Generosity Cycle Worship Suggestions

October 13, 2024

Mark 10:17-31

Practice Bold Discipleship

Preparation:

Each week for the next six weeks, the gathered community will be asked to write thoughts related to creating a communal statement of generosity. You will need pens and paper for the community to write. These papers will be collected during the Disciples’ Generous Response and will need to be compiled by the pastor team or another group after each service to begin development of the statement. You can find instructions for each week at this link (insert link here). This week is the first week of the Generosity Cycle. The focus is on Invite. You can find information about the Generosity Cycle at (insert link here).

Prelude

Welcome and Call to Worship

Welcome to this sacred time of worship. Our theme today is Practice Bold Discipleship. It is also the first week of the Generosity Cycle which invites us to explore the transformative power of generosity and discipleship.

In a world that often emphasizes accumulation and self-interest, we come together as a community committed to a different way of life—one rooted in the teachings of love, compassion, and selfless giving. Today, we will focus on the heart of generosity for us personally and as a community.

Discipleship is a way of being - a journey of intentional growth and spiritual formation. The Generosity Cycle invites us into that time of intentionality. As disciples, we seek to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, who exemplified boundless love, compassion, and generosity. Jesus taught that generosity is more than a financial act; it is a posture of the heart. It involves giving of ourselves in ways that extend beyond our comfort zones, breaking down barriers and fostering cultures of inclusion and kindness.

Over the next six weeks, as part of the Generosity Cycle, we will consider the ways our generosity can reflect our collective heart. We will do this through centering moments, reflection times and the Disciples Generous Response. Each week we will be guided by questions that will lead us toward creating a communal statement of generosity that embodies our understanding of our call to share generously for the work of building God’s peaceable kingdom.

Let us be open to the Spirit's guidance, allowing it to shape and mold us into more faithful disciples. May we discover new depths of generosity within our hearts and may our discipleship journey be marked by a continuous outpouring of love and compassion. Thank you for being part of this worship experience as we explore the transformative and life-giving intersection of the heart of generosity and discipleship.

Blessed are you, O Lord;
   teach me your statutes.
With my lips I declare
    all the ordinances of your mouth.
I delight in the way of your decrees
    as much as in all riches.
I will meditate on your precepts
    and fix my eyes on your ways. (Psalm 119:12-15)

Hymn of Calling                    

“To Be Your Presence”                                                                      
CCS 351

or “Spirit Fill Us”                                                                                             
CCS 160

Opening Prayer

Scripture Reading                  

Mark 10:17-31

Children’s Focus Moment

Read “Joseph Had A Little Overcoat” by Simms Taback

Synopsis: Joseph had a little overcoat that was worn and full of holes so he made it into a jacket.  As the jacket continues to wear out it becomes in turn a vest, a scarf, a necktie, a handkerchief, and a button.  Each coat transformation is accompanied by some joyful experience depicted in vibrant colors.  The jacket is worn to a fair, the vest to a wedding, the scarf to a men’s chorus, the necktie to a family visit.  When Joseph loses the button he has nothing left except a story to tell. And that’s the moral: you can always make something out of nothing.

Discussion and Questions:

• Joseph had a lot of energy and was quite talented at making things!  What was your favorite thing that he made?
• Have you ever made something out of something else? What was it?
• Today’s theme is Practice Bold Discipleship. What do those words mean?
• To me, it means (put your own words in here or) that we follow the way that Jesus taught us and that we do it in a way that we are sure of ourselves.
• How did Joseph practice Bold Discipleship?
• Was he also practicing generosity? If so, how?

Centering Moment

Introduction:

Today for our centering moment, listen carefully to these words.

True faith will open up the door and step into the street.

True service will seek out the poor and ask to wash their feet.

(read these two lines one more time)

Guided Reflection: 

Envision yourselves stepping onto a busy street.

Imagine hearing the cars.

Imagine seeing the crowds of people walking along the sidewalks.

Now imagine walking by and seeing a homeless person sitting in a store doorway.

Imagine kneeling down with humility and compassion to wash the feet of this individual.

Feel the connection between your hands and the feet before you.

What do you feel? (pause)

What do you sense? (pause)

What do you see? (pause)

Closing:

Let this visualization serve as a reminder to approach each day with a spirit of love and genuine service towards others, embracing the transformative power of discipleship as Christ modeled.

Hymn of Centering

“The Church of Christ Cannot Be Bound”                                                    
CCS 347

or “Let Your Heart Be Broken”                                                                     
CCS 353

Reflection Time

What does it mean to live into our hearts of generosity? How can we approach each day with hearts full of generosity? Surprisingly, and not surprisingly, generosity means something different to every person. If you asked 10 people what generosity means to them, you may end up with 12 different answers! 

Consider this your invitation to explore your heart of generosity more fully. What does it mean to put into action the generosity we feel in our hearts both individually and as a congregation? Today we want to take some time to listen to our own hearts and to each other. We want to get a sense of what it means to be generous and what our hearts tell us about generosity.

(Ask the congregation to either find a space to sit quietly or get with a partner or with a group of 3-4 people and ask the following questions. You may want to post the questions on a slide or an easel board) 

What does generosity mean to you personally?

How do you show generosity in your own life?

What does it mean for our congregation/group to be generous?

How does our congregation/group show generosity?

(feel free to discuss as a congregation by having people share their answers out loud)

Hymn of Promise

“Speak, O Lord”                                                                                            
CCS 66

or “Spirit of the Living God”                                                                        
CCS 567

Morning Message: Based on Mark 10:17-31

Disciples’ Generous Response

Items needed: (give each person gathered two pieces of paper. The first with the question: How do you show generosity in your own life? The second with the question: How do we as a group or congregation show generosity?)

Generosity is more than a financial response, although it is that, too. Generosity, in its most pure sense, is a way to live life. Studies have shown that those who live their lives with a generous spirit are happier, feel as if their lives have a purpose, and fuller and deeper lives. This, of course, is not a reason to be generous, but it is a wonderful by-product of living with an open heart that is willing to give compassionately and with a deep desire to make a difference.

Earlier in the service, you had time to think and/or discuss what generosity means to you personally and what it means to our community. Take some time and write down on the papers you were given how you view generosity personally and communally.

Each week as we answer questions about generosity they will be gathered and reviewed by the pastor team (or whatever group has been selected) to help create a communal statement of generosity that will be presented in the fifth week of the Generosity Cycle.

So, take a moment to write your answers to the questions provided. Then we will place them in the offering baskets/plates when they are passed.

(Provide 3-4 minutes for this activity)

Blessing and Receiving of Local and Worldwide Mission Tithes

Closing Hymn

“For the Healing of the Nations”                                                                   
CCS 297

or “Lord Who Views All People Precious”                                                   
CCS 637                                                                                 

Benediction

Sending Forth (Doctrine and Covenants 165:6a-c)

Beloved Community of Christ, do not just speak and sing of Zion. Live, love, and share as Zion: those who strive to be visibly one in Christ, among whom there are no poor or oppressed. 

As Christ’s body, lovingly and patiently bear the weight of criticism from those who hesitate to respond to the divine vision of human worth and equality in Christ. This burden and blessing is yours for divine purposes. 

And, always remember, the way of suffering love that leads to the cross also leads to resurrection and everlasting life in Christ’s eternal community of oneness and peace. Trust in this promise.

Postlude