Joyce Borger

As pastors and worship leaders we may need to remind ourselves and those we lead in worship that our joy is rooted not in our immediate context but the much larger story of redemption.

This service was inspired by and incorporates many of the suggestions from Dr. John Witvliet’s article “The Psalms of Anger: Is There a Place for Anger in Worship?” (p. 35). This service uses Psalm 13 as a guide, moving from anger and lament to professions of faith and trust. Psalm 13 appears three times in this service, with more of the psalm read each time. Consider using three different individuals to serve as readers to give diverse expressions to the psalm. As I was reflecting on Psalm 13 I wondered about that pivot point occurring in so many psalms between despair and hope, anger and praise. How is it that the psalmist is able to move from one to the other? How are both held in tension? These questions became the foundation of the message and the purpose for examining David’s faith as expressed in 2 Samuel 7. It should be noted that different communities and individuals experience different occasions that give rise to anger. This service provides the opportunity for you to be specific in voicing those complaints and prayers. Music and song reside close to our emotions and give expression to them. It is no wonder that anger and lament find their way into music. Still, many of our worshiping communities have not provided space for such songs of anger or lament to be expressed. But if we as a covenant community want to have an honest, authentic relationship with our Lord and Savior, we need to sing songs of lament as well as songs of praise. We need to provide the context for our anger, setting it properly within the larger gospel narrative that promises freedom. We need to name our anger, fears, laments, and griefs in order to hand them over to God, who holds all things in God’s hands. Then in obedience to God, empowered and led by the Holy Spirit, we continue to work for justice and healing in this world. For each portion of the service I have included song options from multiple musical styles, from traditional hymns to rap, from gospel to folk. Choose one or more in each section. While you don’t want the whole service to be full of unknown songs, don’t be afraid to challenge your congregations to sing something new—maybe even something with a text that will stretch you. If there is a text you find particularly appropriate for your context but you don’t want to sing it, consider having someone recite it like a poem. Whatever you do, do not rush the service. If yours is a church where folks get antsy when a service runs longer than an hour, make sure to have this service at a time where there is some freedom to go beyond that. Invite folks to set aside their clocks and turn off their cell phones to allow the Spirit to do what the Spirit wills. Take as much time as needed to name the anger and pain, spend significant time in prayer, and allow for times of silence. To communicate the service’s movement visually, adjust the lighting from dim to full as the service progresses. One additional note regarding singular and plural pronouns: While normally I shy away from using singular pronouns in corporate worship, there were times in this service where I felt the singular was much more powerful and reflected the singular pronouns used in Psalm 13. Feel free to make them plural if that is a stumbling block for folks in your community. Prelude If you are singing any unfamiliar songs in this service, you may wish to include them as part of the prelude to give those gathered an opportunity to hear the melody before they are invited to sing later in worship. Call to Worship Our help is in the name of the Lord,       the Maker of heaven and earth. Lord, I believe, help my unbelief. —Psalm 124:8; Mark 9:24 (NKJV) God’s Greeting But now, this is what the Lord says—       the one who created and formed you: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;       I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When I pass through the waters,       I will be with you; and when I pass through the rivers,       they will not sweep over you. When I walk through the fire,       you will not be burned;       the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God,       the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. —Isaiah 43:1–3, 5, adapted Opening Prayer: A Prayer of Distress God—are you really there? It seems so long since I have felt the comfort of your presence And even longer since I have experienced the assurance of your blessing. I do not like the thoughts in my own heart, let alone the words of my enemies. Come, Lord Jesus, to this dark place in me. Let me know the joy of your presence again. With you, I have all I need. Help me to want nothing else. —Paul Detterman, 2011, © Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike Sung Prayer “Our Song in the Night” Van Patter, Bifrost Arts “Illuminate the Shadows” Zach, Wardell, The Porter’s Gate “Drive Out the Darkness” Zach, Wardell, The Porter’s Gate “Christ, Be Our Light” Farrell, LUYH 908, GtG 314, SSS 242 “Beams of Heaven” Tindley, LUYH 454, PsH 577 “Dans nos obscurités / Within Our Darkest Night” Taizé, LUYH 417, GtG 294, SSS 300 “Quédate con nostros / Stay with Us, Holy Savior” Veneziale, SSS 296 “Where Are You in the Storm” Hargreaves, Resound Worship “My God, My God, Why (Psalm 22)” Vermeulen-Roberts, The Psalms Project Anger and Lament “As we hear now these words of protest and anger, call to mind all the people around us and among us who are living with these emotions today” (Witvliet, p.36). In solidarity with them, or as an expression of our own anger and lament, we ask: How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?       How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts       and day after day have sorrow in my heart?       How long will my enemy triumph over me? —Psalm 13:1–2 Optional: At this point in the psalm, add “How long” questions that are relevant to your own context and give expression to the anger of your community. These could be prepared beforehand and spoken by a leader, individuals can be invited to voice them aloud, or those gathered could spend some time in silence to reflect on their questions, write them, or express them visually. Songs of Anger and Lament Based on Psalm 13 “How Long, O Lord, Will You Forget” Woollett, GtG 777, PfAS 13D “How Long?” Wardell, Bifrost Arts “How Long Will You Forget Me?” Idle, LUYH 410, PfAS 13B “How Long, O Lord, How Long” Stuempfle, LUYH 291 “Psalm 13” Wilhelm “How Long, O Lord” Doerksen, PfAS 13C Consider using this song throughout the service, singing up to the first repeat after the first two readings of Psalm 13 and adding the second half after the third reading. Other Songs of Anger, Protest, and Lament “We Will Make No Peace with Oppression” Alattas, Vice, Zach “Justicia” Williams and Wardell, The Porter’s Gate “Hear the Song of Our Lament” Ying, Resound Worship “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around” Traditional “I’m Gon’ Stand” Sweet Honey in the Rock Intercession Scripture Reading How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?       How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts       and day after day have sorrow in my heart?       How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, Lord my God.       Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”       and my foes will rejoice when I fall. —Psalm 13:1–4 Sung Response “Rise Up!” Wardell, Bifrost Arts “Can the Dead Rise Up to Praise?” Juby, Bifrost Arts “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior” Crosby, LUYH 422 “Jesus, Lover of My Soul” Wesley, LUYH 424, GtG 440, PsH 578 “En tu misericordia danos paz / Lord, in Your Mercy, Give Us Peace” Oberman, SSS 313 “Purge Me” Hurst, Palmer, Urban Doxology “Come, Deliver Me” Kim, Runderburgh, Proskuneo Prayer with Optional Sung Refrain During this time, as John Witvliet suggests in his article,“offer a prayer that names particular sources of injustice, violence, pain, and bitterness in the world around us” (p. 36). Do not rush this time of prayer. Allow for moments of silence. Multiple prayer leaders could participate. You could also introduce this time of prayer by reading headlines from current news stories. Sung Refrain: “O Lord, Hear My Prayer” (first stanza only) Taizé, LUYH 903, GtG 471, SSS 311 Interlude: God's Response Scripture 2 Samuel 7 Message: “The Interlude” What happens between verses 4 and 5 of Psalm 13? How is the author able to pivot? David is able to give voice to his anger and lament and declare his faith in God because of the larger context of his life. That larger context is summarized in 2 Samuel 7: Remembering what God has done in the past: “I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt” (vs. 6) Remembering God’s promises especially “rest from all your enemies” (vs. 11) Testimony of the individual and/or community: vs. 22–23, the gift of Nathan the prophet Faith in the coming Savior, the one who will establish the kingdom forever (vs. 11–16, 25–27) Hope (vs. 28–29) Song of Response If earlier in the service you invited people to write their “how long” questions or express them visually, invite them to bring their papers to the front to be disposed of or ripped up, or remain in their seat and draw a cross over them as an expression of faith and hope in our Lord and the promise of new life. “Victory Belongs to Jesus” Dulaney “Break Every Chain” Reagan, Cobbs “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” Martin, LUYH 441, GtG 661, SSS 322 “The Seed Must Fall” Hardy Scripture Hebrews 4:14–16 Prayer with Optional Sung Refrain During this time pray specifically for the faith and hope to continue and the ability to find joy even in difficult times. Pray too that our lives may be living testimonies, reflecting a boldness that comes from the surety of Christ’s victory over death itself. Sung Refrain: “O Lord, Hear My Prayer” (second stanza only) Taizé, LUYH 903, GtG 471, SSS 311 Profession of Faith Scripture Reading How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever?       How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts       and day after day have sorrow in my heart?       How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, LORD my God.       Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”       and my foes will rejoice when I fall. But I trust in your unfailing love;       my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the LORD’s praise,       for he has been good to me. —Psalm 13 Songs of Faith and Trust “Lift Every Voice and Sing” Johnson, LUYH 44, GtG 339, SSS 36 “We Believe in the Name” Wardell, Vice, The Porter’s Gate “Total Praise” Smallwood, LUYH 420, SSS 329 “The Lord Is My Light” Bouknight, LUYH 431 “Vancerá el amor / Love Shall Overcome” Colón, SSS 286 “Que no caiga la fe / Never, Never Lose Faith” Páez, SSS 315 “Why Are You Downcast (Be Still My Soul)” Pagnam/Resound Worship “Sing Hallelujah to the Lord / Lift Up Your Hearts unto the Lord” Benjamin, LUYH 844, PsH 309, SSS 685 This is not a song one might associate with protest, yet it became a significant part of the protest movement in Hong Kong. The Lord’s Supper Sending 1 Corinthians 15:50–58 Optional Closing Songs “Your Labor Is Not in Vain” Kimbrough, Wardell, The Porter’s Gate “O Jerusalem” Wardell, Thompson, The Porter’s Gate “Sizohamba naye / We Will Walk with God” Swaziland traditional, LUYH 931, GtG 742, SSS 719 “Canto de esperanza / Song of Hope” Spanish traditional/Mitchell, LUYH 941, GtG 765, SSS 721 “Walk the Talk” Ward, New City Hymnal “Arrive” Massey, Common Hymnal “Let Us Be Known by Our Love” Massey, Flanigan, Common Hymnal, RW 127:28 Blessing As you leave this place this day, may God’s love sustain you, and may you love those who surround you. May God’s Spirit empower you, and may you empower all those you meet. May God’s joy fill your hearts, and may this joy overflow to the ends of the earth for God’s glory, now and forever. Amen. —Reprinted by permission from The Worship Sourcebook, © 2004, Faith Alive Christian Resources. 9.2.18 Doxology “To God Be the Glory” Crouch, LUYH 956 Lead sheets for songs by The Porter’s Gate can be found in the dropbox at www.theportersgate.com with the understanding that they are to be used only with a valid copyright license or permission.

I’m angry. I am angry that my daughter, who is starting ninth grade today, which in the U.S. marks the move to high school, is doing so from the desk in her bedroom. I’m angry that we as a country couldn’t do what was necessary to make a safe return to school possible for many of our students and teachers. Truth be told, that isn’t the only thing I’m angry about, and in the scheme of world events it’s not that significant. The world we inhabit at this moment is full of anger. Anger at the “other” who doesn’t share our political position or worldview. Anger at Hong Kong police attacking a twelve-year-old girl and ongoing anger over broken promises. Anger that a sixteen-year-old boy in South Africa was caught in crossfire and killed while eating a biscuit at his kitchen table. Anger over vote rigging in Belarus. Anger that the opioid epidemic is worsening in Canada and getting so little attention. Anger at injustices shown to indigenous people groups and people of color. Even the creation seems to be angry, with raging fires, swarms of locusts, hurricanes, derechos, and drought. I’d like to think that by the time you read this all will be solved—my daughter physically in school; democracy returned to Hong Kong; indigenous people groups fully recognized, with progress towards restitution and reconciliation for all who have suffered from systemic racism. Creation at rest. But my guess is that many of these situations will remain, and so will the anger and grief. Let us continue to lament and turn our anger over to God, and then ask God how God wants to use us to bring about shalom. In the midst of all of this I was blessed by the content of this issue, and I hope you will be blessed by reading it. Even if you don’t use the worship services for congregational worship, use them for your personal devotional time. Read the prayers provided in the services. Spend time reflecting on the texts of songs; click on the links in the digital edition to listen to them. Spend time with Scott Hoezee’s reflection (p. 18). Use the images of the slain lamb (p. 27) and Hans Holbein’s “The Body of the Dead Christ in the Tomb” (p. 33) to reflect on how Christ took on this world’s righteous anger, its laments, its pain, and its sin, how he suffered, died, and descended to the dead so that we might be saved—that we might have hope. I also encourage you to read about the importance of joy and praise in Latino worship even amid struggles (p. 43). Finally—or maybe first—read John Witvliet’s response to a question about the place of anger in worship (p. 35). Today especially, I needed the reminder that “some psalms of protest and anger are notable not simply because they express anger or disappointment but because they do not simply express anger or disappointment, but relinquish it, entrusting the pain or source of bitterness to God” (p. 35). Let us continue to lament and turn our anger over to God, and then ask God how God wants to use us to bring about shalom.

God’s got you. You are not alone. God’s got you and God isn’t afraid of your fears and wonderings, your anger and questions, your weariness.

Have you heard of the slow movement? Slow food? Slow living? It’s all about creating the space needed in life to draw closer connections between individuals and communities. The slow movement desires to strengthen the relationship between people and the earth and all it contains, to know where your food comes from, to grow it, gather it, prepare it, smell it, and take the time to relish it. It’s about being present, being grounded in who and where you are, and focusing on the journey of life and not simply goals and outcomes. To do that you need to slow down. This year many of us have experienced a forced slowing as we stayed home to reduce the spread of COVID-19. We had nowhere to go, so households were forced to engage with each other. Siblings became each other’s only playmates. We took time to arrange virtual meetups and in some instances engaged more with distant friends and family than prior to COVID. Our worship was simplified (though its creation wasn’t simple), and church meetings were canceled. I don’t wish for a resurgence of COVID or the coming of another pandemic, but as real as all the loss of life, employment, dreams, and opportunities are, so are the glimpses of good things that arose in and through the pandemic. It’s important that we don’t lose the good. And one of the good things was the slowing down. As we circle around to the Advent and Christmas seasons once again, whether your church is worshiping all together or in households or in small groups, I encourage you to intentionally plan a slow Advent. By that I mean being intentional about locating your congregation in the cosmic reality of God’s activity and in a specific time and place. Help your congregants see that they are in the in-between time, the time between God breaking into this world as the incarnate Christ and the return of our glorious Savior. Discover again how we can find hope in the fact that Christ became human and understands the highs and lows of life. Remind your people that that same Christ overcame death itself, so we too can live knowing that one day we too shall experience that reality and even now can claim it as ours. Take the time to name current realities in all their complexity: the grief, fear, loss, joy, excitement, and hope that exist side by side. Name and pray against the evil of racism in all its forms, against the devaluing of life expressed by the normalization of abortion, against underfunded schools, against the refusal to care about missing Indigenous women, against the fact that so many Indigenous and isolated communities do not have access to clean water and electricity, and against other evils plaguing our communities and world. Advent is about helping our people live lives of patient and active endurance amid personal, communal, national, and global struggles while clinging to the joyous expectation of Christ’s return. Advent isn’t simply about preparing for Christmas, buying gifts, and putting up decorations. It is about watching and waiting to see what God is doing in our lives and in the world around us and then joining God in that work by willingly giving up our life for others. Advent requires us to slow down—to watch, to look, to listen, and then, in consort with the Holy Spirit, to act. Our hope is that in this issue of Reformed Worship you will find resources to do just that, not just during Advent, but all the way through the season of Epiphany.

Worship practices during the COVID-19 pandemic have opened up opportunities for worship leaders to reflect the principles and the most important elements of corporate worship.

By the time you start thinking about Ascension and Pentecost services Easter will have passed. Pastors and worship leaders are giving a collective sigh of relief that they have reached this stretch of Ordinary Time without any great expectations for special services. But wait—the gospel story isn’t over yet. Christ has been raised from the dead, but the story continues through Christ’s ascension and the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and beyond. It is with the giving of the Holy Spirit that we join the story.

During this Advent season, are you the one knocking or the one invited to express God’s love and mercy and open the door? My daughter and I took a road trip one summer and because I wanted some scheduling freedom we didn’t book campsites ahead of time. Given just how many campgrounds there are I naively thought we would have no problem securing a site each night. How wrong my assumptions were and as place after place said they were full I felt my anxiety rising.

The anti-idolatry response [to worship’s “de-Christianizing of God’s people] is to make sure that our worship leaders and planners from pastors to musicians, artists, tech, liturgists and elders, and yes also those gathered, understand that it is God who calls us to worship, it is the Holy Spirit who enables our worship, and it is Christ who perfects it.