FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
ORDER OF WORSHIP
2nd Week of Lent
February 25, 2024
PRELUDE
WELCOME
ANNOUNCEMENTS
-NEW MEMBER CLASS AND LUNCH is held TODAY after worship. New members and perspective members are invited!
-TUESDAY MORNING COFFEE GROUP meets at 9:30ish AM at First Lutheran Mission Coffee House.
- PIECES AND PRAYERS will meet on Tuesdays at 1:30 PM at the FPC Quilting Room.
-WEDNESDAY LENTEN LUNCH & WORSHIP will be held at the First Lutheran Activity Center at 11:30AM—Pastor Pete Grassow from First United Methodist will provide the message following the meal. More information is on the bulletin board.
-THURSDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDY at 9:30 AM in the FPC Center Meeting Room.
-TIME CHANGE FOR WORSHIP SERVICE will be begin on next Sunday, March 3— Worship service will be held at 10:00 AM in the sanctuary and on Zoom.
–‘ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING’ SPECIAL OFFERING- donations are being accepted Feb. 14 through March 31. Please use the envelopes by the offering plates or write ‘One Great Hour’ on check memo. Thank you for your generosity!
CALL TO WORSHIP
We gather in the season of Lent, a time to examine our hearts and our lives
and journey with Christ through the suffering of the world.
Let us pick up our crosses and follow Christ
on a path that is lined with God’s love.
God has marked us as beloved dust
and called us together to worship.
OPENING PRAYER
O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
*OPENING HYMN (on insert) 'O Love of God, How Strong and True'
O love of God, how strong and true,
eternal and yet ever new,
uncomprehended and unbought,
beyond all knowledge and all thought!
O heavenly love, how precious still,
in days of weariness and ill,
in nights of pain and helplessness,
to heal, to comfort, and to bless!
O wide-embracing, wondrous love!
We read you in the sky above,
we read you in the earth below,
in seas that swell and streams that flow.
We read you in the flowers, the trees,
The freshness of the fragrant breeze,
The song of birds upon the wing,
The joy of summer and of spring.
We read you best in him who came
bearing for us the cross of shame;
sent by the Father from on high,
our life to live, our death to die.
We read your powers to bless and save,
even in the darkness of the grave;
still more in resurrection light
we read the fullness of your might.
O love of God, our shield and stay
through all the perils of our way;
Eternal love, in you we rest,
forever safe, forever blest.
CALL TO CONFESSION
In the name of Christ, I urge you: Be reconciled to God. Trusting in God’s grace, let us confess our sin.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
O God, you have made us your covenant people, marked us as your won, and charged us for lives of service. Forgive us when we live as if success were the worthiest aim or independence the highest virtue. Call us once more to take up our crosses, and show us how to follow you. Forgive us, O God, and wash us in your mercy. Forgive us, O God, and free us to try again.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
Listen, the time has come at last. Look, now is the day of salvation! In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven!
Thanks be to God.
*GLORIA PATRI (on screen)
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
And to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
And ever shall be,
World without end. Amen, Amen.
SPECIAL MUSIC O Master, Let Me Walk with You Choir
PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
Holy one, our strength in suffering and our hope for salvation, lift up your Word of life and pour out your Spirit of grace so that we may follow faithfully all the way to the cross; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READINGS
Psalm 22: 22-30 (read responsively)
22 I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him;
stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For he did not despise or abhor
the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me
but heard when I cried to him.
25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.
26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever!
27 All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.
28 For dominion belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
29 To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
and I shall live for him.
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
Gospel Reading: Mark 8:31-38
31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes and be killed and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
34 He called the crowd with his disciples and said to them, “If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
This is the word of God for the people of God. Amen
SERMON “So Right, but Oh So Wrong” Fr. Larry Ort, pulpit supply
*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH --APOSTLES' CREED (in unison)
I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty, from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.
*HYMN OF RESPONSE #393 (Blue) 'Take Up Your Cross, the Savior Said'
Take up your cross, the Savior said,
If you would my disciple be;
Take up your cross with willing heart,
And humbly follow after me.
Take up your cross, let not its weight
Fill your weak spirit with alarm;
Christ’s strength shall bear your spirit up
And brace your heart and nerve your arm.
Take up your cross, heed not the shame,
And let your foolish heart be still;
The Lord for you accepted death
Upon a cross, on Calvary's hill.
Take up your cross, then, in Christ’s strength,
And calmly every danger brave:
It guides you to abundant life
And lead to victory o'er the grave.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
Concerns:
Charlotte and Trayce (friends of the Kemps), Betty (sister of Judy McCann), Susan (Ginny C’s sister), Theresa (Skip W’s niece)
Our homebound or in care members:
Richard C (Dolores as caregiver), Bob J (Jan as caregiver), Darwin L (Jeanne as caregiver), Bob O (Nancy as caregiver),
Delores K, Rose P, Joyce R, Dee W (Please reach out and call)
This Week’s Prayer Families: Liz R, Rick & Bonnie S, Julie & Stanley S & family Stanley & Dylan
Those Who Mourn:
The Moerke family in loss of mother, The Roden and Scubelek families in the loss of relative Tina Heesch, The family/friends of John Peterson, and all who have lost loved ones
THE LORD’S PRAYER
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, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever, Amen.
INVITATION TO OFFERING and PRAYER OF DEDICATION
*DOXOLOGY (on screen)
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
*CLOSING HYMN #391 (Blue) 'Take My Life and Let It Be'
Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days; let them flow ceaseless praise,
let them flow in ceaseless praise.
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee,
swift and beautiful for Thee.
Take my voice and let me sing always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from Thee,
filled with messages from Thee.
Take my silver and my gold; not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use every power as Thou shalt choose,
every power as Thou shalt choose.
Take my will and make it Thine; it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is Thine own; it shall be Thy royal throne,
it shall be Thy royal throne.
Take my love; my Lord, I pour at Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be ever, only, all for Thee,
ever, only, all for Thee.
BENEDICTION
POSTLUDE
ORDER OF WORSHIP
2nd Week of Lent
February 25, 2024
PRELUDE
WELCOME
ANNOUNCEMENTS
-NEW MEMBER CLASS AND LUNCH is held TODAY after worship. New members and perspective members are invited!
-TUESDAY MORNING COFFEE GROUP meets at 9:30ish AM at First Lutheran Mission Coffee House.
- PIECES AND PRAYERS will meet on Tuesdays at 1:30 PM at the FPC Quilting Room.
-WEDNESDAY LENTEN LUNCH & WORSHIP will be held at the First Lutheran Activity Center at 11:30AM—Pastor Pete Grassow from First United Methodist will provide the message following the meal. More information is on the bulletin board.
-THURSDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDY at 9:30 AM in the FPC Center Meeting Room.
-TIME CHANGE FOR WORSHIP SERVICE will be begin on next Sunday, March 3— Worship service will be held at 10:00 AM in the sanctuary and on Zoom.
–‘ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING’ SPECIAL OFFERING- donations are being accepted Feb. 14 through March 31. Please use the envelopes by the offering plates or write ‘One Great Hour’ on check memo. Thank you for your generosity!
CALL TO WORSHIP
We gather in the season of Lent, a time to examine our hearts and our lives
and journey with Christ through the suffering of the world.
Let us pick up our crosses and follow Christ
on a path that is lined with God’s love.
God has marked us as beloved dust
and called us together to worship.
OPENING PRAYER
O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
*OPENING HYMN (on insert) 'O Love of God, How Strong and True'
O love of God, how strong and true,
eternal and yet ever new,
uncomprehended and unbought,
beyond all knowledge and all thought!
O heavenly love, how precious still,
in days of weariness and ill,
in nights of pain and helplessness,
to heal, to comfort, and to bless!
O wide-embracing, wondrous love!
We read you in the sky above,
we read you in the earth below,
in seas that swell and streams that flow.
We read you in the flowers, the trees,
The freshness of the fragrant breeze,
The song of birds upon the wing,
The joy of summer and of spring.
We read you best in him who came
bearing for us the cross of shame;
sent by the Father from on high,
our life to live, our death to die.
We read your powers to bless and save,
even in the darkness of the grave;
still more in resurrection light
we read the fullness of your might.
O love of God, our shield and stay
through all the perils of our way;
Eternal love, in you we rest,
forever safe, forever blest.
CALL TO CONFESSION
In the name of Christ, I urge you: Be reconciled to God. Trusting in God’s grace, let us confess our sin.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
O God, you have made us your covenant people, marked us as your won, and charged us for lives of service. Forgive us when we live as if success were the worthiest aim or independence the highest virtue. Call us once more to take up our crosses, and show us how to follow you. Forgive us, O God, and wash us in your mercy. Forgive us, O God, and free us to try again.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
Listen, the time has come at last. Look, now is the day of salvation! In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven!
Thanks be to God.
*GLORIA PATRI (on screen)
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
And to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now,
And ever shall be,
World without end. Amen, Amen.
SPECIAL MUSIC O Master, Let Me Walk with You Choir
PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
Holy one, our strength in suffering and our hope for salvation, lift up your Word of life and pour out your Spirit of grace so that we may follow faithfully all the way to the cross; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
SCRIPTURE READINGS
Psalm 22: 22-30 (read responsively)
22 I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him;
stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For he did not despise or abhor
the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me
but heard when I cried to him.
25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.
26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever!
27 All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.
28 For dominion belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
29 To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
and I shall live for him.
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
Gospel Reading: Mark 8:31-38
31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes and be killed and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
34 He called the crowd with his disciples and said to them, “If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
This is the word of God for the people of God. Amen
SERMON “So Right, but Oh So Wrong” Fr. Larry Ort, pulpit supply
*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH --APOSTLES' CREED (in unison)
I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty, from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.
*HYMN OF RESPONSE #393 (Blue) 'Take Up Your Cross, the Savior Said'
Take up your cross, the Savior said,
If you would my disciple be;
Take up your cross with willing heart,
And humbly follow after me.
Take up your cross, let not its weight
Fill your weak spirit with alarm;
Christ’s strength shall bear your spirit up
And brace your heart and nerve your arm.
Take up your cross, heed not the shame,
And let your foolish heart be still;
The Lord for you accepted death
Upon a cross, on Calvary's hill.
Take up your cross, then, in Christ’s strength,
And calmly every danger brave:
It guides you to abundant life
And lead to victory o'er the grave.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
Concerns:
Charlotte and Trayce (friends of the Kemps), Betty (sister of Judy McCann), Susan (Ginny C’s sister), Theresa (Skip W’s niece)
Our homebound or in care members:
Richard C (Dolores as caregiver), Bob J (Jan as caregiver), Darwin L (Jeanne as caregiver), Bob O (Nancy as caregiver),
Delores K, Rose P, Joyce R, Dee W (Please reach out and call)
This Week’s Prayer Families: Liz R, Rick & Bonnie S, Julie & Stanley S & family Stanley & Dylan
Those Who Mourn:
The Moerke family in loss of mother, The Roden and Scubelek families in the loss of relative Tina Heesch, The family/friends of John Peterson, and all who have lost loved ones
THE LORD’S PRAYER
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, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever, Amen.
INVITATION TO OFFERING and PRAYER OF DEDICATION
*DOXOLOGY (on screen)
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
*CLOSING HYMN #391 (Blue) 'Take My Life and Let It Be'
Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days; let them flow ceaseless praise,
let them flow in ceaseless praise.
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee,
swift and beautiful for Thee.
Take my voice and let me sing always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from Thee,
filled with messages from Thee.
Take my silver and my gold; not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use every power as Thou shalt choose,
every power as Thou shalt choose.
Take my will and make it Thine; it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is Thine own; it shall be Thy royal throne,
it shall be Thy royal throne.
Take my love; my Lord, I pour at Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be ever, only, all for Thee,
ever, only, all for Thee.
BENEDICTION
POSTLUDE