50C*
A Call to Worship
After Pentecost 11C [Ordinary 18C] or [Proper 13C] 2016
Psalm 107: 1-9, 43

We come to worship the God through whom we have received peace and joy.
“...Great is your faithfulness, O God my Father, all you have been you… to me...”¹

We come to praise the God through whom we have received loving mercy.
“..all we have needed your hand has provided… your love is... Lord God to me…”¹

We come to revere the God through whom we have received untold numbers
of blessings, generous forgiveness, and a new faith and trust in our loving God.
“...you never fail, and your love is unchanging… as you have been you forever
will be… morning by morning new mercies we see. Great is your faithfulness…”¹ Amen.

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Psalm 107: 1-9, 43

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
2 Has the Lord redeemed you? Then speak out!
Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies.
3 For he has gathered the exiles from many lands,
from east and west, from north and south.
4 Some wandered in the wilderness, lost and homeless.
5 Hungry and thirsty, they nearly died.
6 “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble,
and he rescued them from their distress.
7 He led them straight to safety, to a city where they could live.

8 Let them praise the Lord for his great love
and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
9 For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

43 Those who are wise will take all this to heart;
they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord.

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Prayers of Thankfulness
After Pentecost 11C [Ordinary 18C] or [Proper 13C] 2016
Psalm 107: 1-9, 43

We come to worship the God, through whom we have received so many blessings,
and we want to tell people, to even proclaim what is the good news that: “...God’s
faithful love endures forever...” We give thanks that through the ages, people have
proclaimed this news from their roof tops; in courts of laws and judgement; when
under stress and deprivation; in times of birth and death; in times of health and frailty;
in times of peace, truce and war; and especially in times of festival and celebration.

We come to praise the God through whom we have received loving mercy; and grace
upon grace from our bounteous God. We want to show and share that good news, as we
give thanks that through the ages, people have shown and shared this news by their
gracious and loving attitudes of acceptance and recognition of people, for who they
are in their own particular circumstances. We give thanks for the people who have often
disregarded their own safety and security to share the good news of God’s love to people
who have been violated, dishonoured, desecrated as human beings; and sullied by the
filth and hypocrisy of corruption. We give thanks for the selfless sharing through the ages
of the many saints and martyrs who through their faithfulness, have shared and shown
God’s love, mercy and forgiving grace to an unbelieving world, and its faithless peoples.

We come to worship the God, through whom we have received so much guidance and
help in times of trouble; so much generous forgiveness, and a renewed faith and trust
in our loving God! The psalmist asks us to: “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever...” and the longevity of God’s faithful love is a miracle!
As people have lived their lives, they know from experience that love can live on, but
that sometimes love also dies, which can be very hurtful; however, God’s love is endless
and unchanging! We give thanks for God’s many promises about the depth of that love
God has not only for humanity, but also for the wonderfully complex creation where God
has placed us – all of which are expressions of God’s-Matchless-Love and God-Own-Self.
Therefore: “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever...” Amen.

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A Personal Meditation
After Pentecost 11C [Ordinary 18C] or [Proper 13C] 2016
Psalm 107: 1-9, 43

In recent time, I have been reading and writing about ‘proclaiming’, ‘telling’,
‘showing’ and ‘sharing’ and ‘giving thanks’ for God’s goodness and mercy.
The selection from today’s psalm instructs us to: “...Give thanks to the LORD,
for he is good! ....speak out! Tell others he has redeemed you.... praise the
‘LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done... Those who
are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love
of the LORD.” There are several psalms that are responsive with following
verse repeated every second line: and we also have that response today:
“...God’s/His faithful love endures forever...” My recent studies has centred
around the Apostle Peter’s letters to the Young Churches and he wrote: “...As
a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the
darkness into his wonderful light…”² Today’s four case studies of God’s people—
the diaspora - scattered to many nations and then miraculously returned to their
homeland, could certainly be described as returning to “God’s wonderful light”,
where God had at that time and place been revealed to God’s chosen people.



These actions of ‘proclaiming’, ‘telling’, ‘showing’ and ‘sharing’ and ‘giving thanks’
are all related to personal experiences of something, a place or sight, or someone
they have met or seen; and therefore that person displays a personal conviction,
confidence, sincerity, and a sense of certainty that what they heard, experienced
or seen had changed them forever. They had in fact ‘seen the light’ as a result of
their experiences; and “God’s wonderful light” is the very best example be “the light”!



Many years ago I was in an Asian temple – quite the last place I would have ever
expected to receive a revelation of God’s holiness – but that experience and the
light that shone on and in me then, will stay with me all my remaining life! Some
people have reacted sceptically when I have shared or told of that experience, but
with my shoes off and left outside that temple, I most certainly knew that I was
standing on holy ground, and worshipping in the presence of the One-True-God.
I am convinced that in ‘my history’ I experienced “...the faithful love of the LORD.”



1 From “Together in Song” #154
Words by Thomas Obadiah Chisholm
© Used with Permission,
LicenSing License No. 604543

2 1 Peter 2: 9b (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 scholarship and 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:
© 2016 Joan Stott – ‘The Timeless Psalms’ RCL Psalms Year C. Used with permission.

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

Download/view a pdf file of this document here: pentecost11[18]c_2016.pdf