Sunday, March 20, 2022
March 20, 2022
Third Sunday of Lent
10:15 A.M.
Organ Prelude
Welcome and Announcements John Strawbridge
Choral Introit “I Want Jesus To Walk With Me” (Spiritual)
I want Jesus to walk with me;
All along my pilgrim journey,
I want Jesus to walk with me.
Call to Worship
We come, because we seek our God.
Every morning, every day, every evening, every moment, God is with us.
We come, because we hunger for Christ.
Jesus will feed us with hope, will replace our emptiness with grace.
We come, because we thirst for the Spirit.
Who fills our yearning for peace, who ends the drought of justice.
Opening Hymn “O God, I Seek Your Grace” (UMH 662 “Stand Up and Bless the Lord”)
Words Carolyn Winfrey Gilette
1. O God, I seek your grace;
My soul is thirsting still
As in a dry and weary place
Without a stream or well.
2. I come in praise and prayer
Beholding all your ways;
Your steadfast love, beyond compare
Is reason for my praise.
3. With thanks my spirit sings
As I lie down and rest;
And in the shadow of your wings
I know that I am blessed.
Psalter Lesson Psalm 63:1-8 NIV
A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.
1 You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
2 I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.
3 Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.
4 I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.
5 I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
6 On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.
7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.
8 I cling to you; your right hand upholds me.
The Word of God….Thanks Be To God
Call to Confession (Leader)
Standing beneath the cross of Jesus, as we observe the season of Lent, is a sobering experience, for the cross judges both our world and our individual lives.
Today, people are still crucified by the same forces that destroyed Jesus. Today each of us falls short of the resolve and dedication to God which Jesus exhibited by the way he lived and died.
So let us, as men and women who live in a twisted world and who are all too weak in spirit, join together in the prayer of confession.
Prayer of Confession (Unison)
We surround ourselves with crosses, O God; yet we confess that we shrink back from the awareness that your glory is revealed in the criminal’s cross of Jesus Christ. Help us to know your presence wherever there is suffering in our world; may we be channels of your love and healing, so that you may not suffer needlessly. We pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Assurance of Forgiveness
L: In the cross, we see God’s amazing love for us. We are God’s children living in a confused world. So in abundant grace, God answers our doubt, heals our pain, and forgives our failures in grace. I announce therefore in the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven and made new.
P: In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven and set free in grace. Thanks be to God forever more! Amen.
Sharing Joys and Concerns
Pastoral Prayer
Lord’s Prayer
Choral Response “Cares Chorus” TFWS 2215
I cast all my cares upon You
I lay all of my burdens down at Your feet
And any time I don’t know just what to do,
I will cast all my cares upon You.
Gospel Lesson Luke 13:1-9 J.B. Phillips New Testament
13 1-5 It was just at this moment that some people came up to tell him the story of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with that of their own sacrifices. Jesus made this reply to them: “Are you thinking that these Galileans were worse sinners than any other men of Galilee because this happened to them? I assure you that is not so. You will all die just as miserable a death unless your hearts are changed! You remember those eighteen people who were killed at Siloam when the tower collapsed upon them? Are you imagining that they were worse offenders than any of the other people who lived in Jerusalem? I assure you they were not. You will all die as tragically unless your whole outlook is changed!” 6-9 Then he gave them this parable: “Once upon a time a man had a fig-tree growing in his garden, and when he came to look for the figs, he found none at all. So he said to his gardener, ‘Look, I have come expecting fruit on this fig-tree for three years running and never found any. Better cut it down.
Why should it use up valuable space?’ And the gardener replied, ‘Master, don’t touch it this year till I have had a chance to dig round it and give it a bit of manure. Then, if it bears after that, it will be all right. But if it doesn’t, then you can cut it down.’”
The Word of God for the people of God….Thanks Be To God
Sermon “Just A Little Manure” Rev. Debbie Scott
Invitation to Offering
Offertory “I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say” (Larson)
I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Come now and follow me.
Lay down your earthly cares,” he said, “and I will set you free.”
I came to Jesus as I was; I had no gifts to bring.
He took my stubborn will, my pride, and taught my heart to sing.
I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Behold, I freely give
The living water; thirsty one, come now and drink, and live.”
I came to Jesus, and I drank of that life-giving stream;
My thirst was quenched, my soul revived, and now I live for Him.
I heard the voice of Jesus say, “I am this dark world’s light;
Look unto me, your morn shall rise, and all your day be bright.”
I looked to Jesus, and I found in Him my star, my sun;
And in that light of life I’ll walk till traveling days are done.
Offering Prayer (All)
Loving God, who provides for our every need and more, teach us to appreciate one another as well as all the gifts you have shared with us. As we, in our limited ways, endeavor to give back to you a little of what you have given in abundance, accept our humble offering in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen.
Closing Hymn “Amazing Grace” UMH 378 Vs. 1, 2 & 3
1. Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
was blind, but now I see.
2. ‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
and grace my fears relieved;
how precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed.
3. Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
’tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.
Benediction
L: God sends us out as witnesses to good news.
May our lips praise God as long as we live.
P: God’s steadfast love is better than life;
God’s mercy and pardon break through life’s clouds.
L: Call on God in the midst of each day’s tasks;
Meditate on God’s presence through the night.
P: God is our help in all times and places;
We will call on God’s name wherever we are.
L: God will grant us strength to resist temptation
And vision to labor for what truly satisfies.
P: Praise God, whose waters quench our thirst.
Thank God for the bread of life that feeds our souls. Amen.
Choral Benediction “Steal Away” (Spiritual, arr. Moore)
Steal away to Jesus;
Steal away; I ain’t got time to stay here.
Ringing the Bicentennial Bell
Organ Postlude
Announcements
Remember the deadline for ordering Easter flowers is March 28th.
Please note that Lenten study this week will begin at 12:30PM.
We are grateful that you have come to be with us this morning. It is our hope that you experience the love of Christ this morning and his presence during our worship. Please find our contact information below if you would like to reach out to us:
Church Office Number: 410-889-1512
Office Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, & Saturday
8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Email: Lovely.Lane.BCS@gmail.com
Pastor: Rev. Deb Scott
Phone Number: 301-641-4601
Email: revdeb8@aol.com
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