ISAIAH 64:1-9

¹   O that you would tear open the heavens and come down,
so that the mountains would quake at your presence —
²   as when fire kindles brushwood
and the fire causes water to boil —
to make your name known to your adversaries,
so that the nations might tremble at your presence
³   When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect,
you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.
⁴   From ages past no one has heard,
no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
who works for those who wait for him.
⁵   You meet those who gladly do right,
those who remember you in your ways.
But you were angry, and we sinned;
because you hid yourself we transgressed.
⁶   We have all become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth
We all fade like a leaf,
and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
⁷   There is no one who calls on your name,
or attempts to take hold of you;
for you have hidden your face from us,
and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity
⁸   Yet, O LORD, you are our Father;
we are the clay, and you are our potter;
we are all the work of your hand.
⁹   Do not be exceedingly angry, O LORD,
and do not remember iniquity forever.
Now consider, we are all your people.

• Light a candle to remember Christ’s presence with you.
• Sit five to fifteen minutes in silent meditation paying attention to the deep breath.
• As you read through this passage from Isaiah, consider a time you did not call upon the name of the Lord.
• What do you remember about this time?
• Notice any tension you feel in your body.
• Take several deep breaths to soften the tension.
• Read through the passage a second time.
• How did God break through to you?
• In what way(s) did God remold and reshape you?
• If there is still tension in your body, invite God into this tension.
• Offer a cry for forgiveness.  Take several deep breaths to soften the tension.  Breathe in the breath of God.  Breathe out the tension.
• Allow God to heal this tension in you and to give you freedom in its place.
• Breathe in freedom.  Breathe out tension.
• Give thanks to God for this time in reconciliation and for any new insights you have received.
• Share as you feel led in the reply box below.

Revised Common Lectionary Readings for Sunday, November 27, 2011, the First Sunday of Advent Year B
Isaiah 64: 1-9
Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
1 Corinthians 1:3-9
Mark 13: 24-37

If you use these prayers in other groups, please give credit to author.
Permission to use in not-for-profit settings The Rev. Lil Smith, M.Div., DASD