Prayers/Litanies
Light the Candle!!!
Below is an Advent wreath liturgy written for a Christmas Eve family/early service using Isaiah 9:2-7. It gives children and adults alike a chance to shout in church and celebrate the birth of the Christ-child. Fun, simple and meaningful. One: The people walking in darkness have seen a great light. RESPONSE: [SHOUT] Light the candle!! One: [LIGHT PURPLE CANDLE #1] A light has shined on those living in deep darkness. RESPONSE: Light the candle!! One: [LIGHT PURPLE CANDLE #2] You have made the nation great; you have increased its joy....
read moreOur Joy: Prayers for Advent 3
Prayers for the 3rd Sunday of Advent (Magnificat — Luke 1:46-55) Prayer of Invocation – God of song and silence, speak to us today. God of joy and justice, help us to see how you weave them together, in wombs and rooms, in letters written, and privileges waived. God of surprising power and fierce tenderness, visit us. Fill us with your spirit, and give us voices to sing your praise. Prayer of Confession – Holy One, sometimes, we admit, we are the ones who need to be brought low, taken down a peg, reminded that the world...
read moreAlphabet of Ideas
In the wake of the 2016 US presidential election, Rev. Martha Peck wrote a newsletter article for her church and an accompanying “Alphabet of Ideas for Anxious Times.” This list could be used: by a mission committee, seeking to expand its reach by a prayer group as a prompt for intercessory prayer. as an art activity—inviting people to illustrate the actions with stick figures or other drawings by individuals/families during the season of Advent The presidential election of 2016 revealed a deep divide between Americans,...
read moreTeach us Your Way: Veteran’s Day Litany
Below is a litany written for Veteran’s Day 2016. The response is from Psalm 86. On this Sunday after Veteran’s Day, there is need for us all give thanks to our Veterans for their service, for their sacrifices, and for those of their friends and family. The people respond by saying: Response: God, teach us your way, so that we can walk in your truth. On this Sunday after Veteran’s Day, there is need for us all, not only to give thanks, but also to seek our Veterans out, and to walk with them and their families in listening,...
read moreCathedrals and Thatched Pavilions: A Prayer for World Communion Sunday
This communion prayer was written for World Communion Sunday (10/2/0216) but could be used any time. It was inspired by John 17:21, the UCC motto, “that they may all be one.” Communion Prayer & Words of Institution Holy God, the One Source of all our love, and all our wisdom, the One for whom we yearn, and in whose heart we rest, we thank you for the many ways in which you make yourself known to us and to people throughout the world. Today we remember our Christian sisters and brothers, gathering in cathedrals...
read moreWorship/Event
Many churches have a Sunday morning or two throughout the year when the congregation hosts both a worship service and a special event. Maybe your church hosts a Christmas fair, an Easter brunch, a breakfast fundraiser for a mission you support or something else. In our church, the last Sunday in September is always reserved for day two of our annual Old Fashioned Harvest Market which draws thousands from all over our region. I know from experience that on this particular Sunday our congregation’s attention and energy is divided...
read moreWait for Us: A Prayer for World Communion Sunday
One thread running throughout Scripture is of God’s waiting for we human beings to come around, come back, and come together. Below is a prayer to be used as part of a Communion Liturgy for World Communion Sunday that asks God to “wait for us.” It was written for use at the United Church of Underhill, VT on 10/2/2016. Christ, as we gather around this table, which is bigger than our eyes can see, and better than our minds can imagine, we pray that you will wait for us: wait for us to want less; wait for us to live in...
read more9/11: from Grief to Action
The lectionary readings for 9/11/2016 (Year C, Revised Common Lectionary) offer good fodder for connections with 9/11/2001 and reflections on where we go from here–living with the reality of sin in ourselves and our world, and moving from grief to faithful action. Readings: Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28 Psalm 14 1 Timothy 1:12-17 Luke 15:1-10 CALL TO WORSHIP (based on I Timothy 1:12-14 ) Leader: This is our faith: People: Gratefulness, because Jesus gives us strength. Leader: Mercy, overflowing to restore us to our best selves. People:...
read moreConsider the Birds
In the fall of 2015, Rev. Daniel Cooperrider of Weybridge Congregational Church, UCC told our WorshipWell team about a sermon series he was leading based upon a book by author and pastor Debbie Blue, titled: Consider the Birds: A Provocative Guide to Birds of the Bible. Cooperrider explained that his sermon series included presentations by bird experts in worship along with bird watch outings. Inspired by Cooperrider and Blue, Rev. Goldenbogen of the United Church of Underhill (UCC & UMC) led a “Consider the Birds” sermon...
read moreUsefulness & Freedom
Below is a sermon by Rev. Martha Peck which is based upon Paul’s letter to Philemon and delivered on the Sunday before Labor Day (9/4/2016). What does it mean to be free? What does it mean to be useful? This sermon is followed also by related prayers: 1) prayer of invocation, 2) prayer of confession, and 3) assurance of pardon. They called him Onesimus, which means “useful.” And for most of his life he only had the value assigned to a slave. He was a strong back, silent compliance. He could not own property, nor choose where he...
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