March 22, 2026
CHIMING OF THE HOUR
WELCOME
PRAYER
God, you loved the world so much
that you embraced it in all its suffering
in your beloved Son Jesus Christ,
who sought the way of the cross
that he might come to Easter
and offer us the way back to you.
We thank you for this space apart,
not just on this Sunday morning
but in the weeks that are to come –
space to become more receptive
to the incredible promise of new life:
life to challenge all that is deathly in our world,
life to challenge all that is dull in our hearts.
Help us to use this time,
not just in prayer at worship,
but in the thoughtfulness
in which we go about these coming days,
listening for your voice in all we do,
as you challenge the habits that restrict us
and the assumptions that close our minds.
Help us also to be aware of others
who at this time are examining themselves,
whether from religious duty
or because they have reached a turning point,
in a career, or in a relationship, or in a crisis.
Give us an ear that listens
that we may find the words to sustain
and the openness to learn
through Jesus Christ,
our deliverance and our hope. Amen.
PRELUDE “Fantazia on Wondrous Love” Mark Radice
CALL TO WORSHIP
As children of God, we dwell in the Spirit,
and the Spirit dwells in us.
We are alive in the Spirit
through the righteousness of God.
In humility and faith, we come to worship the One
who gives us life, hope, and healing.
God has brought us to this moment
and will guide us still.
Praise the Lord!
*HYMN No. 215 “What Wondrous Love Is This”
1 What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul,
what wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
to bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
to bear the dreadful curse for my soul!
2 When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
when I was sinking down, sinking down,
when I was sinking down
beneath God’s righteous frown,
Christ laid aside his crown for my soul, for my soul,
Christ laid aside his crown for my soul!
3 To God and to the Lamb, I will sing, I will sing,
to God and to the Lamb, I will sing;
to God and to the Lamb who is the great I am,
while millions join the theme, I will sing, I will sing;
while millions join the theme, I will sing!
4 And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
and when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on;
and when from death I’m free, I’ll sing and joyful be,
and through eternity, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
and through eternity I’ll sing on.
CALL TO CONFESSION
Christ is nearer to us than we can imagine.
Jesus’ power is not just for a distant past
and a far-off future.
Jesus is here for us here and now.
Because there is forgiveness with God,
let us call upon the Lord.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
God of resurrection,
We know the power of death.
We have seen its works,
we have felt its sting.
We have been to the valley of despair,
and felt like there was no chance for life.
We do not believe in your power to resurrect.
We do not believe in your power to redeem our pain,
and fashion something beautiful in this world.
Forgive us.
We cry from the depths—
however faint our call may be,
we pray you hear our voice.
Thanks be to God, Amen.
Silence is observed
RESPONSE AFTER CONFESSION NO. 575 “Lord, Have Mercy Upon Us”
Choir Lord, have mercy upon us;
Christ, have mercy upon us;
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Congregation Lord, have mercy upon us;
Christ, have mercy upon us;
Lord, have mercy upon us.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
Thus says the Lord,
You shall know that I am the Lord
when I open your graves,
and bring you up from your graves, O my people.
I will put my spirit within you,
and you shall live.
We believe the good news!
Thanks be to God.
RESPONSE AFTER ASSURANCE NO. 603 “Lamb of God”
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
grant us, O grant us your peace.
*PASSING OF THE PEACE OF CHRIST
Before the foundation of the world Christ forgave us, and forgives us still today. Let us forgive as we have been forgiven and share the peace of Christ.
May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
And also with you.
Worshippers are invited to briefly “pass the peace” of Christ to those directly seated around them thus keeping our worship time “decent and in order” with a focus upon being part of God’s community.
ANTHEM “Gentle Lamb of Calvary” Stan Pethel
CHILDREN’S MESSAGE
UNISON PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION
Gracious God, our way in the wilderness,
guide us by your Word through these forty days,
and minister to us with your Holy Spirit,
so that we may be reformed,
restored, and renewed;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
SCRIPTURE Ezekiel 37:1-14
37 The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. 3 He said to me, “Mortal, can these bones live?” I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath[a] to enter you, and you shall live. 6 I will lay sinews on you and will cause flesh to come upon you and cover you with skin and put breath[b]in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”
7 So I prophesied as I had been commanded, and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them, but there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath:[c] Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath,[d] and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.” 10 I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.
11 Then he said to me, “Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.’ 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them: Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves and bring you up from your graves, O my people, and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord when I open your graves and bring you up from your graves, O my people. 14 I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.”
Pause…
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God!!
SERMON
When the promising young Hebrews were dragged into exile in Babylon, they were not kept in prisons or even camps. They were free to marry, build homes, plant crops and exchange goods. Some became quite wealthy. They were also free to assemble, elect leaders and worship. But the Hebrews had a hard time worshiping in exile because they never got over the destruction of their holy city and temple in Zion.
They were not where they wanted to be, or where they were supposed to be. So they lived with a sadness that ran down to their bones. And they refused to “sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land.”
Often when people’s lives have been interrupted by a great tragedy, they stop coming to worship. I used to think this was because they were embarrassed by their loss of a loved one, job or health. But I’ve discovered that more often the reason people stop worshiping is that they have lost their vision of God. To stand in worship beside so many who are singing praise to the Lord just creates too much existential contradiction. It’s a tragic irony of the soul that in the times we most need to worship; we find it most difficult.
Like the exiles in Babylon, we try to numb the spiritual pain by making life more comfortable. We work hard. We collect a lot of things. We buy houses, plant our roots, live quietly and try to make Babylon as nice as we can. But however nicely we decorate it, Babylon is still not our home. And the day we deaden our longing for God is the day we spiritually die. Then the rest of us begins to slowly die, from the inside out.
Eventually things got so cozy for the Hebrew exiles that even after they were encouraged to go to Jerusalem most of them didn’t want to go back. The old dream of living in the Lord’s presence had died buried under piles and piles of coping devices.
So one day the Spirit of the Lord grabbed hold of his prophet Ezekiel, and took him to a valley filled with dry bones. The Lord asked Ezekiel, “Mortal, can these bones live?” Looking around at all those skeletons, Ezekiel thought hard and said, “Ah, Lord, you know the answer to this one.” Then the Lord told him to start preaching to the bones. The Lord even gave him the message: ” O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live . . . And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
How foolish this must have looked. The Lords prophet, standing in the middle of a pile of dead bones, is telling them not to give up hope. If I was Ezekiel, I would have gently suggested that the Lord first bring these bones back to life, and then I’ll do a little preaching. “See,” I’d say, “See what God can do?” But that is not the way of God, who calls us to believe without seeing. That is because the Lord’s words always make room for hope. And it is the hope that brings us back to life. Hope rises up from our bones, and chooses to believe in spite of how it is.
Walter Brueggemann has written that hope proclaims that the way things appear is precarious. So, we dare not absolutize the present. Don’t take it too seriously. Don’t bank on today because it will not last. Thus, hope is revolutionary. That is why the poor are great at hoping, and why we in the middle and upper classes who are coping well in Babylon have such a hard time with hope. We think we are doing well enough. Our only worry is that we will lose ground tomorrow. But if we turn against tomorrow, we turn our back on hope. It is then that the human spirit begins to wither away.
The apostle Paul told the believers in Rome that the one “who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you” (Rom. 8:11). The church has always found its life not in what it sees today but in the Spirit of the God who raises dead hopes. The day we lose our ability to envision a better tomorrow is the day we deny that we really believe in the resurrection.
Why does the church keep pouring out its little cup of water into the West Bank, Sudan and other desperate places of the world where hope has run dry? Why do we keep visiting the shirt-ins and those in hospitals when we have no miracle drug to take away their pain? Why do we commit ourselves to the political process when there is so much cynicism and a malaise of despair in politics today? Why? Because God is not done.
So, we will take our stand beside Ezekiel and proclaim our hope to the dry bones, “Thus, says the Lord, I will cause breath to enter you and you shall live!” You who gave up hope, who gave up dreaming — who have settled for a comfortably routine life of work, bills and dirty laundry. You who think your best years are behind you. You who think the Lord God has forgotten all about your little life.
To you, we say, “Arise!” Arise from the heap of discarded dreams. Arise to discover that the Holy Spirit is breathing life back into you. Arise to live with magnificent hope! Because the world is dying for you to believe God is not done.
*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH Patmos Abbey—The Order of Saint Columba
We believe that our lives are held within the encircling love of God, who knows our names and recognizes our deepest needs. We believe that Christ is the divine Child of the living God, and that his grace is like living waters that can never be exhausted. We believe in the birthing, renewing, enabling Spirit of God who yearns over our welfare as a mother yearns for her child. We believe that God is in the arid desert as well as in green pastures, and that hard times and disciplines are also loving gifts. We believe that our journey has a purpose and a destination, and that our path leads to a human glory we cannot yet imagine. We believe that in the church we are fellow pilgrims on the road, and that we are called to love one another as God loves us. This is our faith and we are humbled to profess in Jesus the Christ. Amen
*HYMN No. 286 “Breathe on Me, Breath of God”
1 Breathe on me, Breath of God;
fill me with life anew,
that I may love what thou dost love,
and do what thou wouldst do.
2 Breathe on me, Breath of God,
until my heart is pure,
until with thee I will one will,
to do and to endure.
3 Breathe on me, Breath of God,
till I am wholly thine,
until this earthly part of me
glows with thy fire divine.
4 Breathe on me, Breath of God,
so shall I never die,
but live with thee the perfect life
of thine eternity.
THE PASTORAL PRAYER & THE LORD’S PRAYER
As we join together in prayer, take a moment now to slow down and center. Let go of the stresses and distractions that stand between you and God. Take a few deep breaths. Let your body and mind relax; feel the warm embrace of God. Let us pray.
Almighty God, we live in troubled times. There are conflicts amongst people within the borders of our country, within other nations and between nations. As opinions differ, the way forward becomes blurred. Many fear for their safety and even for their survival of body, mind and spirit. Peace for many appears distant and unattainable. Wars continue to rage resulting in death and trauma.
Newspapers are full of troubling news. We are bombarded daily with news of the struggles of many in our communities. Many aspects of our lives that once seemed stable are now in turmoil. Much of this is frightening as we try to understand the future. Even the present time feels unpredictable. God, hear us now as we lay before you our worries and our fears confident in the healing and guiding presence of your Holy Spirit.
(Moment of Silent Reflection)
Lord, guide our minds and open our eyes to see your presence among us.
We pray that you be with those who are suffering — from wars, from natural disasters, from economic unpredictably. Be with those who endure social injustice, political turmoil, and violence. May they find comfort, strength and guidance in your presence.
Be with those who are suffering from illness and emotional distress or despair. Be with those facing or recovering from surgery. May they find comfort, strength and guidance in your presence.
Be with those who have lost loved ones. May they find comfort, strength and guidance in your presence.
Be with the leaders of our cities, our states, our country, and the nations of the world. Guide their thoughts and actions towards peaceful solutions to problems that are tearing us apart. May they find strength and courage in your presence.
Open our eyes to be faithful stewards of your creation. May we see the needs of those around us and the ways in which we can work towards peace and justice.
We pray all these things in the name of Jesus Christ, with whom we entrust all our prayers and who taught us to pray by saying, “Our Father …”
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. Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
PASSING OF FELLOWSHIP PADS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
TITHES & OFFERINGS
As the well-known hymn says, “Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe.” Everything we have, we owe to the grace of God. Therefore, it is only right that we return a portion of those gifts to God, whether it be financial, our skills and talents, or our relationships. Let us take this moment to give these gifts to God.
OFFERTORY ANTHEM
*RESPONSE N0. 620, v.4 “Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven”
Angels, help us to adore him;
you behold him face to face.
Sun and moon, bow down before him,
dwellers all in time and space:
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise with us the God of grace.
*PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
Holy God, we offer these gifts to you, fruits of our labors and a token of our appreciation for everything that you have done for us and given to us. We pray that you guide their use for the welfare of your people. Amen.
*HYMN No. 167 “Forty Days and Forty Nights”
1 Forty days and forty nights
you were fasting in the wild;
forty days and forty nights
tempted, and yet undefiled.
2 Shall not we your sorrow share
and from worldly joys abstain,
fasting with unceasing prayer,
strong with you to suffer pain?
3 Then if Satan on us press,
flesh or spirit to assail,
victor in the wilderness,
grant that we not faint nor fail!
4 So shall we have peace divine:
holier gladness ours shall be;
round us, too, shall angels shine,
such as served you faithfully.
5 Keep, O keep us, Savior dear,
ever constant by your side,
that with you we may appear
at the eternal Eastertide.
*BENEDICTION
As you go from here into the week ahead,
with whatever joys and challenges it holds,
do not be discouraged or disheartened.
Remember the glory that awaits you as a child of God.
Hold on to that truth;
live in that hope.And may the peace of God,
the blessing of Jesus Christ,
and the presence of the Holy Spirit
be with you and among you.
*POSTLUDE