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Preparation for worship
Songs: Ask yourself and the people who will be worshipping with you (kids included), “What are some of the songs we sing at church that remind us that God cares for us?” Play them on Spotify, sing them acapella, or create your own instrumental arrangement.
Bible: You will need a Bible to read from the scriptures. You can use this doc or your phone as well…but I’d recommend using an actual Bible.
This week’s liturgy is based on the following texts:
1 Samuel 16:1-13, Psalm 23, Ephesians 5:8-14, John 9:1-41
You can decide who will lead the different movements of this gathering. It would be great for every person to have a part.
Gathering
Gathering Words
We gather together in the presence of our God, the Good Shepherd,
who calls us each by name,
who restores our souls,
who leads us in the way of righteousness,
and whose goodness and love never stops pursuing us.
This is the God we have come to worship!
Prayer of Preparation
Loving God,
We worship you and praise you. We are gathered together to hear from you today. We have had a week full of the unexpected. We trust that you hold our lives in your hands, and we are gathered together to hear from you. We ask you to speak through the reading of scripture, through the songs we sing, and through our prayers. Open our ears and hearts as we hear your word.
We pray this in the name of Christ our Lord,
Amen.
Reading of the Psalm (Read this aloud together)
Psalm 23
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil;
for you are with me; your rod and your staff– they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long.
An alternative to reading the Psalm is this song Psalm 23 by Shane and Shane.
Songs of Praise
Sing two songs that focus on God’s love and care for God’s people
These are two suggestions (if you do not know them to sing them aloud, I’d recommend listening to them)
You might want to look at this list for some ideas.
Listening
(The Listen time is a series of reading the scripture, re-telling the story, and paying attention to where God is stirring your hearts as you listen. Invite everyone to listen to the words of the scriptures and to be ready to re-tell the story.)
Reading
Let’s hear the word of God from the book of 1 Samuel. It says in 1 Samuel 16:1-13,
The Lord said to Samuel, “How long are you going to grieve over Saul? I have rejected him as king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and get going. I’m sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem because I have found my next king among his sons.”
“How can I do that?” Samuel asked. “When Saul hears of it he’ll kill me!”
“Take a heifer with you,” the Lord replied, “and say, ‘I have come to make a sacrifice to the Lord.’ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will make clear to you what you should do. You will anoint for me the person I point out to you.”
Samuel did what the Lord instructed. When he came to Bethlehem, the city elders came to meet him. They were shaking with fear. “Do you come in peace?” they asked.
“Yes,” Samuel answered. “I’ve come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. Now make yourselves holy, then come with me to the sacrifice.” Samuel made Jesse and his sons holy and invited them to the sacrifice as well.
When they arrived, Samuel looked at Eliab and thought, That must be the Lord’s anointed right in front.
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Have no regard for his appearance or stature, because I haven’t selected him. God doesn’t look at things like humans do. Humans see only what is visible to the eyes, but the Lord sees into the heart.”
Next Jesse called for Abinadab, who presented himself to Samuel, but he said, “The Lord hasn’t chosen this one either.” So Jesse presented Shammah, but Samuel said, “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen this one.” Jesse presented seven of his sons to Samuel, but Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord hasn’t picked any of these.” Then Samuel asked Jesse, “Is that all of your boys?”
“There is still the youngest one,” Jesse answered, “but he’s out keeping the sheep.”
“Send for him,” Samuel told Jesse, “because we can’t proceed until he gets here.”
So Jesse sent and brought him in. He was reddish brown, had beautiful eyes, and was good-looking. The Lord said, “That’s the one. Go anoint him.” So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him right there in front of his brothers. The Lord’s spirit came over David from that point forward.
Re-Telling
Let’s tell the story that we just heard.
How did the story begin? What happened next? Then what happened? (go around the circle and tell the story again)
Paying Attention
What parts of the story grabbed your attention?
What do you think God was up to in this story?
What did we learn about God as we read today’s text?
Is there something we should remember for this coming week from what we heard from the scriptures?
Responding
Song of Response
Sing a song about God’s faithfulness or provision.
You might want to look at this list for some ideas.
Prayers of the People
There are many things we pray for today, O Lord.
Hear the prayers we offer to you…
Faithful God, we pray for the things we hope for (invite people to respond)…
For the things we are worried about (invite people to respond)…
We pray for our leaders (invite people to respond)…
We pray for those who are sick (invite people to respond)…
We ask for your help (invite people to respond)…
At the end of this time of prayer, close with the following:
Almighty God, we believe that you hear us when we pray and that you are with us all the time. We offer our prayers to you and pray the prayer you taught us to pray saying,
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever. Amen.
Sending
Be with us, O God, as start a new week. Guide us in the days ahead; make our ways safe and our time together joyful. Give us patience with each other. May we be united in your love. May the gifts we use and share be signs of your love to each other and to all people. Wherever we go and whatever happens to us,we will give thanks to God, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
May God’s Grace, Mercy and Peace,
Be with us today and always.
Amen!
Living Room Liturgist 