2 CORINTHIANS 5

We Are God’s Ambassadors

11Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this, too. 12 Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be proud of us, so you can answer those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart. 13 If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit. 14 Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. 15 He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.

16 So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! 17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” 21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Wayfinders Family Blessing

Gracious God,

We gather before You as a family, grateful for Your loving presence with us.

Bless our children:

Guide them in Your truth and lead them in Your ways. 

Help them to walk in faithfulness, seeking Your will in all that they do. 

May Your Spirit empower them to love one another deeply, 

to forgive as You have, and to extend grace and mercy to all.

May the lessons they learn and the stories they share grow their love for you.

Help them to know how deeply loved they are by you and this church.

In Jesus' name we pray,

Amen.

Benediction of The Cross

(The Work of the People)

May the cross,

a symbol of both suffering and transformation,

be a guide in your journey towards the depths of self-discovery.

As the cross stands tall, bearing witness to the weight of the world's struggles,

may you too find strength in confronting your own challenges,

recognizing that within them lies the potential for profound growth.

In the shadow of the cross,

may you discover the courage to face the complexities of your own Being,

embracing the paradoxes that make you uniquely human.

May the wounds of the cross become windows through which

the light of understanding streams into the depths of your soul,

revealing the sacred interconnectedness of your experiences.

As the power and mystery of the cross intersects with the wisdom that is being revealed to you,

may you navigate the tensions of doubt and faith,

finding in your struggles the raw material for a resilient and authentic spirituality.

May you recognize the transformative power inherent in embracing the depth of your own suffering,

allowing it to become a source of hope and renewal.

May the benediction of the cross be a reminder that even in the darkest moments,

there is the potential for resurrection— a rebirth into a more authentic, compassionate,

and integrated self.

May you carry the wisdom of the cross with you on your journey,

allowing it to illuminate your path and infuse your existence with meaning and purpose.

Amen.

Peace Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:

where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console,

to be understood as to understand,

to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

The Apostles’ Creed 

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, 

Maker of heaven and earth; 

And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord;

Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, 

born of the Virgin Mary, 

Suffered under Pontius Pilate, 

was crucified, dead, and buried; 

He descended into hell; 

the third day He rose again from the dead; 

(whooooo!)

He ascended into heaven, 

and sits at the right hand of God, 

the Father Almighty,

From there He will come to judge 

the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, 

the holy Christian church, 

the communion of saints, 

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body, 

and the life everlasting. 

Amen. 

A Call To Worship

From different lives

we come to worship.

From good weeks 

and bad weeks

we come to worship.

Bringing great times 

and painful memories

we come to worship.

Needing healing, 

needing peace

we come to worship.

With hope in our hearts

we come to worship.

To the Almighty God

we come to worship.

To the King of Kings

we come to worship.

Together

we come to worship.

 Lord's Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name;

thy kingdom come;

thy will be done;

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts,

as we forgive our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation;

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,

the power and the glory,

for ever and ever.

Amen.

Eucharist

Our practice of communion as instructed by Jesus is a remembering of the Lord until he comes again...

It is also a re-membering of the body of Christ... In this act of faith we are reminded that we are made one in Christ and one with Christ...