Advent: Shaping the Season in Clay and Wonder
Note: In preparation our Senior Pastor taught us to work with clay. The liturgy below is the culmination of exploring and reading those who love working with clay. Sermons and children’s sermons connected with the practices and we gave folks clay to shape. We also brought a wheel into the sanctuary.
First Week
Kneading: Inviting a sense of readiness
John the Baptizer
Call to Worship
(print only the reading lines, not the Instrumental rubric for the congregation)
Instrumental: Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel---hummmm
One: Gather us in, pull us close and love us tight;
Many: Like clay we are waiting to be formed.
Instrumental: And Ransom captive Israel ---hummm
One: Ready for the mud-loving child to emerge,
Delighted by the sacred beyond canned carols and blinking lights;
Many: Ready to be pressed, awakened, and changed from the inside.
Instrumental: Who mourns in lonely exile here---hummm
One: Formed of clay, shaped by the breath of life, ready to come home
From the early bird sales and florescent lights;
Many: Ready to feel the earth, ready to take in the gospel of nature’s life-giving art.
Instrumental: Until the Son of God appears ----Choir joins and other instruments build with the refrain of Rejoice.
Opening Hymn: Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel
Lighting the advent wreath:
We light this candle
that we may remember our call to justice and celebrate God’s peace.
We light our first candle, as a symbol of peace,
Earthen clay strengthened by God’s light
drawing us close as we in silent stillness wait
for the possibilities to take shape and emerge.
Lighting the Tree
We light these trees in the midst of our waiting.
As we leave this place, may we see every Christmas tree as a symbol of peace. May it illuminate the sacred in our waiting and open our eyes to the sacrament of our season.
Prayers of the People
For the peace of all creation, for the shape your Love brings to life, for your people longing to give thanks, love well and celebrate joy:
Spirit of the Living God:
Sung Response: Hear us, Shape us, mold us, free us
Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me.
For all struggle to stay centered, laboring under heavy burdens, feeling isolated, ill, broken and alone, for your people longing for justice and struggling to be whole:
Spirit of the Living God:
Sung Response: Hear us, Shape us, mold us, free us
Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me.
Pastoral Prayer
Shape us Loving God as you once raised clay from the earth, without regard to the mess you drew breath, exhaled and set your mud-loving children to work. Forgive us when we fail to take your risk, not wanting clay on our skin or dirt under our nails, when we would prefer shortcuts or quick-fixes to your work of preparation that keeps us on course and calls us to be more. For you are our God and we are your people:
Sung Response: Hear us, Shape us, mold us, free us
Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me.
Lord’s Prayer
Second Week
Centering: Bringing the possibilities into focus
Luke 1:26-28
Call to Worship
Instrumental: Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel---hummmm
One: Gather us in and pull us close, distance will not do;
Many: Like clay we are waiting to be formed.
Instrumental: And Ransom captive Israel ---hummm
One: Ready to be still and focus in, heart-to-heart and hand-in-hand,
ready to come home from a flurry of choices that rock our foundations
and send us grasping for balance
ready to say “Here I am;”
Many: Ready to be pressed, opened, and changed from the inside.
Instrumental: Who mourns in lonely exile here---hummm
One: Here we are, formed of clay, shaped by the breath of life, fully present and awake to creations sweet song, ready to be vessels of God’s life-giving art.
Many: Here am I. Let it be.
Instrumental: Until the Son of God appears ----Choir joins and other instruments build with the refrain of Rejoice.
Opening Hymn: Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel
Lighting the advent wreath
We light these candles
that we may remember our call to peace and celebrate God’s joy.
We light these candles, as a symbol of joy,
Earthen clay strengthened by God’s light
drawing us close as we in silent stillness wait
for the possibilities to take shape and emerge.
Lighting the Tree
We light these trees in the midst of our waiting.
As we leave this place, may we see every Christmas tree as a symbol of joy. May it illuminate the sacred in our waiting and open our eyes to the sacrament of our season.
Third Week
Shaping: Making Choices
Luke 1:26-28
Call to Worship
Instrumental: Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel---hummmm
One: Gather us in and pull us close, quite our fears and open our heart;
Many: Like clay we are waiting to be formed.
Instrumental: And Ransom captive Israel ---hummm
One: Ready to work by feel, not sight, ready to dream with our eyes open wide, ready to exhale the tensions and live the dynamic hope between the inside shape and the outside form, ready to be shaped by Loves sweet song that calls us to be not afraid.
Many: Ready to be pressed, opened, and changed from the inside.
Instrumental: Who mourns in lonely exile here---hummm
One: Here we are, formed of clay, shaped by the breath of life, ready to fear not for You are there in the choices and with us in the change, ready to be shaped anew, again and again, ready to be vessels of God’s life-giving art.
Many: Here we are. Ready to participate, change and grow.
Instrumental: Until the Son of God appears ----Choir joins and other instruments build with the refrain of Rejoice.
Opening Hymn: Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel
Lighting the advent wreath
We light these candles
that we may remember our call to peace and live as God’s hope.
We light these candles, as a symbol of hope,
Earthen clay strengthened by God’s light
drawing us close as we in silent stillness wait
for the possibilities to take shape and emerge.
Lighting the Tree
We light these trees in the midst of our waiting.
As we leave this place, may we see every Christmas tree as a symbol of hope. May it illuminate the sacred in our waiting and open our eyes to the sacrament of our season.
Prayers of the People
For the peace of all creation, for the shape your Love brings to life, for your people longing to give thanks, love well and celebrate joy:
Spirit of the Living God:
Sung Response: Hear us, Shape us, mold us, free us
Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me.
For all struggle to stay centered, laboring under heavy burdens, feeling isolated, ill, broken and alone, for your people longing for justice and struggling to be whole:
Spirit of the Living God:
Sung Response: Hear us, Shape us, mold us, free us
Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me.
Pastoral Prayer
Spirit of the Living God:
Sung Response: Hear us, Shape us, mold us, free us
Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me.
Lord’s Prayer
Fourth Week of Advent
Glazing: Imagining the possibilities
Luke 1:46-56
Instrumental: Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel---hummmm
One: Gather us in, pull us close and create in us a heart for what we cannot yet see
Many: Like clay we are waiting to be formed.
Instrumental: And Ransom captive Israel ---hummm
One: Come Loving God, we are Ready.
Ready to imagine beyond the noise and distractions,
the blinking lights and humming TV,
ready to pair down and focus in, ready to lift up the tender whispers of peace.
Our humanity ready to be crafted, our souls ready to magnify the Lord.
Many: Ready to fill the hungry with good things and lift up the lowly, ready to be more.
Instrumental: Who mourns in lonely exile here---hummm
One: Here we are, formed of clay, shaped by the breath of life,
Create in us, with us, and through us,
set the mud-loving child to play and
send our spirits dancing into the world as it can be.
Many: Here we are. Ready to rejoice as vessels of God’s life-giving art.
Instrumental: Until the Son of God appears ----Choir joins and other instruments build with the refrain of Rejoice.
Christmas Eve
Call to Worship
Formed of clay and shaped by the breath of life;
God is here, calling us to fear not and follow the star.
The dream of hope pulls us to center and be whole.
God is with us, Fire igniting the chemistry of change, opening us to the sacred seeded deeply within, cooling the panic with the tender touch of peace.
Create in us, with us and through us:
send our spirits dancing into the world as it can be.
God is with us. Molding and making us anew, opening hearts to the depth of our humanity and eyes to sacred faces across the city and around the globe.
Heart-to-heart and hand-in-hand, we become vessels of God’s life giving art.
Christmas Eve Children’s Program
Note on use: This liturgy was created to include all children interested in participating in Christmas eve but requiring one a few leaders to practice and lead the other children. The music leaders lead the entire congregation in the sung refrain. Children were divided into three groups and older students lead the smaller children, they process during the song into the center, each group held a peace of the earth that when all were connected made a large earth in the front of the sanctuary and one student read the liturgy once they got into place. All movement happened during the song.
Music Director sings lightly: Peace on earth (can be light playing under children)
Reader one
Clay red from Africa’s sun washed shore
Dark brown from the rivers edge
different colors from different places make one sacred earth.
Music Director sings lightly: Peace on earth can it be years from now perhaps we’ll see. (light playing under children)
Reader Two
Clay can be red and brown, white and black
All different an all ready to be shaped by one common love;
ready to be vessels bringing water to the thirsty
and bread to satisfy the hungry heart.
Music Director Sings: I pray my wish will come true for my child and your child too.
Reader Three
Formed of clay and shaped by the breath of life,
we are ready to be a part of God’s life-giving art.
We are ready to be vessels of love, hope, joy and peace.
We are ready to be God’s people of peace.
Music Director Sings “Peace on earth”
Communion at Christmas Eve service
The Lord be with you
And also with you
Lift up your hearts
We lift them up to the Lord
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God
It is right to give God our thanks and praise
It is right and a good and joyful thing always and everywhere to praise you, Loving God.
You bring clay to life with the breath of your spirit, and set the heart of each mud-loving child to dance, you shape us in love and open our souls to your grace.
Even as a flurry of choices rock our foundations and send us grasping for balance, you call us to center that we might be vessels of your life-giving art.
We thank you for Jesus Christ,
Who walked within all of our reality, felt the dust of the earth, taught us to love justice and shape a world of peace. With all integrity he claimed the glory of life, hard won.
God of Compassion, we praise you and with the faithful of every time and place, join creation’s eternal hymn:
Holy, holy, holy,
With Christ, love embodied, You delivered us from brokenness and destruction and made with us a new covenant by water and the Spirit
On the night in which Jesus gathered his beloved family and friends to the table He took bread, gave thanks, broke the bread,
gave the grain of hope to the people he loved and said
“Take, eat.”“Do this in remembrance of me”
When the supper was over, and the crumbs lay round about the table, he took the cup,
Gave thanks to you, invited his loved ones to taste the fruit of paradise and said
Drink from this all of you, this is a symbol of the new covenant. Poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins that in overcoming brokenness you might embrace hope. Do this as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.
And so in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ. We lift our voices in praise and thanksgiving as we proclaim the mystery of our faith.
Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ will come again.
Pour out your spirit of hope in the midst of our struggles, brokenness, conflict and strife as we remember people who journey with us straining under heavy loads.
-Struggles named here-
This we pray
Loving God Fill us
Pour out your Spirit of joy as we give thanks in taking the bread and cup and remember all who bring laughter to our days and warm our hearts in this season of grace.
-Joys named here-
This we pray
Loving God feed us.
Pour out your Holy Spirit on us and on these gifts of grape and grain
Make them be for us the body of Christ,
That we might be for the world God’s people of compassion shaped in Christ’s love, members of one body.
By your Spirit make us one with Christ
One with each other
And one in ministry to all the world
Until Christ comes in the full glory of compassion
And we feast at the table of paradise.
Through your child Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit in your holy church, all honor and glory is yours, Loving God now and forever.
Amen.
First Sunday after Christmas: Call to Worship
With each gift unwrapped, the tree stands empty and the branches sigh at the moment of peace.
Yet the work of Christmas has only just begun.
Loved ones are parting as each returns home; wondering what the New Year might bring.
Yet the work of Christmas has only just begun.
Christmas has begun in you and in me,
Calling us to work for a new day of peace and a New Year when the oppressed go free.