Call to Worship

Followers of Jesus, our lives are filled with stress and distress, disquiet and fear.
In the unrest and the fear, we gather to worship God who delivers us.

Like the disciples gathered with Jesus, we feel the turmoil of rumors and conspiracies, the grasping for power and security that threatens the lives and livelihoods of our neighbors.
In the suffering and the tumult, we gather to call on God who delivers us.

Facing an unknown future, the disciples gathered as we do today, to be surprised by Love, to share a meal, to remember their story, to receive a new story and a new meal.
In the uncertainty of these days, we gather to share the story of God who delivers us.

Followers of Jesus, come. Come to the basin and be washed. Come to the meal and be fed. Come to the table and be strengthened for the journey.
We gather together to remember the story of God’s deliverance, that we may go from this place to heal the hurting, to tend the suffering, to love one another as Jesus loves us.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, September 2025.

Prayer for the Day

Gracious God,
As those who strive to follow Jesus in our living
and to trust your power in our dying,
we gather to reflect upon the life that ended on a cross.

We recognize in ourselves
the strengths and weaknesses of Jesus’ disciples:
although they loved him,
they disappointed and failed him.

And yet, gathering with these imperfect friends at this last meal,
Jesus washed their feet in service, and then
extended the bread and cup to each.
Jesus called them to love one another
and invited them to share in his very life
and in his acceptance of the road ahead.

We are humbled, honored, and inspired
by the deep love Christ extended to the world,
and we take seriously the calling
to be the body of Christ today.

Forgive us when we disappoint and fail you,
and guide us back to a place of trust and faithful living.
Grant us the vision to see the world as you see it,
with love and compassion for each creature and all of your creation.
We ask this in the name of Jesus,
who taught us to pray to you. . . [Lord’s Prayer]

Written by Rev. Kelly Burd. Posted on the United Church of Christ website. https://www.ucc.org/. Re-posted on the re:Worship blog at https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2016/03/pastoral-prayer-for-maundy-thursday.html.

Prayer of Confession

Holy Deliverer,
Tonight, we have reached the all-too-familiar story of the eve before the execution. While there are times when we relate very well to Jesus in this story, we forget that we have been Judas, Peter, and the disciples. We have allowed ourselves to become part of someone’s story of pain. Our words have pierced another’s hearts. We have betrayed our neighbor instead of filling this world and another’s soul with love. Instead of living with the heaviness of guilt, allow us to create peace around us and within us. Invite us to share our repentance and to reconcile whenever possible. May we live into the mandate to love one another as you love us. Amen.

Words of Assurance

Through the redeeming love of Christ, God has poured grace upon us. May the mercy of God transform us into bearers of love in a wounded world. Amen.

Written by Rev. Michelle Torigian on the Worship Ways website at https://www.ucc.org/worship-way/maundy-thursday-march-28/.

Benediction

Beloved, may God bless you as you leave this place to run toward the hurting and the suffering in the world, sharing the steadfast love of God in service and solidarity as we build the kin-dom of God together. Amen.

Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, September 2025.