Who are we now, and what do we want to become? This page is for resources we use in that journey.
A report on the Asset Mapping work that was done by the transition team.
Spiritual gifts are special abilities given by the Holy Spirit, to each member of the Body of Christ, in order to fulfill the mission of the Church. Discover your spiritual gifts, through a short 60 question assessment. . Share your results with Pastor Joene, and receive details about your gift(s), including scripture references, and questions to consider.
Introduction to Liturgical Worship at Christ Lutheran Church
Christ Lutheran Church values liturgical worship. Liturgy literally means work of the people; liturgical worship is our standardized order of worship. Most of the words during the service are from the Bible. If you have experienced Roman Catholic, or other Protestant services the service will seem familiar. If you aren’t familiar with liturgical worship, the patterns might seem awkward or stilted. However, there is a flow that forms us and reforms us into a community of faith. Worship stands at the center of our life of faith. Like many other Lutheran churches, our liturgy follows a four-part pattern. We Gather, we Hear God’s Word, we Share in God’s Meal (Holy Communion) and we are Sent into the World. At various times during the service people are invited to stand (in body or in spirit) as a sign of respect and reverence for God.
Gathering weekly, we begin with an Invocation (in the Name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit) a simple creed – a statement of belief. We follow with Confession and Forgiveness or on some Sundays an Affirmation of Baptism. With confession we admit our need for Christ and with the affirmation we remember the gifts received from the Holy Spirit and promises made to God at the time of our baptism.
At the services with music, we continue with the Gathering Hymn and Prayer of the Day. Sometimes we add additional music such as a kyrie (Christ have Mercy) or This Is the Feast. The Gathering portion of the service ends with the Prayer of the Day. Next we hear God’s Word. Most Sundays we hear first from the Old Testament, then a Psalm which we often read responsively. The Psalm is followed by the Second Reading, most often an epistle (letter) from the New Testament. We stand up to hear the final reading, the Gospel. The reading is from one of the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and sometimes John. We follow the liturgical calendar (Revised Common Lectionary) a three-year cycle of readings. The Sunday readings follow the church calendar. The church year begins learning about Jesus Christ, beginning with the Season of Advent, followed by Christmas, Epiphany, Lent and Easter.
After Easter we worship in Ordinary (Ordered) Time – when the church learns about how to be the church. Each season has different texts, music, and color of paraments (the linens and banners).
The Sermon follows the readings, then the Hymn of Day. The Sermon and the Hymn of the Day follow the theme of the combined readings, and are meant to comment on, expand, or challenge thoughts about the Sunday theme. A creed (statement of belief) is followed by the Prayers of Intercession. These are prayers of the people, which usually follow a pattern; for the church universal and the mission of the Gospel, for the well-being of creation, for peace and justice in the world, for the poor, sick, lonely, and bereaved, for reuniting us with those who have passedon and sometimes for the congregation and special concerns.
The third part of our worship begins with sharing the Peace of Christ with others around us. The service usually follows with the Offering, which we have stopped since Covid, followed by an Offering Prayer. Holy Communion begins with the Great Thanksgiving, followed by Holy, Holy, Holy and then the Communion (Eucharistic) Prayer, culminating with the words Jesus said on the night he was betrayed. We follow with the Lord’s Prayer and the Sanctus (Lamb of God)introduced in the church about 700 AD. Then the pastor invites all to receive Holy Communion. Usually, a hymn is sung during the distribution. After communion the pastor gives a blessing, which the assisting minister follows with a Communion Prayer. Worship ends with a Benediction by the pastor, a blessing to end the whole service. The Benediction is followed by a Sending Hymn, and a dismissal led by the assisting minister, sending the people out in the world to serve neighbors and to witness to the presence of God. While liturgical worship may seem to some people as repetitive, stilted, or awkward, the purpose of the “work of the people” is to worship God and to remember who and whose we are as God’s people. Liturgical worship, using words that have been repeated both across the centuries and around the world remind us that even as we are the church here and now in a specificcommunity and culture, we are part of the universal (catholic) church of all times and places.