63A*
A Call to Worship
Pentecost 20A [Ordinary 31A] or [Proper 26A] 2011
Psalm 107: 1-7, 33-37

God’s faithful love endures for ever and ever.
Because of God’s everlasting goodness,
we offer God our thanks and praise.

God’s faithful love endures for ever and ever.
Because of God’s care and concern for humanity,
we offer God our thanks and praise.

God’s faithful love endures for ever and ever.
Because of God’s transforming powers and actions,
we gather as a community of faith and trust in God—
and we offer God our thanks and praise. Amen.

---

Prayers of Thankfulness and Trust
Pentecost 20A [Ordinary 31A] or [Proper 26A] 2011
Psalm 107: 1-7, 33-37

We gather O Lord our God so that together, we may praise
your glorious name, and give thanks for your merciful care
of us in good and bad times; but especially, we give thanks
when life has been difficult and or dangerous. We give thanks
that God has blessed us with God’s saving grace and mercy;
and that God has heard our cries of distress and despair.

Trustworthy God, we give thanks that our lives have become
less stressful, and has even been transformed by your abiding
presence with us. We give thanks for the calming presence of
God in our lives; and for the way God’s peace reassures us,
despite the events and struggles of life both as an individual
and as a community. Whenever we call to God for help, it is
so reassuring to know that our Compassionate God hears
and understands our needs and dependency upon our God.

Almighty God, as a community of liberated and blessed people,
we praise your holy name, and give thanks that we have been
empowered and enlivened by your active involvement in our lives—
so that we are once more a renewed people, committed to you. Amen.

---

A Personal Meditation
Pentecost 20A [Ordinary 31A] or [Proper 26A] 2011
Psalm 107: 1-7, 33-37

O Lord my God, I am overwhelmed by your goodness and mercy!
Your faithful and enduring love for your created world and its varied
humanity, including me, astounds me afresh each and every day!



Generous God, I rejoice in this opportunity to share about the way
God has saved and blessed me when I have been stressed out by
personal, family, and community struggles. When I have been lost
in anguish over broken promises and shattered relationships; when
I have been tormented by personal failures; and when my health and
way of life is threatened in unexpected ways – I rejoice in being able
to cry out to my Listening God – “Help me I pray, O God!” What a
comfort it is to be able to be a weak and helpless human being before
God, and for God to love and sustain me, especially in my weakness!



I also give thanks that I can share the positive and enabling moments
in my life as well, because it has not always been a life of struggle and
pain! God has indeed given me a ‘goodly heritage’ and a redeemed life!
The challenges associated with being faithful to God in an apathetic
community is one that many people live out each day, and I am thankful
for the encouragement and support I receive through people’s prayers.



I give thanks for the transforming qualities of God’s love and care for
me, and for the ways it has helped me be renewed when faced with
what at the time seemed to be insurmountable barriers to life and living.
O Lord my God, I am overwhelmed by your goodness and mercy!
Your faithful and enduring love for me astounds me afresh every day!

---

Acknowledgements:
Unless stated otherwise, all Bible readings and extracts used in these weekly Prayers and Meditations are from
‘The New Revised Standard Version’ Copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council
of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

*The additional weekly numbering is from the Revised COCU Indexing Scheme
COCU = ('Consultation on Church Union'); as it offers an easy sequential numbering
for the Revised Common Lectionary for the Church Calendar.

If any part of these Prayers and/or Meditations is used in shared worship, please provide
the following acknowledgement:
© 2011 Joan Stott – ‘The Timeless Psalms’ RCL Psalms Year A. Used with permission.

jstott@netspace.net.au

Download/view a pdf file of this document here: pentecost20[31]a_2011.pdf

© 2011 Joan Stott - " The Timeless Psalms" RCL Psalm Year A