Summary

Ken Medema offers an improvised song of prayer.

Listen Online

Details

In September 2016 participants gathered at the Universal Design for Worship seminar at Calvin College. Singer-songwriter Ken Medema participated through musical leadership and storytelling.

"Multi-Color Garment" lyrics:

I wear a multi-color garment;
it is pink, and it is green.
And I long to find a place where eyes are open,
where all of me is seen—
the weaknesses I struggle with,
and all the strengths I own—
to be in a place where I can know,
and where I can be known.

So hurray for the pinks among us,
and hurray for all the greens.
And hurray for a place where we find the grace
to see and to be seen.

We’ve come to learn to build a house,
a house for one and all,
where all giraffes can live,
and where elephants are not afraid to come and call.
We’ve come to learn to build a house
for all the pinks and greens,
a house that is an open place
to see and to be seen.

Hurray for all the pinks,
and hurray for all the greens.
And hurray for a day, hurray for a place,
where we see and we are seen.

And now we come to the table,
for the most sacred part of all,
to share a meal—a love feast—
and God on you we call:
Bless our feast and bless these conversations that we know,
so we will learn and build and grow,
and through this day we go.

So bless the pinks among us,
and bless all the greens,
and bless this feast as we enjoy,
as we see and we are seen.

© Ken Medema

Recent Media Resources

Robby Kiley on Creating Inclusive Community and Welcome

In this episode, Robby Kiley of Saint Pius X Parish in Granger, Indiana, shares how a grant project focused on welcome at the Mass for people across the spectrum of abilities extended beyond worship into a wider embrace of people in community and participation.  

December 13, 2024
Katie Callaway on Wonder, Curiosity, and Imagination in Worship

In this episode, Katie Callaway of Christian Temple Christian Church, in Catonsville, Maryland, shares how her congregation explored and deepened their understanding of worship by experimenting with godly play.  

December 13, 2024
Nathan Longfield on Embodiment, Creativity and Trauma-informed Worship

In this episode, Nathan Longfield, pastor of Emmaus Church, a newer worshiping community, talks about their year-long project that explored embodiment and trauma-informed practices to more deeply engage in worship as a congregation and community.  

December 10, 2024