Gold Avenue Church At Home Worship Liturgy 08.16.20

A Note before you begin:

Welcome to Gold Avenue Church’s At home Worship Liturgy; we’re so grateful to join together in Spirit as we worship! We want to give special thanks to our worship leaders: Kayleen Jasperse, Derek Sterenberg, and Marissa Walters who have been prayerfully discerning our Orders of Worship and Marissa in particular who prayerfully discerned this week’s order. While we would love to be together in person and it may be somewhat difficult or even a little bit uncomfortable to worship from home, we’re reminded of the many believers around the world and throughout time that have worshiped from their homes in the wake of political and religious opposition.

Our prayer is that this liturgy helps us to create cultures of worship in our homes or wherever we utilize them, and that as we enter into his presence and give him praise, that we are each met, blessed, and brought further up and further in to the Kingdom of God.

Call to Worship:

The Call to Worship serves to focus our attention on the living God who is present with us; it calls us to position ourselves as those who are ready to worship and ready to receive from Him.

Read the following out loud as you fix your eyes on Jesus:

From Psalm 100

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Pray for the Lord to fill you, your household, and your home with his presence and his peace. Invite him to stir up worship and take time to express your gratitude and thankfulness to the Lord as you feel led.

Worshiping in Song:

You can access the video of each song by clicking on the video. We invite you to turn up the volume and to participate freely and fully: sing along, dance, kneel, listen and soak, read the included lyrics–however you feel led. You may find it fruitful to listen to a song more than once, to respond between songs with prayer, thanksgiving, meditation, or even discussion about how the Lord is at work in and through the song.

Forever

The Lord’s Greeting:

The Lord’s Greeting serves to remind us that we are in the presence of the living God. It makes space for him to greet us as our loving heavenly father who rules and reigns as the King over all and who is present with us as our loving heavenly father!

Fix your eyes on him as you read the following out loud:

From 2 John 1:3:

Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.

Greeting One Another:

It might feel a little odd doing this at home, but take time to say these words to greet each other, as you shake hands, hug or elbow bump:

“The Lord be with you!”

and in response:

“and also with you!”

And if you’re alone:

“The Lord is with me!”

Jesus

Wonderful Merciful Savior

Your Great Name

Testimony/Family Prayer Time:

As you transition, take a moment to reflect on how the Lord was ministering to you through song: what lyrics stood out to you? What emotions were you experiencing? What did God reveal to you about who he is? What did God reveal to you about what he says about you? How else were you ministered to?

Share a story with those around you or to the Lord about how he was at work in worship as well as in your week. Give him glory for his goodness. If alone, you could write down your testimony.

Take a few minutes to pray for your church family, neighborhood, and the world as the Lord leads.

This morning we also have the tremendous opportunity to give thanks to the Lord for a new member of our church family! Neil and Annah Blake write:

Rhys (pronounced Reece) Davis Blake was born at home on Sunday morning, August 9, at 11:40 a.m. He weighed 7 pounds and 14 ounces at birth. The name Rhys means enthusiasm, which certainly fit his in-the-womb personality. Eden is very affectionate with Rhys and he seems to have grown into a boy overnight. We are so grateful for our boys.

We give thanks to God for the gift of Rhys!

Regular offering:

Support ministry at Gold Avenue Church by giving to the general fund (Click the picture for more giving options):

Text: send amount (number only, no extra symbols) to (616) 319-2259 and follow prompts to give securely
Give online at https://goldavenuechurch.breezechms.com/give/online or give through PayPal here.
Mail a check payable to Gold Avenue Church at 49 Gold Avenue NW Grand Rapids, MI 49504

Special Offering for August: Van Fund

Once a month we take a special offering to support special cuases the Deacons have prayerfully discerned. This month’s special offering is the Gold Avenue Church Van Fund. To date, we have received $7,196.70 towards the van fund. We are grateful for these gifts!

The Deacons are expecting a need of $18,000 to replace the vans.

The Gold vans are used throughout the year to transport people to and from church, to transport youth to GoldRush youth group, and for many other uses. As the vans age, the need for an updated model has become apparent, and so we invite you to sow into the purchase of a replacement van. You can give to the special offering by:

1. Text: send amount space van (ex: 50 van) to (616) 319-2259 and follow prompts to give securely

2. Give online: select special from dropdown menu or type “van” in memo line

3. Check: write “van” in memo line

Song of Preparation:

The Song of Preparation serves to prepare our hearts to receive the Word of the Lord. Continue to fix your eyes on Jesus and surrender your attention and heart to him as we transition and prepare to enter into His Word.

Holy Spirit Rain Down

The Preaching of the Word:

Access the audio of the sermon here: Sermon Audio Recording

Responding in Prayer and Song:

Take a few moments to ask the Lord to help you identify your enemies or pressures that you, your loved ones, or the body of Christ may be coming up against. Cry out to the Lord, declare his faithfulness, and ask him for his help.

If you’ve got enemies or are coming up against pressure that you’re struggling to fight on your own, please reach out to Pastor Jaleesa at pastorjaleesa.gold@gmail.com or request a prayer appointment at prayer.gold@gmail.com

This is How I Fight My Battles

The Lord’s Blessing:

The Lord’s Blessing serves to make space for us to receive the Lord’s blessing to equip and empower us to receive his word, to be obedient to it, and to walk it out in his grace and favor.