Mosaic Lincoln

We are in the unknown of the wilderness—        Discerning and working, seeking and dreaming.We are in the unknown of the wilderness—       Grieving and wondering, praying and hoping.We are in the unknown of the wilderness—       Longing and walking, creating and waiting.We are in the unknown of the wilderness, but we have not been alone; for God walks with us, every step of the way. So we will worship our God who walks with us in our darkest nights and our brightest days.---------May God’s love sustain you,And may you love those who surround you.May God’s Spirit empower you,And may you empower all those you meet.May God’s joy fill your hearts,And may this joy overflowTo the ends of the earth to bring God’s restoration to all things,Now and forever, Amen.

Mosaic Gathering Prayer, March 8, 2020:You are welcome here— The young and old, those who have visions and those who dream dreams. You are welcome here— The sinner and saint, those who seek forgiveness and those who long for peace. You are welcome here— The hurt and the doubting, those who know the wilderness and those who feel lost. You are welcome here; for you are loved by God.For our world bombarded by illness and disease.Lord, have mercy. Bring healing and protection.For our neighbors on this planet suffering under the weight of chaotic weather systems.Lord, have mercy. Bring healing community and restoration.God, we give you our tears.We give you our hearts.They are brimming with doubt and are saturated with fear,but we give them to you anyway, for you promise to love us as we are.You promise to walk with us to the ends of the earth, so in this moment,we promise to tell the truth. God, you ask us to be brave and bold,but we cower in fear.You ask us to love our neighbors as ourselves,but we hold tight to

Psalm 88Mosaic Community Liturgy: March 1, 2020God hovered over the void and breathed life into dust.God created in the wilderness.The Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years.The Israelites found God in the wilderness.Jesus said “no” to the tempter time and time again.Jesus claimed his identity in the wilderness.We grow in the wilderness. We learn in the wilderness.For God is with us—before, through, and after the wilderness.Creator God, You breathed life into dust. You dreamed me up and brought me into existence. The least I could do would be to follow you, but even that is hard. Forgive me for my distracted ways. Remind me that in life and in death, I belong to you. On my best days and on my worst days, I belong to you. Amen.

1 Timothy 6:6-19Mosaic Gathering Prayer: February 23, 2020Every generation has found its home in you, God our provider,and we discover that every momentspent in your holy presence lasts beyond all imaginable time.You watch over us in the night,protecting and leading, encouraging us to trustand to take courage in following your Son’s teachings.Full of wisdom, Creator of grace,you humbled yourself that we might learnto love those who have been swept asideby a world caught up in its own selfish affairs.Witnesses to God’s mercy, we are called to act inways of love and of peace to all we meet in this life.Thank you for giving us your Son, Jesus, and for his life.Continue to be the dwelling place of our bodies,our minds, our hearts and our souls.Oh God, you have made us to be free,But we crave the cheap comforts of our chains.You have made us to serve others,But we have eyes only for ourselves.You have made us to love,But we are inflamed with lust.You provide that we may be generous,But we greedily hoard as if your

Mosaic Gathering Liturgy: February 16, 2020Children of the Living God,what is our Father’s greatest desirefor us this day?That we should love our Kingwith all our hearts, with all our souls,with all our minds and with all our strength.And how would we show this love?By remembering him at all times.By cultivating thankfulness for his many blessings,and trusting his good providencefor the meeting of our needs.And by loving all whose lives intersect our own.By choosing to serve ratherthan to be served, to be woundedrather than to wound.And by bearing patientlywith the failings of others,extending the same kindness,mercy, and compassion that God in Christhas so graciously offered us. We bring to you Lord, our irritations we carry in this day,that you might reveal the buried seed of it - notin the words or actions of another person, butin the withered and hypocritical expectationsof our own weary hearts.Uproot from this impoverished soilall arrogance and insecurity thatwould prompt us to dismiss or disdain others,

1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13Mosaic Gathering Prayer: February 9, 2020Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:where there is hatred, let me sow love;where there is injury, pardon;where there is doubt, faith;where there is despair, hope;where there is darkness, light;where there is sadness, joy.O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seekto be consoled as to console,to be understood as to understand,to be loved as to love.For it is in giving that we receive,it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.Amen.

Some principles for ‘doing unto others’ who are strongly opposed to us include…1| I do not want to be physically attacked, hurt or killed by my opponents. Therefore, I will not engage in violence against them.2| I do not want people to dismiss what I believe as so obviously wrong that it is not worth a hearing. So I will take time to listen and to understand what my opponents are saying, even if I strongly disagree with them.3| I do not want people to misrepresent or caricature what I write or say in order to win an argument. So I will state accurately and fairly what my opponents believe.4| I do not want people to attack my character for being different from them. So I will not resort to character assassination in order to try to discredit my opponents.5| I do not want people to assume that because I disagree with them I am motivated by selfishness or a desire for power. I will therefore not rush to judge the motives of my opponents.6| I do not want people to try to silence me by threats, intimidation or coe

Mosaic Gathering Prayer: December 22, 2019God of kings and shepherds,God of teenage mothers and step-parents,God of angel choruses and starlight—We confess to waiting.We have waited to extend grace.We have waited to say, “I love you.”We have waited to apologize.We have waited to be just,Choosing comfort and convenience over the needs of our neighbors. We have waited—Waited for someone else to make a move,Waited for a sign,Waited until it was our issue.You ask us to be the body of Christ, but in many ways, we have waited. Forgive us.Change us.Remind us of your love for each of us and this world. Your love can’t wait.In your name we pray, Amen.https://vimeo.com/381086629

Mosaic Gathering Prayer: December 15, 2019When the sun rises what shall we sing?“My soul magnifies the Lord.”And when chaos and violence echo on the screen?“My soul magnifies the Lord.”For our God is a God of justice and peace.“My soul magnifies the Lord.”So when all is wrong, or all is right,“My soul magnifies the Lord.”Yes, when all is wrong, or all is right,We will sing with joy and delight,Of the God of justice and love and peace.“My soul magnifies the Lord.” In front of God and this church, I confess—I am quick to complain, quick to criticize and conform. I am quick to forget, quick to doubt and deny.Instead of singing praise, I often stay silent.May the God of shepherds and kings,The God of starlight and new life,Offer you grace and show you the way home.Amen.

Mosaic Gathering Prayer: December 8, 2019Creator God,Not a day goes by when you do not invite us to be peacemakers and advocates, Listeners and good Samaritans.Not a day goes by when we are not asked to be a friend to a strangerAnd a neighbor to those in need.Not a day goes by when we are not asked to be the people you call us to be, And yet, day after day, we lose sight of your hope for this world.Forgive us for walking a different path,And grant us the strength to prepare a new way— Your way—here.Gratefully we pray, Amen.

Isaiah 42:1-9

Galatians 2:19b-20More than a passionate commitment to God and a set of beliefs so as to win the world for Jesus, faith is a willingness to enter into negation to see an all new reality open before us in the midst of our utter weakness and childlike trust so the love of God wins us and the world.

Eric Smith, Founder of Pillar Seminary in Omaha, NE, shares with us part of his journey and the ways in which God has always been in the midst of it as provider.

Eric Smith, Founder of Pillar Seminary in Omaha, NE, shares with us from Matthew 11

Colossians 3:3-4:1Mosaic Gathering Prayer/Proclamation: October 27, 2019What marvelous love the Father has extended to us!Just look at it—we are called children of God!That’s who we really are.But that’s also why the world doesn’t recognize us or take us seriously,because it has no idea who he is or what he’s up to.But friends, that’s exactly who we are: loved children of God.Dear loved children of God—I hope you let go.I hope you let go of holding yourself to impossible standards. Lower the bar. Receive grace.God delights in who you are.And while you’re at it, I hope you let go of ignoring your beauty and strength.The mirror is tired of your harsh words, for you are made of star stuff and music.You are the only you there is, and you. are. simply. stunning.The tape in your head is tired of your harsh words.You are a gift to this world.May you have respect for your individuality and difference.And I hope you’ll consider letting go of certainty.For the sun will always rise and set, and you will always be loved.

Colossians 2:20-3:4Mosaic Gathering Prayer: October 20, 2019We believe in God, the Great Sewist— Who weaves us together in community, Collecting our loose ends and turning them into belonging. We believe in the Holy Spirit— Who hems us in before and behind, Catching us when we fall and writing us into God’s holy story. And we believe in Jesus Christ— Who loved and claimed the people society had thrown out, refusing to disregard anyone as scrap.We believe God has woven part of God’s self into the fiber of our being,Making us inherently worthy of love and belonging. We believe the fabric of our lives are weak, That we are prone to error and need God’s handiwork to remind us of love. We believe in the Church, and that like a quilt of different fabrics,She is designed to be as diverse and beautiful as God’s creation. And we believe that when life unravels, God is there to stitch our wounds together, To hold us in the palm of God’s hand, to tell us of love,And to invite us into a new journey. Amen. 

Colossians 2:6-19Mosaic Gathering Prayer: October 13, 2019Gracious God,For the morning dawn, which promises new life;And for your love, which knows our name,We give you thanks.For a place to belong—for this place to belong—And for grace that is always bigger than we deserve,We give you thanks.For the promise of justice that will roll down like a mighty streamAnd light that shines in the darkness,We give you thanks.We have so much to thank you for, gracious God, so in gratitude, we offer you these gifts. May they help cultivate your promised day here.May we help cultivate your promised day hereIn this world some walk with arrogance. Some walk proud. Some walk angry. Some walk defeated. Some walk alone.Teach us to walk in Jesus, rooted and built up in his love.So as we come to you today in prayer, we ask once more for your help.Cultivate in us a persistent energy for justice.Cultivate in us a resilient determination to show grace.Cultivate in us the heart to claim one another—even when we come from different pl

Colossians 1:1-20, 28-2:3What does the letter want to convey?A reality enveloped in Jesus the Christ is a reality saturated in liberation and love."We need to know that God can not help because he is the God who was, is, and is to come. God does not have to help us in the ways we think we need him to help because the help he can offer is exceedingly better. We are asking for finite helps. He offers the infinite. In this life, then, as it can be known now, we can learn to live with God knowing that he is the God who was, is, and is to come, and therefore a God who can not help. We can learn a Spirit-led helplessness, to embrace futility without in any way refusing responsibility to do good or lessening our efforts to obey God. There is powerlessness in the blood. Wonder-working powerlessness."    -Chris Green-- 

John 1:43-51Mosaic Gathering Prayer: September 29, 2019God of the seasons—You hold together the past, present and future.Help us to let go of the need for certainty,So that we can hold onto you.Help us let go of fear and comparison,So that we can hold onto you.Help us to let go of to-do lists and anxiety,So that we can hold onto you.God of the seasons, as we enter this space,We strive to let go of everything that keeps us from being with you.With honest hearts and open minds, we pray—Let us worship, You, Holy God.  Create in us a curiosity for your ways.God, you invite us to cultivate compassion, But too often we hold grudges and keep score. You invite us to cultivate justice, But too quickly we forget that we belong to one another. You invite us to let go of judgment, But we find stones are too easy to throw. You invite us to let go of what others think, But so easily we hold our worth in another’s eyes. Guide our feet, our hearts, and our minds to a better world. Forgive us when we lose our way. We ask for

"I have come that (whoever comes to me) may have life, and have it to the full."John 10:10bMosaic Gathering Prayer: September 22, 2019Father, as we gather here in each other’s presence today, we bear witness to ourselves and to each other that You are among us. You are God for us, and that is the GospelJesus, clothed in human flesh to experience Union with us, we assent that You have brought us into Union with the Godhead.You are God with us, and that is the GospelWinsome Spirit, we submit to Your mantle of love that covers our hearts and minds.You are God in us, and that is the GospelGod of freedom, we proclaim that Your message of deliverance has been misunderstood and misrepresented, and we are each somewhere on the journey towards a healing of our understanding of You. You are the God of truly good news, and that is the Gospel.God of restoration, we confess that we have each to some degree misrepresented You to others, and we ask Your forgiveness for that and Your healing of any wounds that may