ORDER OF WORSHIP | Holy Trinity Community Church

02/17/21 - ash wednesday ORDER OF WORSHIP

Welcome to Holy Trinity Community Church, United Church of Christ!

Thank you for joining us in worship today. We invite you to reach out to Pastor Rob, (He/Him), who is available for pastoral care, emotional support, & spiritual direction. Please contact Pastor Rob at revrobvaness@gmail.com with any comments or concerns you may have.

Ash Wednesday – February 17, 2021 at 7PM: Beloved Dust to Dust[i]

Song: Come as You Are w/ Charlie Hawks[ii]

Come out of sadness
From wherever you've been
Come broken hearted
Let rescue begin
Come find your mercy
Oh sinner come kneel
Earth has no sorrow
That heaven can't heal
Earth has no sorrow
That heaven can't heal

So lay down your burdens
Lay down your shame
All who are broken
Lift up your face
Oh wanderer come home
You're not too far
So lay down your hurt
Lay down your heart
Come as you are

There's hope for the hopeless
And all those who've strayed
Come sit at the table
Come taste the grace
There's rest for the weary
Rest that endures
Earth has no sorrow
That heaven can't cure

So lay down your burdens
Lay down your shame
All who are broken
Lift up your face
Oh wanderer come home
You're not too far
So lay down your hurt
Lay down your heart
Come as you are
Come as you are
Fall in his arms
Come as you are
There's joy for the morning
Oh sinner be still
Earth has no sorrow
That heaven can't heal
Earth has no sorrow
That heaven can't heal

Call to Worship (Genesis 2:7; 3: 19 Psalm 104: 29-30; John 1: 18)

One: Friends and neighbors, in the middle of this season of Covid-19,

we pause to observe Ash Wednesday together as a faith community.

All: We remember that God made us from fragile, blessed dust

And breathes through us the breath of life and love.

One: From dust we are created in God’s image

and to God’s good dust we shall return.

All: Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

One: Today we begin our 40-day Lenten journey

to discover who we are created to be as God’s beloved.

All: In daily practices of prayer and service

we will embark upon this Lenten journey.

One: We follow Jesus, God’s Beloved Child,

bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh

in whom we see God’s image most clearly.

All: So come, let us pray for strength and imagination

to follow Jesus wherever he will lead us this Lent.

Song: Come Thou Long Expected Jesus w/ Charlie Hawks[iii]

Come, Thou long-expected Jesus,
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s Strength and Consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

Born Thy people to deliver,
Born a child and yet a King,
Born to reign in us forever,
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By Thine all-sufficient merit,
Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

__________

Four Meditations

1. Meditation on Life and Death

Each year, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent and is always 46 days before Easter Sunday. Lent is a 40-day season (not counting Sundays) marked by repentance, fasting, reflection, and ultimately celebration. The 40-day period represents Christ’s time of temptation in the wilderness, where he fasted and where Satan tempted him. Lent asks believers to set aside a time each year for similar fasting, marking an intentional season of focus on Christ’s life, ministry, sacrifice, and resurrection.

The ashes of this holiday symbolize two main things: death and repentance. “Ashes are equivalent to dust, and human flesh is composed of dust or clay (Genesis 2:7), and when a human corpse decomposes, it returns to dust or ash.”

Ash Wednesday and the season of Lent are an opportunity for us to be intentional about talking an inventory of our lives. Taking the time to name and claim all of our shortcomings. This act of self-care and awareness allows us to more fully humble ourselves before God as we offer our will and our lives over to the care of God.

By contemplating our mortality, we find a greater appreciation for the life we have.

Ultimately, the purpose of Ash Wed and the season of Lent is to draw us into a closer relationship with God. May we find love, grace, and mercy, waiting for us as we travel towards the gift of new life revealed in Christ Jesus.

__________

Song: Is It You w/ Charlie Hawks[iv]

As we lift up our hands
Will you meet us here?
As we call on your name
Will you meet us here?
We have come to this place
To worship you
God of mercy and grace

It is you
We adore
It is you
Praises are for
Only you
The heaven's declare
It is you
It is you

Holy, holy is our God Almighty
Holy, holy is his name alone
Holy, holy is our God Almighty
Holy, holy is his name alone

It is you
We adore
It is you
Only you

As we lift up our hands
Will you meet us here?
As we call on your name
Will you meet us here?
We have come to this place
To worship you
God of mercy and grace

It is you
We adore
It is you
Praises are for
Only you
The heaven's declare
It is you
It is you

Holy, holy is our God Almighty
Holy, holy is his name alone
Holy, holy is our God Almighty
Holy, holy is his name alone

As we lift up our hands
As we call on your name
Will you visit this place
By your mercy and grace

It is you
We adore
It is you
It is you

Holy, holy is our God Almighty
Holy, holy is his name alone
Holy, holy is our God Almighty
Holy, holy is his name alone

It is you
We adore
It is you
Only you

2. Meditation on Letting Go

One: Tonight, begins our journey through Lent, Holy Week, and Easter. And like any well-prepared traveler, we confess that we want to pack our bags to make sure we are comfortable

for our 6-week journey. But Ash Wednesday is about leaving baggage behind and braving the unknown carrying nothing but the mark of God’s beloved. In this vulnerable place, we confess that we want to be surrounded by all of the things that make us feel better about ourselves,

including things we think that God needs in order to love us. And yet God whispers to us that we are made in the divine image and that faithfulness to that knowledge is all we need for the journey of life. So let us ponder what it is that we may let go of this Lent, in order to help us hear more clearly the stories of Jesus’ extravagant love for all, and to follow him more bravely and confidently.

One: We invite you to think about what you want to let go of, and let God with, during our Lenten journey.

__________

Song: The Heart of Worship w/ Charlie Hawks[v]

[Verse 1]
When the music fades
All is stripped away
And I simply come
Longing just to bring
Something that's of worth
That will bless Your heart

[Pre-Chorus]
I'll bring You more than a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the way things appear
You're looking into my heart

[Chorus]
I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You, it's all about You, Jesus
I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You, it's all about You, Jesus

[Verse 2]
King of endless worth
No one could express
How much you deserve
Though I'm weak and poor
All I have is Yours
Every single breath!

[Pre-Chorus]
I'll bring You more than a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the way things appear
You're looking into my heart, yeah

[Chorus]
I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You, it's all about You, Jesus
I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You, it's all about You, Jesus
I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You, it's all about You, Jesus
I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You, it's all about You, Jesus

[Outro]
All about you

I'll bring you more than a song
I'll bring you more than a song
More than a song
I'll bring you more than a song
I'll bring you more than a song
(than a song)

You're looking into my heart, looking into my heart
You're looking into my heart

I'll bring You more than a song
I'll bring You more than a song, yeeeah
I'll bring You more than a song
I'll bring You more than a song

3. Meditation on Frailty and Forgiveness

One: Traditionally Ash Wednesday is a time to consider the reality of sin in our lives, our failures to live up to the promise of the image of God. Psalm 51 is known as a classic Psalm of repentance and regret used to give voice to our sorrow for sin and to hope for forgiveness.

One: (Psalm 51)[vi] Have mercy, tender God, forget that I defied you.

Wash away my sin, cleanse me from my guilt.

All: I know my evil well, it stares me in the face,

Evil done to you alone before your very eyes.

How right your condemnation! Your verdict is clearly just.

You see me for what I am: frail, a sinner.

You love those centered in truth; teach me your hidden wisdom.

Wash me with fresh water, wash me bright and clean.

Fill me with happy songs! Let the bones you bruised now dance,

Shut your eyes to my sin, make my guilt disappear.

Creator, reshape my heart, God, steady my spirit.

Do not cast me aside stripped of your holy spirit.

Save me, bring back my joy, support me, strengthen my will,

Then I will teach your way and sinners will turn to you.

Help me, stop my tears, and I will sing your goodness.

Lord, give me words and I will shout your praise.

Song: It Is Well with My Soul (Instrumental) w/ Charlie Hawks[vii]

4. Meditation on Ash

One: Have you ever wondered where the ash in Ash Wednesday comes from? In the Hebrew Testament, ashes made something once unclean, clean. One would often don sackcloth and ashes as a way to grieve a great loss, or to atone for one’s wrongdoings. This was a very public act that demonstrated how we are humbling ourselves before the Lord and surrendering our will and our life over to the care of God. This is the visual, public, graphic way many “let go and let God” in scripture.

When Queen Esther’s uncle, Mordecai, learns of Haman’s plan to have the King kill all the Jews, they don sackcloth and ashes. Mordecai and all the Jews lament and cry out for God to deliver them from this terrible persecution. And God saves the Jews.

When Job loses all he has, he repents by donning sackcloth and ashes. He is suffering unimaginable pain. Out of his pain he strips away everything that could come between him and God and draws near to God seeking the relief he so desperately desires. And God restores Job’s life.

When Jonah goes to Nineveh and tells everyone they have 40 days to stop their wicked ways and repent for their sins or be destroyed, everyone including the king, and even the animals, donned sackcloth and ashes, fasting and praying, letting go and letting God with all they have and have done. And God forgives the Ninevites.

Even the prophets don sackcloth and ashes to atone to the Lord for the sins of the people. They would do this as they called upon the people to humble and surrender themselves to God while they were also calling on God for mercy for the people.

In the same way, we use the symbol of ashes to remind us of our own need to humble ourselves before the Lord, to surrender our will and our life over to the care of God, and to ask God for the mercy and the forgiveness we need to shake our prisons, break our chains, and save our lives.

Song: Chain Breaker w/ Charlie Hawks, Melinda Iroabuchi, & Voices of Vision

If you've been walking the same old road for miles and miles

If you've been hearing the same old voice tell the same old lies

If you're trying to fill the same old holes inside

There's a better life

If you've got pain

He's a pain taker

If you feel lost

He's a way maker

If you need freedom or saving

He's a prison-shaking Savior

If you've got chains

He's a chain breaker

We've all search for the light of day in the dead of night

We've all found ourselves worn out from the same old fight

We've all run to things we know just ain't right

And there's a better life

There's a better life

If you've got pain

He's a pain taker

If you feel lost

He's a way maker

If you need freedom or saving

He's a prison-shaking Savior

If you've got chains

He's a chain breaker

If you believe it

If you receive it

If you can feel it

Somebody testify

If you believe it

If you receive it

If you can feel it

Somebody testify, testify

If you believe it

If you receive it

If you can feel it

Somebody testify

If you've got pain

He's a pain taker

If you feel lost

He's a way maker

If you need freedom or saving

He's a prison-shaking Savior

If you've got chains

He's a chain breaker

Oh, if you need freedom or saving

He's a prison-shaking Savior

If you've got chains

He's a chain breaker

One: Remember that you are God’s beloved dust,

and to God’s beloved dust you shall return.

BENEDICTION

One: Blessings, like God’s love, are not one-way experiences.

As you have been blessed with the mark of God’s love

you are now called to go out from this place and bless others.

May the God who created you create opportunities of serving others.

May the Christ who teaches you teach you during Lent how to love all.

And may the Spirit of Gentleness be your companion along this Lenten journey. Amen.

Song: Jesus Lover of My Soul w/ Charlie Hawks[viii]

[Verse]
Jesus, lover of my soul
Jesus, I will never let You go
You've taken me from the miry clay
You've set my feet upon the rock
Now I know

[Chorus]
I love You, I need You
Though my world may fall, I'll never let You go
My Saviour, my closest friend
I will worship You until the very end

[Verse]
Jesus, lover of my soul
Jesus, I will never let You go
You've taken me from the miry clay
You've set my feet upon the rock
Now I know

[Chorus]
I love You, I need You
Though my world may fall, I'll never let You go
My Saviour, my closest friend
I will worship You until the very end

[Interlude]

[Chorus]
I love You, I need You
Though my world may fall, I'll never let You go
My Saviour, my closest friend
I will worship You until the very end
I love You, I need You
Though my world may fall, I'll never let You go
My Saviour, my closest friend
I will worship You until the very end

[i] Beloved Dust to Dust: Service Prayers for Ash Wednesday was written by the Rev. Dr. Ginny Brown Daniel, Conference Minister for Missouri Mid-South Conference, UCC. Copyright 2021. Justice and Local Church Ministries, Faith Formation Ministry Team, United Church of Christ, 700 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44115-1100. Permission granted to reproduce or adapt this material for use in services of worship or church education. All publishing rights reserved. [Edited for use by R Van Ess 2/15/21.]

[ii] Song: Come as You Are. Writer(s): David Crowder, Matthew G Maher, Benjamin Glover, Matt Maher, David W Crowder. 2014.

[iii] Song: Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus. By Charles Wesley. (1745).

[iv] It is You. By Newsboys. Label Sparrow Records. Album: Thrive (2002).

[v] Song: The Heart of Worship. By Matt Redman. Produced by Andy Piercy. Album: Intimacy.

[vii] Song: It is Well with My Soul. By Horatio G. Spafford. (1873).

[viii]Song: Jesus Lover of My Soul. Artist: Hillsong Worship. Produced by Hillsong UNITED. Album: Stone’s Been Rolled Away.