CANDLE LITURGY:  Lent 3 (4 candles are lit before the service)
Joshua & Beth Ortiz
Deep wells, deep yearnings. We're thirsty for more than water.
We take one step at a time. God's faithful presence and provision attend us.
Let us journey through the shadows toward the light.
(1 candle is extinguished.)

Sung Response: VU 108 “Throughout these Lenten Days and Nights”  Verse 3
3. We bear the silence, cross and pain
of human burdens, human strife,
while sisters, brothers help sustain
our courage till the Feast of Life.
     Used with permission from Gathering Lent/Easter 2014; Cindy Randall

1. CALL TO WORSHIP:
As we journey through this Lenten season, God renews God's promise to us. God promises to support us when life calls us to a tough decision.
Will we renew our promise to God?
God promises to travel with us through the places of testing.
Will we renew our promise to God?
God promises to show us the faithful and wise way.
Will we renew our promise to God?
God promises that when we fail or falter, God will not forsake us.
Will we renew our promise to God?
In the life and death of Jesus Christ, we know we are able to trust God's promises.
And so we recommit to our promise to trust God's leading in the hard places we encounter and in the hard places encountered in the life of our faith community.
Knowing that the promises of God are to be eternally trusted,
we come to worship.
     Used with permission Gathering Lent/Easter 2026 David Sparks

2. OPENING PRAYER:
God of all love, we travel up and down the daily routines in our lives, and we know you are with us. We ask you to open our hearts, minds, and spirits to embrace your loving presence in this worship time today, so that we may go out and share your love in the ups and downs of our daily routines.  Amen.
     Used with permission Gathering Lent/Easter 2026; Kate Gregory

3.  LEARNING TIME:

4. HYMN VU 664 “What a Friend We Have in Jesus”
1.  What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,
all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

2.  Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful, who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer.

3.  Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?
Christ the Saviour is our refuge; take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do our friends despise, forsake us? Are we tempted to despair?
Jesus' strength will shield our weakness, and we'll find new courage there.

5. PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION:
Life-Giving God, grant us a hunger for your message of new life. Quench our thirst for your timeless grace with your living water. Fill us with nourishing comfort, a spicy call to action, and sweet love. We ask in the name of the One who is the host of the banquet and the giver of water at the well, Jesus the Christ. Amen.
     Used with permission from Gathering Lent Easter 2026; Laura J. Turnbull

6. SCRIPTURE LESSON
Exodus 17 :1 - 7
The LORD Gives Water from a Rock
17 The Israelites left the desert and moved from one place to another each time the LORD ordered them to. Once they camped at Rephidim,[a] but there was no water for them to drink. 2 The people started complaining to Moses, “Give us some water!” Moses replied, “Why are you complaining to me and trying to put the LORD to the test?" ”3 But the people were thirsty and kept on complaining, “Moses, did you bring us out of Egypt just to let us and our families and our animals die of thirst?”
4 Then Moses prayed to the LORD, “What am I going to do with these people? They are about to stone me to death!” 5 The LORD answered, “Take some of the leaders with you and go ahead of the rest of the people. Also take along the walking stick with which you struck the Nile River. 6 When you get to the rock at Mount Sinai,[b] I will be there with you. Strike the rock with the stick, and water will pour out for the people to drink.” Moses did this while the leaders watched. 7 The people had complained and tested the LORD by asking, “Is the LORD really with us?” So Moses named that place Massah, which means “testing” and Meribah, which means “complaining.”

Responsive Reading Psalm 95 page 814 VU
REFRAIN: Come let us bow down and worship, let us kneel before God our maker”

Part One (1-7)
O come, let us sing to God,
let us shout with joy to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come into God's presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyously shout to God with songs of praise.  REFRAIN

For you are a great God,
high sovereign above all gods.
In your hand are the depths of the earth;
to you belong the heights of the mountains.
The sea is yours, for you made it;
your hands also formed the dry land.
You are indeed our God;
we are your people, the flock that you shepherd.  REFRAIN

Part Two (8-11)
O that today you would listen to God's voice; 'Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah, as on that day at Massah in the wilderness; when your forebears tried me, and put me to the test, though they had seen my works. Forty years I loathed that generation, and said, 'They are a people whose hearts are perverse, for they give no heed to my ways.' Then, I vowed in my anger: they shall not enter my rest.'  REFRAIN

7.  REFLECTION

8.  HYMN: VU 651 “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah”
1.  Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but thou art mighty,
hold me with thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
feed me till I want no more,
feed me till I want no more.

2.  Open now the crystal fountain,
whence the healing stream doth flow;
let the fire and cloudy pillar
lead me all my journey through.
Strong deliverer, strong deliverer,
be thou still my strength and shield,
be thou still my strength and shield.

3.  When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside;
death of death, and hell's destruction,
land me safe on Canaan's side:
songs of praises,
songs of praises
I will ever give to thee,
I will ever give to thee.

9. SCRIPTURE LESSONS
Romans 5: 1 - 11
What It Means To Be Acceptable to God
5 By faith we have been made acceptable to God. And now, thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ, we have peace[a] with God. 2 Christ has also introduced us[b] to God's gift of undeserved grace on which we now take our stand. So we are happy, as we look forward to sharing in the glory of God. 3 But that's not all! We gladly suffer,[c] because we know that suffering helps us to endure. 4 And endurance builds character, which gives us a hope 5 that will never disappoint us. All of this happens because God has given us the Holy Spirit, who fills our hearts with his love. 6 Christ died for us at a time when we were helpless and sinful. 7 No one is really willing to die for an honest person, though someone might be willing to die for a truly good person. 8 But God showed how much he loved us by having Christ die for us, even though we were sinful. 9 But there is more! Now that God has accepted us because Christ sacrificed his life's blood, we will also be kept safe from God's anger. 10 Even when we were God's enemies, he made peace with us, because his Son died for us. Yet something even greater than friendship is ours. Now that we are at peace with God, we will be saved by the life of his Son. 11 And in addition to everything else, we are happy because God sent our Lord Jesus Christ to make peace with us.

The Gospel of John 4: 5 - 42
5 and on his way he came to the town of Sychar. It was near the field that Jacob had long ago given to his son Joseph. 6-8 The well that Jacob had dug was still there, and Jesus sat down beside it because he was tired from traveling. It was noon, and after Jesus' disciples had gone into town to buy some food, a Samaritan woman came to draw water from the well. Jesus asked her, “Would you please give me a drink of water?” 9 “You are a Jew,” she replied, “and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink of water when Jews and Samaritans won't have anything to do with each other?”[a] 10 Jesus answered, “You don't know what God wants to give you, and you don't know who is asking you for a drink. If you did, you would ask me for the water that gives life. ” 11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you don't even have a bucket, and the well is deep. Where are you going to get this life-giving water? 12 Our ancestor Jacob dug this well for us, and his family and animals got water from it. Are you greater than Jacob?” 13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again. 14 But no one who drinks the water I give will ever be thirsty again. The water I give will become in that person a flowing fountain that gives eternal life.” 15 The woman replied, “Sir, please give me a drink of that water! Then I won't get thirsty and have to come to this well again.”
16 Jesus told her, “Go and bring your husband.” 17-18 The woman answered, “I don't have a husband. ” “That's right,” Jesus replied, “you're telling the truth. You don't have a husband. You have already been married five times, and the man you are now living with isn't your husband.” 19 The woman said, “Sir, I can see that you are a prophet. 20 My ancestors worshiped on this mountain,[b] but you Jews say Jerusalem is the only place to worship.”
21 Jesus said to her: Believe me, the time is coming when you won't worship the Father either on this mountain or in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans don't really know the one you worship. But we Jews do know the God we worship, and by using us, God will save the world. 23 But a time is coming, and it is already here! Even now the true worshipers are being led by the Spirit to worship the Father according to the truth. These are the ones the Father is seeking to worship him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship God must be led by the Spirit to worship him according to the truth. 25 The woman said, “I know that the Messiah will come. He is the one we call Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” 26 “I am that one,” Jesus told her, “and I am speaking to you now.” 27 The disciples returned about this time and were surprised to find Jesus talking with a woman. But none of them asked him what he wanted or why he was talking with her. 28 The woman left her water jar and ran back into town, where she said to the people, 29 “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! Could he be the Messiah?”30 Everyone in town went out to see Jesus. 31 While this was happening, Jesus' disciples were saying to him, “Teacher, please eat something.” 32 But Jesus told them, “I have food you don't know anything about.” 33 His disciples started asking each other, “Has someone brought him something to eat?” 34 Jesus said: My food is to do what God wants! He is the one who sent me, and I must finish the work that he gave me to do. 35 You may say there are still four months until harvest time. But I tell you to look, and you will see that the fields are ripe and ready to harvest. 36 Even now the harvest workers are receiving their reward by gathering a harvest that brings eternal life. Then everyone who planted the seed and everyone who harvests the crop will celebrate together. 37 So the saying proves true, “Some plant the seed, and others harvest the crop.” 38 I am sending you to harvest crops in fields where others have done all the hard work. 39 A lot of Samaritans in that town put their faith in Jesus because the woman had said, “This man told me everything I have ever done.” 40 They came and asked him to stay in their town, and he stayed on for two days. 41 Many more Samaritans put their faith in Jesus because of what they heard him say. 42 They told the woman, “We no longer have faith in Jesus just because of what you told us. We have heard him ourselves, and we are certain that he is the Savior of the world!”

10.  REFLECTION

11.  HYMN: “I heard the voice of Jesus”  VU 626
1.  I heard the voice of Jesus say, 'Come unto me and rest;
lay down, O weary one, lay down your head upon my breast.'
I came to Jesus as I was, weary and worn and sad;
I found in him a resting place, and he has made me glad.

2.  I heard the voice of Jesus say, 'Behold, I freely give
the living water; thirsty one, stoop down, and drink, and live.'
I came to Jesus, and I drank of that life-giving stream;
my thirst was quenched, my soul revived, and now I live in him.

3.  I heard the voice of Jesus say, 'I am this dark world's light;
look unto me, your morn shall rise, and all your day be bright.'
I looked to Jesus, and I found in him my star, my sun;
and in that light of life I'll walk till travelling days are done.

12.  PRAYER OF CONFESSION: inspired by A New Creed (1968)
O God, we come together yet feel alone.
We come uncertain if this world we live in is really your world.
Some days, it is easy to believe in you.
But our doubts ask, “What has God done lately?”
We search for your son, Jesus, to help us reconcile and make new.
How do we trust that you work in us and others by the Spirit?
How do we trust in you?
How do we live out our call to be the church?
How do we live with respect in Creation, when smelling forest fire smoke?
How do we celebrate your presence with all the reports of starving children?
How do we love and serve others when we fear taking the risk?
How do we seek justice and resist evil when there is so much evil in the world?
How do we proclaim your son, Jesus, crucified and risen?
How do we love you, our judge and our hope?
Forgive us our doubts, our fears, and our frailty.
Help us live in your love.  Amen.
     Used with permission from Gathering Lent Easter 2026; Monica Rosborough

13.  WORDS OF ASSURANCE:
Receive these words repeated often in scripture: Since we have been made right in God's sight by our faith,
we are at peace with God, and we confidently and joyfully anticipate the day on which we will become all that God has intended.
Let us trust that the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. We are not alone.  Thanks be to God.
      Used with permission from Gathering Lent Easter 2026; Monica Rosborough

14.  SUNG RESPONSE: VU 642 “Be Thou My Vision” Verses 1&2
1.  Be thou my vision, O joy of my heart;
naught be all else to me save that thou art,
thou my best thought, by day or by night,
waking or sleeping thy presence my light.

2.  Be thou my wisdom, my calm in all strife;
I ever with thee, and thou in my life;
thou loving parent, thy child may I be,
thou in me dwelling, and I one with thee.

15.  Affirmation of Faith: “The Nicene Creed” VU 920
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God, begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
and became truly human.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
in accordance with the Scriptures;
On the third day he rose again
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son],
who with the Father and the Son
is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism
for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.

16.  INVITATION TO OFFERING:
Called to live in hope; invited to abide in joy, let us share the blessings we have so richly received from God. Let us present our morning offering.
     From the Abingdon Worship Annual 2026.
     Copyright @2025 by Abingdon Press. Used by permission

17. OFFERTORY  Tune Franconia  (VU 542)
These Lenten gifts we bring,
Our living faith express.
We offer them most lovingly,
and thus our hearts are blessed.
O loving God receive,
these gifts we gladly give
That show our faith and hope and trust;
Your way we seek to live.
     Used with permission from Gathering Lent Easter 2013

18.  OFFERING PRAYER OF DEDICATION:
Receive our gifts, O God. May they be used to show to the world the greatness of your love. We ask this in the name of Jesus the Christ, your perfect gift and our Saviour.  Amen.
     Used with permission Gathering Lent/Easter 2026; Beth W Johnston

19. PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE AND LORD'S PRAYER:

20. HYMN   635 VU  “All the way my Saviour leads me”
1.  All the way my Saviour leads me; what have I to ask beside?
Can I doubt his tender mercy who through life has been my guide?
Heavenly peace, divinest comfort, here by faith in him to dwell,
for I know, whate'er befall me, Jesus doeth all things well.

2.  All the way my Saviour leads me, cheers each winding path I tread,
gives me grace for every trial, feeds me with the living bread.
Though my weary steps may falter, and my soul athirst may be,
gushing from the rock before me, lo, a spring of joy I see!

3.  All the way my Saviour leads me; O the fullness of his love!
Perfect rest to me is promised in my Father's house above.
When my spirit, clothed, immortal, wings its flight to realms of day,
this my song through endless ages, 'Jesus led me all the way!'

21.  BLESSING:
Bathe in the river of God's love.
Swim in the waters of Christ's baptism.
Ride the ocean currents of the Holy Spirit.
Be renewed in the warm springs of our God.
     From the Abingdon Worship Annual 2026.
     Copyright @2025 by Abingdon Press. Used by permission

22. THREE FOLD AMEN

Next Sunday:  Fourth Sunday in Lent
        March 15, 2026:
         1 Samuel 16: 1 - 13   Psalm 23;
         Ephesians 5: 8 - 14;  John 9: 1 - 41.

1. SUNDAY, March 8, 2026  Third Sunday in Lent   10:45 AM   Rev. Jo-Ann Hills  “RECOLLECTIONS”  ALL ARE WELCOME!


2. TUESDAY, March 10, 2026  BIBLE STUDY  10:00 AM  Board Room


3. TUESDAY, March 10, 2026  NO Jubilation Handbell Ringers  If you are interested in ringing some bells, come out and give it a try;   6:30pm in the Choir Room.


4. WEDNESDAY, March 11, 2026, 2026 - LENTEN LUNCH - 12.00 Noon in Wesley Hall  Join us for food and fellowship


5. SUNDAY, March 15, 2026  Fourth Sunday in Lent   10:45 AM   Rev. Jo-Ann Hills  “RECOLLECTIONS”  ALL ARE WELCOME!


6. SUNDAY, March 15, 2026  SUNDAY BRUNCH   11:30 AM   Wesley Hall  ALL ARE WELCOME!


7. THURSDAY, April 2nd, 2026 - MONDY THURSDAY SUPPER SERVICE - Wesley Hall  Join us for this sacred meal


8. FRIDAY, April 3rd, 2026  GOOD FRIDAY CHURCH SERVICE  10:45 AM   Rev. Jo-Ann Hills  “RECOLLECTIONS” ALL ARE WELCOME!


9. SUNDAY, April 5th, 2026  EASTER SUNDAY / SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION  10:45 AM   Rev. Jo-Ann Hills  “RECOLLECTIONS ”  ALL ARE WELCOME!