A Thanksgiving Thought –

Liturgy from our Thanksgiving Worship

This was not from this week but last. Unfortunately, I did not get a picture of the beautiful final altarscape with the vessel completely returned to wholeness. We have been putting it together throughout our journey in Exodus and now that they have crossed the Jordan, it is completed.

Call to Worship – based on Psalm 22

Pastor: There are days God feels far away from us

People: God, my god, why have you forsaken me?

Pastor: There are days we wonder if God hears the groanings of our hearts.

People: God, why does it seem you are so far from me?

Pastor: There are times we may wonder if there is a God at all.

People: O God, I cry day and by night, but you are silent and I find no rest.

Pastor: Do not fear, beloved, God is as close as your breath. God is seeking the way of good in every moment. Trust in the Lord your God.

Invocation

Creator, Sustainer, and Protector, make yourself known to us. Do not be far from us, but gather our tears and allay our fears. Let us know you in our hearts. Let us hear you cry out, “ Peace!” in our soul as Jesus did in the storm. Help us to still ourselves and take respite from the world long enough to remember that you are God. AMEN

Preparing

Prayer of Transformation

Teilhard de Chardin offered the ideas that in all our dark moments, God is present. God is in the parting of the fibers of our being and penetrating the very marrow of our substance . . .

Stop.

Listen.

Absorb in the silence the active stillness of a God seeking to work in your heart.

Moment of Stillness

AMEN

Response to Stillness –

May the movement of God within and through you not only work to heal you, but may it heal the whole of the world.

Pastoral Prayer

On this Thanksgiving Sunday, when Christians everywhere proclaim Christ is King, may we give thanks for the people in our lives:

Those who brought us to life,

Those who cared for us when we were young,

Our teachers,

Our mentors,

Our bosses,

Our partners,

Our friends.

Let us give thanks for those who make our days easier:

our mail delivery person,

the person who makes us food or coffee,

the bank tellers,

neighbors,

garage mechanics,

the grocery check out person,

and the bagger.

Let us give thanks for those who seek to make our lives healthier:

our doctors,

physical therapists,

chiropractors,

dentists,

cardiologists,

nurses,

physicians assistants,

mental health professionals,

and nutritionists.

Let us give thanks for those we forget to acknowledge who make life go smoother:

the road workers,

the tree trimmers,

the traffic directors,

the civil engineers,

water treatment staff,

electricians,

plumbers,

carpenters.

We are thankful for all the people who give of their time and talents to make this world a better place. God, may you continue to inspire them in their calling and let them know how their work is truly a ministry in the world.

We pray also this day for those who are feeling down on their luck and for whom giving thanks seems more like a joke than a possibility. May you strengthen their reserves. May you move helpers into their lives. May you make level their path. May you give them concrete and palpable hope that there are those who see them and understand their need.

We pray also for those on our minds today. Hear as we lift their names to you:

(Have people speak the names of those who are on their heart)

We pray all of this in the name of Jesus, our King of Kings, and your son, who taught us to pray saying:

& Lord’s Prayer

Prayer of Illumination –

O Lord, speak to our hearts. Let your words move beyond our ears and take root in the deepest corners of our soul so that it might grow and transform our ways. AMEN

Invitation to share –

Today, we are invited to not only put in our weekly offering, but to dedicate the pledges that have been coming in for weeks. We honor the thoughtful consideration that has gone into deciding how much to pledge to the mission and ministry of this gathered body.

As the plates are passed, please put any final pledges in the plate. We give not out of necessity, but out of desire; not out of confidence, but out of humility; not out of what is left over, but boldly from our first fruits. We give knowing that we together with each other and with God truly can change the world.

Prayer of Dedication

God of the Ages, receive today both our offerings for the day and the promise of tomorrow. Unify us in spirit. Unify us in ministry. Unify us in mission. May you receive our pledges and our gifts. May they show honor to you, and may they go to serve all of the world in your name and to your purpose. AMEN

A Flexible Liturgy

Call to Worship – based on Psalm 19

Pastor: The law of the Lord is perfect;

People: it revives the soul.

Pastor: The decrees of the Lord are sure;

People: making the wise simple.

Pastor: The precepts of the Lord are right.

People: We rejoice in our hearts the ways of God.

Pastor: God’s ways are more precious than gold.

People: They are sweeter than honey dripping fresh from the honeycomb.

Invocation

Holy one, we seek to know you. Enlighten our eyes. Give hunger to our souls. Teach us and show us your ways. Let not just the words of your mouth and the meditations of our heart be acceptable to you, but let all that we do bring you honor and praise. Amen

Unison Prayer of Transformation

God of tangles and frayed edges, we lay ourselves before your seeking healing and wholeness. Patiently untangle our life. Hem our edges and mend the tears. See the beauty in our disarray and weave us even more fully into the wonder and beauty you imagined. Remind us that we are created by your hand and that your acts of creation do not end at our birth. Continue to act on us and in us. Let us become the masterpieces you imagine. AMEN

Assurance of Love

Pastor: God is always working on you, with you, and in you. You are a masterpiece in the making and you are beloved just as you are. Both are true. May you feel the love of God constantly around you, guiding you, sustaining you, and celebrating you.

Pastoral Prayer

Holy God,

Your children are crying. Hear their pain. Be attentive to their suffering. Recognize their fears. Hold them in their anxiety.

Search each person’ heart for that which they are holding onto.

Today, we hold all of humanity. We hold the young and the old and everyone in between. We hold those that live next door, those that live on the other side of the world and everyone in between. We pray for the care of all. We pray for their needs to be met. We pray for not only their survival but for their flourishing.

May warfare be quelled.

May food be plentiful.

May education be available.

May water be clean and the air fresh.

May kindness and compassion, love and care, infuse all.

We pray this for all;

And we pray specifically today for . . .

We pray all of this in the name of your son, Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together saying . . .

Lord’s Prayer

Prayer of Illumination

Holy and Gracious God,

You have gifted us with language. You gave us letters that we could combine to make words. Words that we could combine to make sentences. Sentences that we can put together to tell stories. Stories which get built up and retold to create our culture. As we hear our story today, let us hear at all levels. What did this story mean? What might it mean now? What can it mean in the future? Bless our hearing. Bless our understanding. AMEN

Prayer of Dedication

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Adonai. You have poured on us abundant blessings. We recognize that what we return is but a portion of what we received. We are so grateful for all that you have done; so receive these gifts as a token of our gratitude and a sign of our appreciation. As we give here in these plates, we give also through our lives. Accept it all with the honor with which it was given. AMEN

Some liturgy from our mornings by the lakeside

Start in silent reflection:

Pastor: Before there was, there wasn’t.

Before there is, there was.

After there is, there will be.

May it be so.

Let us take a few moments to remember our place in all that was, is, and will be.

Lighting of the Candle

Pastor: Let us light the candle to remember in all of this there was, is, and will be God.

Call to worship:

Pastor: God bid us come to the lakeshore,

People: and we came.

Pastor: God calls us to love our neighbors as ourselves,

People: and we try.

Pastor: God inspires us to go out and do as Jesus did,

People: and we go

Pastor: bringing the love of God and the compassion of Jesus

People: where we can, when we can, and how we can. AMEN

Invocation:

God, you call us to be church in this world; not to go to church, but to be your church. We are here seeking to be just that: to refuel, to remember, to be revived. Send your Spirit upon us that we might be refilled to go out and share your love with the world that deeply needs it. AMEN

HYMN: Come Down to the Lakeshore –

The First Word

Let us hear this word offered by Abba Serinus:

They said of Abba Serinus that he used to work hard and always ate two small loaves. Abba Job, his companion and himself a great ascetic, went to see him and said, “I am careful about what I do in the cell, but when I come out I do as the brothers do.” Abba Serinus said to him, “there is no great virtue in keeping to your regime in your cell, but there is if you keep it when you come out of your cell.”

Here ends our reading. May God add to our understanding.

Silent Reflection

The Second Word: Acts 5: 1-10

Silent Reflection

Response – offering people an opportunity to reflect

Reflection – longer sharing from clergy or other worship leader

UNISON PRAYER- Inspired by the work of George MacLeod found in John Phillip Newell’s book Rebirthing God with the help of AI and editing.

Gathering God,
You join us together like the waters of this lake—
distinct, yet inseparable.

In a world that divides,
make us one in compassion,
one in hope,
one in the creation of justice.

Let us recognize our uniqueness

and also celebrate what we are when we come together.

In our interconnectedness,

let no one feel forgotten,
let every voice be heard,
And let each drop show its full wonder.

Let us together
be a glimpse of your kin-dom and our eternal home.
AMEN

PRAYER FOR THE PEOPLE

Pastor: Are there people that we should hold in our prayers today?

Pastor: May God be with each and offer them healing and hope as they have need. AMEN

UNISON PRAYER FOR THE OFFERING of GIFTS

Holy One, In a world where many are taught to hold tightly to what they have and seek to acquire more for fear of not enough, we have chosen to hear you and to open our hands and our heart. Receive these gifts as a sign of our love and commitment to you and your vision for this world. We trust in you. AMEN

Closing Litany – Lao-Tse

Pastor: If there is to be peace in the world,

People: There must be peace in the nations.

Pastor: If there is to be peace in the nations,

People: There must be peace in the cities,

Pastor: If there is to be peace in the cities,

People: There must be peace between neighbors.

Pastor: If there is to be peace between neighbors,

People: There must be peace in the home.

Pastor: If there is to be peace in the home,

People: There must be peace in the heart.

RESPONSIVE HYMN: Let there be Peace on Earth

Liturgy for ONA Sunday

Opening Centering Chant –

I am precious in God’s sight.

You are precious in God’s sight.

All are precious in God’s sight.

Call to Worship

Pastor: Within each of us lies a holy seed.

People: Let us tend it. Let us nurture it.

Pastor: Let us not fear it as it presses its way to the surface.

People: God wants each of us to grow and thrive.

Pastor: The world needs each of us to grow and thrive.

People: Let us be as God designed.

Invocation

Holy One, pour your spirit upon us. Shine within us. Weed out that which chokes life and feed what brings it. Let us grow toward you; ever seeking, ever reaching to be all that you have created us to be. May our time today encourage us to continue to grow. AMEN

Prayer of Transformation

Liberation God,

Help me to peel off the facades that I have built up.

Take off the masks that I have created to protect myself and be what others thought I could or should be.

Remind me of my divine origin and inspire us each to nurture the divine flame within and encourage us to feed that flame in others.

Free us from expectations and revisions that society places on us and work with us to shed the ideas of shouldn’t, can’t, or that is not for you. Clear out our ears so that we might hear you whispering, “Beloved, you got this. Keep going.” Let us listen closely to our heart and with your support, bravely and honestly show who you made us to be. AMEN

Assurance of Pardon

God is our originator, our creator,

In us is the divine fingerprint.

Let us always seek to reveal that wonder within being fully who God created us to be.

Prayer of Illumination

Holy Spirit flow into our heart.

Open our ears and let us hear this spoken word.

May each phrase set upon us and enlighten our understanding of God’s kin-dom and dream. AMEN

Invitation to share

As one body, we do care for one another. This is what God asks of us.

Thus, like the earliest Christians, we gather our gifts together to help all of humanity and the ways of God.

Let us respond to the wonders of God and all of God’s gifts by opening our hands and our hearts.

Prayer of Dedication

God, Receive these gifts as a symbol of our deeper commitment to work together for the coming of your kin-dom of heaven on earth. AMEN

Liturgies continue

Call to Worship (Based on Psalm 118 )

Pastor: Give thanks to the Lord, for God is good.

People: God’s steadfast love endures forever!

Pastor: Be in awe of the wonders of God.

People: God’s steadfast love endures forever!

Pastor: Take refuge in God, rather than worldly princes.

People: God’s steadfast love endures forever!

Pastor: The Lord is our strength and our might. God is our salvation.

People: God’s steadfast love endures forever!

Invocation

Loving and gracious God, you are more than we can imagine. Help us to see your wondrous and diverse ways. Open us to the many ways that you make yourself known. Teach us to be generous and hospitable. In you and through you we seek to find our sacred center so that we can better walk in the footprints that your son first set. Give us hearts of compassion and spirits of courage as we work to bring to fruition your vision of heaven on earth. AMEN

Pastoral Prayer

Holy and Gracious God,

Your compassion is extravagant.

When your son came to show us what your love looked like in action,

We saw him care for all no matter their position or circumstances.

We watched him let interruptions become purposeful interactions.

We noticed how he took time to learn people’s names

And gather close to him those others had pushed away or ignored.

We remember his words even to the thief crucified beside him,

“Today you will be with me in paradise.”

To him no difference was too vast, no border too impenetrable, no person was unworthy.

Let us today pray for the vision you cast through your son.

Let us pray for people who are without homes and are left sleeping on the streets.

Let us pray for the people who will go without their HIV protocols because of bureaucratic savings.

Let us pray for people we pass everyday that don’t know where or how they will pay the rent or get food to feed their families.

Let us pray for the growing lines at the food pantry.

Let us pray for those who walk thousands of miles to seek hope

And for those in Gaza being squeezed harder and harder into smaller and smaller spaces.

Let us pray for those who are detained and incarcerated without proper due process.

Let us pray for the battered areas in our world that fade from our news cycles.

Let us pray for those imprisoned,

Those in recovery,

Those seeking help for physical and emotional suffering.

Let us open our hearts and offer to God all of those who we know to need God’s balm and care today:

God in your compassion gather your chicks under your breast and give them a safe place to rest. Infuse your love in the form of justice into the wider world encouraging us all to step in and heal the hurting as we can, where we can, when we can.

We pray this in the name of your son, and our brother, who taught us so well and who shared with us this prayer which we say together now:

Followed by the Lord’s prayer

CALL TO WORSHIP (based on Psalm 104)

Pastor: Bless the Lord, O my soul.

People: The Lord is great, clothed with honor and majesty and wrapped in light as with a garment.

Pastor: The Lord has stretched the heavens like a tent across all the earth.

People: God has set the earth on its foundations.

Pastor: and created all that is within, and upon, and around this earth.

People: Every bird and every tree, every blade of grass, every mountain, every rock, every spring bursting forth with water, God has made all things.

Pastor: God made the moon and the sun. God set the seasons into motion.

People: God made the darkness and light.

Pastor: God made humanity

People: and blew air into our very lungs.

Pastor: God is the creator and the redeemer of all.

People: God is our beginning and our end.

ALL: Bless the Lord, O our souls.

Pastoral Prayer – God as the one who catches us

Pastoral Prayer –

Holy God who fishes for humanity,

We pray this day that you throw your net into the world.

There are so many who need to be caught by you:

There are those harboring resentments and anger,

Those lost in old storylines of who they could be or should be.

There are those who feel tossed and turned on the sea of life,

And those drowning in the murky waters of half-truths and made up tales.

There are those who feel abandoned out in the wide waters,

And those who are struggling trying to navigate their current conditions.

There are those who need someone to hear their cries for help and throw them a lifeline;

And those who have thrown themselves in the sea believing that no one would miss them if they were swallowed by the depths.

There are those who are afraid to sail into deep waters;

And those who hesitate to even leave port.

So many need your presence, Lord, be with them and meet them where they are.

Today, we also have specific people on our mind that need your care. Listen as we say their names:

Invite people to say names one atop the other trusting that God knows already who is in need and what they are in need of.

In your mercy, care for all who are in need; those we have named and those who we have left unnamed, and even those we do not know to name. We pray all of this in the name of your son, who taught us to pray together saying:

& Lord’s Prayer

Our Father / Mother / Creator*, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy Name,

thy kingdom come,

thy will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those

who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,

and the power, and the glory,

for ever and ever. Amen.

*Use the words you are most comfortable with or try something you haven’t before to see how that fits or pushes against your theology (understanding of God). Take some time to reflect on your experience.

This was used along with our reading of Luke 5:1-11, which is a Lectionary reading for the 5th Sunday of Epiphany in Year C.

Psalm inspired liturgy

Sometimes it can be a challenge to write liturgy from week to week, so sometimes I need to look elsewhere for inspiration. Sometimes I find liturgy that others have written that I can use (I especially appreciate https://re-worship.blogspot.com/ ). Other times, I reach into the Biblical text, especially the Psalter. Because the Psalms were originally sung, the liturgy gathered from the Psalms practically writes itself. Here, for example, is the Call to Worship and Invocation that I am using this week, which is drawn from Psalm 18. One Psalm can often be the inspiration for a multitude of prayers, litanies, and the like. The Psalms are like a well that is fed by an unending aquafer.

Call to Worship

Pastor: In the Lord I take refuge.

People: God is my deliverer.

Pastor: God is my rock and my fortress.

People: God is my safe place.

Pastor: In the Lord, I put my hope and my trust.

People: God is my protector.

ALL: I will praise God forever more.

Invocation

O God, my protector, you are with me in all that I do: from my waking to my sleeping. You watch over me and seek to guide me. Today, in this time, wake me up so that I may witness your work and begin to see the world around me with more clarity. AMEN

An extra special resource as it pertains to Psalmody is Richard Bruxvoort Cooligan’s Psalm Immersion. His musical creations from the Psalms can be used as background for meditation, for musical prayer responses, or for deepening your perspective on a specific psalm. I encourage you to check his work out.

NOTE: You are welcome to use the liturgy in worship or educational settings. Please cite the origin sources.