53B*
A Call to Worship
Pentecost 13B [Ordinary 21B] or [Proper 16B] 2015
Psalm 34: 15-22

Attentive God, we gather to rejoice in the loving care that God offers to and for us.
Righteous God, we come in worship to thank our God, who acts to save and bless.

Ever-present God, we gather to share the blessings of your holy presence with us.
Initiating God, we come to praise you for inspiring within us a sense of justice for all.

Liberating God, we gather to give thanks for the sense of refuge and security we find
in God’s loving presence, that is closer to us than our breath and our own heart beat.
Loving God, we come in reverent awe to thank you again for your holy presence to
people crushed by life and living; and for healing and lifting up broken-hearted people. Amen.

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Psalm 34: 15-22
A psalm of David, regarding the time he pretended
to be insane in front of Abimelech, who sent him away.

15 The eyes of the LORD watch over those who do right;
his ears are open to their cries for help.
16 But the LORD turns his face against those who do evil;
he will erase their memory from the earth.

17 The LORD hears his people when they call to him for help.
He rescues them from all their troubles.
18 The LORD is close to the broken hearted;
he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
19 The righteous person faces many troubles,
but the LORD comes to the rescue each time.
20 For the LORD protects the bones of the righteous;
not one of them is broken!

21 Calamity will surely destroy the wicked,
and those who hate the righteous will be punished.
22 But the LORD will redeem those who serve him.
No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

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Prayers of Thankfulness and Petition
Pentecost 13B [Ordinary 21B] or [Proper 16B] 2015
Psalm 34: 15-22

Listening and Attentive God, we gather to rejoice in the loving care that God
offers to and for us, as we live according to the decrees of God, and as we
worship and serve the Lord our God all our days. All-Seeing and All-Knowing
God, we gather together to offer our shared prayers of thankfulness for God’s
great mercies and loving kindness to us in all areas of our living. We give thanks
that despite the many hardships and struggles of daily life, that we can rely on
the steadfast and faithful love of God, especially for those people crushed by
life and circumstances of acute need. Righteous God, we come in worship to
thank our God, who acts to save and bless all those who turn to God in prayer.

Ever-present and Holy God, we gather to share in the blessings of receiving
your awesome presence with us. In reverent awe, we bow in humble thanks
for the way you inspire within us a sense of justice for all people; that you
encourage us to understand that we are all children of the one Father God; and
that we can express our love and compassion for our fellow siblings under God’s
care and rule. Liberating God, we give thanks for the freedom you give to us—
even if through circumstances that freedom is limited, but we can celebrate the
freedom of being able to love, pray, meditate and reflect on the wonder of our
God, and to live out that sense of inner freedom, in spiritual fellowship with others.

God, you are our Refuge and Security when we feel isolated from the fellowship
of your people. We pray especially for people unable to attend public worship for
health, practical or political reasons; for people who are in care and feel cut-off
from their usual sources of companionship; for people whose lack of vision or
hearing removes them from the joy of shared worship; and for people of all ages
who are denied the opportunity of being in communion with fellow Christians. Be
very near to them, we pray; and may God’s loving presence give them consolation. Amen.

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A Personal Meditation
Pentecost 13B [Ordinary 21B] or [Proper 16B] 2015
Psalm 34: 15-22

Psalm 34 makes for very challenging reading and meditation! The author makes
several claims that are hard to come to terms with; for example: “...the LORD turns
his face against those who do evil; he will erase their memory from the earth....
Calamity will surely destroy the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be
punished...” Yet in that same Psalm are the reassuring words: “...The eyes of the
LORD watch over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help....
The LORD hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from
all their troubles. The LORD is close to the broken hearted; he rescues those whose
spirits are crushed...” Throughout the psalms there are many examples of people
who have felt abandoned by God, and who yet still cling on to their faith and hope
in God. But what about those people who have not experienced the closeness of
God in their times of distress? These are not unconditional promises by God of a
life free of problems, especially a life that is lived in “just” relationships with ones
“neighbours"; but we are promised the hope of God’s presence, even in the darkest
of days – if we have the spiritual sensitivity and awareness of God’s near presence.



There have been times in my life when the only words I could use to describe the
supportive presence of God in the crisis situation of my critically ill baby was to liken
it to being wrapped in a warm blanket of security and love. At other times, I have felt
absolutely alone and utterly bereft. When my older brother died very soon after the
breakup of my marriage, and as I led my siblings and their spouses to follow his coffin
in the family procession at his funeral; and I have never felt so abandoned or alone
ever before – even in a Christian burial service. There was simply no one there for me.
All I could do was pray for God‘s presence to become “real” to me in my deep grief.



In his little book “Spirituality of the Psalms” Professor Walter Brueggemann writes:
“... The use of these ‘psalms of darkness’ may be judged by the world to be acts of
‘unfaith and failure’, but for the trusting community, their use is an act of bold faith,
albeit a transformed faith.... because it insists that the world must be experienced
as it really is and not in some pretended way. On the other hand, it is bold because
it insists that all experiences are a proper subject for discourse with God. Nothing
is out of bounds, nothing precluded or inappropriate.... To withhold parts of life from
the conversation is in fact to withhold part of life from the sovereignty of God....”¹
What do these words teach us? That there is nothing in life or death that cannot be
shared with God! That God is unshockable and knows us better than we know ourselves
and yearns for us to share every part of our life with God. That God has a special love
for those who are broken hearted and the crushed by life; or crushed by people who
act without counting the costs of their actions to others. Whilst they may “hate” people
who “...do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with their God…”² – they
are “hated” because they make people uncomfortable with their own consciences.



1 Text by Professor Walter Brueggemann
from “The Spirituality of the Psalms”, Chapter 2, page 27
© 2002 Augsburg Fortress Publishing House
Minneapolis MN 55440, USA

2 Micah 6: 8b (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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