Prayer for Peace and Lighting of Peace Candle
This morning you are invited to think of a place or situation that is need of od’s peace and hold that in prayer.
Moment of Silence
Call to Worship
Leader: We are here because we have heard the call of
Jesus in our lives.
People: We are here to challenge and support one
another to rise up and follow.
Leader: We are here because we want to be God’s people.
People: We want to learn more about what it means to
be the people of God.
Leader: We come, seeking to be moved, changed, and
made whole by the Spirit of the living God.
All: Let us open our hearts to the moving of the
Spirit, and prepare to leave this place as true
disciples of Christ. Amen.
-Ruth C. Duck, Bread for the Journey
Opening Hymn – Longing for Light – VT 715
Sharing and Prayer
Blessing of the Offering
Children’s Story
Matthew 25:31-45
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ 41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’
Sermon by Chris Goodson and Karolyn Moore, McPherson Housing Coalition
To find out more about their work, please see
https://www.mcphersonhousingcoalition.org/
Brothers and sisters of mine are the hungry,
who sigh in their sorrow and weep in their pain.
Sisters and brothers of mine are the homeless,
who wait without shelter from wind and from rain.
Strangers and neighbors, they claim my attention.
They sleep by my doorstep, they sit by my bed.
Neighbors and strangers, their anguish concerns me,
and I must not feast till the hungry are fed.
People are they, men and women and children,
and each has a heart keeping time with my own.
People are they, persons made in God’s image,
so what shall I offer them, bread or a stone?
Lord of all living, we make our confession:
Too long we have wasted the wealth of our lands.
Lord of all loving, renew our compassions,
and open our hearts while we reach out our hands.
Confessing Faith Menno Simons,
Together: True evangelical faith cannot lie dormant
but spreads itself out in all kinds of righteousness
and fruits of love;
It seeks, serves, and fears God in its inmost soul;
it clothes the naked;
it feeds the hungry;
it comforts the sorrowful;
it shelters the destitute;
it aids and consoles the sad;
it does good to those who do it harm;
it serves those who harm it;
it prays for those who persecute it;
it teaches, admonishes, and judges us with the Word of God;
it seeks those who are lost;
it binds up what is wounded;
it heals the sick;
it saves what is strong;
it becomes all things to all people.
Sending – VT 1058
May God bless you with a restless discomfort
about easy answers, half-truths,
and superficial relationships,
so that you may seek truth boldly
and love deep within your heart.
May God bless you with holy anger
at injustice, oppression,
and exploitation of people,
so that you may work tirelessly
for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with the gift of tears
to shed with all who suffer
from pain, rejection, and starvation,
so that you may reach out to bring comfort
and transform pain into joy.
May God bless you with enough foolishness
to believe that you really can
make a difference in this world,
so that you are able, with God’s grace,
to do what others claim cannot be done.
-Ruth Fox, OSB (USA), 1985, © 1985 Ruth Fox