The Parish Gathering | April 26, 2020 (Third Week of Eastertide)
Please participate in the following liturgy, reading aloud all the parts in bold italics.
Call to Worship
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Rejoice, Oh heavenly powers!
Sing, choirs of angels!
Rejoice, all creation around God’s throne!
Jesus Christ, our King, is risen!
Sound the trumpet of salvation!
Praise to You, Risen Christ!
Rejoice, Oh Creation dear to God,
Radiant in the brightness of your King!
Christ has conquered! Glory fills you!
Darkness passes away forever!
Praise to You, Risen Christ!
Rejoice, Oh Church, Bride of the Liberating King!
The Lord of life shines upon you!
Let this place brim with joy,
Echoing the mighty song of all God’s world,
Echoing the mighty song of all God’s people:
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Praise to You, Risen Christ!
Prayers of the People
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray together as God’s people:
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, you travelled through towns and villages “curing every disease and illness.” At your command, the sick were made well. Come to the aid of the world now, in the midst of the global spread of the coronavirus, that all may experience your healing love.
Heal those who are sick with Covid in parts Africa and Southeast Asia where ventilators are numbered and priority is given to the rich.
Be near to and heal the poor and most vulnerable, Lord.
Rescue those who are trapped in homes where domestic violence is part of normal life both here and around the world.
May you be their Shelter and Rescuer. Come quickly to save.
Provide food for those in India, Thailand, Peru, and Paraguay who, because of Covid, have had to leave their daily jobs and have no means to buy food.
Jesus, be the Bread of Life for them. Provide them with manna from heaven.
Protect those who have underlying health conditions in countries with high pollution such as Egypt, Bangladesh, India, and China.
Breathe into their lungs your Living Breath. Protect them from the effects of smog and pollution.
Grant peace and soundness of mind for those in Spain, Sri Lanka, and Jordan who have not been allowed to leave home for days and weeks at a time.
Pour out your peace and comfort on them. Give them patience and hope as they wait.
Be a stable presence in the lives of children who are in lock-down in their homes and unable to understand the complexities of what is happening around them.
Comfort them and be near them. Meet them in their dreams, Lord, and fill them with laughter.
Give comfort to those who have chosen to live far away from home for the sake of the Gospel and find themselves in seasons of loneliness, depression, and grief.
May your presence and love sustain them.
Be with those here and around the world who have died from the virus.
May they be at rest with you in your eternal peace.
Be with the families of those who are sick or have died. As they worry and grieve, defend them from illness and despair.
May they know your peace.
Be with the leaders of all nations. Give them the foresight to act with charity and true concern for the well-being of the people they are meant to serve. Give them the wisdom to invest in long-term solutions that will help prepare for or prevent future outbreaks.
May they know your peace, as they work together to achieve it on earth.
For those who don’t know you yet and have not heard the Good News, speak to them in their dreams. Give them hope for the future. Be the light in their darkness. Give them hearts that yearn for you, Healer of the Universe.
Pour out your everlasting love on them and heal them.
Whether we are home or abroad, surrounded by many people suffering from this illness or only a few, Jesus Christ, stay with us as we endure and mourn, persist and prepare. In place of our anxiety, give us your peace.
Jesus Christ, heal us.
Take a moment to lift up your own prayers as you are guided by God’s Spirit.
Lord in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Amen.
All the Poor & Powerless
All the poor and powerless
all the lost and lonely
all the thieves will come confess
and know that You are holy
and know that You are holy
and all will sing out
hallelujah!
and we will cry out
hallelujah!
All the hearts who are content
and all who feel unworthy
all who hurt with nothing left
will know that You are holy
and all will sing out
hallelujah!
and we will cry out
hallelujah!
shout it
go on and scream it from the mountains
go on and tell it to the masses
that He is God
The Good News (Part 1)
John 13:36-38, 18:1, Luke 22:47, 54-62
“Simon Peter said to him, ‘Lord, where are you going?’ Jesus answered, ‘Where I am going, you cannot follow me now; but you will follow afterwards.’ Peter said to him, ‘Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.’ Jesus answered, ‘Will you lay down your life for me? Very truly, I tell you, before the cock crows, you will have denied me three times.’
“After Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples… to a garden. Suddenly a crowd came, and Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest’s house. But Peter was following at a distance.
When they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. Then a servant-girl, seeing him in the firelight, stared at him and said, ‘This man also was with him.’ But he denied it, saying, ‘Woman, I do not know him.’ A little later someone else, on seeing him, said, ‘You also are one of them.’ But Peter said, ‘Man, I am not!’ Then about an hour later yet another kept insisting, ‘Surely this man also was with him; for he is a Galilean.’ But Peter said, ‘Man, I do not know what you are talking about!’
At that moment, while he was still speaking, the cock crowed. The Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said to him, ‘Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times.’ And he went out and wept bitterly.”
The Gospel of the Lord
Praise to You, Lord Christ
Not Yet: Are you one of his followers?
His Mercy is More
What love could remember, no wrongs we have done
Omniscient, all-knowing, He counts not their sum
Thrown into a sea without bottom or shore
Our sins they are many, His mercy is more
Praise the Lord
His mercy is more
Stronger than darkness
New every morn’
Our sins they are many, His mercy is more
What patience would wait as we constantly roam
What Father so tender is calling us home
He welcomes the weakest, the vilest, the poor
Our sins they are many, His mercy is more
Praise the Lord
His mercy is more
Stronger than darkness
New every morn’
Our sins they are many, His mercy is more
What riches of kindness He lavished on us
His blood was the payment, His life was the cost
We stood ‘neath a debt we could never afford
Our sins they are many, His mercy is more
Praise the Lord
His mercy is more
Stronger than darkness
New every morn’
Our sins they are many, His mercy is more
The Good News (Part 2)
John 21:3-9, 15-17, 19b
“Simon Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will go with you.’ They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, ‘Children, you have no fish, have you?’ They answered him, ‘No.’ He said to them, ‘Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the lake. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.
When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread…
When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep.’
After this he said to him, ‘Follow me.’”
Now: I Don’t Have Time to Maintain These Regrets
Confession & Assurance
Silent confession (space to notice, name, and confess your allegiance to sin and wait in God’s presence)
because we are all
betrayers, taking
silver and eating
body and blood and asking
(guilty) is it I and hearing
him say yes
it would be simple for us all
to rush out
and give up
but if we find grace
to cry and wait
after the voice of morning
has crowed in our ears
clearly enough
to break our hearts
he will be there
to ask us each again
do you love me?
Judas, Peter (Luci Shaw)
Silent assurance (space to receive God’s merciful love and say “thank you” in response)
Jesus, Gardener of a New Creation,
have mercy on us and forgive us
as you are making all things new.
Amen.
How He Loves
He is jealous for me
Love’s like a hurricane,
I am a tree
Bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy
When all of a sudden
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory
And I realize just how beautiful You are
And how great your affections are for me
Oh, how He loves us so
Oh, how He loves us
How He loves us so
So we are His portion
and He is our prize
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking
So heaven meets Earth
like a sloppy wet kiss
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets
When I think about the way
That He loves us
Oh, how He loves us
Oh, how He loves us
Oh, how He loves
The Great Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts!
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
And so this day, we join with Saints and Angels
in the chorus of praise that rings through eternity,
lifting our voices to bless you we say:
Holy, Holy, Holy
Lord God Almighty
heaven and earth are full of Your glory,
Glory to you, O Lord most high.
Is the Father with us?
He is.
Is Christ among us?
He is.
Is the Spirit here?
He is.
This is our God.
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
We are his people.
We are redeemed.
Therefore we proclaim the mystery of our faith:
Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
Now, in union, O Lord with the faithful at every altar of Your Church,
I present to You my soul and body
with the earnest prayer that I will remain united to you.
And since I cannot now receive You sacramentally,
I pray that you would come to me spiritually.
I unite myself to you, and embrace you with my soul’s affection.
Let nothing separate me from you,
that I may live and die in Your love.
Amen.
Community Life
The Cross of Christ
All our problems,
We send to the cross of Christ!
All our difficulties,
We send to the cross of Christ!
All the devil’s works,
We send to the cross of Christ!
And all our hopes,
We set on the Risen Christ!
Blessing & Sending
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you,
wherever he may send you.
May he guide you in the wilderness,
protect you in the storm.
May he bring you home rejoicing,
at the wonders he has shown you.
May he bring you home rejoicing,
once again into our doors.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
Amen.
Alleluia, Alleluia! Let us go forth into the world, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit!
Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Alleluia, Alleluia!
