Call to Worship (3) | Fourth Sunday in Lent (Year C)

Leader: Return to the Lord your God,

People: for God is gracious.

Leader: Confess to the Lord your God,

People: for God is merciful.

Leader: Repent to the Lord your God,

People: for God is slow to anger.

Leader: Praise the Lord your God,

People: for God abounds in steadfast love.

Leader: Worship the Lord your God.

All: Together, let us worship God!

Submitted by Rev. Daniel Commerford, Bethany Presbyterian Church, Covington, GA

Prayer of Confession (2) | Fourth Sunday in Lent (Year C)

God of the old and the new,
we want to embrace your new way,
but we like the old just fine.
We repeat tired ideas and resist new possibilities.
We hold on to old grudges
and resist your word of reconciliation and new life.
We are too afraid of the unknown to step out into something new.
Forgive us, loving Lord.
Help us to see the way of your new creation in our lives and our world,
that we might be reconciled to you and one another in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Submitted by Rev. Andy James, First Presbyterian Church, Whitestone, New York

Assurance of Pardon | Fourth Sunday in Lent (Year C)

Friends, hear the good news of the Gospel:
if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation!
Everything old has passed away;
everything becomes new!
I declare to you that, through Christ,
we have been reconciled with God.
Our sins are forgiven! Amen.

Prayers of the People | Fourth Sunday in Lent (Year C)

From Feasting on the Word – Worship Companion, edited by Kimberly Bracken Long.

In peace let us pray to the Lord saying,
Lord have mercy.

For the church throughout the world,
that all Christians may embody the reconciling love of Christ,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.

For the nations of the world and its leaders,
that all may dwell in peace
and that justice may be tempered by mercy,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.

For the planet Earth, God’s gift to humankind,
that all may share wisely its resources
and conserve its riches for our children’s children,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.

For our enemies,
that we may regard them with the reconciling love
made manifest in Christ,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.

For those who are sick or in trouble,
for the defenseless, the weak, and the poor,
that they may be restored to wholeness of life and livelihood,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.

For the lost,
for those who have abandoned God, friends, or family,
and for those who have never known such love,
that they may come to know the joy of love’s embrace,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.

Loving God, hear the prayers of your people
for the sake of our world,
and our Savior Jesus Christ, through whom we pray.
Amen.