Fourth Sunday after Pentecost, Year B

1 Samuel 15:34 – 16:13

Mark 4:26-34

God, your ways continue to surprise and delight us.
Thank you for the seeds you have sown in us.
Encourage us to nurture them as they grow and develop in our inner being,
rather than spend so much time and energy on our outward appearances.
Forgive us the energy and resources we expend to impress others.
Save us from our prejudices.

Forgive us when we despair and are tempted
to stop scattering the seeds you have given us to sow,
when we judge others to be beyond your reach,
perhaps because of their looks, their fashion, their accents.
Remind us to see not with our eyes but with our hearts,
to see what lies beneath the outer layer.

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