Good Friday

Call to Worship
L:  Here, in the midst of these people,
    we come to worship you.
P:  We come with the groans of our lives,
    and the whispers of hope in our hearts.
L: Here, in the midst of these people,
   we come to remember you.
P: We come, trusting you have not forgotten us;
   and that here, promises will be fulfilled.
L  Here, in the midst of these people,
    we come to have our hearts touched.
P:  We come, knowing you hear our souls;
     we come, to praise you for your steadfast love.

Prayer of the Day
On this day, God of all tears,
you call us in the midst
of our busy lives
to look at the suffering and death
of the One who came to carry
the pain of the world into your heart.
Give us eyes to see your love
this day.

On this day
you would gather everyone
to your side,
Grace of Calvary,
but we leave you
to carry the cross alone.
You came simply as love incarnate,
but hate and bitterness
were the gifts we offered to you.
You poured out your love
so our emptiness might be filled.
Give us ears to her your pain
this day.

On this day,
you would pray for us,
for we cannot find the words
on our own,
Shattered Spirit.
Hear the cries of those in need.
Listen to the lament of the lonely.
Cradle the whispered hopes of children.
Set free the dreams of prisoners and captives.
Give us hearts to pray with you
this day.

God in Community, Holy in One,
we lift our prayers to you in the name of the One
who suffered and died for us
this day
and who teaches us to pray, saying,
Our Father . . .

Call to Reconciliation
Confident of the hope received by the death of Christ, we bring our hearts -
broken, stained with sin, filled with failings - to the One who sprinkles
them with grace, cleansing them with the waters of life.

Unison Prayer of Confession
Like little children who can wander off in a crowded store, we have lost our
way, God of the grim day. We betray you when we do not befriend the poor; we
deny you when we are afraid to speak up for the voiceless; we turn our backs
on you when we do not do good for others; we crucify you when we harm our
family and friends.
At the foot of the cross, we stand with all who have forgotten you and
forsaken the way which you offer to us. Forgive us, Lamb of God, and fill us
with the mercy, the hope, the grace you poured out for us, as you gave your
life for the sins of the world.

Extended silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon
L:  Christ has lifted our suffering onto his shoulders, carrying all our
hurts and rejections into God's heart. There, God casts them away into the
sea of forgetfulness, so we may be restored to hope and live as new people.
P:  Fed with grace, carried in God's arms, we know that we are forgiven.
Thanks be to God. Amen.

(c) 2007 Thom M. Shuman