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Invitation to Worship
Come, let us return to Adonai, Our God —Our God who is gracious and merciful!
We make the Sign of the Cross over our lips as we begin.
O Holy ONE + open my lips,
~And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Rescue me from death, O God, my Savior;
~ And my tongue shall ring out your goodness!
MORNING HYMN for LENT
All may sing or alternate the verses of any Lenten Morning Hymn .
If you allow our God to guide you, And trust God’s love in all your ways,
You’ll have God’s strength whate’er betide you, to bear you through the evil days;
Who hopes in God’s unchanging love, Builds on the rock that nought can move.
Only be still, and wait God’s leisure In cheerful hope with heart content
To take whate’er your Abba’s pleasure And all deserving love have sent;
Surely our inmost wants are known To One whose love is always shown.
Sing, pray and keep God’s ways unswerving; So do your own part faithfully.
And trust the Word, though undeserving, You’ll find it true delightfully.
God won’t forsake or leave in need The souls that love and trust indeed. Amen.
Text: G. Neumark (1621-1681); Tr. C. Winkworth (1827-1878), alt. Tune: WER NUR DEN LIEBEN GOTT LASST WALTEN
PSALMODY
Antiphon
Blessed be the God of Israel,
whose angel delivers those who place their trust in God!
Refrain
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
Canticle of the Three Children (Dan 3:57-87)
You angels and all powers of Adonai,
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.
Sun and moon and stars of the sky,
glorify Adonai.
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
Every shower of rain and fall of dew,
all winds and fire and heat.
Winter and summer,
glorify Adonai.
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
O chill and cold,
drops of dew and flakes of snow.
Frost and cold, ice and sleet,
glorify Adonai.
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
O Mother Earth,
O mountains and hills and valleys.
All that grows upon the earth,
glorify Adonai.
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
O springs of water, seas and streams,
O whales and all that move in the waters.
All birds of the air,
glorify Adonai.
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
O beasts of the wild,
and all you flocks and herds.
All women and men everywhere,
glorify Adonai.
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
Let us glorify the ONE, and the WORD
and exalt the HOLY BREATH.
In the firmament of God’s power and love,
glorify Adonai.
Praise God and highly exalt God for ever!
Refrain: Howard Hughes, S.M., Praise God In Song (GIA, 1979), adpt.
Blessed be the God of Israel,
whose angel delivers those who place their trust in God!
READING Daniel 3:18-20, 91-92
King Nebuchadnezzar’s face became livid with utter rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual and had some of the strongest men in his army bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
and cast them into the white-hot furnace. ..
Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” “Assuredly, O king,” they answered. “But,” he replied, “I see four men unfettered and unhurt, walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God.”
Silent Prayer
Responsory
R. Adonai is our God! We acknowledge no other god, *and so we have hope. V. God will not forsake us nor desert our people *and so we have hope. V. Glory to the Holy ONE and the WORD and the Breath of Love.
Gospel Canticle
Antiphon
If you make my word your home,
you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.
Canticle of Zachary– Luke 1:68-79
Blessed + be Adonai, the God of Israel,
Who visits this people to set us free
Raising for us a sign of salvation
In the house and family of David.
God promised throughout past ages
In words of holy prophets
To save us from our enemies,
And from the control of our oppressors.
Adonai favored our ancestors
And remembered the sacred covenant.
The pledge to Abraham and Sarah
Is now renewed for us;
That freed from the grip of our foes
We might worship without fear
And be both just and holy
For the rest of our days.
And you, child, called “prophet of the Most High,”
Will go ahead to prepare the way,
By teaching this people of salvation
Through forgiveness of their sins.
For the loving compassion of the Holy One
As the Rising Sun will shine upon us
To illumine the darkness and dispel death’s shadow
To Guide our feet on the way of peace.
Glory to the ONE and to the WORD
and to the BREATH of Love!
As always before,
so now and evermore. Amen
If you make my word your home,
you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.
Intercessory Prayer
In you, Adonai, is the Source of Life,
~In your Light we shall see light.
Send forth your light and your truth
~Let these be our guide.
Fill us each morning with your constant love,
~That we may sing and be glad all our life.
Let us see your wonderful works,
~May your people see your glorious might.
Gracious God, may your blessing be upon us;
~And grant us success in all we do.
Create in us clean hearts, O God;
~ And fill us with your Holy Spirit.
Prayer of Jesus
Our Father …
Closing Prayer & Blessing
We give you thanks, Holy One, for with a mother’s love you have watched over us in the night and have led us from the shadows of darkness into morning’s light. You call us in this holy season to a daily change of heart and mind. May the spiritual practices we have embraced this Lent open us to receive the gifts of new life which come with the Spring and empower us to accomplish your purpose in our lives for the good of all your holy people and the whole of your beloved creation. For yours is the power and glory of life and love now and forever. Amen.
May the God of light fill us with all peace and joy, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, + we may complete this special season and prepare for the joy of Easter. ~Amen.
Let us bless the world with peace.
~And give thanks to God.
May today’s observance of the Vernal Equinox
free us to embrace the tensions between light and darkness, heat and cold,
wet and dry, life and death which manifest the diversity, individuality, and communion of all things in the Mystery of God!