19B*
A Call to Worship
Lent 1B 2015
Psalm 25: 1-10

We need you God, because life and living is tough; and we feel so lost and alone.
Almighty God, we really need your strength, so in hope we come to worship you.

We need you God, because life as we know it is threatened, and we are bewildered.
Trustworthy God, we need your fidelity; so in expectation, we come to worship you.

We need you God, because our circumstances have changed, disaster confronts us;
and we need the strength, constancy and merciful care that you alone can give to us
Generous God, we are in deep trouble and we need your loving mercy and nurturing;
your encouragement and your presence with us; so in trusting worship, we come to you. Amen.

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Psalm 25: 1-10
A psalm of David.

1 O LORD, I give my life to you.
2 I trust in you, my God!
Do not let me be disgraced, or let my enemies rejoice in my defeat.
3 No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced,
but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others.

4 Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow.
5 Lead me by your truth and teach me,
for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.
6 Remember, O LORD, your compassion and unfailing love,
which you have shown from long ages past.
7 Do not remember the rebellious sins of my youth.
Remember me in the light of your unfailing love, for you are merciful, O LORD.

8 The LORD is good and does what is right;
he shows the proper path to those who go astray.
9 He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way.
10 The LORD leads with unfailing love and faithfulness
all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.

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Prayers of Lament and Petition
Lent 1B 2015
Psalm 25: 1-10

Almighty God, our Strength and our Hope, we come together to worship you—
and in our honesty and pain, we come asking for the strength that you alone
can give to each of us. Life has become very tough for us, and we are feeling
overwhelmed by all that strips us of our confidence, our belief and faith in you.
“When, O God, our faith is tested and our hope is undermined, when our love
of living shrivels, and we feel bereft and drained, then we turn to you and cry
for your answer to our ‘why?’”¹ Faithful God, we may never know the answers
to our all our “why” questions; but we ask that you travel with us giving us your strength.
“…Remember us all in the light of your unfailing love, for you are merciful, O LORD...”

Trustworthy God, we come to you in worship and prayer, because we know from
past experiences that you hear and answer our prayers. We are puzzled by all of
the sudden changes in our life; but we know we can turn to you in hope and trust.
Yet, in our bewilderment we also come to ask you: “With emotions taut to breaking,
hearts with hurt and havoc frayed, reason by remorse diminished, souls distraught
as if betrayed.... why have you forsaken us?¹ In remorse and regret, we struggle
with the questions of our sense of isolation and being without any firm direction.

Generous God, we admit to you, and to anyone who will listen, that we are troubled!
This day, we need your constant and steadfast love that will comfort, sustain and
encourage us in this unexpected crisis; and we need the reality of your presence
with us to nurture and guide us through this time of struggle. “...Show us the right
path, O LORD; point out the road for us to follow. Lead us by your truth and teach
us, for you are the God who saves us….” Dependable God, within your loving mercy
and the constancy of your care, we seek the reassurance that only you can give us.
“…Remember us all in the light of your unfailing love, for you are merciful, O LORD.
The LORD is good... [and] ...leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way...
with unfailing love and faithfulness, all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.” Amen.

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A Personal Meditation
Lent 1B 2015
Psalm 25: 1-10

The prolific hymn writer, and British Methodist minister, the Reverend Fred
Pratt-Green (1903-2000) captured the reality of life and its challenges in so
many of his hymns. He wrote constantly after he retired and provided many
hymns that spoke so clearly of his faith in God, but especially in times when
lamenting is often the only response we can give, and in our lamenting, for
us to turn to God with “prayers of petition” such as: “When our confidence in
shaken in beliefs we thought secure, when the spirit in its sickness seeks but
cannot find a cure, God is active in the tensions of a faith not yet mature…”²



Each of us is very aware that the times of pain and struggle are the times that
we are most in need of our Sustaining God, and that those experiences of God
in our struggles were often the defining moments in our own spiritual life. The
people of Israel responded fervently to God in their times national or personal
stress; and when a major disaster confronted them, almost inevitably, they turned
to God in regret and remorse, and begged God to rescue and renew them as a
covenant people who were dependent on God’s forgiving compassion and faithful
love. There are many prayers of lament in the collection of 150 Psalms, and #25
powerfully shows us a good example of our continuing need for God’s guidance,
deliverance, grace, and forgiveness. “O LORD, I give my life to you. I trust in you,
my God! Do not let me be disgraced, or let my enemies rejoice in my defeat. No one
who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to
deceive others. Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow....”



Verses not included in today’s psalm spell out the psalmist’s or his people’s need:
“....Turn to me and have mercy, for I am alone and in deep distress. My problems
go from bad to worse. Oh, save me from them all! Feel my pain and see my trouble.
Forgive all my sins. See how many enemies I have and how viciously they hate me!
Protect me! Rescue my life from them! Do not let me be disgraced, for in you I take
refuge. May integrity and honesty protect me, for I put my hope in you. O God, ransom
Israel from all its troubles.”³ Pratt-Green continued: “…always our researches lead
us to the ultimate Unknown: faith must die, or come full circle to its source in God
alone…. God is love, and thus redeems us in the Christ we crucify; this is God’s
eternal answer in the world’s eternal why…”² May our faith in God mature and grow!



1 From ‘Singing the Faith’ # 643
“When, O God, our faith is tested”
© 1985 Words by Fred Kaan
Used with permission
CCLI Licence #221735

2 From Singing the Faith # 644
“When our confidence is shaken”
© 1971 Words by Fred Pratt-Green
Used with permission
CCLI Licence #221735

3 Psalm 25: 16b-22 NLT

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Acknowledgements:
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation,
copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

*Revised Indexing Scheme from 'Consultation on Church Union' (COCU).

I acknowledge and give heartfelt thanks for the theological inspiration available from the writings of
Professor Walter Brueggemann; and through the resources from the internet and “The Text this Week” (Textweek).

If the Prayers and/or Meditations are used in shared worship, please provide this acknowledgement:
© 2015 Joan Stott – ‘The Timeless Psalms’ RCL Psalms Year B. Used with permission.

jstott@netspace.net.au
www.thetimelesspsalms.net

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