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Hello Reader!

Hello beloved one.

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Announcements:

*Kids Ministry Luncheon!!! What turns a lunch into a luncheon? Well, we are about to find out! At Commonplace, we believe that children are a gift and a vital part of our community. We are committed to providing a place where they can encounter the steadfast love of Christ through story, art and play. And we don’t do this without you, our wonderful volunteers.

On Sunday, June 8^th, right after service, we are planning a special event to thank those of you who have been loving on children at Commonplace.

We will be serving lunch prepared by the very talented Lindsey Paulding with a Lemonade and Ice tea bar. Please RSVP if you can make it. I really hope you can. Even if it's been awhile since you volunteered, I hope you will come! AND, feel free to invite anyone who you feel may be interested in helping out in the future!

​Click here to RSVP

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*Summer Planning: This summer, we'd like to have some whole church fun times. Did you Northern Colorado brims with neat activities, live music, and opportunities to gather and let the kids run free? Commonplace would like to descend upon the following events, so please mark your calendars:

>>>June 25th, CSU Lagoon Concert Series ("That Eighties Band")

>>>July 15th, City Park Food Truck Rally

>>>August 7th, Windsor Lake Concert Series ("Ivory")

*Family Housing Network is in the building now! Please sign up to help (bring dinner, childcare, host) these families. There is also a special need for a teardown crew on Sunday, June 1st, at 7:00 A.M. . Thank you for all the ways you are showing hospitality.

*Please drop by Office Hours (i.e. casual hangout time) on Thursday morning anytime between 10 to 12 at The Neighbor (144 S Mason)!

*After Hours (i.e. more casual hangout time) TODAY! will be at The Neighbor (144 S Mason) on the evening of May 28th from 5:30 to 7:30.

God's Shiny Face

We usually follow the Revised Common Lectionary. Click on the link if you want to see what we'll be exploring in the weeks to come.

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I N V O C A T I O N

Open our hearts to your power moving

around us and between us and within us,

until your glory is revealed in our love of both friend and enemy,

in communities transformed by justice and compassion,

and in the healing of all that is broken.

Amen.

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S O N G S

For Joy (Psalm 67) [Remaster... Enter The Worship Circle, Aa... PREVIEW   ​

King Of My Heart John Mark McMillan, Sarah Mc... PREVIEW   ​

I Could Sing Of Your Love Fo... Delirious? PREVIEW   ​

S C R I P T U R E & R E A D I N G S

​Psalm 67​

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T A K E A W A Y S & Q U E S T I O N S

*Psalm 67 carries an echo of the priestly blessing found in Numbers chapter 6:

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”

Numbers 6:24-26 ESV

*The priests recited this ⬆️ blessing 2 times a day standing on a platform in the presence of the people.

*How would it feel to be reminded of this two times a day (even once?) — God’s shiny face gazing at you? What person, creature, experience is like that for you — gracious, loving, shining, smiling!? Maybe you are that for another?

*Sometimes when we read the Bible — in this case, Psalm 67 — it can feel dry, confusing, boring. Sometimes when we read the it, it feels like it’s alive and speaking to our very situation and state of mind.

*We might call that the Algorithm of the Holy Spirit. Here is a contextualized definition of Algorithm from A.I.: In the context of social media, an algorithm is a set of rules or instructions used by a platform to organize and prioritize content for users. It's essentially a "recipe" that the platform follows to determine what users see, in what order, and how often. This includes deciding which posts appear in feeds, which content is recommended, and what ads are displayed.

*Algorithms are something we hear referenced often. The algorithm can be harmful like when you are feeling insecure or powerless or angry and the algorithm takes you farther into despair.

*The Algorithm can also be helpful like when you’re listening to music or looking at art or studying flowers or birds and it meets you in that curiosity and leads you to more beauty, joy, or understanding.

*An Axiom: Make the algorithm your friend. We all know it’s happening. Choose joy!

*An editor’s note above Psalm 67 tells the reader (or singer) that this Psalm is “for the chief musician.” Some students of the Psalms believe the chief musician to be God. So could we imagine as we read the psalm Divine Love listening, and then joining, playing along.

*We are looking for something. Algorithms are looking at what we are looking for and it may take us to what harms or what heals.

*But you know what? Whatever we are looking for, the algorithm of the divine is also looking at what we are looking for and while we are looking for love, love is also looking for us.

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A R T W O R K

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B E N E D I C T I O N

You are God’s Child

Gifted with dreams and visions.

Upon you rests the grace of God like flames of fire.

Love and serve the Lord in the wildness of your being.

Practice Resurrection.

And may the deep peace of Christ be with you,

The strong arms of God sustain you,

And the glory of the Holy Spirit shine upon your face.

Amen.

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Resource: Sarah Bessey's Blessing for The (Stubborn) Ones Still Holding On Beloved friends who still love this Story even when it breaks your heart, may you be blessed in your faithfulness, even as you stand as witness to loss. ​ Blessed are you who still claim “Christian” even with that angry wobble in your voice and sad need for clarity, who hold that name not with prideful certainty but with a grieving ache and defiant hope. ​ Blessed are you who stay, not out of denial or obligation or fear, but out of faithful (stubborn) defiance. Not to defend what has become indefensible, but to witness to a better truth: that this name once meant love, and still can. ​ Blessed are you who refuse to surrender the language of grace to the machinery of hate, who will not let the gospel of peace be devoured by the politics of fear and efficiency and dominance and wealth. ​ Blessed are you when your loved ones don't understand or sweep it under the rug or pretend ignorance, or morph into someone you don't even recognize. Blessed are you when you feel betrayed by the Church that raised you and the people you once trusted, yours is the companionship of the prophets. ​ For all of us who have been accused of abandoning the faith simply for refusing to bow to idols in its name, we acknowledge both your courage and your loneliness. May your faith counted as righteousness. ​ Blessed are the disillusioned, the disoriented, the disgusted, for yours is a holy discontent. Yours is the ache that calls for reformation. Yours is the grief that proves your love. Yours is the longing that keeps you near to our God even when the institution makes you want to run. ​ May you find companions along the way - the saints, sinners, mystics, prophets, doubters, and troublemakers, who still believe in mercy and still chase the Spirit through the ruins of a crumbling empire and into the garden of resurrection. ​ May you be blessed with clarity when the fog of the loudest voices co-opting faith as a disguise sweep into the once-green valleys of your life. ​ May you never confuse a critical spirit with being a critical thinker: stay generous, stay open, stay breakable. May your discernment be sharp even as your heart remains soft. ​ May the love of Jesus, that real unconditional empire upending love, - not the brand, not the spectacle, not the headline, not the dominant voice of empire claiming his name - be your compass, your comfort, and your sanctuary. ​ And when you feel alone (because you will) when you wonder if you’re the last one left who sees the gospel as liberation, who believes kindness is strength, who follows a peacemaking Saviour, may you remember this: you are not alone. Not even close. ​ May you be given a glimpse of the great cloud of witnesses the ancestors and ancients who know even now that the Church is bigger than this moment in time. And resurrection will not be stopped by those who shout the loudest or build the biggest platforms or even win the day. ​ So keep moving, keep working, keep hoping, not in certainty, but in faith. ​ Go in holy stubbornness and sacred humility. Go with your head held high, not in arrogance but in humble truth. ​ You are still a Christian, God help you, and as long as you are here, you stand as part of a company, as a prophetic outpost, camped right in the teeth of the lie, with a grin on your face and an outstretched hand. ​ Your faithfulness, your insistence on grace and love, your dogged relentless insistence that the Gospel is good news and God is here, and every small bit of holiness and care matters, is also a sign of God’s presence in this world. ​ In the name of the One who overturned tables, washed feet, forgave enemies, welcomed outcasts, and called us friends, one God and mother of us all, go in peace and do likewise. ​ click here to read Bessey's substack

Practice: Divine Gaze The idea of God's loving divine gaze seems to go hand-in-hand with the idea of God's face shining upon you. Consider what you know of Jesus and of God. What are the specific adjectives you would use? Need some suggestions? Compassionate, patient, kind, peaceful, advocating, loving. Then, go sit in the sun and close your eyes. Imagine all those adjectives streaming down onto you. Bask in God's love.

Grace and Peace,

Katrina

&

Darren

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