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!
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.
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.
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.
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.
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Worship This Month
A Desert Feast
August 2
The crowd was hungry, the place a desert, and the disciples filled with fear. “Send them all away,” they said to Jesus, “so they can go buy their own food.” (Matthew 14:13-21) Deserts can be fearsome places, full of uncertainty, hunger, and thirst. Moreover, deserts aren’t only geographic, deserts can also be spiritual and personal. Being afraid, feeling inadequate, lacking resources—all that can create a desert within. But ... deserts can also be full of life, as the disciples learned that day when five loaves and two fishes fed “5,000 men, plus women and children.” A great text for Communion Sunday.
10:00am
Outdoor Service
Whose Voice Do You Listen To? - Blessing of Teachers and Educators
August 9
The story of Elijah the Prophet hearing the roar of a fire, the crash of an earthquake, and the howling wind may speak to students and educators as they start back to school. (I Kings 19:9-18) So many voices assault young people. So many ways the world tells them they’re not smart enough, attractive enough, strong enough, popular enough, simply not enough. But as Elijah learned, God’s voice isn’t in all that crashing and roaring. God’s voice comes to us in the sheer silence—and the powerful presence—that reminds us we’re not alone, and we are enough. We bless students and educators in both services.
8:30am Contemplative Communion
10:00am Sanctuary Service
(livestreamed)
Home Is Where the Others Are - Indian Market Sunday
August 16
8:30am Contemplative Communion
10:00am Sanctuary Service
(livestreamed)
Psalm 133 sings of the beauty of people dwelling together in peace. It is “like the dew of Mt. Hermon,” the great mountain in Lebanon, where cedars grow and the snowpack fills the rivers and streams that flow through Israel and Jordan. Isaiah the Prophet promises that God will lead all people, even “foreigners” to the holy mountain, there to join in song, prayer, and celebration. (Isaiah 56:1, 6-8) Two wonderful teachings for Indian Market Sunday, when we welcome Lavonne Yazzie, Navajo/Diné, to help us remember whose prayers and songs have blessed this place for generations.
Drawn from the Waters
August 23
8:30am Contemplative Communion
10:00am Sanctuary Service
(livestreamed)
Rivers are lifelines in the desert, whether it’s the Nile flowing up from the Sahara and Nubian Deserts though Egypt or the Colorado that winds through 7 states, all dependent on its water. Desert rivers show us how all life—including ours—depends on water. Baby Moses in the river also reminds us how dependent we are on others. (Exodus 1:8 - 2:10)
Holy Ground
August 30
8:30am Contemplative Communion
10:00am Sanctuary Service
(livestreamed)
When Moses the Sheepherder sees a bush burning in the desert—that doesn’t burn up—he also hears a voice telling him to take off his shoes for he is on holy ground. (Exodus 3:1-15) What would we do if we regarded all ground, all the Earth, as holy? Moses gave up his shoes. What would we give up to show our respect and awe for this holy planet? Good questions for the Sunday of our Church’s Annual Meeting.