All Hallows Saturday Evening Worship (January 28, 2023)

The order of worship for this Saturday evening is based on the basic pattern of worship in The United Methodist Book of Worship (1992). The songs are taken from The Faith We Sing (2000) and Worship and Song (2011), supplements to The United Methodist Hymnal (1989).

Open this link in a new tab to hear Brian Doerkson’s “Come, Now Is the Time to Worship.” [W&S #3176]

Come, now is the time to worship
Come, now is the time to give your heart
Come, just as you are to worship
Come, just as you are before your God
Come

One day every tongue will confess You are God
One day every knee will bow
Still the greatest treasure remains for those
Who gladly choose You now

Come, now is the time to worship
Come, now is the time to give your heart
Come, just as you are to worship
Come, just as you are before your God
Come

One day every tongue will confess You are God
One day every knee will bow
Still the greatest treasure remains for those
Who gladly choose You now

One day every tongue will confess You are God
One day every knee will bow
Still the greatest treasure remains for those
Who gladly choose You now

Come, now is the time to worship
Come, now is the time to give your heart
Come, just as you are to worship
Come, just as you are before your God
Come

Just as you are
Just as you are
Just as you are
Come

Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord!
Praise the Lord! 

Open this link in a new tab to hear Michael W. Smith’s arrangement of Chris Tomlin’s “Forever (His Love Endures Forever).” [W&S 3023]

Give thanks to the Lord, our God and King
His love endures forever
For He is good, He is above all things
His love endures forever

Sing praise, sing praise

With a mighty hand and outstretched arm
His love endures forever
For the life that's been reborn
His love endures forever

Sing praise, sing praise
Sing praise, sing praise

Forever, God is faithful
Forever, God is strong
Forever, God is with us
Forever and ever

From the rising to the setting sun
His love endures forever
And by the grace of God, we will carry on
His love endures forever

Sing praise, sing praise
Sing praise, sing praise

Forever, God is faithful
Forever, God is strong
Forever, God is with us
Forever and ever

Forever, God is faithful
Forever, God is strong
Forever, God is with us
Forever and ever, forever

His love endures forever
His love endures forever
His love endures forever
His love endures forever

Sing praise, sing praise
Sing praise, sing praise

Forever, You are faithful
Forever, You are strong
Forever, You are with us
Forever and ever

Forever, You are faithful
Forever, You are strong
Forever, You are with us
Forever and ever

Forever, You are faithful
Forever, You are strong
Forever, You are with us
Forever and ever, forever

Forever, You are faithful
Forever, You are strong
Forever, You are with us
Forever and ever, forever

Open this link in a new tab to hear Chris Tomlin and Louie Giglio’s “Holy Is the Lord.” [W&S #3028]

We stand and lift up our hands
For the joy of the Lord is our strength
We bow down and worship Him now
How great, how awesome is He

And together we sing
Everyone sing

Holy is the Lord God Almighty
The earth is filled with His glory
Holy is the Lord God Almighty
The earth is filled with His glory
The earth is filled with His glory

We stand and lift up our hands
For the joy of the Lord is our strength
We bow down and worship Him now
How great, how awesome is He

Holy is the Lord God Almighty
The earth is filled with His glory
Holy is the Lord God Almighty
The earth is filled with His glory
The earth is filled with His glory

It's rising up all around
It's the anthem of the Lord's renown
It's rising up all around
It's the anthem of the Lord's renown
It's rising up all around
It's the anthem of the Lord's renown
It's rising up all around
It's the anthem of the Lord's renown

And together we sing
Everyone sing

Holy is the Lord God Almighty
The earth is filled with His glory
Holy is the Lord God Almighty
The earth is filled with His glory
The earth is filled with His glory

Holy, holy is the Lord Almighty, holy, holy
Holy, holy is the Lord Almighty, holy, holy
Holy, holy is the Lord Almighty, holy, holy
Holy, holy is the Lord Almighty, holy, holy

Open this link in a new tab to hear Kathryn Scott’s “Hungry (Falling on My Knees).” [W&S #3099]

Hungry, I come to You
For I know You satisfy
I am empty but I know
Your love does not run dry

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

Hungry, I come to You
For I know You satisfy
I am empty but I know
Your love does not run dry

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

I'm falling on my knees
Offering all of me
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for

Broken, I run to You
For Your arms are open wide
I am weary
but I know Your touch
restores my life

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

I'm falling on my knees
Offering all of me
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for

I'm falling on my knees
Offering all of me
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

I'm falling on my knees
Offering all of me
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for

I'm falling on my knees
Offering all of me
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for

Jesus, You're all this heart is living for
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for
Jesus, You're all this heart is living for

Let us bow our heads in prayer.

Silence is kept, and then this prayer is said.

We are hungry, Lord Jesus. 
Hungry for you. 
You alone have the words of life.
You alone can feed our souls.
You alone can heal us.
You alone can make us whole.
Renew us, Lord Jesus.
Make us one in you.
Strong in our love for each other.
True disciples on the path of life. 
For your love's sake. Amen. 

A reading from the New Testament (1 Corinthians 12: 1-11)

Now, dear brothers and sisters, regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don’t want you to misunderstand this. You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols. So I want you to know that no one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit.

There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.

A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.

Silence follows the reading

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The Gifts of the Spirit

Among the mistaken beliefs that members of the church at Corinth had and which Paul addresses in his first letter to the Corinthians is the belief that if they manifested a particular gift of the Spirit, they were superior to their fellow Christians. As a result these members of the church had become puffed up with pride and viewed themselves as a spiritual elite. They were treating their fellow Christians with contempt and were not acting in a loving manner toward them.

Regrettably Christians have not outgrown this tendency to set great store in a particular gift, typically speaking in tongues, and to feel superior to their fellow Christians who do not evidence this gift. Indeed, some Christians insist that it is definitive proof that a Christian has received the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In this evening’s Scripture reading, Paul addresses these two notions. First, he points to the attention of the church at Corinth that no one can call Jesus their Lord unless the power of the Holy Spirit enables them to call him their Lord. We are incapable of acknowledging and affirming Jesus’ lordship over us except by the Holy Spirit.

Paul goes on to point to the attention of the church at Corinth that God works in each of us differently. God does not give us a particular spiritual gift for our own advantage but to enable us to help others. The spiritual gift that we may evidence is not given to us but to the church, the particular local expression of the Body of Christ of which we are a part. It is given to us for the benefit of our fellow Christians, our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Paul further points out that we do not determine what spiritual gift we receive. The Holy Spirit alone determines what spiritual gift he will give us.

How then does a church benefit from the Holy Spirit giving a particular individual the spiritual gift of praying in tongues, of praying in words that other people do not understand. A pastor of my acquaintance offered this explanation to me. For a number of years he had struggled with a drinking problem. When he received the spiritual gift of praying in tongues, he was able to stop drinking. He concluded that God had given him that gift to bolster his weak faith so that he could minister again in a church and serve the larger Christian community. In this sense he received this gift for the benefit of others.

A frequent question Christians ask is “How do I discern what my gift is?” We may receive several gifts from the Spirit in our lifetime. God may give us a particular passion and expose us to particular life experiences to prepare us to exercise a particular gift. The most reliable method of discerning a spiritual gift is the observations of other people, people in our church, in our Sunday school class, in our small group. What they notice or see will help us recognize how we are gifted.

The gifts of the Spirit are testimony to God’s favor and goodwill toward the Church, to a particular local expression of the Body of Christ, a congregation of the faithful, and to the larger Christian community. Through them God not only blesses the Church but empowers her witness to Jesus, to her Savior and Lord. When we embrace the gifts that the Holy Spirit has given us and faithfully use them for the benefit of our brothers and sisters in Christ, we are also embracing our Lord and faithfully serving him for it was he who promised to send us the Holy Spirit to guide and help us. We are showing our gratitude for the Spirit’s presence and power in our lives.

Silence is kept.


Where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is peace.
Where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is love.
There is comfort in life's darkest hour
there is light and life,
there is help and power in the Spirit,
in the Spirit of the Lord.

Where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is peace.
Where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is love.
There is comfort in life's darkest hour
there is light and life,
there is help and power in the Spirit,
in the Spirit of the Lord.

There is comfort in life's darkest hour
there is light and life,
there is help and power in the Spirit,
in the Spirit of the Lord.

The following is prayed, during which any person may offer a brief prayer of intercession or petition.

After each prayer, the leader may conclude: God of mercy and all may respond: Hear our prayer.

Together, let us pray

for the people of this congregation...

for those who suffer and those in trouble...

for the concerns of this local community...

for the world, its peoples, and its leaders...

for the earth you have given to our care…

for the Church universal—its leaders, its members, and its mission...

in communion with the saints...

Accept our prayers through Jesus Christ our Lord, who taught
us to pray,

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.

Open this link in a new tab to hear Steve Garnaas-Holmes' "Spirit of God." [TFWS #2117]

Spirit of God, bright Wind, breath that bids life begin,
blow as you always do; create us anew.
Give us the breath to sing, lifted on soaring wing,
held in your hands, borne on your wings.
Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.

Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.

Spirit of God, bright Dove, grant us your peace and love,
healing upon your wings for all living things.
For when we live your peace captives will find release,
held in your hands, borne on your wings. 

Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.

Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.


Spirit of God, bright Hands, even in far-off lands
you hold all the human race in one warm embrace.
No matter where we go you hold us together so,
held in your hands, borne on your wings. Alleluia!…

Spirit of God, bright Flame, send us in your holy name,
with power to heal, to share your love everywhere.
We cannot fail or fall or know defeat at all,
held in your hands, borne on your wings. 

Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.

Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.

Spirit of God in all, we gladly hear your call,
the life in our hands that sings, the power of your wings.
Born of your grace we rise, love shining in our eyes,
held in your hands, borne on your wings. 

Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.

Alleluia! Come, Spirit, come.


May God bless and keep us. Amen.
May God’s face ever shine upon us. Amen.
May God grant us peace for all our days. Amen.

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