Ash Wednesday

ASH WEDNESDAY

BULLETIN

A bulletin you can print at home

CONNECT CARD

Tell us how we can pray with you & how we can connect you with ministries

WELCOME TO WORSHIP | Ash Wednesday | march 5, 2024

a diverse, inclusive church experiencing and reflecting the love, hope and joy of Jesus Christ

to each other and our community.

GATHERING in silence and meditation

PRELUDE
Jesus Loves Me | arr. David Paxton
Chuck Stanley, organ

WELCOME | Pastor Cathy Johns

WAYS TO CONNECT | christchurchfl.org/ways2connect

Please see below.

* CALL TO WORSHIP | Pastor Doug Johns
On this Ash Wednesday, we come before God, knowing that we are dust,
and to dust we shall return. Yet, in this dust, God offers us grace and renewal.

Though we have wandered, God calls us to return, with open arms of love.

This is a season of repentance, a time to turn away from all that separates us from God.
Let us come with humble hearts, ready to surrender and be transformed.

We come home to God, ready to lay down our burdens and receive new life. We trust in the mercy of the one who waits for us.

Return to me with all your heart, says the Lord, for God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger,

and abounding in steadfast love.

We come home to God, ready to embrace the journey of faith, to be renewed in spirit,

and to walk in the light of God’s love.

* HYMN
Ash Wednesday Comes, and, Lord, We Hear | verse 1
Ash Wednesday comes, and Lord, we hear
The word for which our spirits yearn;
Amid this world’s distress and fear,
We hear your loving call: “Return!”

SCRIPTURE
Joel 2:1-2, 12-17 | New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near— ² a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness spread upon the mountains, a great and powerful army comes; their like has never been from of old, nor will be again after them in ages to come.

… ¹²Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
¹³rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from punishment.
¹⁴Who knows whether he will not turn and relent and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God?

¹⁵Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly; ¹⁶gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the aged; gather the children, even infants at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her canopy. ¹⁷Between the vestibule and the altar, let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep. Let them say, “Spare your people, O Lord, and do not make your heritage a mockery, a byword among the nations.
Why should it be said among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ ”

Ash Wednesday Comes, and, Lord, We Hear | verse 2
“Return to me with all your heart”
With fasting, weeping, mourning, too.
O God, we seek a brand new start,
A new beginning here with you.

SCRIPTURE
2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10 | New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
²⁰So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ: be reconciled to God. ²¹For our sake God made the one who knew no sin to be sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

6 As we work together with him, we entreat you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. ²For he says,
“At an acceptable time I have listened to you, and on a day of salvation I have helped you.”

Look, now is the acceptable time; look, now is the day of salvation! ³We are putting no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, ⁴but as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way: in great endurance, afflictions, hardships, calamities, ⁵beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; ⁶in purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love, ⁷truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; ⁸in honor and dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We are treated as impostors and yet are true, ⁹as unknown and yet are well known, as dying and look—we are alive, as punished and yet not killed, ¹⁰as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing everything.

Ash Wednesday Comes, and, Lord, We Hear | verse 3
You call to us – the old, the young;
You summon nations strong and weak.
When we have drifted toward the wrong,
You call us back, your way to seek.

SCRIPTURE
Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 | New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
“Beware of practicing your righteousness before others in order to be seen by them, for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

²“So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ³But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴so that your alms may be done in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

⁵“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ⁶But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

… ¹⁶ “And whenever you fast, do not look somber, like the hypocrites, for they mark their faces to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. ¹⁷But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, ¹⁸so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

¹⁹“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, ²⁰but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Ash Wednesday Comes, and, Lord, We Hear | verse 4
O God most merciful and kind,
Your love is not a prize we earn;
Yet in our life with you we find
The joy that comes when we return.

MEDITATION | Returning Home Pastor Cathy Johns

INVITATION TO THE OBSERVANCE OF LENTEN DISCIPLINE

THANKSGIVING OVER THE ASHES
Almighty God, you have created us out of the dust of the earth. Grant that these ashes may be to us a sign of our mortality and penitence, so that we may remember that only by your gracious gift are we given everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

RECEIVING THE ASHES

HYMN
Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling | The United Methodist Hymnal No. 348 (verses 1,4)
Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling,

Calling for you and for me;

See, on the portals he's waiting and watching,

Watching for you and for me.

(refrain) Come home, come home;

Ye who are weary come home;

Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,

Calling, O sinner come home!

O for the wonderful love he has promised,

Promised for you and for me!

Though we have sinned, he has mercy and pardon,

Pardon for you and for me. (refrain)

William Lamartine Thompson | © words: public domain; music: public domain | CCLI License # 487103

* PRAYER
all God, we are marked with ashes, symbols of repentant hearts and contrite spirits. We want to be transformed, to be made new, to learn the freedom of serving only you. Let us heed your call, and walk with Christ into the wilderness. Help us to see beneath the surface; not denial and sacrifice, not sin and death, but transformation, new life in Christ. Let us seek to be changed, let us seek to be transfigured by your power and glory that we desire about all else to be worthy citizens of your new world of peace and justice. Amen.

Prayer by Christine Sine

OFFERING
worshiping through the offering of our lives and gifts

· Place offerings in the plates or wooden boxes

· Give online at christchurchfl.org/give

· Text GIVE to 954.880.3885

· Mail a check to Christ Church, 4845 NE 25^th Ave., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308

Connect cards may also be placed with your offering.

Christ Church is a congregationally supported ministry. We thank you for your faithfulness as we reflect the love, hope and joy of Jesus to our community.

MUSIC MINISTRY
Restore My Joy | Cindy Berry
Chancel Choir
Have mercy on me, O God, according to thy love. Wash me from my iniquity; cleanse me from my sin and make me whole again. Accept the sacrifices that I bring, a broken spirit, a contrite heart. Cleanse me with hyssop and I will be clean. Wash me and I will be whiter than snow. Hide thy face from my sin, let me once again hear joy. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Restore to me the joy of thy salvation, restore my joy. Then will I sing of thy mercy. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways. I will sing of thy righteousness, and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and restore my joy.

THE GREAT THANKSGIVING

The Lord be with you.
all And also with you.

Lift up your hearts.
all We lift them up to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
all It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is right, and a good and joyful thing, always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Father Almighty (almighty God), creator of heaven and earth. You brought all things into being and called them good. From the dust of the earth you formed us into your image and breathed into us the breath of life.

When we turned away, and our love failed, your love remained steadfast. When rain fell upon the earth for forty days and forty nights, you bore up the ark on the waters, saved Noah and his family, and made covenant with every living creature on earth. When you led your people to Mount Sinai for forty days and forty nights, you gave us your commandments and made us your covenant people. When your people forsook your covenant, your prophet Elijah fasted for forty days and forty nights; and on your holy mountain, he heard your still small voice.

And so, with your people on earth and all the company of heaven, we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

all Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

Holy are you, and blessed is your Son Jesus Christ. When you gave him to save us from our sin, your Spirit led him into the wilderness, where he fasted forty days and forty nights to prepare for his ministry.
When he suffered and died on a cross for our sin, you raised him to life, presented him alive to the apostles during forty days, and exalted him at your right hand. By the baptism of his suffering, death, and resurrection you gave birth to your Church, delivered us from slavery to sin and death, and made with us a new covenant by water and the Spirit. Now, when we your people prepare for the yearly feast of Easter, you lead us to repentance for sin and the cleansing of our hearts, that during these forty days of Lent we may be gifted and graced to reaffirm the covenant you made with us through Christ.

On the night in which he gave himself up for us, he took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread, gave it to his disciples, and said: "Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me."

When the supper was over he took the cup, gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said: "Drink from this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant, poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.

And so, in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ, we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving, as a holy and living sacrifice, in union with Christ's offering for us, as we proclaim the mystery of faith.

all Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again.

Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, and on these gifts of bread and cup. Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ, that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood. By your Spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world, until Christ comes in final victory, and we feast at his heavenly banquet.

Through your Son Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit in your holy church, all honor and glory is yours, almighty God, now and forever. Amen.

And now with the confidence of the children of God that we are, let us pray together the pray Jesus taught the first disciples.

THE LORD’S PRAYER
all 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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

GATHERING AT THE LORD’S TABLE

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

all Eternal God, we give you thanks for this holy mystery in which you have given yourself to us.

Grant that we may go into the world in the strength of your Spirit, to give ourselves for others, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

* HYMN

Lord I’m Coming Home
I’ve wandered far away from God,
Now I’m coming home;
The paths of sin too long I’ve trod,
Lord, I’m coming home.

(refrain)Coming home, coming home,
Nevermore to roam;
Open wide Thine arms of love;
Lord, I’m coming home.

My only hope, my only plea,
Now I’m coming home;
That Jesus died, and died for me;
Lord, I’m coming home. (refrain)

I need His cleansing blood, I know,
Now I’m coming home;
O wash me whiter than the snow;
Lord, I’m coming home. (refrain)

* BENEDICTION
May God, who has forgiven and fed us, now make us strong for these days ahead.

all May Jesus lead us, and may we be found faithful to follow.

May the Spirit drive us into the wilderness, burning away the chaff of our lives, and purifying our hearts for all to see and be blessed. And now may the blessing of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Mercy, Master, and Fire, be with us and remain with us always!

MUSIC FOR CLOSING
Recessional in C | David Lasky
Chuck Stanley, organ

* Please stand in body or spirit.

Join us Sunday, when we begin the Lenten series Jesus , with the message The Transformation of His Call , based on Matthew 4:18-22.

WAYS TO CONNECT christchurchfl.org/ways2connect

CONNECT CARDS We want to connect with you. Please fill out a Connect Card, to tell us that you are here, how we can pray for you and which ministries you’re called to. We’d love to hear your ideas also. You’ll find paper Connect Cards in the worship space and digital cards at christchurchfl.org/connectcard.

LOOKING AHEAD

UNITED METHODIST 101 sunday | march 9 | 4-5:30pm Pastor Cathy Johns will lead a short course on the history and beliefs of the United Methodist Church and the unique vision and mission of Christ Church. You’ll learn about ways to serve as the hands and feet of Christ, and review and discuss membership vows of The United Methodist Church. New members will be received in late March. Email Pastor Cathy,cjohns@christchurchfl.org, to sign up for the class. Child care is available by reservation; contact Lisa Jones,ljones@christchurchfl.org

NOVA SINGERS CONCERT tuesday | march 18 | 7:30pm | fort lauderdale sanctuary The Nova Singers bring A Choral Fantasy to the Christ Church Sanctuary. The concert will feature contemporary music by Mark Hayes, John Rutter, Eric Whitacre and the Beatles, celebrating peace, love, hope and dreams. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Children 12 and under and all students with ID admitted free. Find the link to purchase tickets at christchurchfl.org/events

HOLY WEEK

Maundy Thursday | april 17

traditional worship & experiential seder | 7pm | fort lauderdale sanctuary and gym
reserve a spot for the seder at christchurchfl.org/events

Good Friday | april 18

traditional service | 7pm | fort lauderdale sanctuary

EASTER | april 20

6:30am | sunrise service | christ church field

9am | praise service | gym

10:30am | egg hunt on the lawn

11am | traditional service | fort lauderdale sanctuary