Lent 5 – katyandtheword

Lent 5, Lord Teach Me to Pray, Give Yourself Up to God

Lent 5 Prayers of the People & Joy

God plants and tends joy as a space of sanctuary in our lives—it is not a feeling of happiness, but rather a place of safety and Sabbath to visit when you are happy or sad. It is the space that allow us to celebrate with others, even when we are in a different place in our own lives.

Psalm 97 or Psalm 122
Mark 4:30-34

Breath Prayer

Inhale: God be with me
Exhale: God enjoys me

Inhale: I am God’s image
Exhale: God created me

Inhale: God loves the world
Exhale: We are God’s beloved

Inhale: Justice is God’s joy
Exhale: Justice is Love Out Loud

Call to Worship: God is our righteous rule, let the earth rejoice
Clouds and thick darkness surround the Divine, Righteousness and Justice are the foundation of God’s throne
God’s lightenings light up the world, the earth sees and trembles
The mountains melt like wax before God, et all who hear rejoice
Light is sown for those who love justice, Joy lives in those who have equity in their heart
Come let us give thanks in the name of our God!

Call to Confession: God plants the seeds of joy in us, let us confess where we feel we fall short, so that we rest in God.

Prayer of Confession: God, I confess that I often confuse joy with being happy. I confess that I want everything to be easy and that the formula to be “Smile Jesus loves you.” I do not want joy to be a seed that is planted and grown for the birds to nest in. I do not want to be glad to come to church, because it is the place of sanctuary where I can safely be unhappy. I confess, that sometimes I miss the point of tending and growing joy. Teach me how to tend to the needs of joy and the gardens of your kingdom work I pray. (Silent Confession) Amen.

Prayer of Confession: Jesus Christ, I confess that sometimes we as a culture are too obsessed with happiness. We feel like we need something to be happy—money, the perfect profession, a partner. Teach us that we do not have to be happy or joyful all of the time, that lightening moments of joy followed by moments of Sabbath, rest and simple companionship are enough. Teach us to be the birds that nest home in your mustard seed Kingdom we pray. (Silent Confession). Amen.

Assurance of Pardon: Jesus Christ promises us peach and love within the Kingdom, and so we know that our confession is seen, heard and accepted. Let us proclaim the Good News, In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God help us to appreciate and celebrate the joy as we see it in our lives. May we tend it, and let it grow. Help us to laugh with those who are laughing, even as we might weep with those who are weeping—providing sanctuary for all those in need we pray. Amen.

Taize: Laudate Omnes Gentes

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Hands lifting golden hearts and fireworks to God

Narrative Lectionary, Year 2, Lent 5

March 17th, Lent 5
Mark 13: 1-8, 24-37 End of age, Watch
Psalm 102:12-17

Kneeling with Christ
The Promise of a New Kin-dom
Breaking [A World Beyond] Capitalism

Lent 5: Serving God: Watching for God for the Kin(g)dom that is promised. Christ promises us that a new world is being built, how can we participate in the building and serve God? Your Kingdom Come/Your Will Be Done

Breath Prayer Option
Inhale: Keep Awake
Exhale: Watch for God

Inhale: God endures forever
Exhale: I will serve God

Inhale: God’s Kingdom Come
Exhale: God’s will be done

Call to Worship:
God is enthroned forever, and promises to return
We are waiting for Jesus
God will rebuild all things, so that everything will shine with justice and mercy
God will hear the prayers of those who are stripped of all things
God will appoint the time and the place, stay awake
Come let us listen closely to the Word of our God

Call to Confession: Come let us speak to the God who always listens with a confession.

Prayer of Confession: God we confess that we do not know the hour or the day of your coming and that troubles us. We worry that we will not be awake or aware enough for when you come. We are afraid that we will be asleep. Comfort us. Remind us that you are the God of grace, and that it is not a grace that is earned but one that is given out of love. Help us to know that you will help us to tend to the Kin(g)Dom work, so that we may pray and participate in Your Kin(g)dom Come, Your will be Done with confidence we pray. (Silent Confession) Amen.

Prayer of Confession: Jesus Christ, we know that too often staying awake and being woke is used as a bludgeon of judgement instead of a measurement that you are the help and sure redemption in our lives. Help us to reassure one another that you are the Lord of Sabbath and Rest and that the awareness you promise is that of hope, truth and Love (Silent Confession) Amen.

Assurance of Pardon: Hear the good news, if Christ is for us, who is against us? We know that Jesus Christ is even now working towards our grace, and so we can proclaim the good news, In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God help us to be aware of your presence as a space of comfort and hope as we venture into the uncertainties of the world we pray. Amen.

Hymn Suggestions: Great is Thy Faithfulness

Taize Option: Wait for The Lord

Children’s Activity: Build a Tower/Town together or a collage– Talk about cooperative learning/building together and how God wants us to be cooperatively learning and building and watching and waiting together and that this is Kin(g)Dom building work. Children’s Book: A Day without Words by Tiffany Hammond talk about how we can watch how other people interact and work in the world, and how we can build relationship with them, and how that is building the kingdom of God.

Definition of Kin-dom https://sojo.net/articles/kin-dom-christ

Children’s Book: A Day without Words by Tiffany Hammond talk about how we can watch how other people interact and work in the world, and how we can build relationship with them, and how that is building the kingdom of God.

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Lent 5 Topical Prayer

Topical Prayer: God it is so hard to hear what you had to endure in order to save us. We want to be like the disciples and dismiss it. But over and over again you show us that you want to save everyone. The blind begged who is sitting at the side of the road, the short and smarmy tax collector Zacchaeus, and us. Help us to grasp the facts that Jesus, as the Son of Man, was handed over to the government to be mocked, insulted, spat upon and flogged. And that he will then be killed. And the third day he will rise again. Give us ears to hear this to be true, we pray. Amen.

For the Complete List of Narrative Lectionary Lent Resources can be found here including a way to receive a doc copy

Lent 5 Prayers

Journeying to Redemption

March 21

Lent 5

Zacchaeus

Luke 18:31-19:10: http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=476535940

Psalm 84:1-4, 10-12: http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=476535968

Call to Worship:

How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts!

My soul is longing and fainting for it

Happy are those who live your house, God

My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.

A day in your courts, is better than a thousand elsewhere, God

God, you give us such good things, let us rejoice in our trust for you!

Invitation: All you have to say is “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! and Jesus will heal and save you! Come let us confess ourselves to God

Confession: God, I confess that I am but a frail human, my body does not always work the way I want it to. Also, I confess that I worry about the future so I am not always generous with my time or my talent or my wealth. I know that you are calling me to greater things. Please heal me like the blind man and show me how to be more generous like Zaccheus, I pray. Amen.

Assurance fo Pardon: Hear the Good News: Your faith has saved you! In Jesus Christ you are forgiven! Amen.

Prayer of the Day/Dedication: God we are nearing the end of our journey with Christ to Jerusalem, but Jesus does not stop his preaching and healing. Help us to hear and see and feel his grace that imbued him as he journeyed, we pray. Amen.

Communion Prayer: Lord God, we know that your crucifixion is imminent. We can feel the long journey to Jerusalem coming to an end. Please gather our hearts together in this communion so that we can complete the journey to the cross together. Send your Holy Spirit so that we can celebrate Christ’s death with his Holy presence we pray. Amen.

Hymns: Live Into Hope, Called as Partners in Christ’s Service, Guide My Feet, I Love the Lord Who Heard My Cry, Just as I am Without One Plea, There is a Balm in Gilead, O Wondrous Sight, O Vision Fair, We walk By Faith but Not By Sight,

Taize: Seigneur, Tu gardes mon âme

you know my heart, lead me to eternity

For the Complete List of Narrative Lectionary Lent Resources can be found here including a way to receive a doc copy