Sundays at All Hallows (Sunday, March 26, 2023)

Welcome to Sundays at All Hallows. The best description of All Hallows Murray is an online gathering place for Christians and those exploring the Christian faith. The services of praise, proclamation, and prayer that are offered on this blogsite are not intended to replace those of a local church but are offered for the benefit of those who are unable to attend a local church for any reason, who may be traveling, or who wish to test the water before taking the plunge, or who otherwise may benefit from them.

DRAWING NEAR TO GOD

Gathering Song:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Marty Haugen’s “Wind Upon the Waters.”

Wind upon the waters,
voice upon the deep;
rouse your sons and daughters,
wake us from our sleep.
Breathing life into all flesh,
breathing love into all hearts,
Living wind upon the waters of my soul.

Showers from the heaven,
water from the earth;
Gift so wholly given,
source of every birth.
Joy of every living thing,
making all creation sing,
Shower down upon the dry earth of my soul.

Rock and hill and garden,
wood and desert sand;
Prairie, field and meadow,
shaped by Love's own hand.
Love that fills the world around,
springing up from barren ground,
Grow your love within the garden of my soul.

Blazing light of wonder,
flame that pierces night;
Burst the dark asunder,
fill our souls with light.
Lord of glory, fill the skies,
make an end to hatred's cries,
Be the blazing Sun of justice in our lives.

Wind upon the waters,
rains upon the sand,
Grace your sons and daughters,
newborn by your hand.
Come, O Spirit and renew
all the life that comes from you,
Send your winds upon the waters of my soul.

Solo:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Michael Baughen and Daniel Iverson’s “Spirit of the Living God.”

1 Spirit of the living God,
move among us all;
make us one in heart and mind,
make us one in love,
humble, caring, selfless, sharing.
Spirit of the living God,
fill our lives with love.

2 Spirit of the living God,
fall afresh on me,
Spirit of the living God,
fall afresh on me.
break me, melt me, mold me, fill me.
Spirit of the Living God,
fall afresh on me.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us; but if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Let us humbly confess our sins to Almighty God.

Silence

O God, our Father, we have sinned against you in thought, word and deed; we have not love you with all our heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves, Have mercy upon us, we beseech you; cleanse us from our sins; and help us to overcome our faults; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Merciful God, grant to your faithful people pardon and peace, that they may be cleansed from all their sins, and serve you with a quiet mind, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Kyrie:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Ed Bolduc’s Mass of St. Ann setting of the Kyrie.

Kyrie eleison
Kyrie eleison
Christe eleison
Christe eleison
Kyrie eleison
Kyre eleison

The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.

Let us pray.

Silence

Life-giving God,
your Son came into the world
to free us all from sin and death:
breathe upon us with the power of the Holy Spirit,
that we may be raised to new life in Chris,
and serve you in holiness and righteousness all our days;
through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord,
who lies and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

HEARING GOD’S WORD

A reading from the New Testament (Romans 8:6–11)

To be controlled by human nature results in death; to be controlled by the Spirit results in life and peace. And so people become enemies of God when they are controlled by their human nature; for they do not obey God's law, and in fact they cannot obey it. Those who obey their human nature cannot please God.

But you do not live as your human nature tells you to; instead, you live as the Spirit tells you to—if, in fact, God's Spirit lives in you. Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ lives in you, the Spirit is life for you [or your spirit is alive] because you have been put right with God, even though your bodies are going to die because of sin. If the Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from death, lives in you, then he who raised Christ from death will also give life to your mortal bodies by the presence of his Spirit in you.

Silence

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Life in the Spirit

The Holy Spirit plays a vital role in the life of a Christian, in the life of a disciple of Jesus. In an article I posted on my blog this week, Dan Dilzell, the pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Papillion, Nebraska, put it this way:

“[The Holy Spirit is]… the one Person who can enable us to believe the Gospel, love God, follow Christ, and serve others with godly compassion. Without the Holy Spirit, none of those things would be possible. We would be helpless and hopeless, lost, dazed, and confused. We would have no clue how to be forgiven of our sins or how to please the Lord.”

We would not be able to live the life of a Christian, the life of a disciple of Jesus, apart from the Holy Spirit. We would not be able to put our faith in Jesus. We would not be able to produce spiritual fruit. We would not have any assurance that God loves us. God’s grace, the power of the Holy Spirit working in us, enables this and more to happen.

Jesus talks about being spiritually born again. The apostle Paul writes about the new self. Both are works of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit enables us not only to become spiritually alive, but also to become a new person, to acquire new attitudes, new ways of thinking, and new behavior.

In services of public worship and in our private devotions we may invoke the Holy Spirit in prayer and in song. What we are actually doing is asking God to manifest himself in the person of the Holy Spirit, to enable us to experience God’s presence and his power. We would have no interest in invoking the Holy Spirit, much less be able to do so, without the Holy Spirit enabling us to pray and sing. When we pray for the Holy Spirit to work in our lives and to work in the lives of other people, we are showing a greater openness to the Holy Spirit that itself is a work of the Holy Spirit.

A lot of attention during the last century was focused on what are called the gifts of the Holy Spirit, that is, the ways that God manifests himself in our lives. Individuals who experienced the more extraordinary manifestations of the Holy Spirit were thought to have experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

The late Peter Green, an Anglican priest and the author of numerous books on the Christian faith and evangelism, wrote that it would be more accurate to describe what happens as the release of the Holy Spirit since the people who experienced these manifestations could not have become believing, practicing Christians without the Holy Spirit. Due to unrepented sin or some other obstruction they had not been able to fully experience the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives. The fact that an individual did not experience a particular manifestation of the Holy Spirit in their lives did not mean that the Holy Spirit was not indwelling them.

God makes his presence and power known in people’s lives in more ways than one. God produces in us those qualities of character which Paul describes as the fruit of the Spirit. They are qualities of character that we associate with God and Jesus.

Today’s service contains a number of songs and a collect. All of the songs and the collect are prayers invoking the Holy Spirit. You are invited to add your own prayers to these. You may wish to pray for revival in your own church and other churches in your community, across the nation, and around the world. Your church does not have to be dead to ask God to revive it. You are asking God to stir up interest in the Christian faith and way of life in a stronger way than before and to give your church fresh energy and renewed purpose. You may wish to pray for spiritual awakening in your community and in the nation and the world. You may wish to ask God to enliven and strengthen your own faith. You may wish to start your prayers with these or similar word, “Holy Spirit, guide my prayers. Show me for whom or for what God desires that I pray, so that my prayers will be aligned with God’s will.” If you struggle for words, ask the Holy Spirit to supply them. Then pray, remembering that God is eagerly waiting to hear from you.

Silence

Song of Response:
Open this link I a new tab to hear Edwin Hatch’s “O Breathe on Me, O Breath of God.”

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
Fill me with life anew
That I may love the things you love,
And do what you would do.

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
Until my heart is pure;
Until my will is one with yours,
To do and to endure.

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
My will to yours incline,
Until this selfish part of me
Glows with your fire divine.

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
So I shall never die,
But live with you the perfect life
For all eternity.

PRAYING FOR GOD’S WORLD

Concerns and Prayers

A short pause for silent prayer may be made after each response. The bidding in brackets [ ] may be omitted.

Let us implore the all-holy and ever-blessed Trinity to show mercy and grace to us and to all people.

O God the Father, have mercy upon us:
O God the Father, have mercy upon us.
O God the Son, have mercy upon us:
O God the Son, have mercy upon us.
O God the Holy Spirit, have mercy upon us:
O God the Holy Spirit, have mercy upon us.

Stretch out your hand upon us, O Lord, and save us; raise us up and defend us.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for the peace that comes from above, and for the salvation of our souls.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for the peace of the whole world, and for the welfare and unity of the Church of God.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for the conversion of those who do not yet believe or have fallen into error.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for our country, for this place [or city], for this district, and for all that live in it.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for all Christian people throughout the world.

Lord, have mercy.

[Let us pray for all Christian princes and governors, especially our Sovereign Lord, King Charles.]

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for all in authority in this land, especially those in this county [or city or place].

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for all who minister in Christ's Church, especially for N. our pastor.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for all who are traveling by land, sea, or air.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for steadfastness in the faith for our brothers and sisters in other lands.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for all who are sick or suffering, in mind, body, or state of life.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for quiet, peaceful lives, free from temptation and sin, and for a joyful reunion with all our loved ones in heaven at life’s end.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray that we may faithfully represent Christ in the world and to the world.

Lord, have mercy.

Let us pray for the faithful departed.

Lord, have mercy.

(Other biddings may be added here.)

Lord, you have given us grace to agree in these prayers, and you have promised that when two or three ask together in your name you will grant their requests. Fulfil now, Lord, our desires and prayers as may be best for us. Grant us in this life, knowledge of your truth and in the age to come, life eternal. Amen.

And now as our Savior Christ taught us, we are bold to say:

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,
for ever and ever. Amen.

GOING OUT TO SERVE

Closing Song:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Trevor Hodge’s musical setting of Bessy Porter Ann Head’s “O Breath of Life, Come Sweeping through Us.”

1 O Breath of life, come sweeping through us,
revive your church with life and power.
O Breath of life, come, cleanse, renew us,
and fit your church to meet this hour.

O Breath of love, come breathe within,
renewing thought and will and heart.
Come, love of Christ, afresh to win;
revive your church in every part.

2 O Wind of God, come bend us, break us,
till humbly we confess our need.
Then in your tenderness remake us;
revive, restore, for this we plead.

O Breath of love, come breathe within,
renewing thought and will and heart.
Come, love of Christ, afresh to win;
revive your church in every part.

Revive us, Lord! Is zeal abating
while harvest fields are vast and white?
Revive us, Lord, the world is waiting,
equip your church to spread the light.

O Breath of love, come breathe within,
renewing thought and will and heart.
Come, love of Christ, afresh to win;
revive your church in every part.

O Breath of love, come breathe within,
renewing thought and will and heart.
Come, love of Christ, afresh to win;
revive your church in every part.

Coda:
O Breath of life, come sweeping through us,
revive your church with life and power.

Benediction:
May the Lord bless us and keep us,
May the Lord make his face to shine on us and be gracious to us,
May the Lord look on us with kindness and give us peace. Amen.