Worship is a gift from God to us.

A call to worship.

Themes

Worship • Weariness • Priesthood • Communion with God • Participating in the life of the Trinity

It can make us weary to come to worship and watch others do things who exhort us to do things, and we go home having done things. 

At times we feel our worship is something we are doing in front of God. It can feel like we’re alone in our priesthood, alone in our offerings, and alone in our intercession for our family and our friends.

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Scripture reading

Hebrews 10:14
Hebrews 10:10
Hebrews 2:11
Hebrews 3:1

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This call to worship¹ is from the writer of the book of Hebrews. He writes the following: 

By one sacrifice 
He has made perfect forever 
those who are being made holy.

By God’s will, 
we have been made holy 
through the sacrifice 
of the body of Jesus Christ 
once for all.

Both the one who makes people holy 
and those who are made holy 
are of the same family.

Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, 
who share in the heavenly calling, 
fix your thoughts on Jesus, 
whom we acknowledge 
as our high priest.

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Enjoy this call to worship devotionally; change the plural pronouns (we, us) to personal ones (I, me).

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Prayer

Father in heaven, we confess 
that at times we feel our worship 
is something we are doing 
in front of You. 
We confess that it can feel like
we’re alone in our priesthood, 
alone in our offerings, 
and alone in our intercession 
for our family and friends.  

It can make us weary, Father,
to come to worship 
and watch others do things 
who exhort us to do things 
and we go home having done things. 

So before we begin, 
we acknowledge 
that our worship of You is not a 
do-it-myself-with-the-help-of-others 
kind of thing. 

Instead, it is a gift. 
It is a gift from You. 

Your Son, who is fully human, like us,
He is having an amazing communion —
a perfect, 
extraordinary, 
and incredible relationship — 
with You. 
And You want us 
to have this relationship with You too — 
to enjoy this same communion. 
And so You have given to us Your Spirit, 
who now lives within us, 
and through that Spirit 
we get to join right in with Your Son’s
communion with You. 
All that He is doing with You right now, 
we get to join in, 
in this very moment —
join right in to His selfless, 
perfect, and beautiful 
self-offering to You. 

He is our priest. 
He is our way in. 
He is the only one 
who can lead us into Your presence. 
He is Your beloved Son, 
and we get to completely share in that. 
Our communion with You
is us sharing in His sonship 
and in his communion with You. 

In the gift of Your Son, 
and through the gift of Your Spirit, 
You have given to us 
the very thing we were made for — 
the very thing 
that would bring us 
the greatest joy, 
and the very thing 
that You require — 
the worship of our hearts and minds. 
It is Jesus Christ 
who lifts us out of ourselves 
so that we can participate 
in the life that You live and enjoy — 
a life of perfect communion 
with the Son, 
which is the life and communion 
for which we too have been created. 

We’re not meeting here in Beaverdam 
to worship You our way, 
different than all the other ways 
that worship gets done. 
There is only one way to come to You, 
and it is through Jesus Christ, 
in communion with the Spirit, 
in communion with all saints, 
wherever they are 
and whatever outward form of worship 
they may have. 

And so we ask 
that with Jesus in our midst, 
leading our worship, 
leading our prayers, 
leading our praises, 
that You take away our wariness 
to do worship, 
to do it our way, 
and instead release to us the joy 
and the ecstasy 
that is communion with You.

Your Son, our brother, 
is our agent of worship. 
It is He who unites us 
in communion with You —
not our worship, 
not our way of worship, 
not our effort in worship. 
Instead, Father, 
in worship this morning 
may we experience the presence 
of Your so greatly loved 
and enjoyed Son 
who draws us into Your own life, 
the life of God. 

In the name of Jesus, 
the true agent of all worship, 
the only mediator, 
who in our name 
and on our behalf, 
in our humanity, 
has made the one offering 
which alone is acceptable to You 
for all of us, 
for all humanity, 
for all nations, 
for all time. 
Amen

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Inspiring resources

A call to worship creates wonderment, amazement, curiosity, yearning, captivation, provocation, hopefulness, thankfulness, affection, rapture, delight. As these mix together, the response is worship.

If this call to worship leaves you wondering or curious or provoked or hopeful, consider diving into this awesome book that inspired me to write this call to worship.

1. This call to worship was given to the small assembly of Christians that gathered in Pathway Church, Beaverdam, Michigan, on Sunday, January 9, 2022.