Category: Christianity

Worship Resource Thanksgiving Sunday 2022

Gratitude

Call To Worship (from Psalm 100)

      Leader: Make a joyful noise to the LORD all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come into God’s presence with singing.

       All: Know that the LORD is God. It is God who made us; we are God’s. We are God’s people, the sheep of God’s pasture.

       Leader: Enter God’s gates with thanksgiving and God’s courts with praise. Give thanks to God. Bless God’s name.      

All: For the LORD is good; God’s steadfast love endures forever and God’s faithfulness to all generations.

Gathering Prayer

         God of gratitude, the Apostle Paul wrote “give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” This makes sense when things are going well. What about when things are unpleasant? What about when we experience grief and loss and harm? How can we give thanks? Holy God, your greatest gift is life itself and life itself is unending. Remind us again that no matter the circumstance, nothing can separate us from your love. Because of this we can say with the words of that old hymn, “Take our moments and our days. Let them flow in endless praise. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

We give because we are grateful, Holy God. Bless our offerings that they may plant the seeds of gratitude in many hearts. Amen.

Worship Resource: All Saints Sunday

* Call To Worship (from Psalm 37)

            One: Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.

All: While I kept silence, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long.

One: Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions before the LORD,’ and you forgave the guilt of my life.

All: You are a hiding place for me; you preserve from trouble; you surround me with glad cries of deliverance.

* Gathering Prayer

         Holy God, you invite us to consider the possibility that we, too, might be holy. You embrace the mess we’ve made of our lives even when we would rather turn away. Our culture tells us that the key to happiness is culivating a carefully curated public image. Polish, shine, perfection–this is the currency of the world we live in. Teach us never to compare our inside with someone else’s outside. You see past the facade. You know our hearts and love us still. Teach us to nourish the seeds of new life you have planted in the soil of our broken, humble hearts. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

God, your saints teach us the way of service, sacrifice, and joy. We follow their example trusting that we, too, will find rest in your presence. Amen.

Worship Resource: Bible Sunday

Call To Worship (from Psalm 119)

One: Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. I have sworn an oath and confirmed it, to observe your righteous ordinances.

All: I am severely afflicted; give me life, O LORD, according to your word. Accept my offerings of praise, O LORD, and teach me your ordinances.

One: Your decrees are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.

All: I incline my heart to perform your statutes forever, to the end.           

Gathering Prayer

We thank you, God, for the Bible, which points our lives in your direction. We love the inspiring stories we find in the Scriptures. We rely on the Bible for words of encouragement and wisdom for living. At times we find the Bible confusing, boring, even shocking. Scripture tells us and our experience confirms that you are a God of peace, kindness, and boundless love. Nevertheless, we are aware that the Bible, too, can be weaponized and used for harm. Guide us with your Spirit as we read, study, and meditate on your Word. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

God, your Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Guide and inspire us in our giving and receiving. Amen.

Worship Resource World Communion Sunday 2022

Prayer of Confession

God of all creation, you call us into communion with all that is. We live in sacred connection with the cashier at the grocery store, the ancient redwoods, and the child in the refugee camp.We confess that too often we live as our self-interest is all that matters. Give us the courage to live our sacred calling to communion. Give us the grace to embrace this and every moment of our lives. Amen.

Dedication of the Offering

Giving and receiving we commune with all creation, Holy God. We thank you for this sacred practice that heals the world. Amen.

Worship Resource for Galatians 2:11-21

Call To Worship (from Psalm 32)

One: Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Happy are those to whom the LORD imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

All: Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to you; at a time of distress the rush of mighty waters shall not reach them. 

One: You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with glad cries of deliverance.

All: Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy all you upright in heart.

Gathering Prayer

We thank you, God, for offering us new life in Christ. Each of us comes to this time and place facing challenges whether in our work, our families, our finances, our health, or the fact of our own mortality. Show us how we can experience a life-changing relationship with you through the person and message of Jesus. We thank you for this community of faith, which for many generations has been your hands and heart of love to countless people and to us. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

God of love, we thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus, who died and rose again that we might have abundant life now and eternal life in the world to come. We make our offerings with joy and confidence knowing that your abundant provision knows no bounds. Amen.

Worship Resource based on Psalm 100

Call To Worship (from Psalm 100)

One: Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness. Come into God’s presence with singing.

All: Together will all beings we offer ourselves in worship. What is our true worship? Returning to this very place. Returning to this very moment. Breathing in, we breathe in the Spirit of God. Breathing out we release our worn out stories, our tired regrets, our distracting fantasies. 

One: Enter God’s gates with thanksgiving and God’s courts with praise. Give thanks to God and bless God’s name.

All: For the LORD is good. God’s steadfast love endures forever, and God’s faithfulness to all generations. 

Gathering Prayer

God of creation, you made us for joy. You don’t want us to hurt forever. We recognize that suffering is a part of life; nevertheless your Scripture tells us that suffering doesn’t define who we are. We are your children and nothing can separate us from your boundless love. We confess that too often we find ourselves stuck in what once was. Instead of dealing courageously with what is, we find ourselves  paralyzed by fears of what might be. Create in us a new heart, O God. Teach us how to be open, honest, transparent, and courageous. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

Creator of this beautiful, fragile planet, we recognize that generosity is the fruit of a joyful heart. May our offerings bring joy to us and others. Amen.

Worship Resources, Pride Sunday, Year C

* Call To Worship (Psalm 16)

One: Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.”

All: The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. 

One: The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; I have a goodly heritage.

All: You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

* Gathering Prayer

Holy God, you are our refuge and our strength, a very present help in  trouble.  Therefore we will not fear though the earth should change, though the mountains shake at the heart of the sea. On this day when communities around the world celebrate LGBTQ pride, we pray that you will make this place a refuge for all of those who suffer discrimination, threats of violence, and shame because of their sexual orientation and gender identity. O God who looks on the heart  teach us to see as you see.  O God of boundless love, teach us to love as you love: without limits.

The Lord’s Prayer (Debts) (Unison)

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.  Amen.