Women’s Retreat 2012: The Wisdom of Trees – photos and closing worship

 

 

 

 

 

Lynette’s Gift to Retreat Women (Christina Rossetti poem her mom recited to Lynette and her brother every day)

Who has seen the wind?

Neither you nor I

But when the trees

Bow down their heads

You know the wind is passing by.

Who has seen the wind?

Neither I nor you

But when the trees bow down their heads

You know the wind is passing through.

Christina Rossetti

“We don’t see God but we certainly feel God’s presence.” Lynette (a dear friend who died before the retreat)

CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH IN CUMBERLAND

WOMEN’S RETREAT 2012

CLOSING WORSHIP AND COMMUNION

 

 

CALL TO CENTERING

In holy presence we gather:

We come with forest – creatures and trees, flora and floor –

as those who draw life from God.

We lift our voice with the voice of the forest,

In praise that rises up from grace-bound roots.

We listen with the trees, and all creation,

For wind that stirs movements

of God’s renewing creation.

We find God’s presence everywhere.

For land and soil:

birthing crops, grounding our steps,

anchoring our homes and hopes –

for Twin Brook, community gardens, Springbrook Farm…

Let us say together:

We rejoice with God in the land.

For mountaintop and wilderness:

harboring wildness,

restoring awe, bearing mystery –

for Bradbury Mountain, Mount Katahdin, Baxter Park…

Let us say together:

We rejoice with God in the wilderness.

For rivers and lakes and all manner of waters:

quenching thirsts,

swirling sands, bestowing life –

for Sebago Lake, Higgins Beach, Casco Bay…

Let us say together:

We rejoice with God in the oceans and waters.

We praise with the forests:

trees soaring tall or spread wide,

bearing fruit and coloring autumn,

making sacred space for creatures large and small –

for Rines Forest, Sweetser’s orchard, the tree in my yard…

Let us say together:

We rejoice with God in the forests.

HYMN                         “I Sing the Mighty Power of God”

CELEBRATION OF THE LORD’S SUPPER

Invitation

Take a seed…

A seed can be planted in some earth.

Reap wheat from a filed;

take yeast from the earth;

mix water from the well;

break salt from the rock.

Knead them together

for the Bread of Life.

Take a seed…

A seed can be planted in some earth.

Plant trees in the orchard;

prune branches in the vineyard;

pick good fruit from the vine;

crush grapes into wine.

Work them together

for a drink to remember.

Take a seed…

A seed can be planted in some earth.

Sow the word in your heart;

reap peace from your weeping;

share hope through your loving;

harvest justice in your living.

Mix them together

for a Kingdom to come.

From the harvest in the field

God offers bread to break and share.

From the harvest of the vineyard

God offers grapes and wine to share.

From the harvest in human hearts

God offers love and peace to bring and share.

Through the Son who lived the Word

God invites us to come and share a harvest meal

From which no one will be turned away.

Reflective Narrative

The Lord’s Prayer

Communion Prayer

Prepare your hearts.

We prepare them for the Lord.

Open your minds

We open them for the Word

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God

We give thanks for the goodness of creation

Creator God, in the beginning you put life into the emptiness, light into the darkness, and saw that it was good.

We are created in your image

To see good in the light

You created earth and sky, land and sea, and saw that creation was good. We are created in your image

To see good in creation

You created plants and trees, fruit and flowers in all their colors, and saw that they were good. We are created in your image

To see good all around us.

You made the stars and the planets, the sun and the moon in heaven above, and saw that they were good. We are created in your image

To see good in heaven above.

Then you created birds that fly in the sky, creatures that swim in the sea, and all kinds of animals that live on the land, and saw that they were good. We are created in your image

To see good in the world.

So you created people to live on the earth, to love and be loved, to care for this creation and be fruitful and increase. And you saw it was very, very good. We are created in your image

To see good in each other.

And when we failed to praise you for harvests of plenty, to obey your commands and seek your Kingdom and care for the world that you put in our hands, you sent us your Son to show us the way. We are created in his image

To see good in the dark

So, look at each other: we are made in God’s image, to love and be loved, and find peace from that love..

Thank you, Creator of All, that we can see you are good and find peace with each other.

Those who sow in peace raise a harvest of justice.

We will sow the seeds of peace in each other’s hearts.

Share the Peace with one another.

Sharing the Bread and Cup

HYMN                       “We Are Not Our Own”

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Thank you, God, for the bread and the cup; for the life and the love; for the wisdom to walk in your world. With your strength, our faith is strengthened. With your love, our love grows. Help us to share that love, strength, and faith, that it might change the world. Keep us centered, keep us faithful, give us roots. Keep us moving, keep us growing, give us wings.  Amen.

BENEDICTION

Soak up the sun

Affirm life’s magic

Be graceful in the wind

Stand tall after a storm

Feel refreshed after it rains

Grow strong without notice

Be prepared for each season

Provide shelter to strangers

Hang tough through a cold spell

Emerge renewed at the first signs of spring

Stay deeply rooted while reaching for the sky

Be still long enough to hear your own leaves rustling.