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A journey through Lent - 2016
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Day Two - Rainbow Bridge.
The Rainbow reminds us of the covenant God makes with us.
For there to be a rainbow there needs to be both rain and sunshine.
After the destruction of the flood there is a restoration a renewing of the relationship between God and his creation.
The story of the flood is another difficult one for us to understand. Would our loving God be a wrathful God wiping away his creation in a sweep of anger? I do not know, does it matter, I don't know that either. Perhaps, perhaps not. However there is a great truth in the story that we are a fallen people trapped by temptation and sin and it needs to be swept away to allow us to reconnect fully with God.
We know we need forgiveness on whatever level. We know we need forgiveness from friends, families, neighbours and most of all God.
Sometimes this seems impossible and in those times we can look to the rainbow as a reminder that no matter how far we have wandered, no matter how bad we feel we have been. There is always a place for us with God.
As we witness the rainbow in the sky we do not see a pot of gold rather we see something far more valuable. A pathway back to our God who knows us and loves us despite our imperfections.
He has established a bridge between himself and us and the rainbow is the sign of this.
Bible Passage: - Genesis Chapter 9 Verses 8 - 17 (NIV)
Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him:
'I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you - the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you - every living creature on earth. I establish my covenant with you: never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.'
And God said, 'This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.'
So God said to Noah, 'This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth.'
Hymn: Songs of Fellowship 1118 - "Who paints the skies?"
Contemplation saying.
"I have put my rainbow in the sky".
Let us pray together.
Contemplative Prayer.
Think of the saying in order to understand context and meaning,
Feel the meaning of the saying with and in your heart,
Pray, using the saying, for yourself or others. With only a name and without explaining the reasons or pre-defining any answers.
Listen for God's voice in the quiet of your prayers.
Pray using your own prayers or one of those which have been prepared below.
Twitter Prayer
Loving God, today we ask your help us in our weakness and inability to resist temptation. Make us aware of the impact of our words and actions help us guard our tongues and think before we act.
Facebook Prayer
Loving God, today we ask you to help us to look honestly into our hearts to see our failings. Give us the courage to acknowledge them and the desire to change.
Help us in our weakness and inability to resist temptation. Make us aware of the impact of our words and actions that we may guard our tongues and think before we act.
May we see the brilliance of your wonderful promise and grace to us in Jesus. Made vividly real in the wonder of the rainbow. Amen.
Full Prayer
Father on this second day of Lent we continue to remember that we need your forgiveness.
We come before you in prayer to thank you for the covenant you have made with us. For the signs you place into the world to remind us of that covenant.
The rainbow, the Scriptures, a word from friend or stranger which speaks for you.
We thank you that, through your Son, you have made for us a home and a resting place in your presence.
That through the power of your Holy Spirit we can know your power and presence in our lives.
Yet your glorious gifts do not remove temptation from us or our inability to resist it.
So in the rainbow we also see our need for forgivness, the assurance that we can be forgiven and the reality of our relationship with you.
Help us to look honestly into our hearts to see our failings. Give us the courage to acknowledge them and the desire to change.
Help us in our weakness and inability to resist temptation. Make us aware of the impact of our words and actions, so we may guard our tongues and think before we act.
Draw us out of the darkness into your glorious sunlight. Even in our most stormy moments let us see the sign of your covenant made real in the world today.
May we see the brilliance of your wonderful promise and grace to us in Jesus.
We offer our prayers in the power of the Holy Spirit and in Jesus' name. Amen.