Wait upon the Lord

5 October 2016

Opening Prayer/Worship

Hymn: And now, O Father, mindful of the love

Theme: Spirit Divine

Topic: Wait upon the Lord

Reading: Lamentations 1:1-6

¹ How lonely sits the city
   that once was full of people!
How like a widow she has become,
   she that was great among the nations!
She that was a princess among the provinces
   has become a vassal. 

² She weeps bitterly in the night,
   with tears on her cheeks;
among all her lovers
   she has no one to comfort her;
all her friends have dealt treacherously with her,
   they have become her enemies. 

³ Judah has gone into exile with suffering
   and hard servitude;
she lives now among the nations,
   and finds no resting-place;
her pursuers have all overtaken her
   in the midst of her distress. 

⁴ The roads to Zion mourn,
   for no one comes to the festivals;
all her gates are desolate,
   her priests groan;
her young girls grieve,
   and her lot is bitter. 

⁵ Her foes have become the masters,
   her enemies prosper,
because the Lord has made her suffer
   for the multitude of her transgressions;
her children have gone away,
   captives before the foe. 

⁶ From daughter Zion has departed
   all her majesty.
Her princes have become like stags
   that find no pasture;
they fled without strength
   before the pursuer. 

Introduction

One of the most difficult seasons we go through is time of waiting.  We wait for several things in life- news on well-being of loved ones, result of medical tests, performance in an exam, feedback following a job interview or application for a loan- to name a few.  The experience of waiting can be agonizing especially if it appears to be taking ‘too long’.  During such times we wish we know what the outcome would be… how it will all play out in the end.  We pray and expect to hear good news.  Regardless of how things eventually turn out, one of the challenges we have is what to do while we wait.  Sit back and do nothing?  Pray?  Talk to people?  Although there are several things we can do or not do while we wait, it takes the guidance and help of the Holy Spirit to wait upon the Lord.  To wait upon the Lord means to trust that God is aware of our expectations, and is in complete control of the situation we are faced with.

Questions/Discussion

1) What is your understanding of waiting upon the Lord? 

Psalm 37:1-10

¹ Do not fret because of the wicked;
   do not be envious of wrongdoers,
² for they will soon fade like the grass,
   and wither like the green herb. 

³ Trust in the Lord, and do good;
   so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.
⁴ Take delight in the Lord,
   and he will give you the desires of your heart. 

⁵ Commit your way to the Lord;
   trust in him, and he will act.
⁶ He will make your vindication shine like the light,
   and the justice of your cause like the noonday. 

⁷ Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;
   do not fret over those who prosper in their way,
   over those who carry out evil devices. 

⁸ Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath.
   Do not fret—it leads only to evil.
⁹ For the wicked shall be cut off,
   but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land. 

¹⁰ Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more;
   though you look diligently for their place, they will not be there.

Psalm 40:1-5

¹ I waited patiently for the Lord;
   he inclined to me and heard my cry.
² He drew me up from the desolate pit,
   out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
   making my steps secure.
³ He put a new song in my mouth,
   a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
   and put their trust in the Lord. 

⁴ Happy are those who make
   the Lord their trust,
who do not turn to the proud,
   to those who go astray after false gods.
⁵ You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
   your wondrous deeds and your thoughts towards us;
   none can compare with you.
Were I to proclaim and tell of them,
   they would be more than can be counted. 

Canticle (Lamentations 3:19-26)

Refrain: Wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.

The thought of my affliction and my homelessness is wormwood and gall! My soul continually thinks of it and is bowed down within me. But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. R "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him." The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul that seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. R

2) What are the lessons for us in Luke 17:5-10 regarding waiting upon the Lord?

Luke 17:5-10

The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’ ⁶The Lord replied, ‘If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea”, and it would obey you. ⁷ ‘Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from ploughing or tending sheep in the field, “Come here at once and take your place at the table”? ⁸Would you not rather say to him, “Prepare supper for me, put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink”? ⁹Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded?¹⁰So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, “We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!” ’

3) Discuss some of the challenges to waiting upon the Lord.  How do we overcome them?

Psalm 27:1-14

¹ The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 

² When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh—my adversaries and foes—
   they shall stumble and fall. 

³ Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear;
though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident. 

⁴ One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after:
to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple. 

⁵ For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will set me high on a rock. 

⁶ Now my head is lifted up above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord. 

⁷ Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud, be gracious to me and answer me!
⁸ ‘Come,’ my heart says, ‘seek his face!’ Your face, Lord, do I seek.
⁹   Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger,
   you who have been my help.
Do not cast me off, do not forsake me, O God of my salvation!
¹⁰ If my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will take me up. 

¹¹ Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path
   because of my enemies.
¹² Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries,
   for false witnesses have risen against me, and they are breathing out violence. 

¹³ I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
¹⁴ Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

Isaiah 40:28-31

²⁸ Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
   the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
   his understanding is unsearchable. 
²⁹ He gives power to the faint,
   and strengthens the powerless. 
³⁰ Even youths will faint and be weary,
   and the young will fall exhausted; 
³¹ but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
   they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
   they shall walk and not faint.

2 Timothy 1:1-14

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, ² To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. ³ I am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. ⁴Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. ⁵I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. ⁶For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; ⁷for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. ⁸ Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God, ⁹who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, ¹⁰but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. ¹¹For this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher, ¹²and for this reason I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know the one in whom I have put my trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard until that day what I have entrusted to him. ¹³Hold to the standard of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. ¹⁴Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.

Intercession/Worship

Conclusion

To wait upon the Lord means to trust that God is aware of our expectations, and is in complete control of the situation we are faced with.

The Collect for Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost

Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve: Pour upon us the abundance of your mercy, forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Savior; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Prayer Over the Gifts

God of truth, receive all we offer you this day. Make us worthy servants, strong to follow in the pattern of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Eucharistic Prayer 3

The Lord be with you.

        And also with you.

Lift up your hearts.

        We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

        It is right to give our thanks and praise.

Blessed are you, gracious God, creator of heaven and earth; today you have gathered us together in this eucharistic feast, that we may be renewed in love, joy, and peace. Now with all creation we lift our voices to proclaim the glory of your name.

Holy, holy, holy Lord,

God of power and might,

heaven and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest.

We give thanks to you, Lord our God, for the goodness and love you have made known to us in creation; in calling Israel to be your people; in your Word spoken through the prophets; and above all in the Word made flesh, Jesus your Son.

For in these last days you sent him to be incarnate from the Virgin Mary, to be the Saviour and Redeemer of the world. In him, you have delivered us from evil, and made us worthy to stand before you. In him, you have brought us out of error into truth, out of sin into righteousness, out of death into life.

On the night he was handed over to suffering and death, a death he freely accepted, our Lord Jesus Christ took bread; and when he had given thanks to you, he broke it, and gave it to his disciples, and said, “ Take, eat: this is my body which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.”

After supper he took the cup of wine; and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and said, “Drink this, all of you: this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me.”

Therefore, Father, according to his command,

we remember his death,

we proclaim his resurrection,

we await his coming in glory;

and we offer our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to you, Lord of all; presenting to you, from your creation, this bread and this wine.

We pray you, gracious God, to send your Holy Spirit upon these gifts, that they may be the sacrament of the body of Christ and his blood of the new covenant. Unite us to your Son in his sacrifice, that we, made acceptable in him, may be sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

In the fullness of time, reconcile all things in Christ, and make them new, and bring us to that city of light where you dwell with all your sons and daughters; through Jesus Christ our Lord, the firstborn of all creation, the head of the Church, and the author of our salvation;

by whom, and with whom, and in whom, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all honour and glory are yours, almighty Father, now and for ever. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

And now, as our Saviour Christ has taught us, we are bold to say,

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy 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, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Breaking of the Bread

Creator of all,

you gave us golden fields of wheat,

whose many grains we have gathered

and made into this one bread.

So may your Church be gathered

from the ends of the earth

into your kingdom.

The Communion

The gifts of God for the People of God.

Thanks be to God.

Prayer after Communion

All your works praise you, O Lord.

And your faithful servants bless you. Gracious God we thank you for feeding us with the body and blood of your Son Jesus Christ. May we, who share his body, live his risen life; we, who drink his cup, bring life to others; we, whom the Spirit lights, give light to the world. Keep us firm in the hope you have set before us, so that we and all your children shall be free, and the whole earth live to praise your name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Dismissal

Go forth in the name of Christ.

Thanks be to God.