August 14, 2016

Liturgy Reflection & Benediction 08.14.2016

Liturgy

Holy God,
God of risk, of action and of love,
we gather today to worship and learn.

Thank you for the newness
you give us with each morning.
Thank you for the familiarity
of people and things around us.

You bless us with discerning minds,
and we ask for courage to use them.
Open our hearts to hear your word
today, and to risk being changed by it.

We begin our worship today
in the name of the Father,
of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit,
Amen.

Community Confession

Let us pray to God as a community.
Our responses will be highlighted in yellow.

Father God, we like harmony, and it’s hard to
sacrifice a sense of safety by confronting a
difficult truth with others or within ourselves.
Forgive us for times we back away from
the right thing and settle for the easy thing.

Jesus, you gave us examples of times when righteous
anger began conversations and modeled holy behavior,
even when it looked destructive.
Forgive us when we would rather keep
things neat and orderly when we know
the tables need to be flipped over.

Spirit, guide us in ways to take down our walls,
barriers and hesitations that keep us from truly
connecting with you, each other and ourselves.
Give us strength and courage to endure
conflict so that we can enjoy connection.

We pray in the name
of the Father,
the Son,
and the Holy Spirit,
Amen.

Sermon and Reflection

Sermon Podcast 8.14.16 – Good Conflict

What issues prompted Jesus to wage good conflict?
In what areas of life might God be calling me to nonviolent conflict?

Benediction

Go in peace and live the church.
See you throughout the week.

[Photo by Brad McMurray @ Flickr]

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