Karen Van Bemden was worship director for Cragmor Christian Reformed Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado during which time these materials were planned. She currently works as a library technology educator. She holds degrees from Calvin University (BA) and University of Colorado Colorado Springs (MA).
Last Updated: September 10, 2025
Our Lent series this year focused on the theme of sin. We used the seven deadly sins as a guide to examine our sin in some of the services. The first week of the series was a very general introduction to sin. The second week we introduced the seven deadly sins, using dirty rags to represent each of the sins.
We were just finishing a ten-week series on “the big words” of Reformed doctrine. The word for Thanksgiving Day was providence, God’s continuing care for the world. As we started putting the service together, it became clear to us that we could sing practically the entire message. The idea of having a “lighter” service after all of the heavy doctrine was appealing. But how could we get all of the songs we wanted to sing into a one-hour time frame? And how much of the spoken Word should the pastor deliver in addition to the singing?
Connect
Reformed Worship Resources in Your Inbox
Sign up for the newsletter to receive the latest Reformed Worship resources and other news.
