At the outset, when God created the universe,
the earth was lifeless and shapeless;
a deep ocean of chaos, shrouded in darkness;
brooded over by the Spirit of God.

Then God called for light,
and light appeared.
God saw that light was a good thing,
and separated it from the darkness.
God named the light Day,
and the darkness Night.
Evening passed and morning came;
the first day was done.

Then God called for a clear space
to keep out the water on either side.
God made the clear space
and the water was split in two, above and below.
That is what happened,
and God named the space Sky.
Evening passed and morning came;
the second day was done.

Then God called for the waters under the sky
to be pooled into one place
and for dry land to appear elsewhere.
That is what happened,
and God named the dry land Earth
and the pooled waters Sea.
God saw that this was a good thing.

Then God called for the earth to produce vegetation:
plants and trees, rich with fertile fruits and seed,
and that is what happened.
The earth burst forth with vegetation of every kind;
grasses and vines, shrubs and trees,
fertile with seeds and fruits of every kind.
God saw that this was a good thing.
Evening passed and morning came;
the third day was done.

Then God called for lights in the space called sky;
lights to shine from above and light up the earth,
to separate day from night,
and to mark out the months, seasons and years.
That is what happened;
God made stars to fill the sky
and two big lights:
a bright one to dominate the day,
and a soft one to take over at night.
God set them all in the sky
to light up the earth and determine day and night;
to separate out the light from the darkness.
God saw that this was a good thing.
Evening passed and morning came;
the fourth day was done.

Then God called for the waters to fill with living creatures,
and for the skies to fill with birds flying over the earth.
God created all the creatures that live and move in the water,
the enormous monsters of the sea and the teeming fish,
and every kind of bird that wings its way through the air.
God saw that this was a good thing
and set them up for life,
encouraging the fish to multiply and fill the seas
and the birds to multiply all over the earth.
Evening passed and morning came;
the fifth day was done.

Then God called for the earth to bring forth all sorts of living creatures:
insects, reptiles, mammals;
animals of every kind, tame and wild.
That is what happened;
God made wild animals of every kind to fill the earth,
every kind of herd and flock,
and every creature that runs or jumps or crawls on land.
God saw that this was a good thing.

Then God said:
“We will make people in our own image,
modelling them on ourselves.
We will entrust to them the fish of the sea,
the birds of the air, the flocks and herds,
and all the wild animals and creepy-crawlies.”

So God created people as a reflection of God,
created them to be like God,
created them male and female.

God set them up for life,
and encouraged them to multiply and fill the earth.
God told them to exercise control over the earth
and to manage the fish of the sea,
the birds of the air and every living thing on earth.

God said to the people:
“Look, I have given you the grain crops
that grow and reproduce themselves all over the earth,
and all the trees that grow from seed and bear fruit;
they are all yours for food.
I have also provided vegetation galore
as food for the animals, birds and creepy-crawlies,
for everything that lives and breathes.

So it all happened, just as God said.
Everything God had made was there to be seen
and God was delighted with it all.
Evening passed and morning came;
the sixth day was done.

With that, the universe was complete,
along with everything that fills it.
With the work finished,
God took the seventh day off.

After all the work God had done,
the seventh day was a well earned rest.
So God made the seventh day special,
a sacred day,
because that day was God’s day off
after all the work of creating everything.

©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

This is the family lineage of the universe; the story of how everything came to be.

Back when the Creator with many names created the earth and skies, there was nothing growing anywhere – no trees, no grass, nothing – because the LORD God had not yet sent any rain on the earth, and there was no one to care for the land. There was only ground water that would come up and flood everything.

The LORD God took a handful of earth and created an earthling, blowing the breath of life into its nostrils so that it came alive – a living human being!

Out in the east, the LORD God planted a garden in a place called Eden, and put the newly made human there. The LORD God filled the garden with abundant plant life, growing all kinds of trees and plants from the ground – a feast for the eyes, and for the table. There were also two special trees in the garden – the tree of life, and the tree of reckoning good and evil.

There is a river which brings water to the garden and then divides into four branches as it flows beyond Eden. The first is the Pishon River, and it gives water to the whole land of Havilah, a land rich in top quality gold, gemstones, and aromatic resins. The second is the Gihon River which winds its way down through the land of Cush in Africa.  The third river is the Tigris which flows east of Assyria, and the fourth is the Euphrates.

The LORD God put the human in Mother Earth’s garden to honour, protect and care for her. The LORD God gave the human these instructions: “You are free to eat the fruit from every tree in the garden except one. There is one tree whose fruit you must not eat, for just one bite of it and your mind will start dividing everything up into good and evil. The day that happens, you lose your life.”

Then the LORD God said, “It is a bit tough for the human to be all alone. I will make a suitable match for the human, to be a partner and share the load.”

So with more earth from the ground, the LORD God made all the animals of the land and all the birds of the air. Every living creature was presented to the human, who got to decide what they would be called. The human chose names for them all, and the names stuck. This way, the human met and named all the livestock, the birdlife, and the wild animals. But none of them made the grade as the partner and helper that the human needed.

So the LORD God put the human into a coma and performed surgery, removing a rib and closing up the flesh from where it had been taken. Then the LORD God used the rib to make another human. One of them was male, and the other female, and the LORD God introduced them to one another. The first human said,

“At last, one of my own kind
– bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh.
We shall be called woman and man,
because we come from one another.”

That’s why, ever since then, men and women have been leaving their parents to tie the knot and become new couples, as inseparable as a single body. The two of them were completely naked before one another, and completely free of shame.

©2026 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

We sing your praises, LORD!
From every corner of the universe,
from high and low, near and far,
we join the chorus of praise!

With the angels and all who serve you in heaven,
we sing your praises!
With the sun and moon, stars and planets,
we sing your praises!
With far flung galaxies and the milky way,
we sing your praises!

All of them speak of you in glowing terms, LORD,
for they owe their very existence to you.
You ordered their creation
and fixed them in place for all time.

We sing your praises, LORD!
Every creature on earth joins the choir,
singing your praises for all they’re worth:
dolphins and whales
and the ocean itself;
bushfire and hail storm,
snow and ice,
cyclones dancing to your tune;
mountain ranges and rolling hills,
orchards and rainforests,
animals from both bush and farm,
reptiles and birds;
people of every race and class,
people of power and influence;
men and women, old and young,
every voice on earth joins as one!

One and all, we sing your praises, LORD,
yours is the only name on our lips!
You alone outshine the glory of the universe!

You have given strength to your people,
and honour to your faithful ones,
to those you have chosen
and hold close to your heart.

You, LORD, are the greatest!

©2000 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Paul was invited to present his views to the most respected assembly of civil and religious leaders in the city of Athens. He stood before them and said:

“The God who made the world and everything in it is the one who is Lord of heaven and earth. No house built by human hands could ever hold this God. No act of service offered by human beings could ever provide anything which God would otherwise be left in need of. No, it is we mortal creatures who depend on what God provides, for our life, our breath, and all we need are given by God. This God made the whole human race from scratch – every people and nation on the face of the earth – and set the basic limits on what is possible and impossible for them. All of this inspires us to search for God, which is exactly what God intended. At times we may feel like we are groping blindly in the dark, but God wants to be found by us and is never beyond the reach of anyone. One of your local poets summed it up well:

‘Our lives are lived in God,
everything we do and everything we are;
for we are the fruit of God’s womb.’

©2002 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

At the very start, there was one who is called the Word.
The Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
From day one, God and the Word were inseparable.

It was through the Word that everything was created.
There is absolutely nothing that doesn’t owe its existence to him.

In the Word was life.
He is the source of the life
that turns on the lights for everyone.
The light of his life breaks open the darkness,
and the darkness could not snuff it out.

©2000 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Let us lift up our hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is indeed right to give you our thanks and praise, O God,
– joining our voices with sun, moon, and stars,
mountains, trees, and every living creature –
for all things came into being through you,
and in you we live and move and have our being.

You made the world and everything in it,
forming us from the dust of the earth
and breathing into us the breath of life.
You laid out the earth before us
and called us to till it and keep it
and steward its abundance.

When we disobeyed your word,
consuming what should not be consumed,
the thread of life was broken
and we were left groping in the dark.
But you sent your child, Jesus,
through whom all things came into being,
to shine the light of your love into the darkness,
reconciling all created things to their Maker
and renewing our ancient destiny.

Therefore with .....

©2026 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

We give you thanks for making the world and everything in it,
and for sending your child, Jesus,
through whom all things came into being,
to shine the light of your love into the darkness,
reconciling all created things to their Maker
and renewing our ancient destiny.

©2026 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

(Preface reformatted for use apart from communion)

We give you all thanks and praise, O God,
– joining our voices with sun, moon, and stars,
mountains, trees, and every living creature –
for all things came into being through you,
and in you we live and move and have our being.

You made the world and everything in it,
forming us from the dust of the earth
and breathing into us the breath of life.
You laid out the earth before us
and called us to till it and keep it
and steward its abundance.

When we disobeyed your word,
consuming what should not be consumed,
the thread of life was broken
and we were left groping in the dark.
But you sent your child, Jesus,
through whom all things came into being,
to shine the light of your love into the darkness,
reconciling all created things to their Maker
and renewing our ancient destiny.

Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

©2026 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Though we have disobeyed the Word of life
and consumed what we should not have consumed,
God is not far from each one of us.
The light of God’s mercy shines in the darkness
and the darkness shall not overcome it.

Sisters and Brothers,
  your sins are forgiven;
    be at peace.

©2026 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net

Go now,
and live in solidarity with all the earth,
fulfilling your calling to care for all life,
so that all creation might join
in songs of praise to God.

And may God shine light into your darkness;
May Christ Jesus lead you into harmony with all things;
and may the Holy Spirit breathe into you
   the breath of life and fill your heart with praise.

We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
   In the name of Christ. Amen.

©2026 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net