To Be a Blessing

Worship Planning Notes 

Focus text: Genesis 12:1-9 

What now? We’ve just had two Sundays that focused on God’s activity among us: First, the Holy Spirit’s inbreaking among us at Pentecost, then the Triune God’s creating, restoring, and sustaining work in Trinity Sunday. So, with the vast expanse of Ordinary Time in front of us, what do we do now? We respond. And who better to come alongside and learn about responding to God’s call than Abram and Sarai?  

For the next four weeks, we will journey with Abram/Abraham and Sarai/Sarah in all their earnest, imperfect, and all-too-human attempts to believe God’s promises and live accordingly. It’s a story many of us have heard many times over. But let’s get one thing straight—Abram and Sarai are not the heroes in this story. God is the hero in this story. We are joining Abram and Sarai as earnest, imperfect, and all-too-human followers, not because they are experts but because they—like us—are learning to trust and cooperate with God as God does the work to form a family and prepare a people who will be a blessing to all of God’s creation.  

So, as you go about worship planning this week and for this entire series, what are the call stories in your congregation you might want to highlight? It could be an individual, but it could also be a time that your whole congregation felt nudged by the Spirit to step out in faith to follow God’s call to be a blessing to your neighborhood. What are the songs that speak to your congregation about their call to love and serve their neighbors? What are the prayers that accompany the work your congregation does in the world? If you have a group preparing for a mission trip, perhaps this is a week to bless them in their preparations and service. If you are about to have, or have already had, vacation Bible school, perhaps this is a time to share stories in worship about the blessings the church gives and receives in VBS. If you have a community service project coming up, talk about how that project came about, how you listened to your neighbors, and found ways to share the church’s gifts with your community. This might be a wonderful time to introduce a short song or prayer in worship that will then be used throughout your summer activities as a prayer or blessing for leaders and participants. In all of it, find ways to emphasize that all these acts, big and small, are ways that we respond to God’s call to be a blessing, not because we are great, but because God abundantly and faithfully blesses all creation, and we are called to cooperate with God by blessing others.  

Author bio: Dr. Lisa Hancock, Director of Worship Arts Ministries, served as an organist and music minister in United Methodist congregations in the legacy Northwest Texas and North Texas Annual Conferences. After receiving her Master of Sacred Music and Master of Theological Studies from Perkins School of Theology, she earned her PhD in Religious Studies from Southern Methodist University, where she researched and wrote on the doctrine of Christ, disability, and atonement. Lisa is also the co-lead of the Growing in Grace: Accessible Worship for All God’s Children initiative.