Liturgy for May 3, 2020

May 3rd, 2020 | April Karli

Holy Ghost With Light Divine

by Andrew Reed & Seth Woods

Holy Spirit, light divine,

Shine upon this heart of mine;

Chase the shades of night away,

Turn the darkness into day.

Holy Spirit, pow’r divine,

Cleanse this guilty heart of mine;

Long hath sin without control

Held dominion o’er my soul

Holy Ghost with joy divine,

Cheer this saddened heart of mine

Bit my many woes depart

Heal my wounded bleeding heart

Holy Spirit, all divine,

Dwell within this heart of mine;

Cast down ev’ry idol throne,

Reign supreme, and reign alone.

Call to Worship

This Easter Season let’s join together
As participants and hosts,
Whether passionate believer or hopeful skeptic,
We gather today, to celebrate our joy that death ends in the resurrection.

If you are new to our liturgy,
we welcome you to be a full participant or a thoughtful observer.
Let’s pause together for a moment of quiet.
(Wait for a short moment of silence)

Gentle…yet powerful.
Lowly…yet almighty.
Shepherd…yet King.

In Your gentleness,
   guide us.
In Your power,
   strengthen us.
In Your lowliness,
   strip from us our selfish pride
   which only destroys us.

In Your greatness,
   lift us up that we might aspire to greater things.
As a shepherd,
   call us to be Your servants.
As a King,
   call us to be Your royal priesthood.

O God,
   who is our shepherd and our King;
O Christ,
   who was crucified and is now risen from the dead;
O Spirit,
   who comforts and empowers;
O great One in Three, Holy Trinity,
this hour, set us free to worship. Amen.

KIDS SONG

His Banner Over Me Is Love (led by Erin Williams)

How Deep The Father’s Love For Us

by Stuart Townend

How deep the Father’s love for us

How vast beyond all measure

That He should give His only Son

To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss

The Father turns His face away

As wounds which mar the Chosen One

Bring many sons to glory

Behold the man upon a cross

My sin upon His shoulders

Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice

Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there

Until it was accomplished

His dying breath has brought me life

I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything

No gifts, no power, no wisdom

But I will boast in Jesus Christ

His death and resurrection

Why should I gain from His reward?

I cannot give an answer

But this I know with all my heart

His wounds have paid my ransom

‘Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus

by Louisa Stead & William J. Kirkpatrick

‘Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,

Just to take Him at His Word

Just to rest upon His promise,

Just to know, “Thus saith the Lord!”

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!

How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er

Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!

Oh, for grace to trust Him more!

Oh, how sweet to trust in Jesus,

Just to trust His cleansing blood

And in simple faith to plunge me

‘Neath the healing, cleansing flood!

Yes, ’tis sweet to trust in Jesus,

Just from sin and self to cease

Just from Jesus simply taking

Life and rest, and joy and peace.

I’m so glad I learned to trust Him,

Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend

And I know that He is with me,

Will be with me to the end.

Prayer of Confession

Confession allows us a moment to honestly reveal our hopes and pains.
Let us cry out to God as a community.
Our response will be in bold.

We praise you,
O God, for giving shape and meaning
to the ancient image of yourself as shepherd
through the person of Jesus Christ.

Forgive us, O God,
for the times when we fail to reach out and accompany
those who are going through difficult times;
those who feel imprisoned in a valley of shadows
and find themselves overwhelmed by life.
Jesus, good shepherd,
help us to take the time and make the space
to hear your call to us.

The call to reveal your love, compassion and comfort
wherever you need us to bind up the wounds
of the victims of today’s society.
Jesus, good shepherd,
help us to take the time and make the space
to hear your call to us.

The call to reveal in tangible and authentic ways,
your passion for those who feel powerless to make
any changes for good in their lives.
Jesus, good shepherd,
help us to take the time and make the space
to hear your call to us.

The call to empty ourselves of all that is contrary to your life within us
so that your goodness and mercies are enjoyed
not as rewards to be hoarded
but as gifts to be shared.

Jesus himself bore our sins in his body on the cross,
so that, free from sins
we might live for righteousness;
by his wounds we have been healed.
For we were going astray like sheep,
but now have been returned
to the shepherd and guardian of our souls.

So, hear the good news:
in Jesus Christ we are sought,
we are found,
we are forgiven.
Thanks be to God!

Prayers of the People

We now invite you into a time of prayer. This is an opportunity for us to support one another and participate by sharing our prayer requests.

Many may need to share. Please keep your prayers to a sentence or two so that everyone who wishes to share is able to.

We welcome any guests among us and welcome you to pray with us and share a prayer request as well.

If you have a prayer request, let us know in the chat box. We’ll unmute your mic so you can share.

If you have something you’re thankful for, end your prayer with…

“Let us bless the Lord” and we’ll respond together, “Thanks be to God.“

If you have something you’d like prayer for, end your prayer with…

“Let us pray to the Lord” and we’ll respond together, “Lord, have mercy.“

(Then start off with a prayer of your own as an example.)

“With the prayers that have been spoken, and those that are unspoken,

let us finish by praying this prayer together…”

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth, as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For yours is the kingdom,

and the power, and the glory. Forever and ever. Amen

Eucharist

(We now come to the center of our Liturgy, the Eucharist. Parents may invite your children back into the room at this time. Today we’ll receive the Eucharist in our homes, separated by space, but knitted together by God’s Spirit. Please examine your hearts and pray this prayer with me. Your responses will be in bold.)

The Lord is with us
He is with us indeed

Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give thanks and praise.

It is right and good that with hearts and minds and voices
we should praise you, God almighty
—
On that first Easter morning, as the sun was dawning, Jesus rose triumphantly from the dead. The earth shook as the angel rolled the stone away.
No grave could hold his body down. He is risen. He is risen indeed!
—
As Mary Magdalene and the other Mary looked on in fear, the risen Lord revealed himself to them, and they departed with great joy.
Rejoice! And again I say rejoice! For Christ Jesus has broken the curse of death and destroyed the power that it once had over us.
—
The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is now given to those who believe in him.
Let us receive this spiritual power and use it wisely for the liberation of all God’s people!
—
Let us make a joyful noise unto the Lord. For there is none like him who can break the chain of oppression, evil, and the grave. He is risen and is seated at the right hand of God.
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”

—

For this is the Passover feast,
when Christ, the true Lamb of God, is slain
whose love consecrates the homes of all the faithful.
Glory to you for ever.
—
For the moment when you first saved our ancestors,
freeing Israel from her slavery and leading her safely through the sea.
Glory to you for ever.
—
For this most blessed of all moments! When hatred is cast out,
peace and justice find a home, and heaven is joined to earth
and all creation reconciled to you.
Glory to you for ever.
—
For Christ the morning star has risen in glory;
Christ is risen from the dead
and this flame of love burns within us!
Christ sheds his peaceful light on all the world!
Christ lives and reigns for ever and ever!
Amen.

—

On the night Jesus was betrayed, the nation of Israel was celebrating their deliverance from slavery in Egypt. In the midst of the meal, Jesus took the symbols of the feast and gave them new meaning.

He took the bread, gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of Me.”

(Pause for everyone to take the bread together)

Later, Jesus took the wine. Again, He gave thanks, gave it to them, and said, “Drink this, all of you. This is My blood of the New Covenant, which is shed for you. Do this for the remembrance of Me.”

(Pause for everyone to take the wine together)

After Eucharist

Let us finish our time of communion together with this prayer.

Christ, you are risen from the dead.
We are risen with you.
May our life never deny
this eternal life,
this peace and hope and joy.
Praise and glory to the God of life
who is stronger than all kinds of death.
We have seen with our eyes
and touched with our hands
the bread of life.
Strengthen our faith
that we may grow in love for you and for each other;
through Jesus Christ the risen Lord.
Alleluia, Christ is Risen
He is risen indeed, Alleluia!

Offering

We now come to the time where we remember that nothing in this life is truly ours, but that all is a gift from God.

Giving is an act of love for God and for our community. We encourage you to celebrate God’s generosity and to give back as God has given to us online at austinmustardseed.org/giving).

If you are new or participating in our liturgy for the first time, please be our guest this morning.

We will sing one more song together as we prepare to close. This time is now yours, and we invite you to participate in worship.

Closing Song

Benediction

Austin Mustard Seed, As you leave today:
Go with this truth firmly placed in your heart
That our story does not end in Death.
But that through death we are invited into new life.

Go now with your trust in the good shepherd,
and let us love, not just in words,
but in truth and action.

Believe in the name of Jesus Christ,
and love one another, just as he has commanded us.
and may God be at your side, even in valleys of death.

May Christ Jesus be the cornerstone of your life.
And may the Holy Spirit abide in you
and tend you with love and mercy all the days of your life.

We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.

Go in Peace,
Live the Church,
See you throughout the week online at Community Groups and other meetups. Stick around for an extended Passing of the Peace and say hello before we sign off.

(Prayers today are from http://www.myredeemerlives.com/prayers.html, Moira Laidlaw, & Nathan Nettleton, Eucharist prayers are adapted from the African American Lectionary and The Prayer Book of New Zealand)