Lenten Study Session 5: “God Has Work For Us To Do”
Lenten Study Session 5: God Has Work For Us To Do with Mark Miller
Watch the Video Clip (5 – 7 minutes)
Listen to Mark’s words of introduction and listen to the song. Listen to the song a second time. Feel free to sing along, joining in with “God has work for us to do.” If you have purchased the songbook Roll Down, Justice!, a reproducible congregational box of the song is found on page 107.
Mark Miller’s Reflection
God is love, and we are God’s children. That is my statement of belief, and by faith, I will try to live my life to make the love of God real to everyone one I meet. Although I believe the statement to be true, it does not mean that our world is a just place or that life is fair.
The for-profit prison industry still benefits from incarcerating young brown and black men at an alarming rate. The skies over certain cities are too polluted to venture outside. The water isn’t safe to drink in too many towns. Women around the world are still denied access to equal pay for equal work. Corporate greed is draining the wages of the working class, affordable health care is beyond the reach of too many, the cost of an education is crippling a generation of incoming students….the list goes on.
So, while I believe that God is love, and we are God’s children, I also believe God has work for us to do! The lyrics of Carl Daw strike a resounding chord in my soul when he declares “til all the jails are empty, til all the bellies filled, til no one hurts or steals or lies, and no more blood is spilled.” They resonate with one of my favorite passages from the book of Isaiah:
Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of injustice,
to undo the thongs of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover them, …Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly? So my friends, God has work for us to do.
Moment of Meditation (2 – 3 minutes)
Using a notebook or a sheet of paper, respond individually and silently – to the video, the song, and Mark’s introduction. Jot down responses to one or more of these questions:
What is your favorite scripture?
What situations are “unfair” to you?
Which of his words speak to your struggle?
What about the song (words, music, tempo) capture images of stress for you?
From what parts of God’s work are you running?
Discuss the Scripture – Isaiah 58:6-12 (10 minutes)
Have the scripture read aloud in two or three translations. Invite members to share with the group any experience they have with the texts. For example, this may be the mission text of a congregation or someone in mission.
In pairs, talk about how you see churches and communities “undoing the thongs of the yoke and letting the oppressed go free?”
Connect with the Justice Challenges (20 minutes)
Mark Miller mentions several challenges to justice that is on his heart: for-profit prison industry; the higher rates of incarceration of young brown and black men; women not receiving equal pay; inequity of wages between the CEOS and the worker; high cost of education that is mandatory for entry-level jobs.
Ask members to work in pairs and identify the concerns that weigh on their heart. List those that impact the Church the most. Invite groups to share.
And consider the 2013 case of the Ethan Couch diagnosed with “affluenza” receiving probation after driving drunk and killing four persons and leaving a fifth paralyzed. There is an expression that says “ignorance of the law is no excuse.” Invite persons to “weigh in” on this expression of justice. Answer the question: Could my child be excused from penalty because she or he had never been taught right from wrong?
Confession (2 – 3 minutes)
Encourage the group to observe a moment of silence as they remember the words of the Scripture, the song, and Mark’s introduction [consider playing the video a third time].
Invite them during the time of confession to speak aloud a statement of confession to choose the type of “fast” which God desires:
Example: “My name is Petra, and I choose this fast to serve in a homeless shelter every week.”
Prayer of Intercession (2 – 3 minutes)
Lead the group in this prayer (or one from the heart): Lord Jesus, we desire to have your light break forth like the dawn in the world in which we live. Give us hearts to love, hands to serve, mouths to witness, minds to plan for your justice. Make us both willing and able. Commission us for service in the world, for breaking every yoke, and loosening the bonds of injustice.
Closing (2 – 3 minutes)
Play the video one more time and sing along. Offer a prayer of benediction and an invitation to see God in every face that we meet in the coming week.
Extending the Study
Provide an opportunity in worship for a testimony for someone to speak of a justice challenge.
Mount a letter writing campaign to political leaders that address injustices and concerns.
Begin or support a Good Samaritan Fund which enables your church or other ministry to respond readily to needs in your community.
Create a “Scripture museum” where one Sunday after worship everyone gets a poster board and can write down their favorite Scripture passage (i.e., Isaiah 58:6-12), and write a sentence about why the text is important in her or his life. Post in a central area for people to read and be “blessed” by the witness of other members of your faith community.
Additional Resources
Lenten Biblical Reflection, Roll Down, Justice!:
About
Faye Wilson, Ed. D
Study Guide Author
Faye Wilson, writer of this study guide, is a certified lay servant in the Peninsula-Delaware Conference. For twenty-one years she was on the staff of the General Board of Global Ministries, mission agency of The United Methodist Church, leading seminars and writing books and articles to help people become more involved in mission work
She continues to work in the area and has written leader’s guides to the United Methodist Women mission studies Poverty, How is It With Your Soul?, and Food and Faith. She serves as the music leader at the Peninsula-Delaware Mission U, an initiative of United Methodist Women, where she teaches songs of “justice and joy” from around the world.
A pianist, she lives in Salisbury, Md., and is the minister of music and arts for Mt. Zion United Methodist Church in Quantico, Md., and chairwoman the stewardship committee. She also is vice president of the Salisbury District United Methodist Women.
Her favorite scripture is Isaiah 58:6-12; she makes every attempt to live it literally. She has volunteered for ten years with HALO (Hope and Life Outreach), a shelter for women and children. Since establishing her own home in 1978, she has invited more than twenty-five persons to share her space for varying lengths of time.
Mark Miller
Mark Miller is a lifelong United Methodist with a passion for composing and performing music that brings about the beloved community that Christ desires the church to be.
He is associate professor of church music at Drew Theological School and is a lecturer in the practice of sacred music at Yale University. He also is minister of music at Christ Church in Summit, N.J. His hymns are published in several songbooks and hymnals including The Faith We Sing and Zion Still Sings.
Since 1999, Mark has led music for worship at conferences around the United States. He has been a lay delegate to three United Methodist legislative assemblies (“General Conferences”) and directed music for the 2008 General Conference, enabling him to join in Christ’s mission to break down dividing walls in The United Methodist Church through policy, prayer, and music performance. He deeply believes, as scholar-activist Cornel West says, “Justice is what love looks like in public.”
Mark earned a bachelor of arts degree in music from Yale University and a master of music degree in organ performance from The Juilliard School in New York.
This resource was designed with a United Methodist perspective, but we believe the content is also relevant for non-UMC seekers who are doing anti-racism work with a spiritual foundation.
