Again & Again: A Lenten Refrain
In Lent, we’re reminded that, again and again, suffering and brokenness find us. We doubt again, we lament again, we mess up again. Again and again, the story of Jesus on the cross repeats—every time lives are taken unjustly, every time the powerful choose corruption and violence,
every time individuals forget how to love. With exacerbation we exclaim, “Again?! How long, O God?”
And yet, in the midst of the motion blur chaos of our lives, God offers a sacred refrain: “I choose you, I love you, I will lead you to repair.” Again and again, God breaks the cycle and offers us a new way forward.
This Lent, we have a clear invitation from God in a time when much is unclear. Even if worshiping apart, we come to God again and again with our prayers, our dreams, our hopes, and our doubts. Even if from a distance, we will continue to be community to one another—especially when it’s hard—by choosing each other over and over again. We will continue to love God with the same persistence God chooses and claims us. Again & Again, A Lenten Refrain, speaks to the ways God can make music of our lives. “Refrain” also reminds us that Lent is a season of abstaining from certain practices in order to take on new rhythms and habits.
In this season, we need rituals—both old and new—to remember and be
transformed. Embodied practice builds muscle memory. Repetition helps retrain our neural pathways. We need the 40 days of Lent because this season shapes us into more faithful disciples.
Join us this Lent, as again and again, we bring all of who we are to God and trust that God will meet us, time and again, along the way.
Easter Sunday April 4
“Again & Again, The Sun Rises”
Mark 16:1-8
Rev. Lane Cotton Winn
In the Easter story according to Mark, on the first day of the week, the women rise with the sun and buy spices to anoint Jesus’ body. They are shocked to find the tomb empty, and leave in fear and terror. Mark’s resurrection story is less triumphant than the other Gospel testimonies (as scholars believe the remainder of Mark’s gospel was a later addition). In Mark’s version, we are reminded that Easter comes to us, again and again, even if we don’t know what to make of God’s resurrection ways. Again and again, the sun rises. And some days, that is enough.
Friday April 2
Our Good Friday worship service is a Service of Tenebrae. “Tenebrae” is the Latin word meaning “darkness.” This service, based on a 12th century tradition, is an extended meditation on the passion of Christ which includes readings, prayers, music, and times of silence. During the service, we will hear the story of the trial, sentencing, execution, death, and burial of Jesus. After each segment of the story is read, a candle will be extinguished. We invite you to light a candle at the beginning of the service, which we will ceremonially extinguish near the end of worship. Download the worship guide here.
Thursday April 1
During our Maundy Thursday service, we will premiere “Man of Sorrows: A Canticle for Holy Thursday” by Dr. Terry Byars.
Framed by the events of the Last Supper, the narrative told in song is through the eyes of Jesus and his disciple, Peter. Servanthood is at the heart of the message for this special service. Download the worship guide here.
Sunday March 28
“Again & Again: We Draw on Courage”
Mark 11:1-11
Rev. Lane Cotton Winn
On Palm Sunday, we remember that Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem was not a risk- free, palm party. It was a protest parade—a protest against those in power, a parade to prepare the way for a different kind of king. And this was all happening with plots to kill Lazarus (and Jesus) building in the background. Today we’re reminded that the crowds were brave to show up that day, and that Jesus drew on courage to face his journey to the cross. The root of courage is cour, meaning “heart.” Courage is deep within us; we often find it when we most need it, when everything else has been stripped away.
Palm Sunday Virtual Parade
Sunday March 21
“Again & Again: We Are Reformed”
John 12:20-33
Rev. Deirdré Halliburton
We desire for God to write on our hearts so that God’s law can re-shape and re-form us from the inside out. Reformation is a journey of letting the old fall away for something new to emerge, of returning to God’s words over and over, of being drawn into the heart of God.
Sunday March 14
“Again & Again: God Loves First”
John 3:14-21
Rev. Lane Cotton Winn
We read one of the most well known passages of scripture. After inviting Nicodemus to be born anew, Jesus tells him in John 3 that God so loved the world that God sent his son to restore it. Therefore, when we read John 3:16, we remember that Jesus is speaking in metaphor and poetry. Ultimately, love is where God begins and ends. This love, like grace, is a gift we do nothing to deserve. Again and again, love is our refrain. Together, we will ponder if before we act, think, or believe, can love be first for us too?
Sunday March 7
“Again & Again, We Are Shown the Way”
John 2:13-22
Rev. Lane Cotton Winn
According to John’s gospel, Jesus begins his ministry by showing more than telling. This week we read how in the temple, Jesus disrupts and overturns the systems of corruption and profiteering taking place, but ultimately points us to the promise of restoration.
Sunday February 28
“Again & Again, We Are Called to Listen”
Mark 8:31-9:8
Rev. Lane Cotton Winn
Like the disciples, we are often stuck in the pattern of messing up over and over again. We cling to power, we climb the ladder, we memorialize Christ’s teachings rather than embodying them. However, we can’t be trapped by shame, guilt, ignorance, or inaction. Humility is required for transformation. In this week’s worship, we hear how again and again, we are called to listen—to God and to others.
Sunday February 21
“Again & Again, God Meets Us”
Mark 1:9-15
Rev. Lane Cotton Winn
This week in worship, we read about how God meets Jesus at the water before he is tempted in the wilderness— this is important. First and foremost, God claims us. God meets us in the liminal space, at the water’s edge, at the threshold of something new, and names us Beloved. God’s covenant with all of creation reminds us that God meets us where we are—in the midst of our reluctance, doubt, eagerness, or weariness—and proclaims we are good.
Ash Wednesday
We offered a unique Ash Wednesday Worship February 17 at 6 p.m. on Zoom. You will want to have your doodle page from the Lent to Geaux bag and a candle. The Sanctuary was open from 12 – 2 pm, although our drive-thru ashes in the morning had to be canceled due to the winter weather.
Pick up Lent to Geaux bags from the church office during our abbreviated hours (Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.) or before or after in-person worship on Sundays at 8:30 or 11 a.m.
