First Sunday of Lent, February 22, 2026

1st Sunday in Lent

Hybrid Worship

22 February 2026

Presider: The Rev. Deborah van der Goes

Music: Frances Armstrong

We acknowledge these lands upon which we worship are the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation.

Whoever you are and wherever you are on life’s journey,

you are welcome here!

Words For Worship

Words in bold italics, please say together

(Two altar candles are lit to signify our preparation for worship)

Prelude        

 

Welcome and Introduction              

Ringing Bell

We follow the sound into silence and there we meet God

Silence

Gathering                         

The good news of the gospel is:

manna in the desert, water turned into wine,

love after loss, forgiveness after pain.

The good news of the gospel is:

release for the captive, hope for the hopeless,

mourning turned to dancing, and strangers turned to friends.

So come on in.

There’s no time to waste!

So good it catches us by surprise

Let us worship this good-news God.

Almighty God,

            to you all hearts are open, all desires known,

            and from you no secrets are hidden.

            Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts

            by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,

            that we may wholly love you,

            through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Hymn: Confitemini Domino / Come And Fill Our Hearts       CP #402

Call to Confession

You may have heard, “All is fair in love and war,”

or “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.”

But God says, “Forgive seventy times seven.”

God says, “I am slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.”

God says, “Turn the other cheek.”

God’s mercy catches us by surprise.

So with wonder and gratitude, let us go to God in prayer.

Let us be surprised by God’s grace all over again.

Friends, let us pray:

Prayer of Confession

Loving God,

somewhere along the way we picked up the message

that in order to be faithful, we have to be serious.

We have to pray on our knees without ceasing.

We have to be somber in worship and quiet in our studies.

We have to check our wiggles and our questions at the door.

so good it catches us by surprise

But then you say

the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed –

unruly and untamed.

You turn water into wine - surprising and extravagant.

And all of a sudden, we wonder:

Can we be like that mustard seed?

Can we be faithful and unruly?

Can we be playful and curious?

Can we be messy and still be yours? 

We know the answer already.

The Spirit whispers: of course, of course, of course.

Forgive our doubt.

Pull us closer into your embrace.

With faith like a mustard seed, we pray.

Amen.

Words of Forgiveness

God’s grace is wild and unruly.

God’s mercy is abundant and surprising.

God’s love is expansive and unending.

So if you ask, “Holy One, am I forgiven?”

the answer is and always will be:

of course, of course, of course.

This is the good news of the gospel.

Thanks be to God!

Amen.

Hymn: A Spendthrift Love is the Lord                                     CP #177

Prayer for Illumination                                      

God draws near to us through Holy Scripture. Let us prepare our hearts.

We open our ears to hear, and our hearts and minds to receive.

 

Gospel Readings                                                      Reader: Susan Brockley

As is your custom, please stand or sit for the reading of the gospel.

God be with you. 

            And also with you

The Good News of Jesus the Christ according to Matthew and John

            Glory to you, Christ Jesus.

Matthew 13:31-32

The Parable of the Mustard Seed 

Jesus put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

 

John 2:1-11

The Wedding at Cana 

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.  When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”  And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to me and to you? My hour has not yet come.”  His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”  Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.  Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.  He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the person in charge of the banquet.” So they took it.  When the person in charge tasted the water that had become wine and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), that person called the bridegroom  and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.”  Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee and revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.

This is the Gospel of Christ.  

            Praise be to Jesus Christ.                                                              

Sermon: Loving the Questions – a Way of Faith

Silence

Affirmation of Faith  

(the prayer leader comes forward during the Affirmation of Faith)                        

Let us affirm our faith in God.              

The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart,

With all your soul,

With all your mind,

And with all your strength.

This is the first and great commandment.

The second is like it.

Love your neighbour as yourself.

There is no greater commandment than these.

Prayers of the People                                                                 Betty Schultze                                              

Loving God,                                                          

            Hear Our Prayers.

Life & Work of the Church

The Peace                   

(please stand as you are able)

The peace of Christ be with you!

And also with you!

(You are invited to turn to those directly around you and share Christ’s peace. Those on zoom, please unmute and share with one another)

The Celebration of the Eucharist

The Offerings

Let us now gather our offerings

(While monetary offerings are gathered, quiet music is played)

Offertory Response

(When all is ready at the altar, the monetary offerings have been brought forward , then all sing…)

Doxology                                                                                     CP #669                                             

Praise God the Source of life and birth,

Praise God the Word, who came to earth.

Praise God the Spirit, holy flame.

All Glory, honour to God’s name.

The Great Thanksgiving                                          (Lutheran Book of Worship)

The Lord be with you.

            And also with you.

Lift up your hearts.

            We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

            It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is indeed right, our duty and our joy, that we should at all times and all places, give thanks and praise to you, Almighty and Merciful God, through our Saviour Jesus Christ.  With all the choirs of angels, with the church on earth and hosts in heaven, we praise your holy name and join in their unending hymn.

Sanctus and Benedictus                                                           CP #735

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might X2,

Heaven and earth are full, full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the highest.

Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the highest.

In the night in which he was betrayed,

our Lord Jesus Christ took bread,

and gave thanks; and broke it,

and gave it to his disciples, saying:

Take and eat, this is my body given for you. 

Do this to remember me.

And again, after supper, he took the cup,

gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying:

This cup is the new covenant in my blood,

shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. 

Do this to remember me.

Let us proclaim the mystery of faith:

            Christ has died and Christ is risen, Christ will come again!

With this bread and cup

We remember your Word

Dwelling among us, full of grace and truth.

We remember our new birth

In his death and resurrection.

We look with hope for his coming.

            Come Lord Jesus.

 

Holy God, We long for your Spirit,

Come among us. Bless this meal.

May your Word take flesh in us.

Awaken your people.

Fill us with your light.
Bring the gift of peace on earth.

            Come Holy Spirit.

All praise and glory are yours,

Holy one of Israel,

Word of God incarnate,

Power of the Most High,

One God, now and forever

            Amen

And now as Jesus has taught us, let us pray           

            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 trespasses,

            as we forgive them that trespass against us.

            And lead us not into temptation,

            But deliver us from evil

            for thine is the kingdom,

            and the power and the glory,

            for ever and ever. 

Amen.

Invitation to Communion

The gifts of God for the people of God.

Thanks be to God

(After which the servers receive the Communion elements of bread and wine.)

Hymn: More Than We Can Ask                                                   CP #86

 

Dismissal                 

As you leave this place,

when you meet anger, speak with love.

When you meet fear, speak with hope.

When you meet pain, speak with gentleness.

For the good news of the gospel is

love and justice for all.

It is joy that surprises and peace that transforms.

Thanks be to God

 

Blessing

Now be blessed deep in your heart, and down to your toes

In all your actions, in all your hopes

Encircled by the Ancient One: Creator, Redeemer, Spirit

Amen.

Postlude