By Kachael J

Opening Shout

For Psalm 62

All:
Our Rock
Our Salvation
Our Glory
Our Refuge
All Power belongs to you! (Repeat 3x)

Leader: When you speak, we will listen.
When you call us, we will answer.
When you give orders, we will obey.

All:
Our Rock
Our Salvation
Our Glory
Our Refuge
All Power belongs to you!

Expectation – Prayer of Confession

Like a family readies the home for the arrival of a new baby, so we order and prepare our hearts for the arrival of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. No family expecting twins buys only one set of clothes or one car seat. So we, your people, prepare our hearts to the level of our expectation.

We confess that we have not always consciously prepared beforehand for your arrival and visitation. Yet, our hearts sank with disappointment when we did not receive what we had hoped from you. You are the Creator of the Universe, yet we limit you and what you want to do in our lives.

We recognize that you have tried to make a quintuple-sized deposit…
…but we prepared only for a single birth.
Help us, O Lord…
…to expect more from you.
Teach us, our Father …
…to prepare a place to receive at the level of our expectation.
This we pray in the precious name of Jesus.
Amen.

Fish Men

(Spoken Word)
Consider having this read or dramatically presented from memory before or after the sermon
(*Note: The author’s use of gendered language in this piece is intentional.)

Stretched Out,
Hanging ‘round,
The wind whipping through me.
After working hard all day, I enjoy this reprieve.
The peace and solitude, a time to mend the holes caused by the beating from the previous day.
Gathered up, I bounce back and forth. Forth and back, in step, in time.
The bounce gives way to my sway.
It is almost time.
I feel it, the moisture in the air.
It slowly starts to seep into my rough weave.
I rest on the bow, my burden momentarily lifted.
A light, bright and steadfast appears, but not from the east.
The horizon is still dark.
It is steadfast. Immovable and unwavering,
The embodiment of Bright.
What could put the dawn to shame with such glory?
The light slowly recedes, my man along with it.
I am left to ponder this wonderment as I am lulled to sleep by the lapping waves.
How does one fish men? They don’t live in water!
One thing is for sure: they will need a net much bigger than me if they wish to accomplish that feat!

Kachael J was a voracious reader growing up and enjoys exploring new worlds through literature. A researcher by training and a worshiper at heart, she desires to see people and communities raised, repaired, and restored by the power of the Holy Spirit and preaching of the gospel. Using one of her hobbies, video editing, Kachael creates videos to encourage and help others in their faith walk. The daughter of a United Methodist Church-ordained elder and a native of Atlanta, Georgia, she currently resides in the Atlanta Metro area and works in commercial real estate.