Faith in Turbulent Times

Posted on October 8, 2008 by Andy Wade

Today the MSA Seed Sampler How to Prepare for Recession, will be sent out to our mailing list. The artcles will also be published on the MSA website. However I thought that in view of the way that our world economy continues to rock and roll I thought that you might appreciate a sneak preview of the liturgy I wrote for this publication.I find that it is very important to remind ourselves at times like this that God is the one in control. And God is always faithful. However we also need to remind ourselves that it is the poor who suffer most and this is a time to be generous with the resources God provides.

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God our world has been battered by hurricanes and earthquakes and global warming

God our lives have been drowned by economic downturns and rising food costs

God our hearts have been deluged by uncertain futures and increasing life pressures

In our pain and anguish we reach out Oh God

Needing the comfort of your love,

We are weary, take our burdens and give us rest.

We are flooded by the many tragedies that fill our world, yet we are still thirsty,

We are broken by our fears for tomorrow and are bowed down by our sorrows,

We share the anxieties of those who have lost their jobs and become homeless,

In our pain and anguish we reach out Oh God

Needing the comfort of your love,

We are weary, take our burdens and give us rest.

Pause to lift your burdens and sorrows to God

God of Hagar and Ischmael,

God of the woman at the well,

God who draws close to those who are outcast and abandoned,

We cry out to you, the One who gives water in the desert,

We trust in you, the One who made a nation from a band of slaves

We are embraced by you, the One who welcomes us all into the eternal family.

God of the despised and rejected ones,

God who gives sons and daughters to those who are alone,

God whose body was broken to bear all grief and carry all sorrow,

We cry our to you, the One who leads us through death into resurrection,

We trust in you, the One who invites us to drink deeply of the water of life,

We are embraced by you, the One who welcomes us all into the eternal family.

God of mercy and compassion,

God of love and faithfulness,

God who asks us to take up our Cross and follow,

We cry out to you, the One who unveils abundance where we see only scarcity,

We trust in you, the One who makes life flourish in place of death and destruction,

We are embraced by you, the One who welcomes us all into the eternal family.

2Cor 9:8-11 (New Living Translation)

And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. As the Scriptures say,

“They share freely and give generously to the poor.
Their good deeds will be remembered forever.”^[

For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.

Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. And when we take your gifts to those who need them, they will thank God.

Matt 6: 25 – 33 (The Message)

If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don’t fuss about what’s on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds.

“Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.

“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

God who sent Joseph into Egypt to prepare a place for your people,

We believe you still provide for the needs of all who cry out to you.

God who fed the five thousand with a handful of fish and loaves,

We believe you are still able to multiple our efforts and feed all who are empty

God who asks us not to worry about tomorrow but to trust in your daily provision

We believe you still desire to transform our scarcity into your abundance and plenty

God who sent your Son to share our fears and carry our anxieties

We believe we can give up our burdens and open the floodgates for your mercy and compassion to flow

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours. Now and for ever. Amen

God who offers abundance and plenty where we expect scarcity,

Provide for all those who are hungry and in need of food today.