Not waiting for better conditions.
A call to worship.
This call to worship1 reminds us of God’s freedom and faithfulness. He creates community, supports His people, and carries out His purposes even when circumstances seem to work against them.
Our lives are not made secure by favorable conditions, uninterrupted comfort, or our ability to see what comes next, but by God who goes with us and who will not let fear, failure, emptiness, loss, or even death set the limits of His love. We see this faithfulness most clearly in Jesus Christ, whose power shows itself through mercy, service, and self-giving love, not through force.
The church is called not just to find comfort in God’s presence, but to be reshaped by it. Because the Father sends the Son, the Son sends the church, and the Spirit brings us into Christ’s life, we are called to become a communion that reaches out to others. Our trust, forgiveness, patience, hope, burden-bearing, hospitality, and care make visible the life of Jesus among us.
God’s presence does more than keep us safe in uncertain places. It makes us fruitful there, turning us away from self-protection and toward participation in God’s blessing of the world.
Themes
Communion • Divine faithfulness • Hope • Circumstances • Cruciform power • The way of Jesus • Blessing others • Love • Mission • Fruitfulness • Communal life • Burden-bearing
We are secured by His promises, not by our uninterrupted comforts.
Scripture reading
Genesis 46:3–4 Genesis 47:7 Genesis 47:27
God is not limited by our circumstances. He goes with us into uncertain places, forms us there, and makes our life together a blessing to others.
God said to Jacob: Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. I will go down to Egypt with you. We also read that: Joseph brought in his father Jacob and presented him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. And then we read that: Israel settled in the land of Egypt, in the region of Goshen, and they were fruitful and multiplied greatly.
Prayer
Faithful God, You go with us. You are determined to have communion with us! You are with us in our familiar places and in the places we never expected ourselves to be. You are with us when our lives feel sure, and when everything is uncertain. We are thankful that our uncertainty has no bearing on Your purposes for us, or on Your presence with us. We are secured by Your promises, not by our uninterrupted comforts. When we’re afraid, remind us that You are near. When we can’t see the way ahead, teach us to trust Your faithfulness. You’re not limited by our circumstances. You can bring hope in our hard seasons. You can bring life in our barren places. You can bring a new beginning where we see the end of things. There are no circumstances, no barrenness, no failures, not even death that can set a boundary on Your love toward us. Lord Jesus, You came to us in humility. You didn’t save us through power or force, but through mercy, and service, and self-giving love. Teach us to follow that way— the way of Jesus. Make us a people who bless others. Help us welcome people here, particularly the lonely. Help us to encourage the weary, to care for those who are hurting, and to share what You have given us. Keep this church from living only for ourselves. Make this place a blessing to others. All Your self-giving has been toward the world that You love, so enable our lives to also move outward. You have sent your Son; and the Son has sent us; and Your Spirit enables us to participate in what it is You are doing. So Holy Spirit—Spirit of Christ— make us fruitful in love. We are thankful that none of us are isolated spiritual individuals. We are a communion whose life reflects Christ. It is sin that disorders this communion. So where there is fear, grow our trust. Where there is hurt, grow our forgiveness. Where there is division, grow our patience. Where there is discouragement, grow our hope.t Teach us to carry one another’s burdens, to rejoice with those who rejoice, and to weep with those who weep. As we worship today, turn our hearts toward Jesus. Open our ears to hear Your Word. Open our voices to praise You. Open our lives to serve one another. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, receive our worship and make us a blessing. Amen.
A call to worship given to the small assembly of Christians that gathered in Pathway Church, Beaverdam, Michigan, on August 2, 2026.