God meets the unready.
A call to worship.
God moves toward us before we even know how to look for him.
Worship doesn’t begin with our readiness, or our sincerity, or our attempts at ascent. It begins with the sheer initiative of God himself. He seeks the lost, gathers the scattered, and opens heaven from his side.
Jacob at Bethel did not stumble into a private religious experience. No, God himself created the meeting place. God made himself known. God bound himself to a frail, wandering person. That movement reached its fulfillment in Jesus Christ, who is Himself the living place where heaven and earth are joined. He was not merely a teacher who showed us the way to God; He is the one in whom those who are far away are brought close and made into God’s very dwelling place by the Spirit.
This means, then, that even our worship is an act of grace, not an attempt to climb into God’s presence. It is us awakening to the reality that, in Christ, God has already come down, already made peace, already opened the gate of heaven, and now summons broken, distracted, ordinary people to stand in holy wonder and be remade by his presence.
Themes
Divine Initiative • God’s Nearness • Awakening • God’s Presence • Divine Faithfulness • Christ the Way • Healing • Grace • Transformation • Sanctified Space
You are the God who meets us on the road, in the wilderness, in the night, and in our need.
Scripture reading
Genesis 28:10–22, John 1:43–51 Ephesians 2:13–22
This call to worship1 reminds us that God comes close to ordinary people who aren’t even ready, and he opens the way to himself through Jesus Christ.
In Genesis, we read this story about God’s initiative—about God opening access from his side: Taking one of the stones of the place, Jacob put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am with you … I will keep you … I will not leave you…” Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and if He will keep me, and if He will give me bread to eat… then the Lord shall be my God…” In John’s gospel, Jesus echoes Jacob's story. What was given to Jacob in a dream is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Christ alone connects heaven and earth. There we read this: Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!”… Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him… “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” And finally, Paul wrote about us being brought near in Christ. In a letter to the Ephesians, Paul wrote: In Christ Jesus, you who once were far off, have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace… He came and preached peace to you who were far off… Through him, we have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone… In him you are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
Prayer
Living God, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, we’re here now, together, with friends, before You, because You have first come to us. We can’t claim we’re here because we have somehow climbed our way to You. We’re not here because we are strong, or pure, or ready in ourselves to be here. We’re very much like Jacob— we're needy, restless, burdened, and unaware of just how near You are to us. Some of us are pretty tired. Some of us are rightfully distracted. Some of us are here with grief, or fear, or shame, or confusion. Some of us have come rejoicing. And some of us are barely able to pray. But You, Father, are the God who meets us on the road, in the wilderness, in the night, and in our need. So, awaken us right now. Open our eyes to Your presence. Keep us from treating this next hour and a half as ordinary. Save us from casual worship. Teach us to say, like Jacob said, “Surely the Lord is in this place,” and make it so that we do not leave unchanged. Thank You for Your promise: “I am with you.” You have never abandoned us. You have never left us alone in our fears. You have never put distance between us when we’ve collapsed in weakness. You are with us, and You keep us, and You never let go. In Jesus Christ, heaven has been opened. In Him, You have come near once and for all. In Him, You have joined Yourself to our humanity— joined Yourself to the darkest places of our greatest shame— not to condemn us, but to heal us and to save us from inside of our lost and broken condition. In Him, You have made a way where there was no way. In Him, we are welcomed into Your presence. In Him, we are no longer fugitives, but children received by grace. In this moment, Father, gather our scattered thoughts, our divided hearts, our weak faith, our wandering minds, our reluctant wills, and draw them toward Yourself. When we sing here in just a minute, let us sing unto You. When we pray a few minutes later, let us truly pray in the Spirit. And then, as we hear Your Word, let us hear more than human speech. Enable us to hear You— the voice of the living God. Make this ordinary room a place of holiness. Let this moment—this place—be, by Your grace, a place like Bethel for us. Not a place we control, but a place where You meet us, and humble us, and assure us, and turn our hearts again toward You. And all the places in us where we are like Jacob— alone, overwhelmed, exposed, uncertain, spiritually inperceptive, fearful, guarded, bargaining— be patient with us. Your faithfulness is greater than our wavering. Your promise is deeper than our uncertainty. Your grace is stronger than anything we may have done. Do not leave us as we are. By Your Spirit, over the next 90 minutes, conform us more and more to Jesus Christ. Make our worship true. Make our repentance sincere, Make our faith strong Make our hope new again. Lift our eyes above ourselves. Set our minds upon Christ. Fill us with wonder, and gratitude, and joy in the name of Jesus. For You are here. And You are faithful. And You are worthy. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
A call to worship given to the small assembly of Christians that gather in Pathway Church, Beaverdam, Michigan, on Sunday, March 22, 2026