re:Worship: Lent 5 A

Showing posts with label Lent 5 A. Show all posts

Opening Prayer: Psalm 130

Here’s an opening prayer based on Psalm 130 from Rev. Nancy J.

Opening Prayer

(based on Psalm 130)

Holy God, Creator of Life,
you call us out of our dark places,

offering us the grace of new life.
When we see nothing but hopelessness,

you surprise us with the breath of your spirit.
Call us out of our complacency and routines,
set us free from our self-imposed bonds,
and fill us with your spirit of life, compassion, and peace,
In the name of Jesus, your anointed one, we pray. Amen.

~ written by Rev. Nancy J., and posted on her wonderings through life and other such nonsense. http://ruminari.wordpress.com/

Prayer near the end of Lent

Here’s a Lenten prayer from Rev. Mary Austin. It was posted on RevGalBlogPals.

Prayer as Lent winds down

Lent’s days are winding down, Merciful God,

and we are no closer to having contrite hearts.

Our small complains still loom large,

and we don’t hurry to show mercy, or rush to be kind.

The old habits of Fat Tuesday are still alluring,

and we resist the emptiness of the desert that reveals you –

the places where you make yourself known to us,

where you wait in the quiet for us to be ready, still feel alien.

Yet, Loving God, we come to you,

trying to lose our lives for the life you offer,

seeking the wisdom of our brother Jesus,

hoping to be blown open by the Spirit.

Bring us fully into your Lenten gifts, we pray,

and accept the Lenten gifts we offer to you. Amen.

~ written by Rev. Mary Austin and posted on RevGalBlogPals. https://revgalblogpals.org/

Words of Assurance: Psalm 130

If God kept track of all our mistakes—

the harmful things we say and do,

the callous way we sometimes treat the people around us,

the selfishness that puts our needs ahead of the needs of others—

if God kept track, what chance would we have?

But with unfailing love, God offers us forgiveness—

complete forgiveness that erases our sins completely,

and allows us to begin again.

So be at peace – your sins are forgiven!

Praise be to God!

~ Christine Longhurst, re:Worship

Confession: Breathe Life into these Bones

Here’s a prayer of confession from John Birch’s Faith and Worship website.

Prayer of Confession

(inspired by Ezekiel 37:1-14, Matthew 16:24, Luke 14:27,

Matthew 7:21-23, Matthew 25:31-46 and others)

You call us to be your voices in this world

and we stay silent.

You call us to be your hands in this world

and we keep them hidden.

You call us to be your feet in this world

and we go our own way.

When we meet those who are doubting

and say nothing, forgive us.

When we meet those who need your touch

and do nothing, forgive us.

When we are called to take up your cross

and carry nothing, forgive us.

Breathe life into these bones

bring freedom to these lives

that we might declare

with heart and soul and voice

that you are our Lord and our God. Amen

~ written by John Birch, and posted on Faith and Worship. http://www.faithandworship.com/

Opening Litany: Psalm 130

Here’s an opening litany based on Psalm 130. It was written by Joan Stott.

Opening Litany

(based on Psalm 130)

Healing God, we come together in our brokenness,
to call to you in your mercy, to make us whole again.
Wholeness–giving God, listen to our prayers, we pray.

Restoring God, we gather to worship you, even as
we hopefully seek to be renewed and restored again.
God, our Quiet-Centre, listen to our prayers this day.

Foundational God, we come to praise and thank you!
In the depths of your Holy Being we find peace and rest.
God – our Beginning and our End, we hope always in you. Amen.

— written by Joan Stott, and posted on Geelong City Parish UCA website. http://www.wesleychurchgeelong.net/

If used in shared worship, please provide an acknowledgement as follows: © 2012 Joan Stott – "The Timeless Psalms" RCL Psalm Year B, used with permission.

Prayer of Intercession: Psalm 130

Here’s a prayer for others inspired by a reading of Psalm 130. It comes from the Monthly Prayers page of the Christian Aid website.

Prayer for Others

(inspired by Psalm 130)

Breath of life,
We think of those who cry out to you today,
of those who long for the morning,
of those who are waiting for the long Lent to end.

We pray that our ears will be attentive to their cry,
that we will stand with them,
steadfast together in your love,
bringing life before death.
Amen.

~ posted on the Monthly Prayers page of the Christian Aid website. http://www.christianaid.org.uk/

Contemporary Songs: Psalm 130

If you’re looking for contemporary Praise & Worship song suggestions to use with Psalm 130 (the suggested psalm for Lent 5 A, Proper 8 B, Proper 14 B, Proper 5 B), you can find a list at my Contemporary Psalms blog.

http://contemporarypsalms.blogspot.ca/

The blog is not finished (and likely never will be, since I keep coming across new songs!), but it’s a start.

Follow this link to Psalm 130: http://contemporarypsalms.blogspot.ca/2013/05/psalm-130.html

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Here’s a prayer of thanksgiving from Thomas Turner’s Everyday Liturgy website.

Prayer

Almighty God,

Who called his Son into ministry by the baptism of the Holy Spirit,
and testified that he was the coming King

through the good news culminating on the cross,

hear our prayers of thanksgiving.

You are the God of angel armies,
the God who is triumphant over sin,
healing those who were in its clutches.

You are the God of life,
the God who is triumphant over death,
hearing the prayer of your Son to pull Lazarus from its grip
and give him new life.

We thank you that you who were greeted with praise
at your entry into Jerusalem would humble yourself
in death and empty yourself for us. Amen

~ written by Thomas Turner, and posted on everdayLiturgy. http://everydayliturgy.com/

Communion Service: Ezekiel 37: 1-14

Here’s a communion service inspired by Ezekiel 37: 1-14 (and John 4, John 9, John 11). It was written by Eliza Buchakjian-Tweedy.

Invitation to the Table

Jesus calls us to the well,

inviting us to drink of the Living Water, and the life eternal.

Jesus calls us out of the shadows, out of the graves,

to be entirely known, and entirely filled with God's presence.

Jesus calls us all:

all who were made in God's own image,

all who breathe the breath of God's spirit:

the Spirit of Life.

Jesus calls us to the table,

to the meal that nourishes our bodies

and binds our dry bones into one Body, living in Christ.

Jesus calls us, here and now.

Come to this table, you who are beloved in Christ.

Come, not because you must, but because you may.

Communion Prayer/Lord's Prayer

Holy God, source of all being,

you are greater by far than our human thoughts can comprehend.

With all that you have created, you abide;

weeping with us in grief and pain, rejoicing with us in life and love.

You are everywhere in this very moment;

holding the entirety of living experience

and weaving us together in the great and intricate tapestry of Creation.

Creator God, mother and father of us all,

in your holy love you took on our limitations.

Born of a body, bound within a body,

you know the whole of this human experience.

Learning to communicate with words;

teaching us to communicate with presence.

Learning the fears that wring us dry;

teaching us of the love that nurtures us back to life.

Everlasting God, you are everywhere and right here.

As close as the air we breathe,

the air which binds us one to another and all to your beautiful creation.

You are as close as the sunlight on our skin,

as close as the rain that drips from our hair;

the wind and the water that push us and lead us

and call us again and again into relationship with one another and with you.

Holy Spirit, divine Advocate, guide and encourage us.

Stir within our hearts,

that we may speak anew the familiar words that Jesus taught us...

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Source of life, and breath, and being,

breathe into the dry dust of our existence.

Nourished in body by bread and juice,

may we strive for the nourishment of all bodies:

may we work to end hunger in this creation that provides amply for all.

Nourished in spirit by the Body which is within our own,

may we strive for the incorporation of all:

may we work to break the barriers

that divide us from one another and from you.

In the love that sustains us, and the Spirit that animates us,

may we give all thanks and praise to you, O God of all. Amen.

~ written by Eliza Buchakjian-Tweedy, Pastor at First Church Congregational, Rochester, NH. She blogs at http://sermonizing.wordpress.com/

Opening Prayer: John 11

Here’s an opening prayer inspired by John 11: 1-45, the raising of Lazarus from the dead. It was written by Nancy Johnson.

Opening Prayer

(inspired by John 11: 1-45)

Holy God, Creator of Life,
you call us out of our dark places,

offering us the grace of new life.
When we see nothing but hopelessness,

you surprise us with the breath of your spirit.

Call us out of our complacency and routines,
set us free from our self-imposed bonds,
and fill us with your spirit of life, compassion, and peace,
In the name of Jesus, your anointed one, we pray. Amen.

~ written by Nancy Johnson, and posted on Wonderings through life and other such nonsense. http://ruminari.wordpress.com/

Benediction: John 11: 1-45

Here’s a closing litany inspired by John 11: 1-45, where Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. It was written by Rev. Elizabeth Dilley and posted on the United Church of Christ’s Worship Ways website.

Commission & Benediction

(inspired by John 11: 1-45)

Come out! Jesus commands,

And calls us from the tombs of our existence

into the brightness of a new day.

Come out! Jesus cries,

And unbinds us from the chains of our past.

Come out! Jesus calls,

And entices us into a world filled with grace and possibility.

So:

Go out!

Into a world that needs our life, our breath, our spirit!

Go out!

Into a world that needs the Spirit of God,

carried on our lips and in our loving arms.

Go out!

Into the world to live as God’s resurrected people!

Go out: and go on the breath of God’s holy wind!

~ from Come Out! On the Breath of God, Service Prayers for the fifth Sunday of Lent, written by the Rev. Elizabeth Dilley. Posted on the United Church of Christ’s Worship Ways website. http://www.ucc.org/worship/worship-ways/

Pastoral Prayer: Ezekiel 37: 1-14

Here’s a pastoral prayer from the I’m Just Saying blog.

Pastoral Prayer

(inspired by Ezekiel 37: 1-14)

Gracious God,

God of all compassion and consolation,

your breath alone brings life to dry bones and weary souls.

Pour out your Spirit upon us,

that we may face despair and death with the hope of resurrection

and faith through Christ, our Lord.

Help us to dance with the spirit,

the breath of life, which calls us out of the valley of dry bones

and into the Kingdom of God,

both a present reality and the grounding of our future hope.

Holy Father,

Father of Christ who revealed the way of life,

inscribe your law on our hearts that in this life,

we may be the body of Christ.

Help our hands to hold the sick and suffering.

Help our feet to walk with the poor.

Help our ears to listen to those who live in despair.

May our eyes be affixed upon the suffering of the cross

and the hope of the empty tomb

so that we may live as resurrection people.

Sovereign Lord,

Father of all in the power of the Spirit,

you know our faults and yet you promise to forgive.

Keep us in your presence and give us your wisdom.

Open our hearts to gladness,

call dry bones to dance,

and restore to us the joy of your salvation.

We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ,

who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever, as we continue to pray saying,

Our Father, who art in heaven….

~ posted on I’m Just Saying. http://thepostmodernpastor.com/