Worship At United
Coming together for worship at United is like finding water in a dry and thirsty land. That’s why we do so, not only on Sunday mornings but midweek, too!
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Like a stream in the desert, worship can refresh and renew us. Each week it offers us God’s new life and hope, for ourselves and for this world. At United, worship is the center of our life together, from which everything else flows: outreach, education, care, among others.
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Whether on Sunday mornings, midweek, or other times, worship at United offers that new life in different ways. Sometimes – especially in the Sunday 8:30 AM service and the midweek contemplative services – worship is like the deep, still waters that God promises in the 23rd Psalm. In the later Sunday service, worship can be like a living stream, offering life in all kinds of ways. Similarly, like on Mardi Gras and Fiesta Sundays, worship is a river, full of life and surprises.
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At United, we believe all of us – regardless of age – need the living waters of worship. That’s why children and younger youth join in the first part of the late service each Sunday and why Children’s Ministry always begins with prayer and song. It’s also why we offer a number of “intergenerational” services for all ages throughout the year.
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We hope you’ll join us in worship at United. Together may we be renewed by the waters of life God offers us each week.
Angels in the Wilderness
Holy Week With United
The journey from Palm Sunday to the Last Supper and Calvary and finally to Easter morning is peopled with human beings making human decisions. Many of those decisions were cruel beyond imagining, made from desperate fear. But there were other choices, too, rooted in love and faith. Jesus kneeling before his disciples (all of them) to wash their feet. The women choosing to follow him all the way to the cross. Joseph of Aramathea risking his life and leadership to give Jesus a proper burial.
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All of them were “angels in the wilderness.” Holy Week invites us to remember them—and to let their commitment give us the love and courage we need to be angels for others in this wilderness time of our own world.
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Worship This Month
Maundy Thursday
April 2
7:00pm
We share the story of Jesus washing his disciples feet, even Judas’ and Peter’s. We share the Last Supper and then United youth and adults lead us deeper through Jesus’ Passion, gradually extinguishing seven candles, until the service ends with no benediction and we, like the disciples, scatter into the darkness.
Good Friday
April 3
Creation Care
9:00 -11:30am
Worship
12:00pm
As we gather to engage this hard story, we pray for ourselves, our loved ones, and all God’s people living under the shadow of violence and injustice. We pray, too, for God’s crucified creation and for the strength to love this world as God so loved—and still loves. The Sanctuary will also be open until 3:00 pm for private prayer.
Easter Sunday - New Life is Hard Work
April 5
6:30am Outdoor Sunrise Communion
10:00am All Age Celebration
King Herod, Pilate, and the whole Roman Empire thought Jesus’ story ended on the treeless hill called Calvary. The Empire’s soldiers rolled a stone in front of the tomb so no one could “steal” the body. But no empire and no rock could keep God’s new life from bursting forth. In the words of a Negro spiritual, “the angel rolled the stone away!” Who have been those angels in our lives? And what do we need to be “stone-rollers” in our time?
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From start to finish, Easter Sunday is filled with Hallelujahs. We sing Alleluia to the sunrise at 6:30 and conclude the 10:00 service with the “Hallelujah Chorus.” All welcome all the time!
Signs of the Resurrection
April 12
8:30am Contemplative Communion
10:00am Sanctuary Service
(livestreamed)
On the first Easter, Mary of Magdala told the disciples she’d seen the Risen Christ. A few days later, when they gathered behind locked doors, Christ appeared, saying “Peace be with you.” But Thomas, who wasn’t there, wanted first-hand proof, ie., to touch his hand and his side. When he does, he exclaims, “My Lord and my God.” (John 20:19-31) The blessing of peace, the touch of a wound, seeing life after a death—what are the signs of resurrection that we have seen?
Open Eyes
April 19
8:30am Contemplative Communion
10:00am Sanctuary Service
(livestreamed)
On Easter evening, two disciples walk away from Jerusalem when a stranger joins them. He seems clueless about why they’re on the road since the great festival is still happening in the big city. But when they invite him to eat with them, he breaks bread for them—and “their eyes were open and they recognized him.” (Luke 24:13-35) What would it take for our eyes to be opened to new life or even just to a stranger?
A Live-Giving Shepherd
April 26
8:30am Contemplative Communion
10:00am Sanctuary Service
(livestreamed)
The 4th Sunday of Eastertide is often known as the “Good Shepherd Sunday,” filled with images of the leader who guides and cares for the flock, seeking out the lost, even giving their life for the sheep. (Psalm 23; John 10:1-11). It’s a good day to consider who are the “good shepherds” of our time. What kind of shepherds do we need?