Lent
“A journey, a pilgrimage! Yet, as we begin it, as we make the first step into the ‘bright sadness’ of Lent, we see - far, far away - the destination. It is the joy of Easter, it is the entrance into the glory of the Kingdom.”
- Alexander Schmemann.
The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ are at the heart of the Christian gospel, and Good Friday and Easter are two of the most significant celebrations of the Christian year. Lent is a season of preparation and repentance during which we anticipate Good Friday and Easter. Just as we carefully prepare for big events in our personal lives... Lent invites us to make our hearts ready for remembering Jesus’ passion and celebrating Jesus’ resurrection (From The Worship Sourcebook).
- Calling -
O Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim Your praise.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen. Alleluia!
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy:
O come, let us adore him.
- LENTEN MEDITATION & PRAYER -
You are the God from whom no secret can be hid,
and we are a people with many secrets,
that we want to tell for the sake of our lives,
that we dare not tell because they are deep and painful.
But they are our secrets... and they count for much;
they are our truth... rooted deep in our lives.
You are the God of all truth,
and now we bid you heed our truth,
about which we will not bear false witness...
The truth of grief unresolved,
the truth of pain unacknowledged,
the truth of fear too child-like,
the truth of hate, as powerful as it is deep,
the truth of being taken advantage of,
and being used,
and manipulated,
and slandered.
We trust the great truth of your wondrous love,
but we will not sit still for it,
UNTIL you hear us.
Our truth - heard by you - will make us free.
So be the God of all truth, even ours,
we pray in the name of Jesus,
who is your best kept secret of hurt. Amen.
- A People with Many Secrets by Walter Brueggemann
REMEMBER – Today is a feast day! Sundays are in Lent, but not of Lent. Break your fast, gather for worship with God’s people, and celebrate Christ’s resurrection.
- Constitution -
Read/Listen, Meditate, Pray, and Contemplate on God’s Word, remembering that God is with you and ready to speak to you because he loves you.
Praying the Psalms
Psalm 146
[1] Praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD, O my soul!
[2] I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
[3] Put not your trust in princes,
in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
[4] When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
on that very day his plans perish.
[5] Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD his God,
[6] who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps faith forever;
[7] who executes justice for the oppressed,
who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free;
[8] the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the righteous.
[9] The LORD watches over the sojourners;
he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
[10] The LORD will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the LORD!
Psalm 147
[1] Praise the LORD!
For it is good to sing praises to our God;
for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.
[2] The LORD builds up Jerusalem;
he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
[3] He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
[4] He determines the number of the stars;
he gives to all of them their names.
[5] Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
his understanding is beyond measure.
[6] The LORD lifts up the humble;
he casts the wicked to the ground.
[7] Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving;
make melody to our God on the lyre!
[8] He covers the heavens with clouds;
he prepares rain for the earth;
he makes grass grow on the hills.
[9] He gives to the beasts their food,
and to the young ravens that cry.
[10] His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the legs of a man,
[11] but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who hope in his steadfast love.
[12] Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
[13] For he strengthens the bars of your gates;
he blesses your children within you.
[14] He makes peace in your borders;
he fills you with the finest of the wheat.
[15] He sends out his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.
[16] He gives snow like wool;
he scatters frost like ashes.
[17] He hurls down his crystals of ice like crumbs;
who can stand before his cold?
[18] He sends out his word, and melts them;
he makes his wind blow and the waters flow.
[19] He declares his word to Jacob,
his statutes and rules to Israel.
[20] He has not dealt thus with any other nation;
they do not know his rules.
Praise the LORD!
Old Testament Reading
Proverbs 3
[1] My son, do not forget my teaching,
but let your heart keep my commandments,
[2] for length of days and years of life
and peace they will add to you.
[3] Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you;
bind them around your neck;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
[4] So you will find favor and good success
in the sight of God and man.
[5] Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
[6] In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
[7] Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.
[8] It will be healing to your flesh
and refreshment to your bones.
[9] Honor the LORD with your wealth
and with the firstfruits of all your produce;
[10] then your barns will be filled with plenty,
and your vats will be bursting with wine.
[11] My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline
or be weary of his reproof,
[12] for the LORD reproves him whom he loves,
as a father the son in whom he delights.
[13] Blessed is the one who finds wisdom,
and the one who gets understanding,
[14] for the gain from her is better than gain from silver
and her profit better than gold.
[15] She is more precious than jewels,
and nothing you desire can compare with her.
[16] Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
[17] Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
and all her paths are peace.
[18] She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her;
those who hold her fast are called blessed.
[19] The LORD by wisdom founded the earth;
by understanding he established the heavens;
[20] by his knowledge the deeps broke open,
and the clouds drop down the dew.
[21] My son, do not lose sight of these—
keep sound wisdom and discretion,
[22] and they will be life for your soul
and adornment for your neck.
[23] Then you will walk on your way securely,
and your foot will not stumble.
[24] If you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
[25] Do not be afraid of sudden terror
or of the ruin of the wicked, when it comes,
[26] for the LORD will be your confidence
and will keep your foot from being caught.
[27] Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
when it is in your power to do it.
[28] Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come again,
tomorrow I will give it”—when you have it with you.
[29] Do not plan evil against your neighbor,
who dwells trustingly beside you.
[30] Do not contend with a man for no reason,
when he has done you no harm.
[31] Do not envy a man of violence
and do not choose any of his ways,
[32] for the devious person is an abomination to the LORD,
but the upright are in his confidence.
[33] The LORD’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
but he blesses the dwelling of the righteous.
[34] Toward the scorners he is scornful,
but to the humble he gives favor.
[35] The wise will inherit honor,
but fools get disgrace.
New Testament Reading
Galatians 2
[1] Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. [2] I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain. [3] But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. [4] Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery—[5] to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. [6] And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me. [7] On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised [8] (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), [9] and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. [10] Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
[11] But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. [12] For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. [13] And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. [14] But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
[15] We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; [16] yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
[17] But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! [18] For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. [19] For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. [20] I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. [21] I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.
- Communion -
Pray for yourself, others, our church, our neighbors, and the world.
Pray the Lord’s Prayer & the collect of the week:
Our Father who art in heaven...
Come Holy Spirit, to all baptized in your name, that we may turn to good whatever lies ahead. Give us passion, give us fire; make us transform the world from what it is, to what you have created it to be. This we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
- Commission -
After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. (1 Peter 5:10-11)
Let us go forth in the name of Christ.