Words for Worship – Sunday, May 9, 2021

Prelude – Natalia Peterson

Welcome

Song    God We Gather As Your People All Creation Sings 1038

1. God, we gather as your people to raise our song above, and we dare to claim the promise of Your love. Though the day may not yet be here, we trust it soon will be when your children will be free.

REFRAIN

Oh, may our hearts and minds be opened, fling the church doors open wide. May there be room enough for everyone inside. For in God there is a welcome, in God we all belong. May that welcome be our song.

2. Oh, we sing for all the children, that one day they be free; and we sing for generations yet to be, that they never have a reason to doubt that they are blessed. May they, in your love, find rest.

REFRAIN

Oh, may our hearts and minds be opened, fling the church doors open wide. May there be room enough for everyone inside. For in God there is a welcome, in God we all belong. May that welcome be our song.

3. Oh, we pray for all the young lives cut short by fear and shame, so afraid of who they are and whom they love. May the message now be banished that Your love is for the few; may their faith in You renew. 

REFRAIN

Oh, may our hearts and minds be opened, fling the church doors open wide. May there be room enough for everyone inside. For in God there is a welcome, in God we all belong. May that welcome be our song.

4. God, we’re working for the future when children far and wide can live their lives with dignity and pride. As they grow in strength and stature, may they join us hand in hand, as against all hate we stand. 

REFRAIN

Oh, may our hearts and minds be opened, fling the church doors open wide. May there be room enough for everyone inside. For in God there is a welcome, in God we all belong. May that welcome be our song.

Oxford University Press 1928. All rights reserved

Prayer of the Day

O God, you have prepared for those who love you joys beyond understanding. Pour into our hearts such love for you that, loving you above all things, we may obtain your promises, which exceed all we can desire; through Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Children’s Time with Pastor Joy

Song of Praise             When it seems the day will end  All Creation Sings 1034
1          When it seems the day will end,
and all light gives way to fear,
we will speak your name again
to remind us you are here.

Refrain
New life rising, (New life rising,)
ashes falling, (ashes falling,)
joy and weeping, (joy and weeping,)
in your calling. (in your calling.)

2          When it seems the day will end,
sinking low under our skin,
we are dead and born again,
and with you now enter in.  Refrain

3          When it seems the day will end,
and a coldness fills our bones,
we will walk the way you’ve been,
and our hearts will be your home.  Refrain

Text: Justin Rimbo, b. 1980
Text © 2020 Augsburg Fortress

First Reading   in Spanish shared by Yippy Clem

Acts 10:44-48
A reading from Acts – While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. ⁴⁵The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles, ⁴⁶for they heard them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter said, ⁴⁷“Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” ⁴⁸So he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they invited him to stay for several days.
Word of God, word of life. Thanks be to God.

Gospel Acclamation  Celtic Alleluia  Worship 174

Gospel             John 15:9-17
The gospel is from John
[Jesus said:] ⁹“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. ¹⁰If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. ¹¹I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.
  ¹²“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command you. ¹⁵I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. ¹⁶You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. ¹⁷I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.”
The gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.

Message         Vicar Anne Wickland 

Song    Jesu, Jesu Fill us with Your Love Worship 708

Refrain

Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors
we have from you.

1 Kneels at the feet of his friends,
silently washes their feet,
Master who acts as a slave to them.

Refrain

Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors
we have from you.

2 Neighbors are rich folk and poor,
neighbors are black, brown, and white,
neighbors are nearby and far away.

Refrain

Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors
we have from you.

3 These are the ones we should serve,
these are the ones we should love;
all these are neighbors to us and you.

Refrain

Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors
we have from you.

4Loving puts us on our knees,
serving as though we are slaves:
this is the way we should live with you.

Refrain

Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors
we have from you.

Affirmation of Faith from A Sanctified Art
We know the fear of the upper room.
We know the feeling of hard days and long nights.
We know the grief of the tomb,
And the particular ache of saying goodbye.
We know the pain of Good Friday,
And we know the darkness before dawn.
And still, and still, we believe.
We believe that again and again,
The sun will rise.
Again and again,
God will draw near.
Again and again,
We will march toward justice.
Again and again,
The tomb will be empty.
Again and again,
Love will win.
Again and again,
God will lead the church.
Again and again,
And again and again,
We will be loved.
The journey will not be perfect.
We will need to rise before dawn.
We will need angels along the way.
But again and again,
The sun will rise.
We believe. Amen.  

Prayers of the People
Alive in the risen Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit, we bring our prayers before God who promises to hear us and answer in steadfast love.
A brief silence.

Loving God, you call us to be your fruit-bearing church. Strengthen the bonds among all Christian churches. Today we pray for the Moravian Church, giving thanks for the life and witness of Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf, renewer of the church and hymn writer. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

Creating God, the earth praises you. The seas roar and the hills sing for joy. Fill the earth with your love so that by their song, all creatures of land and sea and sky, burrowing and soaring, may call us to join with them in praise. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

Faithful Savior, you conquer the world not with weapons but with undying love. Plant your word in the hearts of the nations’ leaders and give them your Spirit, so that the peoples of the world may live in peace. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

Caring Healer, you forget no one and accompany the lonely. Be present with those who are sick or suffering. Provide for those needing homes or medical care and point us towards life-changing responses to these needs in our own communities. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

Gracious God, as a mother comforts her child, you comfort us. Bless mothers and mothering people in our lives. Comfort those who miss their mothers, mothers who grieve, those who grieve because they cannot be mothers. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

Gentle Redeemer, all who die in you abide in your presence forever. We remember with thanksgiving those who shared your love throughout their lives. Keep us united with them in your lasting love. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

In the hope of new life in Christ, we raise our prayers to you, trusting in your never-ending goodness and mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Sharing of the Peace             
Johm riab sua.
Selam.
The peace of Christ be with you all. 

Offering – Natalia Peterson

Offering Prayer
God of love, you call us beloved children and welcome us to your table. Receive our lives and the gifts we offer. Abide with us and send us in service to a suffering world; for the sake of your beloved Child, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Holy Communion
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise. 

O God triune, how majestic is your name in all the earth. Over the eons your merciful might evolved our home, a fragile tree of life. Here by your wisdom are both life and death, growth and decay, the nest and the hunt, sunshine and storm, darkness and light. Sustained by these wonders, we creatures of dust join in the ancient song: The earth is full of your glory.
The earth is full of your glory.

O God triune, you took on our flesh in Jesus our healer.
In Christ you bring life from death; we remember his cross, we celebrate his resurrection.
Broken like bread, he enlivens our body. Outpoured like wine, he fills the earth with goodness. Receiving this mystery, we sing our song: The earth is full of your glory. The earth is full of your glory.

We praise you for the heart of Jesus, so filled with your love for this earth.

In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks; broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat; this is my body, given for you.

Do this for the remembrance of me. Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. Do this for the remembrance of me.

Gathered around this table, we your children unite in this song: The earth is full of your glory. The earth is full of your glory.

O God triune, you create the worlds, you uphold the living, you embrace the dead. Send forth your Spirit and renew the face of the earth. Strengthen us for our journey with this meal, the body and blood of Christ. Give us a future that trusts in you and cares for your earth. Empowered by your promises, we rise from our deaths to praise you again: The earth is full of your glory. The earth is full of your glory.
Amen, and amen.
Amen, and amen.

Invitation
The risen Christ invites us to this table. Come, eat and be satisfied.

Now, if you are gathered with others, when the music begins, please share with one another first the bread and then the cup with the words, 

The body of Christ, given for you.
The blood of Christ, poured out for you.

If you are by yourself, I offer this invitation… 

Receive the body of Christ, given for you.
Receive the blood of Christ, poured out for you.

And if for any reason you will not receive Communion bread & cup today, a blessing for you…
May God fill you up with the Holy Spirit and give you all that you need.

Communion Song – Welcome Table All Creation Sings 969

I’m gonna sit at the welcome table
I’m gonna sit at the welcome table one of these days
Hallelujah
I’m gonna sit at the welcome table
Sit at the welcome table one of these days
One of these days

I’m gonna feast on milk and honey
Oh yes, I’m gonna feast on milk and honey one of these days
Hallelujah
I’m gonna feast on milk and honey
Feast on milk and honey one of these days
One of these days

I’m gonna to tell God how you treat me
Yes, I’m gonna to tell God how you treat me one of these days
Hallelujah
I’m gonna to tell God how you treat me
Tell God how you treat me one of these days. One of these days

Prayer after Communion
Wellspring of joy, through this meal you have put gladness in our hearts. Satisfy the hunger still around us, and send us as joyful witnesses, that your love may bring joy to the hearts of all people, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Cambodian Lord’s Prayer

 Blessing
May our glorious God grant you a spirit of wisdom to know and to love the risen Lord Jesus. The God of life, Creator, ☩ Christ and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. Amen.

Sending Song  Thine the Amen Worship 826 (vs. 1,2,4)

1 Love divine, all loves excelling,
joy of heav’n, to earth come down,
fix in us thy humble dwelling,
all thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, thou art all compassion,
pure, unbounded love thou art.
Visit us with thy salvation;
enter ev’ry trembling heart.

2 Breathe, O breathe thy loving Spirit
into ev’ry troubled breast.
Let us all in thee inherit,
let us find the promised rest.
Take away the love of sinning;
Alpha and Omega be.
End of faith, as its beginning,
set our hearts at liberty.

3 Come, Almighty, to deliver,
let us all thy life receive.
Suddenly return, and never,
nevermore they temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
serve thee as thy hosts above,
pray, and praise thee without ceasing,
glory in thy perfect love.

4 Finish, then, thy new creation;
true and spotless let us be.
Let us see thy great salvation
perfectly restored in thee.
Changed from glory into glory,
till in heav’n we take our place,
till we cast our crowns before thee,
lost in wonder, love and praise.

Sending
Alleluia! Christ is risen.
Christ is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Go in peace. Share the good news. Alleluia!
Thanks be to God. Alleluia!

Postlude/Offering –Natalia Peterson