PRELUDE/ENTRANCE
GREETING/ANNOUNCEMENTS
*OPENING SONG
"O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing" UMH 57
*CALL TO WORSHIP
Liturgist: Children of God, we gather to worship, to sing and proclaim with joy the good works God is doing in our midst.
People: We gather to worship, as is our custom.
Liturgist: We also gather today to pray for our families, our community, and our world. To name the challenges that press in around us, to lament the suffering in our world, to declare our trust in God in the midst of hardship.
People: We gather to worship, as is our custom.
Liturgist: We, like those in Nazareth, gather to hear and receive the Word of God proclaimed among us. To encounter the life-giving message of God’s love redeems us to be bearers of love and freedom in this world.
People: We gather to worship, as is our custom.
Liturgist: Children of God, listen. Pay attention. Ready your hearts. God is here. Jesus has come among us. The Spirit brings the Word to life in our midst. Are you ready?
ALL: We gather to worship, as is our custom. Thanks be to God! Amen. Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, August 2024.
OPENING PRAYER
We thank you, O God, for calling us into your church to be your people. “We have gathered, God of grace and wisdom, because we have heard your call. You have reached out to us in Jesus Christ; you have touched us with your Spirit, and we have turned toward you, seeking to love as we have been loved. We call upon your holy name: empower us to worship and serve you, walking gently on this earth, through the grace of Jesus Christ. Amen. Reprinted by permission of the publisher from Touch Holiness, ed. Ruth C. Duck and Maren C. Tirabassi. Copyright © 1990 by The Pilgrim Press.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
WORDS OF ASSURANCE
SHARING GOD’S PEACE
JOYS AND CONCERNS
THE LORD’S PRAYER
PROCLAMATION AND RESPONSE
A TIME FOR CHILDREN
SPECIAL MUSIC
FIRST SCRIPTURE 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a
*SECOND SCRIPTURE Luke 4:14-21
MESSAGE “Continuing the Work”
RESPONSE TO THE WORD
*SONG OF RESPONSE
"Open My Eyes, That I May See" UMH 454
*OFFERING OF OURSELVES
*”The Nicene Creed” UMH 880
*DOXOLOGY UMH 95
*PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
SENDING FORTH
*SONG OF DISMISSAL
"They'll Know We Are Christians by Our Love" TFWS 2223
*BENEDICTION
*PEACE
"God Be with You till We Meet Again" UMH 672
*Please stand as you are able Verse 1