Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Now, our mourning become dancing
by God’s gracious love.
Our sobs become belly laughs,
and new songs are written from our sighs.
The punchline sat in the grave’s shadows,
until God played the best joke ever on life.
So, break out loud guffaws, fill the room with giggles,
May our joy sound like April Fool’s noisemakers!
Come, stoic old folks and snickering kids,
come, all you curmudgeons and worriers.
We join the God who laughs with us,
Who raised Jesus with a wink and a grin,
Welcoming everyone to joy everlasting!
Prayer of the Day
You could not contain
your roars of laughter,
God of abiding joy,
as you cracked open the tomb,
rolling away the stone
so love could come out
turning cartwheels.
Using not only parables
but joyous puns, Clown Jesus,
you rip off our serious natures
and gloomy looks we have all
around us like, so we look
like poorly wrapped presents.
You sneak up on us,
when we least expect it,
Spirit of unbridled laughter,
breathing joy into aching lungs
and tickling us with peace
so that we know without a doubt
what seems too good to be true
actually is.
So on this day, and every day,
God in Community, Holy in One,
and Life of every party,
teach us to believe the outrageous truth:
that love wins, that hope lives,
and that the punchline of the gospel is joy,
even as we pray together, saying,
(The Lord’s Prayer)
Call to Reconciliation
Before we can truly laugh,
we must first let go of what weighs us down.
Before joy can rise in us,
grace must clear some space.
So let’s be honest—
not because God doesn’t know,
but because we forget that mercy is already leaning in,
smiling,
waiting for us to fess up
and fall into arms wide with forgiveness.
Let us pray together.
Unison Prayer for Forgiveness
Gracious and giggling God,
we confess that sometimes we take ourselves too seriously.
We walk through life stiff with worry,
grim with guilt, and frowning with fear.
We forget that you created laughter,
and that joy is a fruit of your Spirit.
Forgive us for putting a lid on your joy,
for muting your music,
and for walking around like the resurrection never happened.
Remind us that Easter is the world's biggest surprise party,
and we're all invited.
Tickle our hearts with your grace,
nudge us with your mercy,
and teach us to live with eyes wide open for holy hilarity.
In the name of the Risen One who laughed in the face of death,
Amen.
Silence is kept
Assurance of Pardon
Here’s the good news:
God doesn’t hold a grudge—God holds us.
Christ didn’t come to scold us—he came to save us,
to shake us out of our sorrow,
and to set loose joy in our hearts like confetti in the wind.
So laugh, dance, rejoice—
for in Jesus Christ, we are forgiven!
Thanks be to God! Alleluia! Amen!
Passing the Peace
Turn to one another with a smile, a chuckle, or even a holy high-five, and share this good news:
"The joy of the Lord is your strength—peace be with you!"
"And also with you!"
Affirmation of Faith
We believe in a God who enjoys a good laugh,
who made platypuses and penguins just for the fun of it.
We believe in a Savior who knew how to surprise people—
with healing, with hope, with resurrection.
We believe in the Spirit,
who gives us the gift of holy giggles and grace.
We believe that joy is a form of resistance,
and laughter is a taste of the kingdom to come.
Amen.
Prayer of Dedication/Offering
Generous God,
you’ve filled our lives with laughter,
our hearts with hope,
and our pockets with more than enough loose change and holy possibility.
We bring these gifts not out of guilt,
but out of gratitude—
because you keep surprising us with love,
grace, and the kind of joy that makes us snort when we laugh.
Use what we offer—
our coins and our kindness,
our time and our talents,
our dollars and our dancing—
to tickle the world with resurrection joy
and to spread your love
like laughter in a quiet room.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
The Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the God of joy!
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Holy and hilarious God,
how could we keep from laughing?
You flung stars into the sky like confetti,
tickled the bellies of whales,
and taught ostriches to run like they stole something.
You formed us in your image—
not with straight lines and stiff backs,
but with dancing knees and twinkling eyes.
Even when we turned from you,
you came after us—not with wagging fingers,
but with wide arms, ready to welcome us home.
Prophets told your jokes before they made sense—
valleys of dry bones rattling to their feet,
lions turned into sleepy kittens,
and a highway through the sea.
And so, with all who giggle in glory,
and all who still belly-laugh here on earth,
we sing your praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and punchlines,
Heaven and earth are full of your joy.
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the One who comes to surprise us with grace.
Hosanna in the highest!
Holy is your Son, Jesus Christ—
resurrected prankster of paradise,
who turned water into wine
and death into life,
who slipped out of the tomb
before the stone even hit the ground.
He walked through locked doors,
broke bread with the bewildered,
and whispered peace into every frightened heart.
On the night before the punchline,
Jesus took bread,
gave thanks, broke it, and said:
"Take, eat—this is my body, broken for you."
Then he lifted the cup,
grinning through the shadows, and said:
"Drink from this, all of you. This is the cup of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins."
"Do this in remembrance of me."
And so, we remember the story that still stuns us:
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the God of joy!
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Holy and hilarious God,
how could we keep from laughing?
You flung stars into the sky like confetti,
tickled the bellies of whales,
and taught ostriches to run like they stole something.
You formed us in your image—
not with straight lines and stiff backs,
but with dancing knees and twinkling eyes.
Even when we turned from you,
you came after us—not with wagging fingers,
but with wide arms, ready to welcome us home.
Prophets told your jokes before they made sense—
valleys of dry bones rattling to their feet,
lions turned into sleepy kittens,
and a highway through the sea.
And so, with all who giggle in glory,
and all who still belly-laugh here on earth,
we sing your praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and punchlines,
Heaven and earth are full of your joy.
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the One who comes to surprise us with grace.
Hosanna in the highest!
Holy is your Son, Jesus Christ—
resurrected prankster of paradise,
who turned water into wine
and death into life,
who slipped out of the tomb
before the stone even hit the ground.
He walked through locked doors,
broke bread with the bewildered,
and whispered peace into every frightened heart.
On the night before the punchline,
Jesus took bread,
gave thanks, broke it, and said:
"Take, eat—this is my body, broken for you."
Then he lifted the cup,
grinning through the shadows, and said:
"Drink from this, all of you. This is the cup of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins."
"Do this in remembrance of me."
And so, we remember the story that still stuns us:
Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again—
probably when we least expect it.
Pour out your Spirit, O God,
on us gathered here and on these gifts—
not just so we may remember,
but so we might be re-membered:
reassembled, re-animated, and re-sparked
as the body of Christ in the world.
Make us gigglers of grace,
whisperers of peace,
and holy fools for the sake of your kingdom.
All glory and laughter be yours,
God of holy joy,
now and forever.
Amen.
Sending
Go now—
we will go with pockets full of laughter,
with eyes squinting from the brightness of grace,
with hearts wide open to holy surprises.
Be bold in your joy.
Be generous with your giggles.
We will tell the good news with a grin,
and live like resurrection is the punchline
that changes everything.
May your steps be light,
your burdens be lifted,
and your spirit be as free
as a kid on a swing in the sunshine.
The world needs our joy.
Let us go to share it.
