Break through the dark.
A call to worship.
Themes
Worship • God’s love • Habit • Awe • Forgetfulness • Light • Darkness • Being seen by God • Spiritual awakening • Wonder • Presence of God • Renewal of purpose • Invitation • Surprise of grace
It’s like we come to God at nighttime, unable to see that He is really here.
Scripture reading
John 3:16
This call to worship1 reminds us that we don’t come here out of habit—we come because the God who loves the whole world has already called us, is already present, and wants us to see Jesus with fresh eyes again.
This morning, we… remarkably so: WE… come to worship God. It was God who gave to us Jesus… … Jesus who was born in Bethlehem. And God did so as the fulfillment of his promise to… HIS PEOPLE… His people, which were the Children of Abraham. BUT, then, God called other people, from other traditions, races, professions… …he called the Magi… to seek out Jesus and to worship him. God… the maker of heaven and earth… the maker of the world… SO LOVED the world… And each person in it… SO LOVED YOU, That he gave his only Son… so that whoever believes in him Shall not perish but have everlasting life.
Prayer
Lord , sometimes when we do something so often— as often as once every week for decades— we do it out of habit, and we lose our memory of what’s really going on… we lose our place, we lose the significance, we lose the awe and the surprise and the wonder that would otherwise capture us. Lord, it’s like we come to You at nighttime, Unable to see what’s really going on. Unable to see that You are really here. Lord God, YOU LOVED US! YOU gave to us Your son. YOU redeemed us. YOU offered us forgiveness. YOU rescued us from perishing. YOU took away any condemnation. YOU gave us everlasting life. YOU called us to You. YOU called us here this morning. Lord God, help us to shed all the pseudo-reasons why we’re here: because it’s a habit, because I’m in the band, because mom and dad make me, because I like the style. And help us, Lord, to see Jesus. And to worship Him And to have His light completely engulf us, renew us, ! energize us, !! shine through us !!! In the name of Jesus, the maker and source of all light, Amen.
1
This call to worship was given to the small assembly of Christians who gathered at Pathway Church in Beaverdam, Michigan, on Sunday, February 2, 2020.