49A*
A Call to Worship
After Pentecost 8A [Ordinary 17A] or [Proper 12A] 2017
Psalm 105: 1-11, 45b

God of the patriarchs and matriarchs, God of the humble amongst us today:
God whose Name and Being is ‘Steadfast Love’ - we gather to worship you.

God of the widow and the fatherless; God of the travelling alien and stranger:
God whose Name and Being is ‘Unconditional Tenderness’ – we give you praise.

God of all people, past, present and future; God of our homeland and far away:
God whose Name and Being is ‘Justice’, ‘Equity’ and ‘Mercy’ – we gather to sing
songs of thankfulness; and to pray our prayers for forgiveness and your blessing—
“Give thanks to the LORD and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know...” Amen.

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Psalm 105: 1-11, 45b

1 Give thanks to the LORD and proclaim his greatness.
Let the whole world know what he has done.
2 Sing to him; yes, sing his praises.
Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds.
3 Exult in his holy name;
rejoice, you who worship the LORD.
4 Search for the LORD and for his strength; continually seek him.
5 Remember the wonders he has performed,
his miracles, and the rulings he has given,
6 you children of his servant Abraham,
you descendants of Jacob, his chosen ones.

7 He is the LORD our God. His justice is seen throughout the land.
8 He always stands by his covenant –
the commitment he made to a thousand generations.
9 This is the covenant he made with Abraham
and the oath he swore to Isaac.
10 He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree,
and to the people of Israel as a never-ending covenant:
11 “I will give you the land of Canaan as your special possession.”

45b Praise the LORD!

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Prayers of Thankfulness and Trust
After Pentecost 8A [Ordinary 17A] or [Proper 12A] 2017
Psalm 105: 1-11, 45b

God of the patriarchs and matriarchs, God of the humble and poor amongst us:
today we gather to worship you. God whose Name and Being is ‘Steadfast Love’—
we gather to revere your Holy Name. You are beyond and above us, behind and
in front of us; you surround us with your Holy Being, and you invite us to come
closer to yourself, so that we may be warmed and blessed by your nearness. We
give thanks that you trusted humanity with the task of sharing with the whole world,
the good news of God’s love and compassion for wayward humanity, who so often
have failed to be your ambassadors of love. We give thanks for our faithful forebears,
and pray that we, too, may be worthy of God’s trust as we share God’s messages.

God of the widow and the fatherless; God of the travelling alien and stranger:
we praise you today. God whose Name and Being is ‘Unconditional Tenderness’—
we give you our praises. Today we pray for the vulnerable people in our homes,
communities and institutions; for people who are exposed to dangerous ideologies;
and for people who have no one to guide or help them escape their cycle of poverty,
isolation, self-harm or despair. Compassionate God, light the flame of your love and
compassion within us, so that we may more faithfully and truly be your witnesses.

God of all peoples, past, present and future; God of our homeland and of far away:
we gather to sing songs of thankfulness; and to pray our prayers of confession;
for our forgiveness; and for your blessing. God whose Name and Being is ‘Justice’,
'Equity’ and ‘Mercy’; we gather to ask that we will be endowed with understanding,
tolerance and an adventurous spirit to spread abroad the honour of your Holy Name.
May we honestly seek to serve you and your kingdom of grace and peace, so that
together, humanity with one voice, will join in celebrating and exalting forever the Holy
Name of the One True God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Amen.

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A Personal Meditation
After Pentecost 8A [Ordinary 17A] or [Proper 12A] 2017
Psalm 105: 1-11, 45b

A few years ago, one of my sons-in-law researched my family history, and it was
fascinating to discover many unknown facts, and new details of my forebears. For
instance, I thought my mother was one of five children, as that was the story I was
told as I grew up; yet I discovered that there had been several other children who
had died in infancy, which completely changed my understanding of my parents.
Apparently, there were no records kept of stillbirths, but having always thought I
was the fourth child of my parents, I discovered that I was actually the fifth child—
because of an unrecorded full-term stillbirth of a brother. Family history is important,
and one of the reasons why I am always fascinated by the biblical “begats”, as they
trace the personalities listed in the history of the people of God. The psalmist gives
us a good example in today’s reading: “...This is the covenant [the LORD our God]
made with Abraham and the oath he swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a
decree…” God’s covenant agreement was confirmed and re-confirmed with each
generation as a covenant, an oath, and then as a decree, ensuring that the profound
story of God’s relationship with the people of God was known; and a link for the future.



According to the psalmist, God made a “…commitment to a thousand generations…”
and if the average generation is estimated as being between 20-25 years, that is
approximately 20,000 to 25,000 years; in other words, God’s promise is timeless.
The other promise in the selected passage is that “…the LORD our God’s justice is
seen throughout the land…”. If we take the Ten Commandments as the spiritual and
moral rules of the generations at that time – and regard them God’s plan for a stable
and supportive community life; in reality, it was God’s justice being practiced daily! In
the newer Bible translations, Micah’s version of spiritual and moral living reads thus:
“…No, O people, the LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires
of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God…”¹ In
some recent translations the word ‘justice’ is also described “…as to do what is right...”



The wonderfully inspired words of Psalm 105 starts thus: “Give thanks to the LORD and
proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done. Sing to him; yes,
sing his praises. Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds...” ”The ‘Te Deum’ is an early
Christian hymn based on the Apostles’ Creed, where initially, God is worshipped and
honoured, and this hymn repeats the opening message of today’s psalm’s: “Holy God,
we praise your name / LORD of all, we bow before you / all on earth, your power proclaim /
all in heaven above adore you / boundless is your vast domain / everlasting is your reign...”³
And so we: “...Sing to him; yes, sing his praises. Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds...”



1 Micah 6: 8 (NLT)

2 Micah 6: 8 Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible Translation

3 From “Together in Song” #127
“Holy God we praise your name”
Based on the Te Deum
Words in the Public Domain

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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 help and inspiration so frequently available from the writings of Professor Walter Brueggemann and Professorial brothers Rolf and Karl Jacobson; and the resources from "The Text this Week" (Textweek).

If the Prayers and/or Meditation are used in shared worship, please provide this acknowledgement:
© 2017 Joan Stott –‘The Timeless Psalms’ RCL Psalms Year A. Based on verses from Psalm 105.
Used with permission.

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

Download/view a pdf file of this document here: pentecost8[17]a_2017.pdf