The valley of dry bones
Worship
LECTIONARY WORSHIP AIDS
Call to Worship
Pastor:
When hope is overcome by despair, we have the assurance that God restores life.
People:
We cling to that assurance because there are times when death would be a better description of our existence.
Pastor:
We are not the first to feel that way. Israel one time felt like a valley of dry bones, and God's message was that they would come to life!
People: Our God is full of life! And we know he wants to share it with us. Praise his name!
Collect
O merciful God, who blesses your children with new life: Resurrect us through faith in your Son, that life may become a living experience of joy and happiness. We pray through Christ, our resurrection hope. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Life is a new gift each day, Father; but sin ruins it, and what we have left is hardly what we can call living. Forgive us for playing into the hands of that which takes away the very thing we need. Breathe into us the life of your Spirit; that we may come alive with hope and happiness. In our Savior's name we pray. Amen.
Hymns
"Have Faith in God, My Heart"
"Hope of the World"
"Jesus, My Strength, My Hope"
"My Hope Is Built"
FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT
Second Lesson: Romans 8:6-11
Theme:
Resurrection to newness of life.
Call to Worship
Pastor:
Resurrection is an everyday possibility for us!
People:
Every day that we let God's Spirit live in us, he raises us from the death that sin would lead us to.
Pastor:
Our bodies will die, but God's Spirit gives us life: a rewarding experience both now and after death.
People:
We commit our lives to Christ; that we may live according to his will, not ours.
Collect
Almighty God, whose gift of your Spirit revives those who are dead in sin: Grant us your Spirit; that we may be raised above the influence of our human nature into the likeness and love of your Son our Savior, through whom we pray. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
We are not resurrection conscious, Father, because we think that happens only after death. We have not considered the daily effect that sin has on us; and we are not nearly alive as we could be. Forgive us for dying through sin, and being satisfied without the wonderful life we could be living. Give us a resurrection experience now, that we may be lifted out of the power of sin and into the joy of your presence. We pray in the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.
Hymns
"I Need Thee Every Hour"
"I Want a Principle Within"
"Sing Them Over Again to Me"
"We Are Climbing Jacob's Ladder"
FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT
Gospel:
John 11:(1-16) 17-45
Theme:
The raising of Lazarus
Call to Worship
Pastor:
Jesus' confidence in life after death as he approached the cross can be ours.
People:
The grief felt at Lazarus' death was overcome by the reassurance of Jesus who said, "I am the resurrection and the life."
Pastor:
Jesus raised Lazarus from death, showing us that death is not beyond the hope of resurrection.
People:
We are strengthened in our faith by Christ's power to raise the dead to life. We believe we shall live with him.
Collect
Eternal God: In the fear and grief we feel at death, you have come with the hope of life through your Son. Prepare us in our hearts for the joy and certainty of being raised into eternity by the power of your Son who is the resurrection and the life. In his name we pray. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
We do not know what it is to die, Father. And so we are filled with fear and avoid facing the reality of our own death. Forgive us for our spiritual immaturity which lets death frighten us. Convince us of our mortality, but also of your gift of immortality; that we may come to Christ in the assurance that he will raise us in glory to be with you. In his name we pray. Amen.
Hymns
"I Know Not How That Bethlehem's Babe"
"I'll Praise My Maker While I've Breath"
"On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Stand"
"The Day of Resurrection"
Pastor:
When hope is overcome by despair, we have the assurance that God restores life.
People:
We cling to that assurance because there are times when death would be a better description of our existence.
Pastor:
We are not the first to feel that way. Israel one time felt like a valley of dry bones, and God's message was that they would come to life!
People: Our God is full of life! And we know he wants to share it with us. Praise his name!
Collect
O merciful God, who blesses your children with new life: Resurrect us through faith in your Son, that life may become a living experience of joy and happiness. We pray through Christ, our resurrection hope. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Life is a new gift each day, Father; but sin ruins it, and what we have left is hardly what we can call living. Forgive us for playing into the hands of that which takes away the very thing we need. Breathe into us the life of your Spirit; that we may come alive with hope and happiness. In our Savior's name we pray. Amen.
Hymns
"Have Faith in God, My Heart"
"Hope of the World"
"Jesus, My Strength, My Hope"
"My Hope Is Built"
FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT
Second Lesson: Romans 8:6-11
Theme:
Resurrection to newness of life.
Call to Worship
Pastor:
Resurrection is an everyday possibility for us!
People:
Every day that we let God's Spirit live in us, he raises us from the death that sin would lead us to.
Pastor:
Our bodies will die, but God's Spirit gives us life: a rewarding experience both now and after death.
People:
We commit our lives to Christ; that we may live according to his will, not ours.
Collect
Almighty God, whose gift of your Spirit revives those who are dead in sin: Grant us your Spirit; that we may be raised above the influence of our human nature into the likeness and love of your Son our Savior, through whom we pray. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
We are not resurrection conscious, Father, because we think that happens only after death. We have not considered the daily effect that sin has on us; and we are not nearly alive as we could be. Forgive us for dying through sin, and being satisfied without the wonderful life we could be living. Give us a resurrection experience now, that we may be lifted out of the power of sin and into the joy of your presence. We pray in the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.
Hymns
"I Need Thee Every Hour"
"I Want a Principle Within"
"Sing Them Over Again to Me"
"We Are Climbing Jacob's Ladder"
FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT
Gospel:
John 11:(1-16) 17-45
Theme:
The raising of Lazarus
Call to Worship
Pastor:
Jesus' confidence in life after death as he approached the cross can be ours.
People:
The grief felt at Lazarus' death was overcome by the reassurance of Jesus who said, "I am the resurrection and the life."
Pastor:
Jesus raised Lazarus from death, showing us that death is not beyond the hope of resurrection.
People:
We are strengthened in our faith by Christ's power to raise the dead to life. We believe we shall live with him.
Collect
Eternal God: In the fear and grief we feel at death, you have come with the hope of life through your Son. Prepare us in our hearts for the joy and certainty of being raised into eternity by the power of your Son who is the resurrection and the life. In his name we pray. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
We do not know what it is to die, Father. And so we are filled with fear and avoid facing the reality of our own death. Forgive us for our spiritual immaturity which lets death frighten us. Convince us of our mortality, but also of your gift of immortality; that we may come to Christ in the assurance that he will raise us in glory to be with you. In his name we pray. Amen.
Hymns
"I Know Not How That Bethlehem's Babe"
"I'll Praise My Maker While I've Breath"
"On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Stand"
"The Day of Resurrection"
