Bright Hope Laurel

United Methodist Church

“Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love,
and relents from punishing.”
(Joel: 2:13b, NRSV).

WORSHIP NOTE!!!

As you leave this evening, do not attempt to wash the ashes off with water. Ash and water when
mixed forms a caustic substance that may irritate and even burn the skin. Instead, use a little
vegetable oil to clean the ash off of your forehead.

Lent is a season of forty days, not counting Sundays, which begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy
Saturday. Lent comes from the Anglo-Saxon word lencten, which means “spring.” The season is a
preparation for celebrating Easter.

Lent is a season of reflection and repentance. It invites us to look inside our hearts, seeing ourselves with
compassion and truth — to see both our brokenness and our beauty, our failings and our faithfulness. In
this season we’re inviting you to enter into a deeper commitment to the way of Jesus Christ.

Ash Wednesday emphasizes a dual encounter: we confront our own mortality and we confess our sin
before God within the community of faith. The service focuses on the dual themes of sin and death in the
light of God’s redeeming love in Jesus Christ.

ENTRANCE AND PRAISE

God‟s people come into His presence with Prayer and Praise
(For this evenings service, we will be using The Celebration Hymnal, The United Methodist Hymnal, The Faith
We Sing, and music by
Ken Bible [www.lnwhymns.com])

GREETING/WELCOME Rich Ashley

PRELUDE John Hamrick

LIGHTING OF CANDLES
(As the acolyte(s) processes down the aisle the first person in each row lights their candle and in turn
lights the candle of the person next to them.)

Andrea: (spoken over music) The Lord our God gave us light, not just the light of the sun for our days, but
the light of our soul, Christ Jesus—
People: (spoken over music) The light which shines in our being, beckons us onward, leading us
home to God.
Silence
Andrea: (spoken over music) The Lord our God gave us light, not just the light of the sun that grows our
food, but the light of our soul, Christ Jesus—
People: (spoken over music) The light which feeds our spirits, strengthens us for work, ripening our
relationship with God.
Silence
Andrea: (spoken over music) The Lord our God gave us light, not just the light of the sun that gives us
warmth, but the light of our soul, Christ Jesus—
People: (spoken over music) The light which kindles our hearts, nurtures our lives, wrapping us in
the love of God.
Silence
Andrea: But we have rejected the warmth. Rejected the light. Rejected the day the Lord has given us.
People: We have turned away from God. We have left our home. We have refused to be fed. We
have thrown off the love God gives us and walked into the cold; into the dark.

*OPENING HYMN The Faith We Sing # 2138

“Sunday’s Palms are Wednesday’s Ashes”
v. 1 - Rev. Johnson
v. 2 - Andrea Bailey
v. 3 - Congregation

(At the end of this song, the congregation is invited to extinguish their individual
candles)

RESPONSIVE READING — Psalm 27

Rev. Johnson: The Lord is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense
of my life; Whom shall I dread?

People: One thing I ask of the Lord, only that do I seek: to live in the house of the Lord all
the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord, to frequent His temple.

Rev. Johnson: Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud: have mercy on me, answer me. In Your behalf my
heart says: “Seek My face!” O Lord, I seek Your face. Do not hide Your face from me; do not
thrust aside Your servant in anger; You have ever been my help. Do not forsake me, do not
abandon me, O God , my deliverer. Though my father and mother abandon me, the Lord will
take me in.

People: Teach me Your way, O Lord, and lead me in a level path.

EVENING PRAYER

HYMN The Faith We Sing # 2200

“O Lord, Hear My Prayer” (Three Times)
“Hear my prayer, O Lord: let my cry come to you” (Psalms 102:1).
SILENCE

OLD TESTAMENT LESSON Andrea Bailey

Genesis 1:26-31a

HYMN The Celebration Hymnal # 179

“Awesome God”
“The Great and awesome God keeps His covenant of love” (Nehemiah 1:5).

MEDITATION Rev. Johnson

The Amazing Race: The Beginning
SILENCE

OLD TESTAMENT LESSON Rich Ashley

Jeremiah 18:1-6

SPECIAL MUSIC Rev. Johnson

“Change My Heart, O God”
“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me” (Psalms 51:10).

MEDITATION Rev. Johnson

The Amazing Race: U-Turn

OFFERING Rich Ashley

HYMN The United Methodist Hymnal # 488

“Jesus, Remember Me” (Three Times)
“Then he said, „Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom‟”
(Luke 23:42).

OLD TESTAMENT LESSON Rev. Johnson

Ezekiel 37:1-11

MEDITATION Rev. Johnson

The Amazing Race: Last to First

SPECIAL MUSIC Andrea Bailey

“Ashes to Ashes”
“Dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to the God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7).

THE IMPOSITION OF ASHES

(All are invited to come and receive God’s grace through the receiving of the ashes. After
receiving the ashes, you may return to your seat or knell at God’ Altar.)

A PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Rev. Johnson: In the dark of night God calls to us; beckoning us on, seeking us out, calling us to
peace, to quietness, to wholeness.

People: The world is dark around us, filled with coldness, terror and restlessness.

Nicole Johnson: It is a darkness of our creation: Greed, hatred, envy: brokenness.

People: Take us and heal us of every evil. Bring us back into the comfort and closeness of
your embrace, O God.

Rich Ashley: Your cleansing love, O God, purifies our darkness restoring it to us; Warm,
comforting, restful: complete.

People: In the dark of our night we hear God call, offering love and strength and
forgiveness.

Rev. Johnson: With God the darkness brings comfort not fear, love not hatred, righteousness not
punishment. Walk in the darkness of your life as in the light, for both the dark and the light
belong to God, as do you.

People: Amen.

SILENCE

*HYMN The United Methodist Hymnal # 269

“Lord, Who Throughout These Forty Days”
(Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13)

WORDS OF PEACE Rev. Johnson

(You are invited to stay and meditate and pray or leave quietly)

*Indicates the Congregation shall stand, as able

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We welcome our visitors today as you worship with us! We hope you will come again! If you are
looking for a church home and want to feel and experience the love of God, Bright Hope Laurel United
Methodist Church is the place for you!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This evening’s music in the bulletin are printed with permission as follows:

The Celebration Hymnal. Copyright 1997 by Word/Integrity. All rights reserved. The Publishers
gratefully acknowledge permission from organizations to reprint texts, music and arrangements
contained in this book.

The Faith We Sing. Copyright 2000 by Abingdon Press. All rights reserved.
The United Methodist Hymnal. Copyright 1989 by The United Methodist Publishing House. All
rights reserved.

The Bulletin Cover picture was taken from http://www.island-christian-

church.org/churchwebimages/AshWednesday-copy.jpg and used with permission.