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New every morning is your love, great God of light, and all day long you are working for good in the world. Stir up in us desire to serve you, to live peacefully with our neighbors and all your creation, and to devote each day to your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

"A Liturgy for Morning Prayer," Upper Room Worshipbook

Used by permission from the Book of Common Worship, © 2018 Westminster John Knox Press. All rights reserved. This prayer appears in “A Liturgy for Morning Prayer” in Upper Room Worshipbook.

 

Today’s Reflection

A large proportion of liturgies I have led have been liturgies of surrender. Admitting in the community of faith that it is time to let go of specific ways of trying to control the world is a wonderful way to create inner spaciousness so that something new can be born. Surrender is a prerequisite for living a more faith-filled and trusting life, and most of us need to keep surrendering more and more deeply as we grow. It’s as if God says, “Come on. Come on, now. Trust me to take care of things. ‘My yoke is easy and my burden is light.’ You don’t
have to carry such big burdens. Give the control back to me.”

—Tilda Norberg, Gathered Together: Creating Personal Liturgies for Healing and Transformation (Upper Room Books, 2007)

Today’s Question

In what area of your life might God be inviting you to surrender the burden of control? Join the conversation.

Today’s Scripture

Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.
—Matthew 11:28 (NRSV)

Prayer for the Week

Great are you, O Lord, and greatly to be praised; great is your power, and your understanding is beyond measure.
Submit your prayer to The Upper Room.

Something More

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Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

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3 Comments

  • Jill Posted November 26, 2020 6:27 am

    I believe God continues to ask me to lay down the desire of control and knowing – as dad continues to age. To not have expectations…good or bad…as to how things will be for him once his health begins to fail.
    I love what is stated above…”surrender is a prerequisite for living a more trusting and faith-filled life”. True that.
    As I think about this, and about today – I believe thanksgiving is a part of surrender. Being thankful to God in any and all circumstances, surrendering a desire for a different looking circumstance or outcome. “Sacrifice of praise” continues to rumble around in my thoughts. When is praise a sacrifice? When it is least likely? When circumstances are challenging and grumbling seems like the natural response? O Father – You are good, all the time, in all things. Praise be to Your Name.
    Father – thank You for this community, this family, as we gather each day here. Separate, and yet together. Father – for tenderness and a different looking Thanksgiving day today. Comfort us, as we turn our grateful hearts to You. We long to be with our loved ones, but are choosing to protect each other by staying apart. We long to look into each others eyes, to embrace, to share, to weep. We have the hope of this in the future and our eternal celebration and gathering with You.
    Father – for what lies ahead in December…for Ally and her surgery and the obstacles which remain before her. May she be steadfast and continually turn to You. For Julie and Megan, the uncertainty which swirls in their household. Today, may there be sweet communion between them and their kitties. For Robert and Erich – their togetherness and shared meal. May Robert have the opportunity to Facetime with his daughter and grandchildren.
    Father – for those who sit quietly on the periphery…bless them today with Your comfort.
    And for those whom we miss, who so openly shared of their lives, their wisdom, their blessings…thank You for the gift of their words for the season they shared with us.
    (Hope this posts, as yesterday’s did, but then didn’t…) May today be a time of reflection and gratitude.

  • Julie Posted November 26, 2020 8:12 am

    Wow, was this excerpt writtten for me! Every day I come to God and ask Him to take my burdens and give me the strength of faith to leave them with Him. I recognize that I need to surrender my burdens afresh daily and even moment by moment. I admit, Lord, I am a control freak by nature but you know this because you made me. Help me to surrender as many times as I need to for the trust to be instictual.
    I read a passage in Luke this morning for the UR Devotional. It was about Jesus healing ten lepers but only one thanked Him. It stated that he was a Samaritan. I marveled at how the Bible repeatedly pointed out that the racially impure were more apt to do the right thing. I marvelled at the parallels to today’s racial unrest and what we need to learn from the Bible and apply to our lives even in this manner.
    Prayers for Jill and Larry as they gather to give thanks together. May they connect with family and friends via technology.
    Prayers for Robert and Erich as they celebrate together, may they have time to “see” this loved ones.
    Prayers for Ally and David as they give thanks for another year to celebrate together with so much healing and growing together and more yet to come. May they anticipate a renewed faith and love.
    Prayers for Lou and her family, as she and her son give thanks together may they have time with loved ones courtesy of the internet.
    Happy Thanksgiving one and all and I am thankful for the UR staff members whose toil allows those of us who comment a chance to grow a group of friends in Christ. Thank you

  • robert moeller Posted November 26, 2020 11:18 am

    Understanding the control God wants us to give to Him and the control God has given to us is for me the crux of the matter here. Some of it is very simple, God wants me to control a vehicle I drive. Where, when, and how to let go of the reins or offer help is tougher. I’m trying to find the balance.
    Delightful to see Jenny, Chris, Willa, and Oona in their not far from the Hudson River country house. Purchase made, move done, now comes adjusting, settling. Wonderful food Erich has made for this week.
    He inherited his Mom’s ability in the kitchen, her zeal for cleanliness and organization
    Amen and Amen to Jill’s and Julie’s posts and prayers. Safety in all its forms and shapes, comes from God, may you rest in God’s hands. Gray, rainy, near freezing, going up to the low 40s, then just down to 38 tonight. The opportunity to work on models, watch a drama about a woman dying of gall bladder cancer and her only chance to be married for at least a short time has me back and forth. It comes at a time when my own experience of losing my wife has stronger memories. Around holidays there are both opportunities for joy and sorrow for many people.
    Happy Thanksgiving! I join in thanking the UR staff for this site, their efforts, and the reach out to touch some one attitude. May our hearts accept their gift and pass it on. Thank You, Lord.

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