Lent and Easter
Our Lenten theme, Full to the Brim, is an invitation — into a radically different Lent, into a full life. It’s an invitation to be authentically who you are, to counter scarcity and injustice at every turn, to pour out even more grace wherever it is needed. And so, this Lent, let us trust — fully — that we belong to God. Let us increase our capacity to receive and give grace. Let us discover the expansive life God dreams for us.
Images © A Sanctified Art | sanctifiedart.org
All are welcome to join us for worship. We will pray, offer a scripture and a short lesson, and lead everyone in the self-imposition of ashes.
If you cannot join us at 5:30, we invite you to download the worship guide. Feel free to read the prayers and scripture, pull up the song on YouTube, and mark yourself with a cross using a mix of ashes with a few drops of olive or vegetable oil. (Do not mix the ashes with water! It creates an acid that will burn your skin.)
1st Sunday in Lent: Even in the Desert
March 6 at 10am [click to view on YouTube]
Scripture: Luke 4:1–13
Even in the midst of struggle, oppressive forces, hardship, and grief — God’s promises spill over, like the bounty of the first fruits from the ground. Even in the desert, you are called to the riverside to be washed by grace.
2nd Sunday in Lent: Under God’s Wing
March 13 at 10am [click to view on YouTube]
Scripture: Luke 13:31–35
Jesus’s lament for Jerusalem is an image of fierce love and protection. We receive grace upon grace, even if not deserved. No matter how much we try to separate ourselves from God, God will run to protect us. God will gather is in. God’s love for us is fuller than we can imagine.
3rd Sunday in Lent: You Are Worthy
March 20 at 10am [click to view on YouTube]
Scripture: Luke 13:1–9
The lesson of the fig tree invites us to unpack the source of our worth in a system and society that often measures worthiness by commerce, production, output, success, status, achievement, ethnicity, and/or gender identity. Like the gardener, you are invited to see others with audacious hope and budding potential.
4th Sunday in Lent: Prodigal Grace
March 27 at 10am [click to view on YouTube]
Scripture: Luke 15:1–3, 11b–32
The word “prodigal” is commonly used to describe the son who squanders his inheritance. Yet, this parable invites us to consider how God’s grace is also prodigal — extravagant, lavish, illogical. This parable disrupts and expands our definitions of grace. How might you receive and extend prodigal grace?
5th Sunday in Lent: Brazen Acts of Beauty
April 3 at 10am [click to view on YouTube]
Scripture: John 12:1–8
Beauty is resistance to death; beauty is an act of love. Faith does not hide; it is not frugal. It is embodied, broken open, and poured out. This isn’t a frugal faith — it is an abundant, extravagant faith.
Palm/Passion Sunday: Even the Stones
April 10 at 10:00am
Worship & Communion [click to view on YouTube]
Scripture: Luke 19:28–40
As we begin our walk through Holy Week, let us ask: What can’t be silenced? What must be said? What things can we not stay quiet about? What is bubbling up that we need to give voice to — faith questions, apologies, issues of justice, truth-telling? As we go deeper into the story, the truth will soon be set free.
Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 11:23–26, Matthew 26:31, Isaiah 53:3 and 5
In a room full to the brim with emotion, Jesus offers a tender, loving, and humble goodbye, stooping low to wash and caress his disciples’ feet. Like the water splashing within the washbasin, his actions ripple out: “Go and do likewise. Just as I have loved you, love one another.” This scene offers us a poignant and powerful image of discipleship.
Easter/Resurrection Sunday: An Expansive Life
April 21 at 10:00am
Worship & Communion [click to view on YouTube]
Scripture: Luke 24:1–12
When the women find the tomb empty and are stunned by the presence and words of the messengers in dazzling clothing, they remember what Jesus had said. They return to their deepest knowing and allow themselves to receive the expansiveness of resurrection. Their imaginations and hearts expand, and they must take action in response.
