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Worship Order for
Sunday
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Call to
Worship
Day by day, God leads us:
to the deep, deep pools of peace, to the green, lush lawns of
grace.
Day by day, Jesus calls us:
to pour out ourselves in service, to anoint the stranger with
hope.
Day by day, the Holy Spirit shows us:
the community we could be, the family we are called to become.
from
Lectionary Liturgies, by Thom M. Shuman, Presbyterian Church
(U.S.A.).
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Opening
Prayer
Day by day, Gate of grace,
your love is poured
into the emptiness of our souls.
You share your joy
so we might be a blessing
to those all around us.
You are generous to a fault,
that we might have
glad and generous hearts.
Day by day,
Doorway to God's Heart,
you would lead us
down the streets of
discipleship and service,
uncomfortable as they
may seem to us,
knowing that at the
end of our journey,
we will find ourselves
at home with goodness and mercy.
Day by day,
Spirit of openness,
you watch over us,
so we will not wander
into the busy traffic
at the corner
of sin and death,
but will find our life
in the front yards
of the kingdom.
God in Community, Holy in One,
we open the gates of our hearts to you,
even as we pray, saying,
Our Father . . .
from
Lectionary Liturgies, by Thom M. Shuman, Presbyterian Church
(U.S.A.).
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A Challenge
1 Peter 2:18-25
(Cotton
Patch Bible)
On this fourth
Sunday of Easter, we hear this challenge from the apostle Peter
in his first letter to people in the early church. I will be
reading from the Cotton Patch Gospel, a contemporary paraphrase
by Clarence Jordon, who wrote with the deep south of our country
during the struggle for civil rights in mind. Listen.
"Employees, with all
humility be loyal to your bosses, not only to the kind and
considerate but even to the ornery ones. When someone with a
God-touched conscience endures the pain of undeserved injury,
this indeed is commendable. Now if you take it when you get
cussed out for doing something wrong, what's so great about
that? But if you're doing your job and then put up with abuse,
this wins God's approval. That's why God chose you. For Christ
too suffered for you and set an example for you so you might
walk in his tracks. He never did a mean thing, and nobody ever
caught him in a lie. When folks cussed him out, he never cussed
back; when beat up, he shouted no threats; instead, he put it
all in the hands of Him who sets things right. In order that we
might shuck off our sins and live a good life, he bore our
wrongs on his own shoulders as he hung from the tree. At his
flogging you were cured. For you all were wandering aimlessly
like sheep, but now you have been corralled by the shepherd and
overseer of your hearts."
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Responding with Psalm 23
(in unison)
Let's respond to this challenge with the familiar words of the
23rd Psalm, #814 in the back of your hymnal, an
affirmation of faith in the One who is the shepherd and overseer
of our hearts.
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall
not want;
he makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no
evil;
for thou art with me;
thy rod and thy staff,
they comfort
me.
Thou preparest a table before me
in the
presence of my enemies;
thou anointest my head with oil,
my cup
overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days
of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
forever. |
Hymnal
#814
from the Revised Standard Version.
Copyright 1946, 1952, 1959, 1973
by the Division of Christian Education of
the
National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States
of America.
All rights
reserved. Used by permission.
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Pastoral Prayer
written closer to the time (if not at the
moment)
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Returning
our Tithes and Offerings
In the
Letter to the Hebrews, we hear this instruction: "Let mutual love
continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by
doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it"
(Hebrews 13:1-2).
These words assume that in the fellowship of the risen Christ we
love one another. The exhortation is make sure this continues. The
very next thought, however, shifts our focus beyond the people we
already know and love. Because God has already shown hospitality to
us, having "prepared a table for (us) in the presence of (our)
enemies," we are invited to do the same for others. Along the
way of doing so interesting things happens. We may entertain angels
without knowing it. Chew on that thought as you return your offering
just now... Ushers?
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Benediction
Go now, listening for the voice of Christ,
and follow the example he left us.
Devote yourself to the apostles' teaching,
to fellowship,
to the breaking of bread
and to the prayers of God's people.
And may God lead you to places of rest and renewal;
May Christ Jesus give you life in abundance;
And may the Holy Spirit fill your hearts with gladness and
generosity. ©2002 Nathan Nettleton
LaughingBird.net
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(para traducir a español, presione la bandera de España)
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