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Easter Day

POP: resurrection light

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We give thanks to you, O Lord, for you are good:
your mercy endures forever.
We sing and shout for the joy of your salvation,
secured for us in the resurrection of Jesus Christ!
Your living strength has triumphed!
The power of life has redeemed us!
We declare your saving works, O Mighty One.

Give us grace, O God, to open the gates of your righteousness
so that all your beloved ones may enter.
Let our lives bear witness that you are our salvation.
Christ, the stone which the builders rejected,
has become the cornerstone of your renewed people.
This is your doing, O Lord,
and it is marvelous in our eyes;
let all people rejoice and be glad in it!

We cry hosanna to you, O Lord: save us!
Work out your salvation for those who are in need today,
especially for those who labor under the shadow of death.
Shine your resurrection light upon us
and lead us like a joyful parade into your presence.

You are the God of life, and we thank you;
you are the God of new life, and we exalt you;
you are the God whose mercy endures forever,
and we pray rejoicing in Jesus’ name. Amen.

 

Submitted by Rev. Nathan Williams, Echo Hill Presbyterian Church, Cedar Rapids, IA

Dedication: proclaim glory

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God of life,
in raising Jesus from the dead,
you triumphed over the power of the grave
and opened the way to your kingdom of life.
You have called us to bear witness to your good news.
Let the gifts we dedicate, and the lives we lead,
proclaim the glory of the risen Christ,
in whose name we pray.
Alleluia! Amen.

 

Submitted by Rev. Nathan Williams, Echo Hill Presbyterian Church, Cedar Rapids, IA

Illumination: hearts burn

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Risen Christ,
you opened the scriptures to your disciples
and made their hearts burn within them.
Open our eyes, our ears, and our hearts,
so we might recognize you once again
in these words of scripture,
by the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

Submitted by Rev. Nathan Williams, Echo Hill Presbyterian Church, Cedar Rapids, IA

CTW: whispered alleluias

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One: It was dawn. The sun was warming the earth. The birds were singing.
Many: The beauty of the day was lost on the grieving women.
It may as well have been midnight as they approached the tomb.
One: It was dawn. The earth was rejoicing. The breeze whispered alleluias across the land.
Many: It made no sense. The stone had moved. The body was gone.
Confusion and fear shoved grief to the side.
One: It was dawn. The trees swayed in the rhythm of songs from the heavens.
Many: Dazzling clothes, strange voices, familiar words:
On the third day the Son of Man will rise again.
One: It was dawn. The women were running. The words were forming.
Many: Christ is risen! Come and see!
One: Christ is Risen!
ALL: He is risen indeed.

 

Submitted by Laura Viau.

Easter confession

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All: We come running, looking for you, Risen Christ,
but you are not where we expect you to be.
As always, you are to be found among the living—
those living at the edge, those living with uncertainty,
those living in ways we cannot imagine and may not approve.
We come running, our hands full of things and our minds full of self-reliance,
only to find that you have been here already,
you have rolled away the stone and called us to trust your word.

One: If this good news is true, it means everything is different now.
We confess that our excitement is a little bit nervous—
it’s hard for us not to be in control.

All: Today as we peer once again into your empty tomb,
remind us of all you have told us, and then guide our feet to follow.
Fill the empty tombs of our hearts with your love that cannot be contained.
Breathe new life into us, into your church, into your world,
and overcome our fear of change so that we too may be found among the living.
Turn our expectations upside down,
and lead us into the new and different world you are creating, even now, even here.
Amen.

 

Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, the Presbyterian Church of Palatine, IL