Call To Worship

Make your way home. All you raised in the church but not active in church, Make your way home. All you searching for truth and joy that lasts more than a day, Make your way home to God. All you wanting to give yourself to something larger than yourself, Make your way home; make your way home to God. Make your way home to this community of faith. All you tired of being cautious or politically correct, Make your way home. All you who have been riding the roller coaster of life, Make your way to the best ride of your life. All you hurting, abused, confused, Make your way home to a place of healing. All you worried and uptight, stuck in a rut, Loosen up, make your way home, Home to God, home to healing, home to joy!

Invocation

Come, Lord Jesus, open us to the wonder of your amazing grace, show us the fullness of your salvation, grant us the peace that passes all understanding. We place ourselves in your care and yield our lives to your touch. Speak to us today in word and silence. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Hymn                       A Mighty Fortress Is Our God              Martin Luther

Scripture Lessons

            Old Testament Lesson: Deuteronomy 28:1-68

Psalm: Psalm 139:13-16

Gospel Lesson: John 18:1-40

New Testament Lesson: Hebrews 11

 

Litany (Written By Pamela Stewart)

LEADER:​ You are living stones, cut from Christ, who is our Rock and Cornerstone.

PEOPLE:​ We are members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. Brought together by faith with those who testified before us, we stand on their shoulders.

LEADER:​ In Christ, the whole building is joined together. Rising upward, you are becoming a holy temple in the Lord, a dwelling place for His Spirit.

PEOPLE: ​We recognize that we have not come to God alone. We are here through the work of those who came before us. And we do not persevere alone. We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, urging us onward, encouraging us to do the will of the Lord.

LEADER: ​Remember the work of your ancestors, who faithfully taught you the commandments of God. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. And when they ask, “What do these stones mean?” tell them that they might know the hand of the Lord. For unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain.

PEOPLE: ​May those who follow in our footsteps be thankful for this legacy, as we thank those who came before us. May they be faithful to preserve it for all who follow them. As they stand upon the stones we set in place, may future generations say, “This our fathers and mothers did for us!”

LEADER:​ Therefore, work together as one. Build with stones of love and faith; stones of justice and compassion; stones of hope and commitment. Stand firm on the foundation, which is your mutual faith in Christ. Keep your eyes on Him, who is both the Author and Finisher of the faith.

ALL:​ For we are confident in this: The One who began this good work will carry it on to completion, until the day of His return.

Hymn                Faith of Our Fathers                        Faber & Hemy

Quotations

“Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.” ~ Abraham Lincoln

 

Benediction

I rise today with the power of God to pilot me,

God’s strength to sustain me,

God’s wisdom to guide me,

God’s eye to look ahead for me,

God’s ear to hear me,

God’s word to speak for me,

God’s hand to protect me,

God’s way before me,

God’s shield to defend me,

God’s host to deliver me,

from snares of devils,

from evil temptations,

from nature’s failings,

from all who wish to harm me,

far or near,

alone and in a crowd.

—”Saint Patrick’s Breastplate,” Old Irish, eighth-century prayer