A meditation on John 1:1–14, the Gospel for Christmas Day
The Rev. Will Weedon, LCMS director of Worship and LCMS International Center chaplain, offers a meditation for Christmas Day.
The Kalends for Christmas
The following were anciently read on Christmas Day in the Daily Office, but they may also serve as an introduction to the Divine Service on Christmas Day, read by the pastor from the entrance to the nave and leading directly into “O Come All Ye Faithful” as the processional hymn.
Pastors: Learn to chant the prefaces for Advent and Christmas
Listen as Pastor Sean Daenzer of Trinity Lutheran, Great Bend, N.D., and Peace Lutheran, Barney, N.D., chants the Advent and Christmas prefaces. Listen a few times through and you will have them down in no time!
Keeping Advent
The Rev. Larry Peters of Grace Lutheran Church, Clarksville, Tenn., encourages the Church to avoid being like a theme park and to slow down and keep the focus on Christ this Advent season.
It’s beginning to look a lot like … Advent
The Rev. Henry Gerike offers a few ideas for congregations to mark the season of Advent, a time for focusing on the gravity of the human predicament.
Does the Reformation still matter?
The Rev. Will Weedon, LCMS director of Worship, asks several church leaders and pastors whether the Reformation still matters today.
Abiding in the Word: A Daily Lectionary from the 17th Century
Matthew Carver shares a daily lectionary from the 17th century.
Celebrating Reformation with Divine Service, Setting Five
The Rev. Will Weedon, LCMS director of Worship, offers some advice to help a congregation sing the Divine Service, Setting Five, for Reformation Day or any other Sunday.
The Liturgy of Baptism & Daily Prayer Offices
Four interviews with the Rev. William Weedon, director of Worship and International Center chaplain, on "The Liturgy of Holy Baptism" as well as eight interviews on "The Daily Prayer Offices." These two series delve deeply into the history, practice and theology of the Church's liturgies of Baptism and Prayer.
When Disaster Strikes: Worship Resources with Litany
Here are a number of brief resources you may find useful in addressing the sorts of questions that arise among God's people when faced with disasters in this fallen world. They all seek to refresh the weary with the wonderful promises of God's Word related to suffering, the end of this age, and the joys of the age that will dawn at our Lord's return.
Bidding Prayer
One of the treasures that has come down to us from the ancient church is the Bidding Prayer.
The Reformation: Questions and Answers
Unwrapping the Gifts is a bimonthly publication of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod Worship Ministry devoted to providing resources for worship. Everyone involved in planning worship is encouraged to subscribe to the Unwrapping the Gifts RSS feed.
Unwrapping Lutheran Service Book: Service of Prayer and Preaching
One of the contributions of the Lutheran Service Book to the worship life of many congregations is the “Service of Prayer and Preaching” (LSB 260-267).
The Care and Keeping of a Substitute Organist
First and foremost, you want your substitute to lead the congregational singing and not detract from the worship that’s planned. Here are a few ideas to ensure a smooth transition to someone different “on the bench.”
A Hymn of Glory Let Us Sing…in Canon
What do “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” and “All Praise to Thee, My God, This Night” (Lutheran Service Book 883) have in common? Both can be sung as a musical round or canon, a musical composition in which two or more voices sing exactly the same melody but with each voice beginning at a different time, allowing the voices to fit together harmonically.