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The Resurrection Of Our Lord

Worship
Lectionary Worship Aids, Cradled in God's Heart
Series VIII, Cycle A
Call To Worship
One: This is the day
All: when healing touches the suffering,
when loneliness discovers a family,
when peace caresses the stressed.
One: This is the day the Lord
All: breaks free of death's clutches,
rolls away the stone,
folds the grave clothes into a neat pile.
One: This is the day the Lord has made,
All: the day of sin's defeat,
the day of resurrection,
the first day of the new creation.
One: This is the day!
All: Christ is risen! Hallelujah!

Prayer Of The Day
Surprising God,
early in the morning
before chaos was awake,
you tiptoed quietly past,
and whispered the word
that caused grace and
love to blossom into creation.

Early in the morning
while the disciples slept,
Jesus, Son of the Living God,
you prepared a feast
to fill their emptiness;
you rolled away their hardened hearts
to open them to your grace;
you whispered their names
to awaken them to new life.

Early in the morning
while we are still drowsy,
you sing your songs to us,
Holy Spirit --
hymns of hope, cantatas of compassion,
psalms of peace, litanies of love.

God in Community, Holy in One,
early this morning we bring our prayer to you
as Jesus has taught us, saying,

Our Father ...

Call To Reconciliation
It was early in the morning when God created all the good and beauty in the universe. It was early in the morning that a baby cried in a manger. It was early in the morning on that first day, when a voice told us that death has been defeated and Jesus is alive in our midst. Let us confess the fear, and the great joy, we bring with us, early in the mornings.

Unison Prayer Of Confession
This morning, Wonderful God, in the company of your church -- saints and sinners -- we gather to celebrate your life, your ministry, your death and resurrection, and your great love for us. Yet, we know we often leave the celebration here in the sanctuary, as we leave and go back to our homes, our jobs, our fears, our doubts, and our lives.

Bring us a new life, God of the Living, where we are tired and stressed; transform our hardened hearts into fountains of love; forgive us the hurts and harms we have caused; fill us with the joy of your Holy Spirit in the hollows of our souls.


Silence is kept

Assurance Of Pardon
One: God, our Creator, gives us new life;
Christ, our Reconciliation, invites us to a table;
Holy Spirit, our Teacher of the way, the truth, the life;
this is the good news: The tomb is empty,
death is conquered, sin has lost its power.
All: We are a new people, shaped by the risen Lord into new life forever! Thanks be to God. Amen.
UPCOMING WEEKS
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John Jamison
Object: You may present this message as a simple story, or have the children act it out as a role-play. I will show the role-play version, but you can ignore the acting pieces and just tell the story if you prefer.

Note: For the role-play version, you will need to select two girls and one boy to play the roles. You might also have a broom and a dust rag if you want to.

* * *

Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Great! Let’s get started.

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John E. Sumwalt
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Words Of Assurance
Our God is both wise and caring: afflicting the comfortable and comforting the afflicted.

Pastoral Prayer
God, we bow before you this morning, knowing that you hear every prayer. We know that in all of Creation, you are the source of life. You are the one who set the light swirling between the galaxies. The breath of your Spirit pulses through all life. You have even become flesh among us. We praise you, Lord, that in all your wonder, you have not forgotten us.

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