Today’s first reading (Joshua 3:7-17) recounts the entry of the Israelite tribes into the Promised Land and resonates with the story in Exodus of the crossing of the Reed Sea. So too, the psalm we read today resonates with the song of Moses and the Israelites and the song of Miriam at the successful completion of that crossing.
IN BETWEEN…
A pause
between wilderness and ‘milk and honey’,
between journey and goal,
between known and unknown.
“Come closer and listen…draw together”
as people of purpose,
as people of God.
The dry ground of the Jordan crossing
a moment of transition, transformation,
and for the church a metaphor
for its own transformation.
For the church is always
in a state of change, of tension
between known and unknown,
between comfort zone and journey,
always on the way to a promised goal.
CALL TO WORSHIP (from Psalm 107:1-9)
Come and worship the LORD our God
with thanksgiving and praise,
You alone, O LORD, are good
and your lovingkindness is for ever.
You who are hungry and thirsty
come and worship the Lord our God
You gather us from every direction, O LORD.
You who are distressed, cry to the LORD;
“Rescue us from our predicament!”
Give thanks to the LORD
You show your lovingkindness;
in your word and your wonderful deeds,
you satisfy our parched throats,
and fill our hungry lives. More…