WELCOME
PRELUDE Praise Him! Praise Him! – Hayes / Allen
*CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader: We gather here to share the faith that captures our hearts, enriches our lives, and inspires
us for discipleship.
People: Let us communicate our faith through actions of love and welcome, of grace and
inclusion, of hope and mission.
Leader: As we worship, may our faith promote peace and unity, and serve as a blessing to
humankind.
People: May our faith stimulate us to live according to the word of Christ.
Leader: Let us express our faith by shining the light that dispels the world’s darkness.
People: We gather here to deepen and renew our faith, so that we may joyfully and
courageously serve God.
*HYMN OF PRAISE Come, Christians, Join to Sing #150
Come, Christians, join to sing Alleluia! Amen!
Loud praise to Christ our King; Alleluia! Amen!
Let all, with heart and voice, Before His throne rejoice;
Praise is His gracious choice; Alleluia! Amen!
Come, lift your hearts on high; Alleluia! Amen!
Let praises fill the sky; Alleluia! Amen!
He is our guide and friend; To us He’ll condescend;
His love shall never end; Alleluia! Amen!
Praise yet our Christ again; Alleluia! Amen!
Life shall not end the strain; Alleluia! Amen!
On heaven’s blissful shore His goodness we’ll adore,
Singing forevermore, “Alleluia! Amen!”
PRAYERS OF CONFESSION (Unison)
Almighty and gracious God,
in humility we come before You, seeking Your forgiveness,
for we know our guilt and our sin are before us.
Because seeds of discord grow in our hearts, we cultivate fear, covetousness, and anger.
We exercise power without humility,
knowledge without wisdom,
and action without kindness.
Merciful God, teach us obedience and faith.
Help us to see Your hand at work in the world,
and through Your grace guide us to wholeness,
embrace us with love,
and lead us to righteousness,
in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
(Silent)
ASSURANCE OF FORGIVENESS (adapted from Ephesians 1:7-10)
Leader: In Jesus Christ, we have redemption and the forgiveness of our trespasses according to
the riches of grace which He lavished upon us.
People: The mystery of God’s will has been made known to us in Jesus Christ to unite all
things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth.
Leader: Friends, believe the good news of the gospel:
People: Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.
SCRIPTURE Psalm 40:1-10
1 I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and
put their trust in the LORD.
4 Happy are those who make the LORD their trust, who do not turn to the proud, to those who
go astray after false gods.
5 You have multiplied, O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with you. Were I to proclaim and tell of them, they would be more than
can be counted.
6 Sacrifice and offering you do not desire, but you have given me an open ear. Burnt offering
and sin offering you have not required.
7 Then I said, “Here I am; in the scroll of the book it is written of me.
8 I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.”
9 I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; see, I have not restrained
my lips, as you know, O LORD.
10 I have not hidden your saving help within my heart, I have spoken of
your faithfulness and your salvation; I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great
congregation.
SCRIPTURE Luke 12:49-56
49 “I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! 50 I have a baptism
with which to be baptized, and what stress I am under until it is completed! 51 Do you think that
I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! 52 From now on five
in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three; 53 they will be
divided: father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against
mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
54 He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately
say, ‘It is going to rain’; and so it happens. 55 And when you see the south wind blowing, you
say, ‘There will be scorching heat’; and it happens. 56 You hypocrites! You know how to
interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present
time?
MEDITATION Disturbing the Peace
ANTHEM As the Deer – Nystrom
Ken Heischman, Dan Derbin, duet
*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH from the United Church of Canada
We are not alone, we live in God’s world.
We believe in God who has created and is creating,
who has come in Jesus, the Word made flesh, to reconcile and make new,
who works in us and others by the Spirit.
We trust in God.
We are called to be the Church:
to celebrate God’s presence, to love and serve others, to seek justice and resist evil,
to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen, our judge and our hope.
In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us.
We are not alone. Thanks be to God.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE AND AN ALTERNATE FORM OF THE LORD’S PRAYER
. . . 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.
INVITATION TO GIVE
PRAYER OF DEDICATION (Unison)
Eternal God, as we contribute our earthly resources to You, we pray that You would fill us
with wisdom –
the wisdom to know Your will,
the wisdom to follow Your way,
and the wisdom to invest our time and talent in things that make a difference in the world.
Even though our offerings are but a token of what You are due,
nevertheless we offer them so that we may wisely participate in promoting Your work
around the world,
through Jesus Christ our Lord, in whose name we pray. Amen.
*HYMN How Firm a Foundation #361
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in God’s excellent Word!
What more can be said than to you God hath said,
To you, who for refuge to Jesus have fled?
“Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.
“When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow;
For I will be near thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.
“When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace, all-sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.
“The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.”
*BENEDICTION
POSTLUDE Mighty Is Our God – Greco / Gustafson / Moen