Call to Worship

Children of God, pay attention! The days are coming when God’s peace will reign and all creation will flourish under the reign of our Creator.

The days are surely coming!

Children of God, prepare your hearts! The days are coming and are already here when God will come near and show us how to recognize God’s reign among us.

The days are surely coming and are already here!

Children of God, be alert and listen! God has come near to build the kin-dom on the earth here and now. Will you join in?

The days are surely coming and are already here! We come to prepare our hearts to pay attention, to listen, and to follow God’s call to build the kin-dom of earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, June 2024.

Gathering Meditation

The Day Is Surely Coming
(Jeremiah 33:14-16)

A day, certain and on its way
And we feel it approaching
Slowly first, then in a quickened pace
Like a promise, on its way
To being fulfilled
A day when justice and righteousness
Is executed as surely as the day breaks Sun shines, rain falls, fog gathers
At foothills

A day is certainly coming
Sure as breath
A day of safety
A name of a Holy One On the lips: Branch Righteous One
Hope
Certainly on its way

Written by Valerie Bridgman in The Africana Worship Book, Year C (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 2008), 23.

Opening Prayer

God of our Expectation,

We praise you for surely-coming days when you will execute Shalom: love, peace, health, and well-being for the people who walked in darkness. We await with assurance the surely-coming days when AIDS is cured, when every gun is beaten into tools for rebuilding, when every child has the opportunity to develop God-given gifts, and when every adult sees every child as a gift from God. We desire, O God of our Hope, surely-coming days when no city fears hurricanes, no country fears nuclear bombs, and no tribe fears annihilation by another. We thank you for the surely-coming days when no person fears another because God chose to create all people in the diversity of God’s image. We thank you for our hope and for your surely-coming days. Amen.

Written by Marilyn E. Thornton in The Africana Worship Book, Year C (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 2008), 162.

Prayer of Confession

(unison)

Holy God, we confess that we are busy with many preparations. We are busy with parties, with feasts, with giving. We are busy cleaning house and wrapping presents. We are busy with the stuff of the holiday. And we confess that our busyness may be misplaced, that we spend more time preparing for things than preparing for You. Draw us back to the center, which is You. Remind us that our hearts and souls have work to do, too. Enable us to let go of that which does not matter, and to see what does matter. This we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Written by Beth Merrill Neel on her blog, “Hold Fast to What Is Good.” Used with permission. https://holdfasttowhatisgood.com/liturgy/prayer-of-confession.

Benediction

Beloved, go from this place blessed with a hope that takes root and grows, preparing us to notice, listen, and join in with God’s kin-dom work among us. Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, June 2024.