Christmas Day Blessing

As we leave today,

May the Joy of Christmas Day 

Follow you

And

Be renewed

Whenever you remember

That God is Love. 

Amen.

Communion Statement Christmas Day 2016

On this Christmas Day, we celebrate the birth of a baby in the lowliest circumstances.  Born away from home in a stable, our Savior makes clear that material wealth is not his starting point.  Love is, a mother's love, a step-father's love.  Grown, Jesus' message is simple.  Love God and love people.On this Christmas Day, we need only obey Jesus command to love.

I was a Deist for many years, but today I believe in Jesus, God Incarnate, God in the flesh.  I started out on a Christian path to belief.  I was baptized as a baby in the Presbyterian Church thanks to the beliefs of my Presbyterian-Christian Scientist grandmother.  Later, I was dunked in a Baptist Church thanks to my Southern Baptist mother.  Unfortunately, that church destroyed my blossoming faith.  I walked away from Christianity as a teenager firmly believing that no intelligent person could be a Christian.

I was an adult holding a doctorate in chemistry before I found God in Jesus and intellectual challenge in Christianity.  I joined a liberal Baptist church that promptly split. With a dozen or so others, we started a new church.  The first Sunday, there were 60 people present.  Now it is a congregation of six thousand.  Over time, I found I was no longer in tune with the beliefs of that very vibrant, but theologically conservative, church.

I left and spent a year never going to church, but studying and contemplating my faith.  Eventually, I realized I needed a church home. God's grace led me to Central Christian.  Here I am accepted, just as any of you searching for a church home would be accepted.

My church is a Christian Church (Disciples of  Christ). We are part of a denomination that started in the United States in the early 1800's.  Our founders were Scottish immigrants who wished to break down denominational barriers.  Our church welcomes all who accept Jesus the Christ as their Savior, a Savior who as a child was refugee fleeing with his parents into Egypt. 

We are here on this Christmas Day to take Communion.  Disciples celebrate Communion every time we worship.  Everyone is invited to the Table because it is not our Table, it is the Lord's Table.  Jesus opens his arms to everyone to come and be one with him. 

God and people meet at the Table and something happens.  At the Table, we touch eternity. At the table, God gives love, forgiveness, acceptance and we receive.  In prayer we go to God.  In Communion, God comes to us.  We are not learning something, or remembering something, but doing something–we are meeting God.

(The last paragraph is adapted from A Communion Meditation by Myron J. Taylor.)

Offertory Prayer July 3, 2016

Dear God, eternity's proprietor,  
Today's offering is yours 
Before it is given 
Because all creation is yours. 
Teach us how to first think of you

When we think for ourselves,
Let us understand that being able to give monetarily,  
No matter the amount, 
Is a gift of your grace. 
With our offerings we pay homage to you, 
Creator, Word and Love.

Amen.

Memorial Day Communion Prayer

Dear God,

Creator, Word, Love,

We give thanks and praise

For your goodness and mercy,

So undeserved.

We thank you for all those

Who, in all times,

Have been brave and true,

For those 

Who gave their lives

In their country's service.

Help us to be worthy

Of their supreme sacrifice.

We thank you, Jesus,

For your sacrifice.

May our faith stay strong,

That your kingdom come

And your will be done.

Amen.

Communion Prayer November 2,2014

Dear Lord,

Creator, Word, and Love,

You spoke creation into existence.

Chose to walk this earth in human form,

And to dwell with us now.

As we take this bread and wine,

We follow our Savior's command

To do this

"In remembrance of Me."

Bless this congregation

And make those in it the servants you need.

Let us work together in your love,

To make the world around us what you want

For we are your hands in this place.

In Jesus name we pray,

Amen.

Communion Prayer for June 15, 2014

Dear God,

Forgiver of our sins,

As we take the bread

And the wine,

Let us remember
Christ's unrelenting love.

Help us to forgive others

Because we have been forgiven.

In Jesus name we pray.

Amen.

Good Friday 2014

Why is it called Good Friday?

I have heard many answers.

None satisfy.

Jesus, the Word made flesh, God incarnate,

Died on a Friday, 
The day after he shared the Passover meal  
With those closest to him.

Fully human.

So human that he suffered just as we would

Nailed to a cross 
After a brutal flogging.

We recoil in horror

At his death

And think it took so long.

Six hours.

Most crucified took days to die.

Was Pilate's flogging a blessing

That gave a swifter death?

Fully God,

Who had never known death.

All creation gone before had drunk

Of that bitter cup,

But God had not.

God died on that first Good Friday,

As much of God

As could exist in human form.

A maimed, lifeless body was laid in

The cold stone tomb.

Love's breath stilled.

 Heaven wept.

Creation waited. 

Lectionary Gospel Reading for January 12, 2014

Matthew 3:13-17
3:13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him.
3:14 John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"
3:15 But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness." Then he consented.
3:16 And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.
3:17 And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

 Creator, Word, and Love

God complete in three.

 John recognizes that he confronts the Word,

God Incarnate.

John believes he is not worthy to baptize God.

Jesus reassures him with cryptic words.

Jesus chooses to use baptism

To signal his commitment to the Kingdom.

We echo his actions

When we are baptized.

And commit ourselves to the Triune God. 

 Jesus rises from the water

Just as he will rise from the grave.

The Love of God descends on Jesus

Linking Creator and Word with Love.

The Trinity is renewed.

Jesus, the Son of Man,

Has received the blessing of the Creator

Through the Holy Spirit.

That blessing and love will carry him

To Jerusalem,

To Death,

To Resurrection.

The Echo of God

Photo by AMagill

Lord, I need to know Your will.

I pray,
But hear nothing,
Not even a rustle as you pass by.

Perhaps I am so busy babbling

That I am not aware of your presence.

I will wait for your answer
To my prayers,
To my entreaties.
I will seek to be still and listen
For you.

Will you reply in a great wind,
Or through the trembling of the earth,
Or in words of fire,

Or in whispers of smoke?
No.
You have already answered 

Through the actions of those around me,

Through a chance encounter with a stranger.

O God,

O Creator, Comforter, and Word,
Make me an answer to another's prayer.

Make me an echo of your unrelenting love.

Trust

Mother God, Father God,

Your names are endless
And encompass all.

Your kingdom comes on the wings of angels

And in the footsteps of humanity

Who follow the Shepherd.

Give us nourishment for our bodies

And love for our souls.

Forgive us when we do not trust you

As we forgive those who betray our trust.

Do not take your presence from us.

Let us always know the Comforter is near.

Keep us safe from unbelief and pride.

You are beginning and end,
Creation and annihilation,

Love unending.
Amen.

Photo by Delphine
Original by Kitina Celt

Trinity Sunday 2013

 The Trinity proclaims

"I am love in action."

The Creator,

I AM.

 The Christ,

The Word,

God in action.

The Holy Spirit,

The Comforter,

Love.

Together.
I AM Love in action.

Three in one,

Trinity.

Pentecost 2013

On this day,
The Comforter,

The Holy Spirit,

Makes her presence known.
The day is Pentecost.
Fifty days from Easter.
Ten days from Jesus' ascent into Heaven.
God as Comforter comes
As Christ promised.
Jews were celebrating
 The Feast of the First Fruits.
Was this the first harvest for Christ?

Photo by Lawrence CP

Too many turn from Pentecost
In dread

Of emotion,

Of losing control,

Of the Holy Spirit.
What we fear
Does not exist.

Only God,

Three in One,

Exists.
The Holy Spirit
Completes the Trinity.
The Holy Spirit
Is the Love
That binds Creator and Word.
The Holy Spirit
Is God's love
Washing over all people.
Share that love.

Easter 2013

He is risen!
He is risen indeed!
These words echo
Through the centuries.
The words of resurrection.
The words of Easter.
The heartbeat of Christianity.

Photo by hoyameg

The disciples, lost and grieving,
Change in one day
Because he is risen.
Soon they will spread the news
Throughout the world
For they know the truth:

Death has been conquered,

Christ is alive.

We celebrate his resurrection

And his promise

That all who love God

And love others

Shall have eternal life.
He is risen.

He is risen today.

Christmas Day 2012 - The Word

Photo by bahoootah qtr

"In the beginning was the Word,

And the is Word was with God,

And the Word was God."

"And the Word was made flesh

And dwelt among us..."

The Gospel of John

Speaks the message of Christmas.

Jesus is God in action,

The instrument of creation,

The instrument of salvation.

God shed his majesty to experience

The world

As one of those made in his image.
As human,
He could experience death.

Resurrected,
He could demonstrate everlasting life.

The Christmas Babe:
Fully God and Fully Human.
He comes with promise of
Life Eternal
Embraced in His Love.

The Gift of the Christmas Babe

Christmas Babe sleeping in a manger,

How great is your gift of

Everlasting life.

Glory to God incarnate!

Your kingdom endures forever.

Let us seek to become more like you

As we follow your example on earth

And in heaven.

As we light the Advent candles

Let us be filled with your love.

Strengthen our faith

So that we may be an example to others

And lead no one astray.

The world beckons with selfishness and avarice.

Help us respond with compassion and generosity.

Nothing is ours.

All is God's.

The Babe born 
Long ago
In another land

Became a man

Who led the way
To life beyond the grave.

Grief at Advent

We look forward to the celebration
Of our Savior's birth.
The babe that became  
The Suffering Servant who walked among us.
Remember him
Both babe and man
  As we search for meaning
In the wreckage of so many lives.
Son of Man

 Spread the balm of God's love

Over the grief of this nation.

Teach us to care for those that struggle
With the ills of the mind.

Nurture those we cannot hold,

Those filled with grief,

And share your presence with them

As you share your presence with us.

Deafen our ears to the seductive call
Of guns and power.

Quench our thirst for violence.

So that all may walk in safety and peace.

For yours is the embrace,

 The solace, and the love.

That endures forever.

Prayer of Grief

Photo by Tony Fischer Photography

Suffering Servant who walks among us

Wonderful is your name.

Spread your eternal balm of love

For the grief

That so many are absent.

Let us beat swords into plowshares

In obedience to the love

That flows from the devotion binding

Creator, Word, and Comforter 

Into One.

Care for those we cannot touch,

And share your bounty with them

And with us.

Blood drips from our hands, 

Blood of the guilty

Mingled with

Blood of the innocent.

Forgive us

As we forgive those who shed our blood

So that there may be peace.

Deafen our ears to the trumpet call of power.

Quench our thirst for revenge

So that we may be close to you.

For yours is the embrace,

 The solace, and the love.

That endures forever.

Prayer for Compassion

 

Jesus, who taught us to care for the least,

Praise your compassion.

We must love our neighbors

As the Samaritan loved
The one fallen by the wayside.

Help us bring solace to the suffering.

Forgive us
When we do not respond to those in need

As we forgive
Those that turn away from us when we suffer.

If, by your will, we accumulate wealth,

Deliver us from selfishness.

For you are the love that engulfs us

Now and through eternity.

Amen.

 

The First Sunday of Lent

Photo by Chalky Live

Jesus,

Who spent forty days in the desert,

Praise to you God in action.

Out of the wilderness
You brought your new covenant.

One we must honor and fulfill.

Lacking food for the body,
You were tested and triumphed.

Give us a portion of your courage this day.

In Jerusalem, 
You were tortured and killed.

Forgive us when our actions recall your anguish.

Help us forgive those we love who torture our souls.

Give us some small portion of the inner strength
You took into the desert,

So that we can resist the lure of wickedness and evil.

You create our existence

And bind us with love

Now and through eternity.
Amen.

Christmas 2011

Photo by mtungate

A
Star
Glistens
At the top of
A tree trimmed
With objects held dear.
A symbol of life everlasting
Erected in remembrance of God.
Festooned not with glitter and glitz
But with hope and the promise 

Of

Love