Today’s guest speaker is Don Herschell.
 
All of the information normally found in our bulletin is below the video. Simply click on "Read More" to load the rest of the bulletin. You can use this to follow the service, as well as to pray our unison prayers. All joys and concerns that we know, as well as our continuing prayer list is within the Joys and Concerns. Announcements can be found at the bottom of this service.

​Mission Study Day is May 22

Everyone in the North Buffalo Church family is invited to our Mission Study Day. As we begin our search for a new pastor, this will be an exciting and informative way to look at who we are as a congregation, what we are looking for in a minister, and what we hope for the future of our church and its ministry.

The event will be held in the fellowship hall on Saturday, May 22, starting at 10 a.m. It will include a catered luncheon by Crystal’s Catering and will end by early afternoon. As a precaution, the church will supply bottled water, but those who want other drinks should bring them along.

Representatives from Washington Presbytery’s Committee on Ministry will be on hand to lead the meeting and guide the discussion. We will also be sharing the results of the congregational survey. 

To get an idea of how many will be attending the meeting and luncheon, we are asking participants to fill out this form and submit it to the church by Sunday, May 16. We will hold a congregational meeting following the service that day.
​
Set aside the date so that you can be part of this important event. See you there!

Good morning!
We're so glad that you're joining us today!

When we met together in person, we shared our joys and concerns together. Take some time to think about both your joys and concerns from the past week. If you have any you would like to share, you can put them in the comments. The prayer below is a prayer of lament, which will lead us into our lesson. Use this to get started, and include thankfulness for your joys as well.

Listening God, with each new day comes fresh news of terror. We lament each new way we find to be inhumane to each other. We lament the numbness many of us feel as we are increasingly desensitized to horror. We sorrow as those harmed by the sin of exclusion and hatred but also as those who are complicit in its execution. We lament the structural sin that can sometimes leave us feeling helpless. But Lord, we aren’t helpless. We tear our clothing; we cry aloud, our tears flow, and our hearts break. Hear the deep pain in our hearts. Help us to hear the deep pain in others. But we will ever trust in you, God, our helper and our defender. We will raise our voices, shout out, and not hold back. You call us to justice. Give us courage to pursue it until the day when all the tears will be wiped from our eyes and we look forward in hope. In the name of the One who has heard our cries and delivers us even from ourselves. Amen.

This week's lesson is on Lamentations 5:1-22.

​You do not often hear of sermons on Lamentations. We did have our Lenten devotions on Lament. Most of the time we want to hear about joyful worship. We don’t to dwell on pain   Remembering tragedy isn’t the only purpose of Lamentations. The book can teach us much about our relationship with God. 

The book of Lamentations reflects the period of about 586-538 BC, the period of Babylonian captivity. Remember in our past Sunday School lesson we studied about the prophets warning Judah to turn from sin and turn back to God or suffer God’s judgement. One of those prophets was Jeremiah who is thought to have written Lamentations. 

As instruments of God’s wrath, the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BC   Many who were left alive were carried into exile; the weak and the poor were left behind to contend with foreign settlers. What was once theirs would belong to some one else. They had to pay for food, water and wood. If they didn’t have money they would have to sell themselves to servitude. They would be servants of servants..Women were violated and Princes were hung up by their hands and elders shown no respect. Young men toil at the millstones; boys stagger under loads of wood. 

Their ancestors sinned and are no more but we bear their punishment. Those who lifted their voices in this lament certainly felt the shockwaves of the sins of previous generations. But throughout those generations, God had promised to relent from punishment when the people repented. 

The Babylonian exile, shocking in it’s scope, marked the end of God’s patience. The book of Lamentations is witness to how horrifying that judgement was. 

Joy has gone from their hearts; our dancing has turned to mourning. 

On verse 16 they take responsibility for their own sins and that God reigns forever.  They want God to turn them to him and to renew their days as of old.   For them to be transformed by the repentance of the people. They were afraid that God would be so angry with them that he would utterly reject them forever.  

Conclusion 
In the midst of our suffering, we know that God is still trustworthy and faithful. However, there are times when we do not feel that he is still trustworthy or faithful. We do not know where God is when we confess and repent of our sins but do not experience mercy in the consequences. We find that worship and praise lag behind the mourning and lament. Like those left in a destroyed Jerusalem, all we can see is devastation; the only thing we want is to make sure God sees and knows what we are experiencing. 

Lamentations help us find language to tell God the very deep, very real pain that we remember or still experience. The book serves as an invitation to  take those things to God. As Paul wrote, “Neither death, nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height or depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Through the inclusion of Lamentations in the Bible may seem odd, it gives evidence of the truth of Paul’s assertion. No siege, no famine, no forced labor, no exile could separate God’s people from his love. 

God demonstrated this love in Jesus Christ, making a way for all people to turn to the Lord and experience his blessings. Through Jesus’ great suffering, we have been added to those people who will be freed from all suffering. 

Prayer
Father, strengthen us to be willing to turn our hearts to you.  Help us to be honest with you as Jeremiah and Jesus were honest in their suffering. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. 

Thought to Remember 
Let sorrow draw you closer to God. 

Benediction
This week's benediction is from The Message.

Next week's lesson will be on 1 Kings 22:15-23, 26-28. 

Today’s guest speaker is Rev. Dave Mason.
 
All of the information normally found in our bulletin is below the video. Simply click on "Read More" to load the rest of the bulletin. You can use this to follow the service, as well as to pray our unison prayers. All joys and concerns that we know, as well as our continuing prayer list is within the Joys and Concerns. Announcements can be found at the bottom of this service.

Prelude

Announcements
IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE SERVICE TODAY, there will be a congregational meeting for the purpose of allowing the formation of a Pastor Nominating Committee.  Please plan to attend.

CALL TO WORSHIP:          
LEADER: Praise is awaiting you, O God, in Zion;
PEOPLE: And to you the vows shall be performed.
LEADER: O you, who answers prayer, to you all flesh will come.
PEOPLE: Iniquities prevail against us;
LEADER: As for our transgressions, you will provide atonement for them.                                                                                     --Psalm 65

Good morning!
​We're so happy that you've joined us today!

When we meet together in person, we share our joys and concerns with each other before we focus on our Sunday school lesson. Think about your needs and concerns right now, and if you like, you can share them in the comments.

Today’s lesson is about Nehemiah, a man who loved his people and his homeland, a man of prayer, a man who was willing to take risks and to work. Because of those qualities, Nehemiah made a difference in his time and his place, just as we can make a difference in ours. Think of situations where you see a need, perhaps in your family, your work or your church. Then ask yourself how God might use you to make a difference there.

The prayer below may serve to guide us in our opening prayer. It is from a service of the Order of the Daughters of the King, an Episcopal organization founded in 1885 that still exists today. Its motto is “I am but one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. What I can do, I ought to do. What I ought to do, by the grace of God I will do. Lord, what will you have me do?"

Today’s guest speaker is Rev. C.J. Haury
 
All of the information normally found in our bulletin is below the video. Simply click on "Read More" to load the rest of the bulletin. You can use this to follow the service, as well as to pray our unison prayers. All joys and concerns that we know, as well as our continuing prayer list is within the Joys and Concerns. Announcements can be found at the bottom of this service.

PRELUDE: "Christ Arose"
CALL TO WORSHIP:                                                                                                                               L: ALLELUJAH! CHRIST IS RISEN!
ALL: CHRIST IS RISEN INDEED! HALLELUJAH!
 
PRAYER OF ADORATION

Good morning!
We're so glad that you've joined us today!

When we meet in person, we usually share our joys and concerns together. Think over the past week, and what has brought you joy, or made you worry. If you have anything to share, you can add it as a comment to today's lesson. When you are ready, you can use the prayer below (from the Presbyterian Mission Agency).

Today’s guest speaker is Rev. Don Austin
 
All of the information normally found in our bulletin is below the video. Simply click on "Read More" to load the rest of the bulletin. You can use this to follow the service, as well as to pray our unison prayers. All joys and concerns that we know, as well as our continuing prayer list is within the Joys and Concerns. Announcements can be found at the bottom of this service.

Hymn: “Christ The Lord is Risen Today”                                                                                  
CALL TO WORSHIP           
Leader: The Lord is risen indeed: Hallelujah
People: The Lord is risen indeed: hallelujah
Leader: I am He that lives and was dead, saith the Lord; and behold, I am alive forevermore.
People: Glory be to you, O God, who raised up your Son from the dead and made us partakers of His victory over sin and death.

Good Morning!
Happy Easter!

When we met in person, we shared our joys and concerns together. Take some time to think over your last week. What joys and concerns do you have? If you would like, you can share those as a comment so that the rest of us can pray as well. When you're ready, use the prayer below (from Woman's Day) to get started.

Lord, we lift our hearts to you. As the dawn breaks, may we carry the unity we share into every moment knowing that we are one with the risen Christ.
Lord, we lift our eyes to you. As the sun rises, may this moment stay with us, reminding us to look for the beautiful colors of promise in your word.
Lord, we lift our prayers to you. As the dew air falls, may we breathe this morning in and know that like the earth, you sustain us, keep us and work within us always.
And so, we lift our voices to you. We celebrate the greatest day in history, when Jesus rose from death, defeated darkness and bathed the world in stunning resurrection light. May we ever live to praise you!

​Amen.

Today's lesson is on Isaiah 53:4-11. The devotional reading is Philippians 2:1-11. 

If you have any thoughts or observations on the scripture passages from today, you can share them in the comments.

Our benediction this week is from the Complete Jewish Bible.

Next week's lesson will be on Ezra 10:1-12.

 Tenebrae, from the Latin word for “shadows,” has been observed in the church of Jesus Christ since the fourth century on Maundy Thursday or Good Friday. During the service, different readers will recall the events that led Jesus to the cross, and we will extinguish fourteen candles, one by one, dramatizing the suffering and death of Jesus. The diminishing light symbolizes the fading devotion of the disciples and the sin of the world. At the end of the service the worship center will be dark. During the service, the chimes will toll thirty-three times to signal Jesus’ thirty three years. The Christ candle will then return, symbolizing the hope of his promised resurrection. At the conclusion of the service, please leave silently, contemplating Christ’s crucifixion. Jesus, the Son of God, was dead.

GOOD FRIDAY SERVICE
 
TENNEBRAE AND HOLY COMMUNION
GATHERING IN THE LORD’S NAME
In silence and meditation prepare yourself for worship

Once the candles have been lit, please be respectful of that sign as the beginning of worship by refraining from conversation with those around you so that all may enter into a time of silent preparation for worship.