A FORM OF COMMITMENT

TO CHRISTIAN SERVICE IN DAILY LIFE

Human Body and Spirit  -  Education

THE EXAMINATION

Presider: Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus, we are all baptized by

  the one Spirit into one Body, and given gifts in order to daily

  minister to each other for the common good.  Our purpose is to

  recognize these persons and the vocations to which they have

  been called, as we commission them in the Name of God and of

  this congregation, to act  every day for the welfare of others and

  the glory of God’s kingdom.

  Since the privilege and responsibility of ministry flows out of our

  common baptism into Christ Jesus and his saving work, I ask us

  all to join with these persons as we recommit ourselves to our

  baptismal covenant:

              Do you reaffirm your renunciation of evil, and renew your

  commitment to Jesus Christ?

People:  I do.

Presider: Do you place your faith and trust in God as Father, Son,

  and Holy Spirit?

People:  I do.

Presider: Will you act on this faith, remaining faithful in worship and

  evangelism, repenting of sin and resisting evil, endeavoring to

  seek and serve Christ in all, loving your neighbor as yourself,

  striving for justice and peace in our world by respecting the

  dignity of every human being?

People:  I will, with God’s help.

The Presider asks the sponsor(s)

              Are these baptized persons who have presented themselves

               committed to Christ Jesus as Lord, regular in attendance at

               worship and faithful to the baptismal covenant, equipped to

               perform their vocational duties and aware that they exercise

               their daily ministries to the glory of God the welfare of

               his creation?

Sponsor(s):             I believe they are.

THE COMMISSIONING

Presider:    People of God, do you understand that God uniquely equips each

   one of us with special gifts, for which we are accountable, in order

   that we might find fulfillment and purpose through service to others

   within God’s creation?

Response:  I do

Presider:    Will you dedicate yourselves to serve God and his creation through

                  the ministries to which God has called you?

Response:  I will, with God’s help.

Presider:    Will you endeavor for the glory of God to grow in knowledge and

                 experience, developing the gifts God has bestowed upon you, in

     order to strengthen your ministries that your fellow human beings

     might be more deeply served?

Response:  I will, with God’s help.

Presider:    Will you seek the support of this congregation as you deal with

                  difficult and trying issues associated with your ministries?

Response:  I will, with God’s help.

Presider:    Will you who witness these vows do all in your power to support

                  these persons in their daily ministries on behalf of God’s kingdom?

ALL:        We will!

Sponsor(s) I present to you these persons to be commissioned as daily life

                 ministers in the vocational area of education and of the human body

                 and spirit.

ALL:       There is one Body, of different parts; one Spirit, who bestows a

                 variety of gifts; one Lord, served by many hands; one Faith,

                 witnessed to in numerous ways; one Baptism, the source of our

                  life and work in Christ.

Presider:    All of us together are Christ’s Body.

People:     And each one among us has a role in his saving work.

Presider:    Let us pray.     (silence)

                 O Lord our Creator, we are grateful for the calling of your people in

     all times and places, and awed by your willingness to unite us with

     the saving work of your Son through the daily event of our

     common lives.

The Presider continues with this:

            We remember those who have gone before us:  Adam and Eve,

commissioned to till and care for the earth herself; Abraham and

Moses, shepherds of flocks; the various artisans who constructed

your Temples;  Deborah,  Joshua, and Gideon, who  served  as 

military leaders; Boaz, faithful farmer and wise steward of the land;

Ezra, the scholar; Esther, governmental leader; Luke, the physician;

Joseph of Arimathea, the businessman; Dorcas, the seamstress;

Barnabas, the teacher; Priscilla and Aquilla, the husband and wife

business team; Mary, mother, wife, and homekeeper; and the many

others who have served you in their daily lives without notice

or reward.

Or this:

            We remember those who have gone before us:  Noah, caretaker of

animals; Joseph, government minister and steward;  Aaron and the

Levites who were your priests; Ruth, caretaker of others; David,

king, musician and poet; Nehemiah, the community developer;

Matthew and Zacchaeus, tax collectors; Peter, Andrew, James, and

John, the fishermen; Joseph, the carpenter and foster parent of Jesus;

Saul, the tentmaker; Cornelius, the civil servant; Lydia, the retail

businesswoman; Apollos, the public speaker; Mary, mother, wife,

and homekeeper; and the many others who have served you in their

daily lives without notice or reward.

Presider:  May these we commission today follow the example of our

forbearers in the faith, dedicating themselves professionally and

personally to the service of their fellow human beings in witness to

the saving glory of your Kingdom in Christ Jesus our Lord: through

whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, you live and reign, now and

forever.  Amen.

(The Presider then stretches a hand in blessing over the newly commissioned)

Presider:  May the Holy Spirit, bestowed upon you in baptism, guide and

strengthen you that you may do God’s will in your vocation as a

minister of education, and of the human body and spirit, in the

service of the kingdom of Christ.  Amen.

In the Name of God and of this congregation, I commend you to

your work, and pledge you our prayers, encouragement, and support

as I bless you in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the