Worship with song, dance and rap for Christ the King

This worship outline was put together by Natalie Maxson who is in charge of the WCC Youth programme

Worship in the Ecumenical Centre - November 23, 2008
This week in the ecumenical prayer cycle we remember the peoples and churches of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger

Welcome

Opening prayer
Lord, my God, You are great, fearful, glorious,
the Creator of every visible and spiritual creation,
You are faithful to your covenant and mercy, for those who love you and keep your commandments,
I thank you both now and forever for all the blessings, seen and unseen, that have been bestowed upon me.
Even up to this present time, I praise, glorify and magnify you,
for everything that has proven your rich mercy and compassion to be wondrous in me,
helping me, out of your goodness and love for humankind, from my mother’s womb
and providing in every way to protect and govern in a holy manner the matters of my life.
Amen
(Excerpt from a daily prayer to our Lord Jesus Christ, St. John Chrysostom, 4th century)

Song "Here I Am To Worship" by Tim Hughes

Psalm 100 from “the word on the street” by Rob Lacey

Matthew 25:31-4
31"When the Son of humankind comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
41"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,
43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

44"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
45"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
46"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Meditation (Christ the King—He pushes us in new directions)
The meditation was a stunning pas de deux on being pushed and pulled in the Spirit allowing us to reflect on what God is trying to encourage us to do.

Intercessory prayer (all together we read…)
God, we bless you for the gift of life that you grant us,
that strength of faith, so fragile and so powerful, which is nourished by the assurance of your love…♫
“The push, the pull of God’s creative spirit. The push, the pull of God” (X 2)

We pray to you, God, for the sustenance of life for the people of these five countries,
Mali, Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso and Mauritania.
Stir up the strength and courage of all those who are engaged in lifting these countries out of poverty.
Be with the Christians and Muslims to live together as neighbours in peace…♫

Almighty God, you push us with love to see Christ in others,
to feed the hungry, comfort the lonely,
care for the sick, welcome the stranger…♫

Loving God, You push us to go the extra mile when it's difficult to smile,
You push us, to be better versions of ourselves
and to see the other point of view
You push us when there's nothing else to do
You push us when we think we know it all, when we stumble and we fall…♫

Gentle God, You push us when we don't appreciate,
You push us not to lie and not to hate,
You push us, when all we want to do is cry,
You push us when it's hard for us to try…♫

Everything we do, Oh God, we owe it all to You
Every move we make, every step we take,
Everything we know, it's all because You push us.
Your patience, love and eternal wisdom
we give you thanks and praises God. Amen

Lord’s Prayer (said together in our own languages)

Song—“Make a Joyful Noise—Psalm 100” by Linnea Good

Blessing
May the blessing of God who pulls us back into love and compassion,
the blessing of Christ the King who boldly pushes us in new directions,
and the blessing of the Holy Spirit who guides us in all our days,
be with us all.
Amen.