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Showing posts from November, 2020

Grateful, Part 2

  Service of Worship Eastern Parkway United Methodist Church November 15, 2020 Rev. Natalie Bowerman, Pastor   Let us pray: Thank you, Lord, for the blessings you have bestowed on my life. You have provided me with more than I could ever have imagined. You have surrounded me with people who always look out for me. You have given me family and friends who bless me every day with kind words and actions. They lift me up in ways that keep my eyes focused on you and make my spirit soar. Also, thank you, Lord, for keeping me safe. You protect me from those things that seem to haunt others. You help me make better choices, and you have provided me with advisors that help me with the difficult decisions. You speak to me in so many ways so that I always know you are here. And Lord, I am so grateful for keeping those around me safe and loved. I hope that you provide me with the ability and sense to show them every day how much they matter. I hope that you give me the ability to g

Grateful, Part 1

  Service of Worship Eastern Parkway United Methodist Church November 8, 2020 Rev. Natalie Bowerman, Pastor   Let us pray: Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace; Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is error, the truth; Where there is doubt, the faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; And where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much seek To be consoled, as to console; To be understood, as to understand; To be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen. Joshua 24: 1-15 The Covenant Renewed at Shechem 24 Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges and officials of Israel, and they presented themselves before God. 2  Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Isr

A Christian in the Voting Booth, Part 4: Black Lives Matter

  Service of Worship Eastern Parkway United Methodist Church November 1, 2020 Rev. Natalie Bowerman, Pastor   Let us pray: God of the Democrat, God of the Republican, God if the Independent, God of the Third Parties; God of the ballot box, God of the poll watcher, God of the counting machines; God of the protester, God of the disempowered, God of the disenfranchised; God of the first time voters, the hopeful voters, the anxious voters, the frustrated voters—we turn our eyes to you, Show us the way. Amen.   Matthew 5: 1-12 5  Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him,  2  and he began to teach them. The Beatitudes He said: 3  “Blessed are the poor in spirit,     for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4  Blessed are those who mourn,     for they will be comforted. 5  Blessed are the meek,     for they will inherit the earth. 6  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,     for they wil