Camping Worship Services
Suggestions on a Scout Lead Worship Service on Campouts and Outdoor Outings
Suggestions on a Scout Lead Worship Service on Campouts and Outdoor Outings
This suggestion is from the booklet "Eagles Soaring High", available from Philmont Scout Ranch, Cimarron, NM. It was written for use in worship on the trails there.
Call to Worship
Leader: This is the day the Lord has made.
All: Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Hymn (see suggested list below)
Prayer (in unison) God, our Father, we thank you for the beauty of the earth, for the food we eat and for the comforts we enjoy. Help us to love others more, to be concerned with the problems of our day, and to understand Your will in our actions. Grant us the strength to live wisely and well, to be worthy users of Your creation and ready and willing workers for the causes of goodness.
Scripture (Hebrews 10:22-25) [Today's English Version]
"So let us come near to God with a sincere heart and a sure faith, with hearts that have been purified from a guilty conscience and with bodies washed with clean water. Let us hold on firmly to the hope we profess, because we can trust God to keep His promise. Let us be concerned for one another, to help one another to show love and to do good. Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are doing. Instead, let us encourage one another all the more, since you see that the Day of the Lord is coming nearer."
Meditation/Reflection (you may read a meditation from "Eagles Soaring High" or any other daily devotional or choose to share reflections. One possibility from "Eagles Soaring High" is listed after the Hymn suggestions in case time has not allowed you to pick out something appropriate ahead of time.)
Prayers of the People (Spontaneous Prayer from participants)
Hymn (see suggested list below)
Blessing
Leader: Let us go forth with God's blessing to serve Him in joy and gladness.
Suggested Hymns:
"He traveled on the wings of the wind" (II Samuel 22:11 and Psalm 18:10)
These words are from a song that King David sang to his Lord. We can often hear the wind moving through the pines and playing a soft melody. It is almost as if the trees were whispering to one another or to us below. Or as if God were playing a lullaby for us on His wind instrument.
The Lord touches all of His creation. He caresses the pines with His wind. He touches us with His love and forgiveness.
The "whispering pines" can become the sound in nature that reminds us of St. Paul's gentle words, "Be kind and tenderhearted to one another and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you through Christ." He who lives by forgiving and being forgiven lives in peace.
FOR REFLECTION: Is there someone whom you want to ask for forgiveness? Is there one whom you feel the need to forgive? (You may choose to share your thoughts with a friend or another Scout.)
PRAYER: Dear Father, where I have sinned, forgive me, and where I am afraid, quiet my fears. Amen.
Call to Worship
Leader: This is the day the Lord has made.
All: Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Hymn (see suggested list below)
Prayer (in unison) God, our Father, we thank you for the beauty of the earth, for the food we eat and for the comforts we enjoy. Help us to love others more, to be concerned with the problems of our day, and to understand Your will in our actions. Grant us the strength to live wisely and well, to be worthy users of Your creation and ready and willing workers for the causes of goodness.
Scripture (Hebrews 10:22-25) [Today's English Version]
"So let us come near to God with a sincere heart and a sure faith, with hearts that have been purified from a guilty conscience and with bodies washed with clean water. Let us hold on firmly to the hope we profess, because we can trust God to keep His promise. Let us be concerned for one another, to help one another to show love and to do good. Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are doing. Instead, let us encourage one another all the more, since you see that the Day of the Lord is coming nearer."
Meditation/Reflection (you may read a meditation from "Eagles Soaring High" or any other daily devotional or choose to share reflections. One possibility from "Eagles Soaring High" is listed after the Hymn suggestions in case time has not allowed you to pick out something appropriate ahead of time.)
Prayers of the People (Spontaneous Prayer from participants)
Hymn (see suggested list below)
Blessing
Leader: Let us go forth with God's blessing to serve Him in joy and gladness.
Suggested Hymns:
- On Eagles Wings
The Church's One Foundation
Amazing Grace
O God, Our Help in Ages Past
This is My Father's World
Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow
Do Lord
How Great Thou Art
God Bless America
Kum Ba Yah (either original or Scout Law version)
"He traveled on the wings of the wind" (II Samuel 22:11 and Psalm 18:10)
These words are from a song that King David sang to his Lord. We can often hear the wind moving through the pines and playing a soft melody. It is almost as if the trees were whispering to one another or to us below. Or as if God were playing a lullaby for us on His wind instrument.
The Lord touches all of His creation. He caresses the pines with His wind. He touches us with His love and forgiveness.
The "whispering pines" can become the sound in nature that reminds us of St. Paul's gentle words, "Be kind and tenderhearted to one another and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you through Christ." He who lives by forgiving and being forgiven lives in peace.
FOR REFLECTION: Is there someone whom you want to ask for forgiveness? Is there one whom you feel the need to forgive? (You may choose to share your thoughts with a friend or another Scout.)
PRAYER: Dear Father, where I have sinned, forgive me, and where I am afraid, quiet my fears. Amen.