Order of Worship

1-25-26

Laughter Medicine

Prelude ~

Shared by Tanner Bayles

Welcome and Announcements

Shared by Pastor Ken

Opening Words

Shared by Pastor Ken

One: Who are we and what are we called to do?

All: We are the sensitive and responsive ones called to create a world where every person is radically affirmed and barriers between people become

bridges of inclusion, justice, and spirituality.



Call to Worship

Led by Greg and Carla Freeman

One: O God of All Bodies, of those made of flesh and those

made of stars,

All: of those with fins, fur, or feathers, and those of

minerals and weather.

One: O God of All Bounty, of leaves and seas, of space and sky, we come to you as many.

All: We come as part of you, present and ready.

One: As the inhale rises and the exhale releases, we come as one full breath.

All: With some of us coming up for air for the first time

this week, this month, this year.

One: Some of us laying down a weight, a moment, a grief, a

fear.

All: Just as the universe expands and contracts, we

gather here with all our comings and goings,

One: to worship the One of Cosmic Circulation and Spirals,

leaving Your mark

All: in galaxies, in fingerprints, in a snail shell sitting on a billion-year-old rock. Amen.

Singing Our Faith ~ The Garden Song

Inch by inch, row by row,

Gonna make this garden grow,

All it takes is a rake and a hoe

And a piece of fertile ground.

Inch by inch, row by row, someone

Bless these seeds I sow,

Someone warm them from below

‘Til the rain comes tumbling down.

Pulling weeds and picking stones,

we are made of dreams and bones,

Feel the need to grow my own

‘cause the time is close at hand.

Grain for grain, sun and rain,

Find my way in nature’s chain.

Tune my body and my brain

To the music from the land.

Plant your rows straight and long

Temper them with prayer and song

Mother Earth will make you strong

If you give her love and care

Old crow watchin’ hungerly

From his perch in yonder tree

In my garden I’m as free

As that feathered thief up there

Inch by inch, row by row,

Gonna make this garden grow,

All it takes is a rake and a hoe

And a piece of fertile ground.

Inch by inch, row by row, someone

Bless these seeds I sow,

Someone warm them from below

‘Til the rain comes tumbling down.

Opening Prayer ~

Shared by Pastor Ken

Chimes Call Us To The Word About Life

Word About Life ~ Laughter Medicine

Offered by Dr. Rev. Patricia StandTal Clarke

“When I Think About Myself”

by Mary Angelou

When I think about myself,

I almost laugh myself to death,

My life has been one great big joke,

A dance that’s walked

A song that’s spoke,

I laugh so hard I almost choke

When I think about myself.

Sixty years in these folk’s world

The child I works for calls me girl

I say “Yes m’am” for working’s sake.

Too proud to bend, too poor to break,

I laugh until my stomach ache,

When I think about myself.

My folks can make me split my side,

I laughed so hard I nearly died,

The tales they tell, sound just like lying,

They grow the fruit, but eat the rind,

I laugh until I start to crying,

When I think about my folks.

Celebrations For the Deep Goodness of Life

Led by Pastor Ken

This is our time to share the celebrations of our lives: birthdays, anniversaries, words of kindness and works of peace and justice.

Music for Thinking of You Cards

Shared by Tanner Bayles

Invitation to Give ~

Shared by Greg and Carla Freeman

Let our gratitude for life be expressed in our generosity.

Let our faith be expressed in good causes.

Let our belief in the future find full expression

in our daily attitude of mind.

QR Code for Giving Page

Bodies Blessing Bodies and Words for Mission

Led by Carla and Greg Freeman

One: May our bodies, O God, become living benedictions. May we find ourselves in the Body of Christ, the Good Word

made Flesh dwelling among us still.

All: May we be guided to digest life's foods and flavors.

One: Learning how to process and break things down-a grain of rice, an idea, an experience, a structure, a dynamic. Grant

that we may protect that which nourishes and remove all

that harms or that which simply must be let go. Let us taste

and see that God is good.

All: May we be granted the strength to move with, and not against, the marrow and moments of life.

One: Offering power and muscle to do the work of justice and the privilege to be of service and support. Let us

remember that our God stands with us and puts flesh on

dry weary bones.

All: May we be blessed with the breath of life and hearts on fire for love of the world.

One: Infusing life-force energy into our relationships and

receiving it in return. To be courageous enough to feel the

full range of emotions each day may bring. Let us

remember that we are not called to live or feel through this

life alone.

All: May we go forth from this place as God with skin on.

One: Showing up with compassion, protecting from infection,

regulating and sensing the changes of life. Let us

remember that God clothes us with righteousness and

kinship.

All: In every cell, sinew, and tissue, in every bone, nerve, and hormone, may we call ourselves beloved.

One: Created in the image of our Creator, let us be God

enfleshed,

All: joining in the shared breath of life's joys and sorrows, one body and spirit, together in Christ.

One: These are the times!

All: We are the people!

One: All of Creation is blessed.

All: May we love all and serve all.

One: God be with you.

All: And also with you.

One: Amen.

All: Amen.

Sending Forth Song ~

Sermon Reboot is ON for today.

This is a time to talk about the message and explore together using the ORID Art Form Conversation methodology. What is ORID? It stands for Observation, Reflection, Interpretation, and Decision. You will get the hang of it.