Order of Service / Transfiguration Sunday / February 15, 2026

 *Gathering Hymn Great Is Thy Faithfulness (#288 VU | vs. 1&3)

Welcome & Land Acknowledgement

Lighting the Christ Candle

Call to Worship

One: Come. Let us go up the mountain with Jesus.

  All: We come to worship, listening for God’s voice.

One: Christ is revealed in glory.

  All: Our hearts awaken to wonder and praise.

One: The light of Christ shines in the world.

All: We open our lives to that light.

One: Let us worship God.

All: With joy, with reverence, with hope. Amen.

Opening Prayer

*Opening Hymn God Is Here (#389 VU)

Prayer of Confessional and Renewal (Unison)

Loving God, you enable us to make changes that matter. With your love, you transform our sadness into joy and our defeat into hope. With your love, you transform our apathy into commitment and our selfishness into thanksgiving. With your love, you transform our indifference into praise and our shyness into laughter. Transforming God, by your presence you restore us to become the faithful ones you call us to be. In gratitude, we open our hearts to you now, sharing honestly in silence what needs to be transformed in our lives. (a time of silent confession) Amen.

*Adapted from David Sparks. Gathering ACE 2025/2026. Page 50.

Words of Assurance

One: The God who calls us beloved is the God who transforms. In Jesus Christ, we are welcomed, forgiven, and made new. The light of Christ shines on us to heal and reconcile, to renew and restore, to turn us again toward joy, hope, and peace.

All: Thanks be to God. We receive this grace with grateful hearts, ready to live in God’s love. Amen.

Announcements and Minute for Mission

Time for God’s Children (You Are Holy, MV 45)

You are freedom, you show us the way. (x4)

You show us, you show us, you show us the way (x4)

Prayer for Illumination

Proclaiming the Scriptures

Exodus 24:12-18 God calls Moses up the mountain.

Psalm 2 (VU p. 725) Serve God with holy fear.

Matthew 17:1-9 Jesus transfigured on the mountain.

This is the Good News from the Bible.

  Thanks be to God.

Anthem

Sermon

*Hymn We Have Come at Christ’s Own Bidding (#104 VU)

*Offering

*Offertory Hymn (#540 VU | Grant Us, God, the Grace)

Grant us, God, the grace of giving, with a spirit large and free,

That ourselves and all our living we may offer faithfully.

*Offertory Prayer (Unison)
Mysterious God, we are transformed by the awe and delight of encountering you. We are radiant as we offer our gifts of time, talent, and treasure. May we always be filled with amazement as we commit ourselves to share our resources. We give in the name of the transfigured Christ. Amen.

*Laura J. Turnbull. Gathering ACE 2025/2026. Page 50.

Prayers of the People and Lord’s Prayer

*Closing Hymn I, the Lord of Sea and Sky (#509 VU)

*Commissioning

One: On the mountain, Christ’s light reveals a love that transforms.

All: We go down from the mountain with new hearts and open eyes.

One: God blesses us and sends us in Jesus’ name.

All: We will live this transforming love in the world.

One: Go in the name of Love, a love that illuminates the whole earth.

All: Thanks be to God. Amen.

*Commissioning Song I Am Walking a Path of Peace (#221 MV)

I am walking a path with light, I am walking a path with light

I am walking a path with light, lead me home, lead me home.

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