Worship Text for September 6, 2020

 
Morning Worship Text: August  30, 2020

Ordinary Time - A Season for Spiritual Growth
Before we begin, gather a candle or small light, your Bible, a cross,  a piece of bread and a cup of juice or water. Place them at the center of a calm area in your home and gather comfortable seating for all who will join you. Place your phone, tablet  or computer where you can see and hear it. You may want to connect a charger, rather than rely on battery. Do you have a Bible or devotional book that you return to again and again? Or maybe a card or picture of some words of wisdom that you keep where you can see it? Add these to your worship center today.

Welcome

Musical Meditation

Focus

Lighting the Christ Candles      We light our candles or lights.
Voice One: In the beginning, God said,
Voice Two: "Let there be light," and there was light!
Voice One: We light these candles today,
Voice Two: Because God is with us in this time and in all these places!


Call to Worship  
Voice 1: The Word of God is planted in our hearts.
Voice 2: May our hearts be receptive to the Word.
Voice 1: The Love of God rains down on us.
Voice 2: May our souls soak in the wonder of God’s love.
Voice 1: The Breathe of God blows softly within us.
Voice 2: May our minds be stirred by the power of God’s spirit.

Written for Evangelical United Church of Christ, October 2001. Copyright Katherine Hawker. http://liturgyoutside.net/CPr27.html


Invocation    We pray together in unison.
O Holy God, how sweet your words are to taste,  sweeter than honey on the tongue.
Because you desire us to know your holy Word, help us to read it night and day.

O Holy Spirit, come to us this day and teach us sweet words again!  Make our minds and thoughts richer, so that we may know your law and your word can show us  your loving and wise heart. Amen.

~ written by Rev. Jan Brooks, Cottonwood Falls Presbyterian Church, Kansas.

Scripture: Psalm 119:33-40 & Romans 13: 8-14

Psalm 119:33-40

Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes,
    and I will observe it to the end.
Give me understanding, that I may keep your law
    and observe it with my whole heart.
Lead me in the path of your commandments,
    for I delight in it.
Turn my heart to your decrees,
    and not to selfish gain.
Turn my eyes from looking at vanities;
    give me life in your ways.
Confirm to your servant your promise,
    which is for those who fear you.
Turn away the disgrace that I dread,
    for your ordinances are good.
See, I have longed for your precepts;
    in your righteousness give me life.

Romans 13: 8-14  
Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet”; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.
Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Sermon


Invitation to the Table The bread and cup and placed on the table for the Lord’s Supper.


Prayer of Communion Elders this month are Will Bondurant and Judy Halstead.


Words of Institution We break the bread and lift the cup as the words are spoken.


The Lord's Supper We share in the bread and cup as we hear the music.


Prayer of Thanksgiving "The Lord's Prayer"

Our Father, 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 forever.  Amen.


Prayers of the People
God, just as You rescued the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt,
setting them free to worship and serve You,
so You have also rescued us,
setting us free from slavery to sin and selfishness,
and inviting us into relationship with You and one another.
We praise You for the love and mercy You have shown toward us.

You call us to love and serve You
by loving and serving our brothers and sisters, near and far;
to put their needs and interests ahead of our own,
and so to fulfill Your law of love.
And so we offer our prayers for the world You created,
Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for all  who are living with serious illness or injury, whether it be the COVID 19 virus or another condition complicated by the pandemic,
Open our hearts to see the health needs in our neighborhoods,
and to respond with Your love.
Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

On this Labour Day weekend,
We pray for all who do essential work in the midst of this pandemic. We are grateful for the labor which sustain us and keep our essential systems moving for life and health. Sustain our essential workers- healthcare workers, custodians and cleaners, food service and grocery workers, police, firefighters, and more.... Oh God, guard these folks' health and families. Keep us mindful of this work.
Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

On this Labor Day weekend, we pray for all whose work has changed completely, for all who are having to rethink everything they know about work. We are grateful for creativity, ingenuity and innovation. Sustain our adaptive workers - teachers, factory workers, small business owners, everyone working at home, and more... Oh God, guard these folks' health and families. Keep us mindful of this work.
Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

On this Labor Day Weekend, we pray for all who have no work, whose jobs have evaporated completely in this time of crisis and are struggling to make ends meet. We are grateful for perserverance of spirit, for tenacity and for a close-knit community. Sustain our workers whose main work is seeking new skills, new jobs and new hope.... Oh God, guard these folks' health and families. Keep us mindful of this work.
Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

We also pray for Your church, the Body of Christ on earth.
We pray that we would be a living example of Your love in our world,
   treating one another with compassion and respect,
   settling differences with love and integrity,
   bound together by our common allegiance to You.
Open our hearts to see one another,
and to respond with Your love.
Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

We praise You for the way of love modeled for us by Jesus Christ.
Open our hearts and lives to your ongoing presence among us,
so that we would grow in faithfulness and love,
and bring honour to Your name.  Amen.

-adapted from a prayer by Christine Longhurst, https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2011/08/prayers-of-people-september-4-2011.html



Challenge for Discipleship

Blessing     We speak in unison.

The Light that was in one place and at one time, is now in all places and all times, for God has placed the light in us.   We abide in peace!