May 3 | Eastertide 4

Above: The Potato Eaters by Vincent Van Gogh (1885)

 

 

 

 

 

Gathering

 

Prelude: My Shepherd Will Supply My Need

 

 

 

 

Greeting

 

 

 

Call to Worship

 

from Matthew 11:28 and Isaiah 61:3

“Come to me,” Jesus said to his followers. “Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”
Come to me if you are grieving and despairing.
Come to me if you are angry and frustrated.
Come to me if you are worn out and beleaguered.
Come to me if you’ve never been so relaxed in your life.
Just don’t wait by the door.
Don’t hold back for fear of being unworthy or burdensome or not-good-enough.
You don’t have to wear a mask here.
Come as yourself; your whole self.
And I will give you “beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that you might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.”

 

 

Sing: Come to Me

 

 

You are weighed; you are worried.
Child I see you; child I know you.
Bring your burdens; bring your labor.
Come to me.

Refrain:
Come to me, come to me,
come to me if you are weary.
I will give you, I will give you my rest.

I am gentle; I am humble.
Let me teach you, let me show you.
Trade your burden; mind is easy.
Come to me.

 

 

Sing: How Lovely Is Your Dwelling

 

 

1. How lovely is your dwelling, O Lord of hosts, to me;
my soul is longing, fainting, the courts of God to see.
The beauty of your dwelling will bring me joy anew.
My heart and flesh are crying, O living God, for you.

2. Beneath your care the sparrow finds place for peaceful rest;
to keep her young in safety the swallow finds a nest.
So, Lord, my King Almighty, your love will shelter me;
beneath your wings of mercy my dwelling place will be.

3. Blest they who love and serve you, whose joy and strength you are.
Forever they will praise you, your ways are in their heart.
Though tried, their tears like showers shall fill the springs of peace,
and all the way to Zion their strength shall still increase.

 

 

 

Call to Confession

 

With God there is rest, joy, and kindness. In the Lord’s dwelling place there is forgiveness and mercy. Our God is the Good Shepherd who seeks us when we get lost, when we are so far from him we’re not sure we could find the way back. So let us come before the God who never leaves us, repent of our sins, and find forgiveness in his presence.

 

 

Prayer of Confession

 

Lord our God,
You have gathered us into your fold, calling us to be one.
We confess that we so often stray far from you and run from one another.
We lament how easy it is for our unity to be tested or torn.
Instead of empathy, we treat others with contempt.
Instead of gentleness, we are quick to rise to anger.
Instead of looking out for the least of these, we seek to satisfy our own wants.
God, forgive us when we dwell on that which divides instead of that which we have in common.
Forgive us when our hearts become embittered and cynical.
Forgive us when we speak ill of others.
Forgive us for seeking our own kingdom first, not the kingdom of God.
In your mercy, call us back to you.
Open the gate, and shepherd us back into the fold,
where there is life in abundance for all your people.
Help us seek that life.
In Christ’s name we pray,
Amen.

 

 

Words of Assurance: 1 Peter 2:21-25

 

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Word

First Reading: John 10:1-10

 

The Good Shepherd and His Sheep

10 “Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. ² The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. ⁵ But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” ⁶ Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.

⁷ Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. ⁸ All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. ⁹ I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. ¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

 

 

Second Reading: Acts 2:42-47

 

⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Life among the Believers

⁴³ Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All who believed were together and had all things in common; ⁴⁵ they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. ⁴⁶ Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

 

 

 

Message: “Day By Day”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sing or Listen: Your Labor Is Not In Vain

 

 

1. Your labor is not in vain
though the ground underneath
you is cursed and stained;
your planting and reaping
are never the same;
your labor is not in vain.

2. Your labor is not unknown
though the rocks, they cry out
and the sea, it may groan;
the place of your toil may not
seem like a home,
but your labor is not unknown.

Refrain:
I am with you, I am with you,
I am with you, I am with you,
For I have called you, called you by name;
your labor is not in vain.

3. The vineyards you plant will bear fruit.
The fields will sing out
and rejoice with the truth.
For all that is old will at last be made new.
The vineyards you plant will bear fruit.
Refrain

4. The houses you labored to build
will finally with laughter and joy be filled.
The serpent that hurts and destroys
will be killed,
and all that is broken be healed.
Refrain

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prayer

Take time to pray for the needs of those gathered and the needs of the world. ​
Consider structuring your prayer in the following way: ​

Offer a request or praise aloud, concluding with the words, “Lord in your mercy,”​

And let the others respond, “Hear our prayer.”​

Or simply designate a family member to pray on your behalf.

As you close in prayer, reflect on these words from Psalm 23: Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

 

 

 

Sing: My Soul Finds Rest In God Alone

 

 

1. My soul finds rest in God alone, my rock and my salvation;
A fortress strong against my foes, and I will not be shaken.
Though lips may bless and hearts may curse, and lies like arrows pierce me,
I’ll fix my heart on righteousness; I’ll look to him who hears me.

Refrain:
O praise him, hallelujah, my delight and my reward;
everlasting, never failing, my Redeemer, my God.

2. Find rest, my soul, in God alone amidst the world’s temptations;
when evil seeks to take a hold, I’ll cling to my salvation.
Though riches come and riches go, don’t set your heart upon them;
the fields of hope in which I sow are harvested in heaven.
Refrain

3. I’ll set my gaze on God alone and trust in him completely;
with every day pour out my soul, and he will prove his mercy.
Though life is but a fleeting breath, a sigh to brief to measure,
my king has crushed the cruse of death, and I am his forever.
Refrain

 

 

 

Blessing

 

May the steadfast love of God the Father,
the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be yours now and forever.

Amen.

 

 

 

Postlude: The Lord’s My Shepherd

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Other Resources

Songs

• His Love is My Resting Place – Wendell Kimbrough
• Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us – Leigh Nash