2015 in Conversations with God, Worship Leader

 

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Only Love Can

14 Jun
"Like a rose trampled on the ground..."

“Like a rose trampled on the ground…”

Lord God, the broken come to You today because “no stone, nor steel, nor diamond is so hard as the impenitent heart of man(kind)” (Martin Luther). Soften our hearts and open our vision to a world larger than ourselves. Anchor our lives in the steadfast truth of Your love so that we will know that “a few bad chapters does not mean that our story is over” (TobyMac). Remind us that we were meant to be human and that we all fall short of the glory of God. Give us the wisdom to just pause and be silent, so that the truth of God can be heard.

Yes, there will always be disagreements within the body of Christ, here on earth, but there is one thing that we can always agree on…love.   “Love is God manifested. To lead with Love is to go with God” (Claire Danna).   “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can” (MLK). The world can change and it will. And as it changes, let us respond with the same Love that was first given to us when God was crowned and crucified by an angry mob.

 
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Posted by on June 14, 2015 in Conversations with God

 

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So Shall We

07 Jun
Cross at St. John's Lutheran Church in Mounds, Minnesota

Cross at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Mounds, Minnesota

Lord God, “be in our head and our understanding” (Sarum Primer, 1558), for You are not so much the object of our knowledge as you are the cause of our wonder” (Kallistos Ware). Let Your good news come crashing down into the deserts of our hearts and invite us to join in the flow of the Holy Spirit.

Like a wind, take us to where it is that You go, so that we can live beyond ourselves. Communicate to us the mystery that is God and the truth that we don’t have all the answers. Give us the strength to dream and the courage to inspire others on their journey towards salvation and everlasting life.

You give us the gift of living in between the now and eternity. Let us dare to fight for the weak, poor and the forgotten.  Jesus extends grace, love and mercy for all people. So shall we.  Jesus identified with the outcast, the lowly and the despised.  So shall we.  Jesus gave healing and forgiveness. So shall we. Lord, “don’t let us transmit our wounds unto each other, but instead help us to transform others and to change the world” (Rev. Ed Bacon).

 
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Posted by on June 7, 2015 in Conversations with God

 

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