Our Personal Vocation in the Church’s
Vocation Bible Study
Feb. 11
Liturgical Explanation of the Season of Birth
Facilitator: Daniel Kelly
What is the intent of the season of birth based upon the theological statement and explanation;
the ways this season reflects the passage to resurrection
x
Feb. 18
Ash Wednesday
Facilitator: Mark Ogunwale Lomax
Humility, Repentance and Sacrifice in the formation and practice of vocation
Feb. 25
Personal Vocation-Trust
Joshua’s Dreams
Genesis chapters 37-50
God orchestrates our lives to bring us to place to accept or reject our vocation
Vocation is intentional use of talents, learned skills and spiritual gifts in relationship with others
and to benefit others-how do we know our vocation (Call)
March 4
Personal Vocation-Faith
Facilitator: Carlton Johnson
Where, when, with whom and the result of one’s vocation is an exercise of faith
March 11
Church Vocation-Commitment
1Corinthians 14
Prayers in Public
Facilitator
This letter to the followers in Corinth encourages that the development of a public prayer life.
The evidence of their spiritual commitment is in taking their faith practices beyond personal
practice to the public. The FAC Strategic Plan-The church has a vocation; it is carried out
through the collective participation of each individual vocation. Our strategic plan should guide
that collective vocation beyond the individual member to the community as a whole.
March 18
Church Vocation-Work
Characteristics of the Call/Vocation
Isaiah 42:1-17
“I have called you… I have grasped you by the hand… To open the eyes of the blind.”
FAC Calendar of 7 Experiences, What are they and what are they purposed to achieve? How
can we ensure that these experiences address and demonstrate personal vocation of the
membership through the church’s actions.
March 25
Church Vocation-Discipline
Numbers 3 &4
The Discipline of Provisions
Faciltiator Carvel Bennett
In the Old Testament we find that everyone in the nation had a role in making provisions for the
Tent of Dwelling. The material provision of the FAC Funding Vision-requires the same type of
discipline and responsibility as the tribes of Israel in building the Tent of Dwelling. What is this
discipline of provisions in the Bible?
April 1 Women at the Cross
evening at the ITC Chapel
“Dispossession is My Work Not My Identity” Wednesday
First Afrikan Church Theological Statement
Key Phrases of the Liturgical Season
Birth
Kujichagulia (Self-Determination)
Holy Days of Celebration
Afrikan Liberation Month
Palm Sunday
Transfiguration
Resurrection
Initiation
Nia (Purpose)
Theological Statement Affirmation: We believe in the living Creator who fashioned the
Universe, the One who gave life to this galaxy, solar system and planet, more specifically
life here on mother earth, and the most ancient presence of humanity that originated within
our Mother, Africa. We were formed in the image of our Creator, male and female. And
“This is very good.”
Birth is when we exercise our Divine Power through the act of creating and the value we hold
for creating. The beginning of our theological statement of faith establishes our belief in this
value for creation and places it as the primary evidence of Divinity, the act of creation.
Birth is not a product; it is a point of entry from one passage to another. The birthing process
requires specific preparation ….The preparation is necessary to navigate the process of being
born. The passage requires one to seek and gain an understanding of one’s purpose (NIA) and
develops Kujichagulia, a determination to go through the birth or initiation into a different realityGod’s reigndom!
Our memory verse is a charge for readiness; stay alert to one’s spiritual commitment and
responsibility. What is our spiritual commitment and responsibility? One aspect that we affirm
each Sunday is to honor our commitment to God through our time, tithe and talent. We have a
responsibility to attend worship services and give back to the church with our resources both
material wealth and human talents. The gifts and talents we have been given are for the uplifting
of God’s reigndom.
The first part of our memory verse (Luke 12:30-34) brings us in full community with God and
God’s people. Here our commitment is demonstrated through putting our spiritual vocation first,
focused on the will of God for our lives and to those who are on the margins of society even
unto giving away our own possessions to support others in need. Clearly, our collective
vocation is to use our gifts and talents to build healthy positive relationship with others and, in
ways that benefit others. This is why we must begin this year with an honest examination of our
personal and church vocation in Bible study.
During this season we also honor the “Vanguard Voice”, the Fire of Our Prophetic Voices
reminding us of our true identity and purpose as children of God. As we listen and feel our
Ancestors’ voices we recognize that a true prophet does indeed speak on the concerns of
others, shows compassion towards those concerns, does the work and study to shift
consciousness about how and why the concern exist without demonizing those most affected
and, uses this concern, compassion and consciousness to create change. In this season of
Birth, we are ready to walk in that tradition.
Ritual of the Ash—
Beginning of the
Lenten Season
The wearing of sackcloth
and ashes as a sign of
repentance has an ancient
history (Jonah 3:5). Ashes
are a symbol of penance,
which is made sacramental by the blessing of the Church to help us to develop a spirit
of humility and sacrifice. The Ashes we use for the ceremony are made from the
blessed palms, which were carried on Palm Sunday of last year.
As we embark upon this Bible study that links our individual Divine purpose to the
Divine purpose of the church, the ritual of ash reminds us that we receive God’s gifts
and develop our talents with sincere humility and gratitude for the sacrifices made by
our Ancestors and, by our Afrikan Messiah, Yeshua, Jesus the Christ.
Opening Prayer
Read silently while candles are lit
Liberation Prayer
(Before the Imposition of Ash)
Prayer of Repentance:
We call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors, to accept our regret for
anyone whom we have knowingly or unknowingly hurt in our lifetime and, for our
own self-inflicted harm.
We sincerely pray for all the individuals whom we have knowingly or unknowingly
hurt in our lives and for our own self-destructive actions, we offer this prayer to aid us
in repentance.
We ask that the words and spirit of this prayer be used to comfort, educate and
liberate anyone whom we are guilty of hurting, and in the ways in which we have
harmed ourselves.
We call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors.
We ask that this prayer energy heal us of any resentment and pain that we bear
because of the shame, the lack of self-love or for our lack of love for others. We are
sincerely sorry.
We realize that we can only repair brokenness when we recognize our role in the
brokenness; to all those whom we have hurt either by absence, ill participation or
silence, we accept our responsibility to forgive and be forgiven of our wrongs and
accusations on earth and in the spirit world.
We call upon the mercies of our God through Jesus the Christ and our Ancestors
We further realize that genuine repentance and forgiveness are manifested only:
 By apologizing for our past wrong doings, when possible and appropriate.
 By learning the lesson and not repeating the same wrongs,
 And by endeavoring to do justice with our thoughts, words and actions.
God and our Ancestors, lead us to overcome all that is not in accordance with Your
Will and Your Purpose for our lives.
Prayer of Forgiveness and Liberation Responsive Reading:
Guide: We call upon the
mercies of our God and
our Ancestors to help us
release our hurts as a path
of forgiveness and
liberation.
Community: We
sincerely and
unconditionally release all
those who have caused
harm to our families, our
community, or us during
their lifetime on earth or
in the spirit world.
Guide: Recognizing that every experience has a lesson, Help us to strive to “get the
lesson” in those experiences of hurt and harm. We willingly surrender our negative
thoughts and feelings towards them so that we are free to see God’s work in those
experiences and able to grow in the spirit of forgiveness and love from them.
Community: We call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors to help us
release our hurts as a path of forgiveness and liberation.
Guide: Only by letting go of all resentment, by releasing pain and loving without
expectation will we be able to complete our own spiritual growth toward God.
All: God and our Ancestors, we pray that those people, who have hurt us, will be
liberated through our release so that they, too, may be free to grow in love and fulfill
their purpose.
Prayer of Intercession and liberation: (Reading Alternately)
We call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors to help us intercede on behalf
of our Ancestors.
Loving our neighbors as we love ourselves is part of our greatest commandment from
God; for anyone on earth or in the spirit world whom our Ancestors have knowingly
or unknowingly hurtWe call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors to help us intercede on behalf
of our Ancestors.
Because our Ancestors do not have the energy in the spirit world to grow easily by
directly making amends for their wrongs, we, being still on earth and having that
necessary energy, must take responsibility to help liberate them of accusation and
separation from our Creator so they can be free to grow higher and become one with
our Creator.
We call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors to help us intercede on behalf
of our Ancestors.
We realize that we are descendants of our ancestry and that we - through spiritual
inheritance - bear a portion of responsibility for Our Ancestors' actions that separate
them from the Divine will of our Creator.
We humbly ask for the Grace of our God to help us intercede on behalf of our
Ancestors.
Every personal action has communal consequences. Unless our Ancestors are
liberated, we cannot be free from accusation, mistrust and other forms of invasion
preventing us from being one with our Creator and our Ancestors.
We humbly ask for the Grace of our God to help us intercede on behalf of our
Ancestors.
Because of them (our Ancestors) we are, therefore we realize that we share in taking
responsibility for our ancestors' wrong doings by praying for any and all people who
are on earth or in the spirit world that our ancestors are guilty of hurting.
We call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors to help us intercede on behalf
of our Ancestors.
We ask that the words and spirit of our prayers - on behalf of our ancestors - go to
these people to comfort, educate and liberate them. We ask that this prayer heal them
of any negative thoughts or feelings that they bear because of our ancestors. We
sincerely regret these wrong doings and apologize on behalf of our ancestors.
We pray for our ancestors who were hurt and harmed by others while they were here
on earth. We say to you: "Give up all negative thoughts and feelings by releasing
everyone who hurt you while you were on earth. We will work to repair our
brokenness together through the power of the Holy Spirit”.
We call upon the mercies of our God and our Ancestors to help us intercede on behalf
of our Ancestors.
We, your descendants understand what happened to you. We will continue to invoke
love and gratitude towards your healing and strive to ascend to a higher level of
existence in mind, body and in spirit.