Welcome
Invite various persons to bring a designated item and use this liturgy to begin your time of learning together.
One: Come, let us gather around and see how the Spirit will nurture our faith today.
All: Who is with us?
One: Christ, the light of the world.
(Place a candle on a table in your gathering place and light it.)
All: Who is with us?
One: The Love of God, who came to meet us in the world.
(Place a cross on a table in your gathering place.)
All: Who is with us?
One: The Wisdom of God, who speaks through the Scriptures.
(Place an open Bible on a table in your gathering place.)
All: Who is with us?
One: The Grace of God, who proclaims we are children of God.
(Place a symbol of baptism – a bowl of water, a seashell – on a table in your gathering space.)
All: Who is with us?
One: Our risen Lord, who meets us at the table.
(Place a symbol of communion – a plate and cup, a loaf of bread, grapes – on a table in your gathering space.)
One: We are here, Holy Spirit, ready for your leading.
God sightings and prayer offerings
Invite each person to share where they saw or experienced God this week. Invite each person to share something — a person, community, experience, event, etc. – for which they want to offer prayer.
Good and gracious God, we thank you for all the ways you were and are present in our lives and in the world. [Invite each person to say aloud the sighting they named earlier.] We bring our prayers to you, prayers for… [invite each person to say aloud the prayer need they named earlier]. In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
Connecting with Scripture: Psalm 123
Read the Scripture aloud the first time using the New Revised Standard Version or the Common English Bible.
For the second reading of the psalm, listen to it as in the ancient form of a chant.
Connecting through story
Watch this father and daughter read “You Nest Here with Me.”
- Where were the places the birds could nest?
- With whom did they ultimately nest?
- Why did the parent bird invite the baby bird to nest with them?
Connecting with our lives
Engage in dialogue:
- What experiences cause us to turn to God? To lift our eyes to the heavens?
- What are we seeking when we lift our eyes and hearts to God?
- What do you think the verses about servants and maids mean?
- What are those verses trying to tell us about our relationship with God?
- When you are anxious or need guidance, where do you turn?
- On whom do you depend for care, comfort and strength?
- With all the different places and people you could turn to for care, guidance and shelter, why do you look to (or choose) God?
- What does it look or feel like when God has mercy on us?
- What does it mean to trust God so completely?
- What does that look like in your life?
Teaching points that can be incorporated into your discussion:
- Psalm 123 is a “psalm of ascent.” This means it was likely sung as people made their way to the temple. Think of it as a psalm we might use as a “call to worship” or one we might use a “call to confession.”
- The psalmist is describing a sense of being separated or cut off from that which is most needed in life – community, home, shelter, freedom, economic security – and looks to God to restore and provide those needs.
- By its very nature, it is a psalm of hopeful request: that God will have mercy on us, that God will shelter, nurture and provide what we need.
- It reorients, or changes, our posture from looking inward, down or to ourselves to looking up or toward God who is the source of all mercy, care and all that we need.
- There is a sense in this psalm of waiting, of being patient because we trust in God’s unconditional love and mercy — “so our eyes look.” We know it is coming because God has promised it. We are in a position, an attitude, of waiting — however, it is not anxious or impatient waiting; it is a trusting and anticipatory state of waiting because we know, we believe and we trust God will provide what we need.
Aaron Douglas was an artist during the Harlem Renaissance period in the early 20th century. Spend some time sitting with and reflecting on this piece of art by Douglas titled “Into Bondage.” Where do you see the themes of Psalm 123 in this painting? Where is hope? Shelter? Providence? Care? Trust? God? Humanity?
Prayer
Close your time together by praying for one another, your neighbor, community and the world.
REBECCA DAVIS is the associate professor of Christian education at Union Presbyterian Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina. A teaching elder and certified educator, she served congregations for over 20 years before moving into academic teaching. In addition to teaching and mentoring students, her passion is child advocacy and ministry.
