37A*
A Call to Worship
Ascension Day Year A 2014
Psalms 47 and 93

Hope-of-all-God, we come to worship and
honour you, in the expectation of your grace.
“The Lord Most High is awesome, and is
the great King of all the earth”
and beyond it.


Hope-giving, Hope-fulfilling God, we come
in anticipation of blessings and to praise you.
“....Come, everyone, and clap your hands
for joy! Shout to God with joyful praises....”


Hope–inspiring, Hope-renewing God, we come
with the assurance that God’s reign as King of
all creation will be based on God’s own justice
and righteousness, which forms the foundations
of God’s holy and glorious throne for ever more.
“....The rulers of the world have gathered together.
They join us in praising the God of our forebears.
For all the kings of the earth belong to God.
He is highly honoured everywhere....”
Amen.



Psalm 47
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.

1 Come, everyone, and clap your hands for joy! Shout to God with joyful praise!
2 For the LORD Most High is awesome. He is the great King of all the earth.
3 He subdues the nations before us, putting our enemies beneath our feet.
4 He chose the Promised Land as our inheritance,
the proud possession of Jacob's descendants, whom he loves.

Interlude

5 God has ascended with a mighty shout. The LORD has ascended with trumpets blaring.
6 Sing praise to God, sing praises; sing praise to our King, sing praises!
7 For God is the King over all the earth. Praise him with a psalm!
8 God reigns above the nations, sitting on his holy throne.
9 The rulers of the world have gathered together. They join us in praising the God of Abraham.
For all the kings of the earth belong to God. He is highly honoured everywhere.

Psalm 93

1 The LORD is king! He is robed in majesty.
Indeed, the LORD is robed in majesty and armed with strength.
The world is firmly established; it cannot be shaken.
2 Your throne, O LORD, has been established from time immemorial.
You yourself are from the everlasting past.
3 The mighty oceans have roared, O LORD.
The mighty oceans roar like thunder; the mighty oceans roar as they pound the shore.
4 But mightier than the violent raging of the seas,
mightier than the breakers on the shore – the LORD above is mightier than these!
5 Your royal decrees cannot be changed.
The nature of your reign, O LORD, is holiness forever.


Prayers of Trust and Thankfulness
Ascension Day Year A 2014
Psalms 47 and 93

Hope-of-all-God, we come to worship and honour you, in the expectation
of your glory, and that “....the nature of your reign, O Lord, is holiness
forever.”
Mysterious God, we pray that the holiness and majesty of God
will bring a new dimension to our personal experiences of God. We pray
that God’s holy presence will call forth from us a response of yielding to
a power, grace and mercy that is far beyond our own; a response of humble
trust and thankfulness; and an acceptance of God’s steadfast and unqualified
love for all creation. Transforming God, we gather together in hope and
trust that the holiness of God will defeat all the humanly-inspired attempts
of personal glory and aggrandisement, and that God’s true and gracious
presence will shine over all creation; giving all people and things a new and
special knowledge of their Creator, their Ruler, and their King for all eternity.
“....Your throne, O Lord, has been established from time immemorial....”

Hope-giving, Hope-fulfilling God, we come in anticipation of blessings and
to thank you. God, the Lover of justice for all creation, in trust we pray for
people experiencing life in all its beauty or ugliness; life in all its generosity
or meanness; and life in all its longevity or brevity. Be for all people, all that
you have always been, the God of all hope. We come to receive from our
Generous God, the blessings of a compassionate Judge who listens and
hears our need and pain; the mercy of a benevolent and caring Ruler who
understands our situation in life and who assures us that we are understood;
and the grace of a Priest who blesses us with steadfast love and forgiveness.
“...Sing praise to God, sing praises; sing praise to our King, sing praises...!”

Hope–inspiring, Hope-renewing God, we come together to worship, praise.
honour and glorify the Creating and Liberating God of the universe, with the
blessed assurance that God’s reign as King of all creation will be based on
God’s own justice and righteousness, which forms the foundations of God’s
holy and glorious throne. Holy God and King, the myths and legends of past
empires are as nothing before you; the symbols of earthly governance and
powers are as nothing before you; and the strength of earth’s and nature’s
forces such as the water and winds are as nothing before you, O Great God.
“Come, everyone, and clap your hands for joy! Shout to God with joyful praise!
For the Lord Most High is awesome. He is the great King of all the earth...”
Amen.


A Personal Meditation
Ascension Day Year A 2014
Psalms 47 and 93

The two Psalms set for Ascension Day describes God as being “mightier”,
“awesome”, “strength” and “majesty”, but interestingly, does not include
“power” – “God’s power” - which I think is what the Psalmist/s were really
writing about! “Seats” of power come in many formats, with the “power” of
the Church; world organisations such as the “United Nations”; “International
Monetary Fund”; and various geographical power blocks, etc. It is interesting
to visit those centres of power. I have visited the headquarters of the United
Nations in both New York and Geneva, with hours of lectures of their roles
and importance. The Church is not backward with its “power bases” either!
Then I read: “...The nature of your reign, O Lord, is holiness forever....”

Creative pause: “The nature of your reign, O Lord, is holiness forever.”


In addition, there is the “power” of wealth, position and property; the “power”
of industry and commerce; the “power” through election and hereditary means—
the list seems endless. We experience every day, the “powers” of nature with
the winds, the waters, fires, lighting and thunder, and the movements of the earth;
the mighty powers of creation with things that are big, heavy, tall, strong, dense,
and fast or slow; the “power” of people massed in protest; the “power” of the pen
used to decry injustices; that list goes on forever, too! “...But mightier than the
violent raging of the seas, on the shore. The Lord above is mightier than these!”


Creative pause: “The Lord above is mightier than these!”


In my denomination, clergy/ministers/presbyters wear white albs which are
simple in design, and they also usually wear a liturgical scarf in seasonal
colours; whilst more colourful and elaborate robes are worn by clergy in other
denominations. But, I love the concept of the Lord our God robed in majesty
and holiness; robed in steadfast love and great mercy; robed holy justice
and gracious compassion and care – they are our Lord God’s true robes!
“Your royal decrees cannot be changed. ... Lord, your reign is holiness forever.”

Creative pause: Who has the “real power” in this world and beyond?



Acknowledgements:
Unless stated otherwise, all Bible readings and extracts used in these weekly Prayers and
Meditations are from the ‘New Living Translation’, © 1996. Copyright. All rights reserved.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189 USA.


*Revised Indexing Scheme from 'Consultation on Church Union' (COCU).

I acknowledge and give heartfelt thanks for the theological inspiration available from the writings of Professor
Walter Brueggemann; and through the resources from the internet and “The Text this Week” (Textweek).

If the Prayers and/or Meditations are used in shared worship, please provide this acknowledgement:
© 2014 Joan Stott – ‘The Timeless Psalms’ RCL Psalms Year A. Used with permission.

jstott@netspace.net.au
www.thetimelesspsalms.net

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