Come, You Blessed

Liturgical Resources

Call to Worship

Family of God, on this Reign of Christ Sunday, we celebrate and remember Christ, who reigns over all creation with love and grace, forming us as a family bound together by God.
We come to worship Christ, who cares for the least of these and calls us to do the same.

We gather to recount all the ways we encounter Christ in our midst—in our neighbor who checks in when we’re sick, in our unhoused friends who gather for a meal, in our friends who have been wounded in body and spirit.
We come to worship Christ, who cares for the least of these and reminds us to do the same.

We join our voices with Christians throughout the world and throughout time to give thanks and to seek guidance as we grow in love of God, neighbor, self, and creation.
We come to worship Christ, who cares for the least of these and inspires us to do the same.

Come, you blessed by God, with open hearts, open arms, and open doors to welcome and embrace all of our neighbors, because when we love our neighbors, we love Christ among us.
We come to worship Christ, who cares for the least of these and empowers us to do the same. Thanks be to God! Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, August 2026.

Opening Prayer

Sovereign God, the wind blows, the water flows, and the sun shines. All creation declares your majesty. In you, we move, live, and have our being. Be glorified in our worship. Be known by our testimony. We proclaim your goodness from the east and the west, from the north and the south. On countrysides and city blocks, you reign. In deep valleys and skyscrapers, we declare that your realm extends from everlasting to everlasting. We worship you, Holy One, in spirit and in truth. Amen.

Written by Rev. Dr. Cheryl A. Lindsay and posted on the Worship Ways website of the United Church of Christ at https://www.ucc.org/worship-way/reign-of-christ-b-november-24/.

Prayer of Confession

In the lives of neighbors who suffer brokenness and pain:
We confess you are still speaking!

In the struggle of the poor whose rights are not honored:
We confess you are still speaking!

In a world crying out for wisdom, love, and mercy:
We confess you are still speaking!

In a world calling for the blessing of truth:
We confess you are still speaking!  Bless us to receive!

Let us confess together:
We confess that in our lives we often hide behind
our work and play, schools and jobs, fun and fashion.

We let ourselves get so busy
that we forget the cause of the poor and the suffering.
We confess we allow the powers of this world
to seduce us into selfishness
and silence our witness.
Teach us to champion the cause of justice for all;
strengthen us to love our neighbor
and speak truth no matter the penalty.  Amen.

Assurance of Pardon

The Word of God assures us
that we are able to love through the Spirit of Christ,
whose grace forgives and empowers us
to love our neighbors near and far,
to speak up for those who are broken.
Beloved, in the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.
In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.
Glory to God! Amen.

Adapted from LT Leticia Rouser, chaplain in the United States Navy. Posted on the United Church of Christ’s Worship Ways website, http://www.ucc.org/worship/worship-ways/. Reposted on the re:Worship blog at https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2013/06/confession-you-are-still-speaking.html.

Benediction

May God bless you with open heart, open arms, and open doors to welcome the neighbor—known and unknown—with compassion and care, that in serving one another, we might build the kingdom of God among us here and now, one act of love at a time. Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, August 2026.