Good Friday Service: “Give Me Jesus”
This Good Friday 2026 service uses the song and words “Give Me Jesus” to guide participants through Maundy Thursday and Good Friday with five movements.
Each movement focuses on a character from the scripture—the earth, the disciples, the authorities, heaven, the people—who cry out with the words “Give Me Jesus” in very different ways. The five moments are also a guide through five prayers: wow, gratitude, confession, help, and lament. The service is interwoven with songs, quotations, and participatory elements, and concludes with a communal prayer at the cross.
See the full liturgy below.
Prelude
[No music, nature sounds]
[Participants receive five different colored prayer cards as they enter]
“Give Me Jesus” (A Cappella)
In the morning when I rise
In the morning when I rise
In the morning when I rise
Give me Jesus.
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world.
But give me Jesus
Welcome + Instructions
Good evening everyone. It is good to be together on this Good Friday.
Tonight, we gather around the sacred story of the symbol of our faith: the cross.
It is at the cross that we encounter the fullness of humanity.
Our beauty, our frailty, our shadows, everything that our hands and hearts are capable of.
But, it is here that we also witness the fullness of God—unwavering grace and love for the whole world in all of its brokenness and suffering.
It is all here at the cross.
This evening, we also mark the end of our Lenten journey, a journey that we’ve been prayerfully walking together for the last six weeks. If you’ve been with us on Sundays, you know we’ve been practicing five different prayers during Lent: Wow, Confession, Help, Lament, and Gratitude.
Tonight in this safe and quiet place, we’ll be praying those five prayers together. And as our evening comes to a close, you’ll be invited, if you’d like, to bring those prayers to the cross and we’ll offer these prayers out loud.
As we spend this time together, you’re invited to sing if you’d like or just listen. You can sit or move. May this time be whatever you need it to be this evening as we reflect on the story of Jesus’s last days.
We begin first with a prayer—and as we pray, you’re invited to respond with the words, “Come, Holy Spirit.”
Opening Prayer
Holy One,
We come to you on a strange night:
where winter meets spring,
where storm clouds meet sunshine,
where dusk meets dawn—
as we call out to you:
Come, holy spirit.
We bring to this room
all of who we are and all that we carry:
our joy for the simple gift of life,
our hearts heavy with care and concern for those we love,
and our trouble in a difficult and confusing world—
as we call out to you:
Come, holy spirit.
We come because you promise to be here
in this sacred story,
in our humble prayers,
in the faces of this community,
as we call out to you:
Come, holy spirit.
Holy Light of Resurrection,
shine upon us with hope,
as we call out to you:
Come, holy spirit. Amen.
Movement 1: The world said, “Give Me Jesus” (Prayers of Wow)
In a time of great trouble, the world said, “Give me Jesus.” People cried out for a savior, someone who would heal this world. And so, Jesus came, bringing light to the darkness of life. But also showing those he encountered that the light and love of God was always with them—in the calm after a storm, in the flight of a sparrow, in the dust of the earth. That light would never leave them, no matter where they were or what they were going through.
A reading from the Gospel of John:
In the beginning was the Word
and the Word was with God
and the Word was God.
The Word was with God in the beginning.
Everything came into being through the Word,
and without the Word
nothing came into being.
What came into being
through the Word was life,
and the life was the light for all people.
The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness doesn’t extinguish the light.
The Word became flesh
and made his home among us.
We have seen his glory,
glory like that of a father’s only son,
full of grace and truth.
—
When, where, how have you been amazed by the light and love of God? When has, as Anne Lamott puts it, “your mouth dropped open with wonder at the just sheer beauty of creation?” These are the moments that make us say, “Wow.” And that leads us to a prayer of praise and it is the prayer we begin with tonight.
Instructions:
As you listen to this next song, consider what you would like to praise God for. Write those on your prayer card that says “Wow, I’m amazed...” Then, fold it in half when you’re done.
Song: “Give Me Jesus”
In the morning when I rise
In the morning when I rise
In the morning when I rise
Give me Jesus.
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world.
But give me Jesus
And when I see the sun
And when I see the sun
And when I see the sun
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world.
But give me Jesus
And when the day is done
And when the day is done
And when the day is done
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world.
But give me Jesus
Movement 2: The Disciples said, “Give Me Jesus” (Prayers of Gratitude)
On Thursday, as their time with him was drawing to a close, the disciples said, “Give me Jesus” as they gathered around a table passing bread of Jesus’ life and wine of Jesus’ promise. Together, as they wondered and worried about the future, they remembered the time they shared: the miraculous moments, the joyful community, and most importantly, the love for one another.
A reading from the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of John:
The Festival of Unleavened Bread, which is called Passover, was approaching. The chief priests and the legal experts were looking for a way to kill Jesus, because they were afraid of the people. On the first day of the festival, the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover meal?”
He replied, “Go into the city, to a certain man, and say, ‘The teacher says, “My time is near. I’m going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.”’” The disciples did just as Jesus instructed them. They prepared the Passover.
That evening he took his place at the table with the twelve disciples.
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take and eat. This is my body.” He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from this, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many so that their sins may be forgiven. I tell you, I won’t drink wine again until that day when I drink it in a new way with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
“As the Father loved me, I too have loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy will be in you and your joy will be complete. This is my commandment: love each other just as I have loved you.”
Then, after singing songs of praise, they went to the Mount of Olives.
—
What are you grateful for today—just today? Think about just the last 24 hours… What’s been good? When have you felt loved and cared for? When did you laugh? What was beautiful? These are the moments that invite us to say, “Thank you,” and remind us that no matter what is happening in this world, there is still goodness around us, too. This is our second prayer: a prayer of gratitude.
Instructions:
The communion table is a table of thanksgiving, and you’re invited to come and feast. Take some bread and a cup. And as you do, consider what you are grateful for today. Write those on the prayer card that says “Thank You.” Fold it in half when you’re done.
The table is set. Whenever you’re ready, come, taste and see that the Lord is good.
“O Taste and See” by The Porter’s Gate (Listen)
O taste and see that the Lord is good.
O taste and see that the Lord is good.
O taste and see that the Lord is good.
The Lord is good.
The Lord is good.
The night is dark but the Lord is good.
The night is dark but the Lord is good.
The night is dark but the Lord is good.
The Lord is good.
The Lord is good.
All the time, the Lord is good.
All the time, the Lord is good.
All the time, the Lord is good.
The Lord is good.
The Lord is good.
Movement 3: The authorities said, “Give Me Jesus” (Prayers of Confession)
On Friday, after plotting to take him away for disrupting the peace of the people, the authorities said, “Give me Jesus.” Then, one-by-one—even after sharing a meal filled with gratitude and love—those closest to him turned away and turned him over into their hands. The shadow of betrayal took over the people, just as he had predicted.
A reading from the Gospel of Luke:
A crowd appeared, and the one called Judas, one of the disciples, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him.
Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Human One with a kiss?”
Then, they arrested Jesus, and they led him away and brought him to the high priest’s house. Peter followed from a distance. When they lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.
Then a servant woman saw him sitting in the firelight. She stared at him and said, “This man was with him too.” But Peter denied it, saying, “I don’t know him!”
A little while later, someone else saw him and said, “You are one of them too.” But Peter said, “I’m not!”
An hour or so later, someone else insisted, “This man must have been with him, because he is a Galilean too.” Peter responded, “I don’t know what you are talking about!”
As morning came, they all came together, and Jesus was brought before their council.
The whole assembly got up and led Jesus to Pilate and began to accuse him. They said, “We have found this man misleading our people, opposing the payment of taxes to Caesar, and claiming that he is the Christ, a king.”
He said to them, “You brought this man before me as one who was misleading the people. I have questioned him in your presence and found nothing in this man’s conduct that provides a legal basis for the charges you have brought against him. Neither did Herod, because Herod returned him to us. He’s done nothing that deserves death. Therefore, I’ll have him whipped, then let him go.”
They kept shouting out, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
“Why? What wrong has he done?”
But they were adamant, shouting their demand that Jesus be crucified. Their voices won out. He handed Jesus over to their will.
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.”
—
It is hard to be human. We don’t always get it right—even with the best intentions. We make mistakes and pull ourselves apart from one another and from who God calls us to be. Good Friday reveals the shadows that arise in even the most good-hearted people, while at the same time proclaiming forgiveness over it all. Our God is a gracious God. This is our third prayer: the prayer of confession.
Instructions:
As we listen to this song together, consider anything on your heart that you need to ask forgiveness for—to God, to yourself, to another. Hold your “I Confess” prayer card as you do this, but we won’t write these down. These are between you and God with the promise of unconditional forgiveness. Fold your card when you’re done.
As you consider your confession, hear these words from Henri Nouwen:
“Forgiveness is the name of love practiced among people who love poorly. The hard truth is that all people love poorly. That is the great work of love among the fellowship of the weak, that is the human family. To forgive another from the heart is an act of liberation. It means that I continually am willing to forgive the other person for not being God, for not fulfilling all my needs. And I, too, must ask forgiveness for not being able to fulfill other people's needs. When you can forgive people for not being God, then you can celebrate that they are a reflection of God. Forgiveness, therefore, liberates not only the other but also ourselves. It is the way to the freedom of the children of God.”
“Hosanna Song” by Paul Zach (Listen)
With one breath, "Hosanna" we cry
With the next one we say, "Crucify!"
With one voice we praise your name
With the same voice we condemn you to shame
Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to the Lord
With palm leaves we welcome your reign
With twisted thorns we crown you with pain
You wash our feet to show us your love
We wash our hands of your innocent blood
Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to the Lord
We claim you when you come in power
But we leave you in your terrible hour
We hail you for victory won
But we mock you as you say "It is done"
Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to the Lord
Movement 4: Heaven said, “Give Me Jesus” (Help and Lament)
On Friday, as Jesus’s life came to an end, heaven said, “Give me Jesus.” At the cross, surrounded by shouting soldiers, the crowd cried out for help and wailed with grief at what they saw. The world was not as it should be.
A reading from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke:
The governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the governor’s house, and they gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. They stripped him and put a red military coat on him. They twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They put a stick in his right hand. Then they bowed down in front of him and mocked him, saying, “Hey! King of the Jews!” They led him away to crucify him.
A huge crowd of people followed Jesus, including women, who were mourning and wailing for him.
When they arrived at the place called The Skull, they crucified him, along with two criminals, one on his right and the other on his left. Those who were walking by insulted Jesus, shaking their heads and saying, “So you were going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, were you? Save yourself! If you are God’s Son, come down from the cross.”
Then, darkness covered the whole earth. The sun stopped shining.
With a loud shout, “My God, my God, why have you left me?”
Then the curtain in the sanctuary tore down the middle.
Crying out, Jesus said, “Father, into your hands I entrust my life.” After he said this, he breathed for the last time.
—
What are the challenges in your life? Or someone else’s? What do you need strength and wisdom for? What suffering do you see in this world that fills you with confusion and anger? Where is the world not as it should be?
These are our fourth and fifth prayers: the prayer of help and lament.
Instructions:
We’ll now be spending the next few minutes in silence. And in this quiet time, consider your prayers of help for yourself, your loved ones, the world, as well as what you’re grieving and frustrated about. Write those on the prayer cards that say “Help” and “Why?” Then, fold them in half when you’re done.
You’ll hear music that will bring us out of silence, and when you do, you’re invited to bring all of your prayers to the cross and place them on it.
[60-90 SECONDS OF SILENCE then INSTRUMENTAL]
Movement 5: The People Say, “Give Me Jesus.” (Our Prayers Together)
On Friday evening, the body of Jesus was taken down and taken away. But people stopped the authorities and said, “Give me Jesus.” His followers—the loud ones and the secret ones—took his body, prepared it, and buried it in a garden. And then, they sat and prayed.
A reading from the Gospels of John and Matthew:
Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate if he could take away the body of Jesus. Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one because he feared the Jewish authorities. Pilate gave him permission, so he came and took the body away. Nicodemus, the one who at first had come to Jesus at night, was there too. He brought a mixture of myrrh and aloe, nearly seventy-five pounds in all. Following Jewish burial customs, they took Jesus’ body and wrapped it, with the spices, in linen cloths. There was a garden in the place where Jesus was crucified, and in the garden was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish Preparation Day and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus in it.
After Joseph rolled a large stone at the door of the tomb, he went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting in front of the tomb.
—
Tonight, we pray with these two women. All of our prayers from this evening will be woven together with the words of the Psalms that these women would also have known. In our Good Friday world, this is our prayer for resurrection.
Let us pray:
Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is your name throughout the earth!
You made your glory higher than heaven!
When we look up at your skies,
at what your fingers made—
the moon and the stars
that you set firmly in place—
we stand humbly in awe.
We’re amazed by…
[Read the PRAYERS OF WOW from the cross. Place them in a prayer basket at the base of the cross.]
You are refuge and strength,
a help always near in times of great trouble.
That’s why we won’t be afraid when the world falls apart,
when the mountains crumble into the center of the sea,
when its waters roar and rage,
when the mountains shake because of its surging waves.
Nations roar; kingdoms crumble.
And we cry out:
[Read the PRAYERS OF HELP AND LAMENT from the cross. Place them in the prayer basket.]
Have mercy on us, God, according to your faithful love!
Wipe away our mistakes, according to your great compassion!
We confess to you.
[Remove the PRAYERS OF CONFESSION from the cross. Place them in the prayer basket.]
Create a clean heart for us, God.
Put a new, faithful spirit deep inside us.
We trust in your faithful love.
Our hearts rejoice in your salvation.
Yes, we will sing to you
because you have been good to us.
Let our whole being bless your name
and never forget all your good deeds:
[Read the PRAYERS OF GRATITUDE from the cross. Place them in the prayer basket.]
Faithful God,
hold our prayers tight in quiet of the tomb
as we hold on to you in hope.
[Cover the prayer basket with a black cloth]
May we never grow cold to your Love
or be convinced that darkness will ever have the final word.
We pray for new life.
We pray for resurrection.
Hear us, O Lord.
“Keep Watch” by Paul Zach (Listen)
Keep watch and pray.
Keep watch and pray.
Just for an hour.
Keep watch with Christ our Lord.
Oh see his tears.
Come now, draw near.
A single hour.
Keep watch with Christ our Lord.
Stay at his side.
Await the time.
The final hour
Keep watch with Christ our Lord.
[A CAPPELLA]
Stay at his side.
Await the time.
The final hour
Keep watch with Christ our Lord.
And when he comes to rise
And when he comes to rise
And when he comes to rise
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world.
[SPOKEN] “I am the Lord, your God, who brought you out of Egypt.”
You can have all this world.
[SPOKEN] “Remember, I am with you always—even to the end of the age.”
You can have all this world.
[SPOKEN] “I am the one who goes with you. I won’t let you down, & I will never abandon you.”
But give me Jesus
[Participants can leave as they are ready in silence.]