Thanksgiving Day
Worship
Lectionary Worship Aids, Cradled in God's Heart
Series VIII, Cycle A
Object:
Call To Worship
One: Our help is in the name of the Lord
who made the heavens and earth.
All: We glorify our God
with songs of thanksgiving and joy.
One: We will not forget
all that God has done,
All: feeding our grandparents with manna,
quenching our thirst with streams of living water.
One: We will not forget to speak the simple words,
"Thank you!" to our God.
All: As we sing and shout together
of God's amazing love.
Prayer Of The Day
Hot showers in the morning
and cool breezes in the evening;
work that provides for our families,
and abundance that makes us generous;
silly jokes told by third graders,
and the silent tears of a grandmother
lost in her childhood forever.
What blessings are ours,
Creation's Joy!
Teachers who patiently help us with our math,
and mentors who keep us on the right paths;
friends who shovel snow off sidewalks before we waken,
and employers whose hearts are greater than their profits;
piano teachers who smile at our repeated mistakes,
coaches who teach us (one more time)
how to curl the ball into the goal.
What blessings are ours,
Servant of Joy!
Dogs who bounce us awake early in the day
and cats who lullaby us to sleep at night;
grandfathers who teach us how to whittle
and sisters who give up a date to babysit;
little boys who always forget to wipe their mouths
and folks who always remember to say, "Thank you."
What blessings are ours,
Joyous Spirit!
God in Community, Holy in One,
thanksgiving is in every word we speak,
even as we pray as Jesus taught us, saying,
Our Father ...
Call To Reconciliation
How easily we think it is our power, our skills, our selves that have given us what we have. In our feasts of self-exaltation, we no longer remember the One who is giver of all we need. Let us confess our sins, as we pray, saying,
Unison Prayer Of Confession
Because we live in this modern, tech-savvy, instant-messaging world, we forget how much we need you, Blessing God. We exalt ourselves on our skills in surfing the internet, yet forget the One who hears our prayers before we open our hearts. Because grocery stores have more than we could ever hope to eat, we forget your waters that nurtured the food in our baskets. Because our closets spill over with clothes we never wear, we cannot see the meadows garbed in your radiant joy.
Forgive us, Gracious Creator. Enriching us with blessings, make us generous spenders of your grace on others. With our hands full of treasures beyond imagining, may we think of new ways to share them. Feasting on your constant love, may we learn to love others more than ourselves, even as our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, loved us more than he loved his own life.
Silence is kept
Assurance Of Pardon
One: This is the good news for you: God provides every blessing; God forgives every sin; God delivers every one of us.
All: So simple, yet so hard to say, "Thank you"
for grace,
for hope,
for new life,
for new ways to serve.
Thank you, Holy God! We are forgiven. Amen.
One: Our help is in the name of the Lord
who made the heavens and earth.
All: We glorify our God
with songs of thanksgiving and joy.
One: We will not forget
all that God has done,
All: feeding our grandparents with manna,
quenching our thirst with streams of living water.
One: We will not forget to speak the simple words,
"Thank you!" to our God.
All: As we sing and shout together
of God's amazing love.
Prayer Of The Day
Hot showers in the morning
and cool breezes in the evening;
work that provides for our families,
and abundance that makes us generous;
silly jokes told by third graders,
and the silent tears of a grandmother
lost in her childhood forever.
What blessings are ours,
Creation's Joy!
Teachers who patiently help us with our math,
and mentors who keep us on the right paths;
friends who shovel snow off sidewalks before we waken,
and employers whose hearts are greater than their profits;
piano teachers who smile at our repeated mistakes,
coaches who teach us (one more time)
how to curl the ball into the goal.
What blessings are ours,
Servant of Joy!
Dogs who bounce us awake early in the day
and cats who lullaby us to sleep at night;
grandfathers who teach us how to whittle
and sisters who give up a date to babysit;
little boys who always forget to wipe their mouths
and folks who always remember to say, "Thank you."
What blessings are ours,
Joyous Spirit!
God in Community, Holy in One,
thanksgiving is in every word we speak,
even as we pray as Jesus taught us, saying,
Our Father ...
Call To Reconciliation
How easily we think it is our power, our skills, our selves that have given us what we have. In our feasts of self-exaltation, we no longer remember the One who is giver of all we need. Let us confess our sins, as we pray, saying,
Unison Prayer Of Confession
Because we live in this modern, tech-savvy, instant-messaging world, we forget how much we need you, Blessing God. We exalt ourselves on our skills in surfing the internet, yet forget the One who hears our prayers before we open our hearts. Because grocery stores have more than we could ever hope to eat, we forget your waters that nurtured the food in our baskets. Because our closets spill over with clothes we never wear, we cannot see the meadows garbed in your radiant joy.
Forgive us, Gracious Creator. Enriching us with blessings, make us generous spenders of your grace on others. With our hands full of treasures beyond imagining, may we think of new ways to share them. Feasting on your constant love, may we learn to love others more than ourselves, even as our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, loved us more than he loved his own life.
Silence is kept
Assurance Of Pardon
One: This is the good news for you: God provides every blessing; God forgives every sin; God delivers every one of us.
All: So simple, yet so hard to say, "Thank you"
for grace,
for hope,
for new life,
for new ways to serve.
Thank you, Holy God! We are forgiven. Amen.
