This Week in Worship
Archive - Eastertide 2016
Scripture
Hymns
#232 "Jesus Christ Is Risen Today"
#240 “Alleluia, Alleluia! Give Thanks”
#238 “Thine is the Glory”
March 27, 2016
Easter Sunrise
Meditation by Reverend Kathryn Pyke
"It's an Invitation"
Call to Worship
One: At the break of dawn, a bird sings.
All: The long night of darkness is over.
One: The stone is rolled away.
All: The tomb is empty.
One: The sun begins to shine.
All: The Son has risen!
One: It’s a morning of glory,
All: Of love overcoming death,
One: Of women spreading Good News,
All: Of men turning from despair.
One: It’s a morning of joy.
All: For Easter has come again.
One: Love is stronger than death,
All: And we lift our voices in song.
Easter Prayer
Holy God, in the stillness of the dawn, with the sounds of nature awakening, open our ears and awaken our hearts that doubt might be rolled away and the bright light of Easter joy dawn within us and all around us. Today we celebrate the Risen Lord! Amen.
Easter Litany
One: Deep within ourselves we yearn to live fully each day.
All: Deep within ourselves we hope death leads us into eternal life.
One: Thank God for Jesus of Nazareth who faithfully followed his inner voice all the way through death into resurrection.
All: We appreciate God’s presence then and now.
One: In life and in death, we are God’s people; body and soul, we care about the earth and our neighbors.
All: We are carried through dark places into bright ones, and we learn to practice divine peace.
One: Christ is alive in our minds and in our senses! All: Alleluia!
All: Alleluia, Alleluia! Give thanks to the living Christ! Alleluia, Alleluia! Give praise to our God.
Scripture
Hymns
#232 "Jesus Christ Is Risen Today"
#246 "Christ is Alive!"
#233 "The Day of Resurrection"
March 27, 2016
Easter Sunday
Sermon by Reverend Kathryn Pyke
"No Idle Tale"
Prayer of Preparation
God of rock and roll, the rock is rolled away! The tomb is empty! Christ is Risen! We've come to celebrate the rolling stone and to ask you to roll the stone away in our lives to allow the resurrection of ourselves as new creations in Jesus Christ to come forth. Rattle and shake us this Easter morning! Amen!
Call to Worship
One: The stone has been rolled away.
All: The grave clothes are lying in a heap.
One: The body is gone.
All: Mary’s weeping is halted by the man’s questions:
One: Why are you crying?
All: Who is it you are looking for?
One: Let us proclaim with Mary:
All: We have seen the risen Lord!
One: Christ is Risen!
All: Christ is Risen Indeed! Hallelujah! Amen.
Easter Prayer
God of the morning light, God of Easter miracles, open our hearts to hear once again the story of love overcoming death, of joy drowning out sorrow, of hope emerging from despair. Bring Easter to this moment. Touch us. Fill us. Amen.
April 3, 2016
Service of Holy Communion
Sermon by Reverend Kathryn Pyke
"I Doubt That..."
Prayer of Preparation
We are still basking in the glory and joy of Christ's Easter victory, O God. The stone was rolled away! The "stones" which have trapped us - our worries, fears, anxieties, troubles of various
sorts - need not threaten us. We pray that your power that raised Christ from the dead will also raise us out of darkness and sorrow. Amen.
Call to Worship
One: The risen Christ lives among us, calling us to be a blessing,
All: Calling us to heal and transform the brokenness and the violence of our world.
One: The risen Christ lives among us, calling us to be a blessing,
All: Calling us to seek out the lonely and the lost and those who need to experience God’s love.
One: The risen Christ lives among us, calling us to be a blessing,
All: Calling us to be disciples to the world, blessed, healed, and filled with joyous good news!
Prayer of Confession
Redeeming God, you bring life out of dead ends, and hope in the midst of despair. Forgive us for doubting that you are still at work even in the darkest hour, even in the most painful moments. Forgive us for our hesitant action, our cautious compassion, our too-frequent reluctance. Redeeming God, teach us a stillness that leads to acts of kindness and clarity of vision. Shape in us a trust that leads to faithful witness and bold compassion. Form us in your love that loosens our worry and eases our anger. Make us true disciples, filled with love, acting with justice, and living out hope. Amen.
Hymns
#822 ”When We Are Living”
#353 “My Hope Is Built of Nothing Less”
#847 “Our Hope, Our Life”
April 10, 2016
Sermon by Reverend Kathryn Pyke
"You Cannot Hide"
Call to Worship
One: Brothers and sisters. If you lift your net and it is empty, come here!
All: We’ll cast it out again into Christ’s abundance.
One: If you open your eyes but do not recognize the Holy One, come here!
All: We’ll find the Risen Christ here among us.
One: If your life is filled with mourning, come here!
All: Christ is leading a dance of joy.
One: Come here, sisters and brothers!
All: To give blessing and honor and glory to God!
Prayer of Adoration
You break in, O God, on the road.
You break in, O God, exactly the way we don’t believe.
You break in, O God, and change everything.
You break in, O God, with a call.
You break in, O God, with an invitation .
You break in, O God with the truth.
You break in, O God, with a new kingdom.
You break in, O God, with a new world.
You break in, O God, with your intent for the future.
God, break in again, and call us to be your workers.
God, break in again, and use the gifts we are to build your kingdom.
God, break in again, and change our world once more.
Hymns
#276 “Sing a New Song unto the Lord”
#721 “Lord, You Have Come to the Lakeshore”
#726 “Will You Come and Follow Me”
April 17, 2016
Sermon by Reverend Kathryn Pyke
"We Had Hoped"
Call to Worship
We need your presence on the long road, Lord. The road between fear and hope, the road between the place where all is lost and the place of resurrection. Like the disciples walking the road to Emmaus, we are in need of your company! Jesus, stand among us, in your risen power,
let this time of worship, be a hallowed hour. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
O Jesus Christ, sometimes we are so busy talking with each other that we fail to find you beside us. We walk on, so focused on our questions that we do not create the silent spaces that would allow you to speak with us and enlighten our journeying.
(silent reflection)
Stay with us, Jesus Christ. Reach out towards us and invite us to pause and meet with you, we pray. As we look at our lives and that of the world around us, we are sometimes too anxious to share our real questions or our doubts and fears. We keep them within us in troubled silence.
(silent reflection)
Stay with us, Jesus Christ. Reach out towards us and invite us to pause and meet with you, we pray. We call your name, O Christ, and hope to discover you here in our community of vulnerable faith. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon
Whether we believe it or not, Jesus Christ never leaves us nor forsakes us. Let us open our hearts to receive the grace that Christ brings to us in faithfulness. We are forgiven! Thanks be to God.
Communion Blessing
And so we pray:
Come, Holy Spirit, come. Bless this bread and bless this fruit of the vine. Bless all of us in our eating and drinking that our eyes might be open, that we might recognize the risen Christ in our midst, indeed in one another. Come, Holy Spirit, come
Scripture
Hymns
#510 “We Gather Here in Jesus’ Name”
#525 “Let Us Break Bread Together
#240 “Alleluia, Alleluia! Give Thanks”
April 24, 2016
Sermon by Reverend Kathryn Pyke
"Living Out the Grace of God"
Call to Worship
Let us take a moment to breathe deeply, to drink in the presence of God.
Listen to the silence. God is here.
Turn your hearts inward.
Reflect on all that God has done for you, for your family, for this church.
Respond with a prayer of thanksgiving.
Let us come and worship God together now.
Prayer of Invocation
God, we remember with wonder and joy that your spirit is reaching everywhere: rejoicing in the liveliness of all living things; touching what is wounded or ill with healing power; gathering in the lonely, the lost, the least; soothing ancient animosities; creating and recreating a vision of hope. Come now, Holy Spirit. Let our worship rejoice in you, and lift our hearts, and bind us in one family of loving grace. We ask in Jesus’ name; Amen.
Hymns
#401 “Gather Us In”
#300 “We Are One in the Spirit”
#157 “I Danced in the Morning”
May 1, 2016
Sermon by Elder Mitch Fontaine
"Where the River Flows, There is Life!"
Call to Worship
One: The Spirit of God bids us, “Come.” Let everyone who hears within their hearts “Come.” Hear the whole earth rejoice and the coastlands sing of our God’s steadfast love.
All: We come to rejoice in the Holy One, our God. We give thanks for God sets us free!
One: Let everyone who is thirsty for the Spirit “Come.” Let anyone who wishes “Come,” and receive the water of life as a gift.
All: We come to rejoice in the Holy One, our God. We give thanks for God’s steadfast love that brings joy to our hearts in the night, lights our lives like the dawn, and sets us free.
Response (Hymn #235)
Prayer of Invocation
Speak to us, Giver of Life, and make us new. We thirst for the waters of eternal life, we yearn to know ourselves as Resurrection People. Send your Holy Spirit upon us this day, and create in us your new heaven and new earth. Speak to us words of comfort and hope, words of challenge and courage. Come, and move among us, we pray. Amen.
Response (Hymn #716)
Hymns
#375 “Shall We Gather at the River”
#623 “I’ve Got Peace like a River”
#484 “Out of Deep, Unordered Water”
O sons and daughters, let us sing
With heavenly hosts to Christ our King;
Today the grave has lost its sting!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
God, whose giving knows no ending,
From your rich and endless store,
Nature’s wonder, Jesus’ wisdom,
Costly cross, grave’s shattered door:
Gifted by you, we turn to you, offering up ourselves in praise; Thankful song shall rise forever, gracious donor of our days.
Call to Worship
Praise God, who has raised Jesus Christ to reveal new life.
Praise God, who sends the Spirit to empower the church.
Praise God with trumpet sound, praise God with flute and harp.
Praise God with tambourine and dance; praise God with strings and pipes!
Let everything that breathes sing praise.
Prayer of Adoration
O Christ, the Risen One, ascended into heaven, yet closer than our own breath, draw us into your presence. Be near to us — near to our praises, our prayers, our words, our songs; near to our wonderings, our tentative answers, our hidden doubts, our deepest affirmations. Be near to us, Risen Lord. Amen.
Response (Hymn #235)
Offertory Response (Hymn #716)
May 8, 2016
Sermon by Elder Mitch Fontaine
"Where the Spirit Flows, There's Life"
Hymns
#26 “Earth and All Stars!”
#260 “Alleluia! Sing to Jesus”
#261 “Peoples, Clap Your Hands!”
O sons and daughters, let us sing
With heavenly hosts to Christ our King;
Today the grave has lost its sting!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
God, whose giving knows no ending,
From your rich and endless store,
Nature’s wonder, Jesus’ wisdom,
Costly cross, grave’s shattered door:
Gifted by you, we turn to you, offering up ourselves in praise; Thankful song shall rise forever, gracious donor of our days.