Day 174 | Wednesday, 9 September 2020

Day 174 - Audio Version

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Day 174  |  Wednesday, 9 September 2020 

High Noon!
  A Beginning: Amazing Grace

“Amazing grace: lifting us from despair, comforting us in the dark, surprising us on sad journeys.  Amazing grace: bringing us hope when the path seems lost, holding us when fear hovers close, surrounding us with light, filling us with joy.  Amazing grace, how sweet the sound.”
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 An Invocation:
“Surprising and persistent God, you never give up on us. You seek us, call us, beckon us. You shine in every star, glow in every sunset, sing in every waterfall, always trying to get our attention. You surround us with friends who care, families who love us in spite of our difficulties and the church that carries us in prayer.When we turn toward your amazing grace, we discover forgiveness, healing and hope. You give us a song to sing and a story to tell. We are blessed. Amen.”
  A Prayer of Confession:

“Interrupt us, O God, disturb our set patterns and rigid responses. Shake us loose from thinking we know the only way. Free us from opinions that are held in tight grips, from holier-than-thou attitudes.Teach us the art of looking at the world new and fresh, ready to be surprised by joy, astonished by grace, overcome with gratitude; keep us reasonably humble so we may see the new thing that you are doing through other people around us. Open us to your word, your touch, your Spirit. Help us see you at work, even in the interruptions of life. In the name of Jesus. Amen.”
 An Affirmation of Faith: Living Stones (Ezekiel 36:26-27; 2 Corinthians 3:3; 1 Peter 2:4-5)
“We affirm that the Lord seeks to give us a new heart, and a new spirit God will put within us; and will remove from our body the heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh. We affirm that God's spirit is within us, making us follow God's statutes and ordinances.
We believe that we are a letter of Christ, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
We affirm our desire to come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight, and like living stones, to let our-selves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
 A Prayer for Vision:
“O great Teacher open our minds to know new lessons. Open our ears to hear new sounds, our eyes to see new sights. Open our hearts to receive new relationships.  Open our souls to your voice, your guidance. Never let us stop learning, we pray.
As we learn, help us to see adventure, know change and find purpose as we grow in faith. You lead us each moment, O God, if only we could remain open enough to hear and see and know. Even in the midst of darkness, you can teach - make us a people who can learn, in things great and small. Bless us as you teach us, we pray. Amen.”
 A Blessing:
“May the fullness of God’s grace remain with you through the challenges of this day. May you pass on the grace you have received to those around you as you work and serve and rest. Amen.”
 Quote: “To believe in God is not just to love life, but to work so that there is life.” -Jon Sobrino