The watchword for the week:
God says: “I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak.” Ezekiel 34:16
Christ invites us to come to worship.
To rest from the things that are troubling us.
To pray for the needs of those close to us and the needs of the world.
To realize what we can offer others.
And so to return into the world to serve.
Let us worship God, who reigns over all the earth.
Psalm 95:1-7
1 O come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
3 For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land,
which his hands have formed.
6 O come, let us worship and bow down,
let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
O that today you would listen to his voice!
Confession of Sin
(from the Liturgy for Lent II, pages78-79)
Lord Jesus, we come before you in humble confession. Help us conform our lives to you as the model for holy and righteous living.
Forgive us for our desire for personal greatness, for our attempts to make gods of ourselves, for our willingness to exalt ourselves at the expense of others, and for our resistance to serving one another as you have served us.
Forgive us for making light of your obedience and sacrifice on the cross by living an undisciplined and indifferent Christian witness; forgive us for yielding to fear rather than relying on your strength to take the risks of discipleship.
Forgive us, dear Jesus, for times we have not looked to you as our Lord, and for allowing the clamoring distractions of the world to become higher priorities than you. Forgive us for yielding more to the temptations of this world than being transformed by your lordship over our lives.
May the Holy Spirit empower us to accept the grace that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, offers to us today. Hear the words of our Lord, “Your sins are forgiven, go and sin no more.”
Let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts since we were called to peace as members of one body. And let us be thankful.
Take time to read today’s Daily Texts. Remember that God speaks to us through the inspiration of scripture, so approach the opportunity to read the texts as a privilege, eagerly anticipating what might be spoken to you today. How might today’s Word make a part of your life new again? If you do not have a copy of the Daily Texts, you will find today’s texts posted in the margin on the right of your page (at the bottom of the page if you are on a mobile phone). When you have finished praying, continue as follows.
As you taught your disciples to pray, we pray together:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your Kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours.
Now and forever. Amen
And now, most merciful God, we ask you to continue extending your grace and favor towards us;
Let the sun of your gospel never go down out of our hearts;
Let your truth abide and be established among us forever.
Help our unbelief, increase our faith, give us hearts to consider your many gifts to us.
In faith clothe us with Christ, that he may live in us,
And your name may be glorified in us in the sight of all the world.
Christ, and him crucified,
Remain our confession of faith. Amen.