Lenten Series Sermons 2015

Background: See my explanation of our Lenten Series for the outline and plan.

I hope those of your reading this blog have figured out that many people have their fingerprints on it. This Lenten Series idea comes through my newest church buddy Pastor Joe Genau of my church Edgewood Presbyterian Church (PCUSA). Joe came to me with this ‘crazy’ idea…“I’ve got this huge trunk. It’s been my dream to use it…” And so the conversation exploded from there. We looked at the lectionary; we looked at other sites and readings about Packing Away the Alleluia; we looked at the kids in our congregation; and together we decided to get our kids ready for Easter by having them plan for the celebration, helping them figure out what we will need on that joyful Easter morning. I’m so excited about this series collaboration…and so excited about Pastor Joe including these kids in the worship of our Lord every Sunday. Love me some crazy!

This post here has all the Sunday sermons for the series. My church began Lent at an Ash Wednesday service that included a children’s sermon noted below. Since I’m such a slacker and did not post that sermon beforehand, you may want to adapt the First Sunday in Lent sermon to cover that object. Feel free to rearrange/substitute objects to fit your worship. Our point is to mark this Lenten Season as a time to set aside the important things we will need for the big, joyful, mysterious celebration of Easter so that we will be ready and new and special on that day.

for Ash Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Ash Wednesday
Year B
lectionary focus: Psalm 51:1-17
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big, mysterious celebration of Easter AND Alleluia streamers with bells attached to small dowels. You’ll want to have many of these streamers on dowels so that on Easter you can pass them around the congregation.

Good evening!

It’s kind of strange to be at a worship service at night in the middle of the week. But it’s also kind of cool!

I know that you all know about Easter. Easter is a big, bright, joyful special day. We say Alleluia! and Christ is risen! and The Lord is risen indeed! This big celebration is coming but it is not Easter yet. We are now in the time before Easter. This is called the Season of Lent. Lent is the time we get ready for the big celebration that is coming. Easter is bright and colorful and loud. But Lent is dark and gray and quiet. Lent is a time when we focus on getting ourselves ready for the celebration, but we don’t celebrate just yet.

Our Bible story tonight reminds us that we must prepare ourselves to praise God. We pray so that we may ready for what God puts into our hearts.

This Lenten Season we will be putting away the things we will need for our Easter celebration so that we will be ready and feel new and be special on that day. Tonight we have these streamers that you guys made in Sunday School last week. Each streamer says Alleluia! This is an important word for Easter Sunday. It is one word that lifts many praises to God. And to remind us that it is a special important Easter word, we don’t let ourselves say this word during the Season of Lent. We save it. But notice we have many streamers that have “this” word on them. Not one streamer, but many…one for you and you and you and you and you and all of them out there and everybody. Because on Easter we need everybody’s voice to praise God. So now I’ll place the streamers in our trunk. They will be here ready for us to unpack on Easter and use to lift many praises to God.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Be with us
during the dark and quiet of Lent
as we prepare ourselves
for the bright and joyful
Easter celebration.
We love you.
You love us.
Amen

**

for Sunday, February 22, 2015
First Sunday in Lent
Year B
lectionary focus: Genesis 9:8-17; 1 Peter 3:18-22; Mark 1:9-15
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big mysterious celebration of Easter AND the baptismal pitcher or other baptismal object.

Good morning!

The sanctuary looks a little different today. You notice that the paraments are now purple. And we have this big trunk at the front of the church. We are now in the Season of Lent. Lent is the time we prepare for the big celebration that is coming. You know about Easter. Easter is a big, bright, joyful celebration. We say Christ is risen and The Lord is risen indeed. This big celebration is coming but it is not Easter yet. Lent is a time when we focus on getting ourselves ready for the celebration, but we don’t celebrate just yet. On last Wednesday night, we began our preparations for Easter by packing away the streamers that you guys made. I wonder if you remember the special Easter word that is on the streamers. Let us whisper this word now. (Alleluia.) We don’t use this special Easter word during Lent. By keeping this word silent during Lent, it will make this word extra loud and joyful on Easter.

Today we are packing away another item that we will need for our big Easter celebration. This is our baptismal pitcher. You guys help Pastor Joe each week by carrying the pitcher full of water and pouring it into the font during the prayer. You do this to remind all of us that we are claimed by God, that we are all God’s children.

In our Bible story today, we hear about Noah and his family in the Old Testament going through the great flood. We also hear about Jesus in the New Testament being baptized in the river. These stories of water remind us that as the children of God, we go through the darkness of water, and we come out into the light of God.

Today we pack away the baptismal pitcher. We will not use it during Lent. This gives us time to be dark, and gray, and quiet. Then on Easter, we will unpack the pitcher. You will again pour the water. We will celebrate anew coming out of the darkness and into the light; we will rejoice anew that through the love of Jesus, God claims each and all of us as His children; we will shine anew with the brightness of God’s flowing love.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Be with us
during the dark and quiet of Lent
as we prepare ourselves
for the bright and joyful
Easter celebration.
We love you.
You love us.
Amen

**

for Sunday, March 1, 2015
Second Sunday in Lent
Year B
lectionary focus: Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16; Romans 4:13-25; Mark 8:31-38
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big, mysterious celebration of Easter AND the processional cross. (Fortunately ours comes apart into two pieces so it will fit in the trunk.)
bonus: We are considering a added wonderment of scattering sand around the entrances to the church. This will be an extended metaphor of Genesis 22:17. Not addressing this during the children’s sermon, but possibly in the adult sermon and/or Sunday School.

Welcome!

We are in the Season of Lent. We are preparing for the big, joyful, mysterious celebration of Easter, but it is not Easter yet. We are packing away the things we will need for our celebration. We have already loaded the trunk with those streamers with this Easter word that we do not say during Lent. We have placed our baptismal pitcher in the trunk awaiting the light at the end of the Lenten darkness. Today we will pack away our processional cross. I know…you must be thinking, ‘How is that going to fit into our trunk?’ Engineers are smart; the cross is made so we can take the top part off the pole and it won’t get damaged while it is packed away. And now, you are probably wondering, ‘Why pack away the cross?!’

In our Bible stories today, we are reminded that God has made a covenant with us. God has made a promise to us. Through Jesus, we have life eternal; through Jesus, we will always live with God. The cross is a symbol of the death and resurrection of Jesus. The cross is also a symbol that we no longer fear because we are always with God.

Each Sunday as the choir comes into the church, our acolyte carries the processional cross. This reminds us that we are each followers of Jesus, carrying a cross of resurrection and life. We will not be packing away all of our church crosses, just this big processional cross. Then on Easter, we will unpack it. We will again lift high our cross. We will again proclaim the love of Christ. We will again adore His sacred name. With brightness and joyfulness. We will be Easter people remembering anew God’s covenant and promise of life to us. God is with us always.

And so I place the cross in our trunk. It is kind of odd to pack away the cross. But we are not getting rid of it; we are not forgetting it; we are preparing the things we will need for the great celebration to come. We are allowing ourselves a time of darkness, so that we can shine in the brightness of Easter.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Be with us
during the dark and quiet of Lent
as we prepare ourselves
for the bright and joyful
Easter celebration.
We love you.
You love us.
Amen

**

for Sunday, March 8, 2015
Third Sunday in Lent
Year B
lectionary focus: Psalm 19:1-14 (verse 10)
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big, mysterious celebration of Easter AND a clean, empty doughnut box. (We have doughnut time after the service; we will continue this time of fellowship through Lent, but with another treat; I can’t wait to see the kids’ faces on this Sunday.)

Uh oh. I can see the excitement on your faces that I am holding a doughnut box. And now I can see the worry on your faces as you remember that during this time of worship we are packing away the things we will need for our big, joyful Easter celebration. Yes. You are right. Today we pack away the doughnuts. Just so you will know: this is an empty doughnut box. And just so you will know: I am sure there will be some sort of treat after the service.

And just so you will know: I wonder too why do we have to pack away the doughnuts???

The Bible is full of stories that speak to us of God, stories that share wisdom and hope and faith and love. And today’s story from Psalm 19 reminds us that God’s Word to us is sweeter than honey.

Each Sunday after church, we enjoy a time of fellowship, talking and eating doughnuts. This time of fellowship, of sharing God’s love with each other and reflecting on God’s Word to us, is very important and special. Today, to show we understand how special God’s Word is and how special our fellowship time together is, we are packing away the doughnuts. We will continue to have our fellowship time, but to give a little darkness and quiet in that time as we are in the Season of Lent, we will skip the doughnuts. And then on Easter Sunday, the doughnuts will return! We will spend our Easter fellowship time rejoicing in the resurrection of Jesus and the celebration of God’s Word, tasting the doughnuts that like God’s Word are as sweet as honey.

I place this empty doughnut box in our trunk. The box is next to our streamers with this Easter word we do not say during Lent. It is next to our baptismal pitcher and our processional cross. We are in the dark and quiet Season of Lent. We are preparing ourselves for the big, joyful mystery of Easter. The celebration is coming, but we are not celebrating yet.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Be with us
during the dark and quiet of Lent
as we prepare ourselves
for the bright and joyful
Easter celebration.
We love you.
You love us.
Amen

**

for Sunday, March 15, 2015
Fourth Sunday in Lent
Year B
lectionary focus: John 3:14-21
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big, mysterious celebration of Easter AND the Christ Candle.

Good morning!

Light is a big part of our worship service. Each Sunday, the acolytes bring the light into the church and  light our candles; and at the end of the service, they carry the light out into the world. The light is a symbol and a reminder that Jesus is the light of our lives. Through Jesus, there is no darkness. Through Jesus, we let the light of God’s love shine to those around us. We sing the song, This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. Our Bible story today says, “God so loved the world that He gave His only son; Light has come into the world; and whoever lives by the truth comes into the light.”

On Easter Sunday, we will start our celebration by lighting a new candle: this candle. This Christ candle is larger than our other candles. It is marked with the cross and the Greek letters alpha and omega, reminding us that Jesus is the beginning and the end. We use this candle throughout the Easter Season and on other special occassions. Lighting this candle on Easter will end our Lenten Season of darkness.

Then of course! We need to pack this candle away so that it is ready for our big, joyful Easter celebration. We place it here in our trunk next to the streamers, and the pitcher, and the cross, and the doughnut box. We know that this Lenten time of darkness and quiet will end. We will unpack the trunk. We will shout with joy and we will run with gladness. The celebration is coming but it is not time to celebrate yet.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Be with us
during the dark and quiet of Lent
as we prepare ourselves
for the bright and joyful
Easter celebration.
We love you.
You love us.
Amen

**

for Sunday, March 22, 2015
Fifth Sunday in Lent
Year B
lectionary focus: Jeremiah 31:31-34
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big, mysterious celebration of Easter AND the big, fancy Bible. We have a big, fancy Bible that stays on the lectern; during the children’s sermon we will take it from there to place in the trunk.

Welcome!

Before we start, I need to get something important. I’m going up here to the lectern and get an important book. I’m taking the big, fancy Bible. And I am sure you can guess what we are going to do with it. Yep, we are going to pack away the Bible. We’ve been surprised by some of the things we have packed away in our trunk for the upcoming big, joyful Easter celebration. But the Bible?? Don’t worry; our readers will still have a Bible to read our stories. But we are packing away this one for Easter because the Easter story is so big and so joyful that we need the big, fancy Bible for Pastor Joe to read.

I want to show you today’s Bible story. It is here, in the Book of Jeremiah. We read that God says, “I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” You know, it really doesn’t matter how big the Bible is or how fancy the binding or lettering. The important thing is that these stories are the Word of God to us. Through our Bible stories, God is telling us how to live; God is writing His word on our hearts. And that word is love.

Easter is the greatest story of love. And so on Easter, we will celebrate in a great big way and we will read this greatest story of love from the big, fancy Bible. For now, we place it here in our trunk to be ready with the streamers, and the pitcher, and the cross, and the candle, and the doughnuts. Soon we will unpack the trunk. We will shout with joy and run with gladness. The Easter celebration is coming but it is not time to celebrate yet.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Be with us
during the dark and quiet of Lent
as we prepare ourselves
for the bright and joyful
Easter celebration.
We love you.
You love us.
Amen

**

for Sunday, March 29, 2015
Palm Sunday
Year B
lectionary focus: Mark 11:1-11; John 12:12-16; John 13:1-7, 31B-35 (from Maundy Thursday’s readings)
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big, mysterious celebration of Easter AND the white vestment stole.

Good morning! Good morning!

It seems the celebrating has begun! But wait! While the dark and the gray and the quiet of Lent has gotten thin today, we have not arrived at the Easter celebration yet. In our Bible story today, the people welcome Jesus to Jerusalem, having a parade and waving palm branches as symbols of welcome and safety. But we know the rest of the story. We know that the real celebration is not here yet. While today we enjoying the palms and singing Hosanna, we know that this week we have to go through the darkest, grayest, quietest part of Lent before we come out into the brightest, shiniest, and most joyful Easter next Sunday.

And so today we finish packing our trunk for Easter. We started long ago packing the streamers with the Easter word. We then added the baptismal pitcher. We took apart and added our processional cross. Then we packed away the doughnuts. That was so hard to do!! Then the Christ Candle went in, followed by the big, fancy Bible. Seems we don’t have much left to pack. But today we will add the stole. The what? The stole. This is a stole. (point to the current one being worn by your pastor) The stole is this lovely cloth Pastor Joe wears over his robe. The stole is a sign that he is a preacher. It makes him look very fancy and special.

But the stole is also a symbol of work. Later this week we will hear the Bible story of the last meal Jesus has with his friends. During this meal, Jesus stops and washes the disciples’s feet. I know! It sounds crazy! We want clean hands when we eat, but Jesus gets down on his knees and washes his friends’ dirty, stinky feet! Like us, I am sure the disciples were wondering why He did that!!! And so we will all understand, Jesus explains. Yes, He said that He is our teacher and Lord, but He is showing us what we are called to do. We are called to work; we are called to take care of each. None of us is so fancy and so special that we cannot work for each other. So preachers wear the stole as a symbol of the towel Jesus used when He washed and dried the disciples’s feet, and the stole reminds us that we are called to work for each other.

Today we pack away Pastor Joe’s stole. But not this lovely purple one because purple is the color of Lent. For our bright, shiny Easter celebration, we change to a pure, shiny white. This is the stole we will pack today for Pastor Joe to wear next Sunday. (now show the white stole) This is the stole Pastor Joe will need for our big, mysterious, joyful Easter celebration next Sunday.

All of our objects are safely packed away. We are ready to celebrate, but we are not there yet.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Be with us
during the dark and quiet of Lent
as we prepare ourselves
for the bright and joyful
Easter celebration.
We love you.
You love us.
Amen

**

for Sunday, April 5, 2015
Easter Sunday
Year B

(Not to sound sacrilegious, but I am all about the theatre of church. I find it Holy when each part of the service flows from one moment to the next. I’ve also been around long enough to know this flow takes a lot of planning, preparation, practice, and work. As our packed trunk will be unpacked by the children at the opening of our Easter celebration, I have spent an afternoon with Pastor Joe blocking out the details. Here are our stage directions; adjust as fits your congregation. As the children’s sermon falls in its usual spot a third of the way through the service, scroll down if you want just the sermon.)

In addition to the Easter decorations, our Lenten trunk will be open, draped in white cloth, surrounded by Easter lilies, and bursting forth with all sorts of white streamers, banners, and garlands.

*  Choir processes in silently and takes their place in the loft.

*  The Chiming of the Hour.

*  Choir sings Verses One and Two of “Woman, Weeping in the Garden”
(solo male doing verse one; solo female doing verse two)
Glory to God: the Presbyterian Hymnal #241
Louisville, KY: Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, 2013.
also
Hymnary.org

*  Two acolytes enter from back of church with lit torches, stopping at Row One.

*  Pastor Joe, wearing his robe but not the stole, follows them and continues over to the trunk. He gets the big, fancy Bible and returns to stand between acolytes.

*  Pastor Joe: Please rise in body and spirit for the Gospel of the Lord.
Reads John 20:1-18, Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark…

*  Pastor Joe: The GOSPEL of the Lord.

*  Congregation: Praise to You, Lord Christ.

*  Pastor Joe: The congregation may be seated but I invite the children to come forward to unpack our Lenten trunk and prepare the sanctuary for our Easter celebration.

*  While the whole Choir now sings Verses Three, Four, and Five of “Woman, Weeping in the Garden,” there will be much messy and chaotic and (we hope) joyful activity:

* Acolytes go and light the candelabras and then meeting to light the Christ Candle together once it is unpacked and placed.
* Helping adults take their places as noted later.
* Children come down to meet Joe at the trunk.

* Joe hands the big, fancy Bible he was just reading to a child, “Run this up there to Miss Lindsey at the lectern and then run back down here.”

* Joe hands Christ Candle to a child, “Take this to Miss Fran over there and then run back over here.”

* Joe hands Processional Cross to a child, “Run this to Finn in the back of the church and then run back down here.”

*  Joe hands the baptismal pitcher to a child, “Run this to your mom in the back of the church.”  (This kid will be kept by her mom as in a few minutes she will process in with the filled pitcher.)

*  Joe hands out the boxes of doughnuts—yes, real doughnuts so there will be lots of boxes, all taped shut to prevent spilling—“Run these to Mr. Ben and Mr. Dave and Mr. Ray in the back of the church and then run back down here.”

*  Joe hands out the Alleluia streamers, “Here make sure every kid gets one of these when they come back.”

*  Joe gets two kids to put the white stole around his shoulders.

*  When all the kids return down front (except the one with the baptismal pitcher now in the back beside Finn with the processional cross),
Pastor Joe: Thank you for unpacking our trunk with the things we will need for our big, joyful Easter celebration. You are now holding the Alleluia streamers that you made long ago before Ash Wednesday. And we can now say that Easter word: Alleluia! Each time your hear this word today, I want you to wave your streamers and make the bells on them ring. Let’s practice: Alleluia! (Kids wave and ring.)

*  Pastor Joe: (Turning to the congregation) Please rise again in body and spirit for the Call to Worship.
(To the kids) Listen to how this goes.

*  Pastor Joe: Alleluia, Christ is Risen.
*  Congregation: Alleluia, Christ is Risen Indeed.
(Doing this a second time so all the kids can participate.)
*  Pastor Joe: Alleluia, Christ is Risen.
*  Congregation: Alleluia, Christ is Risen Indeed.

*  Opening Hymn

*  During the singing of the opening hymn, the Processional Cross is brought in, followed by the child with the baptismal pitcher who pours the waters into the font.

We will continue the Service…

Children’s Sermon
for Sunday, April 5, 2015
Easter
Year B
lectionary focus: John 20:1-18
props: Your trunk or other container for ‘packing away’ the things we will need for the big, mysterious celebration of Easter NOW EMPTY AS NOTED ABOVE.

Wow! Happy Easter! Everybody say, Alleluia! (Alleluia!)

Here we are at the big, joyful, mystery of Easter!

There sure was a lot of running this morning! I love how you all ran to unpack our Lenten trunk. I love how you ran to put each item from our Lenten trunk back in its place. Everything is now decent and in order.

In our Bible Story this morning, we heard about a lot of running. When Mary and the women found Jesus’s tomb empty, they ran to Peter and John. And then everybody ran back to the tomb and then, they all ran some more. They ran because things did not make sense and they were trying to find the sense of everything; they ran because things seemed out of control and they were trying to find some control for what was going on; they ran because everything seemed out of order and they were trying to find the order of everything.

And that’s the big, joyful, mystery of Easter:
The resurrection of Jesus puts order into our lives.

It’s that simple.
It’s that simple, but it’s that complex.
This doesn’t mean that everything in life is easy; this doesn’t mean the junk drawer in my kitchen is all organized and clutter-free; this doesn’t mean I will never be confused or sad again. Easter works with the craziness and puts order into our lives; Easter gives us direction, gives us purpose. And the direction, the purpose, the order in our lives is love.

Through the resurrection of Jesus, we know that God loves us. We know that nothing can separate us from God’s love. And as God loves us, we are called to love each other.

Long ago, on that first Easter, as the disciples were running around the empty tomb, Mary stood confused in the cemetery. A man asked her why she was crying. Mary turned around supposing the man to be the gardener; but He was Jesus, the gardener of the whole world. Mary turned around and found that Jesus had put love into our lives. When we want things to make sense, when we want to know how to lead, when we want to arrange everything in order, we go with love.

This is the mystery.
This is the direction.
This is the order.
For God so loved the world.
For God so loves you.

As you run, or walk, or crawl, or skip, or dance, or sit very, very still, remember Easter puts order in our lives. Easter puts love in our lives. We are Easter people. We are people of love.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Alleluia!
Christ is Risen!
Easter puts love in our lives.
Help us
put Your love
in the world.
Alleluia!
Amen

I hope you have enjoyed this Lenten/Easter series.
I’d love to read your comments.

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series 2015

Looking for Lent options? We are crafting a Lenten Series. (See the sermons here.)

Building on ‘Burying or Packing Away the Alleluia,’ each Sunday, we will add to our trunk special objects that we will use on Easter Sunday. Our phrase is ‘a big celebration is coming, but we are not there yet.’ We are looking forward to Easter remembering that we are Easter people on a journey with God. (And yes, we will key on the Revised Common Lectionary for each Sunday.)
I hope those of your reading this blog have figured out that many people have their fingerprints on it. This Lenten Series idea comes through my newest church buddy Pastor Joe Genau of my church Edgewood Presbyterian Church (PCUSA). Joe came to me with this ‘crazy’ idea…“I’ve got this huge trunk. It’s been my dream to use it…” And so the conversation exploded from there. We looked at the lectionary; we looked at other sites and readings about Packing Away the Alleluia; we looked at the kids in our congregation; and together we decided to get our kids ready for Easter by having them plan for the celebration, helping them figure out what we will need on that joyful Easter morning. I’m so excited about this series collaboration…and so excited about Pastor Joe including these kids in the worship of our Lord every Sunday. Love me some crazy!

Here is our outline:

Ash Wednesday: Pack Away the Alleluia Streamers
We have a large packing trunk that will be kept at the front of the church and draped in purple. At this first service, we will place many streamers with the word Alleluia. Yes, we need more than one, as it is not THE Alleluia, but YOUR Alleluia that we need on Easter.

1st Lent: Remembering our baptism, we pack away the baptismal pitcher.

2nd Lent: Remembering our covenant with God, we pack away the processional cross.

3rd Lent: Remembering the sweetness of God’s word, we pack away the doughnuts. Yes, this might be impossible! After worship each Sunday, we have fresh, warm doughnuts; today we will pack them away and not have them until Easter Sunday. (I’m sure there will be some other option…but we know this will get the kids’ attention.)

4th Lent: Remembering God’s grace, we pack away the Christ Candle.

5th Lent: Writing God’s word on our hearts, we pack away the big, fancy Bible.

Palm Sunday: Remembering that through the joy of the Palm Sunday parade and the darkness of Holy Week, we look to the light of Easter and pack away Pastor Joe’s white stole.

Maundy Thursday: The trunk will be closed and draped in black.

Easter Sunday: Now the trunk is open, draped in white, and filled with flowers and streamers and possibly balloons and other symbols of joy. Our service will begin with Pastor Joe and two acolytes processing to the front. Joe will unpack the big, fancy Bible. Flanked by the acolytes and their lit torches, he will read a portion of John 20:1-18 “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark…” Joe will then invite the children to come unpack the trunk with the special objects we need for our Easter celebration. Our hope is this will involve much running (as on the first Easter) with children taking the baptismal pitcher to be filled, carrying fresh hot doughnuts to the narthex, stationing the processional cross at the start of the choir line, lighting the Christ Candle at the front of the church, and passing out the many Alleluia streamers (which are on thin dowels and have bells tied to them) to all the children of God. Now that the children have helped us, we will begin our celebration of the big mystery of Easter. Later in the service, the children’s sermon will follow a traditional Easter sermon.

A more formal script coming soon…

Peace,
Fran

Lenten Series: They Are Holy (Almsgiving)

for Sunday, April 13, 2014
Palm Sunday
Passion Sunday
Year A
lectionary focus: Matthew 21:1-11; Matthew 26:14-27:66
note: This is part of our Lenten Series on Almsgiving. Today we are collecting toiletries for our local shelter; for our friends in the Southern Hemisphere, it would be cool to collect winter coats connecting to the laying of garments before Christ’s donkey.

Welcome! Thank you for your Almsgiving! Yes, here, we are gathering all of the toiletries into this basket. I see shampoo and soap and hairbrushes and toothpaste. So many items to help our friends feel clean and comfortable.

We call our church God’s house. We take care of God’s house by keeping it clean. We put back the hymnals and Bibles in the pew racks. We pick up our bulletins. During the week, we dust and vacuum. We change the flowers and the candles. We replace the burned out lightbulbs and put out new prayer cards. We repair anything that breaks. By making God’s house clean and neat, we keep it a comfortable and welcoming…and Holy place to be.

And since Jesus lives in our hearts, we also keep our bodies clean. My friend Margaret Atwood says, “In the Spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” I agree! But I also agree that after smelling like dirt, it feels really good to get clean. To bathe and shampoo my hair and put on lotion and fresh, clean clothes. Ah. Nice. Getting myself clean and neat makes me feel comfortable and healthy…and Holy.

Today is called Palm Sunday. Today we begin the last week leading us to the Mystery and Joy of Easter. Our Bible stories this week take us from riding in a parade, to carrying the cross, to finding the empty tomb. We go from happy, to sad, to joyful. So many important things happen this week that we call it Holy Week. And as our hearts and minds go through all of the emotions of Holy Week, we ask: What can we do to help others? Our Almsgiving this Lenten Season has shared bread and water and socks and eyeglasses and even treats for animals. Today we have brought toiletries. Yes, it is a funny word, but these are items that help our bodies feel clean and comfortable and ready to go forth into the world. We share these items with others who are having a hard time so that they will feel clean, that they will enjoy comfort, and that they will know we see Christ in them, we see them as Holy. Thank you for your Almsgiving. Thank you for doing this Holy work of sharing God’s love.

Next week we will begin Easter with great jubilation. We will rejoice in the Lord. We want you to bring flowers. Your flowers will fill the sanctuary with nature’s beauty…and then after church, we will share the flowers with those in our church family who are suffering from illness or conditions that keep them from coming to church. Since they cannot be here, we will take some of here to them.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
We enter Holy Week
thinking of others.
Bless our gifts for them
that they may feel clean,
that they may enjoy comfort,
that they may know we see them as Holy.
Amen

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series: Calling for You (Almsgiving)

for Sunday, April 6, 2014
5th Sunday in Lent
Year A
lectionary focus: John 11:1-45
note: This is part of our Lenten Series on Almsgiving. As another option to the Humane Society, we looked for an organization that supports Guide Animals, but could not find a local one that needed our assistance.

Welcome! Lots of dog food and cat food and pet treats! Thank you! Thank you! Our basket is so heavy!

During Lent our Almsgiving has focused on helping people. We’ve given bread and socks and eyeglasses and money to help provide clean water. Today our almsgiving goes to help animals. Like people, sometimes animals need help. Dogs and cats may have to go to an animal shelter and wait for a new family to give them a home. A few weeks ago my friend Jill and her family adopted a puppy. Now their home is busy with Harvey; walking him and feeding him and playing with him. We say that they are training him, but most of the time it is the puppy training the family how to care for him. Jill said that it was hard at the animal shelter to decide which puppy to adopt; they wanted to take them all! But their home could not handle 35 puppies and 13 cats. They chose Harvey and now their home is alive with puppy.

In our Bible Story today, one of Jesus’s best friends, Lazarus, is dying. Everyone is sad and has gathered together. Everyone, except Jesus. Jesus takes so long to arrive that in fact, Lazarus dies before He gets there. Lazarus’s sisters are hurt and upset. Jesus says to them, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” Then Jesus does a great miracle: Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus comes out of the tomb, comes back to life, because Jesus calls him to live. This miracle is amazing and one we would all like to see. The thing is, every day, Jesus calls each of us to live. Every day, Jesus calls us to come out into the world, and we answer this miraculous call to life by caring for each other.

Today our caring extends to the animals of God’s world. Some people may think it odd we are helping animals. But when God created the world, God made us responsible for taking care of each other and of all creation. Like people, sometimes animals need our help. We can’t adopt all of the dogs and cats, but our gifts today support the shelters that help the animals until they find their new best friends. We are answering Jesus’s call to live by helping God’s creation…the people creations and the animal creations. Thank you for sharing in God’s miracle of life.

Next Sunday is called Palm Sunday and we begin what is called Holy Week…the week leading us to Easter Sunday. Next week, we ask that you bring what we call toiletries. No, not a toilet like in the bathroom, but toiletries, items we use in the bathroom to make our bodies clean: soap and shampoo and toothpaste and brushes and lotions. Come and see how these gifts help share God’s love and make others feel welcomed.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Thank You
for Your people.
Thank You
for Your animals.
Blessing our gifts
as we answer Your call
to live
to love
to share in the miracle of life.
Amen

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series: On Top of Your Head (Almsgiving)

for Sunday, March 30, 2014
4th Sunday in Lent
Year A
lectionary focus: John 9:1-41
note: This is part of our Lenten Almsgiving Series; you will need a basket to collect the eyeglasses. We will be giving the old prescription lens to our local Lions Club and the new reading glasses to one of our shelters. The opening story will work with eyeglasses or sunglasses.

Welcome! See all of the eyeglasses! Thank you! Thank you! Here put them in this basket. Wow. So many for our almsgiving. Thank you.

Yesterday I went looking for my own glasses. Since I only need them to read and see things up close, I put them down and sometimes forget where they are. I looked beside the bed because I had used them reading the night before. Not there. I looked in my purse. Not there. I looked in the kitchen. Not there. I looked beside the computer. Not there. So I went to my husband and said, “Have you seen my glasses? I can’t find them anywhere!” And Mr. Bill said, “I see them. They are on top of your head.” (You can act this out and end with them on top of your head.)

In our Bible story today, Jesus heals a man who was blind, someone who had never been able to see his whole life. This miracle caused quite a stir. The people argued about how it had happened and when it had happened and who was this Jesus. But the man who had been blind was not confused. He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he praised Jesus.

Seeing with our eyes is important. Through our eyes, we see where we are going and what we are doing and whom we are with. But Jesus did not work just to heal those blind in their eyes. Jesus lived His life that we all are able to see the Kingdom of God with our hearts. Jesus is the light of the world, and through His teachings and blessings and love, we each are able to see with our hearts all of the beauty of God’s world around us. And seeing God’s world, we want to share God’s love with each other.

Today we have collected eyeglasses. As tools, these will help others see with their eyes more clearly; as gifts, these will help others see God’s love with their hearts. Thank you for your almsgiving that we all might see and share God’s Kingdom.

Next Sunday, we will hear a story about a best friend so we are asking you to bring dog food and cat food and pet treats.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Thank You
for our eyes that see.
Thank You
for our hearts that see.
Please bless our almsgiving
that others my see Your Kingdom
and know Your love.
Amen

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series: Living Love (Almsgiving)

for Sunday, March 23, 2013
3rd Sunday in Lent
Year A
lectionary focus: John 4:5-42
notes: Have extra cups (and extra cups of coins) ready before the service. We are using Red cups for accent. 

Welcome!

Look at all the Cups of Coins! Everybody rattle your coins in your cups! Such a joyful noise! Now everybody pour your coins into this big basket. What a marvelous sound! It is so loud and tinkly. (Collect all of the coins into one big basket; you might want to have an older youth collect the now empty cups to keep them from being a distraction.) But these Cups of Coins don’t sound anything like water, do they?

Our Bible Story today sounds like it is about water. In the Gospel of John, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at the well, the place where the people get their water since they don’t have sinks with faucets. Every day the people have to go to the well to get water that they use for drinking and cooking. Every day. Back and Forth. Jesus points out to the woman that everyone who drinks the water from the well will be thirsty again. Then Jesus tells her that He has Living Water, water that becomes in us a spring gushing up to eternal life.

Like our Cups of Coins, this Living Water doesn’t sound like water at all.

Many times in the Bible, stories speak of one thing but mean something else. In this story, Jesus says Living Water, but He is really talking about God’s love. Our bodies need water to live; each day we get thirsty to remind ourselves to drink what our bodies need. But we also need God’s love. And the joy Jesus shares is this, we are never without God’s love. God’s love fills us like a big, old bucket that never empties. God’s love just grows more and more. The more of God’s love that we share, the more of God’s love that we experience. Living Water is really Living Love.

The Cups of Coins that you brought today will be used to share water AND God’s love. There are people around the world who do not have the clean drinking water our bodies need. We will send our Cups of Coins to Living Waters for the World. Through this organization, we will help dig wells in these communities. Through this organization, we will share God’s love. Today your almsgiving gives others what they need: water for living and living water. I like the sound of that. Thank you.

Next Sunday, we ask you to bring eyeglasses: either old prescription glasses that are no longer needed or a pair of new reading glasses that you choose from the store. We will SEE how those connect with our Bible story next week.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Thank You
for water to drink.
Thank You
for water to live.
Thank You
for Your love
that never ends.
Bless those
who need drinking water
that we may also show them
Your endless love.
Amen

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series: Your Going Out, Your Coming In, Your Socks (Almsgiving)

for Sunday, March 16, 2014
2nd Sunday in Lent
Year A
lectionary focus: Psalm 121
note 1: This is part of our Lenten Series on Almsgiving. I originally thought I would use the lectionary from John for this sermon, but changed my mind to use the Psalm.
note 2: Have a basket to collect the socks.
note 3: Have cups (we are going to use red plastic cups) to pass out for next week’s almsgiving: collecting coins in cups for Living Waters of the World.

Look at all of the socks you have brought! Our basket is so full! Thank you! Thank you!

When we think of Bible stories, we don’t often think of socks. I think that most of the people back then wore sandals without socks. But in today’s story, we read from the book of Psalms. In verse one, we hear, “I lift up my eyes to the hills–from where will my help come?” I think you know the answer to the Psalmist’s question. In verse eight, we hear, “The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time on and forevermore.” In this Psalm and throughout the Bible, we hear how God guides our feet, always here to help us, always here to love us, always here to walk with us.

For the past many weeks, Pastor Catherine has had a hard time walking with her broken foot. Yes, her “boot” is really cool looking, much like an astronaut’s boot. And her scooter is even cooler, more like a toy than a tool. But Catherine has confessed to me that we don’t really think much about our feet until they hurt or they don’t work right. She is not able to go running or hiking or even to walk the dog! And you’ve seen how she has a hard time on the chancel steps. Catherine is getting a good lesson in an old saying, “Your feet are your friends.”

In my family, we like to do lots of walking and so to remind the people in our family that we love them, we like to give socks as presents. When we give each other really nice, comfy, sturdy, good socks, we are saying, “Hey, I want your feet to feel good. I want your feet to be strong and healthy so that you can walk well and do the things God calls you to do.”

Today you have brought socks: nice, comfy, sturdy, good socks. And this afternoon, Mr. Bill and I will take these socks to the First Light Shelter. The guests are at the Shelter because they need help; they are having a hard time in their lives. Through your gift, they will know that you want their feet to feel good; they will know that you want them to walk boldly and strongly and comfortably; they will know that God loves them because you have shared with them. Your almsgiving this week will help meet their need in a loving way. Thank you for sharing God’s love this way.

To prepare for next week’s almsgiving, I am going to give each of you a cup today. Our Bible story next week is about water. Now I’m not asking you to bring your cup back full of water…that would be silly…but I am asking that you bring your cup back full of coins! You will see next week how your cup of coins can help meet others’ need for water.

Will you say a prayer with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Thank You
for my feet.
Thank You
for walking with me.
Please bless these socks
as we share them with others
so they will know
our love
and Your love
and they will walk
boldly and strongly and comfortably
with You.
Amen

We are not Christians alone,
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series: Flour, Water, Yeast, Salt, and You (Almsgiving)

The first Sunday  of Lent in our Lenten Series focussing on the Discipline of Almsgiving.
for Sunday, March 9, 2014
First Sunday in Lent
Year A
lectionary focus: Matthew 4:1-11
note: Have a big basket on the chancel steps to collect the loaves of bread brought by the children for today’s almsgiving. (You might also want to have some extra loaves to give to those children whose family forgot.)
note 2:  The opening story comes from Sleeping With Bread by Dennis Linn, Shelia F. Linn, and Matthew Linn (1995) (Google eBook)

Welcome! Such beautiful loves of bread!! Please place them here in this basket.

Long ago during World War II, there were children whose homes were destroyed and their families separated by the warfare. Those children were then kept safe in various camps. But because of the war and the destruction and the stress they were living through, many of these children had a hard time sleeping. Someone decided to give each child a piece of bread to hold during the night. The bread in their hands reminded the children that they had eaten that day and that they would have food to eat the next day. The bread reminded them that they were not alone, giving them comfort, making them feel safe, and they could sleep.

In our Bible story today from the Book of Matthew, Jesus has spent some time alone in the wilderness praying and preparing for His ministry. Because He has been out there so long, He is hungry. Satan comes to Him and tempts Him to change the rocks into bread to eat. Jesus is not one to be tricked by the Devil, but Jesus responds in a tricky way. Jesus says that man does not live by bread alone.

Now Jesus is NOT getting ready to explain the different food groups and how to eat a balanced diet. What we hear from Jesus is the reminder that we do not live our lives by ourselves. We are not alone. We live our lives WITH God and WITH each other.

We are now in the Season of Lent. During this Season, we are focussing on the discipline of almsgiving. As we find ways to make sure that others have what they need, we strengthen our relationship with God and each other. Today you brought loaves of bread. Mr. Bill and I will take all of this bread after the service down to the First Light Homeless Shelter. The guests there will enjoy this bread with their dinner tonight. They will be nourished. And in this stressful, lonely, and fearful time in their lives, they will feel comfort and safety. They will have food today and know that they will have something to eat tomorrow. But most importantly, the guests at the shelter will feel your love and God’s love. Through your gift, they will know that they are not alone.

Thank you for bringing these beautiful loaves today! Next week, we will hear the story of Nicodemus going out to meet Jesus…and so we are asking you to bring new socks for your almsgiving on next Sunday. Again, we will email you on Thursday to remind you!

Now will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Thank You
for Bread.
Thank You
that we are not alone.
Please bless this Bread
as we share it with others
so they will know
our love
and Your love.
Amen

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series 2013 There’s a Prayer for That…The Lord Needs It

for Sunday, March 24, 2013
Palm Sunday
Passion Sunday
Year C
lectionary focus: Luke 19:28-40
Note: If you have not been using our Lenten Series, you can easily modify the references to make this a stand-alone sermon.

Good Morning!
Today is Palm Sunday!

Today we celebrate Jesus entering the city of Jerusalem. We wave palm branches as they did long ago in ancient times as a sign of home and safety. But my favorite part of the parade, my favorite part of the story is the “colt.” Jesus riding the young horse reminds me of Mary riding the donkey in the story of Jesus’ birth. In all the other stories, Jesus walks or is in a boat–but today He rides a colt. And when He sends the disciples to a friend’s to get the colt, He tells them that if anyone asks why they are getting the colt, “Tell them the Lord needs it.”

We are almost to the end of the Season of Lent. Now we enter Holy Week as we prepare for the Joy and Mystery of Easter next Sunday. During the Sundays of Lent, we have been discussing prayer as a way to be close to God. Prayer is how we talk to God. We talk to God about things that make us happy, things that scare us, things we need, and things our friends need…but prayer is not a list of things we want; prayer is not directions we give to God. And today’s story of Jesus riding the colt reminds us of this. No matter what happens, no matter why we pray, God has a plan. Just as God had a plan and a need for the young horse, God has a plan and needs each of us. And whenever we pray, we tell God that we know this. Jesus taught us to pray to God saying, “Thy will be done.” This means we will do what God needs us to do. We pray and share our thoughts and feelings but we also express our faith that God has a plan for us, a purpose for us, and we trust God.

Holy Week is difficult as we remember the end of Jesus’s life on earth. We start by waving palm branches and then we walk through the dark stories of the Passion and the Crucifixion. But through all of this, we know that God has a plan. And next Sunday, we will rejoice that God’s plan as seen in the death and resurrection of Jesus includes loving each of us now and always.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Today we remember the parade
and we wave palm branches
and we think about the colt.
Help us
to continue to pray
sharing our thoughts and feelings
with You.
We have faith
in Your plan
for us.
Amen

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.

Lenten Series There’s a Prayer for That…Costly Perfume

for Sunday, March 17, 2013
5th Sunday in Lent
lectionary focus: John 12:1-8
prop: your Church bulletin

Good morning!

Long ago in another church, I was at a planning meeting for organizing the worship service.  My friend Susan said that she was in charge of the “Pop” and asked who else wanted to help with the “Pop” and if there was anyone that needed to be included in the “Pop.” I had no idea what she was talking about! I wondered What is the “Pop”? Did we have a “Pop” in the service? Maybe it was a Who? Was it somebody’s dad? So I asked, “What are you talking about?” Susan explained that those letters P O P stood for Prayers of the People…the part of the church service where we pray for other people.

Oh! Different churches call this prayer in the service by different names. Some call it Prayers of the People…or POP; some call it Concerns of the People; some call it the Prayers for Intercession; our church calls it (insert your church’s pray name) and it comes right here in the service (show it’s place in the bulletin). But whatever it is called, every church has a time in the service to lift up prayers for others. Each Sunday we ask God to help those around us near and far.

We are now in the Season of Lent. This is the time we prepare for the Mystery and Joy of Easter. One way we prepare and work on being closer to God is through prayer. We pray to God giving Him thanks for all He gives us; we pray when we are scared asking for comfort; we pray for forgiveness to keep us clean on the inside; we pray for God to help us. But when we pray, we do not pray just for ourselves.

In our Bible story today, Jesus’s friend Mary helps Jesus…and some of the others think she is wasting her help. They say she should be helping someone who really needs help. But Jesus points out that everyone needs help. And of course, He’s right. We all need help. And we are here to help each other. One way to help is to pray for each other. When we lift up our family, our friends, even people we have never met, we are building God’s community by bringing us all closer to God. Whether we are asking God to be with someone who is having a hard time or a exciting time, we are helping make God’s world more hopeful, more peaceful, and more beautiful.

We don’t have to save our Pop prayers for church. We can put a little Pop in all of our prayers.

Will you pray with me? (This is an echo prayer: the leader says a line and the children repeat it.)

Dear Lord,
Thank You
for helping me.
Please Lord
help my family,
help my friends,
help all of Your children
that Your world
will be hopeful,
peaceful,
and more beautiful.
Amen

We are not Christians alone.
My mission is to share, inspire, and encourage.