The following creative litany is adapted from a service that was sent to me by Morgan Schmidt, our youth pastor, a couple of years ago.
Welcome
Opening Song: O Come All Ye Faithless
(To the tune of O Come All Ye Faithful. )
O come, all ye faithless, doubtful and disheartened
Oh come ye O come ye just as you are
Come and be honest, come in all your brokenness
O come let us adore him Christ the Lord.
Sing, choirs of sinners, sing of your redemption!
Sing, sing and testify of power from within
Glory to G-d, glory in your presence
O come let us adore him, Christ the Lord.
Yea, G-d we greet thee, come this longest evening
Spirit to thee be all glory given
Name of Creation, come in flesh appearing:
O come let us adore him, Christ the Lord.
Call to Worship | Psalm 13:3-6
One: Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; lighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; lest my enemy say “I have prevailed over him”; lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.
All: We come to you O Lord, seeking answers to our questions.
We come to you O God, because you are the Creator.
One: But I have trusted your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.
All: We come looking for a song to sing;
We wait for your voice to call us from beyond our fear.
Litany of Lament & Song (O God Where Are You Now? – David Crowder)
(v. 1) – O God, hold me now
Come and lament with me.
Let us attend.
Come and let sorrow fill your marrow with such sadness that we are made strong,
so that our legs can bear the weight of our glory.
Come and lament for broken hearts and lives.
for lovers who leave, and for mothers who abandon.
for those who are hungry, & those whose souls starve.
for the teenagers in the back seats of cars.
for cancer and lonely toddlers.
for medical bills and those with no insurance.
for the bus that never comes & for the bills we can’t pay.
for racism and sexism & all the lives those have ruined.
for our bodies and our souls.
For today and most days
All we bring are broken things.
(v. 2) – O God, hold me now
Come and lament with me.
for the food we waste, and for the food that harms.
for those who are starving,
for those who try and find peace by starving themselves.
Come and lament for broken hearts and lives
for those who hate their thighs and for those who have been abused.
for the bones that break and the cancer that spreads.
for blisters and splinters and hairs that split.
for asthma that seizes and for those we love who never get better.
for those who can’t get warm enough to sleep.
for those who wake early to find the dreams of beauty are not real.
for those whose coffee pots break when they need it most.
for hangovers and regrets and nights spent tossing.
Come and lament with me.
Let us attend.
For today and most days
All we bring are broken things.
Reflection & Response
In the midst of a season that often feels frantic, loud, and anything but peaceful, may the next few moments offer you space to reconnect with your soul, reflect, or simply be. We’ve prepared spaces around the sanctuary where we hope you’ll find rest: cozy drinks & a fire, candle lighting, creativity, and healing.
Communion
Post Communion Prayer – “After the Storm”
Reading / Poem
Lines for Winter by Mark Strand
lyrics here http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/lines-for-winter/
Reflection on Darkness & Light
A Liturgy of Remembering
One: The first candle we light is to remember those whom we
have loved and lost. We pause to remember their name, their face, their voice, the memory that binds them to us in this season.
All: May God’s eternal love surround them.
(Pause while the first candle is lit)
One: The second candle we light is to redeem the pain of loss, the loss of someone who was very important to us, part of our lives, part of our own selves. We pause to
gather up the pain of the past and offer it to God, asking that from God’s hands we receive the gift of peace.
All: Refresh, restore, renew us O God, and lead us into your future.
(Pause while the second candle is lit)
One: The third candle we light is to remember ourselves this Christmas time. We pause and remember these past weeks and months, the disbelief, the anger, the down times, the poignancy of reminiscing, the hugs and handshakes of family and friends, all those who stood with us. We give thanks for all the support we have known.
All: Let us remember that dawn defeats darkness, life overcomes death.
(Pause while the third candle is lit)
One: The fourth candle is lit to remember our faith and the gift of hope which the Christmas story offers to us. We remember that God, who shares our life, promises us a place and time of no more pain and suffering.
All: Let us remember the One Who shows the way, who brings the truth and Who bears the light.
(Pause while the fourth candle is lit. The Christ candle will re-main unlit as a sign of waiting for a future that is yet unknown to us, from which God beckons us)
Lingering Benediction
O Come O Come Emmanuel
For more Blue Christmas resources, check out Acknowledging Our Pain – Resources for a Blue Christmas Service:
A couple of years ago I attended the O Antiphon service at St Marks Cathedral. It was my first experience of the O Antiphons and to be honest I did not really enjoy it as much as I should have because I really had no idea what the O Antiphons were.
Many of us are not familiar with this tradition which is best known in Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican churches and so I thought that a little repetition and a little more detail might be appreciated. You may even like to find an O Antiphon service to attend in the last week of Advent this year.
Most familiar today from the Advent hymn,O come, O come, Emmanuel (in Latin, Veni Emmanuel) which is a lyrical paraphrase of these antiphons, the seven traditional “O Antiphons” are actually more than a thousand years old. They have long been used at the very end of Advent (Dec. 17-23) in the liturgical prayer of the Church, as Antiphons for the “Magnificat” sung or recited during Vespers (the Evening Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours). They are referred to as the “O Antiphons” because the title of each one begins with the interjection “O”. Each antiphon is a name of Christ, one of his attributes mentioned in Scripture.
The first letters of the titles are taken backwards form a Latin acrostic of “Ero Cras” which translates to “Tomorrow, I will be there”, mirroring the theme of the antiphons.
Saying the O Antiphons as a family, whether during grace at meals, in front of the manger scene, or in front of the Christmas tree, is a wonderful Advent devotion. Listen to the appropriate chant below and spend some time in silence drinking in its beauty and the wonder of Christ’s presence within it. To make the devotion even more fruitful, read and meditate together on the Scripture texts on which the antiphons are based.
December 17: O Sapientia (Is. 11:2-3; 28:29): “O Wisdom, you come forth from the mouth of the Most High. You fill the universe and hold all things together in a strong yet gentle manner. O come to teach us the way of truth.”
December 18: O Adonai (Is. 11:4-5; 33:22): “O Adonai and leader of Israel, you appeared to Moses in a burning bush and you gave him the Law on Sinai. O come and save us with your mighty power.”
December 19: O Radix Jesse (Is. 11:1, 10): “O stock of Jesse, you stand as a signal for the nations; kings fall silent before you whom the peoples acclaim. O come to deliver us, and do not delay.”
December 20: O Clavis David (Is. 9:6; 22:22): “O key of David and scepter of Israel, what you open no one else can close again; what you close no one can open. O come to lead the captive from prison; free those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.”
December 21: O Oriens (Is. 9:1): “O Rising Sun, you are the splendor of eternal light and the sun of justice. O come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.”
December 22: O Rex Gentium (Is. 2:4; 9:5): “O King whom all the peoples desire, you are the cornerstone which makes all one. O come and save man whom you made from clay.”
December 23:O Emmanuel (Is. 7:14) : “O Emmanuel, you are our king and judge, the One whom the peoples await and their Savior. O come and save us, Lord, our God.”
Kathy Schiffer provides a good introduction in her article He is Coming The Great O Antiphons.
And Catholic Culture suggests some helpful activities to incorporate in the celebration of the O Antiphons.
Or if you are looking for colouring pages of the O Antiphons check out these great ones that Michele Quigley has produced.
The Roman Catholic Lectionary website spells out the O Antiphons and provides Biblical readings for each of them.
Shop at St Marks – the cathedral shop at St Marks in Seattle where I first heard the O Antiphons has a beautiful O Antiphon CD. You can also listen to the on Youtube starting with the first O Antiphon O Sapientia
Fisheaters has mp3s of the O antiphons
You may also like to download this O Antiphon companion booklet.
Dank dark, down and delving
Devilling into the depths
Maybe here we shall find refuge
Away from the sun’s burning light.
Do not remain content with
Just under the surface of things
For here is where the seedlings sprout
And the good nuts crack
No! Do not stay here for pity’s sake
But work your way, writhe and bellow
Puff and blow, strive and muster
Further and further away from that
Damnable light that will
Change everything!
Stay the same, stay the same,
Keep things as they are.
If it aint broke don’t fix it.
I’m fine.
Really. Leave me alone.
I am happy here in the cold, rocky heart
Of the chasm, the abyss where not one chink
Of that blasted light can reach me.
What’s that you say?
The sun is in the soil?
Caught between the rocks?
Soaked into every molecule?
Full of nutrients and goodness?
A living water table?
Trickling through everything?
Light-infested world!
Where then shall we go?
* * * *
If it is the destiny of everything
To be bathed in light, as seems
To be the truth making itself known
In every crevice, each dark corner
Where the presence of shadow
Is only temporary, merely fleeting –
A curtain that must part to make way
For the pouring down and shining through –
Then, we may as well give up the game
Lay down the arms, lift hands up waving white,
Surrendering temporal to eternal
Ego to glorious Eternal- Self-in-God
Mask to imperfect smile, unchecked tears,
And step aside,
To let the divine pour.
© Keren Dibbens-Wyatt 2015
Today’s video is not really a Christmas song but I have been listening to it this morning and have been profoundly impacted by both the lyrics and the images. It is very much in keeping with our theme Lean Towards the Light. In this season of Advent may we remember that Christ is indeed our guiding light.
Welcoming the Light – photo from Pixabay
by Joy Lenton
Our souls unfurl like flowers to the sun, warmed by the healing benediction of its welcoming rays.
Our eyes cannot tolerate gazing long at such brazen brightness but we appreciate the way heat seeps into our skin like a sweet embrace.
We yearn for the reassurance of holy radiance, the comfort of Presence which sun represents.
And on cold, wintry days our senses fight against diminishing hours of daylight and encroaching darkness.
We watch morning rise slow and sun stretch like an arthritic-limbed lady flexing hesitant fingers toward a new day.
Witness her glow reflected in sparkle of snow and twinkling ice etching unique patterns on the ground.
Our spirits lift to see a darkening world made pure-white.
Our hearts lean toward the light of Advent as we reflect on Light Himself shining in our darkness.
So we light a candle to remind ourselves again of why Jesus came.
Watch it flicker and grow steady, just as our faith flourishes strong when rooted in the reality of His coming.
We meditate on wonder wrapped up in life’s seemingly mundane moments.
Here lies holy Mystery. Here lies a joy-gift to the human race.
Here lies our history invaded and pervaded by His story of grace.
How to put words to the way the Word Himself has come to abide among us?
It’s not easy for finite minds to fathom the Incarnate Christ.
The poem below arose from an attempt to sit with these thoughts a while, to contemplate their magnitude.
candle – welcoming the Light photo by Joy Lenton
Welcoming Jesus…
We imagine you as helpless babe, held tight, warmly at rest
in human arms against the chill of Bethlehem’s night
Cocooned from the world’s gaze, your light’s fiery
rays lie concealed within folds of swaddled cloth
But your birth signals our new birth to come as the only
Way we can return to our heavenly Home
Your lungs cry out Life in abundance, fullness
now given to restore us to heaven’s wholeness
You battled your way into an earthly frame
to bring us freedom, respite from guilt and shame
Heaven came down as Mary bore you in blood, sweat and tears,
no doubt feeling the strain of those achingly silent years
when no discernible heavenly voice was heard
and hearts were hungry for a holy word
Then joy breaking through in exultant angelic
song as you broke through to where we belong
Light streamed into our darkness deep, Hope of
years rose strong from earth’s dust and ashes heap
Deceptively, outwardly mild and meek, you hold the strength
of the universe in your voice, the call of creation in your soul
the power of change for our hearts as you seek
to transform, redeem and make us whole
Blinding Light of ages blazes from your eyes,
causing men to avert their guilty faces
Because your gaze penetrates barriers we erect
within as your piercing sight sears our sin
And you see into the depths of our despair
with a tenderness at once unknown and rare
There is wisdom in the words you speak and
discernment into every heart you meet
You are diviner and divider, eternal
provider and bringer of peace
You are Alpha and Omega, beginning
and ending where all wars will cease
You are Truth and abundant Life revealing
You are open Word and hidden treasure concealing
You are Love beyond all human knowing
Our deepest need that keeps on growing
©JoyLenton2015
“Godspace gives me a place to connect with like-minded people all over the world; an online space allowing me the freedom to communicate deep spiritual truths which I hope feed our readers while satisfying my own need to share the wonders of our faith. I am so grateful to Christine and Mustard Seed Associates for creating this beautiful garden in which seedling writers like myself can begin to bloom.” (Keren Dibbens-Wyatt)
Many of us have found a renewed intimacy in prayer and a sustained enthusiasm for spiritual formation through Mustard Seed Associates and Godspace. Thank you for being part of our community. We are profoundly grateful for God’s work in the lives of people around the world.
It is hard to believe that 2015 is almost over, and what an incredible year it has been here at Godspace. Over 400,000 visits, 100,000 Facebook shares, 1,000 downloads of free goodies and countless use of prayers, liturgies and reflections in worship, and personal meditation. We now have 35 regular contributors from 7 different countries and expect to continue adding to this in the coming year.
We are delighted at how many have shared photos and reflections as part of the MSA Advent photo challenge and are encouraged by how many have purchased prayer cards to provide a new rhythm for their spiritual lives. We appreciate those who participated in the MSA process of spiritual reflection, group discernment and creativity enabling us to apply it in diverse situations as varied as rethinking a local church to reorganizing a denominational mission organization. And we are encouraged by those who used the questions posed on Godspace to grapple with their own faith issues.
Thank you to the many readers who encouraged and supported us through the vandalism at our Mustard Seed Village site and prayed for us as we discerned God’s way forward. “Thank you for the creative ways in which you modeled hope and forgiveness following the $15,000 in vandalism to the Mustard Seed village.” commented MSA supporter Tom Balke recently. “I was deeply impacted by the way you transformed the broken window shards into symbols of forgiveness and new beginnings.”
As we look ahead to 2016, we believe that the reflections, prayers and resources provided on Godspace will be richer than ever. This has now become the official blog for Mustard Seed Associates which will enable us to continue expanding the resources available. We hope it will also provide new ways for all of us to interact with the material and participate in the Mustard Seed Associates community.
Celebrate with us in 2016 and help us provide much needed discipleship and worship materials. Your end of year gift of $50 $100, $500 or $1,000 will make it possible for us to launch our expanded MSA resource center on the web to help churches, mission organizations and individuals reimagine themselves for a new context.
Your monthly support of $25, $50 or $100 in the coming year will also enable us to produce a rich array of resources for our center of imagination and innovation.
If you have benefitted in any way from Godspace’s resources, we ask you to prayerfully consider helping us expand this ministry so that others may also benefit. Your gift this December will make it possible for us to grow our online resources. 2015 tax receipts will be provided for all U.S. gifts contributed by December 31st. You can also make your year-end gift online here.
[themify_button style=”small orange rounded” link=”https://godspacelight.com/donate” text=”454378″ target=”_blank” ]Donate Today[/themify_button]
Please consider an end of year donation.
I heard the storm in the night. It had been raining constantly for several days, and God topped off this deluge with a magnificent storm, that shook the oak trees beside my window, lit up the drawn curtains with flashes of lightening, and kept my eyes open into the night with the rolls of thunder. This morning when I awoke, I walked outside onto the deck in brilliant sunshine, and the trees, covered in new spring leaves, the still river in the distance, and the very light itself, looked washed clean. I said to God, ‘the whole earth looks new in your light!’, and He led me to this passage:
When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he left Judea and returned home to Nazareth in Galilee; but soon he moved to Capernaum, beside the Lake of Galilee, close to Zebulun and Naphtali. This fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy:
“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, beside the lake, and the countryside beyond the Jordan River, and Upper Galilee where so many foreigners live—there the people who sat in darkness have seen a great Light; they sat in the land of death, and the Light broke through upon them.”
Matthew 12:16
Standing in the light this morning I also felt the lifting of a burden I had been carrying a very long time, sometimes lightly, while other times it crushed me. ‘Was this a message Lord? How the storms wash our eyes clear and give us a fresh new perspective. That there is purpose in the rain, and the wind. The trees lose the branches that were ready to fall, the earth is given new much needed nourishment, and the sunlight becomes a gift we would not have valued without its absence.’
“…and the light broke through upon them”. Ahh what beautiful words, what an incredible promise.
A poem I had written a few days earlier:
I believe, it is
the wounded things that are
the most beautiful.
And that we break open to the light,
because nothing is meant to remain inside.
Sorrow is but a well of understanding.
Chaos but a path to new revelation.
Pain a pearl that shows us where it hurts,
so that the light may trace
the ache to its source.
I believe, it is
that the weak receive
the strength they truly need.
As dependence brings us
to a full and deep surrender.
Shame is but a robe we must discard.
Guilt, another’s pain breaking our hearts.
Remorse, a path to redeem our tortured selves.
And as weakness girds our prayers with heavenly power,
the light reveals the darkness as a fraud.
And so I believe it is,
when love breaks in.
As an Amazon Associate, I receive a small amount for purchases made through appropriate links.
Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
When referencing or quoting Godspace Light, please be sure to include the Author (Christine Sine unless otherwise noted), the Title of the article or resource, the Source link where appropriate, and ©Godspacelight.com. Thank you!