Liturgy for 03-15-20 (Third Sunday in Lent)
As you gather for worship in small groups of friends and/or family, take a moment of silence to still yourselves before the Living God. The ground you’re on is holy. The squirming kids that may be next to you are holy. The place where you are worshiping is holy no matter how strange it seems or how ordinary it feels. The Triune God is in your midst.
Let’s begin by seeking not our own vision for the day, but God’s vision.
Opening Song—Be Thou My Vision (performed by The Lower Lights)
Call to Worship: (Ps 22, 23, 34 compilation, arranged by Lori Louise Hubbard)
Choose someone in your group to lead this responsive call to worship:
Leader: Lift up your hearts
People: We lift them up to the Lord
Leader: Lord God, you are holy
You are the one who brought us into being
People: We have been dependent on you every day of our lives
And you have made us feel secure
Leader: Lord, calm our hearts in times of trouble
People: You are our source of strength
All: You answer our prayers, and we praise you
Leader: Even when we walk through darkness and sadness
People: You are with us, delivering us from our fears
All: Surely your goodness and faithfulness is with us all the days of our lives
You live in us now, as we prepare to live with you forever
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord, our God
All: With joy we offer our thanks and praise to you, dear Lord
Songs of Praise/Adoration/Declaration
God’s Highway by Sandra McCracken
Come As You Are by David Crowder
I Shall Not Want by Audrey Assad
Community Prayer
Take some time to respond to God in prayer tying into the themes of the songs you’ve sung.
Consider praying for:
-Our church scattered around the county
-Those on the front lines such as medical professionals, service industry, transportation, retail, public health, etc.
-Pray for our civic leaders
-Pray that the sick may be healed, that the vulnerable be protected, and for the eradication of the virus
-Pray for opportunities to serve and generous, courageous hearts to do so
Vocational Prayer
It’s the third Sunday of the month and we want to pause and pray for all those who are the artists among us. Sometimes we think of vocation as the work we get ‘paid for,’ but that is a false assumption. Vocation is about calling and using our gifts, experiences, passion, and opportunity to serve Jesus by adding value to the world.
Our artists may be ‘professional’ or amateur, crafters or practitioners of the fine arts. But if you’re a creator who brings your skills and to bear on culture, you can be prayed for as an artist.
So let’s pray! For our musicians and poets, photographers and painters, sketch artists and filmmakers, digital medium masters, quilters and crocheters, googly-eye-crafters, architects and abstractionists. Bless you!
A prayer for artists, by—Vienna Cobb Anderson
Bless the creators, O God of creation,
who by their gifts make the world
a more joyful and beautiful realm.
Through their labors
they teach us to see more clearly
the truth around us.
In their inspiration
they call forth wonder and awe
in our own living.
In their hope and vision
they remind us that life is holy.
Bless all who create in your image,
O God of creation.
Pour your Spirit upon them
that their hearts may sing
and their works be fulfilling.
Amen.
Offering—Pray over your offering of finances and heart. May the Lord continue his work through LSCC by multiplying these gifts and granting us wisdom to invest them well.
You may give online HERE, or by mailing to:
LSCC
P.O. Box 5645
Bellingham, WA 98227
Offertory Song: The House Of God Forever, by Jon Foreman
Scripture Reading: Psalm 22
Message: (Matthew 27.38-46)—My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?
Sermon Podcast (iTunes)
Songs of Response
Goodness of God (performed by The Worship Initiative)
Great Are You Lord by All Sons and Daughters –
Benediction (God is a Humble God)
Leader: God is a humble God
People: We go forth with humility in our lives.
Leader: God is a compassionate God.
People: We shall be known as people of compassion.
Leader: God is a forgiving God.
People: We will give the gift of forgiveness to others.
Leader: We are made in God’s image!
People: We will live like we believe it, with joy and thanksgiving!
Leader: With God’s help we will.
All: Amen!
Announcements:
-Happy Birthday to Zoë Wasserman!
-All large group gatherings are associated with LSCC will remain cancelled in an effort to ‘squash the curve’ of the Corona virus. Small meetings will go on. Keep checking your email for updates as this new landscape is ever changing.
-Small groups should still meet but please opt out if you have any illness. Common cold may not be much for some, but it could complicate health risks for the vulnerable.
-If you are able, think of how you can be the church—the hands and feet of Jesus, the voice of hope and bearer of good tidings—in your own community of friends and neighbors. How might we serve others through even the smallest acts of kindness from sharing our beloved toilet paper, watching someone’s kids, or checking in with isolated neighbors to see if they need groceries or just a friendly “I see you, you are not alone.”
-Let’s be good to each other. Let our kindness and generosity be a living witness to the love of Jesus during this season when so many are afraid.
-If you have means, consider getting a meal from a local restaurant to help support them in a time when they may be loosing business. Especially consider our local Asian restaurants. If you are uncomfortable eating out, consider a takeout option.
-Feel free to contact LSCC with other creative ideas for serving, at: info@letteredstreetscc.com
-Finally, if you are sick or feeling down due to isolation Please Reach Out. Your staff and Lead Team are praying for you and are ready to serve and mobilize our amazing community that is LSCC.
God bless you and keep you!
Chris