Responsive Call to Worship
(based upon Psalm 32)

Our hearts sing with joy when we know that we are free from deceit, and our sins are forgiven, but our lives disintegrate with worry and guilt when we keep silent about our wrongdoings.

When we seek your truth, O God, and acknowledge our sin, we experience your forgiveness.

Let all people reach out to you in prayer, O God, and know your protection and strength, so that embraced by your grace-filled presence and filled with your undeserved forgiveness, they sing your praise and shout for joy.

When we fail to listen, and persist in following other than God's way, our hearts are hardened and our lives tormented.

But when we put our trust in God, we are surrounded and filled with God's steadfast love.

Let all those who are upright in heart rejoice and shout for joy.

From "Liturgies Online"
by Rev. Moira Laidlaw
a retired minister in the Uniting Church in Australia

Opening Prayer

         How deep, indeed, are the riches of your grace, O Lord, and how great is your love! We have only begun to scratch the surface, to catch but a glimpse of who you are, and who we are in relation to you. Even so, we are filled with awe and wonder. We praise you, and thank you. May this time of worship be less about us and more about you.
         Through your Spirit, help us to open the door of our heart, soul, and mind and allow you entrance into our lives today. This we pray in the name of the One who said, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock..."
         Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest! Amen.

Invitation and Prayer

         God is at work among these new Brethren in Brazil. God is also at work here in the Valley, among the brothers and sisters gathered here. Did you ever think of yourself as a "missionary?" "Missionaries" are just people involved in God’s mission, whether in some distant place or right here and now.
         Soon the ushers will collect our offering, and you can know that what you give helps the church grow in Brazil, as well as in many other places - including right here. However, please understand that we don’t pay somebody else to do the mission work God has called each one of us individually, and all of us together, to be about.
         As the plates are passed make your own "moment for mission" and ponder what sort of "missionary" you are. What sort of "mission work" is God doing here in the Valley, as well as where you live and work? Would you pray with me?

         Thank you, God, for what you are doing in Brazil, among the Brethren there. We only see a small part of the much bigger picture of what you are about in this world. Bless your church, there and here, as we seek to grow in faith and truth. Guide us to more fully put to use all the resources you have given for the task at hand. This we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.