The Congregations
of St. Mark’s and St. David’s
United Church of
Canada
Port Hawkesbury/Port Hastings, NS
Office: 625-2229, Fax 625-3597,
e-mail: stmarks1@eastlink.ca
Presbytery Website:
inverguyunited.ca
Ministers: The Whole People of
God; Nan Corrigan D. M.
Minister of Music: Al Fougere
March
8th,
2015-3rd
Sunday of Lent
Announcements The
Work of Church and Community
The
liturgy for Lent follows traditional lines though it is written in a
pattern to employ a “river” theme:
R reflect
I invite
V voice
E engage
R realize
REFLECT
Greeting
One: The
peace of Christ be with you. All:
And with your spirit
Introit Tree of Life and Awesome Mystery, v. 3 VU
121
Dancing
in the Garden For
quiet reflection as we gather
Stewardship
has been the predominant metaphor in the Christian church to describe
our relationship with creation. But it has limited usefulness in the
new paradigm. In the stewardship model, we still see ourselves as
managers who stand over and above creation, as opposed to being one
self-conscious creature embedded in an intricate ecosystem with other
creatures. Our task, then, is to find our place in the fit and flow
of reality. We must learn to fit in, not manage. If God as immanent
Spirit is manifest in the intelligent consciousness of all creation,
then what we’re involved with is a relationship between different
modes of consciousness – divine, plant, animal, and human. It’s a
communion of subjects, a dance. Precisely because we possess a unique
power to shape the future of life on earth, it’s imperative that we
learn the steps.
Darwin,
Divinity, and the Dance of the Cosmos by
Bruce Sanguin, copyright © 2007 CopperHouse, an imprint of Wood Lake
Publishing. Used by permission.
INVITE
Call
to Worship At
the 3rd bend in the river..a place of “heavens”
People
of God we are here;
in
this sacred space, in this sacred moment.
Briefly
leave daily concerns aside,
for
here we recall the stories of faith,
here
we are awed by the glory of God,
who
made heaven and earth, yet knows us by name,
here
we remember whose we are.
*Hymn Jesus
Christ Is Waiting VU
117
Lenten Triad
Candle Extinguishing (Tenebrae) (Three
purple candles, pink candle, and Christ candle are lighted prior to
worship.)
Adult:
...
Sometimes doing what is right upsets others. (3rd
candle is extinguished.)
Let
us pray: All:
God,
you have given us the challenge of following your Law. Sometimes we
need to be angry with injustice and wrong. Sometimes, following your
way makes others angry with us. Open our eyes that we may know your
will, and give us the strength to follow you and to serve one
another. Amen
Sung
Assurance Like
a Mighty River Flowing, v. 3 VU
267
VOICE
Exodus 20:1–17
The
Ten Commandments.
One:
This is the witness of the Hebrew people. All:
Thanks be to God.
Psalm 19 The
heavens declare the glory of God.
Ref 1 VU740
*Hymn Jesus,
Teacher, Brave and Bold VU
605
Opening
the Word & Lord’s Prayer
Gospel
Acclamation
John
2:13–22 Jesus
clears the temple.
One: The gospel of Jesus Christ.
All: Praise to you,
Lord Jesus Christ.
Opening
the Word 2
Responsive
reading
Together: The
Psalmist’s hymn of praise to God creator.
A: The heavens
B: …stars and
meteors, planets and supernovas,
A: are telling the
glory of God; the firmament
B: …mountains
and deserts, oceans and rivers,
A: proclaim God’s
handiwork. The days speak
B: …in the
wordless voice of creation;
A: the nights
proclaim knowledge of God
B: …known and
held deeply by all of nature.
A: These voices ring
out through all the world
B: …resounding
through all time, into all the ends of the earth.
A: The sun encircles
the earth with joy
B: …as a
bridegroom embraces his community with his joy,
A: nothing is
concealed from this radiance. The law of God is like the sun, nothing
is hidden from it.
B: It revives our
souls and grants us wisdom.
A: What God
perceives brings joy to our hearts.
B: What God
decrees brings light to our lives.
A: We are awed by
the nature of God and when we see what is true and righteous,
B: we desire
these truths more than gold and all the sweet things of the earth.
A: These are the
things on to which we will firmly hold
B: …for the
great reward we have in keeping covenant with God
A:
…is that God will look upon us as blameless and innocent of
transgression.
Prayer As all
creation sings praises to God today we lift our voices to join the
choir. We sing of the joy and glory of being embraced by the God of
light. We sing of the sweetness of being held in love by the God of
justice. We sing with voices filled with awe, knowing that we have a
place in your realm, that is no less than that of the stars in the
heavens, and we are grateful. Amen.
ENGAGE
*Hymn The
Old Rugged Cross Printed
Minute
for Mission
Offering Our
Gifts to God
In
our psalm reading, we hear that the sun runs, “like an
athlete,”
its course in the heavens, “with joy.” Will we, in turn, run the
course of our lives with joy? Deep down in generosity is a joy that
thanks God for the many gifts around us, the gift of our lives, our
families and friends, this church and the whole United Church of
Canada, all the signs of hope and new life that sustain us on our
way. Let us gather our gifts together and offer them to God
in gratitude, heartfelt commitment, and deepest joy.
in gratitude, heartfelt commitment, and deepest joy.
*Offering
Prayer
God, we have
learned that when we give away,
we are enriched;
and when we let go, we receive.
Bless what we
give and let go of this day,
as you also bless
us. Amen.
Written by Kate
Crawford,
First-St.
Andrew’s U.C., London, Ont.
Gathering,
Lent/Easter 2015, page 37. Used with permission.
Prayers
of the People
One:
All of creation sings praise to the God of love.
All:
We will join the joyful song.
One:
The dark places of the world cry out for light.
All:
We will speak of light that shines in the darkness.
One:
The exploited and excluded cry out for justice.
All:
We will be the sweet voice of justice.
One:
The poor of the world cry out for fairhandedness.
All:
We will desire rightness more than gold.
One:
The God of life offers us forgiveness and fulfillment.
All:
We embrace this goodness with grateful hearts.
A
time for personal prayers in the silence.
Amen.
REALIZE
*Hymn How
Great Thou Art Insert,
back of hymnbook
*Commissioning
One: As
you leave this sacred space,
remember the God who
made the stars in the heavens,
made and loves you.
Remember your sacredness,
remember your place
in the eternal flow of life,
and realize this as
you travel your way
in the sweet embrace
of the God of justice and light.
All:
We will flood the world with God’s justice and light.
*Choral Amen
