Prelude — Prélude in A♭ major, Op. 28 No. 15 (“Raindrop”)
Frédéric Chopin (1839) · piano
Chopin built this prelude around a single A♭ that repeats ceaselessly. George Sand famously wrote that it was composed to the sound of rain on the roof at Valldemossa, but the music itself is less about weather than about persistence. Let this be the sound of something you thought you’d lost — still here, still sounding, still yours.
Introit — The Summons (KELVINGROVE)
John L. Bell (1987), tune: KELVINGROVE (Traditional Scottish) · organ
This hymn is built entirely from questions, and none of them are comfortable: “Will you go where you don’t know and never be the same?” To release control of your life is a summons — and the road is unmarked.
Opening Hymn — For the Beauty of the Earth
Folliott Sandford Pierpoint (1864), tune: DIX · HPP #259, vv. 1, 3, & 6
This hymn reminds us that every gift — from the beauty of a morning to the love of the person beside you — flows from the same divine generosity. We open worship by saying thank you for all of it.
Interlude for Reflection — Time
Hans Zimmer (2010), arr. Wilder · organ
“Whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.” This is the sound of that discovery arriving — with the slow recognition that the life you were protecting was not the same as the one you were seeking.
Music of Reflection — You Raise Me Up
Rolf Løvland & Brendan Graham (2002) · Scott Madden, a cappella solo
The hand that steadies you when you can’t manage it alone — the person who walks beside you and lends you their strength until your own returns. As our own Scott Madden sings, consider who has been that presence in your life — and who is waiting for you to be it in theirs.
Offertory — While the Earth Remains
John L. Bell · organ
As you bring your offering, consider that the cup of cold water is not a one-time gesture. The welcome we extend today is the same welcome we will need to extend tomorrow. While the earth remains, so does the call.
Closing Hymn — Take My Life, and Let It Be
Frances Ridley Havergal (1874), tune: VIENNE · HPP #349, vv. 1, 3, & 4
Frances Havergal wrote this hymn after a prayer that every part of her life would be consecrated — not just the parts that looked holy. This is loss as offering.
The life you let go of becomes the life that finally belongs to you.
Postlude — Fire and Rain
James Taylor (1970) · piano
Jesus said whoever loses their life will find it. Taylor lived that loss and came out the other side singing. The cup of cold water arrives in the fire, in the rain, on the road you thought you couldn’t walk.
And welcome is the hand that meets you there.