Luke 1

Pregnant Hope: An Advent sermon about Pregnancy

November 27, 2022

In this sermon I focus on the pregnant Mary, and how the physical act of pregnancy teaches us how to love our nieghbour as ourselves. Remarkably, the phenomenon of fetal microchimerism teaches us about loving another person at a molecular level too. Our bodies from the very inception of life teach us the main messages of what it means to be human. I use artwork to illustrate why thinking about pregnant Mary is important.

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Longest Night Prayer

July 5, 2021

There are good years and bad years,
and then there are years from hell.
Hear our prayer, O God, for all who suffer.
You hear the anguished cries,
you collect our tears,
you know when hearts turn to stone. 
Send a Saviour now with good news
for those who sit in the shadow of death:

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Our Peace and Our Path Call to Worship

May 30, 2021

Our call to worship is from Luke 1:78-79
“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.”

Merciful God:
we come together to worship longing for tenderness
because this world can be hard.
We come longing for light
because our lives are crowded with shadows
We come desperately needing direction,
because we don’t always know which way to go.
Fill us this morning with your peace:
your spirit is our peace and our path.

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Tender Call to Worship

March 2, 2020

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.’   [NRSV]

Merciful God:
We come together to worship longing for tenderness
because this world can be hard.
We come longing for light
because our lives are crowded with shadows.
We come desperately needing direction.
Fill us this morning with your peace:
your spirit is our peace and our path.

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The Anti-Magnificat (if I had been Mary)

November 28, 2016

Dear God:
Thank you for the invitation
you so kindly extended,
inviting me to become pregnant
with the Prince of Peace.
What an honour to be asked,
and I am so grateful for your confidence in me.
The world needs a Saviour and it is to your credit
that you have remembered your promises.
I totally support your endeavors in this regard.
Circumstances being what they are,

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Way of Peace Call to Worship

November 28, 2014

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.

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About Carol Penner

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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