Sunday, August  31, 2025
Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost
Luke 14:1, 7-14 | "Places of Honor"

Call to Worship (Inspired by Psalm 81 and 112)
One: 	Sing aloud to God our strength; shout for joy to God.
Many:	Happy are those who revere the Holy One. Generation to generation delight in God's blessings.
One: 	Sing aloud to God our righteousness; shout for peace to God.
Many:	We rise from the depths in mercy, grace, and justice. 
One: 	Sing aloud to God our hope; shout for love to God.
Many:	Our hearts are steady and secure. Worship the Holy One!

Invocation
God of Glory, we acknowledge your presence among us as we gather. You have knit us together as a community. In your kindom, the first will be last and the last will be first. We only exalt you yet you come near to us. Dwell in the praises we voice, in the hope to which we cling, and the love that persists. Reveal yourself to us, Great One, and we will declare and spread your goodness in the land of the living. Amen.

Prayer for Transformation and New Life
Righteous God, forgive us for the positioning we do. We seek elevated places and too often fail to notice the absences at your table. Our tables are segregated by the ways we diminish the beautiful distinctiveness you celebrate among us. We live in complacency while the world around us weeps in pain, suffering, and despair. Break our hearts, O God, so that we will seek your kindom more than our own acquittal. As in the days of Jeremiah, we "have changed [our] glory for something that does not profit" and are appalled. Convict our spirits to propel us to reshape the world into your vision of beloved community—repaired, restored, and reconciled. Amen.

Words of Grace
Beloved, the Holy One is righteous and just as well as compassionate and faithful to forgive the contrite heart. God will give you strength and courage to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly. 

Invitation to Generosity
The resourcing of our shared ministry depends upon the gifts that we bring. As image bearers of the divine, we receive the privilege of generosity. Through our gifts, we demonstrate trust in the Sovereign One and hope in our collective future. Let us give with an abundance of love and faith.

Prayer of Thanksgiving and Dedication
Holy, Holy, Holy God, be glorified in our giving. Receive and magnify these gifts so that needs will be met, communities transformed, and lives renewed. We dedicate them in your precious name. Amen.

Benediction 
As you go, 
Take your place 
Exalt the Holy One
Comfort the lowly
Abide with the oppressed
Center the marginalized
Give glory and honor  to God
Be good news in the world

Places of Honor: Service Prayers for the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost was written by the Rev. Dr. Cheryl A. Lindsay, Minister for Worship and Theology for the United Church of Christ.