Order of Worship May 9, 2021
Updated: Jun 29, 2022
UJCC Sunday House Worship Service
May 9, 2021 * 6th Sunday of Easter * Mothers’ Day
Easter blessings!
The Peace of Christ be with you! You are invited to use the following prayers & order of worship as we lift our hearts to God together from our respective homes!
“People [describe] God in feminine terms, not because God is actually a woman, but because feminine or maternal traits say something true about God and about their experience with God.” -Lynn Japinga
Call To Worship
Many of Jesus parables are images of what a mother does for us:
As a mother nurtures and feeds us, God feeds us in the feeding of the 5,000.
As a mother binds up the skinned knee of her child,
God binds up our wounds in the story of the Good Samaritan.
As a mother comforts and surrounds her children with love,
So God surrounds us.
As a mother bears a child’s pain and suffers with us when we hurt
so Jesus bore our pain on the cross.
As a mother believes in and brings to fulfillment the hopes and dreams of her children,
So God believes in and nurtures our hopes and dreams.
Mothering will fill you with love,
it will break your heart.
It is the best thing in the world.
May we all remember God as our mother today. (cs)
Song of Centering Becky Messer
We Humbly Adore and Receive
Children’s Time Rev. Sungrae Kim
Japanese Scripture Reading Mother God Passages Miwa and Nanami Jones
Scripture Reading in English
Today we thank God for the gift of mothers and mothering around the world.
As one whom a mother comforts, so I will comfort you – Isaiah 66:13. (RSV)
Gentle, patient God, thank you for your tender care.
Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you! Isaiah 49:15 (NIV)
Loving, caring God, thank you for your compassionate care.
But I have calmed and quieted myself,
I am like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child I am content. Psalm 131:2
Protecting, embracing God, thank you for your nurturing care.
How often have I longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings… Matthew 23:37
Comforting, warmhearted God, thank you for your gentle care.
God was like an eagle hovering over its nest,
overshadowing its young,
Then spreading its wings, lifting them into the air,
teaching them to fly. (Deuteronomy 32:11 The Message)
Ever present, sustaining God, thank you for your enduring care.
I have cared for you since you were born. Yes, I carried you before you were born. (Isaiah 46:3 NLT)
Sustaining, all sufficient God, thank you for your satisfying care.
I will be your God throughout your lifetime—
until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you. I will carry you along and save you. (Isaiah 46:4 NLT)
Faithful, providing God, everlasting and eternal One, thank you for your mothering love.
Amen. (cs2)
Sermon "Our Mothering God” Rev. Akiko Miyake-Stoner
Song of Reflection You Are My All in All
You are invited to continue your spiritual practice of giving to the church. Please either mail your offering to the church (136 N. Villa Ave., Clovis, CA 93612) or try our online giving option (LINK HERE). Thank you!
Doxology Youth Band
Joys and Concerns & Time of Prayer
You are invited to share your joys and concerns with one another using our usual format:
Person lifting the prayer: “O God of Mercy;” everyone’s response: “This is our prayer.”
After you share your joys and concerns, go around the circle and offer prayer, praying freely or using this format:
“God, I thank you for…” and “God, I ask for…”
You are invited to close together with The Lord’s Prayer.
* Please join in our Zoom Fellowship & Prayer meeting at 11:30 am
Meeting ID: 892 8141 6160
Or call: +1 669 900 6833
* Sunday School at 1 pm
Meeting ID: 833 3556 5421
* If you or your kids would like to contribute to our virtual worship by music, painting, photos, recipes, or anything, please contact Rev. Rae: sungrae@ujcclife.com
Go Now in Peace Becky Messer
Worship Resource: (cs) Christine Sine, “Meditation Monday: Connecting to the Mother Heart of God,” https://godspacelight.com/2015/05/04/meditation-monday-connecting-to-the-mother-heart-of-god/; (cs2) Christine Sine, “Maternal Images Of God—Reposted,” https://godspacelight.com/2019/05/01/maternal-images-of-god-reposted/ slightly adapted