Prayer: God of gold, we seek your glory: the richness that transforms our drabness into colour, and brightens our dullness with vibrant light; your wonder and joy at the heart of all life.
God of incense, we offer you our prayer: our spoken and unspeakable longings, our questioning of truth, our searching for your mystery deep within.
God of myrrh, we cry out to you in our suffering: the pain of all our rejections and bereavements, our baffled despair at undeserved suffering, our rage at continuing injustice; and we embrace you, God-with-us, in our wealth, in our yearning, in our anger and loss. Amen. (by Jan Berry, printed in Bread of Tomorrow, edited by Janet Morley)
A Home-Blessing for Epiphany
L: Blessed be this house.
P: And all who dwell here.
L: Three wise ones came to Bethlehem seeking the Christ child, and gave to the child precious gifts:
Gold for the true king, incense for worship, and myrrh for the body which someday would die like our own.
P: In your light, we see light. Thanks be to God.
L: O God, you led the Wise Ones by the light of a star to show your people’s the way to Jesus Christ. May we who seek Christ trust in you to light the way so we recognize the Christ-light in the epiphanies of the lives with which you bless us.
P: in your light, we see light. Thanks be to God.
L: Bless, O God, this household, and grant that all who live here may share the light of love within these walls. May this house be a haven of hope and hospitality, for neighbour and stranger in times of need. And May the light of love cast its beam beyond these doors to bless the world and all of creation.
P: In your light, we see light. Thanks be to God. Amen. (from Living the Christ Life, by Louise Manganese and Nancy Wyse with Lori Farr)
Hymn The First Nowell #91VU
I hope that everyone had a blessed and happy Christmas and new year. As we move into the new year, we get back to our meetings and routines. We will be looking forward to annual reports and meetings before we know it! Howick United Church will be holding a congregational meeting this Sunday following the service to discuss and decide on the Faithful Footprints application for Howick.
There will be a memorial service held for Donald McCormick at St Paul’s United Church in Ormstown on Saturday, January 13th at 2pm, with visitation preceding the service from 12:00.
No comments:
Post a Comment