[LITURGY] Lent Week 2: All Nature Sings

Mariah: Hey South Bend City Church, Mariah here – the Director of Art and Worship. In today’s episode of the podcast, we have week 2 of our Lent liturgies. Today we focus on Jesus as Friend and God as Creator. Let’s jump in with the rest of our community now.

 
Zach: Good morning South Bend City Church family, how are you? Y’all good? Good. For those of y’all who don’t know me, I’m Zach – I serve on the pastoral staff here at South Bend City Church. And one of the things I love to do is bring a bit of my church tradition to here. Mkay?

I grew up in the Missionary Baptist Church and my dad was a pastor. I’m a PK, listen that’s a preacher’s kid, I wasn’t a bad one I was just silly and things. Like you didn’t wanna look at me in church cause I be in the choir stand and somebody would say something kinda off the wall or outta pocket and I would pick my prey and I would be like, “who can I make laugh?” And then I would find them and I would make a face and typically it was one of the deacons, I was petty. It’s fine. It’s fine.

But all of that to say, at the beginning of every church service we did something called devotion. And what that was was essentially a call to worship and the deacons would come up and sing these old songs, sometimes a capella, sometimes with drums, piano, instruments, whatever. But it was just a moment for us to center ourselves to be prepared for whatever God had for us to receive that Sunday. So ya’ll just sit down and chill, you can sing along if you want, but this is just a moment to get yourselves centered and grounded for today’s gathering. Is that alright? Cool. Go ahead.

 
Jesus is a Friend of Mine by Timothy Wright
Verse 1 (x2)
Jesus is a friend of mine, oh yeah
Jesus is a friend of mine
He saved my soul, renewed my mind
Jesus is a friend of mine
Good God Almighty

Verse 2
I know He’ll never let me down
I know He’ll never let me down
He is the best thing I’ve ever found
I know He’ll never let me down
Good God Almighty

Verse 3 (x2)
When I am weak He makes me strong
When I am weal He makes me strong
He is my shelter, in times of storm
When I am weak He makes me strong
Good God Almighty

Vamp
He’s a friend (a friend) of mine (of mine)

Verse 1

 
Zach: Put your hands together and give God some praise.

 
Lent Reading #2 by Rev. M Jade Kaiser at enfleshed
Divine Creator,
when you first stirred the waters
and breathed into the soil of the earth,
all life was able to flourish.
From birth to death, there was enough.
Creatures and creations lived in cooperation.
The land. The water. The animals. The people.
All part of the family of God.
But as evil and greed permeated the hearts of humanity,
so began the interruption of Love’s natural rhythms.

We distanced ourselves from our creaturely neighbors,
and began to see the land as little more than fields of profit.
We have made ourselves strangers to our own home,
neglecting the wild in us,
forgetting our place among the whole of things.

Renew us, O God,
to right-relationship with the earth,
with our own bodies born from soil and water,
with our neighbors who bear the worst consequences of our consumption and negligence.

May we be the ones who mend what has been destroyed,
who confront the powerful who plunder and leave barren,
who desires transformation of our own hearts and practices,
that life’s abundance may be restored upon the earth,
and all creatures and creations
may rest in your care.

 
This Is My Father’s World by Maltbie Davenport Babcock
Verse 1
This is my Father’s world, and to my listening ears
All nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres
This is my Father’s world: I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas, His hand the wonders wrought

Chorus
Woah-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh, Woah-oh

Verse 2
This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise
The morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker’s praise
This is my Father’s world: He shines in all that’s fair
In the rustling grass I hear Him pass; He speaks to me everywhere

Chorus

Verse 4
This is my Father’s world, why should my heart be sad
The Lord is King—let the heavens ring God reigns—let the earth be glad

Chorus 2
Woah-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh, Woah-oh
The earth is filled with Your glory
The earth is filled with Your glory
The earth is filled with Your glory

Zach: Put your hands together, give God some praise.