Wednesday Evening Prayer for Lent
During the season of Lent (that leads us to Easter), Wednesday Evening Prayer will follow the weekly GPS (“Grow, Pray, Serve”) guide. Readings, reflections questions, and prayers can be downloaded on our website here, or hard copies are available on Sundays.
6:15pm, Girdwood Chapel
March 22, 2023
 

Invocation (UMBOW 574)
Light and Peace in Jesus Christ
Thanks be to God!

 

Opening Prayer (UMBOW 575)
In the brightness of your Son, we spend each day;
In the darkness of the night you light our way;
Always you protect us with the umbrella of your love.
To you, God, be all praise and glory forever. Amen.

 

Expression of Faith (From Northumbria Evening Prayer)
Lord, You have always given
bread for the coming day;
and though I am poor,
today I believe.

 

Lord, You have always given
strength for the coming day;
and though I am weak,
today I believe.

 

Lord, You have always given
peace for the coming day;
and though of anxious heart,
today I believe.

 

Lord, You have always kept
me safe in trials;
and now, tried as I am,
today I believe.

 

Lord, You have always marked
the road for the coming day;
and though it may be hidden,
today I believe.

 

Lord, You have always lightened
this darkness of mine;
and though the night is here,
today I believe.

 

Lord, You have always spoken
when time was ripe;
and though you be silent now,
today I believe.

 

Luke 13:1-9

Some who were present on that occasion told Jesus about the Galileans whom Pilate had killed while they were offering sacrifices. He replied, “Do you think the suffering of these Galileans proves that they were more sinful than all the other Galileans? No, I tell you, but unless you change your hearts and lives, you will die just as they did. What about those eighteen people who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them? Do you think that they were more guilty of wrongdoing than everyone else who lives in Jerusalem? No, I tell you, but unless you change your hearts and lives, you will die just as they did.”
 
Jesus told this parable: “A man owned a fig tree planted in his vineyard. He came looking for fruit on it and found none. He said to his gardener, ‘Look, I’ve come looking for fruit on this fig tree for the past three years, and I’ve never found any. Cut it down! Why should it continue depleting the soil’s nutrients?’ The gardener responded, ‘Lord, give it one more year, and I will dig around it and give it fertilizer. Maybe it will produce fruit next year; if not, then you can cut it down.’”
 
 

Today’s Reflection & Question

Speaking to the tragedy of Roman soldiers killing Galileans, Jesus rebutted the idea that bad things always showed God’s wrath. He then told a strange parable, one that left hearers to think about how the story might end. We could call Jesus’ story (13:6-9) “The Unfinished Parable.” The gardener pleaded for one more year to help the tree bear fruit—but Jesus never said if the tree responded or not. 13:5 showed what kind of “fruit-bearing” was on his mind. What about you—how will you finish the unfinished parable?
 
 
Prayers for ourselves and others

Prayer of Intercession

Bless, O God, all creation.

The sun that rises every morning,

the clouds that bring us snow and rain,

and the moon in the dark night sky.

Bless us that we may be a blessing

to all we meet.
 

Heal us, O God, from all 

that ails us—

illness, dis-ease,

despair, hunger, thirst,
greed, selfishness, envy–
all.
Heal us and all creation.
 

Bless the leaders of nations

fill them with wisdom.

Bless the leaders of cities

and towns that all

can work in unity

for the wellbeing 

of everyone,
all creation.
 

Help us, O God to be

your disciples. To listen

with open ears and heal

with open hearts.

 

Help us, O God to be
your disciples,
walking in your paths,
that the kingdom we pray for
is revealed through our lives.


Hear us, O God, as we pray together:
Our Father
Who art in heaven
Hallowed be thine name
Thy Kingdom come
Thy will be done
On earth as it is in heaven
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us
And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil
For thine is the kingdom
And the power
And the glory, forever.
Amen.

 

Blessing & Sending (W&S p. 15 #27)
May the Christ who walks on wounded feet
walk with you on the road.
May the Christ who serves with wounded hands
stretch out your hands to serve.
May the Christ who loves with a wounded heart
open your hearts to love.
May you see the face of Christ in everyone you meet,
and may everyone you meet see the face of Christ in you.
Amen.