October 20, 2019
Proper 24
Worship Resources for
the Center for Faith and Giving
Proper 24
2 Timothy 3:14 – 4:5
Luke 18:1-8
Call to Worship (from Jeremiah 31:31-34)
One: Here’s a promise! God’s going to make a new covenant!
Many: A solemn promise will be written on our hearts!
One: And all of us will know the Lord.
Many: Good news! God will forgive us, and no longer remember our sin.
One: So come, let us worship God!
Many: From the least to the greatest,
we’re ready to worship God!
Opening Prayer
Covenanting God, thank you for creating a solemn agreement with all your people! Thank you for writing on our hearts your commitment to forgive us. In this hour, encourage us to celebrate, for you are our God, and we are your people. We rejoice, and offer you our praise, through the power of your Spirit at work in us and in this world. AMEN
Moment for Stewardship
When we want to make sure we’ll remember something important, we write it down. (tell a humorous short story of a time you forgot to write it down.)
God clearly wants to remember, and wants US to remember, this truth: “I will be their God, and they will be my people”. The promise from God is to write it on our hearts and minds.
Remember this: we have a heart-to-heart connection with God, and respond by sharing tangible symbols of our lives. Today, I invite you to make your financial offering as a sign of understanding this connection: you are, WE are, one part of God’s people! What we share in this place will be used
to lift up God’s people, and
to give honor to God.
Let us receive our morning offering.
Prayer of Thanksgiving
Merciful God, we thank you for the unbreakable connection you’ve made with us. We ARE your people, and we celebrate the ways we are bound to you and to one another.
So receive these gifts and accept our lives, that together we might proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to all we encounter. Help us use these financial resources and the time and talent of this people to clearly identify ourselves as d(D)isciples of Christ. AMEN
Invitation to Communion (from Luke 18:1-8)
In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus tells a parable to his disciples concerning their need to pray, and not lose heart.
It’s an active parable, with an unjust judge and that wonderfully persistent woman (a widow seeking justice).
The judge isn’t ruled by faith or fear, but finally gives in, evidently to get away from the annoying woman. Jesus compares the judge to God (a lesser-to-greater comparison), teaching us that God will quickly grant justice to the “chosen ones”.
At this table, we recognize Jesus demonstrating that same teaching. God is at work, giving us in this very moment even more than what we ask to receive! In these gifts of bread and cup, we find assurance of forgiveness, and participation in the body of Christ.
As we eat and drink, take in the grace which is offered. Beyond simple accommodation for our anxious hearts, this meal is a feast for all who come.
Do not lose heart! Pray, in active form, as you receive this bread and drink this juice!
