January 15, 2026
I have mentioned on a number of occasions how I have adjusted my worship life to sync with the liturgical church calendar. This has been a process for me over twenty-five years. I find this approach deeply satisfying. I will give one example here; the liturgy for January 11 had the title: The Baptism of Our Lord. The Gospel reading and preaching text was Matthew 3:13-17.
The prayer before the sermon went as follows:
O God our Father, at the baptism of Jesus you proclaimed him your beloved Son and anointed him with the Holy Spirit. Make all who are baptized into Christ faithful to their calling to be your daughters and sons, and empower us all with your Spirit, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
I do not recall praying anything like this in worship in my free-church evangelical background. (There have been friends in this background who have embraced a more liturgical approach.) But hearing the Gospel read, and then praying this particular prayer, brought me into the mystery of faith and baptism anew.
After the congregational prayers we then gave our offerings and prayed together:
Help us in this Epiphany season to allow Christ’s light and love to shine through us and the gifts that we give. This we pray in Jesus’ name.
As is true in every worship service at my church we then came to the Lord’s Table. I recall hearing again and again in my formative years that partaking of the body and blood of Christ in the sacrament of communion would cause us to “do this” in a way that would become rote. I have found it to be anything but rote. But even when The Table does not move me emotionally I can engage with it by faith and be renewed.
The way you worship God may be very different than this particular liturgy. (BTW, the word liturgy simply means the work of the people so all Christian churches have a liturgy even if it is quite informal.) I remain convinced that the earliest Christians read and heard the word of God, prayed, shared their offerings and received the bread and wine.
Praying that your worship may also grow in His grace and truth,
John
Odds and Ends
- I continue to prayerfully watch the news I receive from the underground house churches in China. It is safe to say that some of the most vibrant expressions of Christ-like faith we have in this century comes from these unregistered centers of simple worship and discipleship. They are a model to us all. These leaders are also subject to severe persecution. Here is a recent story sent to me by a friend in California. https://www.gospelherald.com/news/over-1-000-police-raid-wenzhou-house-church-hundreds-detained
- The recent news of the moral lapse of a noteworthy Christian writer and teacher is heartbreaking. This highly regarded leader was my classmate in the Wheaton Grad School, 1973. I grieve but I do not judge or reject. But the call I gave decades ago, in both Christianity Today and in my book on fallen leaders, remains strong. I have not changed an iota of my approach and appeal.
- I try to never boast in (or attack) my alma mater, Wheaton College. I was pleased beyond words to learn this week that Wheaton College had more students at the recent Urbana Conference than any other school. The mission spirit of Wheaton remains truly strong.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for Anita and me as we continue to support Stacy and her boys, Kaleb and Kobe. This story takes many turns and sometimes overwhelms us but we are thankful, always filled with hope and truly love our daughter and her boys.
- Thank you for praying about my consideration regarding a memoir style book on my journey into ecumenism. My working title is: The Unexpected Journey of a Reluctant Ecumenist. More information will be forthcoming. I now believe I will begin the process.
- The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, from January 18-25, begins this Sunday.
- Please connect with The Initiative online. A monthly email is sent if you sign up. Also donations are always needed for the work. I cannot encourage you strongly enough to get to know Scott Brill and the leadership team that makes this mission so genuinely fruitful. Go to: www.theinitiative.org