Proper 22 | Ordinary Time 27
Worship
Lectionary Worship Workbook
Series IV, Cycle B
Call To Worship
A general prayer.
Leader:
As a father protects his little ones,
People:
So God protects us.
Leader:
As a mother nurtures her babies as they grow,
People:
So God nurtures us.
Leader:
As a good papa feels the pain of his children,
People:
So God experiences pain along with us.
Leader:
As a loving mama never gives up on her children,
People:
So God never gives up on us.
Leader:
Yahweh is a protecting father, a loving mother.
People:
Let us worship God.
If you preach on marriage this week, the following responsive reading, based on 1 Corinthians 13 might be useful.
Reader 1:
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels
Reader 2:
But have not love,
Reader 3:
I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
Reader 1:
If I have the gift of prophecy,
Reader 4:
Understanding all mysteries and having all knowledge,
Reader 5:
And if I have faith that can move mountains
Reader 2:
But have not love,
Reader 3:
I am nothing.
Reader 1:
And if I give away all I own,
Reader 4:
Even delivering my body to be burned,
Reader 2:
But have not love,
Reader 3:
I gain nothing.
Reader 5:
Love is patient and kind, it does not envy or boast,
Reader 1:
It is not arrogant or rude,
Reader 2:
It does not insist on its own way,
Reader 3:
It is not irritable or resentful,
Reader 4:
Love does not rejoice in wrong but celebrates right.
Reader 5:
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Reader 1:
Love never ends.
The Mark passage brings to mind many images having to do with familial love. This one is motherly.
Leader:
Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
People:
And have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Leader:
Even though a mother may forget,
People:
I will not forget you! says God.
Leader:
I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
People:
I think of you always,
Leader:
As a mother thinks of her children.
People:
Lift up your eyes and see;
Leader:
I will take care of you.
People:
Though you were ruined,
Leader:
Though misery came upon you,
People:
And tough times abounded,
Leader:
The day will come when kings and queens will bow down before you.
People:
Then you will know that I am God
Leader:
And that those who hope in me will not be disappointed.
People:
I will contend with those who contend with you,
Leader:
And your children I will save.
People:
Then all humanity will know
Leader:
That I, the Lord, am your Savior.
People:
Let us praise our loving God.
The Hebrews passage contains a quote from Psalm 8 which might be used as a Call To Worship.
Leader:
What is the human race that you are mindful of us?
People:
Why do you care about us?
Leader:
You made us a little lower than the angels;
People:
You crowned us with glory and honor
Leader:
And put everything on this earth under our feet.
People:
We praise you for this place of honor. Amen.
Prayer Of Confession
This one is on marriage and family.
Leader:
In the beginning God created "Adamah" -- humanity.
People:
Male and female, God created them.
Leader:
Partners.
People:
Equal before the Lord.
Leader:
No dominance,
People:
Or subservience.
Leader:
Peers in partnership with their Creator.
People:
Until ...
Leader:
Lord God, forgive us that even we Christians,
People:
New creations in Christ,
Leader:
In whom the old has passed away and the new has come;
People:
Forgive us that we perpetuate fallen relationships,
Leader:
That we allow,
People:
Even encourage,
Leader:
Dominance by one gender, or race, or creed over others.
People:
Forgive us
Leader:
And teach us to live fully into your perfect intentions for us,
People:
Intentions of justice,
Leader:
Equality,
People:
And love.
Leader:
We pray it in the name of the one who embraced all,
People:
Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
Isaiah 45:9-12 refers to the way we often treat the one who made us a little lower than the angels. This might also be useful if you are using the Job text.
Leader:
Woe to him who complains to his Maker,
People:
As a pot might argue with the potter!
Leader:
Does the clay say to him who fashions it, "What are you making?" or "You forgot my handles"?
People:
Woe to the child who says to a father, "What kind of child are you raising?"
Leader:
Woe to the unborn child who says to its mother, "What are you making in here?"
People:
Hear what God says: "Will you question me about how I treat you,
Leader:
Or command me concerning the work of my hands?
People:
Have you forgotten that I made the earth, and created humanity?"
Leader:
Lord, forgive us for rejecting your plans for our lives,
People:
And for forgetting that you made us,
Leader:
That you love us,
People:
And that your plan is better for us than any plan we could ever conceive ourselves.
Leader:
And thank you for always gently reminding us,
People:
And graciously forgiving us,
Leader:
That we might return to the path of your perfect will that leads to glory for each of us.
People:
Amen.
This one is really out of the blue, but if you are doing anything this time of year about stewardship we have included a couple of prayers in this week's material that might help. These have nothing to do with the texts for this week.
Leader:
More thoughts of money than anything else.
People:
Debt drowning us.
Leader:
Bills breathing down our necks.
People:
Payments piling up.
Leader:
And we fret
People:
And sweat.
Leader:
But even when we are flush,
People:
Still our thoughts
Leader:
Are of money.
People:
The motorhome we yearn for,
Leader:
The sporty car of our dreams,
People:
The big-screen, DVD, surround-sound,
Leader:
In-home theater system.
People:
Lord, we confess
Leader:
Our obsession with
People:
Money!
Leader:
Forgive us
People:
And truly teach us
Leader:
Its eternal insignificance.
People:
We ask in the power of Jesus' name. Amen.
This one, too, has a stewardship emphasis.
Leader:
Homes with heat,
People:
Indoor plumbing,
Leader:
Antibiotics,
People:
Telephones,
Leader:
Electricity,
People:
Microwave ovens,
Leader:
Computers,
People:
Automobiles,
Leader:
Refrigeration,
People:
Clean water,
Leader:
A plentiful food supply,
People:
Freedom.
Leader:
Lord, these are just a few of the things we take for granted day in and day out.
People:
Open our eyes that we may see.
Assurance Of Pardon
This Assurance goes with an emphasis on marriage and family.
The man said to me with tears in his eyes, "She has loved me through years of putting my job first. She loved me when I wanted to be a big shot and spent a lot of time at the club rubbing elbows with important people. She loved me when I was moody and distant. She loved me when I was unfaithful. She loves me still, though I don't come close to deserving her love."
And I said to him, "She loves you with the love of God; for his love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. His love never ends."
But that is not all that I said to my friend. After I encouraged him to celebrate his wife's godly love for him, I told him, "Now go and do everything you can to live a life worthy of that love!"
This is the whole gospel. He forgives and continues to love us always. Receive and celebrate that love. Then go live a life worthy of it.
Prayer Of Dedication
Jesus said -- the one who is forgiven much loves much, but the one who is forgiven little loves little.
Lord, I wonder what our offering says about how much we have been forgiven, and how much we love. May it say what it ought to say. Amen.
Prayer For Illumination
Leader:
Our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead.
People:
Yeah. It's old news.
Leader:
He saved us from our sin.
People:
Stale.
Leader:
So we could have new life.
People:
Trite.
Leader:
And he will live in us if we let him.
People:
Pass?.
Leader:
Lord, help us to hear with new ears this morning so that the news might not be old and tired, but fresh, and new, and alive.
People:
Amen.
Pastoral Prayer
Let us pray: Lord, blindness runs in the family, the human family that is. We go about our business rarely thinking about the near-miracles that surround us every moment of the day. From the light bulb that comes on when we flip the switch, to the hot shower that starts our day, to the mass-produced breakfast cereal we sleepily munch at the table.
To say nothing of the faces that look back at us across that table or the Lord who looks down on us and sustains these amazing bodies with blood pumping and neurons firing and lungs energizing and more.
Open our eyes Lord, that we may see and be humbled. Amen.
Benediction
Use the chorus of the hymn "Jesus, Jesus, How I Trust Him" as a benediction. If you are good, sing it!
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust him,
How I've proved him o'er and o'er,
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust you more.
Hymns
A Charge To Keep I Have
All Things Are Thine
Bless Thou The Gifts Our Hands Have Brought
Freely, Freely
Give Of Our Best To The Master
Glorious Is Thy Name, Most Holy
I Bring Thee All
I Gave My Life For Thee
Jesus Is Lord Of All (Gaither)
Let Your Heart Be Broken
O Master, Let Me Walk With Thee
Our Best
Something For Thee
We Give Thee But Thine Own
Marriage emphasis
A Christian Home
As For Me And My House
Happy The Home When God Is There
I Would Be Like Jesus
O Happy Home
O Perfect Love
She Will Be Called Blessed
Unless The Lord The House Shall Build
Contemporary Choruses
Seek Ye First, Karen Lafferty
Steadfast Love Of The Lord, The
We Bow Down, Twila Paris
We Bring The Sacrifice Of Praise, Kirk Dearman
Worthy, You Are Worthy, Don Moen
Other Music
Always Have, Always Will, Avalon
God will always love us.
God Is God, Stephen Curtis Chapman
God knows the big picture and we don't, so we must trust God.
Reigning, Ray Boltz
God is still reigning.
Marriage emphasis
How Beautiful, Twila Paris
I Will Be Here, Stephen Curtis Chapman
One of our favorite songs on marriage.
If You Could See What I See, Geoff Moore
Moore tells his wife the beauty he sees in her.
A general prayer.
Leader:
As a father protects his little ones,
People:
So God protects us.
Leader:
As a mother nurtures her babies as they grow,
People:
So God nurtures us.
Leader:
As a good papa feels the pain of his children,
People:
So God experiences pain along with us.
Leader:
As a loving mama never gives up on her children,
People:
So God never gives up on us.
Leader:
Yahweh is a protecting father, a loving mother.
People:
Let us worship God.
If you preach on marriage this week, the following responsive reading, based on 1 Corinthians 13 might be useful.
Reader 1:
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels
Reader 2:
But have not love,
Reader 3:
I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
Reader 1:
If I have the gift of prophecy,
Reader 4:
Understanding all mysteries and having all knowledge,
Reader 5:
And if I have faith that can move mountains
Reader 2:
But have not love,
Reader 3:
I am nothing.
Reader 1:
And if I give away all I own,
Reader 4:
Even delivering my body to be burned,
Reader 2:
But have not love,
Reader 3:
I gain nothing.
Reader 5:
Love is patient and kind, it does not envy or boast,
Reader 1:
It is not arrogant or rude,
Reader 2:
It does not insist on its own way,
Reader 3:
It is not irritable or resentful,
Reader 4:
Love does not rejoice in wrong but celebrates right.
Reader 5:
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Reader 1:
Love never ends.
The Mark passage brings to mind many images having to do with familial love. This one is motherly.
Leader:
Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
People:
And have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Leader:
Even though a mother may forget,
People:
I will not forget you! says God.
Leader:
I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
People:
I think of you always,
Leader:
As a mother thinks of her children.
People:
Lift up your eyes and see;
Leader:
I will take care of you.
People:
Though you were ruined,
Leader:
Though misery came upon you,
People:
And tough times abounded,
Leader:
The day will come when kings and queens will bow down before you.
People:
Then you will know that I am God
Leader:
And that those who hope in me will not be disappointed.
People:
I will contend with those who contend with you,
Leader:
And your children I will save.
People:
Then all humanity will know
Leader:
That I, the Lord, am your Savior.
People:
Let us praise our loving God.
The Hebrews passage contains a quote from Psalm 8 which might be used as a Call To Worship.
Leader:
What is the human race that you are mindful of us?
People:
Why do you care about us?
Leader:
You made us a little lower than the angels;
People:
You crowned us with glory and honor
Leader:
And put everything on this earth under our feet.
People:
We praise you for this place of honor. Amen.
Prayer Of Confession
This one is on marriage and family.
Leader:
In the beginning God created "Adamah" -- humanity.
People:
Male and female, God created them.
Leader:
Partners.
People:
Equal before the Lord.
Leader:
No dominance,
People:
Or subservience.
Leader:
Peers in partnership with their Creator.
People:
Until ...
Leader:
Lord God, forgive us that even we Christians,
People:
New creations in Christ,
Leader:
In whom the old has passed away and the new has come;
People:
Forgive us that we perpetuate fallen relationships,
Leader:
That we allow,
People:
Even encourage,
Leader:
Dominance by one gender, or race, or creed over others.
People:
Forgive us
Leader:
And teach us to live fully into your perfect intentions for us,
People:
Intentions of justice,
Leader:
Equality,
People:
And love.
Leader:
We pray it in the name of the one who embraced all,
People:
Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
Isaiah 45:9-12 refers to the way we often treat the one who made us a little lower than the angels. This might also be useful if you are using the Job text.
Leader:
Woe to him who complains to his Maker,
People:
As a pot might argue with the potter!
Leader:
Does the clay say to him who fashions it, "What are you making?" or "You forgot my handles"?
People:
Woe to the child who says to a father, "What kind of child are you raising?"
Leader:
Woe to the unborn child who says to its mother, "What are you making in here?"
People:
Hear what God says: "Will you question me about how I treat you,
Leader:
Or command me concerning the work of my hands?
People:
Have you forgotten that I made the earth, and created humanity?"
Leader:
Lord, forgive us for rejecting your plans for our lives,
People:
And for forgetting that you made us,
Leader:
That you love us,
People:
And that your plan is better for us than any plan we could ever conceive ourselves.
Leader:
And thank you for always gently reminding us,
People:
And graciously forgiving us,
Leader:
That we might return to the path of your perfect will that leads to glory for each of us.
People:
Amen.
This one is really out of the blue, but if you are doing anything this time of year about stewardship we have included a couple of prayers in this week's material that might help. These have nothing to do with the texts for this week.
Leader:
More thoughts of money than anything else.
People:
Debt drowning us.
Leader:
Bills breathing down our necks.
People:
Payments piling up.
Leader:
And we fret
People:
And sweat.
Leader:
But even when we are flush,
People:
Still our thoughts
Leader:
Are of money.
People:
The motorhome we yearn for,
Leader:
The sporty car of our dreams,
People:
The big-screen, DVD, surround-sound,
Leader:
In-home theater system.
People:
Lord, we confess
Leader:
Our obsession with
People:
Money!
Leader:
Forgive us
People:
And truly teach us
Leader:
Its eternal insignificance.
People:
We ask in the power of Jesus' name. Amen.
This one, too, has a stewardship emphasis.
Leader:
Homes with heat,
People:
Indoor plumbing,
Leader:
Antibiotics,
People:
Telephones,
Leader:
Electricity,
People:
Microwave ovens,
Leader:
Computers,
People:
Automobiles,
Leader:
Refrigeration,
People:
Clean water,
Leader:
A plentiful food supply,
People:
Freedom.
Leader:
Lord, these are just a few of the things we take for granted day in and day out.
People:
Open our eyes that we may see.
Assurance Of Pardon
This Assurance goes with an emphasis on marriage and family.
The man said to me with tears in his eyes, "She has loved me through years of putting my job first. She loved me when I wanted to be a big shot and spent a lot of time at the club rubbing elbows with important people. She loved me when I was moody and distant. She loved me when I was unfaithful. She loves me still, though I don't come close to deserving her love."
And I said to him, "She loves you with the love of God; for his love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. His love never ends."
But that is not all that I said to my friend. After I encouraged him to celebrate his wife's godly love for him, I told him, "Now go and do everything you can to live a life worthy of that love!"
This is the whole gospel. He forgives and continues to love us always. Receive and celebrate that love. Then go live a life worthy of it.
Prayer Of Dedication
Jesus said -- the one who is forgiven much loves much, but the one who is forgiven little loves little.
Lord, I wonder what our offering says about how much we have been forgiven, and how much we love. May it say what it ought to say. Amen.
Prayer For Illumination
Leader:
Our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead.
People:
Yeah. It's old news.
Leader:
He saved us from our sin.
People:
Stale.
Leader:
So we could have new life.
People:
Trite.
Leader:
And he will live in us if we let him.
People:
Pass?.
Leader:
Lord, help us to hear with new ears this morning so that the news might not be old and tired, but fresh, and new, and alive.
People:
Amen.
Pastoral Prayer
Let us pray: Lord, blindness runs in the family, the human family that is. We go about our business rarely thinking about the near-miracles that surround us every moment of the day. From the light bulb that comes on when we flip the switch, to the hot shower that starts our day, to the mass-produced breakfast cereal we sleepily munch at the table.
To say nothing of the faces that look back at us across that table or the Lord who looks down on us and sustains these amazing bodies with blood pumping and neurons firing and lungs energizing and more.
Open our eyes Lord, that we may see and be humbled. Amen.
Benediction
Use the chorus of the hymn "Jesus, Jesus, How I Trust Him" as a benediction. If you are good, sing it!
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust him,
How I've proved him o'er and o'er,
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust you more.
Hymns
A Charge To Keep I Have
All Things Are Thine
Bless Thou The Gifts Our Hands Have Brought
Freely, Freely
Give Of Our Best To The Master
Glorious Is Thy Name, Most Holy
I Bring Thee All
I Gave My Life For Thee
Jesus Is Lord Of All (Gaither)
Let Your Heart Be Broken
O Master, Let Me Walk With Thee
Our Best
Something For Thee
We Give Thee But Thine Own
Marriage emphasis
A Christian Home
As For Me And My House
Happy The Home When God Is There
I Would Be Like Jesus
O Happy Home
O Perfect Love
She Will Be Called Blessed
Unless The Lord The House Shall Build
Contemporary Choruses
Seek Ye First, Karen Lafferty
Steadfast Love Of The Lord, The
We Bow Down, Twila Paris
We Bring The Sacrifice Of Praise, Kirk Dearman
Worthy, You Are Worthy, Don Moen
Other Music
Always Have, Always Will, Avalon
God will always love us.
God Is God, Stephen Curtis Chapman
God knows the big picture and we don't, so we must trust God.
Reigning, Ray Boltz
God is still reigning.
Marriage emphasis
How Beautiful, Twila Paris
I Will Be Here, Stephen Curtis Chapman
One of our favorite songs on marriage.
If You Could See What I See, Geoff Moore
Moore tells his wife the beauty he sees in her.
