People's Prayers: 2024

Thursday, December 19, 2024

Prayers of the People: Christmas Eve and Christmas Day '24 WLWC* Yr C

For Tuesday, December 24, 2024, Readings: Children’s Service Christmas I: Isaiah 26:16-19, Psalm 68:4-11, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Luke 2:1-20. Late Service Christmas II: Reading at Creche, Luke 2:1-7; then: Isaiah 26:16-19, Psalm 68:4-11, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Luke 2:8-20. For Wednesday December 25, 2024, Christmas III: see separate Prayers of the People below for Wisdom 9:1-6, 9-11; Psalm 33:1-9, Colossians 1:15-20, John 1:1-14

HOLY ONE, in distress they sought you, they pressed out a whispered prayer…as an expectant mother writhes in labor…we too were expectant, we writhed in labor…No victories have we won on earth, neither do the inhabitants of the world fall. Your dead shall live; their corpses shall rise. Awake and sing for joy you who dwell in the dust! For your dew is a radiant dew, and the earth shall release these long dead. [Isaiah 26: 16-17a, 18b-19]

Sing to God, sing praises to her name…HOLY is her name, rejoice before her! …God you provided in your goodness for the oppressed. The AUTHOR OF LIFE gave the word; the women who proclaim the good news are a great army. [Psalm 68:4-5, 10b-11]

Now we do not want you to be ignorant…about those who have fallen asleep…For since we believe that Jesus died and rose, even they who sleep, will God by Jesus, bring with him…Jesus himself…will descend from heaven, and the dean in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive who are left...will…meet Jesus in the air…we will be with Jesus forever. [1 Thess 13-14, 16b-17a]

And immediately there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly array, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among peoples whom God favors!”

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit, he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.

[from The Nicene Creed, US Book of Common Prayer, p. 358]

The time is now, because of and in spite of days of darkness, worry, fear, and anguish, to remember how to feel the Excitement, the Joy, the Wonder, the Thrill of Christmas AGAIN! Jesus, our Christ, is born today! It’s time again to re-awaken the Spirit within, remember the Reason it begins, open to a new spiritual start, a fresh opportunity. It's time ~ NOW ~ to push into the unknown, even if painfully, frighteningly, but with great anticipation to experience our own rebirth, again, as a New Creation in Christ.

We each carry the fertile seed, the Divine Spark within us ~ Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Jew, Atheist, Agnostic, Oblivious, Naughty, or Nice. We each choose how the Spark drives us ~ we tend, nurture, anticipate or ignore, abuse, or perhaps deny that innermost part of ourselves. But now, what was is gone. As with infants, we move into new light, new sound, uncertainty, anxiety, and every day is a new beginning. Even if we have tried before, distraction, disinterest, life circumstances may have stopped our momentum. Yet we, too, are called as part of the Good Tidings of Great Joy that is Christ the Lord!

We are the Reason he was born to us. We are the shepherds in the field called to see and wonder and listen and allow ourselves to be transfixed and transformed as if for the first time. Let the Joy and Peace of now begin with me and let me, with you, carry Christ forward into this Day, into our everyday lives every day, into all the Earth we inhabit. The Great Light in the Darkness has come!

It's time! Hallelujah!

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, You come at last, filled with grace and truth. Our joy is unbounded for the arrival of our Glorious Child, One in Being with God and the Holy Spirit, who redeems and claims us for the work of Heaven on Earth.

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

RESPONSE: Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, grant us energy and courage to give continuous voice to Your truth in all places of political, elected, and authoritarian power throughout this World, this Nation, and this Community. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!
Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, we ask You who were homeless as you entered this world, to enfold all who are homeless, hungry, sick, and downhearted, that they may feel Your loving embrace on this Day of Days and always. We now join our hearts together to pray for those in need… add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!
Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, lift up our hearts in the joy and the hope of the Love that never ends, as we remember and celebrate all who have left the woes of this earthly plain to live forever, deep in the heart of God. We pray especially for… add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!
Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!
Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, continue to excite the hearts of all who lead us in Your Church, with imagination and inspiration. Guide all our hearts to rebirth in a Spirit-filled life in Your service. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!
Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

The Celebrant adds: Most High Lord Jesus, the Word, the Imprint, the Incarnate Grace of God sent to live among us, we sing to You a new song of rejoicing. Let each breath we take draw You into ourselves, that we may give out Your glory and praise in all that we are, and all that we do. Guide us, guard us, goad us to live into Your divine will. We ask through You, Prince of Peace; and through the Holy Spirit, our Compass; who together with our Mighty Creator from the beginning, live and reign as one God, now and forever. Amen.

For Wednesday December 25, 2024, Christmas III: Wisdom 9:1-6, 9-11; Psalm 33:1-9, Colossians 1:15-20, John 1:1-14.

O God of my ancestors and Author of mercy…give me the wisdom that sits by your throne…With you is Wisdom, she who knows your works and was present when you made the world…Send her forth from the holy heavens…that she may labor with me, and that I may learn what is pleasing to you…and she will guide me wisely in my actions and guard me with her glory. [Wisdom 9:1a, 4a, 9a, 10a,c;11b]

Rejoice in the ALMIGHTY, you righteous…Praise SHE WHO IS MAJESTY…sing for her a new song…for the word of WISDOM is right…she loves righteousness and justice; the faithful love of the MOTHER OF ALL fills the whole earth…Let all the earth revere SHE WHO IS WISDOM. [Psalm 33:1-9]

Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation…all things have been created through him and for him. Jesus himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Jesus is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning…in Jesus all the fullness of God was well pleased to dwell and…pleased to reconcile Godself in all things whether on earth or in heave…making peace through the blood of his cross. [Colossians 1:15, 16b, 17, 18a, 19-20]

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God…What has come into being in the Word was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in the bleakness…The true light…was coming into the world…to all who did accept him…he empowered to become children of God…And the word became flesh and lived among us…full of grace and truth. [John 1:1, 3b-5a, 9, 12, 14]

Dr. Wilda Gafney’s* readings, as usual, offer an array of new insights into “other” readings not generally seen. For these three pieces that my Episcopal parish is using, Christmas Eve for two services, and especially Christmas morning for one. I am not posting the full readings. This week is crunch time for everyone. As always, I found many of her thoughts from her Christmas III notes and preaching prompts quite interesting, and importantly thought-provoking, especially in these current times. For example, she refers to Colossians as using the masculine pronouns repeatedly and, that in the Greek text of this letter the name of Jesus is not included. So, she says, “I have substituted it [the name of Jesus] for some of the pronouns for smoothness and clarity.” She continues to say that the traditional focus in John’s Gospel on the preexistent Christ [has been] a concept expressed in grammatical gender but ontologically beyond gender. This, she says, gives us a chance to think about why we and our spiritual ancestors…gender things the way we do and what that really means. She says more about the use of slave language from her translations and acknowledges how difficult it is to use in scripture, prayer, and liturgy; doubly so for Black folk.”

*Readings for our Parish in this Year C are from The Rev. Dr. Wilda [Wil] Gafney, Womanist biblical scholar, and is the Right Rev. Sam B. Hulsey Professor of Hebrew Bible at Brite Divinity School in Fort Worth, Texas. She is the author of A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church Yr C, 2024, Church Publishing, (here after designated on my posts as WCL) and translator of its biblical selections. Learn more about her and her work at her website: https://www.wilgafney.com/. In her book for Year C, Dr. Gafney explains her process and sources of translation of each reading she uses, which is impossible to offer in this space. Fascinating and illuminating, not merely because of the womanist highlighting, but for a greater appreciation of and fresh perspective in each biblical reading as most are not, or rarely, used in Sunday preaching or Daily Lectionaries. For slightly more information see: [for slightly more detail, see my blog post for December 1, 2024, Advent I WCL, see link: https://prayersofthepeople.blogspot.com/2024/11/prayers-of-people-advent-ure-begins.html]

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, we REJOICE in the Almighty for the word of WISDOM is right. She loves righteousness and justice and gives us her faithful love, with the energy and courage, to give continuous voice to Your truth in all places of political, elected, and authoritarian power throughout this World, this Nation, and this Community. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, lift up our hearts in the joy and the hope of the Love that never ends, as we remember and celebrate all who have left the woes of this earthly plain to rise and live forever, deep in the heart of God. We pray especially for… add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, continue to excite the hearts of all who lead us in Your Church with imagination and inspiration. Guide all our hearts to rebirth in a Wisdom- and Spirit-filled life in Your service. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

The Celebrant adds: O Jesus our Savior, God’s Word made Flesh, the light of all people. Your light shines through the bleakness, and rescues us all from the power of darkness, to transform our anxieties into fruitful action. Keep us striving toward Your purpose, as we offer our labor to soothe the sufferings of humanity near and far. We ask through Jesus, the image of our invisible God; and the Holy Spirit, the very Breath of Love; who together with You are our One God, the Word of, in, and for our lives every day, in every way, now and forever. Amen.

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Prayers of the People: Christmas Eve and Christmas Day '24 RCL Yr C

For Tuesday, December 24 and Wednesday December 25, 2024, Readings: Isaiah 9:2-7, Psalm 96,

Titus 2:11-14, Luke 2:1-14 (15-20)

And immediately there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly array, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among peoples whom God favors!” [Luke 2:13-14]

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit, he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.

[from The Nicene Creed, US Book of Common Prayer, p. 358]

It's time! Hallelujah!

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O Holy Jesus, God’s True Light, You come at last, filled with grace and truth. Let our joy be unbounded for the arrival of our Glorious Child, One in Being with God and the Holy Spirit, who redeems and claims us for the work of Heaven on Earth.

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

RESPONSE: Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

~ O Holy Jesus, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

Glory to God in the Highest Heaven!

Grant Peace on Earth to Us All

Monday, December 16, 2024

Prayers of the People: The One of Peace ~ 4th Sunday of Advent '24 Yr C

For Sunday, December 22, 2024, Readings: Micah 5:2-5a, Canticle 15/Luke 1:46-55, Psalm 80:1-7,

Hebrews 10:5-10, Luke 1:39-45

But you, O Bethlehem... from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days…when she who is in labor has brought forth; then the rest of his kindred shall return to the people of Israel...and he shall be the one of peace. [Micah 5:2, 3b, 5a]

And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. [Hebrews 10:10]

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord...for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant...He has shown the strength of his arm, he has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted up the lowly. [Luke 1:46a, 48, 51-52]

When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb...And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord." [Luke 1:41-42, 45]

We light the Candle of Love on this final and only partial week of Advent. Here is yet another chance to pause in the midst of all the busy-ness. Listen deeply to the reading from Micah, as he names the very town from which the one who is to rule Israel is to come and, further he says, when she who is in labor brings forth her child the rest of Israel will return home.

In the Letter to the Hebrews, we find the Old Testament writings of Psalm 40:6-8, Amos 5:21, and Jeremiah 6:20b remembered in verses 5-7 of Chapter 10. Christ says that the sacrifices of the Old Covenant are dismissed. Burnt and blood offerings do not please God and do not cleanse us from sin. Jesus, as the One expected from heaven, came to please God by obedience to Divine will and to teach us how to follow.

Another important moment to listen, to hear, and to feel, is in the beauty of the exchange between two kinswomen and consider who they were in their time and who they have become to us. The elder Elizabeth, was a barren woman for so many years until suddenly she is with child, a very important child, John, the Baptizer, who will prepare the way of the Lord. In her day she was likely ostracized in her community for most of her adult life, or at the very least considered a failure because of her seeming infertility. The much younger Mary, generally considered to be between the ages of 12-14, recently told by an Angel that she is bearing the Son of God, (can you imagine?!), would perhaps bear shame in her community as well as the uncertainty of Joseph, her betrothed, because of her condition. Would he be able to come to terms with this mystery in such a time? Would we, in our own time? (Of course, we already know he'll have an angelic visitation of his own in Matthew 1:18-25, and will be a loving, protective husband.)

These women come together and speak to us, to awaken us from the haze of frantic preparations for a celebration that is increasingly more earth-bound than spiritual. In their greetings to each other we discover the unexpectedness of this moment of expectation, the message of embracing the twists and turns of life, and recognizing that God is present at all times ~ when we feel elated and when we feel shamed or anxious or uncertain. We are not alone in the darkest of times or in the happiest. Jesus comes as the face of God to sanctify and save us. Stop, sit, breathe in the peace of the quiet. Even as the clock and calendar call, let us not race ahead, but remain in the stillness for a time, in the space between not yet and almost, savoring the expectation of Christ's birth, and finding an unexpected freshness in the joy of anticipation for the one of peace [Micah 5:5a]. In days of worry, anger, fear, grief, or any other part of life that is unsettling, let us find our inner faith made stronger in knowing that the One of Peace Who is coming, is already here to peace us all together as His own.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O Mighty One, our God, open our souls to proclaim Your greatness, and call upon our spirits to rise in joy, as we await the coming of the One of peace, the Light from Light begotten to sanctify and save us.

O Lord of Strength and Mercy

RESPONSE: Magnify our Faith

~ O Mighty One, our God, help us to lift up all bowed low in this World, in our Nation, and in our Community from war in its many guises, from the poverty of heart and spirit, and anger born of fear. Fill us with the courage and constancy to remind our earthly leaders to persevere in the cause of peace, justice, and mercy for all of Your children of every size, color, age, and struggle. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O Lord of Strength and Mercy

Magnify our Faith

~ O Mighty One, our God, grant peace, relief, and hope to all enduring chronic illness, poverty, or emotional anguish, and bring comfort to all who love them and give them care. We now join our hearts to pray for those in need… add your own petitions

O Lord of Strength and Mercy

Magnify our Faith

~ O Mighty One, our God, unburden the hearts of all who grieve with the assurance of new life for those who now rest forever in Your radiant glory. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O Lord of Strength and Mercy

Magnify our Faith

~ O Mighty One, our God, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently… add your own petitions

O Lord of Strength and Mercy

Magnify our Faith

~ O Mighty One, our God, bestow extra grace upon those who are anointed to bring us Your Word and Sacraments, as they guide us all to discover and act upon Your will in our lives. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O Lord of Strength and Mercy

Magnify our Faith

The Celebrant adds: O God, our Savior, as we make ready to receive the One who comes, restore us to Your purpose that the fruits of our life’s labors may always be a reflection of Your infinite blessings. We ask through Jesus, our Joyful Expectation; and the Holy Spirit, Your Sacred Breath; who together with You, live and reign as One God, now and forever. Amen.

Prayers of the People: In the Shelter of Shaddai ~ 4th Sunday of Advent '24 WLC* Yr C

For Sunday, December 22, 2024, Readings: Exodus 20:1-21, Psalm 91, Romans 8:14-25, Luke 1:46-56

For in six days the CREATOR OF ALL made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them; and God rested the on the seventh day; therefore the EVER-LIVING GOD blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it. [Exodus 20:11]

She who settles in the shelter of the Most High, who stays in the shadow of Shaddai [at her breast]: She will say to the SHELTERING GOD, “My refuge and my stronghold; my God, in her I trust.” [Psalm 91:1-3]

It is that same Spirit who bears witness with our spirit that we are daughters and sons of God. 17 And if daughters and sons, then heirs, heirs of God and heirs with Christ, if it is true that we suffer with Christ so that we may also be glorified with Christ… For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. [Romans:16-17, 24-25]

“My soul magnifies the Holy One, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for God has looked with favor on the lowliness of God’s own womb-slave. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is God’s name. [Luke 1:46-49]

With her expansive titles for God, especially in this excerpt from Exodus, Dr. Gafney gives us, as always, a continuing fresh opportunity to reflect on our non-limited God. Her womanist translation of Psalm 91 is likely a significant challenge to very many readers yet it is an invitation to think about what draws us in and/or what pushes us away from this poetic vision and the ever important "why".

Hope, for me, is the important takeaway in the reading from Romans just beyond the reassurance that we are all heirs of God and heirs with Christ. We are not reprieved from suffering but rather we can wait with patience for our hope to be realized.

And then it is time to listen, to hear, to feel deeply, the beauty of the exchange between two kinswomen and consider who they were in their time and who they have become to us. The elder Elizabeth, was a barren woman for so many years until suddenly she is with child, a very important child, John, the Baptizer, who will prepare the way of the Lord. In her day she was likely ostracized in her community for most of her adult life, or at the very least considered a failure because of her seeming infertility. The much younger Mary, generally considered to be between the ages of 12-14, recently told by an Angel that she is bearing the Son of God, (can you imagine?!), would perhaps bear shame in her community as well as the uncertainty of Joseph, her betrothed, because of her condition. Would he be able to come to terms with this mystery in such a time? Would we, in our own time? (Of course, we already know he'll have an angelic visitation of his own in Matthew 1:18-25, and will be a loving, protective husband.)

These women come together and speak to us, to awaken us from the haze of frantic preparations for a celebration that is increasingly more earth-bound than spiritual. In their greetings to each other we discover the unexpectedness of this moment of expectation, the message of embracing the twists and turns of life, and recognizing that God is present at all times ~ when we feel elated and when we feel shamed or anxious or uncertain. We are not alone in the darkest of times or in the happiest. Jesus comes as the face of God to sanctify and save us. Stop, sit, breathe in the peace of the quiet. Even as the clock and calendar call, let us not race ahead, but remain in the stillness for a time, in the space between not yet and almost, savoring the expectation of Christ's birth, and finding an unexpected freshness in the joy of anticipation for the Holy One. In days of worry, anger, fear, grief, or any other part of life that is unsettling, let us find our inner faith made stronger in knowing that the One Who is coming, is already here, for us each to be in the shelter of Shaddai*** all together as His own.

** In some of Dr. Gafney’s notes for this week she explains her use of the word slave in Exodus 20:2,4,17 in which the Hebrew root is the same as serve in v.4 and also for “worship” in other translations. Also, in v 10 the sojourner, she says, “The text is clear that they are ‘your’ sojourner or immigrant [neighbor]; they belong to the community.” Her choice to use “explicitly feminine language…mirrors and inverts traditional translation” and she invites “readers to pray the song reflecting on any perceived barriers in the use of feminine language as universal language.” In Psalm 91, for example, Dr. Gafney says that the divine title Shaddai***means ‘the Breasted One’; a shad is a woman’s breast in Hebrew. In her book for Year C, Dr. Gafney explains her process and sources of translation of each reading she uses, which is impossible to offer in this space. Fascinating and illuminating, not merely because of the womanist highlighting, but for a greater appreciation of and fresh perspective in each biblical reading as most are not, or rarely, used in Sunday preaching or Daily Lectionaries. For slightly more information see: https://prayersofthepeople.blogspot.com/2024/11/prayers-of-people-advent-ure-begins.html

Readings for Advent IV – December 22, 2024

Exodus 20:1-21: Now God declared all these declarations: 2 I am the HOLY ONE your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slaves. 3 There shall be no other gods for you in my face. 4 You shall not make for yourself an idol of any form that is in the heavens on high, or that is on the earth below, or that is in the waters under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them: I the THUNDER OF SINAI your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of parents upon children to the third and the fourth [generation] of those who hate me. 6 And faithfully loving to the thousandth [generation] of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 You shall not lift up as a trifling thing the Name of the MAJESTY OF THE AGES your God, for the JUDGE OF ALL FLESH will not acquit anyone who lifts up as a trifling thing the Name of the FIRE OF SINAI. 8 Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy. 9 Six days shall you labor and do all your work. 10 Now the seventh day is a sabbath to the WOMB OF CREATION your God; you shall not do any work—you, your daughter or your son, your female slave or your male slave, your livestock or [the sojourner] your immigrant [neighbor] in your towns. 11 For in six days the CREATOR OF ALL made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them; and God rested the on the seventh day; therefore the EVER-LIVING GOD blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it. 12 Honor your mother and your father, so that your days may be long in the land that the FAITHFUL ONE your God is giving you. 13 You shall not murder. 14 You shall not commit adultery. 15 You shall not steal. 16 You shall testify against your neighbor [as] a lying witness. 17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s woman, or female slave or male slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s. 18 When all the women, children, and men saw the thunder and the lightning—and the sound of the trumpet!—and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and they trembled, and they stood far off. 19 And the people said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen, yet do not let God speak to us or we shall die.” 20 Then Moses said to the people, “Fear not for it is only to test you that God has come, and for the sake that the fear of God would be upon you all so that you do not sin.” 21 Then the women, children, and men stood far off while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

Psalm 91: 1 She who settles in the shelter of the Most High, who stays in the shadow of Shaddai [at her breast]: 2 She will say to the SHELTERING GOD, “My refuge and my stronghold; my God, in her I trust.” 3 For she will deliver you from the snare of the huntress and from the devastating pestilence. 4 She will cover you with her pinions, and under her wings shall you find refuge; a shield and buckler are her faithfulness. 5 You shall not fear the terror of night, or the arrow that flies by day; 6 nor even the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that ravages at noonday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand, yet near you, it shall not approach. 8 Only glance with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. 9 For you, the SAVING GOD is your refuge, the Most High, your habitation. 10 No evil shall befall you, no plague come near your tent. 11 For her angels will she command for you, to keep you in all your ways. 12 On their hands shall they carry you, lest you strike your foot against a stone. 13 On the lion and the adder shall you tread; you will trample the young lion and the serpent. 14 For she who is bound to me, I will deliver her; I will exalt her, for she knows my Name. 15 When she calls me, I will answer her. I will be with her in trouble; I will rescue her and honor her. 16 With long life shall I satisfy her, and show her my salvation.

Romans 8:14-25: Now as many as are led by the Spirit of God are daughters and sons of God. 15 For you all did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall again into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption through which we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 It is that same Spirit who bears witness with our spirit that we are daughters and sons of God. 17 And if daughters and sons, then heirs, heirs of God and heirs with Christ, if it is true that we suffer with Christ so that we may also be glorified with Christ. 18 I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the daughters and sons of God; 20 for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the daughters and sons of God. 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; 23 and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Luke 1:46-56: “My soul magnifies the Holy One, 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for God has looked with favor on the lowliness of God’s own womb-slave. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is God’s name. 50 God’s loving-kindness is for those who fear God from generation to generation. 51 God has shown the strength of God’s own arm; God has scattered the arrogant in the intent of their hearts. 52 God has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; 53 God has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. 54 God has helped God’s own child, Israel, a memorial to God’s mercy, 55 just as God said to our mothers and fathers, to [Hagar and] and Sarah and Abraham, to their descendants forever.” 56 And Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months and then returned to her home.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE PRAY

Leader: ~ MAJESTY OF THE AGES, OUR GOD, magnify our faith to rejoice again in the coming of our Savior. Look with favor upon us, Mighty One, keep Your loving kindness within us to share with others, as we know the strength of Your own arm will lift us all. Feed our sisters and brothers who are hungry and without shelter; and may the sojourners among us feel safe and valued as our neighbors.

O SHELTERING GOD

RESPONSE: Our Refuge and our Stronghold

~ MAJESTY OF THE AGES, OUR GOD, help us to lift up all bowed low in this World, in our Nation, and in our Community from war in its many guises, from the poverty of heart and spirit, and anger born of fear. Fill us with the courage and constancy to remind our earthly leaders to persevere in the cause of peace, justice, and mercy for all of Your children of every size, color, age, and struggle. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O SHELTERING GOD

Our Refuge and our Stronghold

~ MAJESTY OF THE AGES, OUR GOD, grant peace, relief, and hope to all enduring chronic illness, poverty, or emotional anguish, and bring comfort to all who love them and give them care. We now join our hearts to pray aloud for those in need… add your own petitions

O SHELTERING GOD

Our Refuge and our Stronghold

~ MAJESTY OF THE AGES, OUR GOD, unburden the hearts of all who grieve with the assurance of new life for all who now rest forever in Your radiant glory. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O SHELTERING GOD

Our Refuge and our Stronghold

~ MAJESTY OF THE AGES, OUR GOD, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently… add your own petitions

O SHELTERING GOD

Our Refuge and our Stronghold

~ MAJESTY OF THE AGES, OUR GOD, infuse extra energy, spiritual strength, and frequent reminders for self-care upon those anointed to offer Your Word and Sacraments, guiding us to discover daily Your Love and Will, in and for our lives. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O SHELTERING GOD

Our Refuge and our Stronghold

The Celebrant adds: EVERLIVING GOD, as we make ready to receive the One who comes, even as He is already here, restore us to Your purpose that the fruits of our life’s labors may always be a reflection of Your infinite blessings. We ask through Jesus, our Joyful Expectation; and the Holy Spirit, Your Sacred Breath; who together with You, live and reign as One God, now and forever. Amen.