Wednesday Words for August 8, 2012
From Pastor Carrie Smith
From Pastor Carrie Smith
Thought for the Day: Ancient Prayer for Christian Unity
We give you thanks, O Father,
for the life and knowledge which you have made known to us
through your Son Jesus;
yours is the glory for ever and ever.
As the grain once scattered in the fields
and the grapes once dispersed on the hillside
are now united on this table in bread and wine,
so, Lord, may your whole church soon be gathered together
from the ends of the earth into your kingdom;
for yours is the glory and power,
through Jesus Christ,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
We give you thanks, O Father,
for the life and knowledge which you have made known to us
through your Son Jesus;
yours is the glory for ever and ever.
As the grain once scattered in the fields
and the grapes once dispersed on the hillside
are now united on this table in bread and wine,
so, Lord, may your whole church soon be gathered together
from the ends of the earth into your kingdom;
for yours is the glory and power,
through Jesus Christ,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
~ From the Didache (2nd century).
This week at Bethany: Pastor Paul will be preaching this Sunday for the first time at Bethany, and I will be presiding at Communion. The Bell Canto handbell choir will be providing special music. At the 10:00 a.m. service we will have a special prayer of Farewell and Godspeed for the Keller family. The Kellers are moving to Seattle, and we will miss them greatly!
Next week: Wednesday, August 15th at 10 a.m. will be a special Healing Prayer Service. If you have been affected by cancer or another illness, and desire prayer and anointing, you are most welcome to attend.
New Bible Study Opportunity: Beginning Monday, September 10th at 7 p.m., I will be teaching a new class called “Matters of Faith”. We will begin with a DVD-based study called “Saving Jesus: an exploration of Jesus for the new millennium”. Watch for more details—all are welcome!
Sunday school teachers and site leaders needed: Our Sunday school superintendent, Barb Buczek, is in need of more teachers and site leaders for this fall. Please email her at barb.buczek@bethanylc.com to let her know you are willing, or to get more information about what is required of these volunteer positions. Thanks!
Violent acts of terror seem to flood the news lately. We remember in prayer the families who lost loved ones in the shooting at the Sikh temple in Milwaukee. We all would hope, in a country proud to have freedom of religion, that we could be safe in our place of worship. Let us remember also the Christians who have been attacked during worship this week in Nigeria. Lord, have mercy.
A prayer for times of violence
Loving God, Gather to your heart the victims of violence and hate. In the wake of unexplainable suffering, walk with us. Comfort those who lost loved ones unexpectedly and needlessly. Renew their hearts with your grace. Wash them with your tears. Breathe your life into their spirits. Guide us through our fears and anxious moments. Bless us with the knowledge of your presence always. Raise up among us those who will tirelessly work for unity and reconciliation. May we all become agents of your peace. Amen
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This Week’s Texts: 11th Sunday after Pentecost
I Kings 19:4-8
4But he (Elijah) himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die: “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” 5Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, “Get up and eat.” 6He looked, and there at his head was a cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. He ate and drank, and lay down again. 7The angel of the Lord came a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.” 8He got up, and ate and drank; then he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.
1 I bless God every chance I get; my lungs expand with his praise.
2 I live and breathe God; if things aren't going well, hear this and be happy:
3 Join me in spreading the news; together let's get the word out.
4 God met me more than halfway, he freed me from my anxious fears.
5 Look at him; give him your warmest smile. Never hide your feelings from him.
6 When I was desperate, I called out, and God got me out of a tight spot.
7 God's angel sets up a circle of protection around us while we pray.
8 Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—how good God is.
Blessed are you who run to him.
Ephesians 4:25 - 5:2
25So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. 26Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27and do not make room for the devil. 28Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. 29Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. 31Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, 32and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.
5Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, 2and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
John 6:35, 41-51
35Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
41Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43Jesus answered them, “Do not complain among yourselves. 44No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. 45It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
Peace,
+ Pastor Carrie Smith
carrie.smith@bethanylc.com
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