On Friday night we left the tomb in silence,
our feet heavy on that grave road,
clinging to each other for support
every face wet with tears.
Our steps beating out the refrain of our hearts,
“He’s dead, he’s dead.”
No sleep for me all that long night.
Each time I closed my eyes
I was again on that road to Jerusalem
palm branches waving,
again at a table with Jesus
The grudge sits squat and heavy
in the middle of the road between two people.
Built of solid rock by a team of experts
schooled in hurt feelings,
every chink is cemented with spite.
There are no windows or doors.
Unmovable as a mountain
it sits in the thoroughfare saying,
“Road closed.”…
The family sits on either side of the bed.
The reedy rhythm raises her chest
slightly up, slightly down.
The quiet breathing slows, pauses,
resumes again, shallower now.
Life seeps away as night deepens.
Death dawns, gentle as silence.
This was the final hour….
Jesus, please do something
about this green-eyed cat jealousy
who has parked herself in my house
purring discontent.
She seemed sweet enough on the doorstep
with her message of “poor you”.
Once in, she patted me with soft paws mewing,
“that’s not fair” and “you deserve better”.
She lapped up all the milk of human kindness
Thank you God for all food,
grown, raised, bought, served;
for all food,
tangy, spicy, salty, sweet;
for all food,
crunchy, juicy, chewy, smooth;
for all food,
baked, boiled, roasted, raw.
For all food,
thanks, praise, glory, honour
to our Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer.
Bless this food to our use,
and us to your service. Amen.
We pray today for children in our communities
who live without either of their parents:
children whose parents have died,
children who have been abandoned,
children taken away from their parents because of abuse or neglect,
and children who have run away from home.
You care for these little ones God,
We pray this day
that your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
We pray this day for our new government
that it will help us live in peace with each other.
Give our politicians keen hearing to hear the cries of the poor.
Give our politicians sharp vision to see the long-term effect of policies.
Give our politicians plain speech to speak the truth.
Give our politicians clean hands to withstand corruption.
Give our politicians honest hearts that are eager to right injustice.
We ask all this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
God, our Great Teacher:
At the beginning of this new school year, hear our prayer for teachers!
Give teachers compassion to treat each student with dignity and respect,
remembering that every child has a story to tell.
Give teachers wisdom to be role models,
remembering that children learn more from who we are than what we say.
Give teachers your love that reaches out to children on the margins,
remembering that we see Jesus in the face of the poor, the challenged, the rejected.
Give teachers strength to carry heavy loads with patience and good-humour,
Thank you God for warm sunny weather,
for blue skies
and blue lakes.
Thank you God for big trees to climb
for city streets to explore
for cool shady places to hide in
for parks with slides and swings.
Thank you God for swimming pools and diving boards
for baseball diamonds
and soccer fields.
I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.
I love to write and to lead worship! If you are finding my writing helpful, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to use or adapt the material here, it is all written by me. If printing material, please credit “Copyright Carol Penner www.leadinginworship.com” (and say whether you modified it). If publishing, please contact me for permission. Contact me at carol@leadinginworship.com
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