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Greeting
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
And also with you.
Bless the Lord who forgives all our sins.
God’s mercy endures forever.
Words of Introduction
Brothers and sisters, since early days followers of Christ have observed with great devotion the time of our Lord’s passion and resurrection and prepared for this by a season of penitence and fasting.
By carefully keeping these days, Christians take to heart the call to repentance and the assurance of forgiveness proclaimed in the gospel, and so grow in faith and in devotion to our Lord.
I invite you, therefore, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy word.
Opening Prayer
O God, maker of everything and judge of all that you have made, from the dust of the earth you have formed us and from the dust of death you would raise us up.
By the redemptive power of the cross, create in us clean hearts and put within us a new spirit, that we may repent of our sins and lead lives worthy of your calling; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Opening Song - “Reckless Love”
Old Testament Lesson
Psalter - Psalm 51 #785
Epistle Lesson
Song of Praise - “Amazing Love”
Gospel Lesson
Practicing Piety
Piety is a word that deeply ingrained into the psyche of many Methodists.
John Wesley used the phrase “works of piety” to describe the ways in which we enter into a deeper relationship with God.
These were such things as prayer, Bible study, attending to the sacraments, holy conversation, and public and private worship.
Wesley was heavily influenced by the German Pietist movement that was part of the Moravians with whom Wesley had a deep relationship.
The German Pietist movement was born out of the Reformation as a counter to the public displays of religiosity from the Roman Catholic Church.
They wanted to go inward with their faith.
They wanted to look deep into the soul of humanity and for God to take them on that journey to weed out sin and seek to live a life of holiness.
So, when we get to Ash Wednesday and the celebrating of Lent, it should the Methodists time to shine.
However, we, like so many other denominations who were influenced by the Pietist, have not kept the tradition alive.
But perhaps this is the time to rediscover what piety is as we journey together from now until Easter toward transformation and seeking how God will influence us along the way.
Lent is a season that many characterize as a time to give up something that they may consider a vice such as eating chocolate or watching too much television.
I believe the Girl Scouts purposely do their selling of cookies around Lent as a way of temptation for so many.
However, several years ago I learned that giving up things that seem rather trivial is not what God has in mind.
Go back to what David says in Psalm 51:16-17
God does not delight in our “sacrifices” of M&M’s or thin mints.
He is not pleased just because we turn the television off a little more.
It is not to say these are bad things.
Certainly, we could all use less sugar and screen time in our lives.
But notice what is important - brokenness.
Coming to God with a humble spirit that is moldable and shapeable.
As Jeremiah observed when walking to watch a potter make a pot in Jeremiah 18:4-6
I have learned over the years - call it wisdom, experience, or even frustration - that God is not searching for us to give up some extravagant thing as a sacrifice to him.
The sacrifice comes when we get to Good Friday as the one true sacrifice of God lays down his life for us.
Instead, God calls us to a time of humility.
Jesus tells the disciples and others as much in Matthew 6. Don’t be like the Pharisees when they pray or give alms or fast.
They want everyone to see it.
What we are to do is do it privately so that our Father in heaven is the only one that sees it.
We don’t store up for ourselves treasures in this life like praise being heaped on us for being so pious and holy during Lent.
Rather, we are to do these things for the purpose of drawing us closer to God as we spend time with him and give of ourselves.
We are to be as Paul says in Romans 12:1-2
May this Lenten season be a time where we focus on the ways that we can draw closer to God to be a living sacrifice unto him.
May we seek to be transformed and reconciled so that we live into the image of God.
Invitation to Observe a Holy Lent
Blessing and Marking with Ashes
Almighty God, you have created us out of the dust of the earth.
Grant that these ashes may be to us a sign of our mortality and penitence, so that we may remember that only by your gracious gift are we given everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Savior.
Amen.
Confession and Pardon
Christ our Lord invites to his table all who love him, who earnestly repent of their sin and seek to live in peace with one another.
Therefore, let us confess our sin before God and one another
Congregation prays together:
Merciful God, we confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart.
We have failed to be an obedient church.
We have not done your will, we have broken your law, we have rebelled against your love, we have not loved our neighbors, and we have not heard the cry of the needy.
Forgive us, we pray.
Free us for joyful obedience, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Hear the good news: Christ died for us while we were yet sinners; that proves God's love toward us.
In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!
Congregation:
In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!
All:
Glory to God.
Amen.
Passing the Peace
The Great Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is right, and a good and joyful thing,
always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Father Almighty (almighty God), creator of heaven and earth.
You brought all things into being and called them good.
From the dust of the earth you formed us into your image
and breathed into us the breath of life.
When we turned away, and our love failed, your love remained steadfast.
When rain fell upon the earth for forty days and forty nights,
you bore up the ark on the waters, saved Noah and his family,
and made covenant with every living creature on earth.
When you led your people to Mount Sinai for forty days and forty nights,
you gave us your commandments and made us your covenant people.
When your people forsook your covenant,
your prophet Elijah fasted for forty days and forty nights;
and on your holy mountain, he heard your still small voice.
And so, with your people on earth and all the company of heaven,
we praise your name and join their unending hymn:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
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