worship planning

In the next two weeks, I'll sit down and plan worship for the coming months. Even though I tend to plan in advance, sometimes flexibility is necessary. We'll be presenting Bibles to 3rd graders and Blessing Backpacks on Aug. 26. We don't usually have presentation of Bibles and Blessing of the Backpacks on the same Sunday. But it'll be okay. I haven't even looked at lectionary to see how that fits into our other, already set, agenda for worship.

Someone mentioned UMW Sunday in the midst of the presentation of Bibles conversation. hmmm, somehow no one had bothered to mention anything to me. Seems "they" set the date but neglected to consult or inform the one in charge of worship. Not that anyone else will be invited to preach. How many times have I heard some variation on "well, since you're a woman, we'll just have you preach?"

One of the worship services I actually like to prepare for that doesn't show on the lectionary is Children's Sabbath. At the first of August, I ordered, from the Children's Defense Fund, the guide for worship services for Children's Sabbath. The guide came today!

I am amazed at the depth of resources offered in this guide. I keep each guide because the resources are so valuable. One year, my mom followed the recipe for cookies included in the guide under a section that was not labeled Christian. I can't remember which section it was. I had cookie cutters that were the traditional gingerbread boy and girl shape. My mom made 5 different batches of cookies representing all the children of the world. During Children's Time, first the kids got cookies and then they helped me pass out cookies to the whole congregation. It turned out not to be as hard as I thought it would and my mom was "game" to make them all during her weekend visit that happened to fall on the weekend of Children's Sabbath.

I would have never thought about something like that for worship if it hadn't been included in the guide. I do think that the suggestion in the guide was for fellowship time or something like that. So the leap to cookies in the sanctuary was mine. In a church that was (and still is) notorious for complaining, the cookies were the ticket for the needs of children who have no voice to be heard just a little bit louder.