Hosanna ~ Palm Sunday ~ March 5, 2020
Welcome to Palm Sunday at Olympic View Virtual Church!
Call to Worship
Though we have known hardship and pain,
though life has not always turned out as we had hoped,
we will stand here and say:
God’s steadfast love endures for ever!
Though life becomes more complex,
the deepest questions remain unanswered,
and the mystery of faith deepens, we will say:
God’s steadfast love endures for ever!
And though the pain of the world
often seems more than we can bear or address,
we will stand firm in our faith and say:
God’s steadfast love endures for ever!
Processional Hymn (video) – All Glory Laud and Honor
The Salvation Army Citadel Band & The Celebration Choir
Invocation
We await you, Coming One, with hope and expectation.
Draw near to us, your people, and to all the longing people of earth.
Reveal yourself again as Savior and Lord, even as we prepare to go with you to the cross and empty tomb that tells the hard story of earth’s salvation.
Let us sing again the joy of your coming, and look forward to your reign in our hearts and lives,
not only for our own sake, but for the sake of the world which you have redeemed and are redeeming
through Christ our Lord, who taught us to pray,
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kin-dom 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 kin-dom, the power, and the glory,
Forever and ever,
Amen
Children’s Time
Meditating on the Word (video) – Chorus of Faith
Michael Card
First Testament Reading Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 NRSV
Scripture Video Psalm 118
Julie Geller and the Beating Hearts
A Time of Prayer
Please leave prayers and prayer requests in the comments below.
We confess O God that we are broken. We are not together physically. We are struggling and suffering in this world, in this time of isolation. However, we confess, O God, that You are our healer. You are the one who unites, who binds us together. We confess that we feel lost, in an unfamiliar time, with an unknown future. But we also confess, O God, that we have an opportunity to learn the needs of our neighbors more clearly, to listen to one another more deeply. We confess, O God, that at times we are finding more spaces to rest. We confess that we are also exhausted. We confess all the ways that we are distressed, ill at ease, where we struggle with the space we are in; we also confess the simple pleasures we have found in activities we have more time for. In all this weirdness, O God, help us to find You, to welcome You in our lives, to know that Your reign is not of this world. Remind us that this will be temporary, but Your reign is eternal. Hosanna! Save us, O God. Save us from temptation. Save us from our tempers, our short fuses and bad moods. Save us from despair. Save us from hopelessness. Hosanna! Save us, O God. Save us from giving up. Save us from not planning ahead. Save us from worry. Save us from fear. Hosanna! Save us, O God. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed are you, Lord Jesus, who came into our world as one of us, who died as one of us, and who lives again. May we seek Your reign on earth as it is in heaven. Hosanna in the Highest! In the name of Christ, who knows our isolation, who knows what it is like to struggle to find rest, who knows our needs in this time, we pray. Amen.
Gospel Reading Matthew 21:1-11 NRSV
Gospel Video Matthew 21 1 11
YouTube – posted by Mike Koplitz
Message – Hosanna
Call to Serve
Lord Jesus, you who expressed your kingship not by taking but by giving, not by demanding but by sacrificing – bless us now as we follow your example in the giving of ourselves in these signs of our lives – our tithes and offerings, our service and prayers, given in your honor and for the good of the world.
Benediction
And now we lay down the palm branches.And with them we lay down our belief that there is another way for you to be God.
As the last echo of the final alleluia fades, so does our hope that this journey can end in any other way.
The week stretches ahead glory-less and pain-full.
Whether we walk with all faith or none we look towards the cross, knowing it is both the most human and most divine of all journeys.
Travel the road with courage, with love, and with the uneasy peace that is the gift of faith into this holiest of weeks.
Amen.
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