Tag: worship resources

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 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 Trinity Sunday, Year C

Call To Worship (Psalm 150)

One: Praise the LORD! Praise God in the sanctuary; praise God in the mighty firmament! 

All: Praise God for God’s mighty deeds; praise God according to God’s surpassing greatness!

One: Praise God with trumpet sound; praise God with lute and harp! 

All: Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! 

One: Praise God with clanging cymbals; praise God with loud clashing cymbals! 

All: Let everything that breathes praise the LORD!

Praise the LORD!

Gathering Prayer

Lord of the dance, we thank you for the mystery of life. We thank you for Creator, Christ, and Holy Spirit: three-in-one, one-in-three, a dance of relationship designed to confound our reasoning. Teach us to trust our bodies. Teach us to embrace our humanity. Inspire us to playful acts of creation, for we are created in your image, God. You look upon your creation with love, and, behold, it is very good. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

Holy Mystery, we give in response to your limitless self-giving. Moment by moment you fill the universe to overflowing. We praise you for your unsurpassing greatness. Amen.

Worship Resources for the 4th Sunday in Lent, Year C

Rimmington, Eric; The Return of the Prodigal Son; Bradford Museums and Galleries; http://www.artuk.org/artworks/the-return-of-the-prodigal-son-23177

Call to Worship 

Leader: The God of boundless compassion waits for us with patient expectancy.

All: The God of our ancestors stands in the doorway and continually calls us home.

Leader: God’s unconditional love cannot be earned, only accepted.

All: May our worship reflect God’s infinite embrace.

Gathering Prayer (Unison)

God of our aimless wandering, God of our longing for home, with a broken heart you patiently await our return. Teach us to see ourselves and each other as you see us: your children, made in your image deserving of unconditional love. We don’t always show each other the same love you show us. We have a tendency to sort people into categories of those who deserve love and those who don’t. Shake us out of our limited perspectives. Give us the courage and the skills to listen deeply, to speak the truth in love, and to embrace our brothers and sisters even when it’s difficult to do so. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

We offer our lives in service as we offer our gifts to you, Holy God, in gratitude for the gift of your child, Jesus, who died and rose again that we might have abundant life now and eternal life in the world to come. Amen.

Worship Resources based on Isaiah 55:1-9

Call to Worship (Isaiah 55:1-2)

Leader: Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters. 

All: You that have no money, come, buy, and eat!

Leader: Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

All: Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves with rich food.

Gathering Prayer (Unison)

Holy God, in a place of so much wealth, why is there so much need? In a land that affords every available comfort, why do we find ourselves uncomfortable, discouraged, depressed? What is this food you spoke of through your prophets? Where is this promised land of milk and honey our ancestors sought? Open our hearts to the only true satisfaction our hearts will ever know: your boundless love. 

Worship Resource: Daniel 2, “Dreaming Together”

“Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream” by Marten Kuilman

Holy God, we deal with powers beyond our comprehension. Algorithms shape our preferences. The ebb and flow of international finance affects our economic well being. Time and chance determine our social location. Changing weather patterns can damage our lives, livelihoods, and shelter in a matter of hours.  A global pandemic can alter our habits and harm our health. In the face of these faceless powers we turn to you timeless creator, boundless benefactor, source of all that is. We entrust our lives to your abundant provision and matchless wisdom. Amen.

Worship Resource: Mother’s Day

Centering Prayer                                  

Mother God, womb of the world, thank you for mothers, who gave us life from their bodies. Life is the gift that makes all other gifts possible, so we say “Thank you, mom, for life.” A mother’s love can be so intimate as to be overlooked. We repent taking our mothers’ love for granted. A mother’s absence can be so painful as to leave us forever scarred. Give us the grace to embrace our own mothering, as imperfect as it may be. Give us the wisdom to honor our mothers in their full humanity. Give us the will as a nation to pay mothers more than just lip service. We pray for equal pay for equal work. We pray for paid maternity leave. We pray for access to health care and housing and education and all of the tools mothers need to flourish. Amen!        

Worship Resource: Earth Day

Opening Prayer                                                                                                                                       

God of the sparrow, God of the whale, God of quark and quasar, the Psalmist looked at the vastness of the heavens and wondered at your compassion for mere human beings. Thousands of years later we, too, wonder at the vastness of the universe while we exploit and pollute the Earth. Teach us to love our only home the way you love us. Teach us to treat our fellow beings with care. Free us from greed and fear, which drive our self-destructive behaviors. Teach us to trust in your abundant provision. Amen.

Worship Resource Lent 4A

Prayer of Confession                                                                                                                                     

We confess, O God, we often find ourselves confused. Like Nicodemus, we are searching for answers. Like Nicodemus, we find ourselves confused. Like Nicodemus, we approach you under cover of night, afraid of what it might mean to expose our broken hearts to the light of day. Like Nicodemus, it can be difficult to see that the one before us is the very one we seek. Like Nicodemus, keep us faithful to the end so that we, too, might bear witness to resurrection. Amen.