This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says:

The writing is on the wall for you leaders of my people. You are supposed to be like shepherds, keeping an eye on my flock and seeing that they are kept united and safe. But you have butchered them and scattered them. You have driven them off and left them defenceless. But I can assure you that I, the LORD, have been keeping my eye on you! I will see that you get what you deserve for your crimes against my people.

I will bring back what’s left of my people; bring them home from the lands where I sent them when they fled as refugees. Back home where they belong, they will regain their strength and flourish once again. I, the LORD, will raise up new leaders for them who can be trusted to care for them like real shepherds. My people will no longer have any reason to fear or despair, and none of them will be lost.

You can be sure that the time is coming when I, the LORD,
will raise up a true king from the family of David;
one who will rule with wisdom and do the right thing;
who will bring justice to the land and set things right.

As long as he reigns the land will be secure
and my people will enjoy peace.
Whenever his name is mentioned, people will say,
“Ah! The LORD has put everything right!”

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

We sing your praises, Lord God of Israel,
because you have smiled upon us and put things right for us.

From the family of your servant David
you have called forth a hero with the power to save us.
You promised this years ago, in the preaching of your prophets.
You said you would break us loose from the grip of our enemies
and from the traps of those who had it in for us.

You have been true to your word
and honoured the agreement you made with our ancestors.
Way way back, you swore to Abraham and Sarah
that you would snatch us clear of enemy hands
and give us the opportunity to serve you openly,
without having to watch our backs;
to dedicate ourselves totally to you
and to doing what is right for the rest of our lives.

And now you have given us this child.
He will be known as a prophet of the great God.
He will go ahead of the coming Lord,
getting everything prepared.
He will let your people know that you offer salvation
and make it clear that their sins are forgiven.

Our God, your tender and patient love
will dawn on us and light up the world for us.
Even in the darkest hours, in the blackest hell-holes of our world,
your love will break through and illuminate the way of peace.

©2000 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

We are praying that your strength will be built up as you draw on God’s awesome resources, and that you will have the mental and emotional toughness to survive anything; not just to survive, in fact, but to keep on celebrating the good things you have received from God. You have much to be thankful for because, like a proud father, God has left a generous inheritance to the children of the light, and you’ve been written in for a share of it. We became children of the light when God broke the grip of the darkness that had overwhelmed us and placed us instead in the loving hands of Christ. All that we have ever done wrong has been forgiven and we have been put back where we belong, in the realm of God’s beloved Son.

Jesus Christ is the spitting image
of the God we cannot see.
Christ is the genuine original;
the blueprint for all creation.

Everything else that exists had its origin in Christ:
physical things and spiritual things;
visible things and invisible things;
things that govern the universe;
things that regulate our lives;
forces, powers and energies.
Absolutely everything that exists
was founded in Christ
and has its purpose in Christ.

Christ preceded everything else,
and Christ is the glue that holds everything else together.

Christ is to the church
as the head is to the body.
Life itself began with Christ
and new life – born from the dead – began with Christ too.
Christ was, is, and will be Number One in everything.

God was fully present in Christ, and gladly so;
reconciling everything in creation with its creator;
bearing the cost personally in the blood shed on the cross,
to restore the peace between heaven and earth.

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

They took Jesus out to the place called Skull Hill where the executions were carried out, and strung him up on a cross by driving nails through his flesh. They executed a couple of convicted criminals in the same way on crosses on each side of him. As he hung there, Jesus prayed out loud, saying, “Father, forgive these people. They’ve got no idea what they are doing.”

The executioners divided up his clothes among themselves, tossing a coin to see who should get what. The people stood around staring, but the community leaders were hurling insults and ridicule at him and making a huge joke of it, saying, “He reckoned he could save everyone else. Let’s see him get himself out of this if he’s really the Messiah, God’s chosen one!”

The soldiers were sticking the boots in too, offering him drinks of wine that had turned to vinegar, and saying, “Come on. If you’re the king of the Jews, pull rank and get yourself out of this trouble!”

They also hung a sign above his head saying, “This is the King of the Jews.”

One of the criminals who was strung up alongside him joined in the insults, shouting, “What sort of Messiah are you?! Get your act together and save yourself, and save us while you’re at it!”

But the other criminal pulled his mate up short, saying, “Put a sock in it! Don’t you care what God could do to us? We are about to meet our maker, the same as he is, but you and I have done the crime and we are copping what we had coming. There was no miscarriage of justice over us. But what has this bloke ever done wrong? Nothing!” And then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come to take charge of everything.”

Jesus replied, “You have my word for it; today you will join me in Paradise.”

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Prior to the revision of the Lectionary in 1992, the 1st reading and the psalm that responded to it were chosen to link thematically with the gospel reading. After hearing the critique of those who said that the Hebrew Scriptures, from which the first reading is usually chosen, should be allowed to speak with their own voice rather than just add support to the gospel reading, the Lectionary was revised so that during Ordinary Time, the 1st reading runs in its own semi-continuous series, working through various books of the Hebrew Bible. The older themed series continues to be available as an alternative.

The weekly prayers offered here at LaughingBird Resources are based on the four readings above, and do not draw on the themed 1st reading and psalm.

This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says:

The writing is on the wall for you leaders of my people. You are supposed to be like shepherds, keeping an eye on my flock and seeing that they are kept united and safe. But you have butchered them and scattered them. You have driven them off and left them defenceless. But I can assure you that I, the LORD, have been keeping my eye on you! I will see that you get what you deserve for your crimes against my people.

I will bring back what’s left of my people; bring them home from the lands where I sent them when they fled as refugees. Back home where they belong, they will regain their strength and flourish once again. I, the LORD, will raise up new leaders for them who can be trusted to care for them like real shepherds. My people will no longer have any reason to fear or despair, and none of them will be lost.

You can be sure that the time is coming when I, the LORD,
will raise up a true king from the family of David;
one who will rule with wisdom and do the right thing;
who will bring justice to the land and set things right.

As long as he reigns the land will be secure
and my people will enjoy peace.
Whenever his name is mentioned, people will say,
“Ah! The LORD has put everything right!”

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Our refuge, our shelter, our fortress, our security;
you are all these things to us, God.
You are always there for us when we need you.

Because of you, we will not panic
even if our world comes crashing down around our ears;
even if the earth splits open beneath us;
even if chaos pours in like a raging flood;
even if life as we know it goes up in smoke.

You are the LORD of cosmic power — the God of our ancestors —
our safety, our refuge.

A river flowing with life-giving water runs through your holy city
bringing joy and peace to your sacred home.
You are the most high God, and the city where you live
will rest secure and greet the new day with confidence.

The world may be in chaos, nations tearing apart at the seams,
but when you speak, the earth sinks to its knees.

You are the LORD of cosmic power — the God of our ancestors —
our safety, our refuge.

What you have done is a sight for sore eyes, LORD;
you have left a trail of destruction across the earth:
weapons of war crushed and burned;
implements of fear smashed to pieces;
conflicts and wars closed down for good.

You call us to a peaceful calm
and invite us to know you as God.
You stand supreme above the nations,
unmatched in all the earth.

You are the LORD of cosmic power — the God of our ancestors —
our safety, our refuge.

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
for you are the King of the Universe
and you reign with justice and righteousness.

You created all things in heaven and on earth,
and through your holy prophets in ages past
you promised to save us from enemy hands
and free us from corrupt and negligent rulers.

Out of your deepest mercy
you have come to us in fullness in Jesus the Christ,
your anointed One who rules wisely,
shepherding your people and setting them free.
Though he is your visible image,
he was crucified as a criminal.
You raised him as the firstborn from the dead,
and through him you are reconciling all things to yourself.
Now you are reaching out to all who honour you
and recognise your chosen one in the agony of death,
and welcoming them into the Paradise of your presence.

Therefore with .....

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

We give you thanks, King of the Universe,
for you have come to us in fullness in Jesus Christ,
your anointed One who shepherds your people,
setting them free and reigning with justice and righteousness.

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you thanks and praise, O God,
for you are the King of the Universe
and you reign with justice and righteousness.

You created all things in heaven and on earth,
and through your holy prophets in ages past
you promised to save us from enemy hands
and free us from corrupt and negligent rulers.

Out of your deepest mercy
you have come to us in fullness in Jesus the Christ,
your anointed One who rules wisely,
shepherding your people and setting them free.
Though he is your visible image,
he was crucified as a criminal.
You raised him as the firstborn from the dead,
and through him you are reconciling all things to yourself.
Now you are reaching out to all who honour you
and recognise your chosen one in the agony of death,
and welcoming them into the Paradise of your presence.

Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

In deepest mercy,
God has rescued us from the power of darkness
and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Sisters and Brothers,
  your sins are forgiven;
    be at peace.

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Go now, joyfully giving thanks to the one true King.
Prepare a pathway for the Lord;
endure everything with patience,
and teach people of salvation
through the forgiveness of sins.

And may God gather you into safety;
May Christ Jesus strengthen you with glorious power;
And may the Holy Spirit guide your feet on the way of peace.

We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
   In the name of Christ. Amen.

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net