Leader: Come, let us worship People: For we are the people of God's pasture.
Leader: Come, let us worship and bow down, People: For we are the sheep of God's hand.
Leader: Come, let us worship and bow down,
before the Lord, our Maker. All: For the Lord is our God,
and God desires our worship!
Gentle Shepherd ... King of Love,
we come to you as we are, not as we pretend to be.
In truth, Guide and Guardian,
when we lift our heads above our path,
we - like sheep - often discover ourselves
wandering aimlessly amid
a maze of choices.
We confess from the very beginning of this worship
that we are lost...
Were it not for you,
Great Seeker of our souls,
Patient Parent to our childhood,
Joyful Host to our homecoming;
Were it not for you, O Lord,
we would be lost forever.
But, because of what you have done
and
continue to do,
there is room for us in your
house,
at
your table.
Gentle Shepherd ... King of Love,
as we seek you this hour, remind us
that you have first sought and found us,
just as we are, not as we pretend to be;
that you patiently guide and guard us
through dark valleys
toward green pastures.
and teach us how to live along the way.
This we pray in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Start the below
video and have it run in background. Invite children forward.
When all are there, start. The below are only questions to get
conversation going. The children will be at various stages in
their ability to make a connection between sheep and people.
Most younger ones are very literal, so don’t push the figurative
too hard. Just planting seeds to get them wondering. Older ones
will be at the cusp of making such connections. Even so, sheep
and shepherds – though prominent biblical images – are not
prevalent in our age. Thus, we are just bringing them in and
having fun with imagining what you do with sheep.
What are those? (sheep)
That’s a lot of sheep.
How many do you think are there? (have them guess)
I have no idea how many.
What are they doing? (walking down the road)
What keeps them together? (a shepherd)
What’s a shepherd? (someone who herds sheep)
How does a shepherd “herd” sheep? (tools like a staff, sheep dog, etc)
Why? (so they can eat grass)
Why? (wool, meat)
The Bible sometimes calls God a shepherd.
Why do you suppose that is?
Does God shepherd those kind of sheep?
God shepherds us? How?
Does that mean we are sheep?
Oh, we are sort of like sheep.
How so?
etc.
Pastoral Prayer
written closer to the time (if not at the
moment)
Returning
our Tithes and Offerings
Glorious God, we
know that your capacity to love is infinitely greater than our
own ability. Indeed, you call us to love one another in truth
and in action. We yearn to be active disciples, so that our
hearts truly abide with you. Use these gifts to increase our
ability to be your followers. In the name of the One who laid
down his life for us, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
Go now with your trust in the good shepherd,
and let us love, not just in words,
but in truth and action.
Believe in the name of Jesus Christ,
and love one another, just as he has commanded us.
And may God be at your side, even in valleys of death.
May Christ Jesus be the cornerstone of your life.
And may the Holy Spirit abide in you
....and tend you with love and mercy
all the days of your life.
International Lesson: Adult
Bible Studies
from The United Methodist Publishing House
(click "supplemental resources" and "current events supplement"
under both the "Student" and "Teacher" sections in the left hand column)