Worship at Hand – October 2025 | Whole Month [Save 10%]

Worship at Hand

Complete Lectionary-Based Worship Services for Sundays in the Church Year

By Philip Garside

 October 2025 | Whole Month

About this month's material

Pentecost 17 | 5 October 2025

Today we hear from Psalm 37:1-9 and Luke 17:5-10 – scriptures that challenge us to trust deeply, act humbly, and serve faithfully, even when certainty feels out of reach.

Our sermon explores how faith can coexist with doubt, and how quiet acts of goodness – often unseen – are powerful expressions of discipleship.

In a world that rewards performance and recognition, we’re invited instead to delight in God, to trust in divine timing, and to live from a place of grace. 

Pentecost 18 | 12 October 2025

Today we will reflect on Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7 and Luke 17:11-19. These readings invite us to consider how faith can take root in unfamiliar places, and how gratitude can flourish on the margins.

We’ll hear Jeremiah’s surprising call to build, plant, and pray even in exile, and witness a Samaritan leper who turns back in thanks after healing.

Together, we’re reminded that even in times of dislocation or uncertainty, God is with us – calling us to faith, gratitude, and hope. 

Pentecost 19 | 19 October 2025

Today, we will hear from Psalm 119:97-104, 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5 and Luke 18:1-8.

These scriptures invite us into a life shaped by God’s Word, lived with persistent faith, and grounded in the pursuit of truth.

Together, we’ll reflect on how Scripture can be like a song in our hearts, how prayer can become our daily rhythm, and how to stay faithful even when the world resists.

May this time open us to the sweet, steady, and strong call of God’s Spirit.

Pentecost 20 | 26 October 2025

Today our readings come from the prophet Joel 2:23–32 and the Gospel of Luke 18:9–14.

Joel offers a vision of restoration and spiritual abundance, where God’s Spirit is poured out on all people, while Jesus tells a parable that challenges our assumptions about righteousness and grace.

Together, these scriptures invite us to rejoice in divine generosity and examine our hearts with humility.

As we gather, may we be open to transformation – through mercy, through hope, and through the Spirit that meets us all.

 

About Worship at Hand

You can purchase packages for individual Sundays or for a whole month:
https://philipgarsidebooks.com/collections/worship-at-hand

Use these flexible, all-in-one service scripts to:

• Prepare thoughtful, spiritually grounded worship with minimal stress
• Engage congregations with inclusive, poetic language
• Follow the Revised Common Lectionary with confidence and creativity
• Offer well-structured, theologically liberal worship experiences
• Save time with ready-made sermons and prayers, and children’s talk ideas
• Inspire participation with interactive and multi-age elements.
  

Features

A weekly worship resource based on the Revised Common Lectionary readings that comprises:

• A complete liturgy
• A 1000-word sermon included for each service
• 10 engaging “Introducing the Theme / Story Time” ideas
• 12 hymn suggestions from NZ Hymnbook Trust music books
• A royalty free image illustrating the theme to use on the cover of the Order of Service, PowerPoint slides etc.

Material for each week comprises a zipped file containing:

• The Leader’s A4 version of the Order of Service (includes the liturgy, sermon, hymn suggestions and Introducing the Theme / Story Time ideas), in Word and PDF formats
• A draft A5 Congregation version of the Order of Service, ready for you to add hymn and Bible reading texts, in Word and PDF formats
• A .jpg format image
  

You will be emailed a link to download the zipped file when you complete your purchase.

Philip Garside Publishing Ltd (2025)

Praise for Worship at Hand

"Worship at Hand for August: Pertinent, very useful material to read, reflect on, spark thoughts and assist with services. I find it a good resource." JH 25 June 2025

"I find the Liturgies very helpful along with the sermon preparation guide. The prayers are thoughtful and easy to follow. Always relevant to the subject theme."
PJ 19 June 2025

"I have a variety of worship resources on hand that I use to prepare liturgy and have therefore to date not sourced your Worship at Hand. Because I have had a very busy few weeks, I thought I'd give your Pentecost resources a go, thinking there might be some ideas that I could incorporate. What I have found is a very balanced and well thought out liturgy and a sermon that in my view is one of the better sermons I have come across, certainly better than I would likely have come up with. Thank you so much for offering your talent to the church in this way, it is a gift to at least this tired Presbyter!" SW 5 June 2025

"I really appreciate the new resource as it provides a very helpful resource for creating church services. I don't need to spend as much time putting the services together, especially looking for songs or creative ideas for children/young people. It also means that if we don't have a preacher available at least there is a good talk that someone can read."  HW 28 May 2025

"Great material. A wonderful resource. I have recommended it to others as well." DE 10 May 2025

"I used some of the material for 25 May and received positive feedback. Thank you for providing this material. Several of our people said they appreciated the simple and straight forward message included in your Reflection."
RB 26 May 2025

"Thank you for this resource. Worship at Hand is excellent. It goes with the set readings of each Sunday and it's simple for people to understand.
it's in everyday language, and the theology is very clear and brings the love of God to the worshipping community. thank you very much." ST 28 May 2025

Description

Worship at Hand is your weekly solution for creating meaningful, high-quality church services that are theologically grounded and easy to lead. Designed for clergy, lay preachers, and worship leaders in Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond, each downloadable service in this growing collection includes everything you need to lead a complete Sunday gathering.

Each service is based on the Revised Common Lectionary.

Liturgies are responsive, reflective, and action-oriented – inviting congregations to participate deeply in the rhythm of worship. 

Whether you’re preaching every week or leading occasionally, Worship at Hand gives you everything in one place. Just open, read, and adapt as needed. Services are created with beauty, care, and a deep love for the church’s task of telling the Good News.

These services are crafted with pastoral insight, theological depth, and liturgical artistry. Use them as supplied or adapt to suit your context – each service includes permission for use with attribution.

While you can present them as is, we suggest that you personalise the sermons provided by adding your own stories and messages relevant to your congregation and local community.

About the Author

Philip Garside is a Methodist lay preacher, worship leader, publisher, and singer / musician based in Aotearoa New Zealand. With over 15 years of experience leading creative, multimedia services, he brings a special blend of theological depth, pastoral sensitivity, and liturgical imagination to his work. Through Philip Garside Publishing Ltd / Philip Garside Books, he equips worship leaders with tools to inspire thoughtful, inclusive, and engaging worship grounded in the life of the Spirit and the call to justice.

Contents

Each downloadable service includes:

Opening Section

• Welcome & Introduction
• Call to Worship (responsive)
• Lighting the Candle
• Opening Prayer
• Hymn #1 [You provide the hymn text]
  

Exploring the Theme

• Prayer of Approach (responsive)
• Words of Assurance
• 10 Children’s Talk / Story Time ideas
• Hymn #2 [You provide the hymn text]
• Bible Readings (RCL-based) [You provide the Bible text(s)]
• 1000-word Sermon
• Hymn #3 [You provide the hymn text]

Community Time

• Sharing the Peace
• Notices
• Sharing Joys and Concerns
• Prayers of Intercession (responsive)
• The Lord’s Prayer in te reo Māori
• Offering Invitation and Blessing
• Hymn #4 [You provide the hymn text]

Closing

• Benediction / Sending Forth
• The Grace in te reo Māori