Oh Lord,
Let my soul rise up to meet you as the day rises to meet the sun.
Glory to God,
The three in one,
Creator,
Redeemer,
And sustainer,
As it was in the beginning,
Is now,
And will be forever.
Amen.
Come,
Let us sing to the Lord.
Let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation.
Take a minute to notice your breath.
Observe the shifting of breath and energy in your body.
Notice how God is breathing life into you at this very moment,
As God breathed life into the first human beings.
As the Spirit of God breathes life and energy into our souls,
You are right now,
In this moment,
Receiving the gift of breath.
As you inhale,
Feel the energy of God lift you up.
And as you exhale,
Surrender to gravity,
Grounded in your unique vocation of service in this world.
Just rest in this space for a moment.
Observe your breath.
Transfer your thoughts and feelings to God without trying to control or change anything.
Please repeat these words.
Lord,
You are near to all who call on you.
Lord,
You are near to all who call on you.
Our reading today is Colossians 3,
Verses 1 through 11.
Since you have been resurrected with Christ,
Set your heart on what pertains to higher realms,
Where Christ is seated at God's right hand.
Let your thoughts be on heavenly things,
Not on the things of earth.
After all,
You died and now your life is hidden with Christ in God.
But when Christ,
Who is your life,
Is revealed,
You too will be revealed with Christ in glory.
So put to death everything in you that belongs to your old nature—promiscuity,
Impurity,
Guilty passion,
Evil desires,
And especially greed,
Which is the same thing as idolatry.
These are the sins which provoke God's wrath.
Your own conduct was once like this.
Even these things were your very life.
But now you must rid yourself of them all—anger,
Rage,
Malice,
Slander,
And abusive language—and stop lying to one another.
What you have done is put aside your old self with its past deeds and put on a new self,
One that grows in knowledge as it is formed anew in the image of its Creator.
And in that image there is no Greek or Hebrew,
No Jew or Gentile,
No barbarian or Scythian,
No slave or citizen.
There is only Christ,
Who is all in all.
Please repeat these words.
Lord,
You are near to all who call on you.
I invite you now to hold someone's name before God.
You can repeat the person's name over and over with your voice or in your mind,
Or maybe just hold this person silently in your heart.
Don't worry about diagnosing the person's need or telling God what to do.
As you picture this person's face,
Join me in this blessing.
May the light of Christ go before you and behind you,
Beneath you and above you,
On your right and on your left.
When you rise and when you lie down,
May the light of Christ be with you.
May the light of Christ be in you.
May the love of God go before you and behind you,
Beneath you and above you,
On your right and on your left.
When you rise and when you lie down,
May the love of God be with you.
May the love of God be in you.
In the name of Jesus,
Who taught us to pray.
Our Father in heaven,
Eternal God,
Earth Maker,
Pain bearer,
Life giver,
Source of all that is and all that shall be.
Not only Father,
But Mother of us all.
May the hallowing of your name echo through the universe.
May the way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world.
May your heavenly will be done by all created beings.
May your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on Earth.
With the bread we need for today,
Feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another,
Forgive us.
In times of temptation and test,
Strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure,
Spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil,
Free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love,
Now and forever.
Amen.
And now my friends,
May the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ go with you wherever he may send you.
May he guide you through the wilderness,
Protect you through the storm.
May he bring you home rejoicing at the wonders he has shown you.
May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
Go in peace.
