Fear and Faith

Fear and Faith is our worship theme for the fifth Sunday after Pentecost, July 1, 2012. Our focus scripture is Mark 5:21-43.

In our passage from Mark, Jesus continues to astound Galileans and even his closest followers with the power of faith. Returning from calming a fierce storm and healing a Gentile man possessed by a legion of demons, Jesus is immediate met by Jairus, a leader of the local synagogue. His daughter is dying and he begs Jesus to go with him and lay hands on her to heal her. Jesus goes with him surrounded by a large crowd. On the way, a woman who has suffered twelve years of hemorrhages that have drained both her blood and her savings, has the temerity to touch him. She has faith that even touching his garment will heal her and she thinks that no one will notice in the press of the crowd. But Jesus notices, and when he demands to know who has drawn power from him, she comes forward and confesses everything in fear and trembling. Her touch has made an important Rabbi ritually unclean and she expects chastisement. But Jesus calls her “daughter”, commends her faith, and sends her on her way healed of her disease. Then people come from Jairus’ house to bring the news that his daughter has died. Why trouble the Rabbi any further, they ask. There is nothing he can do. But Jesus tells Jairus, “Do not fear, only believe.” And Jesus goes to his home, takes his daughter by her hand, and restores her to life.

A woman unable to be helped by physicians, is healed and restored to her place in the community as a daughter of Abraham and Sarah and a person valued by Jesus. A young woman who has lost her life is given new life and restored to her family and her faith community. Fear abounds, but fear is fettered by faith. What lesson waits to be discovered in this important passage by our anxious and fearful world?

Here are three Calls to Worship based on the lectionary readings from the Lamentations of Jeremiah and Psalms 30 and 130. And I include one litany for Independence Day. Please feel free to use or adapt anything that is helpful to you.

Call to Worship   From Jeremiah’s Lamentations 3:19-33

L: God, you know I’ve been homeless and persecuted.

       The memory of it almost breaks my soul.

P: But as I suffer, I remember something that brings me hope:

       Your covenant love never ceases, God! Your mercies never run out!

L: Great is your faithfulness! Fresh every morning is your grace!

       My soul knows that you, God, are my foundation.

P: I hope in you, for you are good to those who wait for you, who seek your face.

       I say to myself: wait quietly for God will save you.

L: Remember the suffering of your early years:

       The times you sat alone in silence;

P: The times you ate dust, barely clinging to hope;

        The times you turned the other cheek, accepting insults.

L: Remember what you learned: God does not forget you.

       The life to which God calls you is hard.

  P: God’s tender mercy is even greater. The time will come.

        Your life will be vindicated by God’s love. 
All: Let us worship God!

Call to Worship   From Psalm 30

          L: Let us praise God, who lifts us up when we are down!

          P: O Lord our God, we cried to you and you healed us!

          L: You refused to let us go to hell! You gave us life!

          P: We rejoice in your holy name!

          L: You vex us for a moment, but your faithful love is for a lifetime.

          P: Weeping may spend the night, but joy comes in the morning!

          L: In our pride, we believed ourselves invincible.

          P: Apart from your Spirit, we learned the truth.

          L: Yet you turned our sad rags into glad rags!

          P: You slipped us into dancing shoes!

        All: O Lord our God, we praise you!

               We give thanks to you forever!

Printed in WorshipCalls on January 24, 2012

Call to Worship   From Psalm 130

L: Out of the depths we cry to you, God!

     Please, hear our call for help!

          P: We know, Dear God, that if you kept records on wrongdoings,

               we wouldn’t stand a chance.

          L: But bless you, you forgive our sins.

          P: So, souls in the balance, we wait for you, God.

               We trust in your promises.

          L: We watch through the night, praying for the dawn.

          P: We hope in you, God. We depend on your strength and love.

        All: We trust that you will redeem us!

Printed in WorshipCalls on June 4, 2012

A Litany for Independence Day

L: Almighty God, creator and ruler of all nations, we pray for the

    United States of America, for our people and for our leaders:

P: We thank you and praise you for our land, rich in resources,

     and for Native Americans and their deep appreciation

     of the beauty and life-sustaining power of the earth.

L: We thank you for the pioneers of our faith, the Pilgrims,

     and for the founders of our nation and their courage and wisdom.

P: We thank you for the unfolding dream that is America,

     the dream of a land of justice, peace and freedom

     that might be a blessing for the whole world.

L: We pray that we might be ever mindful of your purpose for us,

     and that we might be ever obedient to your will.

P: Forgive our shortcomings as a nation, purify our hearts,

     and grant us wisdom to see the truth that alone can make us free.

L: Save us from favoring the strong over the weak,

    from defining success by material wealth, and from forgetting

    that our greatest strength lies not in weapons, but in our way of life.

P: Increase our concern for those who are poor,

    those without health care, those who still suffer from discrimination,

    and those who are struggling to find meaningful work.

L: Protect all who work in dangerous places to secure our nation

    and to make visible the values of freedom and democracy.

All: Make us a blessing to all nations and hasten the day when all the  

    world lives together in harmony, peace and freedom.

    In Jesus’ name we ask these things. Amen.

Why Are You Afraid?

Why Are You Afraid? is our worship theme for the fourth Sunday after Pentecost, June 24, 2012. Our focus scripture is Mark 4:35-41.

This brief passage comes early in Jesus’ ministry as his disciples are still reckoning with his wisdom and power.  Earlier in Chapter 4 Mark tells of Jesus teaching in parables to great crowds who gather at the side of the Sea of Galilee to hear him. When evening comes Jesus decides to head to Gentile territory on the other side. He gets comfortable in the stern of the boat and falls asleep on a cushion. Soon, however, a great storm kicks up and begins to swamp the boat. His disciples wake him in terror. “Teacher, don’t you care that we are perishing?” With a word Jesus rebukes the wind and suddenly there is a dead calm. “Why are you afraid?” Jesus asks the flabbergasted disciples. “Have you still no faith?”

In Chapter 5 Jesus will proceed to heal the man with the legion of demons, then cross back again to Jewish territory to heal the woman with a continuous flow of blood and to raise Jairus’ daughter. “Who is this?” the disciples ask each other in awe at what Jesus does. “Who is this?” we may well ask ourselves. “What is the source of his wisdom and power? And does Christ make it available still today to us?”

Here are several Calls to Worship appropriate for this Sunday in the season of Pentecost. As usual, please feel free to use or adapt anything useful to you.

**Call to Worship   

L: Sisters and brothers, let us celebrate the presence and power of Christ!

P: Jesus’ love surrounds us, encouraging us to love.

L: His life-creating Spirit works constantly to heal us in every way.

P: His vision of God’s kingdom inspires us to work for justice.

L: His personal integrity straightens the crooked places in our lives. 

P: His trust in God leads us to a deep inner peace.

L: His compassion for the poor and outcast stirs us to care for them.

P: His hopefulness enables us to laugh even in difficult circumstances.

L: And his resurrection reveals our true home in heaven.

 All: Nothing can separate us from God’s love for us in Christ!

        Alleluia! Let us worship God!

**Call to Worship    (based on Psalm 9)

    L: I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart.

I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.

P: I will be glad and exalt in you;

        I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

L: You are a stronghold for the oppressed,

        a fortress in times of trouble.

P: Those who know your name put their trust in you.

 All: For you, O God, never forsake those who seek you.

**Call to Worship (From Psalm 9:9-20)

          Liturgist:     Draw near, all who are weary

                             and burdened with troubles.

          Pastor:        Call out to God in your distress.

                             Make your lament known to the one whose love

                             brings wholeness and peace.

          All:             Our souls wait for God, more than those

                             who watch for the morning.

Liturgist:     Draw near, all who hope against hope

                             for the healing and release.

          Pastor:        Hear Jesus proclaim hope to you and to all,

                                      “do not fear; only believe.”

All:             Our souls wait for God, more than those

                             who watch for the morning.

Liturgist:     Draw near, all who jump for joy in God’s presence.

Pastor:        Rejoice in the abundance of life.

                             Be eager and generous in sharing.

          All:             Our souls wait for God, more than those

                             Who watch for the morning.

**Call to Celebration   (based upon Psalm 107:1-3,17-22)  by Rev. Paul Berry

         

Liturgist:     Come and worship the Lord our God

with thanksgiving and praise,

All:             You alone, O Lord, are good

and Your loving kindness is forever.

Liturgist:     Come to worship the Lord our God

with a sacrifice of thanksgiving.

All:             Your loving kindness, O Lord,

is shown in Your Word and Your wonderful deeds.

We come to worship You.

With thanksgiving, we open ourselves to Your presence.

We celebrate Your grace and loving power.

Who Do You Live For?

Who Do You Live For? is our worship theme for the third Sunday after Pentecost, June 17, 2012. Our focus scripture is 2 Corinthians 5:6-17.

The beginning and end of our passage from 2 Corinthians usually capture our attention.  At the start is Paul’s assertion that his faith gives him great confidence and security. Because of his faith he can carry on a difficult ministry while he remains in his body and apart from Christ. Because of his faith he almost wishes for his own death, knowing that he will then go home to be with Christ. Either way he is content.

At the end is Paul’s famous declaration that, “If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!”

While both the beginning and end are important, we ought not to miss the places where Paul expresses who he now lives for. In verse 9 he writes: “So whether we are at home (with Christ in heaven) or away (still here on earth in our physical bodies), we make it our aim to please him.” And in verses 14-15 he writes: “For the love of Christ urges us on, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised for them.”

This Sunday is Father’s Day, and it reminds us that ordinarily, our parents have a great deal of influence on us. We might live to please them. Or, in our narcissistic culture, we might fall under the influence of its constant pressure to live for ourselves. Or, given the economic pressures of our day, we might live to please our bosses at work. But Paul says something else, entirely. There is only one person in all the universe that we should live for: Christ.

Here is a Call to Worship based on Psalm 92 as well as several Father’s Day resources. Please use or adapt anything helpful to you.

**Call to Worship   (from Psalm 92)

L: Thank you, most high God! Bless your holy name!

          P: In the morning we declare your covenant love.

              With lute and lyre we sing your faithfulness by night.

          L: When we see your works in nature, we sing for joy.

          P: How great is your creativity. Your knowledge is too deep for us.

          L: The wicked don’t get this at all. They spring up like grass.

          But they are doomed to destruction, for your wisdom is forever.

          P: In your world, the faithful flourish like giant sequoias.

              For they are planted in your house. They grow in your courts.

          L: In old age their sap still runs green and fruitful.

        All: They prove your integrity. You are our rock! We can depend on you!

A Responsive Prayer for Father’s Day      Diocese of San Jose Liturgy, Adapted

L: For those who have fathered us into birth,
for those we call “father” who show us the face of our heavenly Father,
for expectant fathers and those whose arms ache to cradle their own,
for fathers who have borne the pain of losing a child,
and for fathers who have laid down their life for their children:

P: May the one who is Father of all be their guide and their peace.

L: For all who have been deprived of their fathers through war, violence, or imprisonment, addiction, divorce, or separation;
for those whose fathers left home in search of work in another land:

P: May their wounds may be healed by God’s fatherly love.

L: For foster fathers, step fathers, and fathers by adoption,
that they will find true happiness in the mystery of fatherhood:

P: May their love for their children bind them closer to the perfect love of God.

L: For those we call father,
those who showed us how to throw a ball or cook a meal,
those who taught us how to drive and forgave us for the dents,
those who kissed away our hurts, calmed all our fears,
and protected us as best they could:

P: May they receive God’s love and blessing.

L: For all fathers, living or dead,
those nearby or those distanced by miles, disease, or division:

 All: May they be embraced and strengthened by the loving arms of

        God, the Father of us all. Amen.

**Call to Worship

L: Sisters and brothers, as we worship on Father’s Day let us celebrate the faith of our fathers!

P: We give thanks for the faith of the Patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac,

    and Jacob, who boldly followed God’s call to a Promised Land.

L: We give thanks for Moses and Aaron, who led our people out of slavery.

P: We give thanks for Samuel, prophet of his people

    and anointer of kings.

L: We give thanks for Jesse and for David, ancestral fathers of Jesus.

P: We give thanks for Joseph, human father of Jesus.

L: We give thanks for Peter and Paul, chained in prison for their faith.

P: We give thanks for Martin Luther, and John Robinson,

    Martin Luther King, Jr., and Bishop Desmond Tutu,

church fathers all.

All: We celebrate the faith of famous fathers, and unknown fathers,

    who have given us a rich legacy. May we keep faith with their faith! 

    Now and always! Amen.

A Litany for Fathers’ Day

          L: Gracious and loving God, our thoughts and prayers are turned   

               today to fathers. For fathers whose love and understanding and

               support have strengthened us, we give you thanks.

          P: For those whose father’s presence is greatly missed, we ask    

               your comfort as they recall their father’s love.

          L: For all men who, in the midst of our “me-oriented” culture, have      

               chosen to nurture, guide and love children, we give you thanks.

          P: We pray as well for all whose fathers have been a source of   

               hurt and pain, and for all whose fathers have left them. May                

               they find in you, in us, and in others, the love and support they          

               need to grow.

          L: We remember single fathers and mothers, who struggle to parent               

               their children while juggling all the responsibilities to hold a job,         

               maintain a household, and find time to be with their children.

               Strengthen them and help the rest of us and our society provide the

               support they need.

          P: We pray for fathers and mothers who are going through a          

              difficult time with their children, who are separated from them     

              by distance or by conflicts and misunderstandings. We pray          

              for your healing love to work to bridge these divides.

           L: And we pray for those who have been unable to become fathers   

              and for all whose years of parenting have been cut short by the loss    

              of a child. Let your consoling love be with them and help them to       

              find ways to use the loving gifts that you give to them.

       All: Finally, O God, we join all fathers everywhere in praying that                       their children and grandchildren may be well and happy, and a        

              source of joy for years to come! May the powerful Spirit of                   

              Christ’s love work to make this so. In his name we pray. Amen.