Call to Worship

Beloved, the Savior calls to you. Will you follow?

God, help us leave everything and follow.

Christ’s call persists through the clouds of doubt, fear, and worry that descend on our path. Will you follow?

God, help us leave everything and follow.

Jesus calls us to shift our priorities, to leave behind the baggage of prejudice and the grasping for position so we can truly love God and our neighbors well. Will you follow?

God, help us leave everything and follow.

Beloved, receive this good news: you are not alone! Today we answer Christ’s call together!

God, help us leave everything and follow your path of Love everywhere we go! Amen.

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

Opening Prayer

Some have come under compulsion. Some have come out of curiosity. Some have come out of a great need. Some have come out of tradition. Some have come to dedicate their new outfit. All will meet Jesus. All will have the opportunity to be blessed. All will decide what to do, having met Jesus. May we decide to follow him. Amen.

Written by T. Anne Daniel in The Africana Worship Book, Year C (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 2008), 126.

Prayer of Confession

O Lord,
forgive us when we fail to respond to your call with faith.
Through your Spirit,
we rest in the assurance of your acceptance.
Forgive us when we are shackled
by our narrow understandings of discipleship
and our clouded sense of purpose.
Through your Spirit,
we are drawn into the illumination of your empowering love.
Forgive us when we are frightened of the future
or pull back from the demand of your calling.
Forgive us when we fail to sense your presence in our past,
to acknowledge your grace in the present moment,
and to trust you for our future.
Through your Spirit, we offer ourselves in discipleship.
We come together as your disciples.
We seek renewed and renewing faith.
Touch us now with your Spirit, Lord.
Touch us now with your Spirit.

Adapted from Prayers and Readings for Worship, Volume 2, Peter Judd, ed. (Herald Publishing House, 1996, ISBN 9780830907199), 22. Posted on the Community of Christ website, http://www.cofchrist.org/worship12-13/13-05-12.asp. Re-posted on the re:Worship website at https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2013/04/confession-responding-to-gods-call.html.

Benediction

As you go into the coming days, remember:
You do not go alone.
God’s faithful love goes with you.
No matter what you are facing,
God will not abandon you.
For You belong to Him,
and He will fulfill His plans for your life.
So go from here,
strong in the knowledge
that God’s loving presence goes with you.

Posted on the re:Worship blog at https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2011/08/benediction-psalm-138-1-8.html.