Call to Worship

Welcome pilgrims on the way to the cross.
We are learning to follow Jesus.

On this Lenten journey, where do we find God’s presence among us?
One thing we know: God calls us to witness extraordinary love in ordinary moments.

On this Lenten journey, how does God’s presence work among us?
One thing we know: God uses the messy and mundane to heal and restore us to one another.

On this Lenten journey, what does God’s presence do in our midst?
One thing we know: God opens us to recognize presence, sustenance, and abundance where the world perceives isolation and lack.

Pilgrims on the way, come let us worship God!
We come to worship God as we learn to live inside out! Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Director of Worship Arts, August 2022.

Prayer of Confession

O God of miracles and mighty deeds, we acknowledge your healing and comforting presence in our lives. We confess that we have been [drawn in] by materialism and driven by consumerism. Open our [hearts] to a new way of being. Send your anointing and grant us fresh insight for spiritual breakthroughs. Shine the light of your truth into our relationships and grant us victory over every secret and shame. We thank you in advance for healings and renewals in our lives. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Junius Dotson, The Africana Worship Book, Year A, edited by Valerie Bridgeman Davis and Safiyah Fosua (Discipleship Resources, 2006), 141.

Prayers of the People

Gracious God, we pray for our neighbors down the street and around the world who need food, water, clothing, and shelter.

Our Shepherd, you supply our need; most holy is your name.

Gracious God, we pray for our neighbors who are in distress, whose bodies and minds need your peaceful and loving presence.

Our Shepherd, you supply our need; most holy is your name.

Gracious God, we pray for our neighbors whose lives have been upended by disaster and who are in desperate need of provision and care.

Our Shepherd, you supply our need; most holy is your name.

Gracious God, we pray for our siblings who make up the Christian family across the world, that we would be your witnesses and workers for the flourishing of all creation.

Our Shepherd, you supply our need; most holy is your name.

Gracious God, we pray that goodness and mercy would follow us all of our days that we might be sharers of goodness and mercy everywhere we go.

Our Shepherd, you supply our need; most holy is your name. Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Director of Worship Arts, August 2022; Litany response adapted from the opening line of “My Shepherd, You Supply My Need” by Isaac Watts as found in Chalice Hymnal, edited by Daniel B. Merrick and David P. Polk (Chalice Press, 1995), #80.

Benediction

As you leave this time of worship, may God’s presence follow you, heal you, and empower you to witness and to witness to the goodness and love of God everywhere you go. Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Director of Worship Arts, August 2022.