WELCOME
PRELUDE O God, Our Help In Ages Past – Berry
*CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader: May God accompany us as we embark into the Lenten wilderness.
People: May God bless us with clear vision as we move toward new horizons.
Leader: As disciples, let us follow Jesus even when we must make difficult decisions and uncomfortable choices.
People: Let us not retreat in fear, but let us confront the challenges of the world with faith.
Leader: Let us listen for God’s message, and let us look for signs of God’s grace.
People: Along ourLenten journeys, may theLord guide us on the path of reconciliation and renewal.
*HYMN OF PRAISE Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah #281
Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah, Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but Thou art mighty; Hold me with Thy powerful hand;
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
Feed me till I want no more,
Feed me till I want no more.
Open now the crystal fountain, Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar Lead me all my journey through;
Strong deliverer, strong deliverer,
Be Thou still my strength and shield,
Be Thou still my strength and shield.
When I tread the verge of Jordan, Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death, and hell’s destruction, Land me safe on Canaan’s side;
Songs of praises, songs of praises,
I will ever give to Thee,
I will ever give to Thee.
PRAYERS OF CONFESSION (Unison)
Gracious and merciful God,
during the penitential season of Lent,
we realize that we have frequently surrendered to temptation,
and our hunger for wealth and power has often lured us from the path of
discipleship.
You have blessed us with gifts, but we have been tempted to use them to benefit ourselves
rather than serving others.
We are awed by the difficult and risky journey that Jesus took, but we prefer
for our journeys of faith to be comfortable and not too threatening.
We admire the commitment of Christ, but we realize that walking with
Jesus could take us to the cross.
Have mercy upon us, Lord,
and forgive our sins through Your grace.
Renew our faith, and prepare us for the journey of discipleship,
so that You would lead us through the wilderness into the joy of
abundant life,
through Jesus Christ our Lord, in whose name we pray.
(Silent)
ASSURANCE OF FORGIVENESS (adapted from Romans 5:19-21)
Leader: Because of Adam’s disobedience, the many were made sinners;
but through Christ’s obedience, the many will be made righteous.
People: Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that we may
receive the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Leader: Friends, believe the good news of the gospel.
People: Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven!
MINUTE FOR MISSION New Initiatives Committee (Hunger Walk)
SCRIPTURE Psalm 91:9-16
9 Because you have made the LORD your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place,
10 no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will
trample under foot.
14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name.
15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will
rescue them and honor them.
16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation.
SCRIPTURE Luke 4:1-13
1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in
the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at
all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. 3 The devil said to
him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”
4 Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’” 5 Then the
devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
6 And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it
has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. 7 If you, then, will worship
me, it will all be yours.” 8 Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your
God, and serve only him.’” 9 Then the devil took himto Jerusalem, and placed him
on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw
yourself down from here, 10 for it is written, ‘He will command his angels
concerning you, to protect you,’ 11 and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so
that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” 12 Jesus answered him,
“It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 13 When the devil had finished
every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.
MEDITATION Remembering Who We Are
ANTHEM Jesus Paid It All – Grape/Hayes
*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH from A Declaration of Faith, 2.4
God created human beings with a need for community
and with freedom to enter into it by responding to their Maker
with grateful obedience and to one another with love and helpfulness.
We believe that we have been created to relate to God and each other in
freedom and responsibility.
We may misuse our freedom and deny our responsibility by trying to live
without God and other people
or against God and other people.
Yet we are still bound to them for our life and well-being, and intended for
free and responsible fellowship with them.
Since every human being is made for communion with God and others,
we must treat no one with contempt.
We are to respect and love all other people and ourselves as well.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE AND THE LORD’S PRAYER
. . . Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into
temptation, but deliver usfrom evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power
and the glory, forever. Amen.
INVITATION TO GIVE Lenten “Super 6” Food Collection – Boxed Cereal
PRAYER OF DEDICATION (Unison)
God of grace, from the abundance of Your bountiful harvest,
we share the gifts that You have entrusted to us,
so that the fruits of our labor and the grain of the earth
would provide our fellow human beings
with hope and healing,
with peace and possibilities,
with nourishment and newness.
In presenting these offerings,
we ask that You would receive them as a sign of our gratitude
for Your unending and unconditional love that eternally embraces us
through Jesus Christ our Lord, in whose name we pray. Amen.
*HYMN Lord, I Want to Be a Christian #372
Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.
Lord, I want to be more loving in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more loving in my heart,
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more loving in my heart.
Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be more holy in my heart.
Lord, I want to be like Jesus in my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be like Jesus in my heart.
In my heart, in my heart,
Lord, I want to be like Jesus in my heart.
*BENEDICTION
POSTLUDE Reflection – Hayes