EVANGELICAL THEOLOGICAL FACULTY, LEUVEN

COURSE ASSIGNMENT 5: WORSHIP DESIGN

ADVANCED LITURGY

PROFESSOR: DR. C. Cherry

BY Filip De Cavel

HEVERLEE - LEUVEN, BELGIUM June 2012

1. INTRODUCTION
The following order of service revolves around the meeting of Jesus with two people who could not be further apart from each other than humanly possible in the time and culture of first century Israel: Jairus and the sick woman in Mark 5. He is a man, she is a woman. He is named, she remains anonymous. Jairus is a religious man, she would probably be a religious outcast because of her perpetual uncleanness. We do not know if Jairus was poor, but she was. He is assertive and meets Jesus full frontal while the woman in a very timid way approaches Jesus. There is no resemblance between them and they might have never met in real life if it was not for Jesus. In Jesus they come together because they need Him and His powers. The narrative will serve, apart from being the choice of text to preach from, as a template for our worship, in fact for our lives. We come as a united people, united in brokenness. There brokenness is expressed in them kneeling down for Jesus. The whole narrative expresses emotions of fear, hope, lostness, worship and faith. These are great ingredients for a wonderful liturgy. The narrative as it will be expressed through the liturgy will serve as a mirror to our own lives. In this way we hope to be send away with the same blessing Jesus is offering the once sick now healed woman...I mean daughter.

2. PART ONE: ESSAY ON FOUR-FOLD ORDER

1.1. The Gathering The Gathering is the corporate answer to a Call to Worship of every individual believer. This individual leaves his or her house to join all the other believers. As such they become an embodied and communal reaction of those who are called out, the ekklsia. In other words, at that point of Gathering, the church becomes the church visible by virtue of answering that call, of saying yes to Gods invitation.1 Two aspects are worth noting: It is called out of somewhere else and it is being called in to a space, a body. These two elements who should be part of the same coin, emphasises some important truths about the Gathering. First, it is our answer to our Creators renewed call of Adam, where are you? (Gen. 3:9). We dont hide as a new people. The Gathering answers to God, Here we are!. We are called out of our hiding place to enter His hiding place (Ps. 32:7). The second aspect, the be called in, emphasis, as the Gathering progresses, the dialogue that develops between God and the worshipper.2

1 See also Constance M. Cherry, The Worship Architect : A Blueprint for Designing Culturally Relevant and Biblically Faithful Services (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2010), Kindle Electronic Edition: Chapter 4: Location 861. 2 This development from being called out, to being called in, I would argue, fits the movement from the general to the specific as pointed out by Cherry. See also Ibid., Kindle Electronic Edition, 896.

1.2. The Word The context of the early churches and for that matter for the most part of its existence was one of orality, a culture of speaking Gods word and listening to it. In a post-Reformational context we might applaud the reading and the listening to Gods Word, the reality is also that Scripture and sermon have become vehicles of theology and doctrine. The moment of the Word in this sense might become reduced to a moment of commentary which, in all fairness, is nothing wrong with. But Scripture is much more then that. It Gods story that shapes our thinking, our imagination and our actions. We are not so much interested in the commentary of a man or woman, but in being shaped by that Word that enters liturgy through a variations of pathways (creed, songs, exhortation, drama,).

1.3. The Response to the Word In celebrating the Lords Supper, or the Table, God has made it easy for us humans. We do what we normally do: eat and drink. We eat and drink what we like: wine and bread. In that symbolic moment of embodied drama we act out a response very similar to what we, dependent creatures, do everyday: we eat and drink bread and wine together. The difference is here is the one who prepared it by way of the same biological elements as by the way he offers it as an evocation of what Christ has done for us. To put it mildly unrespectful, it is a recipe prepared with love straight out of grandmother's kitchen.

1.4. The Sending As intentional the three previous parts have been prepared and experienced, so often this last part has become synonymous for the one thing that keeps us from discussing the sermon while drinking coffee. As we have been called out the world and called in to the Gathering, so we are send out by Him and called back to the world to take up our responsibilities as His witnesses. We might not end with saying have a nice week but in the sending there is the element of hope that through us others might have a good week. (555 words)

3. PART TWO: ORDER OF SERVICE The Gathering

Call to Worship from Isaiah 55:1-2 Greeting Chorus: The Feast is Ready to Begin (Graham Kendrick, 1989) Hymnal reading: Jesus, stand among us (William Pennefather, 1855) Chorus: Jesus stand among us (Graham Kendrick, 1977) Scripture reading: Gospel of Mark 5:21-33 Communal reading: A meditation on the Hymn of St. Patrick Antiphonal prayer

Word
Sermon based on the Gospel of Mark 5:21-43 Solo: Where there once was only hurt (Tommy Walker, 1992)

Response to the Word

Hymn: It is not death to die (Bob Kauflin, 2006) Silent reflection Spontaneous prayer Chorus: He is exalted (Twila Paris, 1985) Time of sharing and testimony Intercessory prayer

Sending
Scripture reading: Gospel of Mark 5:34-43 Chorus: What Can I Do? (Paul Baloche, 2008) Benediction

4. PART THREE: EXPLANATION

Introduction
The Order of Service is based on a sermon theme this writer has preached (A Tale of Two Daughters) which in turn is based on a text from the Gospel of Mark. It is the story of Jesus healing Jairus' daughter and a sick woman in Mark 5:21-43. As the text of the sermon is not transcribed here I will briefly explain its main message as it will give impetus to the order of service. It is a story of faith and hope that finds a climax in Jesus facing the woman and speaking life into her: Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering (Mk 5:34, NIV). In same manner Jairus is encouraged to act likewise. It is the only time in the Gospels Jesus is expressing a relationship to someone in this manner, using the word daughter. It is as if Jesus is saying to Jairus, You have a twelve year old daughter who is dying, but this daughter of mine has also been dying for twelve years. This idea of Jesus healing/raising these daughters will be the framework for this service. In the following text I will accentuate the specific liturgical elements in bold (e.g. a Call to Worship, Greeting, Proclamation,).

The Gathering (25)

The Gathering opens with a scriptural Call to Worship based on an invitation from Isaiah 55:1-2 (NIV): It is an invitation to the Thirsty. The leader proclaims with a loud voice: Isaiah 55:1-2. Then the leader would go on with a greeting in a more personal form of an invitation and in welcoming manner, he proclaims this welcoming.

In Jesus, God has prepared a feast of good things for all who accept his invitation. So feel welcomed and greeted by our Heavenly Host. Come on: the feast is ready!3

This will be the introduction to the first chorus based partially on Isaiah 55. It is a very festive and celebratory up-tempo chorus with references to other invitationaltype of biblical feast (e.g.. John 1, the wedding at Cana). In terms of narrative flow there are a strong invitational elements (Come, all you who are thirsty) combined with a Christological greeting in the paraphrased In Jesus, God. closed with an appropriate festive song of thankfulness which could be introduced as complementary to the invitation from Isaiah. We come, He offers, we thank Him. In terms of the main theme, the leader can highlight that God is a God of invitation. Even if religion, sickness or mere men stops us from approaching Jesus (as with the sick woman), the invitation is already send out by God and became specific in Jesus (i.e. from the general to the specific).4

on the introductionary chant of The Feast is Ready to Begin (No. 412) in Worship Today: Songs and Hymns for the Whole Church (Spring Harvest, 2001).
4

3 A variation

Ibid., Kindle Electronic Edition, Location: 903. 8

In this song there is a responsive and acclamation piece of praise with short statements of praise and thanksgiving by the congregation (i.e. Jesus, Jesus, we thank You, we thank You For Your love, for Your love). The congregation sings the chorus: The Feast is Ready to Begin (Graham Kendrick, 1989). When the chorus has finished the leader speaks the words of a hymn by William Pennefather (1855). The above spoken hymn is a prelude to the following song. The congregation answer to the above hymn with a chorus that starts with the same words, Jesus, stand among us. These lyrics serves two purposes. First, they are creedal confessions of the risen Christ and our communal participation in the risen Christ. Secondly it anticipates the tension arising in the theme texts of the Gospel of Mark where there is clearly fear and division. Two cultures collide with Jairus as a religious figure versus the sick woman who does not want to be noticed. Suddenly Jesus stands among them and unites them in their brokenness for there is no other ground apart from their brokenness and His mercy to unite them. As the congregation sings they can join hands at the appropriate time in the song as participatory answer to the reality of the risen Christ that unites us as well. The congregation sings the chorus: Jesus stand among us (Graham Kendrick, 1977). This idea of brokenness opens up space for expressing our offerings of failures. The last word of both the chorusses, fear, is exactly the emotion that will connect us with a time of confession. A time of confession will draw us first to the Gospel reading but only up to the point in the text where the woman trembles with fear (v. 33). It is at the same time

the moment within the Gathering that will set the stage for the Word. The text will be recited in a more dramatic fashion with the necessary pauses. Although it will be the first time the believers will hear the text, it will be again the word fear at the near end that will need to caught our attention but we move a step further. The last word is truth. The truth is spoken, in this case not by Jesus but by the women. Vers 33 is pact with meaning and action that invites the believer to do just the same in this time of confession: knowing (that Jesus healed), came and fell (a gesture of worship), trembling with fear (our attitude of reverence and awe) and telling the truth (confession). Again the flow of the narrative of the text and the Gathering meet each other here as we prepare for confession. It is important to stress that we are not left with the emotion of fear but are moved towards Jesus out of His touch and healing power. A lector reads Mark 5:21-33 (NIV). The leader says something like: We come as the woman with fear and trembling. But meeting Jesus is an encounter extraordinary. For one, it invites us to see ourselves in light of His presence. What happens then is simple and profound: We tell Him the truth. We open our hearts. Let us open our hearts by citing the following meditation. After reading this Scripture and saying the above, the reader invites the congregation to answer with a communal reading of the following text out of David Adams The Cry of the Deer: Meditations on the Hymn of St. Patrick.

10

In the text above there is the same expression of knowing as seen in the life of the sick woman. There is confession of failure linked with the creedal confession of His salvation acts. Before we listen to the Word, we need to become aware.The leader invites to a prayer based on Alternative Worship. It is an antiphonal prayer that helps to believer to come full circle in this gathering with the opening text of Isaiah 55:1-2: Come, all who are thirsty! The difference though with the Isaiah text is that the thirstiness becomes something personal and explained in terms of why we are thirsty (cf. Psalm 42). So here again we move from the general invitation of all people to the concrete and the personal weariness of the thirsty soul. In this sense the Gathering is also complete enough to stand on its own. The theme, although based on the need for us to approach Jesus (like Jairus and the sick woman) becomes a journey starting with an invitation to all and leading up to an encounter between Him and me, ending with Him offering me water. The leader invites us now to listen to Gods Word as explained by the preacher in the following way: Let us come to the Fountain of Life. He invites us to listen with honesty and truth so we might open ourselves to Him, kneel and be healed by His word.

11

Word
The preacher starts a 25 minute sermon: A Tale of Two Daughters (Jesus Heals Jairus' Daughter - Mark 5:35-43). At the end of the sermon the leader resumes his or her role. Still part of the Word-part, the leader invites the congregation to listen to a song brought as a solo. The leader asks the congregation to imagine as if the song is sung by the healed woman. It could be suggested to adapt the song normally brought with a latin feel to a more gospel-based style. Lively yet not to rhythmic. The leaders intention is to create room for feeling the gladness of the blessed woman, to emphatize with her thankfulness. This song will also bridge the Word with the Alternative Response to the Word. A singer sing the solo: Where there once was only hurt (Tommy Walker, 1992).

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Response to the Word

The leader made a transition from the Gathering which had the emphasis on the invitation to come and be celebrative and honest in light of His presence to the Word. The Word is the story of two daughters that invites us to join each other in our mutual brokenness. We kneel before the Healer. How should we respond? We responded initially by listening to the joy she might have experienced by listening to the solo. Now the leader asks the congregation to respond before we move on in our text since the narrative has not ended yet. The following hymn is a soft song that moves away from the particular to the general, from the woman to us. It is a meditation on the cross and more importantly, on how the cross is the answer to the womans predicament and ours. The congregation sings the hymn: It is not death to die (Bob Kauflin, 2006). This song offers a mood of silence and reflection. The Leader asks the congregation to be silent for a moment as they continue to read the lyrics on the screen. We are invited to offer this song as a prayer in response to the story of the healing of the woman, Jesus daughter. This song opens our eyes to the reality that we are all His sons and daughters. At this point in the service every part has been led by the leader. After a time of silence it would fair to expect a responsiveness in the peoples heart they would like to express. The leader opens the floor for spontaneous prayer. The leader might suggest a variation by asking those who would like to respond in a prayer, open up or end the prayer in the following way: Lord, you call me Your son/daughter.

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This spontaneous prayer is a highly formational moment since it will internalize the emotions of the story as encountered through the meeting with and healing by Jesus into the hearts of those present. To end this time, the leader will invite the musicians to start playing a chorus, He is Exalted (Twila Paris). It is this writers experience that this chorus reinforces the reality of the exalted one to Whom we pray and have prayed. The lyrics are a resounding Yes!. The opening mood of the song is rather flowing and has a crescendo towards the middle that exemplifies the movement from a stature of sitting down in quiet prayer to a stature of standing and praising. The congregation sings the chorus: He is exalted (Twila Paris, 1985). The Leader proceeds: How did this sick woman experienced His kingship? He said to her, Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering v. 34). Her sending might well be Jairuss frustration. Her life returned through the healing and the blessing. Jairuss daughter in the meantime died. For the leader this an opportunity to move away from the focus on ourselves to the needs of others. If we were to be aligned in spirit with the woman, it is with a purpose: to remain strong in our faith in Him. We might be healed but other might find it difficult to come with the same expectations. This might open a time for testimonies and responses to these testimonies. The leader might ask the congregation to be sensitive to those who might feel like Jairus. When all hope seems lost, the Lord is still there and speaks, Dont be afraid; just believe (v. 36). The congregation is invited to sit in pairs or threes. In this more intimate context people are free to express either their story of frustration or unanswered prayers. The others in the group can prayer for them.

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After a 3 till 5 minutes, the leader closes this time with an invitation to join the corporate setting. He prays the following: Dear God, thank you for being in control of my destination. Give me faith to believe that You are doing more than I see right now. Help me to receive the new name You give me.5 Not so much the sending of the woman is the emphasis here but the sending of Jairus. The interesting twist is that the sending is all quiet even secretive. A miracle but Jesus returns to the mundane of food. He tells them all to be quiet about what happened. In itself this reading does not invite the congregation to be joyful, rather silent. How could this narratives ending still inspire an appropriate ending of this service?

21.

Deeper Walk : A Relevant Devotional Series, (Lake Mary, Fl: RELEVANT BOOKS, 2002),

15

Sending
The leader starts the Sending reading the last part of the narrative: Mark 5:34-43. The sending is paradoxically a not-sending. The leader confronts the congregation with this: What does this mean for us? Shall we be quiet? Shall we who have brought back to live be silent? It is a rhetorical question at first so the congregation can ponder before answering. Ironically, the leader answers with a profound no!, after the cross, we should not be silent. The empty grave screams it out, He is risen! and so are you! But before we resolve this tension we can word this tension with a song: What Can I Do? (Paul Baloche). It questions how we can respond and the song offers the answer. It is a responsive song to His revelation, in this particular song, His general revelation (especially verse 1). But then, the second verse, talks about Gods particular revelation in Christ and His saving grace at the cross. Again we answer, make everything a hallelujah. The congregation sings the chorus: What Can I Do? (Paul Baloche, 2008). How can the congregation be send out with the appropriate benediction? Since both Jairus and the sick woman came to Jesus with a request a prayer it seems befit to end with a benediction focus on prayer. It is a Trinitarian prayer written by Richard Foster. To combine the benediction with the prayerful nature of the story makes this sending as a revisit of our main characters a powerful remembering of where we came from. The leader asks the congregation to stand. The leader speak out a benediction. The end.

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5. PART FOUR: APPENDIX

As it was asked, part four consists of all the worship material. To be able to follow the flow, I have kept the text from part three and integrated this time all the songs and prayers with the appropriate footnotes.

The Gathering opens with a scriptural Call to Worship based on an invitation from Isaiah 55:1-2 (NIV): It is an invitation to the Thirsty. The leader proclaims with a loud voice: Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.

Then the leader would go on with a greeting in a more personal form of an invitation and in welcoming manner, he speaks:

In Jesus, God has prepared a feast of good things for all who accept his invitation. So feel welcomed and greeted by our Heavenly Host. Come on: the feast is ready!6

This will be the introduction to the first chorus based partially on Isaiah 55. It is a very festive and celebratory up-tempo chorus with references to other invitationaltype of biblical feast (e.g.. John 1, the wedding at Cana).

6 A variation on the introductionary chant of The Feast is Ready to Begin (No. 412) in Worship Today: Songs and Hymns for the Whole Church (Spring Harvest, 2001).

17

In terms of narrative flow there are a strong invitational elements (Come, all you who are thirsty) combined with a Christological greeting in the paraphrased In Jesus, God. closed with an appropriate festive song of thankfulness which could be introduced as complementary to the invitation from Isaiah. We come, He offers, we thank Him. In terms of the main theme, the leader can highlight that God is a God of invitation. Even if religion, sickness or mere men stops us from approaching Jesus (as with the sick woman), the invitation is already send out by God and became specific in Jesus (i.e. from the general to the specific).7 In this song there is a responsive and acclamation piece of praise with short statements of praise and thanksgiving by the congregation (i.e. Jesus, Jesus, we thank You, we thank You For Your love, for Your love).

Chorus: The Feast is Ready to Begin (Graham Kendrick, 1989)8 The trumpets sound, the angels sing The feast is ready to begin The gates of heav'n are open wide And Jesus welcomes you inside Sing with thankfulness Songs of pur delight Come and revel in heaven's love and light Take your place at the table of the King The feast is ready to begin The feast is ready to begin Tables are laden with good things O taste the peace and joy He brings He'll fill you up with love divine He'll turn your water into wine

Ibid., Kindle Electronic Edition, Location: 903.

8 The Feast is Ready to Begin (No. 412) in Worship Today: Songs and Hymns for the Whole Church (Spring Harvest, 2001).

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Jesus, Jesus, we thank You, we thank You For Your love, for Your love For Your joy, for Your joy Jesus, Jesus, we thank You, we thank You For the good things, for the good things You give to us, You give to us The hungry heart He satisfies Offers the poor His paradise Now hear all heav'n and earth applaud The amazing goodness of the Lord

When the chorus has finished the leader speaks the words of a hymn by William Pennefather (1855):9 Jesus, stand among us In Thy risen power; Let this time of worship Be a hallowed hour. Breathe the Holy Spirit Into every heart; Bid the fears and sorrows From each soul depart.

The above hymn is a prelude to the following song. The congregation answer to the above hymn with a chorus that starts with the same words, Jesus, stand among us. These lyrics serves two purposes. First, they are creedal confessions of the risen Christ and our communal participation in the risen Christ. Secondly it anticipates the tension arising in the theme texts of the Gospel of Mark where there is clearly fear and division. Two cultures collide with Jairus as a religious figure versus the sick woman who does not want to be noticed. Suddenly

9 Jesus, Stand Among Us, Words: William Pennefather, http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/j/s/ jstandau.htm (accessed June 4, 2012).

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Jesus stands among them and unites them in their brokenness for there is no other ground apart from their brokenness and His mercy to unite them. As the congregation sings they can join hands at the appropriate time in the song as participatory answer to the reality of the risen Christ that unites us as well. Chorus: Jesus stand among us (Graham Kendrick, 1977):10 Jesus, stand among us At the meeting of our lives Be our sweet agreement At the meeting of our eyes O Jesus, we love You, so we gather here Join our hearts in unity and take away our fear So to You we're gathering Out of each and every land Christ the love between us At the joining of our hands11 O Jesus, we love You, so we gather here Join our hearts in unity and take away our fear

This idea of brokenness opens up space for expressing our offerings of failures. The last word of both the chorusses, fear, is exactly the emotion that will connect us with a time of confession. A time of confession will draw us first to the Gospel reading but only up to the point in the text where the woman trembles with fear (v. 33). It is at the same time the moment within the Gathering that will set the stage for the Word. The text will be recited in a more dramatic fashion with the necessary pauses. Although it will be the first time the believers will hear the text, it will be again the word fear at the near end that will need to caught our attention but we move a step further. The last word is truth. The truth is spoken, in this case not by Jesus but by the women.
10 11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy0mW2mmLU8 (accessed June 4, 2012) Here the congregation will hold hands. 20

Vers 33 is pact with meaning and action that invites the believer to do just the same in this time of confession: knowing (that Jesus healed), came and fell (a gesture of worship), trembling with fear (our attitude of reverence and awe) and telling the truth (confession). Again the flow of the narrative of the text and the Gathering meet each other here as we prepare for confession. It is important to stress that we are not left with the emotion of fear but are moved towards Jesus out of His touch and healing power.

A lector reads Mark 5:21-33 (NIV). 21 When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. (Pause) 22 Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. 23 He pleaded earnestly with him, My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live. 24 So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around him. (Pause) 25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 because she thought, If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed. 29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. 30 At once Jesus realised that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, Who touched my clothes? 31 You see the people crowding against you, his disciples answered, and yet you can ask, Who touched me? 32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. (Pause) 33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear (pause), told him the whole truth.

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The leader says something like: We come as the woman with fear and trembling. But meeting Jesus is an encounter extraordinary. For one, it invites us to see ourselves in light of His presence. What happens then is simple and profound: We tell Him the truth. We open our hearts. Let us open our hearts by citing the following meditation. After reading this Scripture and saying the above, the reader invites the congregation to answer with a communal reading of the following text out of David Adams The Cry of the Deer: Meditations on the Hymn of St. Patrick.12

Lead: ALL:

Know that He was crucified and lives, walks with you. Let Him walk into your past. We offer our failures and frustration, All that I wish to forget, All that I cannot forgive, All that hurts and pains me, He walks into rooms that we thought locked indeed, that He may bring peace. We offer our failures and frustration, All that I wish to forget, All that I cannot forgive, All that hurts and pains me, Experience that peace, His forgiveness and His living presence. He accepts you as you are. We offer our failures and frustration, All that I wish to forget, All that I cannot forgive, All that hurts and pains me, Lord, walk into areas that seem to be breaking down and we know that You offer Your presence, resurrection and life. We know that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ.

Lead: ALL:

Lead: ALL:

ALL:

12 David Adam, The Cry of the Deer, 1st American ed. (Wilton, Conn.: Morehouse-Barlow, 1987), 42, 43.

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In the text above there is the same expression of knowing as seen in the life of the sick woman. There is confession of failure linked with the creedal confession of His salvation acts. Before we listen to the Word, we need to become aware.The leader invites to a prayer based on Alternative Worship.13 It is an antiphonal prayer that helps to believer to come full circle in this gathering with the opening text of Isaiah 55:1-2: Come, all who are thirsty! The difference though with the Isaiah text is that the thirstiness becomes something personal and explained in terms of why we are thirsty (cf. Psalm 42). So here again we move from the general invitation of all people to the concrete and the personal weariness of the thirsty soul. In this sense the Gathering is also complete enough to stand on its own. The theme, although based on the need for us to approach Jesus (like Jairus and the sick woman) becomes a journey starting with an invitation to all and leading up to an encounter between Him and me, ending with Him offering me water.

Lead:

Its been a hot day Youve been out in the heat Had nothing to drink And are thirsty My soul thirsts for You, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is not water. What does it feel like to be thirsty? Your mouth is dry, You are weary, Your whole body longs for water. Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters.

ALL:

Lead:

ALL:

13 Jonny Baker, Doug Gay, and Jenny Brown, Alternative Worship : Resources from and for the Emerging Church (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2004), 133-34.

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The leader invites us now to listen to Gods Word as explained by the preacher in the following way: Let us come to the Fountain of Life. He invites us to listen with honesty and truth so we might open ourselves to Him, kneel and be healed by His word.

24

Word
The preacher starts a 25 minute sermon: A Tale of Two Daughters (Jesus Heals Jairus' Daughter - Mark 5:35-43). At the end of the sermon the leader resumes his or her role. Still part of the Word-part, the leader invites the congregation to listen to a song brought as a solo. The leader asks the congregation to imagine as if the song is sung by the healed woman. It could be suggested to adapt the song normally brought with a latin feel to a more gospel-based style. Lively yet not to rhythmic. The leaders intention is to create room for feeling the gladness of the blessed woman, to emphatize with her thankfulness. This song will also bridge the Word with the Alternative Response to the Word.

Solo: Where there once was only hurt (Tommy Walker, 1992):14 Where there once Was only hurt He gave His healing hand Where there once Was only pain He brought comfort Like a friend I feel the sweetness Of His love Piercing my darkness I see the bright And morning sun As it ushers in His joyful gladness You've turned my mourning Into dancing again You've lifted my sorrows And I can't stay silent I must sing
14 Where there once was only hurt (No. 468) in Worship Today: Songs and Hymns for the Whole Church (Spring Harvest, 2001).

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For Your joy has come Where there once Was only hurt You gave Your Healing hand Where the once Was only pain You brought comfort Like a friend I feel the sweetness Of Your love Piercing my darkness I see the bright And morning sun As it ushers in Your joyful gladness Your anger lasts For a moment in time But Your favour is here And will on me for All my life time You've turned my mourning Into dancing again You've lifted my sorrows And I can't stay silent I must sing For Your joy has come

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Response to the Word

The leader made a transition from the Gathering which had the emphasis on the invitation to come and be celebrative and honest in light of His presence to the Word. The Word is the story of two daughters that invites us to join each other in our mutual brokenness. We kneel before the Healer. How should we respond? We responded initially by listening to the joy she might have experienced by listening to the solo. Now the leader asks the congregation to respond before we move on in our text since the narrative has not ended yet. The following hymn is a soft song that moves away from the particular to the general, from the woman to us. It is a meditation on the cross and more importantly, on how the cross is the answer to the womans predicament and ours.

Hymn: It is not death to die (Bob Kauflin, 2006) 15 It is not death to die, to leave this weary road And join the saints who dwell on high whove found their home with God It is not death to close the eyes long dimmed by tears And wake in joy before your throne delivered from our fears O Jesus, King of grace You bore the cross in our place Though we suffer for a time We will reign with you on high And it is not death to die. It is not death to fling aside this earthly dust And rise with strong and noble wing to live among the just It is not death to hear the key unlock the door That sets us free from temporal years to praise you evermore.

15 This is the updated version by Bob Kauflin (Sovereign Grace Music). It is adapted from a poem by George Bethune. The original hymnal text was written by the French speaking Swiss revival preacher and writer of hymns, Henri A.C. Malan (1787-1864) "Non, ce n'est pas mourir que d'aller vers son Dieu" (1832), translated into English by George W. Bethune (1847). http://www.hymnary.org/text/ it_is_not_death_to_die?text=2&textDefault=editor&tab=about&visited=true and http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sna3Fp4LZ9g ((accessed June 14, 2012).

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O Jesus, King of grace You bore the cross in our place Though we suffer for a time We will reign with you on high And it is not death to die.

This song offers a mood of silence and reflection. The Leader asks the congregation to be silent for a moment as they continue to read the lyrics on the screen. We are invited to offer this song as a prayer in response to the story of the healing of the woman, Jesus daughter. This song opens our eyes to the reality that we are all His sons and daughters. At this point in the service every part has been led by the leader. After a time of silence it would fair to expect a responsiveness in the peoples heart they would like to express. The leader opens the floor for spontaneous prayer. The leader might suggest a variation by asking those who would like to respond in a prayer, open up or end the prayer in the following way: Lord, you call me Your son/daughter. This spontaneous prayer is a highly formational moment since it will internalize the emotions of the story as encountered through the meeting with and healing by Jesus into the hearts of those present. To end this time, the leader will invite the musicians to start playing a chorus, He is Exalted (Twila Paris). It is this writers experience that this chorus reinforces the reality of the exalted one to Whom we pray and have prayed. The lyrics are a resounding Yes!. The opening mood of the song is rather flowing and has a crescendo towards the middle that exemplifies the movement from a stature of sitting down in quiet prayer to a stature of standing and praising.

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Chorus: He is exalted (Twila Paris, 1985):16 He is exalted the King is exalted on High I will praise You He is exalted forever exalted And I will praise His name He is exalted the King is exalted on High I will praise Him He is exalted forever exalted And I will praise His name He is the Lord Forever His truth shall reign Heaven and Earth Rejoice in His holy name He is exalted the King is exalted on high He is exalted the King is exalted on high

The Leader proceeds: How did this sick woman experienced His kingship? He said to her, Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering v. 34). Her sending might well be Jairuss frustration. Her life returned through the healing and the blessing. Jairuss daughter in the meantime died. For the leader this an opportunity to move away from the focus on ourselves to the needs of others. If we were to be aligned in spirit with the woman, it is with a purpose: to remain strong in our faith in Him. We might be healed but other might find it difficult to come with the same expectations. This might open a time for testimonies and responses to these testimonies. The leader might ask the congregation to be sensitive to those who might feel like Jairus. When all hope seems lost, the Lord is still there and speaks, Dont be afraid; just believe (v. 36). The congregation is invited to sit in pairs or threes. In this more

16 He is exalted (No. 139) in Worship Today: Songs and Hymns for the Whole Church (Spring Harvest, 2001).

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intimate context people are free to express either their story of frustration or unanswered prayers. The others in the group can prayer for them. After a 3 till 5 minutes, the leader closes this time with an invitation to join the corporate setting. He prays the following: Dear God, thank you for being in control of my destination. Give me faith to believe that You are doing more than I see right now. Help me to receive the new name You give me.17 Not so much the sending of the woman is the emphasis here but the sending of Jairus. The interesting twist is that the sending is all quiet even secretive. A miracle but Jesus returns to the mundane of food. He tells them all to be quiet about what happened. In itself this reading does not invite the congregation to be joyful, rather silent. How could this narratives ending still inspire an appropriate ending of this service?

17

21.

Deeper Walk : A Relevant Devotional Series, (Lake Mary, Fl: RELEVANT BOOKS, 2002),

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Sending
The leader starts the Sending reading the last part of the narrative. [H]e took the childs father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41 He took her by the hand and said to her, Talitha koum! (which means Little girl, I say to you, get up!). 42 Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished. 43 He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.

The sending is paradoxically a not-sending. The leader confronts the congregation with this: What does this mean for us? Shall we be quiet? Shall we who have brought back to live be silent? It is a rhetorical question at first so the congregation can ponder before answering. Ironically, the leader answers with a profound no!, after the cross, we should not be silent. The empty grave screams it out, He is risen! and so are you! But before we resolve this tension we can word this tension with a song: What Can I Do? (Paul Baloche). It questions how we can respond and the song offers the answer. It is a responsive song to His revelation, in this particular song, His general revelation (especially verse 1). But then, the second verse, talks about Gods particular revelation in Christ and His saving grace at the cross. Again we answer, make everything a hallelujah.

Chorus: What Can I Do? (Paul Baloche, 2008): Verse 1: When I see the beauty of a sunset's glory, Amazing artistry across the evening sky When I feel the mystery of a distant galaxy It awes and humbles me to be loved By a God so high Chorus: What can I do but thank You,
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What can I do but give my life to You Hallelujah, hallelujah What can I do but praise You, Everyday make everything I do a hallelujah A hallelujah, hallelujah Verse 2: When I hear the story of a God of mercy Who shared humanity and suffered by our side Of the cross they nailed You to, that could not hold You Now You're making all things new by the power Of Your risen life

How can the congregation be send out with the appropriate benediction? Since both Jairus and the sick woman came to Jesus with a request a prayer it seems befit to end with a benediction focus on prayer. It is a Trinitarian prayer written by Richard Foster. To combine the benediction with the prayerful nature of the story makes this sending as a revisit of our main characters a powerful remembering of where we came from. The leader asks the congregation to stand.

A Benediction May you know, by the power of the Holy Spirit, receive the spirit of prayer. May it become, in the name of Jesus Christ, the most precious occupation of your life. And may the God of all peace strengthen you, bless you and give you joy. Amen.18

18 Richard J. Foster, Prayer : Finding the Heart's True Home, 1st ed. ([San Francisco]: HarperSanFrancisco, 1992), 273-74.

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6. CONCLUSION
To develop a strong and meaningful narrative by means of a Four-Fold order is a daunting task. There is so much to cover. The flow, the content be it theological, musical or pastoral, and also the interaction between all those present. The latter is a skill that can not be translated to paper. It is something one learns by doing it consistently and with passion. This particular essay has been fruitful in that it stretched my thinking. Usually my ministry is of an educational kind. To prepare and give a sermon is something that I have come to enjoy. But to translate the theme of a sermon to music, to a particular flavour with its roots in the biblical narrative, took a lot of time and work. Even now I sense that I have probably missed out on some key features that might have balanced or enriched the service. Still, looking back, Im grateful for the opportunity to experience once again the joy of struggling with the preparation of the liturgical context as one of the most blessed moments of the week.

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Bibliography
Adam, David. The Cry of the Deer. 1st American ed. Wilton, Conn.: MorehouseBarlow, 1987. Baker, Jonny, Doug Gay, and Jenny Brown. Alternative Worship: Resources from and for the Emerging Church. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2004. Cherry, Constance M. The Worship Architect: A Blueprint for Designing Culturally Relevant and Biblically Faithful Services. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2010. Deeper Walk : A Relevant Devotional Series. Lake Mary, Fl: Relevant Books, 2002. Foster, Richard J. Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home. 1st ed. [San Francisco]: HarperSanFrancisco, 1992.

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