As the summer comes to an end, we are left with a parting gift from our Hopetown Interns. They took Melissa’s week by week teachings and transformed them into the stanzas of a liturgy. It is a liturgy that reveals a glimpse into the theme of each of our summer sessions. Strengthening our hands in Jesus, the lens we view the world through, how we bury our treasure and how to uncover it, that we always have a seat at God’s table, being a guiding light and childlike follower of Jesus, leaning on our confidence in God in the midst of a storm and being the salt of the earth bringing out the God-flavors in those around you. This Liturgy is an incredible reminder of the God-flavored summer we had, and a beautiful picture of the hearts, creativity and wisdom of these tremendous college students we call our Hopetown staff.
A Liturgy for Hopetown 2018
You, oh Lord, have been at work at Hopetown
Guiding others to you by day and night
With each new morning,
We have grown closer to you
Learning the way you love
Thank you for being our potter
You soften, shape, and strengthen us, your clay
Our hearts are naturally hard, and our hands are weak
Yet when we hold to your hand
We loosen our grip and cling ever closer to you
Thank you for cleansing our hands each new day
Thank you for putting so much beauty in our lives
We want to see it like you do, glasses removed
Help us look and see and uncover our treasure
For there is sin and mourning in the world
But you have given us the tools to find beauty and light
Thank you for saving us a seat at your table
In you we find belonging and friendship
You invite our real selves and tear away our scales
For we cannot do it on our own
Only you can frame our grief with hope
Thank you that our worth does not lie in our performance
When we reflect your love, our hearts are put right
We ask for childlike hearts
So that we shine like beacons
Guiding the lost closer to you
Oh Lord, you are the ultimate gift
You have blessed us with a purpose
Thank you for your promises to us
Self-confidence is not enough to get us through our storms
While the boat may break and the pieces may shatter
You give us a plank to hold onto when the waves overwhelm us
Help us remember that our worth and confidence lie in you
You help us steward our pain while calming the storm around us
Thank you for turning our dead sea into waters of life
You call us to be salt
Bringing out the best in others and pointing to you
Blessed are those who partake in your joy and unity
Help us to follow your Spirit while you mix the waters
With warm appreciation,
The Daystar Staff
