Church guide

A powerful Act of Contrition for Good Friday. Reminder: Services at noon and 7:00 p.m. ~ Christian+ Confession Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor. Most holy and merciful Father: We confess to you and to one another, and to the whole communion of saints in heaven and on earth, that we have sinned by our own fault in thought, word, and deed; by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart, and mind, and strength. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We have not forgiven others, as we have been forgiven. Have mercy on us, Lord. We have been deaf to your call to serve, as Christ served us. We have not been true to the mind of Christ. We have grieved your Holy Spirit. Have mercy on us, Lord. We confess to you, Lord, all our past unfaithfulness: the pride, hypocrisy, and impatience of our lives, We confess to you, Lord. Our self-indulgent appetites and ways, and our exploitation of other people, We confess to you, Lord. Our anger at our own frustration, and our envy of those more fortunate than ourselves, We confess to you, Lord. Our intemperate love of worldly goods and comforts, and our dishonesty in daily life and work, We confess to you, Lord. Our negligence in prayer and worship, and our failure to commend the faith that is in us, We confess to you, Lord. Accept our repentance, Lord, for the wrongs we have done: for our blindness to human need and suffering, and our indifference to injustice and cruelty, Accept our repentance, Lord. For all false judgments, for uncharitable thoughts toward our neighbors, and for our prejudice and contempt toward those who differ from us, Accept our repentance, Lord. For our waste and pollution of your creation, and our lack of concern for those who come after us, Accept our repentance, Lord. Restore us, good Lord, and let your anger depart from us; Favorably hear us, for your mercy is great. Accomplish in us the work of your salvation, That we may show forth your glory in the world. By the cross and passion of your Son our Lord, Bring us with all your saints to the joy of his resurrection. Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen. Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.

Good Friday, April 19th - Daily Lenten Devotional When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top. So they said to one another, "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see who will get it." - John 19:23-24a (Full text, John 18:1-19:42) The sheer ordinariness of this verse-and-a-half is completely disturbing! Just another day on the job. Just one more person to be hung on a cross. Just one more execution. So numbed to their own actions that they only think of themselves. Who gets what? Not even dead yet and they are haggling over Jesus' tunic. How often are we blind to the needs all around us? How often are we consumed with our own wants and needs to the exclusion of others? Oblivious to the ramifications of their actions, the soldiers perform their duties and merely go on with their lives. Just another day on the job...But this was not "just another day." On this day everything would change and nothing would ever be the same. Gracious God, lead me to see every day as a gift, an opportunity to love and serve others. Amen. Written by The Rev. Jay Schrimpf, Pastor, Bethlehem Lutheran Church.

Please, take a few minutes to watch this YouTube video by Kate Pyles on last night's Tenebrae Service at St. Mark's. The floor mic was a bit on the quiet side for the lectors but the Service was just beautiful. I hope you will find it meanginful this Holy Week. ~ Christian+

Maundy Thursday, April 18th - Daily Lenten Devotional So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. - John 13:14 (Full text, John 13:1-17, 31b-35) This Gospel passage marks the beginning of the Triduum, the three holy days of Christ's passion. It is the institution of the Eucharist, the bread, the wine, Jesus' real presence with us. It also tells us of this remarkable act of washing the feet of his disciples as a way of teaching them about humility and love. It has been over a decade since parish nurses in our community began the first Foot Care Clinic for our neighbors in the Heartside Neighborhood. We continue to offer this monthly, and it has grown to include a meal and clothing, teaching, and other services as well. But the first one was during Holy Week, and it seemed to speak to how we are to serve each other, to love each other, and to honor Christ's life and death in this way. As we continue to evolve in our lifelong journeys of faith, may we keep this image of Jesus before us as we continue His ministry in the world. Gracious God, may we be a reflection of the love that Jesus models for us. May we have the desire and the courage to follow through when we see the needs of the world before us. May we have the humility to see and serve all persons, and love our neighbors as ourselves. AMEN. Written by The Rev. Susan York, St. Mark's Episcopal Church.

Watch last night’s Tenebrae service here: https://youtu.be/Qr8q7QP9JZg

Grand Rapids Episcopal Youth (G.R.E.Y.), our youth group, serve our neighbors in need, monrhly, at our Breakfast Cafe. On May 5, they'll be walking in the Walk for Good Food, which will raise funds to help support Breakfast Cafe. Visit the link below to see how you can support our team. #Walk4GoodFood #W4GF #AccessWM #stmarksgr #episcopalchurch #stmarksepiscopalchurch #breakfastcafe https://secure.e2rm.com/registrant/mobile/mobileTeamPage.aspx?teamID=844806&langPref=en-CA&Referrer=http%3a%2f%2faccessofwestmichigan.org%2fwalk%2f

Wednesday, April 17th - Daily Lenten Devotional But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O Lord, do not delay! - Psalm 70:5 (Full text, Psalm 70) Psalm 70 is one of the shorter psalms, yet a mighty plea to God. The fullness of its text is very similar to the last five verses of the fortieth Psalm. It has been cited as "a psalm to bring to remembrance." A reminder of the Lord as our source of help, our steadfast deliverer from whatever strife we may encounter. Two phrases within the psalm are as if printed in bold font...for me and maybe for you, too. "Hasten to me, O God" and "O Lord, do not delay" both deserve exclamation points. How many times I have heard in my lifetime that patience is a virtue. Neither of these commands exude patience, for they reflect an immediate desire: I want it now, if not yesterday. We live in a culture that has grown more and more impatient through my years - and now I see through this Scripture that this is not new. This is not just in the past century or the past many centuries. David in his pleading called out to the Lord for an expedited response. May we instead reprint with bold font the phrase "You are my help and my deliverer" - yesterday, today and tomorrow. Always. Dear Lord, you are my help and my deliverer from all evil. Blessed am I of that assurance in my life. Amen. Written by Sue Ann Clark, Cathedral of Saint Andrew.

View Palm Sunday's 10:30AM service in its entirety here: https://youtu.be/nrukDwMkdXg.

Beloved parishioner, Jackie Taylor, was honored tonight by the Rotary Club of Grand Rapids with their prestigious Service Above Self Award. So well-deserved indeed. Congratulations Jackie. You mean so much to us all here at St. Mark's.

Tuesday, April 16th - Daily Lenten Devotional Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say - 'Father, save me from this hour?' No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name. - John 12:27-28a (Full text, John 12:20-36) Jesus acknowledges that his soul is troubled. Whose wouldn't be troubled, knowing what lies ahead? Except in Jesus' case, I don't think we can confuse "troubled" with "scared." While surely not relishing his approaching fate, Jesus recognizes that the trouble in his soul is designed to ease the trouble of our souls; it is the reason he was in such a position - to make his soul an offering for our sin. And not only does Jesus not ask to be saved, but he glorifies God's name. Imagine that. As we journey through Lent together, only three days remain until we observe Good Friday. As we put ourselves in Jesus' place, may we try to comprehend his situation and better understand how, facing perhaps the darkest hour of mankind, Jesus was able to give glory to God the Father. Glorious God, thank you for sending your son to die for our sins, and for giving us the example of his life and death so that our troubled souls may always be at ease. Amen. Written by Brian Bickford, Bethlehem Lutheran Church.

Yesterday, at both the 8AM & 10:30AM Palm Sunday services, the Youth of St. Mark’s, read and performed the Passion gospel. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/KkNzvFZOdas

The parish of St. Mark's mourns with our brothers and sisters in Christ in France over the tragic fire that devastated Notre Dame Cathedral. Father Christian will toll the tower bell at St. Mark's at 6:00 pm this evening to mourn the fire and loss of the Cathedral.

Happy All Saints Day from St. Mark's Episcopal Church.

Family game night!

A Father's Day Blessing...

Good Friday 3pm Bell Toll