call:
The Lord be with you.
response:
And also with you.
call:
Today’s symbol is the two tablets of the Law. God gave Moses the Ten Commandments on Mt Sinai, and Moses gave them to the people. The Ten Commandments teach us how to love God and how to love one another.
response:
Thanks be to God!
Scripture reading : Deuteronomy 5:6-22 (or Deuteronomy 5:1-22*)
With God’s help, Moses brought the people of Israel safely out of slavery in Egypt. But every time you go out from someplace, you go into someplace else. When Moses led the people out of Egypt, he led them into God’s presence. The Ten Commandments were a gift, to show the people the best way to live in God’s presence. God gave the Ten Commandments to show the people how his family lives together.
The Ten Commandments told the people of Israel how to love God, and how to love one another. They tell us how to love God, and how to love one another. They show us how to live in God’s presence. But what happens when we can’t follow them perfectly? What happens when we break God’s family ways? We don’t live perfectly in God’s presence, so God comes and lives among us. In Advent, we are waiting for God to come to us.
pray:
Holy and loving God, you have given us your ways as a gift. Forgive us when we break them. Thank you for coming to live with us, and for adopting us into your family. Teach us to walk in your ways, and to invite others into your loving family too. Amen.