GUIDED WORSHIP :: EASTER 2020
by South End Church
A brief welcome from Rev. Brice Williams at Houghton Pond, a familiar destination for our church community during warmer months.
ORDER OF WORSHIP
WELCOME & CALL TO WORSHIP
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE Doug Hall
1ST SCRIPTURE READING
EASTER SPOTLIGHT Linda Shaffer
PRAISE OF THE PEOPLE Nathan Sangster
2ND SCRIPTURE READING & MESSAGE :: “Kingdom. Power. Glory. Forever. Amen”
BENEDICTION
ONLINE OFFERING
AFTER SERVICE W/PASTOR BRICE ON FACEBOOK LIVE 11AM
CHRIST IS RISEN!
Reader: You have turned our mourning into dancing!
You have taken away our funeral clothes
and re-clothed us in joy,
so that our whole being—body, mind and soul—
might sing praise to you and not be silent.
All: O Lord, our Lord, we will give thanks to you forever!
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE:
DOUG HALL
(READ ALOUD) “What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you’ll have it all—life healed and whole.” :: 1 Peter 1.3-5 (message)
THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION.
(READ ALOUD) Sharing our stories is something we do a lot as a church. We love to make space to listen to one another, until you’ve talked for too long and then we applaud vigorously until it’s over. No seriously, the stories that make up our life matter to God’s story. Last Easter Sunday, we had the privilege of baptizing Linda Shaffer. Linda shares about some of the ways she has experienced the power of the resurrection in her life this past year. Take a moment and watch this brief testimony.
*Picture taken during one of our church services held several weeks ago in “Hall Chapel”, a south end loft owned by Doug & Judy Hall. How we miss being crammed into that beautiful space together!
PRAISE OF THE PEOPLE
Nathan Sangster.
Why do we sing with our church? As God's people gather for worship, whether in person or online, we focus our attention on goodness, truth, and beauty of God by singing together. We respond with thanksgiving to God, because we have hope. And we sing because it is the best and most complete response that we can utter.
Thank you Nathan for leading us!
PASSING THE PLATE.
THANK YOU FOR GIVING
THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS :: MARK 16.1-8
(READ ALOUD) “When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’ ” Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.”
WE ARE SENT
(READ ALOUD) For those who first went out into the early dawn, when the sky was grey, taking spices to the tomb, there was terror, and surprise. For us, resisting the impulse to sleep in as part of a long weekend, and being over-familiar with the Easter story, there is the risk of complacency.
So let us open ourselves to the astounding possibility that life can break out at any moment! Let us challenge the thought that we have planned the future So efficiently that there will be no surprises! Let us face the fact that the walls of this church, and the life of our institution cannot entirely contain Jesus Christ! Let us celebrate the irrepressible power of God breaking out with life where we least expect it!
Ann Siddall, Stillpoint Spirituaity Centre