February 26, 2023
Prelude: Little Prelude in A minor
attr. Bach
Introit: Forty Days and Forty Nights
Herbst/Callahan
Call to Worship
[Psalm 32]
Happy are those whose sin is forgiven, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
When we acknowledged our sins to the Lord, he forgave the guilt of our sin.
Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to God; he is a hiding place for us.
He will instruct us and teach us the way we should go.
Let us worship the LORD!
God, Who Stretched the Spangled Heavens (Hymn 268)
Moore/Cameron
God who stretched the spangled heavens, infinite in time and place,
Flung the suns in burning radiance through the silent fields of space:
We, your children in your likeness, share inventive powers with you;
Great Creator, still creating, show us what we yet may do.
We have ventured worlds undreamed of since the childhood of our race;
Known the ecstasy of winging through untraveled realms of space;
Probed the secrets of the atom, yielding unimagined power,
Facing us with life’s destruction or our most triumphant hour.
As each far horizon beckons, may it challenge us anew;
Children of creative purpose, serving others, honoring you.
May our dreams prove rich with promise, each endeavor well begun;
Great Creator, give us guidance till our goals and yours are one.
Confession
Lord God, you know the things that tempt us and the things that give us life. Like Adam and Eve, we often choose the black and white of knowledge over the vulnerability of trust. Forgive us when our desire for certainty or independence leads us away from you. Forgive us when we take shortcuts and are unwilling to wrestle with complexity. In your mercy, help us trust your care and direction for us. Amen.
Silence
O Love That Will Not Let Me Go
Matheson/Byrne
O love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee:
I give Thee back the life I owe, that in Thine ocean depths its flow may richer, fuller be.
O light that follows all my way, I yield my flickering torch to Thee;
My heart restores its borrowed ray, that in Thy sunshine’s blaze its day may brighter, fairer be.
Forgiveness in Jesus Christ
Peace
The peace of Christ be with you.
And also with you.
Gloria Patri (Hymn 579)
Greatorex
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be,
Word without end. Amen, Amen.
Children’s Message
Lord, Who Throughout These Forty Days
Hernaman/ LAND OF REST
Lord, who throughout these forty days for us did fast and pray,
Teach us with you to mourn our sins and close by you to stay.
As you with Satan did contend, and did the victory win,
O give us strength in you to fight, in you to conquer sin.
And through these days of penitence, and through your Passiontide,
Forevermore, in life and death, O Lord, with us abide.
Abide with us, that through this life of doubts and hope and pain,
An Easter of unending joy we may at last attain!
Prayer for Illumination
Scripture Readings
Alida Gowan
Old Testament: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7
New Testament: Matthew 4:1-11
Sermon: To Be Like God
Focus: I guess God knew that dualistic thinking would be the direction religion would take. So the Bible says right at the beginning, “Don’t do it!” The word of God is trying to keep us from religion’s constant temptation and failure—a demand for certitude, an undue need for perfect explanation, resolution, and answers, which is, by the way, the exact opposite of faith. Such dualistic thinking (preferring a false either/or to an always complex reality) tends to create arrogant and smug people instead of humble and loving people. – Richard Rohr
Response: When We Are Tested
Duck/Young
Carollen Ryan
Pastoral Prayer & The Lord's Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
Call to Stewardship
Mila Russell
But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' -Luke 12:20
Offering Our Gifts: When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
ROCKINGHAM/Raphael
Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise God, all creatures here below;
Praise God above, ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
Charge & Benediction
Postlude: Little Fugue in A minor
attr. Bach
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