Prayers 4 1 2012
*Welcome to 9:30 Joint English Worship & Palm Sunday—combining 9:00 and 10:20, celebrating believers baptism, and remembering the Lord in Holy Communion.
*Sidewalk Tea Reception following this service to welcome our new members and meet our guests and visitors to our church today
*Holy Week Services: Maundy Thursday—New members reading passages at the Chinese Congregational Church—“Why is this night different from every other night?” It’s the night that Jesus ate with his friends; Good Friday—“7 Last Words of Christ;” and Easter Sunday
*Next Sunday—Easter Sunday: Sunrise, 7:00 AM at YMCA Courtyard; YMCA Easter Breakfast (Buy tickets at the door) no breakfast at FCBC; Easter services at FCBC sanctuary—9:00, 10:20, and 11:30 (No services at the Y gym next Sunday)
*Senior Center, April 11—on Hearing—“Can You Hear Me?” with Juvy Lee and Kaiser
Prayer Concerns:
*Yue Jin Liu, Anthony Liu’s mother suffered a stroke on Monday; lost the movement on her left side
*Search Committee met last night and a decision was made to recommend the candidate to the Board of Deacons to approve.
Prayer of God’s People
God of glory, God who reigns, God most high, we pray to you today with excitement of how you have drawn us here today to worship and witness your transformation of our lives according to your will. We praise you for touching the lives of these who will be baptized as their profession of faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. May you continue to bless them and encourage them to live out their lives of faithfulness and sacrifice.
As we waved palms to remember your triumphant entrance into Jerusalem as the Blessed One who comes in God’s holy name, we look toward the cross as your love for the world goes beyond our expectation and what we deserve. We pray for forgiveness as we remember the Last Supper when Jesus ate with his disciples before his betrayal. We pray for our salvation as we remember Christ’s last seven words on the cross before he died for our sins so that we may have everlasting life. As we look even farther, we look to Easter morning when death will lose its sting because you raised Jesus from the dead and promised us that we too will be raised and have life eternal. We thank you for the work of Jesus, for your love for us and for the action of the Holy Spirit, 2000 years ago and in our lives today.
For those who are suffering today, we pray for healing and recovery. Be with Anthony Liu’s mother, Mrs. Yue Jin Liu as she rests and improve from her stroke. Bless…
May all your children feel your touch in their lives. And may all of us be impelled by the challenge from your Holy Spirit to liberate the captives, to proclaim the good news to the suffering, to heal the sick, and to save the lost, that the rich and the poor, the humble and the proud, the saved and the seeking, people the world over, together bow our knees at the name of Jesus. Let every tongue confess Jesus reigns now and forever and who taught us to pray together…”Our Father…”
The Last Supper
There were some religious professors who studied 52 painting of the Last Supper spread chronologically over the past thousand years. They discover something interesting—that as food became more available to people, the size of the meal served as the Last Supper got bigger and bigger!
In some of the ancient paintings the portions are austere, even tiny. But as time went by perceptions changed. Now it looks as if the apostles ordered “supersized” portions.
Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins is the only “supersized” bread and cup that we need. As we consider the sacrifice of Jesus, let us remember that the sacrifice we are called to make may not be so dramatic and supersized but can still make a difference in the lives of others.
Benediction
Jesus’ name is above every name.
Let every knee bend.
Let every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory of God.
Jesus Christ is inviting us to dance with him today and in Paradise.
Amen.