Document
Opening
O God,
you designed us in your likeness, inspire us to mould our lives
according to the grace and love that mirrors you.
Forgive us when we reflect the gold, the silver,
that mammon undeniably worships instead of you.
Forgive us for hankering for power and for the games we play to serve ourselves,
sometimes subconsciously, instead of you.
Forgive us for electing leaders in government, church and workplace,
whom we think we can manipulate.
Forgive us for feeding our need to control others,
for wanting to be served for desiring to be worshiped.
In Christ’s name we implore you. O God, forgive. Amen.
(Pilgrim Prayer, 208-209)
Psalmody
O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into God’s presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to God with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In God’s hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land, which his hands have formed.
O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For the Lord is our God,
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and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
O that today you would listen to God’s voice!
– Psalm 95:1-7a
Song: Follow justice and justice alone
A reading from Revelation 14:6-7
Then I saw another angel flying in midheaven, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation and tribe and language and people. He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, for the hour of his judgment has come; and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
One: Word of God, Word of life.
Many: Thanks be to God.
Time for Silent Reflection
Prayers
One: Eternal God of life, praise be you for your wonderful love and your grace poured out on our behalf. Today we come before you with complete trust to intercede for the situations that affect all of us and rob so many of the joy of life.
Silence
One: We give you thanks:
- For the peoples and churches of East Timor (Leste Timor), Indonesia, and the Philippines
- For the gift of fresh and clean water, for rain and running streams and deep lakes
- For the gift of human reason and ingenuity that can further work towards justice and equity
- For the wondrous diversity of creation and those who seek to be good stewards.
- For the bold witness on the impact of climate change and the efforts to reverse it.
- For what else do we give thanks? (Out loud, in the chatroom, or in the silence of our hearts)
Silence
One: And we pray:
- For all those who live in unsanitary conditions, without clean, flowing water
- For all countries where flooding or drought or rising sea levels threatens sanitation systems, contaminating drinking water, and spreading diseases
- For governments in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Timor Leste, that they will eradicate corruption, establish justice and peace, and work effectively for the wellbeing of all their people
- For all the victims of violence, torture, drug and human trafficking, and human rights violations, that those responsible might be held accountable
- For all those affected by earthquakes, tsunamis and other natural disasters, and for the rebuilding of communities afterwards
- For all the efforts to build bridges between diverse ethnicities, cultures, and religious beliefs
- For those suffering physically, mentally, and spiritually in this time of pandemic, bring wholeness and healing, O God, we hold before you those we now name in our hearts who are ill...
- For what else do we pray? (Out loud, in the chatroom, or in the silence of our hearts)
Silence
Righteous God, your love is for all, without preference or prejudice. Awaken that joy and
thanksgiving within us that we live our lives as a ceaseless prayer. We ask this in the name of
your Son, Jesus Christ, and through the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer (in our many languages)
Blessing
May the blessings of God the Father, who created us from the soil of the earth,
May the blessings of God the Son, who was born in a manger, in unhygienic conditions,
May the blessings of God the Holy Spirit, who resides within both the rich and poor, ‘clean’ and ‘unclean’, brood over us as mother over her children, now and for evermore.
Amen.
The peace of Christ be with you all!
Let us share the peace of Christ with one another.
