62B*
A Call to Worship
Pentecost 22B [Ordinary 30B] or [Proper 25B] 2012
Psalm 34: 1-8 (19-22)
Come now, let us praise the Lord our God at all times!Let us share God’s mighty acts of love with other people.
We come, to share in the joys of those who trust in God.
Come now, all who are deeply discouraged by life’s traumas—
because our God is gracious and loving, and forgiving of our sin.
We come, to give thanks for our God’s merciful blessings to us.
Come now, and experience the radiant joy of God’s mercy.
Let us celebrate together the generosity of our Listening God.
We come, conscious that we are not immune from troubles,
but we rejoice that the God we worship frees us from our fears. Amen.
Prayers of Praise and Exaltation
Pentecost 22B [Ordinary 30B] or [Proper 25B] 2012
Psalm 34: 1-8 (19-22)
Awesome God, in reverence and praise we come to worship our God, wholistens and answers our prayers; and who offers loving encouragement and
strength when we are weighed down by fears. We gather as God’s people
who are filled with the radiant joy of God’s presence in our lives. Even
when life seems tough and wearisome, our God is present with us, listening
to our sighs; calming our fears; and reinforcing our belief that in God, we
are privileged to have access to The Almighty God - our Alpha and Omega.
Know that our God is good, and share in the joys of those who trust in God!
We come to praise and exalt the Being of our Glorious God, accepting that
no one is immune from the troubles of life, and that we all need help at some
time or another, even if we cherish our independence! But the Lord our God
is always trustworthy and can become the Quiet Centre in our life if we turn
in trust to God for guidance and help, and if we leave things in God’s hands.
Understand that our God is merciful, and share this joy with hurting people.
Commissioning God, we each have the joyful responsibility to constantly
praise our God and to share our own experiences of God’s goodness and
mercy, and so, as one group of God’s people we are called to proclaim and
exalt the greatness of our God. With elation, we can personally affirm that
our God does answer prayers; that God does have compassion towards us
when we are troubled, and that with God’s help, we can deal with our concerns.
Rejoice that our God is peace-loving, and share God’s true peace with others. Amen.
A Personal Meditation
Pentecost 22B [Ordinary 30B] or [Proper 25B] 2012
Psalm 34: 1-8 (19-22)
The Psalmist vowed to only boast in the Lord our God – what a huge featof self-sacrifice that must have been! He also stated he would praise
the Lord at all times, and to speak constantly of the wonders of our God.
Maybe I mix with different types of people to him, but I know for a fact
that if one has only one theme of conversation, most people soon “turn off”.
But, was he exaggerating about this? Or was he trying to make a point, that
it is attitudes and actions that “speak” louder than any amount of words.
| Creative pause: | Do attitudes and actions speak louder than words? |
However, I believe he has a very valid point when he called us to come
together to praise and glorify God, as it is when we are gathered together
and speaking with one voice, that we are an authentic witness to our God.
As we act together in worship and praise of our God, so we will know the
shared assurance of God’s merciful forgiveness; the sense of release from
all our inhibiting and debilitating fears; and together, experience the radiant
joy of being in communion and in fellowship with God - and with each other.
| Creative pause: | Acting together in worship of God creates new horizons. |
The question of why “good” people suffer surfaces regularly in the Psalms,
and their writers have a firm conviction that God protects them from all harm.
Is that blind faith on the part of the Psalmist or was it a real life experience?
However, in the “real world”, “good people” always have suffered all types of
trauma on a daily basis and for whatever reason that suffering occurs, how one
handles those challenges remains for me the relevant issue and daily struggle.
| Creative pause: | May I continue to praise God with truth and sincerity. |
Acknowledgements:
Unless stated otherwise, all Bible readings and extracts used in these weekly Prayers and
Meditations are from
‘The New Revised Standard Version’ Copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council
of the Churches of Christ in the USA.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
*The additional weekly numbering is from the Revised COCU Indexing Scheme
COCU = ('Consultation on Church Union');
as it offers an easy sequential numbering
for the Revised Common Lectionary for the Church Calendar.
If any part of these Prayers and/or Meditations is used in shared worship, please provide
the following acknowledgement:
© 2012 Joan Stott – ‘The Timeless Psalms’ RCL Psalms Year B. Used with permission.
jstott@netspace.net.au
Download/view a pdf file of this document here: pentecost22[30]b_2012.pdf