Opening Litany, Psalm 32

Pastor: Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed I say is the one whose sin the LORD does not count and in whose spirit is no deceit.

Congregation: When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me and my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD "— and you forgave the guilt of my sin.

Pastor: Therefore let everyone who is Godly pray while you may be found; for surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not cause harm.

Congregation: You are our hiding place O Lord and you will protect us from trouble and surround our lives with songs of deliverance.

Pastor: I will instruct you and teach you in the way of the Lord, I will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you. Live free, knowing you are a forgiven child of God.

Congregation: When we lose sight of You O Lord many are our woes. But the LORD's unfailing love surrounds all who trusts in the Lord. Therefore we will Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, we will sing and praise the Lord’s name with an upright heart!

Poem based on Luke 7:36-8:3

I came there every Sunday

I was faithful

singing the hymns and praying the prayers

being swept up in all

the joy

---- love

-------- friendship

------------ community

----in that place

feeling

knowing in my heart

the love of Christ (Your)

through the caring of others

gathered in conversation and coffee

sometimes on the way home

I would wonder

I would read the paper

and wonder

hear the news

and wonder (Sins)

if

there was a God of love

A Christ

one day I came face to face with

who I was

face to face with the one I call me

I dropped to my knees

and cried

at my shallow life

at the pain I had given

and had been given

and I cried Lord!

---- (Are Forgiven)

Save me.

---- I need you

and through the prayerful tears came relief

and the God of Love

and I felt

---- (Go In)

peace  (Peace)

at bay

Saturday June 11^th, Luke 7:  44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."  48 Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."  She was not any greater sinner than Simon was.  Simon was not any more righteous than she was.  The only difference between the two was that she was aware of her sin and therefore open to forgiveness.  Simon on the other hand, not so much.  How do we try to keep the grace of God at bay? What self-respecting and self-absorbed goodness do we use to keep most of God out of our lives?  What would be the cost to let it go and graciously accept God’s grace?

for our own glory

Friday June 10^th,  Luke 7: 39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner."  If the Pharisee knew what kind of Prophet Jesus was, he would know who was touching his life, and why that nerve was so raw.  Jesus did know all he needed to know, all anyone needed to know, what kind of woman she was, one with a hurting heart that longed for forgiveness.  Jesus knew what kind of man the Pharisee was, a good man who thought he was good enough and wanted to impress his friends with his goodness by inviting Jesus over for dinner, showing just how open and liberal he was.  It would help him in his status.  Liberal or conservative, we are both capable of being cold hearted and calculating for our own glory.  Liberal or conservative, we are both saved by the grace of God.

extravagant love

Thursday June 9^th, Luke 7:  36 Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. 37 When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38 and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. When we know we are sinners, we tend to approach from behind.  We are aware of our sin and we can’t believe the grace that comes with forgiveness, at least not for us.  It is when we have the greater sin, that of not being aware of our sin, that we approach from the front, arrogant and full of self.  The woman’s response was an intimate pouring out of herself in thankfulness that comes from encountering unbelievable grace.  This extravagant response was an embarrassment to the good upstanding folk who were all too aware they were good upstanding folk.  Perhaps they too would be open to God’s amazing grace if only they could take an honest look inside to see the extent of God’s grace in their lives.  Perhaps then, they too could let their hair down and truly respond to that grace with extravagant love of their own.  

what shall I do

Wednesday June 8^th, Galatians 2: ¹⁹ For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ;²⁰ and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God,  who loved me and gave himself for me. Sometimes we get it, and when we get it, what we get is that it is not all about us.  It is then we get to start living this Gift life.  And when we start living this gift life, Oh what a gift it is.  The vistas open before you and instead of asking what must I do to be saved, you start asking, now that I don’t have to do anything, what shall I do, what shall I do?  I still want to dive back into the old self though.  I still want to be in control and do it my way.  But when I am open, open to the presence of Christ within me, that is when I start to live.  

only a gift

Tuesday June 7^th, Galatians 2: ¹⁵ We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; ¹⁶ yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in/of Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by faith in/of Christ, and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law.  There is that little word that can be translated as either in or of that sometimes throws us for a loop.  In the Greek, the word can mean either in or of and carries a bit of the meaning of both.  If however as is understood in English that it is faith in Christ, then it is our doing.  We muster up the faith and build the faith and are in charge of the faith and that faith can and often does become its own work for which we can take self-righteous pride.  But faith is a gift from God, and like any gift, it is useful only in as much as it is used for the benefit of all.  So faith is not something we achieve, only a gift we nurture, and sometimes help nurture in others in the process.  Faith is less about boasting than it is about giving thanks. 

lest we pretend

Monday June 6^th, 2 Samuel 12: ⁷ Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from the hand of Saul; ⁸ I gave you your master’s house, and your master’s wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added as much more. ⁹ Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.¹⁰ Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house.  Hell is truth seen too late.  It is not that David, or you and I don’t know what we are doing, but we have all mastered the ability to shield the truth from our eyes with a thin veneer of self-righteousness.  Once David proclaims judgment and verdict, Nathan tightens the noose and in one of the greatest images in scripture points that boney finger and David and says, “You are that man!”  And lest we pretend to believe that this is one of those text that pertains to that someone else in life, rest assured, it is not.  It pertains to all of us some of the time and some of us most of the time.  It is that human desire to be like gods, knowing good and evil and having our eyes opened to the shame this adventure in self-righteousness brings.  It is the essence of human sin.  But even as in the story of David, it is not a cause for God to gloat over our failings any more than we gloat over the failings of our children.  Rather it is an opportunity to learn and with the grace and forgiveness of God, move forward in life, perhaps a bit more forgiving of others along the way.  

lamb chops

Sunday June 5^th, 2 Samuel 12: ¹ and the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. ² The rich man had very many flocks and herds; ³ but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meager fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. ⁴ Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.” ⁵ Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die; ⁶ he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.” David was a good and godly man, but sometimes, even good and godly men and women can get so caught up in themselves that they forget why they are good and godly people and to whom they should be giving the glory.  So David, full of himself and his own importance and power gets caught in his own trap. Oh, that we would have more Nathans in the world, those who have the ear of the powerful and important and let them know they are being duped by their own since of power and importance.  This story however also pertains to so much that goes on in our seats of power.  The ones who have so much arranging for cuts in programs who help those who have so little, so they can have a bit more.  So pray for the welfare cheats, especially the ones from Apple to Oil to Wall Street who so covet a meal of lamb chops stolen from the hope of the working poor.  

10w for May 29th, The Widows Son, P2.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 29th, The Widows Son, P2.    You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is Gift of Grace by Hans Peterson from the CD Harvest of a Heart. Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at hanspetersonmusic.com

10w for May 29th, Forgiveness, NL.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 29th, Forgiveness,  NL.   You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is Forgiveness is a Lovely Hand to Hold by Andra Moran from the CD Harmony Grove.  Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at andramoran.com

MEMORIAL DAY PRAYER by William Sloane Coffin, Jr.

Gracious God, whose own Son's term of service to humanity was so full that its brevity was no distress, we call to mind on this Memorial Sunday those who will not grow old as we are left to grow old, those whose lives were too brief for us but long enough, perhaps, for thee. Forgive us that they died so young because we were too unimaginative, too imperious, too indifferent, or just too late to think of better ways than warfare to conduct the business of the world. Gratefully, we remember the generosity that prompted them to share the last of their rations, the last pair of dry socks, to share in the course of one hour in the foxhole more than most of us care to share with one another in a lifetime. And we recall the courage that made more than one of them fall on the grenade there was no time to throw back.

Grant, O God, that they may not have died in vain. May we draw new vigor from past tragedy. Buttress our instincts for peace, sorely beleaguered. Save us from justifications invented to make us look noble, grand and righteous and from blanket solutions to messy, detailed problems. Give us the vision to see that those nations that gave the most to their generals and least to their poor were, throughout all history, the first to fall. Most of all, give us the vision to see that the world is now too dangerous for anything but truth, too small for anything but love. Through Jesus Christ our Savior, who became what we are to make us what he is. Amen.

Poem based on 2nd Sunday in Pentecost Luke 7:1-17

The small child places the feather in the stream

watching it float down the rough seas

and the log jams of leaves

imagining the perils at each turn

and the maneuvering of the crew

as they bring the ship around

with each new dip and swirl

in the foot wide seas

and she knows

she knows what can and can’t be done

what is and what is not real

but does not limiter herself to these

she knows instead the power of believing

beyond the realms of the reality

of this world

into a world ruled by love

the love of God, which says

be healed

be whole

Opening Litany based on Psalm 96:1-13

 

Worship Leader: Sing to the LORD a new song; let all the people of the earth sing a new song unto the Lord. 

Congregation: We will sing praises to the Lord and proclaim the salvation of the Lord all our days.  We will proclaim the glory of the Lord to all the nations and the Lord’s marvelous deeds to all peoples. 

Worship Leader: For the Lord is great and worthy of praise above all gods.

Congregation: Our idols in this world are only that, just idols, but the Lord God created the heavens and the earth.  Splendor, Majesty and Glory surround the presence of the Lord. 

Worship Leader: Let all the peoples in all the nations of the earth ascribe to the Lord the glory and honor due the name of the Lord of all creation. 

Congregation: We will worship the Lord with praise and say to all people, “The Lord Reigns” For the justice of the Lord will be established over all the earth. 

Worship Leader: Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad, let the sea resound and all that is in it.  Let the fields be jubilant and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.

Congregation: Let all creation rejoice before the Lord who comes to judge the earth and all people with righteousness and loving kindness.  

read the one

Sunday May 29^th, 1 Kings 8: ²² Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands to heaven. ²³ He said, “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and steadfast love for your servants who walk before you with all their heart, There is no God like the God of Abraham, Isaac and Sarah.  It is the God who calls us to live as the children of God in this world in such a way that when others see what this God thing is like, they want a piece of it.  Only one out of a hundred will read the Holy Scriptures, but ninety-nine out of a hundred will read the one who reads the scriptures.  Our calling is to make it a pleasant read.  

belittling

Monday May 30^th, 1 Kings 18: ⁴¹ “Likewise when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a distant land because of your name ⁴² —for they shall hear of your great name, your mighty hand, and your outstretched arm.  Though it may not be popular in today’s political circles, the welcoming of the stranger is one of the central tenants in our faith.  We are called as the children of God to welcome them with outstretched arms.  Walls do not welcome.  Burdensome laws do not welcome. Name calling and belittling do not welcome. The voice of the children of God is to be welcoming and through that welcome letting the other know they are a child of God.  Somehow the process also lets us know we too are the children of God. 

walls

Tuesday May 31^st, 1 Kings 8: when a foreigner comes and prays toward this house, ⁴³ then hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all that the foreigner calls to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and so that they may know that your name has been invoked on this house that I have built.  How we welcome the stranger is a direct reflection on how we view God and welcome God into our lives.  I dare say one cannot talk of walls to keep others out and at the same time say they are a child of God.  It matters not whether these are actual walls as in Israel where the birth place of Jesus is now a prison with thirty foot walls, wire and guard towers, or proposed walls to keep Mexicans out of the US or legal walls to try to keep Syrian refugees out of the country.  Walls and God do not mix. 

Piety Police

Wednesday June 1^st, Galatians 1:  13 For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. 14 I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers.  Today, the pre-conversion Paul would have been known as a member of the religious right.  He had right on his side, he had the power of politics on his side, he had knowledge of scripture on his side, and he knew how to use it for his own and his political affiliation’s self-interest.  He was ready at a moment’s notice and without further thought to the risk of life and limb (especially if it was someone else’s life and limb) to protect the word of God.  The only trouble is that back then, and through the ages down to today, the main thing the word of God needs protecting from, are those who wish to protect the word of God from others.  Today we call them the Piety Police or the Religious Right.  We too live at a time when it is not so much a conflict between Christians, Muslims and Jews, but rather between fundamentalists Christians, Muslims and Jews and people of faith who wish only to live their lives in decency and respect for the many ways God comes to us.  

Sooner or later

Thursday June 2^nd, Galatians 1: 15 But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased 16 to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles,  Sooner or later in life we all come face to face with grace.  It is always there, but there are those times when it will just not hide in the background and we are forced to face grace straight on.  Sometimes we get to experience it in our lives and in turn learn to live graceful lives.  At other times even though grace stares us full in the face, we find ways of explaining it away and ignoring it.  Sooner or later when we get to the pearly gates and realize all those people we looked down on are there too, gracefully welcoming us in, we realize that it is grace that lets us all in.  What we missed in life was the joy that comes from graceful living.  The calling is to start living gracefully now and enjoy the process for eternity.

Fear not

Friday June 3^rd, Luke 7: 12 As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry."  Fear not, in spite of living in a society that has the means to care for the widow and orphan but not the heart for it, fear not.  Fear not to care for the widow and orphan in spite of living in a society that has not the heart to bring an end to endless war but rather feeds off the money that flows in the process of constantly preparing for it.  Fear not, in spite of living in a society that has the means, but not the heart to bring an end to poverty.  Fear not, in spite of living in a society that has the means but not the heart to provide medical care for all.  Fear not, in spite of living in a society that has not the heart to find out why so many are living in our jails instead of being content with simply building more jails.  Fear not, in spite of living in a world that seeks the fast buck over the faithful walk.  Fear not, the Lord is with you and has ordained to act on his behalf to help build a world where the least, the lost and the lonely fear not.  

God with us

Saturday June 4^th, Luke 7: 14 Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, "Young man, I say to you, get up!" 15 The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.  16 They were all filled with awe and praised God. "A great prophet has appeared among us," they said. "God has come to help his people."  Jesus didn’t stop abortion or gay marriage, he didn’t privatize education or help build bigger fences at our borders, he didn’t try to stack supreme courts or school boards, he didn’t fight communism or try to shove democracy down someone’s throat at the point of a gun, he simple had compassion and helped someone in need.  They saw him as a prophet, we know him as Emmanuel, God with us.  

a little Trinity Video

10w for May 22nd, Consolation, NL.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 22nd, Consolation, NL.    You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is Be Not Afraid by John Michael Talbot.   Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at johnmichaeltalbot.com

Poem for The Holy Trinity John 16:12-15

The Spirit comes silently into our hearts

bringing love

bringing life

and pointing to the one who brought us life

Jesus the Christ

The Living God

In our desires to be the center

and our desires to turn inward

wrapping ourselves up in ever smaller packages

fearing that if we are not the center

there will be no center

in our emptiness

longing to find that to which we can cling

The Spirit comes

and points to the Christ

the one who walked with us

the one who lived with us

the one who was us

and died like us

only to live and bring life

This is the one to whom the Spirit points

simply

quietly

that we may know God’s love for us

and burst forth in new life

new creation

Praise - Psalm 8 Starts with " How Majestic is Your Name":

Pastor: You have set your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have brought forth praise which silences the foe and the avenger and calls us to live as one.

Congregation: When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what are we that you are mindful of us, who are we that you care for us? 

Pastor: You made humanity a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned us with glory and honor. You call us to lovingly care for the works of your hands and lay all that we have at Your feet O Lord.

Congregation: You call us to care for all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, and all that swims the paths of the seas. We will therefore lovingly care for this world you have created for us.
 
The Psalm continues with singing "How Majestic is Your Name" one more time.

the whole vast drama

Sunday May 22^nd, Proverbs 8: Does not wisdom call, and does not understanding raise her voice? ² On the heights, beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand; ³ beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries out: ⁴ “To you, O people, I call, and my cry is to all that live. Not hidden on the side of the road, not hidden in the far reaches of the mind, Wisdom, God, stands at the cross roads and in the major intersections of life and confronts us with the power of God. Wisdom confronts us to live life, the gift given to us by God.  Live life, in the fullness of what God has called us to do and to be.  Live your life in a way that ennobles the whole vast drama of life for all humanity and all life. Live your life in a way that brings life to all you come in contact with in this world, whether directly or in spirit.  Live Life out in the open as God has called you to Live Life, in capital letters.  Live Life.   

you choose

Monday May 23^rd, Proverbs 8:  ²² The Lord created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago. ²³ Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. We were created in the image of God, with the breath of life within us. In the image of God in our ability to show love.  In the image of God in our ability to show caring.  In the image of God in our ability to create and co-create with the God who created us.  In the image of God in our ability to be the presence of the Living Lord in this world.  But that is not all, we are also given free will which means we can hate, be cruel, self-centered, and violent.  But we were not created for those things, but only to love.  Each day you choose which path to follow, only one gives life. 

New Creation

Tuesday May 24^th, Romans 5:1  Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.  Justified, made right, put in a right relationship, recreated, born again, all this and more through the work of faith.  It is not our faith however that brings this about, but the faith of Christ, the actor, not you and I, the acted upon.  Through Christ we are a New Creation.  Through Christ, God looks upon us once again and cries, “Yes, it is good.”  In Christ, we see the goodness of God shining through.  In Christ, we know all the mysteries of Heaven we can wrap our minds and hearts around.  In Christ, we are given the ability to know we are in Christ.  In Christ we have our being.  

some half-baked idea who to thank

Wednesday May 25^th, Romans 5: We continue to shout our praise even when we're hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next.  Life does not always go smoothly.  There are dips and bumps on the road of life for us all.  When you meet someone who possesses that something we call “character,” it is not because the road has gone smooth for them; it is because they have learned to handle the bumps by holding fast to the loving hand of God.  They live their life knowing that there are bumps in this journey for everyone.  Character comes not from smooth sailing, but knowing the presence of God in the beauty of a calm sunset, and knowing that God is always near in the violence of the storm.  Lack of character and a façade of callousness is what comes from thinking you can go it in this world all alone, without the loving hand of God. A Christian is not any better than anyone else, they just have some half-baked idea who to thank, and they do so often in word and in deed, in how they live their life and how they live toward others.  

so the neighbors wonder

Thursday May 26^th, Romans 5: In alert expectancy such as this, we're never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary—we can't round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit! A life well lived is one where you can say, “Look how God has been with me through the bumps, dips and ditches, I can’t wait to see what is next.”  If you have ever tried to read the Bible you probably know of those boring parts of scripture with the long list of names, most of which you cannot pronounce.  These sections are the writers’ way of saying, “look how God has been with all generations through all the bumps, dips and ditches they have been through, just imagine what God has in store for you, yahoo.”  When you get to these sections in the Bible, you have permission to skip over all those names and say, “look how God has been faithful for all these generations, surely God will be faithful to me also.”  Then close your eyes, hold out your arms in praise, and soak in the love of God and the presence of God poured out upon you.  A good “Hallelujah, Praise the Lord” would be in order about now.  Say it loud so the neighbors wonder what is going on.

her name is Holy

Friday May 27^th,  John 16:  "I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when (s)he, the Spirit of truth, comes, (s)he will guide you into all truth.  We are so used to scripture translating the mainly patriarchal language into male pronouns.  However, the Greek word for the Holy Spirit is a feminine noun and we should at the very least acknowledge that.  When the Spirit comes to us, she will guide us in all truth, not knowledge, not wealth, not power, but in truth.  And in that truth we are sent into the world to serve one another. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is not for narcissistic astaticism, but rather, as was shown in the book of Acts, a good stiff wind at our backs as we go out into all the world to be the love of Christ active in this world.  That wind blowing us out into the world with the message of God’s love and grace is the Spirit and her name is Holy.  

never alone

Saturday May 28^th, John 16: He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.  As you are drawn into a relationship with someone, you are drawn into the intimate knowledge of their likes and dislikes, feelings and hopes, their dreams and fears as well as all their hidden gifts.  The Spirit brings us into an intimate relationship with the God of Creation, shown to us in the work of Jesus the Christ.  It is in that relationship that life has meaning.  It is the New Creation, Yes!!!  It is Good!!!  It is you!!!! Now go live it!!! And know you are never alone.  

10w for May 22nd, Holy Trinity Sunday.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 22nd, Holy Trinity Sunday.    You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is Show The Way by Ed Kilbourne from the CD The Grateful Ed.  Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at edkilbourne.com

Poem based on Pentecost John 14:8-27

We have seen the Lord

not high in the Heavens above

but right here in our midst

living among us

living within us

            and within those who do not know

            they are loved

We have seen the Lord

in the eyes of a child

the eyes of a foe

and we are not afraid

for we live in the presence of the Lord

surrounded by the Spirit

filled with the peace of Christ

and called to reach out

to let others know of this love

(Peace)

calling toward the peace of Christ

that is within them

God created and said it was good

as the children of God

We see

good

God

in all that

and in all who

surrounds us

living as the children of God

Knowing

we are never alone

(Peace )

Opening Litany based on Psalm 104

Psalm 104:24-34

Worship Leader: Lord, In your wisdom you have made all thing in this world.  The earth, the heavens, the skies and the seas are full of your riches.

Congregation: As I look out over the vastness of the seas alone, I am in awe at their magnificence and magnitude. They are filled with life, known and unknown are a place where creatures large and small play.  

Worship Leader: All of life is dependent upon You O Lord and you supply for their needs at the right time.

Congregation: When you give O Lord, there is more than enough for all to live and eat well, with abundance left over. 

Worship Leader: In your absence is anxiety and fear.  In your absence is scarcity and want, with abundance for some and starvation for others. 

Congregation: But when you spirit moves in this world, life is created.  Life for ourselves, and life for the whole world.  For you make all things new.

Worship Leader: May the glory of the Lord be forever and may the Lord look upon this creation and smile.

Congregation:  I will sing to the Lord all my life; singing praises to my God as long as I live and ask only that my thoughts be pleasing to the Lord, and bring me joy.  

Pentecost Sunday

10w for May 15th, A Strong Wind, NL.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 15th, A Strong Wind, NL.   You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is Your Touch Is On Us by Dakota Road from the CD Break These Chains. Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at dakotaroadmusic.com

10w for May 15th, Let Pentecost begin.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 15th, Let Pentecost begin.   You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is The Church Song by The Jay Beech Band from the CD One Body Alive. Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at baytonemusic.com

10w for May 8th, New Life and Mothers Day, NL.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 8th, New Life and Mothers Day, NL.   You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is Life is Bigger than Death by Hans Peterson from the CD A Time to Mourn.. A Time to Dance.  Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at hanspetersonmusic.com

10w for May 8th, One Body, E7.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 8th, One Body, E7.   You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List or you may text 10w to 2828 to sign up, The song for the day is One Body Broken by the Jay Beech Band from the CD One Body Alive.  Used with permission you can find this and other gifts for ministry at baytonemusic.com