WELCOME, LOGISTICS AND EXPLANATION OF THE EVENING
Welcome to Dinner Church and Prayers around the Cross at Treehouse! We are thrilled you are here. If it is new to you, not to worry! We will guide you through everything.
Things to know about your time with Treehouse…
You are welcome here and we are blessed by your presence!
Come and go as you need.
Restrooms are all-Gender and located in the hall to the right.
Communion: bread is gluten-free, wine (red) & white grape juice (clear) are available.
WELCOME TO THE TABLE
L: As we gather at this dinner table, we welcome one another to the community we share.
L: We celebrate that each person is of sacred worth.
All: Each person is of sacred worth.
L: We embrace all people, affirming the gifts of race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and faith.
All: We affirm and welcome all people.
L: We are committed to working for racial equality and equality for all.
All: We commit ourselves to justice and equality.
L: No matter where you are on your journey, and regardless of who you are or who you love,
All: You are welcome here.
Opening Song – When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
When I survey the wondrous cross
on which the prince of glory died,
my richest gain I count but loss
and pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast
save in the death of Christ, my God;
all the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to his blood.
See, from his head, his hands, his feet,
sorrow and love flow mingled down.
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
or thorns compose so rich a crown?
Text: Isaac Watts, 1674-1748
Confession & Forgiveness
L: Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God,
who looks upon us in compassion,
forgives our sin, and heals our lives.
All: Amen.
L: Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.
Silence is kept for reflection.
L: Most merciful God,
All: we confess that we are captive to sin and cannot free ourselves. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways, to the glory of your holy name.
Amen.
L: By the mercy of God
we are united with Jesus Christ,
in whom we are forgiven.
We rest now in the peace of Christ
and rise in the morning to serve.
Amen.
Sharing of the Bread
L: In this meal is found the greatest promise we have of God’s mercy and forgiveness. Here God feeds us with the presence of Jesus Christ.
In the night in which he was betrayed,
our Lord Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
“Take and eat; this is my body, given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.”
And so tonight, we do the same. We take bread, broken for us, and share it with one another with those sacred words, “The body of Christ given for you.”
All are welcome to taste the mercy of God.
Bread is passed to your neighbor, saying: “The body of Christ given for you.”
Communion Song – Let Us Break Bread Together
Let us break bread together on our knees;
let us break bread together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees,
with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.
Post-Bread Blessing
Be strengthened this night by the presence of Christ made known to you in the bread and in one another.
Amen.
We’ll spend the first part of our meal in conversation hearing about our week. You are invited to share stories from your highs and lows from the week as well as where you saw Jesus at work in our world.
6:45 PM – The Word
The Lord be with you
and also with you
Matthew 6:1-6
[Jesus said to the disciples:] “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.
“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. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
“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. But 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.
Reflection & Discussion
Circle of the Church Year – Godly Play
Why & How of Ash Wednesday
Beauty For Ashes Devotional
A Lenten Devotional by the ELCA Homeless and Justice Network
Making the sign of the cross on your neighbor say these words…
Remember you are Dust and to Dust you Shall Return.
Lord’s Prayer
L: Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit we pray now the prayer Jesus taught us knowing that in this prayer God hears and knows all our needs.
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,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. Amen.
Sharing the Cup
As we return to the meal our Lord Jesus shared with His disciples on the night in which He was betrayed,
let us give thanks and praise to God
for the salvation and restoration this holy feast bestows.
L: Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying:
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood,
shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.
Do this for the remembrance of me.”
Here again Christ meets us with mercy, nourishes us with grace, and gathers us into one Body through His love.
And so together, we take the cup of wine, sharing those sacred words with one another, “The blood of Christ shed for you.”
Wine/Juice is passed to your neighbor, saying: “The blood of Christ shed for you.”
Communion Song
Let us drink wine together on our knees;
let us drink wine together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees,
with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.
Text: African American spiritual
Post-Wine Prayer/Blessing
Sending Song – Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross
Jesus, keep me near the cross,
there’s a precious fountain;
free to all, a healing stream
flows from Calv’ry’s mountain.
In the cross, in the cross
be my glory ever;
till my ransomed soul shall find
rest beyond the river.
Near the cross, a trembling soul,
love and mercy found me;
there the bright and morning star
sheds its beams around me.
In the cross, in the cross
be my glory ever;
till my ransomed soul shall find
rest beyond the river.
Near the cross I’ll watch and wait,
hoping, trusting ever,
till I reach the golden strand
just beyond the river.
In the cross, in the cross
be my glory ever;
till my ransomed soul shall find
rest beyond the river.
Text: Fanny J. Crosby, 1820-1915
Blessing
L: Receive this Blessing
May you be marked with the sign of repentance and walk steadfastly in the way of the Cross toward the joy of Your Resurrection.
All: Amen.
L: Go In Peace, Love ands Serve the Lord
All: Thanks be to God and Weeee Will!