God of darkness, God of light,
God of stars and angels,
God of weary travellers and stables,
God of hard labour and new birth,
we come today to worship you.
Open our eyes to your glory,
open our ears to your wisdom
open our hearts to your love
as we come to worship
Jesus, our newborn Saviour.
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory. [Isaiah 6:3 NRSV]
The Lord of hosts is with us.
Let us lift up our hearts!
We lift them up to the Lord!
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God!
It is a good and joyful thing to give God thanks and praise!
Let us pray:
Holy God, we come together as your people
searching for sacred space,
longing to be cherished,
craving a real connection.
By the tender mercy of our God,
the dawn from on high will break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace. Luke 1:78-79
Let us pray:
God of great gifts
we give you thanks for the gift of your son
who was in every way like us.
We who are chained to the cycle of life and death
found freedom in this child
who is our Saviour, Immanuel, God with us.
Be with us today,
as we listen, as we sing, as we pray.
Fill us with your Spirit
giving light in the bleakest of seasons,
leading us in the way of peace. Amen.
Call the congregation,
assemble the people,
join together in worship to God!
We long to be made holy through the Spirit
who sanctifies us in Jesus’ name.
We dedicate this hour to God,
and to God’s glory.
Let’s pray:
Here we are God!
We’ve come from our week
filled with many things.
Some are filled with joy and excitement;
others with sorrow and despair.
Creator God,
thank you for our bodies:
for new baby bodies,
for young bodies,
for middle-aged bodies,
for old bodies.
Thank you that we are somebody in your sight.
Thank you for our church body gathered here today
and the body of Jesus,
broken for us, raised for your glory.
Thank you for your Spirit,
embodied in each of us here today.
Bless our worship, and every body here. Amen.
1. In the name of Jesus Christ, I welcome you to worship!
2. It is a delight to be together in the house of God!
1. We lift our voices with joyful hearts!
2. It is right to give God thanks and praise!
1. May the grace of God, the love of Jesus,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with us now in this hour and always.
Amen.
God of Hope,
we come into your presence this morning
with confidence that you will meet us here.
Where there is sadness, bring joy;
Where there is tiredness, bring refreshment;
Where there is despair, bring a renewed sense of hope.
Let this place be a sanctuary,
a safe haven for us,
a home for holy words and songs and prayers
as we devote ourselves to you.
We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Our call to worship is from Psalm 24:1-2
The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it;
for he has founded it on the seas, and established it on the rivers. (NRSV)
Let`s pray:
We are yours Lord,
life and breath, all belong to you.
Thank you for this time today,
make it holy and precious,
so that all we say, all we sing, all we think and all we do
will give glory and honour to you. Amen.
God of all people:
We pray…it’s to you
We sing…it’s for you
We read scripture…to learn about you
We come together as your church…following your call.
As we gather in your house
we dedicate this time to you,
with all our heart and soul
and mind and strength.
In the name of Jesus, we pray, Amen.
I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.
I love to write and to lead worship! If you are finding my writing helpful, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to use or adapt the material here, it is all written by me. If printing material, please credit “Copyright Carol Penner www.leadinginworship.com” (and say whether you modified it). If publishing, please contact me for permission. Contact me at carol@leadinginworship.com
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