for January 18, 2026
We Gather
Quiet Reflection Before Worship
We gather today not because we are certain,
but because we have been called.
Not because we have answers,
but because we are curious.
Not because we are prepared,
but because Christ Jesus has already found us.
The scriptures today tell stories of calling—
before understanding,
before confidence,
before readiness.
God’s voice comes to ordinary people
in the middle of their lives,
their work,
their questions.
The light of Christ does not wait for us to be ready.
It meets us where we are
and invites us to take the next step—together.
So we gather as we are:
with doubts, with hope, with unfinished faith.
We gather trusting that belonging comes before understanding,
and that grace is already at work among us.
Let us worship God.
Opening Prayer
God Who Calls Us
Let us pray.
God of grace,
you meet us before we are ready.
You call us not when our faith is settled,
but when our lives are still unfolding.
You speak in the middle of ordinary days,
in unfinished stories,
in questions we are still learning how to ask.
We come today as we are—
with uncertainty and hope intertwined,
with trust that feels fragile,
with longing we cannot always name.
Quiet what urges us to prove ourselves.
Loosen our grip on needing to know what comes next.
Open us to the gift of simply being found by you.
As we worship,
help us listen for your voice—
not rushing ahead,
not holding back,
but following the light of Christ together,
one step at a time.
Amen.
Assurance of Grace
God’s faithfulness always precedes our action.
Hear the good news.
God does not wait for us to be ready.
God does not stand at a distance until we understand.
In Jesus Christ,
God meets us where we are
and calls us forward in faithfulness, righteousness, and justice.
Before we know the way,
grace has already found us.
Before we have the words,
mercy has already spoken.
We are forgiven.
We are welcomed.
We are invited to follow—just as we are.
Thanks be to God.
Confession of Sin
When We Try to Be Ready on Our Own
God of mercy,
we confess that we often believe
that we must be ready before we respond to you.
We wait until we feel certain,
until we have the right words,
until we think we understand enough.
We rely on our own preparation
and hesitate to trust your call.
We hide our doubts.
We avoid risk.
We cling to what feels familiar,
even when it keeps us from following where your Good News leads.
Forgive us for mistaking control for faith.
Forgive us for believing that readiness is required
before grace can meet us.
Teach us again
that you call us as we are,
that you walk with us while we learn,
and that your love does not wait for us to be complete.
Help us take small steps of faith, even when our faith feels fragile, trusting that growth comes as we follow Jesus.
And by taking action, may we grow.
(Silence is kept.)
Passing of the Peace
An Embodied Sign of God’s Grace in Christ Jesus
The peace of Christ does not wait for us to be ready.
It meets us where we are.
As we share Christ’s peace,
we do not offer our own certainty or strength.
We offer what we have received—
welcome, mercy, and belonging.
The peace of Christ be with you.
And also with you.
(Share Christ’s peace in ways fitting to your community.)
Scripture
Listen Without Pressure
As we listen to the scriptures today,
remember that you do not need to understand everything at once.
These words were first heard by people
who were still learning how to listen,
still discovering what God was doing among them.
You may notice a phrase that stays with you.
You may hear something that unsettles or surprises you.
You may simply listen and let the words pass through.
Trust that God speaks in many ways—
through what we recognize,
and through what we do not yet understand.
Listen now for the Word of God.
Reading may be shared by multiple voices.
Reflection
You Don’t Have to Be Ready
The scriptures today share a quiet but unsettling truth:
God calls people before they feel ready.
Israel is named before birth.
The disciples follow before they understand.
Paul writes to a church already called holy,
even while they are divided and unsure.
This can be comforting—
but it can also be disturbing.
Because many of us have learned
that readiness comes first.
That clarity must come before commitment.
That faith is something you arrive at,
rather than something you grow into.
So we hesitate.
We wait.
We tell ourselves we’ll respond later—
when we feel more certain, more prepared, more confident.
But the pattern in scripture is different.
God does not wait for readiness.
God calls in the middle of ordinary life.
God speaks while people are working, wondering, doubting.
God invites before explaining.
This raises an honest question for us:
What if our desire to be “ready”
is sometimes a way of staying safe?
What if waiting for certainty
keeps us from noticing where God is already at work—
in us, in others, and between us?
Here is the good news:
God does not call us alone,
and God does not call us all at once.
The call is not to have everything figured out.
The call is to take the next faithful step—together.
Faith, in these scriptures,
is not about mastery or confidence.
It is about trust, relationship, and response.
So rather than asking,
“Am I ready?”
we might ask,
“Where is God already inviting us to move?”
Shared Reflection
Take time to reflect together. Let the conversation unfold.
When Readiness Becomes a Barrier
Many of us have learned to believe that we should be ready before we respond—ready with answers, clarity, or confidence.
Where might that assumption be shaping your faith right now?
What possibilities might we miss if we wait to feel ready before we follow where God may be leading beyond our comfort zone.
What Waiting Costs Us
In the scriptures today, people are called while still learning, doubting, and becoming.
When we delay responding until we feel prepared,
what does that cost us—
in our relationships,
in our community,
or in our openness to God’s work among us?
Noticing God’s Initiative
Again and again, these texts show God acting first—
calling, naming, and gathering people before they understand.
What does this reveal about God’s character?
How might trusting God’s initiative—rather than our readiness—change the way we think about faith?
Living the Gospel Together
We do not move forward by doing everything at once.
We move forward by trusting one small step.
Consider these possibilities.
Choose one—or name another that fits your life and your community.
One:
Notice where you are already being drawn—
toward a person, a question, or a possibility—
and allow yourself to follow without needing the full picture.
Two:
Share the journey with someone else—
naming a doubt, a hope, or an uncertainty aloud—
trusting that faith grows in relationship, not isolation.
Three:
Release the pressure to be prepared—
choosing presence over performance,
and trust over control,
as you listen for where God may be leading next.
(Silence may be kept and communal prayer may follow.)
Affirmation of Faith
Heidelberg Catechism, Question 1
Modern Translation
Again, these texts show God acting first—
calling, naming, and gathering people before they understand.
What does this reveal about God’s character?
How might trusting God’s initiative—rather than our readiness—change the way we think about faith? Let us confess our faith together.
What gives you grounding, in life and in death?
This:
I do not belong to myself alone.
I belong—fully and completely—
in life and in death,
to Jesus Christ.
In Christ, I am not defined by my failures
or held captive by fear.
I am forgiven, freed, and claimed.
I am not alone or unprotected.
Nothing in my life is outside God’s care.
Even what I cannot understand or control
is held within God’s loving purpose.
Because I belong to Christ,
God’s Spirit assures me that life does not end in death
and gives me the courage and freedom
to live with trust, gratitude, and hope.
Amen.
Prayers of the People
Held Before We Are Ready
God of mercy and light,
you call us before we are ready
and stay with us as we learn how to follow.
We come before you now
not with perfect words,
but with honest hearts.
We pray for the world you love.
For places living in fear or uncertainty—
for communities shaped by violence, poverty, or division—
for those whose lives feel fragile or unseen.
May your light break in where hope feels thin.
(Pause)
God of grace,
hear our prayer.
We pray for leaders and nations,
for those entrusted with power and responsibility.
When fear narrows their vision, widen it.
When certainty hardens hearts, soften them with wisdom and compassion.
(Pause)
God of grace,
hear our prayer.
We pray for the church in all its forms—
for congregations strong and struggling,
for communities learning new ways to gather,
for those who feel unsure of their place within it.
Free your church from the pressure to have everything figured out.
Teach us again how to listen, to trust, and to follow together.
(Pause)
God of grace,
hear our prayer.
We pray for those carrying personal burdens—
for grief that lingers,
for illness or exhaustion,
for anxiety about the future,
for relationships that feel strained or uncertain.
We hold before you now
the prayers we carry in silence
or choose to name aloud.
(Extended silence may be kept.)
God of grace,
hear our prayer.
We give thanks for signs of light already among us—
for kindness freely offered,
for courage quietly practiced,
for love that shows up without being asked.
Help us notice where you are already at work,
and give us trust enough
to take the next faithful step.
We offer all these prayers
not because we are ready,
but because you are faithful.
We pray in the name of Jesus,
who calls us, walks with us,
and holds us always.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
We pray together, saying:
(The Lord’s Prayer is prayed in the words familiar to the community.)
Communion (Optional)
A Table for Those Still Learning
Invitation to the Table
This table does not belong to our certainty
or our preparedness.
It belongs to Jesus Christ.
Here, we do not prove ourselves.
We come as we are—
still learning, still becoming, still trusting.
At this table,
God meets us before we are ready
and nourishes us for the journey ahead.
All who are baptized into Christ
and who hunger for grace
are invited to share in this meal.
Others are invited to remain, to watch, and to pray,
trusting that God’s welcome is wider than we can imagine. This is also a faithful way to participate.
(Communion may be celebrated according to the practice of the community.)
Sending
Go Where the Light Leads
Loved one, listen to these good words, written by Paul,
“The one who calls you is faithful, and will do this.”
Go in peace.
Follow the light of Christ that goes before you and among you.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Suggested Songs (Optional)
Songs may be sung, listened to, or replaced with silence, depending on the needs and gifts of the community. Participation matters more than perfection.
Gathering
- Here in This Place
- Open My Eyes, That I May See
Response to the Word
- Will You Come and Follow Me (The Summons)
- I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light
- Spirit of the Living God
Sending
- The Church of Christ in Every Age
- Go, My Children, with My Blessing
About This Resource
This worship service is offered for the shared life of Christian communities. It may be used as written or adapted freely to fit the context in which you gather.
The service is designed to be accessible to congregations without a pastor and can be led with minimal preparation. It is also intended to support pastors, elders, and lay leaders as a framework for preaching, teaching, and guiding worship. The goal is not to prescribe a single way of worshiping, but to offer a faithful structure that can be shaped by those who gather.
This site is intentionally designed to be read easily on smartphones and other personal devices. Resources are presented so that individuals and communities can participate fully in worship without relying on printed orders of worship. Whether gathered in a sanctuary, a fellowship hall, a living room, or another shared space, people should be able to access the service simply, clearly, and in real time.
At its heart, this service reflects a conviction that worship is a communal practice. Christian worship is not meant to be an experience created by a few and observed by many, but a shared act through which a community is formed together. God is glorified as people speak, listen, pray, and reflect side by side.
Communities are encouraged to consider their own circumstances and space. Worship may be most faithful when chairs are arranged in a circle or in the round, when people can see one another’s faces, or when leadership is shared across voices. Simple changes in posture or arrangement can help reinforce the truth that the Word of God addresses the whole community, and that the Spirit speaks through many.
We worship to give glory to God, and we worship to be formed together. We are shaped by God’s Word, and we are shaped by one another. This resource exists to support that shared work, trusting that God is already present among the people who gather.
This resource is shared in a spirit of openness and learning. It is offered with the hope that it will serve real communities in real circumstances—and that it will grow stronger through use. Feedback, adaptations, and suggestions are welcome. If something worked well, or if something proved difficult, those insights matter. This work is shaped best when it reflects the lived experience of those who gather for worship, and your voice can help make these resources more faithful, more usable, and more responsive to the needs of the church.
Rights and Use
© Church Commons 2025
Written by Rev. Matthew J. Skolnik. All rights reserved.
These materials may be used and adapted for worship and educational purposes within Christian communities. They may not be sold or redistributed for commercial purposes without permission.
Resource Details
Date: January 18, 2026
Scripture: Isaiah 49:1-7, Psalm 40:1-11, 1 Corinthians 1:1-9, John 1:29-42
Theme: You Don’t Have to Be Ready
Lectionary: RCL Year A