Psalm 16: Fullness of Joy
(Adapted for use as a Great Thanksgiving for Holy Communion) 1 Keep us safe, loving God, for in you we take refuge. Thank you for your love and power. Thank you for your arms of grace, drawing us in, leading us on from a deep place of safety and confidence. 2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.” Lord Jesus, all that we have comes from you. All that we own, all we take for granted, all that is worth anything in our lives, all is gift, from you, from your infinite goodness. 3 We celebrate godly people, here and everywhere. They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight. We praise you for your church, especially this church, for warm fellowship in which we know you, loving Lord. With your people around the world, those gone before and those who come after us, we praise you. 4 Those who run after other gods are wasting their time. We choose you, Jesus. We turn away from anything else which would lay claim to us. 5 You alone are our portion and our cup; because you have poured out your very self for us even to the point of death, death on a cross, as Jesus allotted to us his portion, his life eternal, his Spirit, his body, his blood, given for us. 6 As we gather for Communion this morning, we claim our delightful inheritance, we step into the life of mercy and blessing that Christ has claimed for us. 7 And so we praise you Lord, we honour your name, we open our hearts and minds to your truth even in the night you teach us. even as we rest, we rest secure in your love. 8 And here, in this moment, we look to you, we keep our eyes on you, Lord. You are here, you hold us in your hand, you uphold us every day. We will not be shaken. 9 Therefore our hearts are glad and our souls rejoice; 10 for Jesus Christ rose from death! You did not abandon him to the pit of decay, 11 but opened for us the path of life; In your presence is fullness of joy, Here at your table is delight, now and for evermore. Amen |
Psalm 16: A goodly heritage
I know who I am and I know where I come from: God is my home, God is my heritage. My heart is glad, my soul sings for joy! I know who I am and I know what I’ve chosen: God is my cup and his Spirit fills it. My heart is glad, my soul sings for joy! I know who I am and I know where I’m going: Christ is my guide, he shows me the path of life. My heart is glad, my soul sings for joy! |
Note on the photo:
Detail from a still life painting my my dear friend Lynn Ramage
Detail from a still life painting my my dear friend Lynn Ramage