Prayer for Today, Sunday, November 27

Holy God Who Dwells With Us,

On this Sabbath day we thank You for the bounty of our lives. Forgive us, Generous God, when we assume a loving family, caring friends, faith experiences, good health, and success are all deserved.  May we realize our blessings far exceed our merit. We pray that we might use our gifts to benefit others along the way. We pray that we might experience You as we reach out to those in need. We pray that Your grace might flow through us as we extend care and forgiveness. As the season of Advent begins, may we reflect on the mystery of the Incarnation, may we celebrate the hope that exists for all, and may we worship You with a sense of expectancy.  We offer this prayer in Jesus name. AMEN.

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This is a big day at Central Christian Church with morning worship services, a 6:00 p.m. service in the chapel for those beginning this holiday season with a sense of loss because of the death of a loved one, our Hanging of the Greens service at 7:00 p.m. in the sanctuary, and the traditional Tasting Party afterward in the fellowship hall. This is a good time to bring a friend to church with you.

Regarding the Tasting Party, remember that each class will have a table to decorate this afternoon. Then, this evening the class will bring holiday treats to share. If you don’t have a Sunday School Class, bring your treats anyway. There will always be a place for more tasty delights.

Please pray for those we know who are hospitalized, the sick, the lonely, and the discouraged. The holidays can be times of great joy. They can also be a time of loneliness and depression.

We begin a new liturgical year today. We have completed one third of our reading program through the New Testament and most of the old Testament. The scripture for today is Mark 1:1-8:

The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. ²As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,

“See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way;³the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight,’”

⁴John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. ⁶Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. ⁷He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. ⁸I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

The Psalm for this week is Psalm 2:

Why do the nations conspire, and the peoples plot in vain? ²The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and his anointed, saying, ³“Let us burst their bonds asunder, and cast their cords from us.”

⁴He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord has them in derision. ⁵Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, ⁶“I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.” ⁷I will tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have begotten you. ⁸Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. ⁹You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” ¹⁰Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. ¹¹Serve the Lord with fear, with trembling, ¹²kiss his feet, or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way; for his wrath is quickly kindled. Happy are all who take refuge in him.

Grace and peace,

John McLemore