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Group Prayer on Commitment
 

Group Prayer on Commitment - Focus on Mission 15::  Group Prayer on Commitment ::

 

 

 

Opening Hymn : In God’s Presence

Lord, be it thine, unfaltering praise of mine!
To Thee my whole heart’s love be given,
Of earth and heaven Thou king divine.

Lord, be it thine, unfaltering praise of mine!
And, O pure prince, make clear my way
To serve and pray at thy sole shrine!

Lord, be it thine, unfaltering praise of mine!
O Father of all souls that long,
Take my song and make it thine.

– Prayer by Robin Flower –

 

The Word

Night is drawing nigh –
For all that has been – Thanks!
To all that shall be – Yes! …

To say YES to Life is at one and the same time to say Yes to oneself.
Yes – even to that element in one, which is most unwilling to let itself be transformed
From a temptation into a strength…

To be free, to be able to stand up and leave everything behind – without looking back.
To say YES.

– Dag Hammarskjold, “Markings” –

 

In Response

1. I am afraid of saying “Yes”, Lord.
Where will you take me?
I am afraid of drawing the longer straw,
I am afraid of signing my name to an unread agreement,
I am afraid of the “yes” that entails other “yeses.”

ALL: And yet I am not at peace.
You pursue me, Lord, you besiege me.
I seek out the din for fear of hearing you,
But in a moment of silence you slip through.
I turn from the road, for I have caught sight of you,
But at the end of the path you are there
Awaiting me.
Where shall I hide? I meet you everywhere.
Is it then impossible to escape you?

2. But I am afraid to say “Yes”, Lord.
I am afraid of putting my hand in yours, for you hold on to it…
I am afraid of meeting your eyes, for you can win me.
I am afraid of your demands, for you are a jealous God.
I am hemmed in, yet I hide.

ALL: I am captured, yet I struggle, and I fight knowing that I am defeated.
For you are the stronger, Lord, you own the world and you take it from me.
When I stretch out my hand to catch hold of people and things, they vanish before my eyes.

3. It’s no fun, Lord; I can’t keep anything for myself.
The flower I pick fades in my hands.
My laugh freezes on my lips
The waltz I dance leaves me restless and uneasy.

ALL: Everything seems empty,
Everything seems hollow,
You have made a desert around me.
I am hungry and thirsty,
And the whole world cannot satisfy me.

– Prayer by Robin Flower –

 

God’s Word: Luke’s Gospel 9:57-62

As they were going along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.”
To another he said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.”
Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the Kingdom of God.”

 

Shared Reflections & Petitions

 

Closing Prayer (Luke 1:28)

ALL: And Mary said, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done according to you Word.”

IN TWO CHOIRS:

· Into her presence the Angel came, and said, “Hail, you are full of grace; the Lord is with you.”

· She was much perplexed at hearing him speak so, and cast about in her mind, what she was to make of such greeting.

· Then the Angel said to her, “Mary, do not be afraid; you have found favor in the sight of God. And behold you shall conceive in your womb, and shall bear a son, and shall call him Jesus.
He shall be great, and all will know him as the Son of the Most High… Nothing is impossible with God.”

ALL: And Mary said, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done according to you Word.”

 

For Father's Day

A Reflection on the parable of the Prodigal Son.

THE PRODIGAL SON - Luke 15

This son knows the security and comfort he will have if he continues to live with his father, but the thought of his own money and freedom is alluring. He asks for his inheritance—as though he wishes his father already dead—and the Father gives it to him. Prideful and strong, the son departs to a far-away land, leads a wild life of adventure, and squanders everything of value.

Not until the prodigal son is confronted with failure, disgrace and despair—he ends up working with pigs, the un-cleanest of all animals for the Jews—does he return home to his father. He is repentant; he has been greatly humbled and feels unworthy of anything of his father. He returns home only with the hope that his father will allow him to work for him.

To the prodigal son’s surprise, he is welcomed, without question, into his father’s loving and forgiving arms.
His father is so overjoyed at his return, that he runs outs to meet him with joy. The father gives him the best of what he has, his best clothes and his best food. The father celebrates his son’s return with generosity, love and mercy.

Like the prodigal son, we, too, stray from our Father Creator, who offers us fullness of life. So often, we succumb to the allure of personal status and possessions and thus deny our inherent unity with the entire human family.

“Packing up” the many gifts the Father has freely bestowed upon us, how often we set off to “a distant land” to seek the personal fulfillment. We turn our backs on our Father’s ongoing invitation to live and work within his inclusive reign of peace and justice and instead set about building our own kingdoms.

And yet grace comes again and again to help us recognize our weakness, and we acknowledge that we are lost and in need of our Father and one another. And we are never rejected when we return to God’s love and the work of justice. Just as in the story of the prodigal son, the Father sees us coming, embracing us, not judging us, not welling on the past, but rejoicing for our future life around a common table with all our sisters and brothers.

 

Father's Day Prayer

 

 

Loving God and Father,
Who welcomed home the prodigal son,
We come before you now.
Forgive us.
We speak of liberation, we live oppression.

We speak of peace, we act in violence.
We speak of justice, we practice injustice.
We speak of love, we spread hatred.

Through your compassion,
Have mercy on us and make us whole.
Help us to trust in your mercy and forgiveness.
Help us to fear your rejection no longer.

Help us to return to you
And allow ourselves to be healed in your loving embrace. Amen.

 

Published - June 2003