The United Methodist Music & Worship Planner 2023-2024 CEB Edition

By Mary Scifres and David L. Bone

A weekly worship planning book for United Methodist pastors and musicians.

An all-in-one resource that helps both the music director and pastor plan the worship services for each Sunday and holy day of the year, The United Methodist Music and Worship Planner 2023-2024 is lectionary-based and places at your fingertips:

Weekly pages in spiral-bound format that help you plan the entire worship year, from September through August.
Eight or more suggested hymns for each service keyed to United Methodist worship resources: The United Methodist Hymnal, The Faith We Sing, Worship & Song, The United Methodist Book of Worship, and The Africana Hymnal.
Complete lectionary text of the Old Testament, Psalm, Epistle, and Gospel readings using the Common English Bible translation.
Reproducible worship planning forms.
Resources for holidays and special days.
Suggestions for prayers, solos, anthems, visuals, and much more.

Also available with NRSV texts

• Language: English
• Publisher: Abingdon Press
• Release date: Apr 18, 2023
• ISBN: 9781791015572

Mary Scifres

Mary Scifres is a United Methodist pastor and church growth consultant. She is the author of The Gospel According to Beauty and the Beast, and co-author of both The Abingdon Worship Annual and Is It Communion Sunday Already?! Find out more at www.maryscifres.com.

Book preview

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023

Exodus 3:1-15

Moses was taking care of the flock for his father-in-law Jethro, Midian’s priest. He led his flock out to the edge of the desert, and he came to God’s mountain called Horeb. ²The Lord’s messenger appeared to him in a flame of fire in the middle of a bush. Moses saw that the bush was in flames, but it didn’t burn up. ³Then Moses said to himself, Let me check out this amazing sight and find out why the bush isn’t burning up.

⁴When the Lord saw that he was coming to look, God called to him out of the bush, Moses, Moses!

Moses said, I’m here.

⁵Then the Lord said, Don’t come any closer! Take off your sandals, because you are standing on holy ground. ⁶He continued, I am the God of your father, Abraham’s God, Isaac’s God, and Jacob’s God. Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.

⁷Then the Lord said, I’ve clearly seen my people oppressed in Egypt. I’ve heard their cry of injustice because of their slave masters. I know about their pain. ⁸I’ve come down to rescue them from the Egyptians in order to take them out of that land and bring them to a good and broad land, a land that’s full of milk and honey, a place where the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites all live. ⁹Now the Israelites’ cries of injustice have reached me. I’ve seen just how much the Egyptians have oppressed them. ¹⁰So get going. I’m sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.

¹¹But Moses said to God, Who am I to go to Pharaoh and to bring the Israelites out of Egypt?

¹²God said, I’ll be with you. And this will show you that I’m the one who sent you. After you bring the people out of Egypt, you will come back here and worship God on this mountain.

¹³But Moses said to God, If I now come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they are going to ask me, ‘What’s this God’s name?’ What am I supposed to say to them?

¹⁴God said to Moses, I Am Who I Am. So say to the Israelites, ‘I Am has sent me to you.’ ¹⁵God continued, "Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your ancestors, Abraham’s God, Isaac’s God, and Jacob’s God, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever; this is how all generations will remember me.

Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45c (UM828)

Give thanks to the Lord;

call upon his name;

make his deeds known to all people!

² Sing to God;

sing praises to the Lord;

dwell on all his wondrous works!

³ Give praise to God’s holy name!

Let the hearts rejoice of all those seeking the Lord!

⁴ Pursue the Lord and his strength;

seek his face always!

⁵ Remember the wondrous works he has done,

all his marvelous works, and the justice he declared—

⁶you who are the offspring of Abraham, his servant,

and the children of Jacob, his chosen ones.

²³ That’s how Israel came to Egypt,

how Jacob became an immigrant in the land of Ham.

²⁴ God made his people very fruitful,

more powerful than their enemies,

²⁵ whose hearts God changed so they hated his people

and dealt shrewdly with his servants.

²⁶ God sent Moses his servant

and the one he chose, Aaron.

Praise the Lord!

Romans 12:9-21

⁹Love should be shown without pretending. Hate evil, and hold on to what is good. ¹⁰Love each other like the members of your family. Be the best at showing honor to each other. ¹¹Don’t hesitate to be enthusiastic—be on fire in the Spirit as you serve the Lord! ¹²Be happy in your hope, stand your ground when you’re in trouble, and devote yourselves to prayer. ¹³Contribute to the needs of God’s people, and welcome strangers into your home. ¹⁴Bless people who harass you—bless and don’t curse them. ¹⁵Be happy with those who are happy, and cry with those who are crying. ¹⁶Consider everyone as equal, and don’t think that you’re better than anyone else. Instead, associate with people who have no status. Don’t think that you’re so smart. ¹⁷Don’t pay back anyone for their evil actions with evil actions, but show respect for what everyone else believes is good.

¹⁸If possible, to the best of your ability, live at peace with all people. ¹⁹Don’t try to get revenge for yourselves, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath. It is written, Revenge belongs to me; I will pay it back, says the Lord. ²⁰Instead, If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. By doing this, you will pile burning coals of fire upon his head. ²¹Don’t be defeated by evil, but defeat evil with good.

Matthew 16:21-28

²¹From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and legal experts, and that he had to be killed and raised on the third day. ²²Then Peter took hold of Jesus and, scolding him, began to correct him: God forbid, Lord! This won’t happen to you. ²³But he turned to Peter and said, Get behind me, Satan. You are a stone that could make me stumble, for you are not thinking God’s thoughts but human thoughts.

²⁴Then Jesus said to his disciples, All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. ²⁵All who want to save their lives will lose them. But all who lose their lives because of me will find them. ²⁶Why would people gain the whole world but lose their lives? What will people give in exchange for their lives? ²⁷For the Human One is about to come with the majesty of his Father with his angels. And then he will repay each one for what that person has done. ²⁸I assure you that some standing here won’t die before they see the Human One coming in his kingdom.

COLOR: GREEN

14th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Primary Hymns and Songs for the Day

Additional Hymn Suggestions

Additional Contemporary and Modern Suggestions

Vocal Solos

In Remembrance (Rom, Comm.)

V-5 (2)p. 7

May the Mind of Christ (Rom)

V-8p. 114

Nothing … Everything (Matt)

V-8p. 162

Anthems

Lord, I Want to Be a Christian (Rom, Matt)

Arr. Brazeal W. Dennard; Alliance AMP0029

SATB divisi, a cappella (https://bit.ly/AMP0029)

Jesus, My All, To Heaven Is Gone (Matt)

arr. Howard Helvey; Beckenhorst BP1562

2-part mixed, piano (http://bit.ly/BP1562)

Other Suggestions

Visuals:

Introit: 3047, stanza 1. God Almighty, We Are Waiting (Exod)

Opening Prayer: BOW462 (Exod, Rom)

Act of Congregational Centering: BOW470 (Rom)

Prayers of Confession: BOW481 or BOW493 (Rom)

Canticle: UM646. Canticle of Love (Rom)

Prayer: WSL57. Days pass and the years vanish (Exod)

Prayer: UM392 or BOW510 (Exod, Matt)

Prayer: UM401 or BOW522 (Rom)

Offertory Prayer: WSL103. Blessed God (Rom)

Blessing: BOW566. Sarum Blessing (Exod, Rom)

Blessing: WSL165. Go out into the world (Rom)

Sung Benediction: 3159. Let Our Earth Be Peaceful (Rom)

Theme Ideas: Compassion, Cross, Discipleship / Following God, God: Call of God / Listening, Love / Great Commandment

SEPTEMBER 10, 2023

Exodus 12:1-14

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, ²"This month will be the first month; it will be the first month of the year for you. ³Tell the whole Israelite community: On the tenth day of this month they must take a lamb for each household, a lamb per house. ⁴If a household is too small for a lamb, it should share one with a neighbor nearby. You should divide the lamb in proportion to the number of people who will be eating it. ⁵Your lamb should be a flawless year-old male. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. ⁶You should keep close watch over it until the fourteenth day of this month. At twilight on that day, the whole assembled Israelite community should slaughter their lambs. ⁷They should take some of the blood and smear it on the two doorposts and on the beam over the door of the houses in which they are eating. ⁸That same night they should eat the meat roasted over the fire. They should eat it along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. ⁹Don’t eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over fire with its head, legs, and internal organs. ¹⁰Don’t let any of it remain until morning, and burn any of it left over in the morning. ¹¹This is how you should eat it. You should be dressed, with your sandals on your feet and your walking stick in your hand. You should eat the meal in a hurry. It is the Passover of the Lord. ¹²I’ll pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I’ll strike down every oldest child in the land of Egypt, both humans and animals. I’ll impose judgments on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. ¹³The blood will be your sign on the houses where you live. Whenever I see the blood, I’ll pass over you. No plague will destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

¹⁴This day will be a day of remembering for you. You will observe it as a festival to the Lord. You will observe it in every generation as a regulation for all time.

Psalm 149

Praise the Lord!

Sing to the Lord a new song;

sing God’s praise in the assembly of the faithful!

² Let Israel celebrate its maker;

let Zion’s children rejoice in their king!

³ Let them praise God’s name with dance;

let them sing God’s praise with the drum and lyre!

⁴ Because the Lord is pleased with his people,

God will beautify the poor with saving help.

⁵ Let the faithful celebrate with glory;

let them shout for joy on their beds.

⁶ Let the high praises of God be in their mouths

and a double-edged sword in their hands,

⁷to get revenge against the nations

and punishment on the peoples,

⁸binding their rulers in chains

and their officials in iron shackles,

⁹achieving the justice

written against them.

That will be an honor for all God’s faithful people.

Praise the Lord!

Romans 13:8-14

⁸Don’t be in debt to anyone, except for the obligation to love each other. Whoever loves another person has fulfilled the Law. ⁹The commandments, Don’t commit adultery, don’t murder, don’t steal, don’t desire what others have, and any other commandments, are all summed up in one word: You must love your neighbor as yourself. ¹⁰Love doesn’t do anything wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is what fulfills the Law.

¹¹As you do all this, you know what time it is. The hour has already come for you to wake up from your sleep. Now our salvation is nearer than when we first had faith. ¹²The night is almost over, and the day is near. So let’s get rid of the actions that belong to the darkness and put on the weapons of light. ¹³Let’s behave appropriately as people who live in the day, not in partying and getting drunk, not in sleeping around and obscene behavior, not in fighting and obsession. ¹⁴Instead, dress yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ, and don’t plan to indulge your selfish desires.

Matthew 18:15-20

¹⁵If your brother or sister sins against you, go and correct them when you are alone together. If they listen to you, then you’ve won over your brother or sister. ¹⁶But if they won’t listen, take with you one or two others so that every word may be established by the mouth of two or three witnesses. ¹⁷But if they still won’t pay attention, report it to the church. If they won’t pay attention even to the church, treat them as you would a Gentile and tax collector. ¹⁸I assure you that whatever you fasten on earth will be fastened in heaven. And whatever you loosen on earth will be loosened in heaven. ¹⁹Again I assure you that if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, then my Father who is in heaven will do it for you. ²⁰For where two or three are gathered in my name, I’m there with them.

COLOR: GREEN

15th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Primary Hymns and Songs for the Day

Additional Hymn Suggestions

Additional Contemporary and Modern Suggestions

Vocal Solos

I Will Sing of Thy Great Mercies (Exod, Pss)

V-4p. 43

Make Me a Channel of Your Peace (Rom, Matt)

V-3 (2)p. 25

V-3 (3)p. 28

Truth Be Told (Rom, Matt)

V-9p. 118

There’s a Quiet Understanding (Matt)

V-8p. 2

Anthems

Just as I Am (Exod, Matt)

Arr. Emily Lund; Hope C5682

SATB, piano (https://bit.ly/C-5682)

Draw Us in the Spirit’s Tether (Rom, Matt, Comm.)

Freidell/Curry; HW Gray 00-32234

SAB, organ (https://bit.ly/HL-32234)

Other Suggestions

Visuals:

Introit: 3147, stanza 3. Built on a Rock (Matt)

Greeting: BOW378 (Pss)

Act of Congregational Centering: BOW470 (Matt)

Prayer of Confession: BOW484 or BOW488 (Matt)

Call to Prayer: BOW202. Where Two or Three Are Gathered (Matt)

Prayer: UM412. Prayer of John Chrysostom (Matt)

Prayer: BOW507. For Creation (Pss)

Prayer: BOW535. At the Beginning of a New School Year (Season)

Prayer: BOW443. Labor Day Prayer (Labor Day)

Litany: BOW496. The Ten Commandments (Rom)

Litany of Preparation: WSL73. We come broken (Exod, Matt)

Response: 2179. Ubi Caritas (Live in Charity) (Rom)

Theme Ideas: Light, Love / Great Commandment, Passover, Reconciliation, Remembrance, Repentance

SEPTEMBER 17, 2023

Exodus 14:19-31

¹⁹God’s messenger, who had been in front of Israel’s camp, moved and went behind them. The column of cloud moved from the front and took its place behind them. ²⁰It stood between Egypt’s camp and Israel’s camp. The cloud remained there, and when darkness fell it lit up the night. They didn’t come near each other all night.

²¹Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The Lord pushed the sea back by a strong east wind all night, turning the sea into dry land. The waters were split into two. ²²The Israelites walked into the sea on dry ground. The waters formed a wall for them on their right hand and on their left. ²³The Egyptians chased them and went into the sea after them, all of Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and cavalry. ²⁴As morning approached, the Lord looked down on the Egyptian camp from the column of lightning and cloud and threw the Egyptian camp into a panic. ²⁵The Lord jammed their chariot wheels so that they wouldn’t turn easily. The Egyptians said, Let’s get away from the Israelites, because the Lord is fighting for them against Egypt!

²⁶Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the water comes back and covers the Egyptians, their chariots, and their cavalry. ²⁷So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. At daybreak, the sea returned to its normal depth. The Egyptians were driving toward it, and the Lord tossed the Egyptians into the sea. ²⁸The waters returned and covered the chariots and the cavalry, Pharaoh’s entire army that had followed them into the sea. Not one of them remained. ²⁹The Israelites, however, walked on dry ground through the sea. The waters formed a wall for them on their right hand and on their left.

³⁰The Lord rescued Israel from the Egyptians that day. Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. ³¹Israel saw the amazing power of the Lord against the Egyptians. The people were in awe of the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.

Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-21 (UM135)

¹bI will sing to the Lord, for an overflowing victory!

Horse and rider he threw into the sea!

² The Lord is my strength and my power;

he has become my salvation.

This is my God, whom I will praise,

the God of my ancestors, whom I will acclaim.

³ The Lord is a warrior;

the Lord is his name.

⁴ Pharaoh’s chariots and his army he hurled into the sea;

his elite captains were sunk in the Reed Sea.

⁵ The deep sea covered them;

they sank into the deep waters like a stone.

⁶ Your strong hand, Lord, is dominant in power;

your strong hand, Lord, shatters the enemy!

⁷ With your great surge you overthrow your opponents;

you send out your hot anger; it burns them up like straw.

⁸With the breath of your nostrils the waters swelled up,

the floods surged up in a great wave;

the deep waters foamed in the depths of the sea.

⁹ The enemy said, "I’ll pursue, I’ll overtake,

I’ll divide the spoils of war.

I’ll be overfilled with them.

I’ll draw my sword; my hand will destroy them."

¹⁰ You blew with your wind; the sea covered over them.

They sank like lead in the towering waters.

¹¹ Who is like you among the gods, Lord?

Who is like you, foremost in holiness,

worthy of highest praise, doing awesome deeds?

²⁰ Then the prophet Miriam, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand. All the women followed her playing tambourines and dancing. ²¹ Miriam sang the refrain back to them: Sing to the Lord, for an overflowing victory!

Horse and rider he threw into the sea!

Romans 14:1-12

Welcome the person who is weak in faith—but not in order to argue about differences of opinion. ²One person believes in eating everything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. ³Those who eat must not look down on the ones who don’t, and the ones who don’t eat must not judge the ones who do, because God has accepted them. ⁴Who are you to judge someone else’s servants? They stand or fall before their own Lord (and they will stand, because the Lord has the power to make them stand). ⁵One person considers some days to be more sacred than others, while another person considers all days to be the same. Each person must have their own convictions. ⁶Someone who thinks that a day is sacred, thinks that way for the Lord. Those who eat, eat for the Lord, because they thank God. And those who don’t eat, don’t eat for the Lord, and they thank the Lord too. ⁷We don’t live for ourselves and we don’t die for ourselves. ⁸If we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to God. ⁹This is why Christ died and lived: so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living. ¹⁰But why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you look down on your brother or sister? We all will stand in front of the judgment seat of God. ¹¹Because it is written,

As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me,

and every tongue will give praise to God.

¹²So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

Matthew 18:21-35

²¹Then Peter said to Jesus, Lord, how many times should I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Should I forgive as many as seven times?

²²Jesus said, "Not just seven times, but rather as many as seventy-seven times. ²³Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴When he began to settle accounts, they brought to him a servant who owed him ten thousand bags of gold. ²⁵Because the servant didn’t have enough to pay it back, the master ordered that he should be sold, along with his wife and children and everything he had, and that the proceeds should be used as payment. ²⁶But the servant fell down, kneeled before him, and said, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I’ll pay you back.’ ²⁷The master had compassion on that servant, released him, and forgave the loan.

²⁸"When that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him one hundred coins. He grabbed him around the throat and said, ‘Pay me back what you owe me.’

²⁹"Then his fellow servant fell down and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I’ll pay you back.’ ³⁰But he refused. Instead, he threw him into prison until he paid back his debt.

³¹"When his fellow servants saw what happened, they were deeply offended. They came and told their master all that happened. ³²His master called the first servant and said, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you appealed to me. ³³Shouldn’t you also have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴His master was furious and handed him over to the guard responsible for punishing prisoners, until he had paid the whole debt.

³⁵My heavenly Father will also do the same to you if you don’t forgive your brother or sister from your heart.

COLOR: GREEN

16th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Primary Hymns and Songs for the Day

Additional Hymn Suggestions

Additional Contemporary and Modern Suggestions

Vocal Solos

God Will Make a Way (with He Leadeth Me) (Exod)

V-3 (2)p. 9

Wade in the Water (Exod)

V-5 (2)p. 46

Great Things (Exod, Pss)

V-9p. 36

In Jesus’ Name (Rom)

V-8p. 188

Anthems

Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah (Exod)

Arr. Lloyd Larson; Lorenz 10/5215L

SATB, piano, opt. 4-hand and handbells (https://bit.ly/L-5215)

I Then Shall Live (Matt)

Gaither, arr. Fettke; Lorenz 10/5136L

SATB, piano (https://bit.ly/L-5136L)

Other Suggestions

Visuals:

Call to Worship: UM149, stanza 1. Cantemos al Señor (Let’s Sing unto the Lord) (Exod)

Prayer of Confession: BOW481 (Matt)

Canticle: UM135. Canticle of Moses and Miriam (Exod)

Canticle: UM167. Canticle of Christ’s Obedience (Rom)

Affirmation of Faith: WSL82 (Rom)

Prayer: UM268 (Exod) or UM366 (Matt)

Prayer: BOW514. For the Mind of Christ (Rom, Matt)

Response: BOW189 or BOW191. May This Mind Be In Us (Rom, Matt)

Prayer: BOW517 or BOW547 (Exod)

Prayer: BOW522. For Purity (Rom)

Response: 2207. Lord, Listen to Your Children (Rom)

Scripture Response: UM402, stanza 2. Lord I Want to Be a Christian (Matt)

Prayer of Thanksgiving: BOW556 (Exod)

Blessing: UM666. Shalom to You (Exod, Matt)

Theme Ideas: Compassion, God: Providence / God our Help, Inclusion, Jesus: Mind of Christ, Journey, Passover,

Reconciliation

SEPTEMBER 24, 2023

Exodus 16:2-15

²The whole Israelite community complained against Moses and Aaron in the desert. ³The Israelites said to them, Oh, how we wish that the Lord had just put us to death while we were still in the land of Egypt. There we could sit by the pots cooking meat and eat our fill of bread. Instead, you’ve brought us out into this desert to starve this whole assembly to death.

⁴Then the Lord said to Moses, "I’m going to make bread rain down from the sky for you. The people will go out each day and gather just enough for that day. In this