Progressing the Journey - Print.

Progressing the Journey: 
Lyrics and Liturgy for a Conscious Church

By Susan Jones 

A rich collection of original lyrics and liturgy designed to support inclusive, progressive, and conscious Christian worship.

This is a valuable resource for worship leaders, ministers, and congregations seeking:

• Thoughtfully crafted lyrics and liturgies for progressive Christian worship
• Inclusive and transformative language that resonates with modern faith communities
• Themes of justice, compassion, and spiritual growth woven into worship materials
• Ready-to-use resources for Sunday services, special occasions, and personal reflection
• A bridge between traditional liturgy and contemporary expressions of faith
• Worship elements that honour faith journeys without rigid theological constraints
• Inspiration to deepen collective and personal spiritual experience

Features

• Original hymns, prayers, and liturgical texts for various settings
• Responsive readings and call-to-worship scripts
• Theological reflection on conscious and inclusive worship
• Practical suggestions for integrating new liturgies into existing services
• Accessible language that welcomes diverse faith perspectives

Soft cover 158pp, 6″ x 9″
ISBN: 9781988572925
Philip Garside Publishing (2022)

[11 in stock 13 February 2025]

Click for: eBooks • PowerPoint slides sets

Description

In Progressing the Journey, Susan Jones offers a powerful collection of original lyrics and liturgies that speak to the evolving nature of faith and worship.

Rooted in an inclusive and conscious approach to Christianity, this book is designed for church ministers, worship leaders, and congregations seeking meaningful, progressive expressions of faith.

This book provides a fresh, accessible resource for shaping services that reflect contemporary spiritual and social concerns.

The hymns and liturgies in this collection embrace themes of justice, compassion, transformation, and inclusivity – offering new words and prayers for those committed to worship that is both deeply spiritual and socially engaged.

More than just a collection of worship materials, Progressing the Journey offers insights into the role of conscious worship in today’s world.

Jones encourages worshippers to step beyond tradition where necessary, crafting services that resonate with today’s faith seekers while remaining connected to the rich heritage of Christian spirituality.

Whether used in Sunday services, small-group settings, or personal reflection, this book provides an essential toolkit for anyone committed to thoughtful, inclusive, and transformative worship.

About the Author

Susan Jones is a seasoned liturgist, theologian, and worship leader with a passion for progressive Christian worship. Drawing on years of experience crafting inclusive and conscious liturgies, she brings fresh language and thoughtful insight to the evolving landscape of faith communities.

Contents

• Introduction: Worship in a Conscious Church
• Section 1: New Lyrics for a Changing Church
  • Songs of Welcome and Inclusion
  • Hymns for Justice and Compassion
  • Lament and Hope in Worship
• Section 2: Liturgies for Modern Faith
  • Calls to Worship and Prayers of Gathering
  • Responsive Readings and Benedictions
  • Seasonal Liturgies for Advent, Easter, and Beyond
• Section 3: Integrating Conscious Worship
  • Practical Applications for Worship Leaders
  • Adapting Traditional Services for a Progressive Context
  • Theological Reflections on Inclusive Worship

Click here to: Order sets of 44 PowerPoint slides with the text of the hymns 

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Praise for Progressing the Journey

Review by Rev David Poultney in Touchstone October 2022

“Susan Jones is a Presbyterian minister who brings to her ministry the gifts of poetry and musical composition. This book offers us both lyrics and liturgies. Like anyone who writes resources such as these, she writes from a perspective, a particular understanding. Jones clearly owns her position as theologically progressive. 

Her progressivism influences her writing and composition. The clarity of her position and how it is expressed may inform our choices about whether or not to buy this book. We so often read only the theology and commentary we agree with and that is a shame. It behoves us to engage with thoughts, arguments and positions that are respectfully different from ours. 

Jones advocates that we see the world as it is. If she were still writing this book she would perhaps have illustrated this by referring to the photographs just released from the James Webb telescope, images from the infancy of the Cosmos itself. She writes of the wondrous complexity of the atomic substructure of matter which we had no knowledge of until recently.

Several hundred years ago we came to the realisation that the earth is not the centre of the universe. Yet we have persisted in thinking of ourselves as at the centre of things. In regard to the health of our planet, this has been close to ruinous.

Jones writes of her dismay in embracing the Season of Creation in finding that all the recommended hymns celebrated what we take from the world and not what we gift or nurture in it. She writes poetically of nature in itself unfolding. 

She writes for a range of occasions, some fixtures of the Church’s year, some responding to particular circumstance, such as the terrorist attack in Christchurch. On that following Sunday many of us leading worship had to work hard to find the right words to gather people and speak of our grief, loss, anger and fear. Her words for gathering and blessing on that day were clear and focussed.

Jones has a concern for the dignity and inclusion of LGBTIQ people in church and community. She has written several prayers on this theme and for occasions such as Pride month and Transgender Memorial Day. I applaud her prompting us to be truthful, honest and respectful about the variety of human experience.

Finally I applaud her courage. She asks readers if they cannot use the whole of a prayer or hymn as written, then why use it at all? Worship leaders often self-censor. I recommend this brave and poetic work.”

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"Lively congregations and alert leaders will welcome this collection of new hymns and original liturgies by a confident and experienced writer.

The songs have a quiet eloquence, their language is simple and direct, and they deal with many of the real life issues which confront us in the ‘new normal’ world.  That they are set to well-known tunes will make it easy to absorb them into a singing congregation’s vocabulary of praise.

The liturgies are fresh and vital in thought and language: a useful alternative to the sleepy long-established formulas which still clog our much-changed  religious world.

I strongly recommend Susan Jones’ Progressing on the Journey and her deeply contemplated and whole-hearted expression of distinctive New Zealand themes and images; this is a very rich new spiritual resource for troubled times."

Colin Gibson, Hymnwriter, Composer & Lay Preacher

“This book speaks deeply to me in Aotearoa about the variety of our people. Through these words, different races, genders, and sexual orientations are all welcomed as part of the beauty of God‘s world.

I love that Susan’s taken old hymns and provided new words. She takes seriously what we’re doing to the land and each other.

These lyrics and liturgies speak deeply to me about the God I know, the God I see in the Bible but also in the land; its beauty, the mysteries of creation and those around me.

I wish I’d had this book when preparing services each Sunday. Now, it takes me deeper into God as part of my morning prayer.
Thank you, Susan.”

Very Rev. Marg Schrader
former Moderator, Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand