This resource page is the result of collaborative work during the Calvin Seminars in Christian Scholarship titled “Gather into One” held in June-July 2004. A group of scholars, theologians, musicians, and educators worked together and planned worship with a global focus for those who were participating in seminars that summer. This particular project is intended to bring mission emphasis into our congregational worship services, with prayers and songs coupled together so that they may be placed into our weekly liturgies, bringing the world into our worship in a meaningful way each week or month.
Call to Worship
Come to be our hope, Lord Jesus,
come to set our people free;
from oppression, come, release us,
turn defeat to victory!
Come, release from every prison
those who suffer in our land:
in your love we find the reason
still to live and understand.
Come to build your new creation
through the road of servanthood;
give new life to every nation,
changing evil into good.
Come and open our tomorrow
for a kingdom now so near;
take away all human sorrow—
give us hope in place of fear.
—Jaci Maraschin (Brazil), Prayers Encircling the World.
This call to worship could be said responsively as an engaging and uplifting introduction to the Brazilian folk tune “Cantad al Señor” from Sing! A New Creation. Encourage the congregation to sing at least one verse in Spanish; and try having part of the congregation sing in English and part in Spanish at the same time! This song should be accompanied with guitars, a trumpet or saxophone on the melody, and light percussion. Once they’ve learned it, congregations will want to sing this song every week.