January 21, 2024
Third Sunday after Epiphany
“The Waiting”

Call to Worship (Inspired by Psalm 62)
One: Everlasting God, our souls wait for you.   
Many:  You are our Mighty Rock. We will not be shaken. 
One:  Everlasting God, our souls wait for you.
Many:  You are our hope. We place our trust in you.
One: Everlasting God, our souls wait for you.
Many:  You are our refuge. We rest in your abiding love.

Invocation
God of Many Seasons, we enter into your presence with joy and thanksgiving. We acknowledge all the ways that you meet us as we gather in your name. May our songs and prayers be a sweet sound in your ears. May we demonstrate our trust in you through both praise and lament. May our hearts yearn, our spirits stir, and our souls wait in holy hope and expectation. Amen.

Prayer for Transformation and New Life
Holy One, we can be so impatient. We have become used to instant gratification and have forgotten the holiness of the waiting. Help us to rest in your timing. Encourage us to persevere through struggles and storms. Reveal the unfolding of your kindom before our eyes and empower us to be agents of transformation in the world as you infuse us with new life. Amen.

Words of Grace
Beloved, while we wait, we have grace to love fully, pursue liberty, and seek a just world. The Holy One has given us the blueprint and invitation to the path of new life. Follow Jesus with grace and in truth.

Invitation to Generosity
Our communities and world rely upon the generosity of those who have received the Creator’s abundance. Let us offer our gifts in the knowledge that some wait on us to act, to share, and to give.

Prayer of Dedication and Thanksgiving
Eternal God, magnify these gifts that we return in gratitude and for your glory. Amen.

Benediction
May the grace of God, the hope of God, and the communion of God rest and abide in you and shine through you as you arise in the world  Amen.

The Waiting: Service Prayers for the Third Sunday after Epiphany was written by The Rev. Dr. Cheryl A. Lindsay, Minister for Worship and Theology, United Church of Christ.