This Communion Liturgy was written to accompany the sermon series “And With All Your Mind: A Series on Faith and Mental Health.”
Invitation to the Table
In communion we come to the table of a broken God.
A body, broken for us.
Blood, shed for us.
A voice, crying out in despair:
Why have you forsaken me?
We do not worship perfection.
We worship the broken Christ,
who invites us to this table
just as we are.
All are welcome here.
Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
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.
In the beginning, there was chaos
a nothingness, a void.
God touched that nothingness,
stirred it up, and the world began:
stars and oceans and life
bursting into being.
Then God created people
first one, then another,
because it was not good to be alone.
We were made to be together.
But paradise slipped through our grasp,
and we began our long journey in exile.
But soon we found there was grace
outside the garden, too.
God was still with us.
When we were enslaved in Egypt,
God freed us.
When we were lost in the desert,
God led us.
When we got disoriented,
God gave us a law to follow.
When we were hungry,
God fed us.
When we turned on each other,
God sent us prophets,
God’s word on human lips,
to call us back to each other.
And then—of all things—God came to us
as another person—Jesus of Nazareth,
God in a human body, with a brain like ours,
a heart like ours, hurts like ours,
hopes like ours.
Jesus laughed and wept, got angry and forgave,
lived a deep faith and showed deep uncertainties,
loved the Lord his God with heart and strength and soul and mind,
loved us, his neighbors here on earth, just as fiercely.
Afraid and angry, we hung Jesus on the cross,
but God turned death’s period into a semicolon
and on the third day, Jesus rose from the grave
to pave the way for each of us to rise, too.
He bore the scars even on that Easter Day,
but he was alive, and still with us, for us.
And so we lift our broken alleluias
to the Lord of Life, our Risen Savior,
joining our voices with all the scarred and sacred saints
from every time and place,
who find their seat at this table.
Holy Spirit, pour yourself out upon these gifts—
broken bread, poured out juice—
that they might be symbols of your healing grace,
and remind us that broken things can still be beautiful.
Until you return to make all things new,
we hold onto these ancient rituals,
to your eternal promises,
and to the prayers that hold us together,
prayers that you yourself taught us,
like the Lord’s Prayer, which we say together now,
praying, 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 debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil,
for thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
The Words of Institution
On the night before Jesus died, when he knew he would not be with his disciples much longer, he gave them a sign to remember him by. First he took the bread from the table, the Lord and after giving thanks to you, he broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take, eat. This is my body, given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.
In the same way Jesus took the cup, saying: This cup is the new covenant sealed in my blood, shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this in remembrance of me.
Sharing of the Bread and Cup
Closing Prayer
Lord, we broke the bread to remember you.
We poured the cup out, every drop, to remember you.
We came to your table, where you call us friends, to remember you.
Jesus, as we leave this table, give our forgetful minds these truths to hold onto.
Help us remember we not alone in your brokenness:
you are with us.
Help us remember we are not alone in our healing:
you are with us.
Help us remember we are not alone in our journey:
you walk with us.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Amen.
Deep Well Worship 