Worship Resources for
the Center for Faith and Giving
Easter 7C
Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21
Call to Worship (adapted from Ps. 97)
One: Today we rejoice, for the Lord brings justice!
Many: Everyone can see God’s glory.
One: Together we can love God and resist evil.
Many: May God protect and strengthen us, and all God’s people.
One: You are the Lord’s people —
Many: let’s celebrate and praise the one and only God!
Opening Prayer
Life-giving God, we rejoice,
for we are able to gather in person and on-line
to offer you our praise.
We do see your glory,
and give thanks for the ways you grant strength to us.
We rejoice in your power, shown in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
We anticipate your strength in our lives, as we’re blessed by your Spirit.
May your “raised-up Jesus” light which dawns in us,
break forth in our community, and throughout your cosmos,
AMEN
Moment for Stewardship (inspired by Acts 16:16-34)
In the middle of the book of Acts, we hear the story of Paul and Silas’ encounter with the jailer who was overseeing their incarceration. Despite having been arrested, beaten and thrown into the prison, Paul and Silas were singing hymns when an earthquake struck!
Being freed from their chains, Paul and Silas could have left, but instead, stayed. The jailer, eager to know more of their joy in the resurrected Jesus, took these two to his home, bandaged their wounds, fed them and then asked to be baptized into the Christian community!
While we may not experience this kind of care within our own community, we do know the power of sharing the gifts we have. At our best, when one among us is hurt, we reach out. When another is hungry, we provide food.
When people want to join this community, we celebrate with them, bring them into the waters of baptism and welcome them into the “household of faith.”
Together, we share the gifts we’ve received! Today you’re invited to share symbols of your life in our morning offering. Your gifts will soon be translated into food to feed hungry people, counsel for those who are fearful or grieving, and support of this space in which we gather.
With hearts filled with gratitude, let us make our offering.
Prayer of Thanksgiving
Generous God, we pause to recall the gifts you give us,
then ask you to use what we now return to you today.
Help us live out our identity as followers of Jesus, just as Paul and Silas did
so many years ago.
Give us a song of thanksgiving as the soundtrack for our lives, and grant us joy in serving you as we give thanks for the new life you give us through the resurrected Christ, AMEN
Invitation to Communion
Joey Jeter’s book Re/Membering, (Chalice Press, 1996) includes a meditation for Memorial Day (p. 127). If you are planning to mark Memorial Day today, you might use this adaptation of “The Bitter and the Sweet”, inviting each person to feast on shredded ginger root (or raw horse radish root) and a golden raisin, each in one small cup. (They could be stacked together so each person would pick up one stack with 2 cups.)
When Jesus met with the twelve to celebrate the Passover, he named two parts of their meal as symbols to remind the disciples of him. He used bread and wine, common things.
Today it seems particularly appropriate to use two other common symbols as part of our feast of remembrance. The Passover itself contains the paradox of these elements: the bitter and the sweet, bitter herb and sweet wine.
This weekend, which we call “Memorial,” calls to mind the bitterness of war along with the sweetness of memory. Remembering those who died leaves a bittersweet taste in our hearts; recalling their lives may bring a smile.
So let us partake of this memorial feast, remembering the bitter and the sweet; the betrayal and death of Jesus and the sweet power of Easter resurrection; the pain of war’s price and the taste of love living still.
When the bitter herb is eaten, taste and reflect on the bitterness.
When you remember the Son of God and his love, eat the raisin and reflect on the sweetness of a love that will not let us go.