Liturgy
We come in need of silence.
For we are filled with a plethora of words.
They are bandied about in efforts
To bully us and seduce us and silence us.
We have been reminded this week
Of how words both build and burn.
We come in need of silence,
For in it we pause and reflect and breathe.
We consider which words we want to let in.
We hear the Spirit speak within us
And we visit wisdom to form the thought
Before it leaves our tongue.
We come in need of silence
For then we will have words chosen with care –
Words that offer love and life and beauty.
We receive here words to share and connect us
And words to treasure in our hearts.
We will praise all that is good.
In the name of God who spoke the world into existence,
Jesus, the Word who in the beginning was with God and was God,
And the Spirit who whispers in us and through us.
Amen.
(Vox Prayer Team)
Scripture
We invite you to hear from the book of James 3:1-3, 5-6, 9-11
1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for
you know that we who teach will face stricter judgment. 2 For all of us
make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is
mature, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3 If we put bits
into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole
bodies.
5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is
a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it
stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of life, and is itself set on fire
by hell.
9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse people, made
in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth comes a blessing and a
curse. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring
pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water?
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God!
The grass withers and the flower fades,
but the Word of the Lord endures forever. Amen.
Homily & Reflection
Are there words of wisdom you can immerse yourself in over the coming weeks?
Who is someone whose wise presence you might seek out and from whose practice you might learn?
How might you choose life giving words for family, friends, and social media this season?
Benediction
May a slight chill greet you each morning
As we end a long, hot season.
May you be refreshed by a Wise One
Who speaks kind words over you.
May you feel the whisper of the Holy Spirit
Blowing through your heart and mind.
May you find fresh water in marked and unmarked places
And drink deeply with a friend.
May you be transformed by wisdom practices
Flowing in and around you.
In the name of God, the giver of life,
Jesus, the morning star,
And the Spirit, our wise guide.
Amen.
(Vox Prayer Team)
[Photo by Randy Laybourne]