Thursday Night Call to Worship One: Holy God, Creator of us all, All: You have called us to this place. One: You, God of all creativity and imagination, All: have brought us here, each of us unique and yours. One: We each bring different gifts, All: But we all long to worship you. One: So now we will take this time to worship you as a new community, full of excitement and joy. All: Let us worship God! Prayer of Confession Merciful God, you made us in your image, with a mind to know you, a heart to love you, and a will to serve you. But as your works in progress, our knowledge is imperfect, our love inconstant, our obedience incomplete. Day by day, we fail to grow as you would like us to. We are too busy with all of the distractions in our lives to listen for your call. Sometimes when we hear your call, we choose to ignore it because it seems too hard. We find it easier to live our lives like the world tells us to live than we do to live as you would have us live. In your tender love, forgive us. Help us to start over, learning from our mistakes and moving forward to live as examples of your love. Amen. Assurance of Pardon No matter where we are, God is there. No matter what we have done, God forgives. No matter our hesitation to accept God, God has accepted us, just as we are. Know that you have been forgiven, and live in hope and joy! Passing of the Peace One: Friends, with the gift of forgiveness comes the gift of peace. Let us share this gift with one another! May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you! All: And also with you! Prayer for Illumination One: Let us pray. All: Loving God, you gave us the gift of your word so that we can know you better. Open our hearts tonight so that we might hear these words and feel your presence in a new way. Amen. Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer: Gracious and holy God, we come before you as works in progress. You come to us in so many ways: through dreams as you appeared to Joseph, through the stories of your son Jesus, through the teachings found in the Bible, through the communities that we have at school, in our families, and at church. You have called us here as a community of faith so that we might learn more about you and feel your presence more deeply in our lives, but to come here we had to leave the communities we know and love so much. Please be with us as we work to be truly present here in this place, even as we miss our families and friends back home. Help us to remember that you have called us just as we are. When the world tells us that we are not good enough for God, help us remember that you have called us just as we are. When we worry about proving ourselves to the world, remind us that we are loved for who we are, as we are. When we wonder what our purpose is in this world, help us find the places that our gifts from you meet the needs of your world. God, we are searching for you in our lives and in this place. We know that you are at work in our back home groups, our small groups, and in the friendships we are forming. You have called us to live life as your children, and we are excited to learn more about your call. We pray these things as your children, just as we pray these words that your son taught us to pray: 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 debts as we forgive our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever, amen. Offering: By offering our gifts to God, we give thanks and return some of what God has given to us. Our offering is more than the money we give. We offer ourselves to God, asking that our gifts may be used to do God’s work. God gave us these gifts out of love, and so at this time, we too will give gifts to God out of love. Prayer of Dedication: Holy God, we offer these gifts to you out of our love for you. Our gifts are not perfect, but because they are from you, we know that they can be used for good. Use these gifts to do your will, not our will. Use these gifts to do good in a world that is still a work in progress, in lives that are still works in progress. Amen. Friday Worship Call to Worship One: Here we are, Holy One. Our lives are messy... All: But you are in the mess. One: Our world is messy… All: But you are in the mess. One We come to you now, just as we are. All: You see us in the mess and say, “I have called you by name and you are mine.” One: We come to worship you now, just as we are. All: Let us worship God! Prayer of Confession Loving God, we come before you as imperfect people living in a messy world. We have sinned against you, not only by what we have done but also by the things that we haven’t done. We haven’t loved our neighbors as ourselves. We have done what is easy rather than what you have asked us to do. We hide from the messy places in this world instead of trying to bring those places peace and kindness. We don’t show up when we should. We know that you are a God of mercy and kindness, and so we come before you know asking for another chance. Forgive us of these things, and give us a clean slate to begin again. In your name we pray, amen. Assurance of Pardon Friends, this is what the good news means: There is nothing you can do to make God love you any more… and there is nothing you can do to make God love you any less. You are beloved. You are forgiven. Thanks be to God! From UKirk Worship Resource Passing of the Peace One: Friends, with the gift of forgiveness comes the gift of peace. Let us share this gift with one another! May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you! All: And also with you! Prayer for Illumination Holy God, you reveal yourself to us in so many ways. As we take this time to hear your word proclaimed, give us the eyes to see the miracles that happen everyday. Unclog our ears so that we may hear your word in a new way. Amen. Affirmation of Faith I believe in God the Father Almighty who created us and is continually forming us. I believe in Jesus Christ, who came to earth to live as a human being and dwell in the mess and joy of everyday life, but who died so that our lives may be marked by forgiveness and love. I believe in the Holy Ghost, who is with us all the time, no matter what mess we are in, and who reminded us time and time again that we are loved. I believe that I am still a work in progress, that my story isn’t finished yet, that God still has plans in store for me. I believe that my life will be marked by love and forgiveness, and that the mercy and teachings of Christ will be my guide until Christ comes again. Amen. Saturday Worship Call to Worship One: God was with Jacob when he grieved the loss of his son. All: God is with us now. One: God gave Joseph hope that he might be reunited with his family. All: God gives us courage to step out in faith. One: God is with us wherever we go. All: And God is at work in our world. One: Come, let us worship the Lord. Assurance of Pardon Whether we believe it or not, Jesus never leaves us or gives up on us, no matter what. Remember this, and open your heart to receive the grace that he offers us. We are forgiven! Thanks be to God! Passing of the Peace One: Friends, with the gift of forgiveness comes the gift of peace. Let us share this gift with one another! May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you! All: And also with you! Affirmation of Faith We believe in God, who made the world and reaches out to it with a love that is fierce and passionate, tender and kind. We believe in Jesus the Christ; God revealed in a human life. Jesus touched the untouchable and pardoned the unforgivable Raised by God, Jesus is parting the sea of evil and despair and leading us across into the land of freedom and promise. We believe in the Holy Spirit; whose breathing gives life; whose fire purges and renews; whose wisdom awakens courage and hope. Gathered by the Spirit, we have been baptized into a common life: overflowing with love and mercy; richer than mind can measure, but appearing foolish to the world. And we trust that the foolishness of God will prove wiser than the wisdom of the world, and that the suffering of God will heal the earth and fulfill our hopes of justice and peace. From LaughingBird.net Invitation to the Table Jesus met his disciples—women and men, young and old—and invited them to the table. Jesus still meets his disciples—women and men, young and old—and invites us to a seat at the table. As we gather around this table to celebrate communion, we receive the bread of new life, and we are together together from many tables to the table in the Kingdom of God. At this table, we are strengthened to go answer Christ’s call. Christ welcomes all and bids us to come and celebrate the feast. Let us pray. Prayer of Great Thanksgiving and the Lord’s Prayer Eternal God, it is right to give our thanks and praise. We rejoice in your perfect story. We give you thanks for your presence in the world and in our lives, for the ways in which you are in each of our stories, forming us, changing us, day in and day out. Loving God, Today we come to this table looking to be fed. We remember the stories of miraculous feeding, of manna in the wilderness, and the abundance of loaves and fishes, the miracle of the wine at the wedding in Cana, the feast set for the Prodigal Son. We are reminded that all of us are welcome at this table. You welcome those who feel that they have answers and those who are still asking questions. You welcome those who are strong and those who are broken. You welcome those for whom this table has great meaning and those who are still finding meaning for the first time. Gracious God, pour out out your Holy Spirit upon us and upon these gifts of bread and cup, that the bread we break and the cup we bless may be the communion of the body and blood of Christ. By your Spirit make us one with Christ that we may be one with all who share this feast, united in ministry in every place. As this bread is Christ’s body for us, send us out to be the body of Christ in the world. Guide us as we embody your love and joy through our own stories. Help us to walk with one another in mercy and peace, in justice and joy, each and every day, that your abundant grace and faith might flow in us wherever we go. Through Christ, with Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor are yours, almighty God, Author of our stories, now and forever. We pray all of these things in the name of Jesus who taught us to pray, saying: 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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Words of Institution The story tells us that on the night that Jesus was betrayed, he had supper with his friends in an upper room. After giving thanks to God, he broke bread and gave it to his friends, saying: “This is my body broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way he took the cup, saying: “This cup is the new covenant sealed in my blood, shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins. Whenever you drink it, do this in remembrance of me.” This evening we will be celebrating communion by intinction. Prayer after Communion Let us pray. We thank you, O God, for the way that the ordinary gifts of bread and juice remind us of the extraordinary gets of grace and unending love. Bring our stories together as once, encourage us with hope, and inspire us to love, so that we may serve our communities and our world as your faithful disciples until we feast at your table in glory. Amen. Based on liturgy from Rev. Pressley Neal Cox Sunday Worship Call to Confession (explain communal nature of choir singing) This morning our prayer of confession will be lead by the choir. Please remain seated while the choir leads us in prayer. Let us pray. Prayer of Confession: Choir Song Assurance of Pardon One: Because we are forgiven, All: We can go and do something that matters. One: Because God loves us, All: We are called to live lives full of joy, kindness, and service. One: Because Christ has touched our hearts, All: We can touch the hearts of others. One: Because Christ is always with us, All: We can live so that others know they are loved. Adapted from A World of Difference Weeks 1 and 2 liturgy Passing of the Peace One: Friends, with the gift of forgiveness comes the gift of peace. Let us share this gift with one another! May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you! All: And also with you! Prayer for Illumination One: Let us pray. All: Holy God, you gave us stories of reconciliation, stories of hope, stories a of peace that we cannot even imagine. You gave us stories of your disciples so that we might learn from their example. Open our hearts, our minds, and our ears on this night so that we might hear your words as though we have never heard them before. Amen. Affirmation of Faith From A Brief Statement of Faith We trust in Jesus Christ, fully human, fully God. Jesus proclaimed the reign of God: preaching good news to the poor and release to the captives, teaching by word and deed and blessing the children, healing the sick and binding up the brokenhearted, eating with outcasts, forgiving sinners, and calling all to repent and believe the gospel. Unjustly condemned for blasphemy and sedition, Jesus was crucified, suffering the depths of human pain and giving his life for the sins of the world. God raised this Jesus from the dead, vindicating his sinless life, breaking the power of sin and evil, delivering us from death to life eternal. With believers in every time and place, we rejoice that nothing in life or in death can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.