Liturgies for Hope by Audrey Elledge & Elizabeth Moore

Author:Audrey Elledge & Elizabeth Moore [Elledge, Audrey & Moore, Elizabeth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Crown Publishing Group
Published: 2022-11-02T00:00:00+00:00

Psalm 139:5–15 • Isaiah 7:14 • Matthew 1:23; 26:47–50; 27:45–50 • Luke 22:54–62 • John 6:38; 11:1–44; 19:25–27 • 1 Corinthians 15:51–57 • 2 Corinthians 4:16–18 • Ephesians 3:14–19 • Philippians 3:13; 4:6–7 • Colossians 3:2; 4:2 • Revelation 21

A Liturgy for Showing Kindness to Strangers

Today, Oh God, we will brush against many we do not yet know

in the places that mark our lives:

offices,

stores,

traffic,

street corners,

lines.

Before stepping outside, we first ask for the unwarranted grace and self-forgetful love

to face the myriad and unpredictable temperaments of those around us.

Refresh our memory of the kindness You first extended to us

so that we may freely give it to those we meet.

Oh Lord, we do not know the weights others carry.

We do not know the heaviness with which a person got dressed this morning.

We do not see the grief that sits in their ribs like stones

or the joy we could so easily crush with any stray snideness.

May we walk and drive and move today as if the gospel were emblazoned on our chests,

as if every word and action were an ambassador for You.

May even our thoughts toward strangers be lovely,

rooted in humility and dressed in compassion.

Oh Faithful One, we know that generosity of heart will not make us poor

and that we will not lack anything after giving away kindness too liberally.

Today we will practice blessing our fellow sojourners

and will expect nothing in return except for the pleasure of our Messiah.

For if kindness is motivated only by hope of reward,

then how are we living like You, the One who humbled Himself to the point of death?

Purify our intentions and rid us of pride

so that all who encounter us may be surprised by our light,

paused by our patience,

touched by our tenderness,

and—above all, Oh God—seen by the One who created their inmost being.

Amen.

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