11:00 Worship, August 9

OPENING PRAYER (11:00am)

O Holy God, open unto me light for my darkness,

courage for my fear, hope for my despair.

O loving God, open unto me wisdom for my confusion,

forgiveness for my sins, love for my hate.

O God of peace, open unto me peace for my turmoil,

Joy for my sorrow, strength for my weakness.

O generous God, open my hear to receive all your gifts.

Amen.

Howard Thurman, USA, 20th cent.

SCRIPTURE LESSONS

ISAIAH 42:5-17

⁵ This is what God the Lord says— the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out, who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it:

⁶ “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles,

⁷ to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.

⁸ “I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols.

⁹ See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.”

¹⁰ Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them.

¹¹ Let the wilderness and its towns raise their voices; let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy; let them shout from the mountaintops.

¹² Let them give glory to the Lord and proclaim his praise in the islands.

¹³ The Lord will march out like a champion, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.

¹⁴ “For a long time I have kept silent, I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant.

¹⁵ I will lay waste the mountains and hills and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools.

¹⁶ I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.

¹⁷ But those who trust in idols, who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’ will be turned back in utter shame.

JOHN 16:16-24

¹⁶ Jesus went on to say, “In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me.”

¹⁷ At this, some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,’ and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸ They kept asking, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We don’t understand what he is saying.”

¹⁹ Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, “Are you asking one another what I meant when I said, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me’? ²⁰ Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. ²¹ A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. ²² So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. ²³ In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. ²⁴ Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

FAMILY REFLECTION

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• I wonder what you are feeling right now.

• I wonder what missing someone or something feels like.

• I wonder how God turns our sadness into joy.

• I wonder how we can share the sadness and joy of others around us.

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