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Observance Of The Birthday Of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Observance
Worship
Worship Service
Jonah 2:2-9
Revelation 21:1-7
Gennifer Benjamin Brooks
Praise the Lord
Litanies, Prayers, And Occasional Services
(This liturgy is written intentionally for use in an interfaith setting.)

HYMN OF CELEBRATION
Lift Every Voice And Sing

GREETING
We have come together on this special day, to witness to the love of God in the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a martyr to the faith, in the cause of justice. We come from different cultures, different religions, but all committed to the right for which Dr. King fought, of freedom for all people.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., had a dream. It was a dream of unity and peace, justice and equality for all. In our coming together, may we also aspire to that hope. And more than that, may we be moved to go beyond hope and join the fight which can never end until all can say with the boldness of truth, "Free at last, free at last, praise God almighty we're free at last."

LITANY OF PRAISE
Leader: God is our refuge and strength.
People: Praise God who is our very present help in trouble.
Leader: God is our strength and song.
People: Praise God who is the rock of our salvation.
Leader: God is our song of victory over our oppressors, of life over death.
People: Praise God who opens to us the gate of life.
Leader: God is our life, our joy, our crown.
People: Praise God who has crowned us with glory and honor.
Leader: God is our light and God is love, eternal and unchanging.
People: We will praise our God forever and ever.

HYMN
The Battle Hymn Of The Republic

(Verse 4 may be omitted or modified for interfaith worship.)

PRAYER OF CONFESSION
God of watchful care, we confess our complacency in our own security. We close our eyes to the pain around us by refusing to see the signs of suffering in the eyes of our brothers and sisters. We stride boldly along life's paths, oblivious to bowed heads and stooped shoulders that cry out the misery of life without meaning. We hide behind walls of contentment, rejoicing in the realization of our dreams, while others linger outside, too worn down to dream.

Forgive us our unthinking preoccupation that keeps us from joining the fight for justice and freedom for your whole creation. Open our eyes and hearts and hands to the plight of all your people. Move us beyond self and selfishness to a life of service to your people in your name. Inspire us to action for the good of all. Amen.

SCRIPTURE READINGS

(Readings listed are suggestions only. You may choose some other appropriate passages.)

OLD TESTAMENT
Jonah 2:2-9

NEW TESTAMENT
Revelation 21:1-7

SERMON OR MEDITATION

PRAYERS OF REDEDICATION AND RENEWAL
Leader: Let us pause and remember the words of Dr. King, the drum major for peace, who called us to arms in the battle for justice. Let us rededicate ourselves to maintain the fight for justice until all people everywhere cease to be victims of the injustice of others.
People: God of justice, give us courage.
Leader: While war rages on between nations and races and cultures, the cry for peace grows louder and louder. Let us strive for peace and justice in the hearts of all people so that together we will all do justly, love kindness, and walk humbly with God.
People: God of peace and justice, grant us your peace.
Leader: Here in our land and around the world, the shackles from our human bodies have been replaced by the chaining of our minds. And so none of us is free because all of us are not free. Let us redouble our efforts, to seek freedom in the name of our God who makes us all free.
People: Freeing God, strengthen us that together we may break the chains of oppression that bind us all.
Leader: Although we have gathered as a community in this place and time, more often we are separated by a lack of understanding of our neighbors which causes us to fear. May we strive together so that the divisions of race may be removed and with them the fear that paralyzes our efforts so that the radiance of God's love may shine in the hearts of all people.
People: God of love, dispel our fears and awaken in us your love that binds us as one.
Leader: Sadly, we the people of God must admit that we have not been the voice that rings out for truth and justice. Instead we have so often by covert acts and overt silence, supported the status quo. Too often we have remained silent or hesitated to raise our voices in the fear that we may be called to action. May our silence and uncertainty be replaced by the disturbance of our voices raised in protest for all people.
People: Eternal God, move us beyond ourselves that we may work for truth and righteousness in your world. May we strive for justice for all people that we may all know the fullness of joy that is ours as your creation. Amen.

CLOSING HYMN
We Shall Overcome
1. We shall overcome ... someday
2. We'll walk hand in hand ... someday
3. We shall live in peace ... someday
4. God is on our side ... today

BENEDICTION
Go out in the strength of God, having the courage to stand for truth and justice.

Go out in the power of God, heeding the call to work for freedom.

Go out in the love of God, reaching out to the stranger, sharing the joy of unity with God and all people.
UPCOMING WEEKS
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The Immediate Word

Christopher Keating
Thomas Willadsen
Katy Stenta
Mary Austin
Nazish Naseem
George Reed
For January 11, 2026:

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Call to Worship:
At Jesus' baptism God said, "This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased." Let us so order our lives that God may say about us, "This is my beloved child in whom I am well pleased."

Invitation to Confession:
Jesus, when I fail to please you,
Lord, have mercy.
Jesus, when I'm sure I have pleased you, but have got it wrong,
Christ, have mercy.
Jesus, when I neither know nor care whether I have pleased you,
Lord, have mercy.

Reading:

StoryShare

Argile Smith
Contents
What's Up This Week
"Welcoming Mr. Forsythe" by Argile Smith
"The Question about the Dove" by Merle Franke


What's Up This Week

SermonStudio

Constance Berg
"Jan wasn't baptized by the spirit, she was baptized by spit," went the joke. Jan had heard it all before: the taunting and teasing from her aunts and uncles. Sure, they hadn't been there at her birth, but they loved to tell the story. They were telling Jan's friends about that fateful day when Jan was born - and baptized.


Elizabeth Achtemeier
The lectionary often begins a reading at the end of one poem and includes the beginning of another. Such is the case here. Isaiah 42:1-4 forms the climactic last stanza of the long poem concerning the trial with the nations that begins in 41:1. Isaiah 42:5-9 is the opening stanza of the poem that encompasses 42:5-17. Thus, we will initially deal with 42:1-4 and then 42:5-9.

Russell F. Anderson
BRIEF COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS

Lesson 1: Isaiah 42:1--9 (C, E); Isaiah 42:1--4, 6--7 (RC); Isaiah 42:1--7 (L)
Tony S. Everett
Jenny was employed as an emergency room nurse in a busy urban hospital. Often she worked many hours past the end of her shift, providing care to trauma victims and their families. Jenny was also a loving wife and mother, and an excellent cook. On the evening before starting her hectic work week, Jenny would prepare a huge pot of soup, a casserole, or stew; plentiful enough for her family to pop into the microwave or simmer on the stove in case she had to work overtime.

Linda Schiphorst Mccoy
Bil Keane, the creator of the Family Circus cartoon, said he was drawing a cartoon one day when his little boy came in and asked, "Daddy, how do you know what to draw?" Keane replied, "God tells me." Then the boy asked, "Then why do you keep erasing parts of it?"1
Dallas A. Brauninger
E-mail
From: KDM
To: God
Subject: Being Inclusive
Message: Are you sure, God, that you show no partiality? Lauds, KDM

The haughty part of us would prefer that God be partial, that is, partial to you and to me. We want to reap the benefits of having been singled out. On the other hand, our decent side wants God to show no partiality. We do yield a little, however. It is fine for God to be impartial as long as we do not need to move over and lose our place.
William B. Kincaid, III
There are two very different ways to think about baptism. The first approach recognizes the time of baptism as a saving moment in which the person being baptized accepts the love and forgiveness of God. The person then considers herself "saved." She may grow in the faith through the years, but nothing which she will experience after her baptism will be as important as her baptism. She always will be able to recall her baptism as the time when her life changed.
R. Glen Miles
I delivered my very first sermon at the age of sixteen. It was presented to a congregation of my peers, a group of high school students. The service, specifically designed for teens, was held on a Wednesday night. There were about 125 people in attendance. I was scared to death at first, but once the sermon got started I felt okay and sort of got on a roll. My text was 1 Corinthians 13, the love chapter, as some refer to it. The audience that night was very responsive to the sermon. I do not know why they liked it.
Someone is trying to get through to you. Someone with an important message for you is trying to get in touch with you. It would be greatly to your advantage to make contact with the one who is trying to get through to you.
Thom M. Shuman
Call To Worship
One: When the floods and storms of the world threaten
to overwhelm us,
All: God's peace flows through us,
to calm our troubled lives.
One: When the thunder of the culture's claims on us
deafens us to hope,
All: God whispers to us
and soothes our souls.
One: When the wilderness begs us to come out and play,
All: God takes us by the hand
and we dance into the garden of grace.

Prayer Of The Day
Your voice whispers
over the waters of life,
Amy C. Schifrin
Martha Shonkwiler
A Service Of Renewal

Gathering (may also be used for Gathering on Epiphany 3)
A: Light shining in the darkness,
C: light never ending.
A: Through the mountains, beneath the sea,
C: light never ending.
A: In the stillness of our hearts,
C: light never ending.
A: In the water and the word,
C: light never ending. Amen.

Hymn Of Praise
Baptized In Water or Praise And Thanksgiving Be To God Our Maker

Prayer Of The Day

CSSPlus

Good morning, boys and girls. What am I wearing this morning? (Let them answer.) I'm wearing part of a uniform of the (name the team). Have any of you gone to a game where the (name the team) has played? (Let them answer.) I think one of the most exciting parts of a game is right before it starts. That's when all the players are introduced. Someone announces the player's name and number. That player then runs out on the court of playing field. Everyone cheers. Do you like that part of the game? (Let them answer.) Some people call that pre-game "hype." That's a funny term, isn't it?
Good morning! Let me show you this certificate. (Show the
baptism certificate.) Does anyone know what this is? (Let them
answer.) Yes, this is a baptism certificate. It shows the date
and place where a person is baptized. In addition to this
certificate, we also keep a record here at the church of all
baptisms so that if a certificate is lost we can issue a new one.
What do all of you think about baptism? Is it important? (Let
them answer.)

Let me tell you something about baptism. Before Jesus
Good morning! How many of you have played Monopoly? (Let
them answer.) In the game of Monopoly, sometimes you wind up in
jail. You can get out of jail by paying a fine or, if you have
one of these cards (show the card), you can get out free by
turning in the card.

Now, in the game of life, the real world where we all live,
we are also sometimes in jail. Most of us never have to go to a
real jail, but we are all in a kind of jail called "sin." The
Bible tells us that when we sin we become prisoners of sin, and

Special Occasion

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