Opening Prayer
Source of All Goodness, sometimes we try to shrink and confine You. Righteous people were upset that, even though they were not in the assembly, some people received Your Spirit. The apostles were surprised that people who were not obvious followers could heal and You would work through them. Righteousness can be so narrowing at times, Lord. Pour forth Your Spirit to enlarge our heart and vision. Give us the wisdom and humility to know and recognize that You work within and beyond us. We are here to recognize your presence, when you are obvious and when you are anonymous. Protect us from ever confining or limiting Your work and the movement of Your Spirit. Enable us never to oppress what we don’t understand, are uncomfortable with, or are threatened by. May your powerful Spirit purify us. Our wealth and need for security can sometimes rot our spirit and shrink our heart – we want to protect and hoard what we have and define ourselves by it. Save us from ourselves and our small hearts, God of mystery and ever-present wonder.
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