First Lutheran Church
1663 Main St W Barnstable, MA 02668
of9ice@9irstcapecod.org
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Sacred Journey
June 19, 2024
Welcome
please stand as you are able
P: I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; C: I ponder your works; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.
P: Answer me quickly, O LORD! My spirit fails!
C: Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.
P: Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust.
C: Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
P: Teach me to do your will, for you are my God!
C: Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!
P: For your name's sake, O LORD, preserve my life!
C: In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble, for I am your servant. (from Ps 143)
Lectio continua—Reader: from Psalm 55
Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan. My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me.
And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would 9ly away and be at rest; yes, I would wander far away; I would lodge in the wilderness; I would hurry to 9ind a shelter from the raging wind and tempest.” But I call to God, and the LORD will save me. Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice. He redeems my soul in safety.
Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.
I will trust in you.
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As we light candles:
Please be seated after you have lighted a candle(s)
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The
Prayer
AM: Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
C: Come, Holy Spirit.
AM: That which is born of the 9lesh is 9lesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
C: Come, Holy Spirit.
AM: The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (from John 3:5-8)
C: Come, Holy Spirit.
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Reflection
We center our hearts and minds on Jesus by pondering “Fear”: from Genesis 31:36-55
Then Jacob became angry and berated Laban. Jacob said to Laban, “What is my offense? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued me? For you have felt through all my goods; what have you found of all your household goods? Set it here before my kinsmen and your kinsmen, that they may decide between us two. These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of your 9locks. What was torn by wild beasts I did not bring to you. I bore the loss of it myself. From my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. There I was: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep 9led from my eyes. These twenty years I have been in your house. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your 9lock, and you have changed my wages ten times. If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God saw my af9liction and the labor of my hands and rebuked you last night.” Then Laban answered and said to Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the 9locks are my 9locks, and all that you see is mine. But what can I do this day for these my daughters or for their children whom they have borne? Come now, let us make a covenant, you and I. And let it be a witness between you and me.” So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. And Jacob said to his kinsmen, “Gather stones.” And they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there by the heap. Jacob called it Galeed. Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me today.” Therefore he named it Galeed for he said, “The LORD watch between you and me, when we are out of one another's sight. If you oppress my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one is with us, see, God is witness between you and me.” Then Laban said to Jacob, “See this heap and the pillar, which I have set between you and me. This heap is a witness, and the pillar is a witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you, and you will not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, to do harm. The God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac, and Jacob offered a sacri9ice in the hill country and called his kinsmen to eat bread. They ate bread and spent the night in the hill country. Early in the morning Laban arose and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then Laban departed and returned home.
After the initial encounter when Laban aired his grievances, Jacob has an opportunity to air his.
• Jacob is angry, what has made him so mad? Does he feel that he treated Laban unfairly?
• have you ever been accused falsely…how dod you feel?
In this conversation Jacob points to his faith in Yahweh.
• What does Jacob believe about God at this moment in time?
• What does Laban feel/believe about Jacob’s God at this moment?
• What did their faith lead them to do?
Laban mentions s “Nahor”. In the Bible there are 2 men with this name—Abraham’s grandfather, & Abraham’s brother: a grandson of the original Nahor. He married their other brother’s (Haran) daughter (his niece) and was the father of Bethuel—Laban’s dad. God’s call to leave Ur and go to a new land was originally given to Terah, son of the Zirst Nahor, but he only went part way.
• Why would Laban mention Nahor along with Abraham?
• What is the role of the meal this extended family shared in their lives and faith?
• What does any of this have to do with us?
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Prayer in the Spirit:
P: The Apostle Paul writes: “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the 9lesh. For the desires of the 9lesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the 9lesh…to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law… The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, selfcontrol …If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
AM: We come before you ready and willing to display your work in our lives.
C: I desire to be Zilled with the fruit of the Spirit, to be more like Christ in my thoughts, actions, and attitudes.
Hymn of the Evening
please stand as you are able
:
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~~We observe a few moments of Silence~~
AM: Fill us with the fruit of LOVE, that we may love you with all our heart and love our neighbors as ourselves.
C: Let Your love Zlow through me, touching the lives of those around me.
pause
AM: Fill me with the fruit of JOY, that I may experience a deep and abiding joy in you, regardless of my circumstances.
C: May my joy be a source of strength and hope to others.
pause
AM: Fill me with the fruit of PEACE, that I may be a peacemaker and bring reconciliation to con9licts.
C: Let your peace guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus.
pause
AM: Fill me with PATIENCE, that I may be calm and long-suffering, even in the face of adversity, frustration and long delay.
C: Help me to extend grace to others as you have extended it to me.
pause
AM: Fill me with the fruit of KINDNESS, that I may show kindness and compassion to those I meet.
C: Use me as an instrument of your kindness in the world.
pause
AM: Fill me with the fruit of GOODNESS, that I may live a life of moral integrity and righteousness, re9lecting your goodness to others.
C: May I be a non-anxious presence, trusting in you at all times.
pause
AM: Fill me with the fruit of FAITHFULNESS, that I may be faithful in my commitments and relationships, just as you are always faithful to your promises.
C: May your love guide me to be loyal to you and to others.
pause
AM: Fill me with the fruit of GENTLENESS, that I may approach others with humility, meekness, and a kind spirit.
C: We live in a rough and tumble world, open my heart to risk caring for others.
pause
AM: Fill me with the fruit of SELF-CONTROL, that I may exercise discipline over my desires and actions.
C: Discipline is a difZicult habit, help me, step by step to channel in my impulses to your Word.
pause
AM: Lord, we submit ourselves to your transformative work. Empty us of sel9ishness, pride, and sin, and 9ill us with your Spirit. May these fruits become evident in our lives, bearing witness to your presence within each of us. We ask for your guidance and strength to cultivate these virtues daily, to your glory and for the bene9it of others.
C: Amen.
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please stand as you are able
Communion
P: Gracious God, you bless us with gifts of guidance, new life, growth in grace, and fruitful labor. Accept the 9irst fruits of time and toil, 9ield and orchard we offer here. Bless and multiply these gifts to our nurture and the care of your creation; for the sake of your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. C: Amen.
Communion Song: repeated
Please form a close circle around the Altar
P: In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks; broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat; this is my body, given for you. Do this in memory of me.
song
P: Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. Do this in memory of me. song
P: Remembering his love for us on the way, at the table, and to the end, we proclaim the mystery of faith: C: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
P: We pray for the gift of your Spirit: in our gathering; within this meal; among your people; throughout the world.
song
P: Blessing, praise, and thanks to you, holy God, through Christ Jesus, by your Spirit, in your church, without end.
C: Amen.
P: The holy Three, the holy One increase your hope, strengthen your faith, deepen your love, and ☩ grant you peace.
C: Amen.
please remain standing as you return to your seat
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P: Go forth into the world in the power of the Spirit, C: Thanks be to God.
First Lutheran Church 1663 Main St W Barnstable, MA 02668 of9ice@9irstcapecod.org
Pastor: Rev Dr Derek J Cheek Music Minister: Eric Williams
Of9ice Administrator: Laurie Fogel Sexton: Chuck Fillian
One License # A728-108
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