Independence Day
VISUAL ARTS (PARAMENTS, GENERAL DECORATIONS, SPECIFIC DECORATIONS)
Brim: Creative Overflow in Worship Design
Banner Designs for the Church Year
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CALL TO WORSHIP
–based on Jeremiah 10:6-7, 10a
Leader: There is none like you, O Lord.
People: You are great, and your name is great in might.
Leader: Who would not fear you, O King of the nations?
People: For that is your due.
Leader: Among all the wise ones of the nations and in all their kingdoms,
People: There is no one like you.
Leader: You are the true God.
People: You are the living God and the everlasting King. Amen.
—Elinor Swindle Brown
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INVOCATION
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MUSIC (HYMNS, SONGS, ANTHEMS)
- Come! Live in the Light!
- Lift Every Voice and Sing
- Live Into Hope
- My Country, ‘Tis of Thee
- O God of Every Nation
- Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life
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CALL TO CONFESSION
Psalm 24 says “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it; for God has founded it on the seas and established it on the rivers. Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in God’s holy place? Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false, and do not swear deceitfully.” Let us repent and in doing so pray for clean hands and pure hearts.
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PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Leader: O God, we do indeed pray for clean hands and pure hearts, both for ourselves and for our country on this day we celebrate independence.
People: We know in our hearts even as we celebrate, that we can never be independent from you. You are the source of all that we have.
Leader: God, we pray for the wrongs that have been done in our names for this country by those who do not have pure hearts.
People: We confess to you, O God, that in our apathy we have allowed these wrongs to happen and for that we are sorry.
Leader: God, we pray for the times when we have had opportunities to help others be free and did not raise a finger or even our eyes.
People: We confess to you, O God, that we have not helped when given the chance and for that we are sorry.
Leader: God, we pray that in confessing our sins to you we will be washed clean by your son’s sacrificial blood.
People: We confess to you our guilt, O God, and ask that you have mercy on us, our country, and all humanity, and that you grant us your peace. Amen.
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ASSURANCE OF PARDON
Leader: As Psalm 24 goes on to say, “Who is the King of glory?”
People: “The Lord of hosts. God is the King of Glory.”
Leader: Friends, believe the good news: our hands and hearts have been washed clean. Thanks be to God! Amen.
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CHILDREN’S SERMON
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PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
Open our eyes Lord. We want to see your mighty acts of mercy. Open our ears Lord. We want to hear your good news. Open our hearts Lord. We want to be compelled to serve by the reading of the scripture and the preaching of the word. Amen.
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SCRIPTURE TEXTS/SERMON IDEAS
- Jeremiah 10:6-10 – Raise up God as the ruler of our nation and all nations, even amidst the celebration of our independence. Call for leaders with God’s will foremost in their hearts, minds, and actions.
- Psalm 24 – It is not enough to have a “good cause.” God is creator of all and calls us to have clean hands and pure hearts for the work we must do in our world.
- Matthew 4:1-11 – Satan offered Jesus all: political power, physical comfort, rule over all people. Jesus recognized the price that would have to be paid by worshiping Satan over God. In all things, individually and corporately, God must be the priority over politics, social/justice differences, and personal preferences.
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SOCIAL MEDIA HELPS (VIDEOS, TAPED SONGS)
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PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
God of freedom, we remember the freedom of our country today that was hard won by people who believed in justice for all people. We celebrate this day as just one of many events that happened to provide liberty for all. We know that even as we celebrate this freedom, that there are those in our country who do not have freedom:
People who are chained to addictions and don’t see or want a way out,
People who are weighed down with caring for others who cannot care for themselves,
People who cannot be free of health problems or grief,
People who are trapped in poverty because they have no one to give them a hand,
People who are walled in or walled out because of who they are or who their parents were.
We all have some sort of oppression, mentally or physically or emotionally, so we can have some sort of empathy for these people who are not free. Give us the courage of our forebears to reach out and help others be free of their burdens and prisons.
We pray especially for our political leaders at all levels. Grant them a discernment and passion to do your will to bring about peace and justice for all people.
We pray for our church leaders at all levels. Let them feel our support and love and not simply our complaints and wants.
God of liberty and justice for all, make it be so. Let us be your hands and feet so we can begin to beat swords into plowshares and guns into food for those who are hungry, water for those who are thirsty, and mercy for those who are imprisoned.
We ask all these things in the name of your son Jesus Christ, who is the prince of peace, a friend to sinners, and the savior of the oppressed. Amen.
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LITANY
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INVITATION TO THE OFFERING
We live in a country that uses _____% of the world’s resources (use data for your own country: China – 32%, USA – 17%, Japan – 4%, Brazil – 2.6%, Mexico – 1%, Colombia – .3%, Hong Kong – .2%, Guatemala – .05%). God says that no matter what our resources are that we should give regularly and sacrificially. Let us give back to God with our tithes and offerings.
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OFFERTORY PRAYER
All we have, O Lord, comes from you and you have asked us to care for it. You ask us as grateful people to give back a portion to your church to be used to help others. Take these gifts, bless them, and help us discern where they are most needed. Amen.
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CHARGE AND BENEDICTION
Go out into the world, proud of the freedom we are afforded and, also knowing that we have it only because of God.
And as you go, hear the voice of God, our creator, calling us to imagine a new and better world,
See the results of the good news of Christ playing out in our lives and calling us to tell others,
And feel the presence of the Holy Spirit guiding us to seek and do God’s will in our lives. Amen.