In harmony

*an opening prayer, responding to the harmony in Psalm 133*

Psalm 133 – The Passion Translation

A song to bring you higher, by King David

How truly wonderful and delightful
to see brothers and sisters living together in sweet unity!
It’s as precious as the sacred scented oil
flowing from the head of the high priest Aaron,
dripping down upon his beard and running all the way down
to the hem of his priestly robes.

This heavenly harmony can be compared to the dew
dripping down from the skies upon Mount Hermon,
refreshing the mountain slopes of Israel.

For from this realm of sweet harmony,
God will release his eternal blessing,
the promise of life forever!

Gracious Gathering God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit:

from the beginning, connected
and through the connection, creative
and in all creation, communing

with Your children –

fashioned in Your divine image,
woven together with Your own hands,
named “beloved” and called according to Your good purpose and plan,

how wonderful,
how truly delightful it is
to enter this day into the sweet harmony
of Your salvation song:

Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.

As we meet together in this moment and this place
with all our sisters and brothers across time and space,
may our togetherness be a source of blessing
and a sigh of our deep yearning
for the day when You will gather up all things
in heaven and on earth
into Your perfect peace,
forever and ever.
Amen.

A new song for a new year

I patiently waited, Lord,
    for you to hear my prayer.
You listened and pulled me
from a lonely pit
    full of mud and mire.
You let me stand on a rock
    with my feet firm,
and you gave me a new song,
    a song of praise to you.

~ Psalm 40:1-3a

O God, our Composing Creator,
who listens intently amidst the vast symphony
~ of rumbling waves and rolling thunder,
~ of shifting sands and butterfly beats,
~ of elephant trumpets and sparrow chirups,
~ of guileless giggles and adoring angels,
to the melody of my life in all its minor and major keys:
THANK YOU

for accompanying me through
the blues,
the bends,
the broken beats;
for chanting into the depths of my soul
an alternative refrain to the world’s “sure thing;”
for bringing harmony and rhythm
to the cacophony of demanding, expectant voices within and around me.

Fill in the blank score of this new year
with a new song –
a song of praise to You.
And may Your passion and truth resonate
through the minims and the moments of my days
as I dance in step with You.