Bulletin

Welcome to United Christian Parish! Use the bulletin as guidance as you worship.
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APRIL 12 ORDER OF WORSHIP

PRELUDE

WELCOME

SONG
“Sing Your Songs, Come and Worship”
Sing your songs of joy and sadness,
songs of struggle with doubt and fear,
songs of grace, songs of courage,
all your songs are welcome here.

Here find hope; here find comfort,
peace your soul longs for.
Know your heart need never be lonely
when you sing to our God!

 Come and worship the Lord!

CALL TO WORSHIP
One: Come, let us dwell in God’s shelter.
All: Let us dwell in God’s work of art.
One: Come, because the Earth is the Lord’s,
All: And God’s Earth is our home.
One: We live in God’s World; we are not alone.
All: We share this life with the heavens and the earth, with the waters and the land, with trees and grasses, with fish, birds, and animals, with minerals and creatures of every form, and with all our brothers and sisters.
One: God is good and everything God makes is good.
All: God is love and everything God makes is love’s fruit.
One: Let us worship God!

OPENING SONG *
“To You, O God, All Creatures Sing” (#17, vs. 1-4)
To you, O God, all creatures sing,
and all creation, everything
sings your praises, alleluia!
Your burning sun with golden beam,
your silver moon with softer gleam
sing your praises, alleluia!

Your wind that blows the tempest by,
your clouds that sail across the sky
sing your praises, alleluia!
Your morning rises with a song,
and lights of evening sing along,
sing your praises, alleluia!

 Your flowing waters, crystal clear,
make melodies for you to hear,
sing your praises, alleluia!
Your fire, bountiful and bright,
remembering your warmth and light,
sings your praises, alleluia!

To you, O God, day after day,
your planet earth in every way,
sing your praises, alleluia!
As savory fruit and fragrant flower
show forth your glory and your power,
singing praises, alleluia!

CALL TO CONFESSION *

PRAYER OF CONFESSION *
One: Creator God, you formed the earth in beauty and wisdom. You placed life in the oceans, forests, skies, and fields. You breathed life into every creature and entrusted this world to our care.
All: Yet we confess that we have not listened to the wisdom of the earth. We have ignored the lessons of the animals, the songs of the birds, and the quiet teaching of plants and waters.  We confess the ways we have taken more than we need, wasted what you have provided, and treated creation as a resource rather than a sacred gift. We have forgotten that the life of every living thing is held in your loving hand.
One: Forgive us, O God. Open our ears to the voices of creation. Open our eyes to the beauty and fragility of the earth. Renew our commitment to care for the world you love. Guide us to live gently, justly, and gratefully, so that all creation may flourish and reflect
your glory. As people seeking to live faithfully within God’s creation, and based on the Green Chalice Covenant:
All: We covenant to walk gently upon this earth. We covenant to protect and restore God’s creation. We covenant to reduce waste and use resources wisely. We covenant to learn from the wisdom of the natural world. We covenant to act for justice so that all people and all creatures may thrive.
One: With God’s help, we commit ourselves to care for creation as an expression of our love for God and neighbor.

WORDS OF FORGIVENESS *
One: Hear the good news: “In God’s hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of every human being.”
All: The God who created the earth also renews and restores it—and us.  Through God’s grace we are forgiven, set free from what has been, and invited to live differently for the sake of creation.
One: Friends, believe the good news of the gospel: In Jesus Christ we are forgiven and made new. Thanks be to God.

GLORIA *
“Glory to God
Glory to God, whose goodness shines on me,
and to the Son, whose grace has pardoned me,
and to the Spirit, whose love has set me free.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. Amen.
World without end, without end. Amen.
World without end, without end. Amen.
World without end, without end. Amen.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. Amen.

PASSING THE PEACE

OFFERING

DOXOLOGY
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
praise Christ, all people here below;
praise Holy Spirit evermore;
praise Triune God, whom we adore.
Amen.

CHILDREN’S TIME

SONG
“Christ in Me Arise”
Trevor Thomson
Christ in me arise and dispel all the darkness.
Christ in me arise with Your power and Your strength.
Christ in me pour out Your blessing and healing.
Christ in me arise and I shall rise with You.

Be now my vision, open these eyes,   
showing me all that I must see.
Onward to the kingdom, You are the way,
Arise in me and I shall rise with You.

Christ in me arise and dispel all the darkness.
Christ in me arise with Your power and Your strength.
Christ in me pour out Your blessing and healing.
Christ in me arise and I shall rise with You.

Be now my footsteps, leading the way,
taking me where I must go.
Onward to the kingdom, You are the way,
Arise in me and I shall rise with You. 

You know my heart and You know my ways.
You who formed me in my mother's womb.
I live and move in You; my whole being thrives in You.

Christ in me arise and dispel all the darkness.
Christ in me arise with Your power and Your strength.
Christ in me pour out Your blessing and healing.
Christ in me arise. Christ in me arise.
Christ in me arise and I shall rise with You.

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

SCRIPTURE (John 20:19-29 & Job 12:7-10)

SERMON
“The Breath of Life”

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
One: May we use the world’s resources we need with love, humility, and thoughtfulness, without guilt, without fear, without waste.
All: May we live in harmony with the earth.
One: May we live together with animals with which we share this planet, being careful not to harm them or their habitats.
All: May we live in harmony with the earth.
One: May we respect the life in our lakes, rivers and oceans, using them with care and being mindful in our efforts not to pollute them.
All: May we live in harmony with the earth.
One: May we learn to live within our means, by reducing our waste and continuing to reuse and recycle all that we can.
All: May we live in harmony with the earth.
One: May we plan to leave the world in a state that all future generations will be able to enjoy, ensuring that it is filled with resources, life, and kept healthy and clean.
All: May we live in harmony with the earth.
One: Lord, Creator of all living things, Help guide our daily actions and thoughts to become better stewards of the earth.
All: Guide us to act responsibly, care for the earth you gave us, and make wise choices in our everyday living.
One: In hope, we now join our voices together to pray the words your son taught us to pray, saying….

LORD’S PRAYER
All: 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.

CLOSING SONG *
“Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness” (#286)
Refrain: Spirit, spirit of gentleness, blow through the wilderness, calling and free,
Spirit, spirit of restlessness, stir me from placidness, wind, wind on the sea.

You moved on the waters, you called to the deep,
then you coaxed the mountains from the valleys of sleep;
And over the eons you called to each thing,
“Awake from your slumbers and rise on your wings.” [Refrain]

You swept through the desert, you stung with the sand,
and you goaded your people with a law and a land;
When they were confounded by their idols and lies,
then you spoke through your prophets to open their eyes. [Refrain]

You sang in a stable, you cried from a hill,
then you whispered in silence when the whole world was still;
And down in the city you called once again,
when you blew through your people on the rush of the wind. [Refrain]

You call from tomorrow, you break ancient schemes,
from the bondage of sorrow the captives dream dreams;
Our women see visions, our men clear their eyes.
With bold new decisions your people arise. [Refrain]

CLOSING MESSAGE *

POSTLUDE

*Rise in body or spirit