by Rev. Laura Beville
Did you know that Christmas Day is on a Sunday this year? Are you, or is your pastor, taking much-needed time off on New Year’s Day? Help is here! Below is a round-up of resources your churches could use in a pinch:
- Have a service of Lessons and Carols! There are several versions and adaptations of this amazing service found in the United Methodist Book of Worship (BOW), pages 284-288. You can have your own musicians and lay people do all the readings as found in the BOW, or you could use one of these adaptations from Discipleship Ministries
- Christmas Eve Version: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/christmas-eve-festival-of-nine-lessons-and-carols
- Advent Version: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/an-advent-service-of-lessons-and-carols
- Self-led Version: https://www.umc.org/en/content/united-methodists-sing-lessons-and-carols
- Just need a sermon? There are several video/sermon resources available. Still, my three favorites are The Work of the People, A Sermon for Every Sunday, and our own archived sermons from the Greater Northwest Area.
- The Work of the People: This is a subscription service with various liturgies and videos. You may use them in the context of your own worship service. Beware of permission for the background music of the older videos. https://www.theworkofthepeople.com/
- A Sermon for Every Sunday: This is a free lectionary-based sermon library that you may utilize in churches. https://asermonforeverysunday.com/
- Regional Media Center: Our own Greater Northwest Regional media center has an assortment of sermons by clergy in our area for you to download and use in worship (to which you can also contribute). https://regionalmediacenter.org/product-category/sermons/
I hope these resources allow your pastor to get some much-needed respite this coming Christmas season!
Worship Resources for Christmas Day & New Years
Did you know that Christmas Day is on a Sunday this year? Are you, or is your pastor, taking much-needed time off on New Year’s Day? Help is here! Below is a round-up of resources your churches could use in a pinch:
- Have a service of Lessons and Carols! There are several versions and adaptations of this amazing service found in the United Methodist Book of Worship (BOW), pages 284-288. You can have your own musicians and lay people do all the readings as found in the BOW, or you could use one of these adaptations from Discipleship Ministries
- Christmas Eve Version: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/christmas-eve-festival-of-nine-lessons-and-carols
- Advent Version: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/an-advent-service-of-lessons-and-carols
- Self-led Version: https://www.umc.org/en/content/united-methodists-sing-lessons-and-carols
- Just need a sermon? There are several video/sermon resources available. Still, my three favorites are The Work of the People, A Sermon for Every Sunday, and our own archived sermons from the Greater Northwest Area.
- The Work of the People: This is a subscription service with various liturgies and videos. You may use them in the context of your own worship service. Beware of permission for the background music of the older videos. https://www.theworkofthepeople.com/
- A Sermon for Every Sunday: This is a free lectionary-based sermon library that you may utilize in churches. https://asermonforeverysunday.com/
- Regional Media Center: Our own Greater Northwest Regional media center has an assortment of sermons by clergy in our area for you to download and use in worship (to which you can also contribute). https://regionalmediacenter.org/product-category/sermons/
I hope these resources allow your pastor to get some much-needed respite this coming Christmas season!
