Many people are looking forward to returning to a life free of the recent Covid-19 restrictions. We have all been affected by the virus, but no two people have been affected in the same way. Everyone has their own story, their memories of this time. We have all had hard and fearful moments, as well as the encouraging and victorious ones. Yet our commonality is in a future that will never be the same. Our world is going through change, and with this change there are many anxious hearts.
We have been sheltering within our homes even as a plague has passed us by. This reminds us of another time when people gathered in homes to await the passing of deadly pestilence. The Passover commemorates a time when God’s people prepared to leave a life of slavery in order to enter a land of promise.
But, this was no ordinary exit. The rescuing, redeeming God of Israel directed the exodus of His people in a particular way, that they might learn something about Him and remember this deliverance.
The preparation involved a symbolic meal, full of tangible tastes and smells that pointed to a Savior. The lamb shank reminds us of the sacrifices made on the night that God passed over, the bitter herbs taste of the bitterness of slavery that the Jewish people endured, and in the matzah bread, the leaven of slavery and sin is left behind, looking to the promise of freedom.
We too have been called into a home to gather and to wait, to prepare for a time when we will take what we need for a journey, a journey of life giving freedom. We have a reason to stop and remember. We are a people that have been healed and we long to express our thanksgiving to the Passover Lamb. We want to pause and remember, for we will tell this story again and again. How was this time different from all others?
As our families make preparations to leave our homes, we need to remember what God has done. In His great love He has spared our lives, both physically and spiritually. We have done nothing to earn this grace; we can only marvel at God’s provision and protection.
We know that we will soon be called to step into our world again. There are things that we are longing to do, places where we are longing to be, and people we are longing to be close to again. We have an unprecedented opportunity, to re-enter our culture, our neighborhoods and our workplaces with clarified vision. This can be a time of renewal and of worship as we make ready to rise and walk through our blood stained doorposts.
As we return and remember, may we find both rest from our anxieties and strength for our future. May we go out in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the love of God and in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
In Remembrance and Thanksgiving,
Your Fellow Sojourner
The following is a worship resource to help you craft your own night of Remembrance and Thanksgiving in your home as you prepare to re-enter the world outside: (You may also contact me and I will send it to you.)
Poem: "Coronavirus and Christ" - A poem by John Piper that can be incorporated into your time of remembering.
Poem: "Coronavirus and Christ" - A poem by John Piper that can be incorporated into your time of remembering.
A Liturgy for Remembrance and Thanksgiving
You may light a candle as you begin your prayer.
Call to Prayer: Leader Prays
Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of Heaven and earth. We have come to remember your goodness, your sacrifice and your gracious, pardoning love. We want to remember how You have saved us, led us, and are calling us to return to You and give you all praise and thanksgiving. Amen.
A Reminder of Why We Pray: Leader Reads
Tonight is not like any other night. Tonight we stop and remember what has happened as a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic. On March 11th, the pandemic was declared a world wide threat. Our lives were changed from that moment on, yet God is faithful. He has remained the same. As He was in the beginning, so He will remain both now and forevermore, Lord of all. Just as the leper who was healed returned to thank Jesus for his healing, so we turn now to remember and to give thanks. Let us pray.
Confession of Sin: Leader Reads
Our help is in the Name of the Lord; Let us confess our sins to God.
(This can be a time of personal confession, either aloud or quietly to one’s self.)
Leader closes time of confession with the following prayer:
Almighty God, our heavenly Father: We have sinned against you, through our own fault, in thought, and word, and deed, and in what we have left undone. For the sake of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us all our offenses; and grant that we may serve you in newness of life, to the glory of your Name. Amen.
May the Almighty God grant us forgiveness of all our sins, and the grace and comfort of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Reading in the Psalms: You may appoint a reader, invite everyone to read aloud, or read in turn.
Psalm 66
1
Shout for joy to God, all the earth!
2
Sing the glory of his name;
make his praise glorious.
3
Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!
So great is your power
that your enemies cringe before you.
4
All the earth bows down to you;
they sing praise to you,
they sing the praises of your name.”
5
Come and see what God has done,
his awesome deeds for mankind!
6
He turned the sea into dry land,
they passed through the waters on foot—
come, let us rejoice in him.
7
He rules forever by his power,
his eyes watch the nations—
let not the rebellious rise up against him.
8
Praise our God, all peoples,
let the sound of his praise be heard;
9
he has preserved our lives
and kept our feet from slipping.
10
For you, God, tested us;
you refined us like silver.
11
You brought us into prison
and laid burdens on our backs.
12
You let people ride over our heads;
we went through fire and water,
but you brought us to a place of abundance.
13
I will come to your temple with burnt offerings
and fulfill my vows to you—
14
vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke
when I was in trouble.
15
I will sacrifice fat animals to you
and an offering of rams;
I will offer bulls and goats.
16
Come and hear, all you who fear God;
let me tell you what he has done for me.
17
I cried out to him with my mouth;
his praise was on my tongue.
18
If I had cherished sin in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened;
19
but God has surely listened
and has heard my prayer.
20
Praise be to God,
who has not rejected my prayer
or withheld his love from me!
Psalm 67
1
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine on us—
2
so that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.
3
May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
4
May the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you rule the peoples with equity
and guide the nations of the earth.
5
May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
6
The land yields its harvest;
God, our God, blesses us.
7
May God bless us still,
so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.
Thanksgiving to God: Leader reads
(This can be used as a time of giving thanks for what God has taught us and what He has delivered us from during the pandemic. )
Accept, O Lord, our thanks and praise for all that you have done for us.
(Now can be a time of giving public thanksgiving to God as a reflection of His goodness, love and care during this pandemic. The Leader may than close with the following:)
We thank you for the wonder of life and all that it holds. We thank you for the blessing of family and friends, and for their loving care which surrounds us. We thank you for how You satisfy us and delight us with good things. Furthermore, we thank you for those disappointments and failures that lead us to acknowledge our dependence upon your mercies alone. We thank you for Your constant care and protection. Above all, we thank you for your Son Jesus Christ; for the truth of his Word and the example of his life; for his steadfast obedience, by which he overcame temptation; for his dying, through which he overcame death; and for his rising to life again, in which we are raised to the life of your kingdom. Grant us the gift of your Spirit, that we may know him and make him known; and through him, at all times and in all places, may give thanks to you in all things. Amen.
Prayers of Dedication and Service: All may read aloud together:
A Prayer of Self-Dedication:
Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to you, so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be wholly yours, utterly dedicated unto you; and then use us, we pray you, as you will, and always to your glory and the welfare of your people; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
A Prayer of Service, by St. Francis:
Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
Commissioning: Leader prays over the household
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39
“Now may the God of peace Himself, sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit, body, and soul be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful and he will surely do it.” 1 Thess. 5: 23-24
Blow the candle out and rise to sing.
Now you may sing a hymn or the Doxology (“Great is Thy Faithfulness”, “Blessed Is The One”, “Abide With Me”, “Amazing Grace” or any other song or hymn your family has particularly cherished during this time.)
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