Ubc Liturgy Stuff
May 31, 2020
Below, you’ll find the song lyrics and scripture readings for the live stream on May 31st (in the order they are needed), as well as some resources for kids! (this includes some stuff that is print-able—if you need Taylor to print stuff for you in the future, just let us know, and we’ll get that set up).
Where God Has Always Been
praise be the lord of all
with their backs against the wall,
hands above their heads, and eyes
lifted up to that impossible line
where the hill meets the sky
who wonder if the distance is
a trick of the earth, or a trick of the mind
and if help will arrive before they slip away
praise be the lord of all
who wrestle until dawn
wear their scars like names, yet find
heaven and earth strangely aligned
like water in the sour wine
hidden in plain sight
for God is now where God has always been:
bunkered down with those in the ditch
raising fountains from the cracking dirt
and raising a feast for the hollow unheard
while the powerful who reign dissolve into the grave
the Eternal One will shade the ones they cast away
until the coming of the day when all this is remade
praise be the lord of all
who’ve nowhere to belong
the Kingdom is drawing near
The World is Yours
blessed are the withered ones out starving for a peace
whose taste they’ve never known
blessed are the ones who bear the shame of never quite
becoming who they’d hoped that they would be
blessed are the ones who wake and plead
that their whole life this far was just a dream
blessed are you
the world is yours
blessed are the bloodshot midnight mourners in the hall
their whole world standing still
blessed are the bloodshot midnight mourners in the park
no one speaks their names
blessed are the ones who know the sting
of the phantom limb embrace of love removed
blessed are you
the world is yours
blessed are the ones who cast their mercy to the wind
now it goes where it goes
blessed are the ones who nurse a pain that’s not their own
the meek amongst the wolves
blessed are you when the knife is in your back
and they’re calling for your head
to finally shut you up
and blot out what you said about the way the scales are rigged
that’s how it’s always been
but just know you’re neither crazy nor alone
you’re not alone
so lift up your head
the world is turning upside down
and as the tables turn, you’ll find you never left the ground
behold the Great Inversion, like a tide that lifts wrecked boats
has risen from the heart of one who’ll never let you go
For Those Tears I Died
locked in confusion and loosening my grip
it’s happened before, God, it happened again
I thought I knew a story about some vile curse shattering
but I think it found a way to mend
you say come to the water and stand by my side
I know you are thirsty, you won’t be denied
I hold every teardrop that when in darkness you cried
and it was for those tears I died
open my mouth, put a coal upon my tongue
cauterize my silence and char my teeth to dust
i’ve made an idol out of comfort, praised by keeping my mouth shut
but now it’s found a thirst for blood
you say come to the water and stand by my side
I know you are thirsty, you won’t be denied
I hold every teardrop when you cry out in the night
and it was for those tears I died
it was for those tears I died
but how long?
and how many tears did you have in mind?
or how many hours of the night?
my God
we’re wearing thin
from holding on
Good God, how long?
Old Testament Reading
Today’s Old Testament reading is Numbers 11:24-30:
Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord; and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again.
Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. And a young man ran and told Moses, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp." And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, "My lord Moses, stop them!" But Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!" And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp.
This is the word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
New Testament Reading
Today’s New Testament reading, and Hannah’s sermon text, is Acts 2:1-21
When the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.
Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs-- in our own languages we hear them speaking about God's deeds of power." All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "What does this mean?" But others sneered and said, "They are filled with new wine."
But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, "Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o'clock in the morning. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
`In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord's great and glorious day.
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.' "
This is the Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
Inbreaking
break in, Inbreaking and
shatter that which You
shattered then
to come close
with your lantern glow
to reveal our wounds and
illuminate the cracks with solder gold
oh, if you can shape affliction into hope-graced art
come and build a kingdom out of broken hearts
O Slaughtered Lamb, don’t delay
we’re wearing thin and losing shape
so raise again the love we’ve slain
and reignite the hope we’ve tamed
break through
this can’t be what You had in
mind at all when
You said the Kingdom has already come
there’s such damage done
is there any way to restore the light that we’ve left in the grave?
oh, if you can shake a death into a hard restart
come and raise a body out of broken parts
O Slaughtered Lamb, don’t delay
we’re wearing thin and losing shape
so raise again the love we’ve slain
and reignite the hope we’ve tamed
come crashing in and blow away
these massive stones we’ve set in place
to seal the door to painted graves
we’ve styled so well with gaudy faith
and call us out into the Dawn
speak the names that we forgot
then Desert Cloud, lead us on
like a great parade of living scars
and if you could sing betrayal like a victory song
come and write a better story out of what went wrong
Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise him all creatures here below
Praise him above, ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost
Amen
Benediction
As we approach this week
May we love God
Embrace Beauty
and Live Life to the fullest
Amen
Worship Resources for UBC Kids and Families
(And also anyone who might want them)
Hello friends! (This is Taylor) Here is a link to some fun coloring sheets and activity ideas for Pentecost. I’ll be talking about them during worship tomorrow! Also included is a kid’s worship bulletin - so if you print it off beforehand kiddos could do that while they watch our worship service! I’m excited to see what you do with these coloring sheets and activities - so please take a picture and tag @ubcwaco when you use them! Thanks everybody! Here is the link: https://illustratedmin.s3.amazonaws.com/weekly-resources/Pentecost.pdf.
p.s. - Remember! If you don’t have a printer just let me know and I can print them out for you!
New Giving App
In case you missed this info for the past couple of weeks:
We're excited to offer a new way to give to UBC - through a simple, fast and secure app! You can download the free Church Center app and enter "UBC Waco" as your church. In just a few taps, you'll have your account set up and can give any amount, anytime, from anywhere in the world. You can make a one-time donation or set up recurring giving instantly. Best yet, this app is designed specifically for churches, with reduced fees that make sure more of your donation actually goes to support UBC. If you're not an app person, no worries - we've added Church Center as an option under the "give" tab on our website. Thanks for your giving and support of our UBC community!