Weekly Bulletins
Sunday September 15, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! SEPTEMBER 15th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Fourteenth Sunday of Pentecost
“Tossing and Gathering Stones Together’”
“Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today, because if you enjoy it today, you can do it again tomorrow!”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
*Introit: “Be still, be still,
Be still and know that I am God.
I am exalted in the nations and the earth,
Be still, and know that I am God.” (3 X’s through)
(Paul Rumbolt, copyright 1992 – used by permission)
Call to Worship:
Leader: The ending of summer is slowly approaching and changes are on the way. Our days are changing and we are slowly entering into another routine.
ALL: We come as an ‘end-of-summer’ people, a little tired in the frantic return after the longer days of sunshine.
Leader: We notice that the leaves are beginning to turn. We come blazing with our own colours: our red passion for discipleship; our yellow yearning for Christ’s light; our orange clinging to past comforts; our brown weariness in the face of new challenges.
ALL: We come in anticipation of garden harvests; celebrating God’s bounty; nourished by Christ’s seeds of new life; dried by Spirit wind to feed others.
Leader: We come, each of us, as God’s beloved children to be renewed and restored to our place in God’s ever-changing seasons.
ALL: We now open ourselves with the Holy…let us share in these words of our morning prayer:
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
We come, O God, seeking you in song and in prayer, in word and in witness. Through the growing nights of the final days of summer, show us Christ’s light. Through the gradual chill of shorter days, warm us with your embrace of loving grace. Through the slow process of the baring of the trees, clothe us in the Spirit’s persevering wisdom. Here in this place, this sacred sanctuary, meet us. Here in this place, meet us in the reading of your Word. Here in this place, meet us in our Singing. Here in this place, meet us in our Praying. Meet us in this place, O God, for we long to know you. Be present with us again, so you may lead us with strength ever onward….Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 266 “Amazing Grace”
A Time for All Ages: “Turn, Turn, Turn”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4983sAoLdM
Hymn: MV # 92 “Like a Rock”
First Reading: JEREMIAH 4: 11-12, 22-28 Pg 613 (Barb Penhale)
The land shall be desolation; the earth shall mourn…
Second Reading: 1 TIMOTHY 1: 12-17 Page 966 (Barb Penhale)
Christ came to save sinners – of whom I am the foremost…
Gospel Reading: LUKE 15: 1-10 (Rev. Jope)
The parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin…
Message: “Tossing & Gathering Stones”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 264 “Immortal Invisible”
Offering: “Jesu, Joy” (Bach) Instrumental
*Offertory Doxology: (To the tune of VU # 541)
“Come, meet us God within this place
And shed your gifts of boundless grace
Upon each person present here
And make our vision truly clear.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader
Blessing
Prayers of this Community of Faith: (Utilizing MV # 7)
“Gather us in, ground us in you. Gather us in, ground us in you.
Gather us in, gather us in, ground us, ground us in you.”
O Gracious One, your Spirit moves over the mysteries of living and dying and is strangely present to us in the falling of the leaves, the call of the wild geese, a child’s birth, the light in a friend’s eyes, the sudden lifting of the heart, and the deep longing which brings us to you now. Make us aware of your presence that wonder may have its way with us, our passion be released, our confidence renewed in the depths of your holiness until, for a moment, our longing for you be fulfilled.
“Gather us in, ground us in you. Gather us in, ground us in you.
Gather us in, gather us in, ground us, ground us in you.”
May we know we are really free to share bread and intimacy, to laugh and exchange mercy, to be at ease in our struggles, bold in our loving, brave in facing down our terror, hopeful in the rising music of your kingdom, joyful in our living, and graceful in our lives becoming a song of praise ever sung to you.
“Gather us in, ground us in you. Gather us in, ground us in you.
Gather us in, gather us in, ground us, ground us in you.”
O God, who out of nothing brought everything that is, out of what we are, bring more of what we dream but haven’t dared; direct our power and passion to creating life where there is death, to putting flesh of action on bare-boned intentions, to lighting fires against the midnight of indifference, to throwing bridges of care across canyons of loneliness; so we can look on creation, together with you, and, behold, call it good; through Christ, who talked to us in parables of truth
“Gather us in, ground us in you. Gather us in, ground us in you.
Gather us in, gather us in, ground us, ground us in you.”
The Lord’s Prayer VU # 914
*Hymn: VU # 271 “There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy”
*Commissioning (Unison)
And now may the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding and is greater worth than anything we can say or do, be with us as we leave. The God of Peace be with us. The Son of Peace be with us. The Spirit of Peace surround us, this day and always.
*Benediction
Postlude
Sunday September 8th, 2019:
Lakeview United Church
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
Whoever you are…come share your spiritual journey with us!
God’s People Together Welcome to Worship
Creation Time 1 in the season of Pentecost
Worship Leader: Bob Gibennus
Seed for the Spirit
“By turning your eyes on God in meditation, your whole soul will be filled with God. Begin all your prayers in the presence of God.” Saint Francis de Sales
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming & Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina and Stoney Nakoda Nations and the Metis Region 3, the peoples with whom Treaty 7 was signed. We recognize our responsibility, as signatories to that treaty, to live with respect on this land and in peace and friendship with its people.
*Introit: “Seek Ye First the Kingdom” VU #356
Call to Worship (Responsive)
We have arrived here safely, each one of us
What brought you here, today?
We each have our own reasons.
What kinds of reasons?
We have come to give thanks…
We have come to sing…
We have come to hear what God has to say.
Anything else?
We have come to pray…
We have come to light a candle…
We have come to bring our burdens to God.
Have you come to do these things by yourself?
No! We have come to be together, in the supportive presence of our faith family
And most importantly
To be in the presence of God…
Then, let us make it so!
Hymn: “Come to My Heart” VU #661
Lighting of the Christ Candle
Praying into the presence of God: (Unison)
Loving, Living God,
You have invited us into your holy space. May we feel your spirit gently massaging our shoulders as we worship this morning. May the hymns we sing bring joy to you and meaning to our lives. May the readings stimulate our minds to seek meaning in our day from words written in another time to another generation. May the words spoken from the pulpit enlighten, encourage and challenge us. And may the experience of spending an hour fully present with you, our God, change us so that we may change the world. We pray these things in love and in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Engaging
A Time for All Ages: “So, God made a farmer”
Readings: (Peggy Gibennus)
Psalm 139 (VU 861) The Inescapable God
*Hymn: “I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry” VU #644
Jeremiah 18:1-11 The Potter and the Clay (Peggy Gibennus)
*Hymn: “The Lone, Wild Bird” VU #384
Luke 10:38-42 Jesus visits Martha and Mary
Reflection: “In the Presence of God”
Responding
*Hymn: “I Am the Dream” MV #106
Offering Invitation:
Offertory: 3rd movement from Pathetique Sonata (Beethoven)
Silas Kovats, Piano
*Doxology:
“Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow” VU # 541
*Prayer of Dedication: (All)
Generous God,
In humble gratitude, we give what we can
Please accept these gifts and us
And cause them and us to be a blessing to others
We pray this in love and in Jesus’ name. Amen
Blessing
Prayers of the People
Prayer response:
Holy sacred Spirit, breathe your breath on us. MV #15
& Lord’s Prayer
*Hymn: “Wherever You May Go” MV #216
*Commissioning
As we leave this place,
Having felt the presence of God
We go out into the world with a pledge
To be the blessing that someone needs this week.
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday September 1st, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
SEASON of PENTECOST! COMMUNION SUNDAY
THEME: “Burning Bush Experiences…”
A Service of Prayer, of Hymns, and of Meditation.
“A blind person was sitting by the wayside and holding out his hands for alms to be given him…he asked a passerby if ‘there could be anything worse than losing eye sight?’ and the passerby said, “Yes – losing your vision.” (May we never, ever, lose our vision)
Gathering *Gives you the opportunity to stand if you wish to…
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Introit: MV # 54 “Alleluia” (Monterio)
(Allow yourselves to harmonize freely with this introit…this little Brazilian tune will set the stage for this morning’s worship service)
Call to Worship or Coming Together:
Leader: In the silence, the clarity of your voice climbs high upon the eagles’ wings…the chains of doubt that imprison my soul fall away beneath my feet…in the freedom and majesty of the sentinel’s gaze, faith is strengthened and hope returned to a weary heart, upon the silent flight of eagle’s wings…
(Chris Roe, Bergh Apton, Norfolk, U.K….Gathering magazine)
ALL: What is creation saying to us?...flown by, for some of us, has been lazy summer months of possible days at the beach, picnics, wooded hikes and you, O God, were found in all of these.
Leader: We praise this new day…we praise the sun and we praise the moon and we praise the leaves of trees as they begin their changing of colour…we praise the fields of abundance and we praise our abundant hearts.
ALL: We praise the Christ and the empty tomb and we praise the heavens opened up for all.
Leader: We praise our worship and we praise our music and our prayers and we praise our God who receives it now…
ALL: May our worship-time, together, bring us ever closer to each other and to the heart of God.
Leader: And as we begin in this month of September, may the light of Christ shine through this time together…we light the Candle of Joy for the world to see…
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
O Gracious One, we have, each of us, come back from different places this summer and we come back to our villages, our communities, and our cities. We come back, for some of us, to school, to work, back to our routine and we who claim to know the One of Creation, gather once again in new arrangements. Welcome back to days of busy, of song, of seeking deep grace in our daily living; of offering time, talents, no holds barred, wandering in the Word, in receiving and giving. Jesus said we have the kingdom within, so we need to be opened to love and to offer love to those who may think they have nothing but hollow lives. The unknown belongs to each, in days ahead, is carried inside the path we choose to follow. So we gather renewed, to grow our ability to listen and to hear the call to stand up and to acknowledge you, our Creating God. Whatever comes, rain or shine, hard or not – may we be blessed and nourished with Bread and with Cup. Welcome back! We are not alone! Thanks be to you, O God! Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 288 “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”
A Time for all Ages: “Visiting different communities of faith…”
*Hymn: MV # 161 “I Have Called You by Your Name”
Engaging
(Older Testament Reading) JEREMIAH 2: 4-13
The people have forsaken living water… (Heather Mayers)
(Epistle Lesson) HEBREWS 13: 1-8, 15-16 A list of instructions on living mutual love… (Heather Mayers)
(Scripture Passage) EXODUS 3: 1-12
Moses and the burning bush… (Rev. Jope)
Message: “So where’s Your Burning Bush?”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 506 “Take My Life and Let It Be”
Offering: “There Is a Balm in Gilead”…David Thompson, baritone
*Offertory Doxology: (VU # 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”)
“How nice to once again be here
and meet with God, for God is near…
For in this place we will find rest
with food to nourish…food that’s blessed!”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
The Sacrament of Communion
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them to our God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
ALL: It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Leader: God of many names, we thank you for all that you are and for all that you do in the world. As Creator, you made all things and are continually creating. As Divine Parent, you nurture and sustain us. As the One Holy Trinity, you invite us to dance with you to the lilt of life and time. And through Christ, you have named us as your adopted children. Therefore, with all your people, in every time and place, we sing the triumphant hymn of your glory:
MV # 203 (Holy, Holy, Holy -- Sanctus and Benedictus)
O holy, holy, holy God, O God of time and space.
All earth and sea and sky above bear witness to your grace.
Hosanna in the highest heav’n, creation sings your praise.
And blessed is the One who comes and bears your name always!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
ALL: Hosanna in the highest!
Leader: And we come to this table to remember how you became human under the name of Jesus who on the night when your name was betrayed shared food and wine with those he loved. He took bread, a sign of health and life, broke it and shared it with them naming it for his body, the bread of life. And he took a cup of wine, a sign of celebration and joy and shared it with them naming it after his life blood. We come here to do the same in memory of Christ.
Breaking of the Bread
Pouring of the Cup
Leader’s Prayer: Come, Spirit of God, and move over these signs of life and celebration, this bread and wine, that we may take them as the bread of life and the wine of blessing. As we stand around this table, may we be your people, committed to your kingdom whose name is peace…Amen.
The gifts of God, for the people of God…come…for all is ready.
(Our communion hymn being sung through distribution is:
VU # 468 “Let Us Talents and Tongues Employ”)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection and Meditation of the Heart: (Unison)
ALL: Creator God, help us to take our feet off this sometimes path of slow destruction for our world…for our atmosphere…for our depleting ice fields and rising oceans…for our sometimes passion of money, of success, of ‘bigger is better’…help us to treasure and to conserve the resources of our Earth. Help us to share your bounty fairly. Teach us, in the richer nations, to live more simply. Take away our greed. May we use only what we need and not continue, in our arrogance and power, to take whatever we want. May we learn from others that happiness and well-being are not found in more things and in unending economic growth, but in treading the path of justice and of fairness.
Creating God, you have given us a vision of a new
heaven and a new earth…
Resources conserved
Earth tended
Atmosphere cleansed
Trees planted
Injustice ended
Oceans teeming
Nations at peace
Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer,
Alert nations, enthuse churches,
Receive our commitment and so entwine our lives with
your purpose…
Earth and heaven will then sing of your glory.
The Earth does not belong to us, we belong to the Earth. All things are connected and interdependent like the blood that unites a family. We did not weave the web of life; we are merely a strand in it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves and to our descendants. Let us give thanks for God’s creation… we give thanks that all things are held together in Christ…and now we share in these words:
The Lord’s Prayer
*Hymn: VU # 649 “Walk With Me”
*Commissioning (unison):
May the Spirit always dance in our souls and tell each of us, in a million different ways, that each of us are known and held and loved by God. May we go into the world and be people of peace…Amen.
Benediction & Postlude
Sunday August 25, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to Summer Worship
Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost
Worship Leader: Bob Gibennus
Accompanist: Lee Workun
Whoever you are…come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
Seed for the Spirit
“Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them.” Dalai Lama
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming & Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina and Stoney Nakoda Nations and the Metis Region 3, the peoples with whom Treaty 7 was signed. We recognize our responsibility, as signatories to that treaty, to live with respect on this land and in peace and friendship with its people.
*Introit: “Let Us Build a House” MV #1
Call to Worship (Responsive)
At last, it’s Sunday! We’re here!
Let’s worship God together!
We’re waiting to discover something new this week.
Let’s listen to God, together!
Something good happened this week.
Let’s sing to God, together!
Something troubling happened this week.
Let’s pray to God, together!
Lighting of the Christ Candle
*Hymn: “And On This Path” MV #8
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
You have called us to be here today.
We have heard you, and we are here.
Accept us as we are
Help us to be in better relationship
…with you, with others and with ourselves
Let this hour together be an hour of
healing, of joyful worship together and thoughtful reflection
We pray these things in love, and in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Hymn: “Gather Us In” MV #7
Engaging
Readings: (Peggy Gibennus)
Jeremiah 1:4-10 Page 609
Luke 13:18-29 Page 848
Reflection: “God isn’t finished with you, yet.”
Responding
Hymn: “Take My Life and Let it Be” VU #506
Offering:
*Doxology: VU # 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication
Blessing
Prayers of the People & Lord’s Prayer (Gwen Jamieson)
*Hymn: “I, The Lord of Sea and Sky” VU #509
*Commissioning
We have heard God calling
May we answer the call, with love
May we see the blessings that God has in store for us
May we be a blessing to someone who needs it.
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday August 18, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to Summer Worship
Tenth Sunday After Pentecost
Worship Leaders: Bob and Peggy Gibennus
Accompanist: Lee Workun
Special Music: Fiona Hayes and Judy Klassen
Whoever you are…come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
Seed for the Spirit
“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” Mahatma Ghandi
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Greeting:
One: May the Grace of God, the Love of our Lord Jesus Christ and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
All: And also, with you.
Welcoming & Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina and Stoney Nakoda Nations and the Metis Region 3, the peoples with whom Treaty 7 was signed. We recognize our responsibility, as signatories to that treaty, to live with respect on this land and in peace and friendship with its people.
*Introit: “We Are One” (verses 1,2,4) VU #402
*Lighting of the Christ Candle & Call to Worship (Responsive)
Each week when we gather, we light a candle that burns in our midst.
It burns as a symbol of our intentions to live in ways that seek light, that reflect light, and that honour the light in others.
We have before us the grace of a new week and the light of a new day;
So we light this candle to call ourselves to a fresh start and a new beginning.
May its light draw us and turn us always toward better words and better ways.
May this light and all it symbolizes inspire us to deeper courage and greater compassion.
In this light, may we see ourselves and our world in a new way – in a way that only today can bring.
It is not yesterday’s light and it is not yet tomorrow’s, it is all we have – it is this present moment.
So, in the gift of this light and in the gift of our being together in community today, may we share with each other in its light and its warm glow… as we share in a song and join our voices in singing …
*Hymn: “Praise to the Lord, Almighty ” VU #220
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
Living God
In silence, we invite your spirit to descend on us now, in this sacred place and sacred time… (silence)
(prayer bell)
During this hour together, hear us when we praise your name in song
Hear us when we seek your support in prayer
Speak to us, when we hear the sacred words of the ancient authors
Let your spirit fall afresh on us now…(silence)
(prayer bell)
Hymn: (remain seated) “Spirit of the Living God” VU #376
Engaging
Readings: (Peggy Gibennus)
Hebrews 11:29-12:2
Luke 12:49-56
Reflection: “Who, me change?”
Responding
*Hymn: “Though Ancient Walls” VU #691
Offering Invitation
Offertory: “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” Fiona Hayes and Judy Klassen
*Doxology: “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow” VU # 541
Prayer of Dedication
Blessing
Prayers of the People & Lord’s Prayer
Transitioning the Light:
The light of course goes with us always, the light is always within and among us,
But indeed the light changes as we take it into our days and into our world. (the flame of the Christ Candle is extinguished)
And as the light changes so will we –
we will be changed, we will seek change, and we will change the world around us.
Let us take the essence of light into our lives ... and let us go with a song…
*Hymn: “I See a New Heaven” VU #713
Benediction
Postlude Fiona Hayes and Judy Klassen
Sunday August 11, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to Summer Worship
Ninth Sunday after Pentecost
Worship Leader: Bob Gibennus
Whoever you are…come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
Seed for the Spirit “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for; the conviction of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming & Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina and Stoney Nakoda Nations and the Metis Region 3, the peoples with whom Treaty 7 was signed. We recognize our responsibility, as signatories to that treaty, to live with respect on this land and in peace and friendship with its people.
*Introit: “Lord, Prepare Me to Be a Sanctuary” MV #18
*Call to Worship (Responsive)
On a bright summer morning, while the dew is still on the grass
God is there
In a noisy prairie thunder shower, while we scramble for shelter
God is there
On a warm summer evening, as we barbecue and visit with friends
God is there
In the companionship and love of Lakeview United Church
GOD IS HERE!
Lighting of the Christ Candle
Hymn: “How Firm a Foundation” VU #660
Opening Prayer: (Responsive)
ALL: You are full of surprises, God. We woke up this morning and found a new day had already begun, even as we slept
ONE: What was happening in the night while we were dreaming? Were you called to celebrate the birth of a new life? Were you called to comfort someone who was grieving? We know that you never sleep, O God, and yet, here you are, as fresh as ever on this summer morning.
What miracles do you have in store for us today?
ALL: We pray that you will open our eyes to see you in our neighbour, our ears to hear your word and our hearts to serve your purpose. Stir something in us this morning that will cause us to be a blessing to someone.
We pray these things in love, and in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Hymn: “God of the Bible” MV #28
Engaging
Readings: (Peggy Gibennus)
Genesis 15:1-6 Page 10
Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-46 Page 977
Luke 12:32-40 Page 847
Reflection: “What, me worry?”
Responding
*Hymn: “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” VU #66
Offering:
“All the Way, My Savior Leads Me” David Thompson, Baritone
*Doxology: VU # 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication
Blessing
Prayers of the People & Lord’s Prayer
Prayer response: “Don’t Be Afraid” MV #90
*Hymn: “Sent Out in Jesus’ Name” MV #212
*Commissioning
We have worshiped together as God’s people
We came hungry, we leave fed
We came with our prayers, we leave feeling heard
We came seeking direction, we leave with a focus
May we see God in our lives, and
May God be seen in us.
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday August 4, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! August 4, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
EIGHTH SUNDAY after PENTECOST {COMMUNION}
Seeds of Meditation
Everyone is born into life as a blank page—and every person leaves as a full book. Our lives are our story, and our story is our life. Christina Baldwin, Storycatcher
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. It is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit: VU# 395 “Come In, Come In and Sit Down”
Call to Worship: (Allison Abbott-Weibe, Gathering)
One: Come and be welcomed as we gather
and join in community.
We will hear about the wonderful things
God has made available to us and for us.
Let us enter this place with thanksgiving and gratitude as we celebrate
God’s abundant blessings.
Lighting the Christ Candle
*Hymn: MV#1 “All Are Welcome” (vs. 1, 3 & 5)
Opening Prayer: (Unison) (Heather Grobb, Gathering, adapted)
ALL: Lord God, Creator of all,
we come to worship you.
Lord Jesus Christ, living example of the Way,
we love and honour you.
Holy Spirit, flowing in and among us,
breathe life into our souls. Amen
Readings: (Nancy Gillean)
ECCLESIASTES 1:2, 12–14 Page 537
PSALM 107:1–9, 43 Page 487
LUKE 12:13–21 Page 847
* Hymn: MV#145 “Draw the Circle Wide”
Message: “LUC: Sharing Our Stories”
Responding
*Hymn: MV# 200 “You Are My Body”
Offering: “Bread of Life” LUC choir
*Offertory Doxology: VU# 541 “Praise God ….”
Prayer of Dedication
The Sacrament of Communion
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
(For those unable to come forward, raise your hand and the bread and the cup will be served to you. For those unable to take juice or eat bread alternative elements are available.)
WELCOMING TO THE TABLE (Leigh Sinclair, Gathering, adapted)
It is indeed a joy to gather in community with friends and strangers to tell again our great, great story. God is the source of all life, all stories, and all voices. God made you and adores you. Wherever you may be on your journey to claim this identity—beloved child of God—you are welcome at this table. It is not mine nor Lakeview United’s. It is God’s and Jesus is our host. Thanks be to God!
THE GREAT THANKSGIVING
Our Maker be with you!
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts..
We lift them to our God.
Let us give thanks to the Maker of all.
It is great to give God thanks and praise.
PRAYER
We thank you, God, for how you have gifted us with imagination.
This gift leads us to empathy, possibility, creativity and memory.
It allows us to have a faith story, ancestors and rituals, such as this.
We thank you for the imagination of Jesus, in whom you came to share stories, signs and symbols with all on earth. Thank you for the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which allows for those stories to continue to form and reform, create and recreate…Jesus used parables to show us the mysterious depth of your love. Jesus taught us to turn our expectations upside down and awaken our imaginations to the possibility of a better world for all.
And so, with all you have created and all you are going to create, along with all the voices in heaven and earth, we join to sing your praise:
Hymn VU# 469 “We Gather Here”
BREAKING THE BREAD AND PRAYERS
On the last night Jesus had with his community, he retold the the great story of how God freed the Hebrew people during the Passover and he included each disciple and follower in that great unfolding story. Help us realize that we, too, are a part of that story—your holy providence of making all things new! Let us hear the story again:
It was during supper that Jesus took bread, and gave thanks;
broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take eat; this is my body, given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Again, after supper he took the cup, gave thanks,
and gave it for all to drink, saying:
This cup is the cup of new life
given for you and for all people
in the struggle for God’s kindom.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Here are the gifts of God for the people of God!
SHARING THE BREAD FOR STRENGTH AND THE CUP FOR WISDOM
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
For the bread we have eaten , for the juice we have tasted, for the gifts we have received, we thank you God. As stewards of the story, as walkers of Christ’s way, we are gifted and called to the responsibility to share. We have learned together, feasted together, and now we go forth united by God’s Spirit, to live this amazing story. Amen.
Blessing
Closing Prayers:
The Lord’s Prayer
*Commissioning: (Wanda Winfield, Gathering)
ALL: We have been given a great commandment,
To proclaim what God has done for us.
Let us go into the world to show what it means
To be the beloved of God. Amen.
*Closing Hymn MV# 138 “My Love Colours Outside the Lines”
Benediction
A Thank-you to our communion servers this morning: Nancy Gillean, Shelly Logan Gordanier, and Wayne Gordanier
Sunday July 28, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! July 28, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Seventh Sunday after Pentecost
Whoever you are….come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
SEEDS OF MEDITATION:
“Teachin’s always gonna come to you different ways. Dreams sometimes. People sometimes. Animals.. Different ways. Quit lookin’ for teachin’s you quit growin’. Richard Wagamese, Keeper’n Me
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit MV# 106 “I Am the Dream”
Call to Worship: (Richard Bott, Gathering)
One: Who does God call?
All: People of all genders, all places;
people of all sorts, all races.
One: To what does God call us?
All: To so many things!
To listen and to speak,
to comfort and cajole,
to help and to heal,
but most of all,
God calls us to…
One: Yes?
All: God calls us to love
with a love that is beyond our imagining,
with a love that is beyond our ability,
with a love that is beyond ourselves.
One: From where does that love come?
All: It comes through Christ,
with Christ, and in Christ,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit.
It comes from God.
One: And so, in this love, with this love, sharing this love…
All: We worship God.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Hymn VU# 82 “A Light is Gleaming”
Opening Prayer: (Nora Vedress, Gathering)
All: In this place we profess that you are God who
“has created and is creating.” And so we come to worship this day to lift our prayers to you trusting that you are active in the world and in our lives. We come with all our doubt, for we have many. We come with all our questions, though they are heavy. We come just as we are, perfectly imperfect. We come to worship you powerful God, for we know that you are not done with this world and that you are not done with us. Your Spirit is creating still. Amen.
Hymn VU# 661 “Come to My Heart”
Readings: (Nancy Prince)
GENESIS 18:20-32 Page 12
PSALM 85 Page 473
LUKE 11:1-13 Page 845
Message: “Connecting with God”
Responding
*Hymn: MV# 161 “I Have Called You By Your Name”
Offering:
Offertory “Over My Head” Chorus
* Doxology: VU# 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
Prayer Response MV# 85 “Take, O Take Me as I Am”
Lord’s Prayer VU# 959 (Sung)
*Commissioning: (Robert Partridge, Gathering)
All: We go now and leave this place with
thanksgiving and love in our hearts.
May the love of God pour out from our souls,
run wild and make this a community of love,
grace and forgiveness. Amen
*Closing Hymn: VU#509 “I, The Lord of Sea and Sky”
Benediction
Postlude
July 21, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! July 21, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
Whoever you are….come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
SEEDS OF MEDITATION:
The ultimate measure of a [human] is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit
Call to Worship: (Catherine Tovell, Gathering)
One: We have awoken to a new day surrounded
by God’s beauty and abundance.
All: We come to worship this God.
One: We start a new week with endless,
unfolding possibilities.
All: We embrace those possibilities knowing that
Christ embraces them with us.
One: With the Spirit among us give us the courage
to act, we open ourselves to God’s call to service.
All: Let us worship God.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
One: As we light the Christ candle, we call upon the Christ Light to play upon our worship space with generous love, sparkling wisdom, and gentle encouragement. Stir our hearts, engage our thoughts, seep into our minds, and saturate us with your summer joy.
Hymn “This Little Light of Mine”
Opening Prayer: (David Sparks, Gathering)
One: Spirit of endless summer sky
the soaring hawk, the tiny ladybug:
All: We praise you for the wonderful gift of Creation
One: Family Spirit, heard in the laughter of children
inspired by their simple but profound questions:
All: We praise you for joy in the family circle.
One: Spirit of the church community,
listening to our questions,
supporting one another:
All: We rejoice in the strengthening friendship
and challenging mission of this church.
One: Compassionate Spirit, lovingly revealed
In Jesus the Christ:
All: We praise you for his challenging words,
his holy leadership, and his sacrificial way. We come humbly before you to worship as Jesus’ people. Amen.
Hymn MV# 30 “It’s a Song of Praise to the Maker”
Readings: (Barb Spence)
GENESIS 18:1-10a Page 12
A Son is Promised to Abraham and Sarah
COLOSSIANS 1:15-28 Page 956
LUKE 10:38-42 Page 845
Jesus Visits Martha and Mary
Message: “Finding Freedom”
Responding
*Hymn: “Wade in the Water” https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=lyrics+wade+in+the+water&view=detail&mid=52C13069C592814D109F52C13069C592814D109F&FORM=VIRE
Offering:
Offertory “Swing Lo Sweet Chariot”
* Doxology: VU# 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
Lord’s Prayer
*Commissioning: (Fern Gibbard, Gathering)
ALL: We go out from here into the new week ahead;
we go out as people of faith,
claiming the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We go out filled with the power of the Spirit of God. Amen
*Closing Hymn: VU#43 “Go Tell It on the Mountain”
Benediction
Postlude
July 14, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! July 14, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Fifth Sunday after Pentecost
Whoever you are….come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
SEEDS OF MEDITATION:
The wound is the place where the Light enters you. Rumi
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit Guitar Group
Call to Worship: (Gill Le Fevre, Gathering)
One: We come this day carrying struggle and sorrow.
All: Open our hearts to welcome your presence.
One: We come this day from a world of judgement and walls.
All: Open our hearts to welcome our neighbor.
One: We come this day seeking guidance and strength.
All: Open our hearts to receive your Word.
One: We have come; now let us worship God.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
One: As we light the Christ candle, we call upon the Christ Light to play upon our worship space with generous love, sparkling wisdom, and gentle encouragement. Stir our hearts, engage our thoughts, seep into our minds, and saturate us with your summer joy.
Hymn VU#266 “Amazing Grace”
Opening Prayer: (Gord Dunbar, Gathering)
All: God of wonder, God of light,
open our hearts and minds to your incarnation,
expand our understanding of what’s possible
through vulnerability.
Deepen our listening for your Spirit’s nudging,
root our living through your self-giving.
God of light, God of discovery,
open our souls to your gracious touch,
expand our incarnation of humility,
deepen our empathy for the stranger,
root our lives in your grace.
God of discovery, God of wonder,
walk with us this day, we pray. Amen.
Hymn VU# 670 “Precious Lord”
Readings: (Janet Costea)
2 KINGS 5:1–14 Page 293
The Healing of Naaman
PSALM 25:1-10 Page 436
LUKE 10:25–37 Page 844
The Good Samaritan
Message: “Warrior Light”
Responding
*Hymn: VU# 612 “Balm in Gilead”
Offering:
Offertory Guitar Group
* Doxology: VU# 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
Hymn VU# 577 “I’ve Got Peace Like a River”
Lord’s Prayer
*Commissioning: (George Allan, Gathering)
ALL: Let us go forth into the world, among all people,
And let our light so shine upon stranger and neighbour
That all may know whose we are—for we are Christ’s!
Amen
*Closing Hymn: VU# 635 “All the Way My Saviour Leads Me”
Benediction
Postlude
July 7, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! July 7, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
FOURTH SUNDAY after PENTECOST {COMMUNION}
Seeds of Meditation:
Christians are usually sincere and well-intentioned people until you get to any real issues of ego, control, power, money, pleasure, and security. Then they tend to be pretty much like everybody else.
-Richard Rohr, Breathing Underwater: Spirituality and the 12 Steps
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. It is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit: VU# 595 “We Are Pilgrims”
Call to Worship:
(John Moses, Gathering)
Leader: Jesus said “Foxes have holes,
and birds of the air have nests;
but the Son of Man has nowhere
to lay his head” (Luke 9:58)
ALL: Jesus also said, “Follow me,” (Luke 9:59)
Leader: So here it is, friends:
We who have places to lay our heads,
We who have more attachments,
And entanglements than we can ever count,
We who may not travel light through this world
Are called to follow this homeless wanderer.
All: We are trying; we are learning;
we are stumbling; We are falling;
we are rising again.
Lighting the Christ Candle
*Hymn: VU# 642 “Be Thou My Vision” (vs. 1, 2 & 5)
Opening Prayer: (Unison) (Richard Bott, Gathering)
ALL: Source of Compassion,
W approach this holy hour with awe and wonder in our hearts. We come seeking love in all the challenging places of our lives. Fill us with joy that soothes the heart and clears the mind. This we pray we with sincerity and hope. Amen
First Reading: 2KINGS 5:1-14 Page 293 (Gwen Jamieson)
The Healing of Naaman
Second Reading: PSALM 30 Page 439 (Gwen Jamieson)
Thanksgiving for Recovery from Grave Illness
* Hymn: VU# 570 “Jesus’ Hands Were Kind Hands”
Gospel Reading: LUKE 10: 1-11, 16-20 Page 844 (Rev. Kelley)
The Mission of the Seventy
Message: “Simplicity”
Responding
*Hymn: VU# 353* “Tis a Gift to Be Simple”
Offering: “Rhosymedre” (arr. Vaughn Williams)
*Offertory Doxology: VU# 541 “Praise God ….”
Prayer of Dedication
The Sacrament of Communion
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
(For those unable to come forward, raise your hand and the bread and the cup will be served to you. For those unable to take juice or eat bread alternative elements are available.)
WELCOMING TO THE TABLE
You are welcome at this table, whether you have little faith, no faith or great faith. All are welcome to come to this table whether you have been coming all your life, only occasionally or have never come before. All are welcome to this table regardless of your age, faith tradition, ability, gender, or sexual orientation or other differences. Come because you have been invited and there is a place set just for you. If you are hungry for more than bread and thirsty for more than wine, this table is for you. These are the gifts of a good earth and a gracious God for you, God’s beloved people.
THE GREAT THANKSGIVING
The Great Mystery of God be with you,
And also with you.
May it be well with your heart this day.
And with yours.
Blessed are you, gracious God,
Creator of light, Giver of all life, Source of love.
You guide the sun, cradle the moon, and toss the stars.
At your word the earth was made
and spun on its course among the planets.
You breathe life into us
and set us among all your creatures,
in a covenant of love and service.
Even when we turn away from you, you do not forsake us.
You send your prophets to proclaim your justice,
to remind us of your promise of peace,
and to call us back to you.
Creator, Christ, and Spirit,
we praise you for your love revealed to us in Jesus,
who walks with us, our Wisdom and our Way,
sharing our joy and sorrow,
healing the sick,
feeding the hungry,
and setting the captive free.
So it is that we join the song of all creation to
proclaim your goodness:
Holy, Holy, Holy, God,
our life, our mercy, and our might.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Thanks be to God.
BREAKING THE BREAD AND PRAYERS
In the night in which he was betrayed,
Jesus took bread, and gave thanks;
broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take eat; this is my body, given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Again, after supper he took the cup, gave thanks,
and gave it for all to drink, saying:
This cup is the cup of new life
given for you and for all people
in the struggle for God’s kindom.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Holy God, we remember your Son,
his life with the humble,
his death among the wretched,
his resurrection for us all:
your wisdom our guide,
your justice our strength,
your grace our path to rebirth.
Holy God, we beg for your Spirit.
Enliven this bread, awaken this body,
pour us out for each other.
Transfigure our minds, ignite your church.
Nourish the life of the earth.
Make us, while many, united.
Make us, though broken, whole.
SHARING THE BREAD FOR STRENGTH AND THE CUP FOR WISDOM
COMMUNION MUSIC VU# 747 “The Lord’s My Shepherd”
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
We give thanks, almighty God,
that you have refreshed us at your table
by granting us the presence of Jesus Christ.
May his presence among us
provoke such longing for your realm,
that we will never be satisfied
until the whole earth knows
your justice, your peace, and your love.
May your gifts of love transform and enliven us
that we may live lives of thanksgiving.
Strengthen our faith,
increase our love for one another,
and send us forth into the world
united in courage and peace,
rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit;
through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.
Blessing
Closing Prayers:
The Lord’s Prayer
*Commissioning: (adapted Sheryl Spencer, Gathering)
ALL: We go as blessed and blessing people,
Pilgrims on a journey…
We’ve been nourished
with the bread of life and the cup of blessing.
Let us live God’s love
Through our hands, our hearts and our voices
That we might make a Good News difference in our world. Amen
*Closing Hymn VU# 884 “You Shall Go Out With Joy”
Benediction
A Thank-you to our communion servers this morning:
George Zvanchuk Marlene Villiger
Barbara Spence Ken Villiger
Daryl Sedor
June 30, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! June 30, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Third Sunday after Pentecost
Whoever you are….come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
SEEDS OF MEDITATION
“Reconciliation begins with recognizing the need to act in new and life-giving ways. Here are three ways in which your community of faith can recognize Canada’s anniversary with the lens of reconciliation:
Recognize and give thanks for the abundance that come from this land and all of its peoples.
Recognize that Indigenous Peoples are the original peoples and were the founding peoples of Canada; and that many cultures make up the fabric of the Canadian identity.
Recognize the need to reflect and make plans for how we will, over the course of the next 150 years, act to make this country a place of that honours the dignity and well-being of all.”
Maggie McLeod, Executive Minister of the Aboriginal Ministries Circle, and Indigenous Justice, The United Church of Canada,
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit MV# 130 “Rise Up, Rise Up”
National Anthem “O Canada”
*Passing of the Peace of Christ to Each Other
Call to Worship:
One: This land is your land, this land is my land
All: This land is God’s land!
One: From east to west,
From north to south
From ocean to ocean
All: We gather to worship as people beholden to this land
since before Canada was a nation,
before the settlers arrived.
One: As we come to worship in this place,
God already was, already is, already here!
All: In this great land, in this holy space,
Let us join our voices and spirits
With those past and present
Of all generations and all faiths
Who come together to praise God!
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
One: As we light the Christ candle, we call upon the Christ Light to play upon our worship space with generous love, sparkling wisdom, and gentle encouragement. Stir our hearts, engage our thoughts, seep into our minds, and saturate us with your summer joy.
Opening Prayer: (Susan Lukey, UCC website)
One: O God of shepherd, warrior, and prophet;
Creator of First Peoples, pioneer, and
saddlebag preacher; light of immigrant, loyalist, and seeker:
we live with history and we love your presence in it.
All: We trace our roots to your creative powers.
We embrace one another as children of your Spirit.
One: As we celebrate our history today, help us remember all of it:
All: that which makes us proud
and that which makes us ashamed;
One: that which reveals our closeness to your Word
and that which reveals our distance.
All: Remind us of your constant presence:
forgiving, restoring, recreating, and making all things new.
Hear us, Redeemer God, as we dwell for a moment in your goodness. Amen.
A Time For All Ages: “Canadian Identity”
Song “This Land is Your Land “ original by Woody Guthrie
adapted by The Travelers
Readings: (Jean Scott)
2 KINGS 2:1-2, 6-14 Page 289
PSALM 77:1-2, 11-20 Page 467
GALATIANS 5:1, 13-25 Page 948
Message: “Who are We Canadians?”
Responding
*Hymn: VU# 678 “For the Healing of the Nations”
Offering:
Offertory LUC choir “She Flies Like the Swallow” (arr. by L.A. Doloff)
* Doxology: VU# 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
Lord’s Prayer VU# 959
*Commissioning: (unison)
ALL: We go from this sacred place knowing we are loved. We leave celebrating Canada, so rich in beauty and diversity. Go forth knowing we are called to do the work of reconciliation with our First Nations brothers and sisters. May we bless the world with our love and good deeds, knowing God is always with us.
Amen
*Closing Hymn: VU# 288 “Great is Thy Faithfulness”
Benediction
Postlude
June 23, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! June 23, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
First Nations Sunday
Whoever you are….come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
We proudly and lovingly acknowledge the land and territory that we pray on as a congregation and family of the church. We acknowledge and pray for the peoples, ancestors, and presence of the Indigenous peoples of Treaty 7. We also acknowledge all of the Indigenous, Métis, and Inuit of this great land of Turtle Island and their ancestors, and all seven generations before and after us in this place, this church, and country of Canada. Thanks be to God for all creation.
[Indigenous people] always make it a point to leave a tobacco offering at certain places where it is needed for grace and gratitude. It’s their way as Indigenous peoples of giving blessings and thanks for all that one is, was, and is to become. It is a way to connect to God, our Mother, Earth, and all of our ancestors and guides on all our paths in life. This planet that we call home is our first church. This land sings the stories of our peoples; many people don’t like to listen to the harmony that is a spiritual gift each day. The land always gives us life and wellbeing. We all need to pray and connect to that each moment that we can, because that’s God’s language, that’s the voice of our Mother, that’s the song of our people, our ancestors, and all our relations. Murray Pruden
* Introit: “Be Still” Paul Rumboldt
Call to Worship: Murray Pruden
One: We call upon the light, God’s light. The light shall shine upon and within us.
All: The light is God and it is great.
One: It shall encourage us, strengthen us, guide us, protect us, shield us, love us, empower us, ground us, give us wisdom and the a.ctions of God’s Holy Spirit
All: The light is calm. The light is never rushed. The light knows no time. The light is the Holy Spirit.
One: We sense the light; we know, feel, and smell the light. It is like pure joy. Jesus was created by the light, truly God’s light.
All: It shall never leave us.
One: With all you have given and taught us, forgive us, loving God, for the times when we have rejected your light Allow us to accept the light and creation of the lives we each lead.
All: We love you, God. We love you, Holy Spirit. We love you, Jesus.
One: With peace and forgiveness, in Jesus’ name.
All: Amen.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: Murray Pruden
Our loving God, our Creator, you have brought us here with our family, friends, and community to learn and experience the wonders of this great world you created for us to live in. You have brought us to our church, [Lakeview United], and we give you thanks. This experience and our travels will be many and varied. Please, look after us and allow us to accept the journey and the many blessings that face us each day. God, I ask you to continue to bless our Mother, Earth, as she grants us her grace to live with her. Allow our relationship with her to continue. She is a great teacher to humanity. And of course, dear God, I ask for the support and guidance of our ancestors and the ancestors of this land to be with us now and through our time here on Earth. I leave this offering to you, to our Mother and to our numerous ancestors who have lived, loved, and bled to be a people of the land. And as I lay this here, my spirit and heart are placed here as well for the respect of all your creations. Thank you, God. May Jesus walk with us on our path today, tomorrow, and for days to come. The light and life are with us now and forever more. In Jesus name, Amen.
*Hymn: VU# 356 “Seek Ye First”
Readings: (Jude Sampson)
1 KINGS 19:1–15 Page 284
PSALM 42 Page 447
GALATIANS 3:23-29 Page 947
*Hymn: MV#119 “God Our Protector”
Message: “Celtic Connections for Canadians”
Responding
*Hymn: VU# 684 “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace”
Offering:
Offertory LUC choir “Potters Hand”
* Doxology: MV# 104 “Know That God Is Good”
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
*Hymn: VU#766 (revised) “As The Deer Pants for the Water” vs 1 &2
Prayers of the Community
“As The Deer Pants for the Water” vs 3
*Commissioning: (—A prayer from The Dancing Sun (United Church of Canada/Anglican Church of Canada), for Aboriginal Sunday)
One: Let us give thanks to our Creator
for the Creator is always with us.
All: God is with us in the call of a loon
and in the flight of an eagle.
One: Our Creator is with us in the changing of the seasons.
All: God is with us when we gather together
and when we are alone.
One: Our Creator is with us in our giftedness
and in our search for new understandings of ourselves,
new visions of our communities.
All: Let us give thanks to God, our Creator.
*Closing Hymn: VU# 647 “Travel On”
Benediction
Postlude
June 16, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to Worship!!! June 16, 2019 [year C]
TRINITY SUNDAY
A service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation,
and of having the spirit come upon you.
An occasion to celebrate some of the many ways in which the mystery of God comes revealed to us.
*Indicates please rise as you are able
Gathering
Prelude:
Welcome & Announcements
Lighting the Candle of Christ
Introit: #8MV “And on This Path” [seated]
Call to Worship:
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
That’s what Jesus said.
“I will ask God to give you another Advocate
to be with you forever.”
That’s what Jesus said.
“The Spirit of Truth…
who abides with you and will be in you.”
That’s what Jesus said.
The Spirit of Truth…
Alive in our hearts!
The Spirit of Hope.
Alive in our hearts!
The Spirit of Love.
Alive in our hearts!
The Holy Spirit.
Alive in every moment,
In every breath,
In every part of our lives.
Yesterday, today, tomorrow….
Right now. Right here,
In our singing, in our dancing,
In our worship of God!
Alleluia!
…Richard Bott, Moderator, UCC
*Hymn: #401VU “Worship the Lord”
Prayer of Faith: [unison]
We come here today happy to be together
to worship and pray
and sing and hear the stories of our faith.
We give thanks that this church
is still here for us to come to.
We are good together, this community of faith
caring for one another and sharing our lives.
We bring our own stories, our joy and our deep faith and commitment here.
We give thanks always for the presence of the Spirit that surrounds us now in this place we love and call our church home.
Amen.
Time for All Ages: “Memories of our Fathers”
Hymn: #580VU Faith of Our Fathers
Engaging
First Reading: Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31
Gospel Reading: John 16:12-15
Reader: Carol Phillips
Message: “Wisdom and the Spirit”
Our Spirits Respond:
*Hymn: #153MV “Body, Mind and Spirit”
Offering
Offertory
*Doxology #541VU
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise God, all creatures high and low,
Give thanks to God in love made known:
Creator, Word and Spirit, One.
*Prayer of Dedication:
Our Lives are for Blessing
Pastoral Prayers for Father’s Day:
Response: #96MV “And When You Call for Me”
Precious and loving God, Father, Mother, Creator, through the love and care of your son, Jesus Christ, be with us as we go about our lives, day by day.
Response: #96MV “And When You Call for Me”
Bless all fathers, including new fathers, old fathers, stepfathers, grandfathers, co-fathers, uncles, brothers, and godfathers.
Response: #96MV “And When You Call for Me”
Bless and hold those for whom the word father evokes painful, disturbing feelings and memories. Carry us all in your loving-kindness, we pray, this day and always, in the name of Jesus of Nazareth.
Response: #96MV “And When You Call for Me”
Prayers of the Community – prayer book
Response: #96MV “And When You Call for Me”
So we join together praying as Jesus taught ……”Our Father …..”
*Hymn: #30MV “It’s a Song of Praise to the Maker”
*Commissioning: [unison]
We have worshipped, joining together
In praise of God, Creator, Wisdom, Christ and Spirit. Let us depart, blessed and challenged to live by the Spirit. May your love of God and love of neighbor show forth in all you are and all you do.
*Benediction:
Postlude
June 9, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! June 9, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
PENTECOST
Whoever you are….come share your spiritual journey with us!
Seeking spiritual renewal and growth in a caring, affirming community.
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit: VU# 384 “The Lone Wild Bird”
Call to Worship: (10G001, Celebrating God’s Presence)
Leader: We have come to celebrate the birthday of the church.
We have come to celebrate Pentecost
and to open ourselves to God’s Spirit that she might fill us.
ALL: Oh God, help us to direct our thoughts to you, that your power might fill this church and our lives, as it filled your people throughout the ages. Teach us to be your church and your people.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: (10G002 &10T001, Celebrating God’s Presence)
Leader: Come Holy Spirit, come.
Come into this place of worship this day.
ALL: Come into each heart, each prayer, each song,
each life here today,
so that we may live and love with purpose,
courage, and enthusiasm serving our world.
Leader: Holy Spirit,
Dance your light into the corners of our lives:
when we are cold, bring us warmth;
when we are afraid, bring us comfort;
when we are lost, brighten our path;
when we are unsure, mark the way;
when we are in need, come into our presence.
Come, Holy Spirit, come.
*Hymn: VU# 380 “She Comes Sailing on the Wind”
Readings: (Barb Spence)
GENESIS 11:1-9 Page 8
ACTS 2:1-21 Page 885
JOHN 14:15-17, 25-27 Page 877
Message: “God’s Desire is for Uniformity or Diversity?”
Responding
*Hymn: MV# 23 “Come O Holy Spirit”
Offering:
Offertory LUC choir “Holy Spirit, Come Into Our Lives”
* Doxology: VU# 376 “Spirit of the Living God”
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
Hymn: MV# 15 “Holy Sacred Spirit” (chorus)
*Commissioning: (unison) (George Allan, Gathering)
ALL: With the blessing of the Holy Spirit
warming our very beings,
we go into the world,
to share the love of God
with friend, neighbour and stranger.
*Closing Hymn: VU# 381 “Spirit of Life”
Benediction
Postlude
June 2, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! June 2, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
SEVENTH SUNDAY of the SEASON of Easter {COMMUNION}
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. It is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit: MV# 106 “I Am the Dream”
A Quieting of Our Heart (A few moments of Meditation…)
Call to Worship: (adapted Anthony Smith & Jim McKean, Gathering)
Leader: The tomb is empty.
It is affirmed that we are the inheritors
of a new understanding.
God will never abandon us.
ALL: The Christ candle once more shines
To chase away our gloom
And brighten our spirits.
And so we sing a joyful song of praise !
Sing out loud! Let us enter into the joy of the risen Christ, in whom we worship. Let us spread the circle wide in declaring the good news!
*Hymn: MV# 145 “Draw the Circle Wide”
Opening Prayer: (Unison) (Richard Bott, Gathering)
ALL: In this moment of mystery,
in this moment of hope,
in this moment of life, loving God—
open our hearts to the wonder!
Open our senses to the possibilities!
Open the tombs that we’ve created
and show us that they are empty
of what we’ve come to expect
but full of new possibilities.
Alleluiah! Let it be!
First Reading: ACTS 1:1-11 Page 884 (Barb Penhale)
The Ascension of Jesus
Second Reading: ACTS 16:16-34 Page 900 (Barb Penhale)
Paul and Silas freed from Prison
* Hymn: MV# 8 “And On This Path”
Gospel Reading: JOHN 17:20-26 Page 880 (Rev. Kelley)
John prays that all will be one…
Message: “The Courage to Speak Out”
Responding
*Hymn: VU# 896* “Blest Are They”
Offering: “Christ in Me” – LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: VU# 540 “Grant Us God, the Grace”
Prayer of Dedication
The Sacrament of Communion
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
(For those unable to come forward, raise your hand and the bread and the cup will be served to you. For those unable to take juice or eat bread alternative elements are available.)
WELCOME TO THE TABLE
Throughout his ministry Jesus ate at the table with friends, outcasts, and sinners. In his teachings he used the table as an image of inclusivity, hospitality, and God’s in-breaking reign. At his last supper with his followers he initiated the mystery of what we have come to call a sacrament—a sign of God’s grace. This ritual meal is a Christian development of Jewish Passover traditions and mealtime worship.
Empowered by their experience of the risen Christ, the early church met weekly for the proclamation of the Word and the breaking of bread. In the church of the third millennium we continue to enact the history and hopes of a people and God’s care and concern for the world.
The brokenness of our world is lifted up in the bread broken. The bloodshed of our world is remembered in the cup shared. In the gathered grain we are brought together and grounded in God’s good earth. In the fruit of the vine we are united with the groaning of all creation. We do this at table to remember our identity as a covenant people of God. We receive and are sustained as a resurrection people. This is our eucharist, this is our thanksgiving.
THE GREAT THANKSGIVING
Leader: The Great Mystery of God be with you,
ALL: And also with you.
Leader: May it be well with your heart this day.
ALL: And with yours.
Hymn VU# 402 “We Are One”
Leader: Blessed are you, gracious God,
Creator of light, Giver of all life, Source of love.
ALL: With your breath you formed all that we are
and all that is beyond us;
the heavens tell of your glory.
Leader: Through fear-filled days and aching nights
when the powers of death have done their worst,
your love has never deserted us.
ALL: Even when we turn away from you,
you are with us; your presence never fails us,
And your gifts of hope and new life transform us.
Leader: We praise you for Jesus Christ,
risen to life, eternal as your love.
With the women at the tomb, we raise the strain of gladness.
Hallelujah! Life is stronger than death!
ALL: The day of resurrection has come, scattering fear and gloom, and so we rejoice with all your people of every time and place and with angels and archangel, to proclaim the glory of your name.
BREAKING THE BREAD, POURING OF THE CUP AND PRAYERS
Leader: On the night in which he was betrayed,
Jesus took bread, and gave thanks;
broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take eat; this is my body, given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Again, after supper he took the cup, gave thanks,
and gave it for all to drink, saying:
This cup is the cup of new life
given for you and for all people
in the struggle for God’s kindom.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
LEADER’S PRAYER: Holy God, we remember your Son,
his life with the humble,
his death among the wretched,
his resurrection for us all:
your wisdom our guide,
your justice our strength,
your grace our path to rebirth.
Holy God, we beg for your Spirit.
Enliven this bread, awaken this body,
pour us out for each other.
Transfigure our minds, ignite your church.
Nourish the life of the earth.
Make us, while many, united.
Make us, though broken, whole.
A place is set for all of us. The gifts of God, for the people of God…come…for all is ready.
SHARING THE BREAD FOR STRENGTH AND THE CUP FOR WISDOM
COMMUNION MUSIC
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
We give thanks, almighty God,
that you have refreshed us at your table
by granting us the presence of Jesus Christ.
May his presence among us
provoke such longing for your realm,
that we will never be satisfied
until the whole earth knows
your justice, your peace, and your love.
May your gifts of love transform and enliven us
that we may live lives of thanksgiving.
Strengthen our faith,
increase our love for one another,
and send us forth into the world
united in courage and peace,
rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit;
through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.
Blessing
Closing Prayers: (Rev. Kelley)
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer sung: VU#959
*Commissioning: (unison)
The heart of the matter is this:
Christ has been glorified.
In the midst of the people this day,
there has been good news proclaimed:
Christ crucified and risen; we’ve been nourished
with the bread of life and the cup of new life.
The Spirit’s purpose is being fulfilled:
the renewal of all creation.
Go into the neighborhood
with the faith that makes us whole,
prepared and ready for what God is up to.
*CLOSING HYMN “Soon and Very Soon”
Benediction
A Thank-you to our communion servers this morning:
Daryl Sedor, Barb Spence, George Zvanchuk, Linda Rainey , Mike Rainey
May 26, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! May 26, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Sixth Sunday of Easter
“Mother Wisdom, known as Chochma in Hebrew and Sophia in Greek is the manifestation of the Divine Mother. Yahweh is the masculine aspect of God.” Rabbi Rami Shapi
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit: VU# 374 “Come and Find the Quiet Centre”
Call to Worship: (Doug Reid, Gathering)
Leader: I invite you into worship today with the following words:
when we arrive here in this space, we come as we are:
ALL: questioning,
wondering,
hoping.
Leader: We come knowing that God accepts us just as we are:
ALL: learning,
praying,
singing.
Leader: Let us quiet our minds and still our hearts,
So that in this place we might strengthen our lives
and find our spirits inspired.
ALL: Let’s feel the spirit of God here amongst us today and always.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: (Wendy MacLean, Gathering)
Great Spirit, gracious loving God,
over the centuries,
your people have looked for you
and found you
in the beauty around them
in the quiet confidence of your presence
in the challenging words of scripture
and in the gathering of souls come together,
as we are, to praise you and give thanks.
Today may our worship awaken our hearts,
tune our lives and open our understandings.
Amen
*Hymn: VU# 222 “Come , Let Us Sing”
A Time for All Ages:
Hymn: VU# 249 “Rejoice in the Lord Always”
Readings: (Sue Spratt)
ACTS 16:9-15 Page 900
PSALM 67 Page 460
JOHN 14:23-29 Page 877
Message: “Women, Paul and the Church”
Responding
*Hymn: MV# 117 “By the Well a Thirsty Woman”
Offering:
Offertory LUC choir “The First One Ever”
* Doxology: VU# 541 “Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
Hymn: MV# 90 “Don’t Be Afraid”
*Commissioning: (unison) (Gord Dunbar, Gathering)
Leader: God sends us out as her beloved children.
ALL: We go prepared for the rain,
but ready to splash in the puddles,
delighting in the joy of sharing God’s love.
Leader: God sends us out as her beloved children.
ALL: We go still warmed by her generous hugs,
motivated by her kisses
and smiles of encouragement,
eager to bring more friends home to meet her.
Leader: God sends us out with promises to always be near us.
ALL: We go trusting in her unconditional love,
Tingling in anticipation
At exploring new relationships,
Laughing with joy in the gift of life and of faith.
*Closing Hymn: VU# 649 “Walk With Me”
Benediction MV# 215 “Peace Be With You”
Postlude
May 19, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! May 19, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Fifth Sunday of Easter
The United Church of Canada and the Apologies to First Nations Peoples
We did not hear you when you shared your vision. In our zeal to tell you the good news of Jesus Christ we were closed to the value of your spirituality. Rt. Rev. Robert Smith, Moderator 1986
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
* Introit: VU# 282 “Long Before the Night”
Call to Worship: (Celebrate God’s Presence 8F006)
Leader: This is the season of Easter:
ALL: The celebration of resurrection,
Leader: The festival of hope,
ALL: the promise of new beginnings,
Leader: the dance of faith,
ALL: the song of joy,
Leader: the music of gladness,
ALL: the hymn of love.
Leader: Let us worship our life-giving God!
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: (Richard Bott, Gathering)
In this world,
where the turn of the globe
seems to bring new stories
of destruction and death,
open our hearts to life, O Christ.
Open our senses
to the beauty of birdsong,
to the hope in a smile,
to the wonders of a gentle touch.
Open our hearts,
that we might know your
love resurrected in our love,
every moment,
every day.
May it always be so.
*Hymn: VU# 333 “Love Divine”
A Time for All Ages: “Whoever You Are” by Mem Fox
Hymn: VU# 372 “Though I May Speak”
Readings: ( Nancy Prince )
ACTS 11:1-18 Page 895
REVELATION 21:1-6 Page 1007
JOHN 13: 31-35 Page 877
Message: “God’s Inclusive Love”
Responding
*Hymn: MV# 79 “Spirit, Open My Heart”
Offering:
Offertory LUC choir “Jesus be the Centre”
* Doxology: VU# 227 “For the Fruit of All Creation” (verse 3)
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
Hymn: MV# 14 “Where Two or Three Are Gathered”
*Commissioning: (unison) (Robin Wardlaw, Gathering)
From the coldness of the ground comes beauty.
From the horror of the cross comes grace.
From faith shattered comes the passion for justice.
Go from here to live in beauty, with grace and for justice.
*Closing Hymn: VU# 713 “I See a New Heaven”
Benediction
Postlude
May 12, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! May 12, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
Fourth Sunday of Easter
The root of the difficulty lies in the fact that Christology in its story, symbol and doctrine has been assimilated to the patriarchal world view, with the result that its liberating dynamic has been twisted into justification for domination. Elizabeth A. Johnson
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
*Processional Introit: MV# 154 “Deep in Our Hearts”
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations. This is also the land of the Metis Region 3.
Call to Worship: (Richard Bott, Gathering)
Leader: Parents and children, siblings and cousins, grandparents and greats - aunts, uncles and more -
ALL: family in God’s love.
Leader: By adoption, by choice, by birth, or just because -
ALL: family in God’s love.
Leader: People well known, people never met, people near, people far -
ALL: family in God’s love.
Leader: Come as you are. Come as you will be. Come and worship, all you, who are…
ALL: family in God’s love.
Leader: We now bring the light of Christ alive into this sanctuary and into all of our lives once again as the Risen Christ moves through this place.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: (adapted Celebrate God’s Presence 6F001)
Leader: Beloved, let us love one another,
because love is from God.
ALL: God’s love was revealed among us in this way,
Jesus Christ came into the world.
Leader: Since God loved us so much,
we are called to love one another.
ALL: We are one in Christ;
We are bound together in his vision of a world,
Where all are accepted and loved,
Where compassion and care are given,
Where justice and right relations are crucial.
Leader: We dream of that day when God’s Shalom,
will be the reality for all creation.
ALL: Let us persevere in our work,
May we listen for Spirit’s wisdom this day
And be ready to respond in love,
Amen
*Hymn: VU# 395 “Come in, Come in and Sit Down” (verses 1, 2 & 4)
A Time for All Ages: “Mars Needs Moms”
Hymn: MV# 97 “Listen God is Calling”
Readings: (Heather Mayers)
ACTS 9: 36-43 Page 894
Sung PSALM 23 VU# 273 “The King of Love”
interpretation of PSALM 23 (Louis Hart, Gathering)
JOHN 10: 22-30 Page 873
Message: “The Importance of Being Named”
Responding
*Hymn: MV# 161 “I Have Called You by Your Name”
Offering:
Offertory LUC choir “A Woman and a Coin”
* Doxology: VU # 541
Prayer of Dedication:
Blessing
Prayers of the Community
The Sung Lord’s Prayer VU# 959
*Commissioning: (unison)
With gladness we continue to build God’s house.
We do not go alone in this journey of building up.
We go with a great cloud of witness, our sisters, brothers,
mothers, fathers, children and youth, the prophets, and the saints.
Go with the grace and love of God. Amen
*Closing Hymn: MV# 126 “Are You a Shepherd?”
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday May 5th, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! MAY 5th, 2019 (Year ‘C’) THIRD SUNDAY of EASTER
{Communion & Blessing of the Peace Pole Benches}
“Let’s Go Fishing’” “For the supreme test of fisherman is not how many fish he caught, not even how he caught them, but what he has caught when he has caught no fish.” (John H. Bradley)
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
*Introit: MV # 16 “Come and Fill Our Hearts”
“Come and fill our hearts with your peace.
You alone, O God, are holy.
Come and fill our hearts with your peace,
Alleluia!” (Sung through three times…)
Call to Worship:
Leader: From the shores of our lives, Jesus calls us into the life-giving waters and calls upon each of us to come into the celebration of worship.
ALL: We are here! We have gathered. Our spirits have become open to the presence of the Holy and we come to worship.
Leader: From the edge of our worries and our concerns, Jesus calls us into the place of friendship and calls us into a place of hope.
ALL: We have come to claim our hope – our hope in a new Easter dawning as it breaks forth upon our world and in our lives.
Leader: From the shallow places in our hearts, Jesus calls us into the infinite depths of his love for all humanity and all of creation.
ALL: This morning we come together to celebrate in this gift of love which Christ so willingly shared with all.
Leader: From the breaking waves of sadness in our lives or from the rains of spring in our hearts we come here this morning to renew our spirits.
ALL: We gather now, to renew our covenant with God and with each other, God’s faithful people. Let grace and peace and forgiveness fill this place!
Leader: We now bring the light of Christ alive into this place of worship…may we celebrate…may we light up the world!!
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
O God of our journey, O Divine Breath: we find that often each genesis daunts us, each sunrise rekindles us. We cross thresholds into young stories. One step sings hope, the other step often shouts doubt…..
O God, midwife us into new beginnings.
O Creator God: we often long for similarities and may we also recognize possibilities as we row between the tides of transformation and resistance….
O God, midwife us into new beginnings.
O God of our faith communities and of all people: our roots
stretch tender into this soil of these communities. Our
fabrics are patterned with new colour strands. This
unknown country will reveal itself one heartbeat at a
time….
O God, midwife us into all our new beginnings….Amen.
*Hymn: MV # 1 “Let Us Build a House (All Are Welcome)”
A Time for All Ages: “Caught a Shark”
Hymn: MV # 115 “Behold, Behold, I Make All Things New”
(Sung through a few times…)
First Reading: ACTS 9: 1-20 (Jean Scott) Saul’s conversion on the road to Damascus.
Second Reading: REVELATION 11-14 (Jean Scott) Worthy is the lamb…
Gospel Reading: JOHN 21: 1-19 (Rev. Jope) Jesus appears to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias…
Message: “Things Happen When We Go Fishing”
Responding
*Hymn: MV # 113 “Jesus Saw Them Fishing”
Offering: “Gavotte,” J.S. Bach Fiona Hayes, flute
*Offertory Doxology: (To the tune of VU # 217)
“With hope we walk this road anew;
This road includes both me and you…
Hallelujah, Hallelujah!
It leads us to a place of light;
A place of sunrise after night…
Sing praises, Sing praises,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah!”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
The Sacrament of Communion
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them to our God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
ALL: It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Leader: God of many names, we thank you for all that you are and for all that you do in the world. As Creator, you made all things and are continually creating. As Divine Parent, you nurture and sustain us. As the One Holy Trinity, you invite us to dance with you to the lilt of life and time. And through Christ, you have named us as your adopted children. Therefore, with all your people, in every time and place, we sing the triumphant hymn of your glory:
MV # 203 (Holy, Holy, Holy -- Sanctus and Benedictus)
O holy, holy, holy God, O God of time and space.
All earth and sea and sky above bear witness to your grace.
Hosanna in the highest heav’n, creation sings your praise.
And blessed is the One who comes and bears your name always!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
ALL: Hosanna in the highest!
Leader: And we come to this table to remember how you became human under the name of Jesus who on the night when your name was betrayed shared food and wine with those he loved. He took bread, a sign of health and life, broke it and shared it with them naming it for his body, the bread of life. And he took a cup of wine, a sign of celebration and joy and shared it with them naming it after his life blood. We come here to do the same in memory of Christ.
Breaking of the Bread
Pouring of the Cup
Leader’s Prayer: Come, Spirit of God, and move over these signs of life and celebration, this bread and wine, that we may take them as the bread of life and the wine of blessing. As we stand around this table, may we be your people, committed to your kingdom whose name is peace…Amen.
The gifts of God, for the people of God…come…for all is ready.
(Our communion hymn being sung through distribution is:
VU # 468 “Let Us Talents and Tongues Employ”)
Blessing
Prayers of this Community of Faith & The Lord’s Prayer VU # 914
*Commissioning (Leader)
For those who would be going to the Upper Hall for refreshments, I offer to you my peace and my blessings…to those who would be coming outside to participate in the short blessings of the Peace Pole Benches, I would invite you to dress warmly for the five or 10 minutes that it will take…and to those who would be leaving, may your lives be filled with countless blessings of spring and summer and of God’s peace…
Thank-you to our communion servers this morning: Ken & Marlene Villiger Lee & Lynda Miller Daryl Sedor
Sunday April 28th, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! APRIL 28th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
SECOND SUNDAY of EASTER
{Baptismal Sunday}
“Easter happened…So Now What?”
“For Thomas, ‘seeing is believing’, as the saying goes. However, most of us must be content to see Christ through the eyes of faith. For us, so often believing is seeing. Faith opens up a realm we never, ever dreamed of. Jesus pronounces his blessing on those who have not seen and yet believe…and folks…that’s us!!”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
*Introit: VU # 409 “Morning Has Broken”
Call to Worship:
Leader: I invite you to this worship service this morning with the following words; ‘when we arrive here in this space, we come as we are’:
ALL: questioning…wondering…hoping…
Leader: We come, knowing that God accepts us just as we are:
ALL: learning…praying…singing…
Leader: Let us quiet our minds and still our hearts so that in this place, we might strengthen our lives and find our spirits inspired.
ALL: May our time together lift us up as we celebrate God’s care for us and for all of creation
Leader: Welcome, O Holy Spirit. Welcome into our midst as we turn to you this morning. Prepare each of us to witness the Risen Christ.
ALL: We have come, for now is the time for worship. We have come, for now is the time for new life.
Leader: We now bring the light of Christ alive into this place of worship and into all of our lives once again as the Risen Christ moves through this gathering of people.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
Leader: “You believe because you can see…happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.” (John 20: 29)
ALL: Every year it happens: earth shakes her sleepy head, still a bit wintered and dull, and feels new life stirring…
Every year cocoons give up their treasures, fresh shoots push through brown leaves, seemingly dead branches shine with green, and singing birds find their way home…
Every year we hear the stories…
Empty tomb, surprised grievers, runners with news and revelation, unexpected encounters, conversations on a road, tales of nets filled with fish, and breakfast on a seashore…
And every year the dull and dead in us meets our Easter challenge:
To be open to the unexpected, to believe beyond our security, to welcome God in every form, and trust in our own greening…
O Risen One, come, meet us in the garden of our lives and may we become ever more convinced that your presence lives on, and on, and on….and on. Awaken us! Awaken us! Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 245 “Praise the Lord with the Sound of Trumpet”
A Time for All Ages: “Proof of Life”
Hymn: VU # 412 “This Is the Day”
Sacrament of Holy Baptism
Kelly Ann Wilderman
Odette Elizabeth Wilderman
“All Who Are Thirsty” Rev. Jope
(We will share the words of The New Creed during the baptism liturgy)
Baptismal Benediction VU # 454 “May God Who Creates You”
First Reading: PSALM 118: 14-29 (VU # 837) (Gwen Jamieson)
God is my strength and my song.…
Refrain: “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!”
Reader: “God is my strength and my song; God has become my
salvation.
ALL: There are shouts of joy and deliverance in the tents of the
righteous.
Reader: The right hand of God does mighty things; the right hand of
God raises up.
ALL: The right hand of God does mighty things.
Reader: I shall not die, but live; and I shall proclaim what God has
done.
ALL: God indeed punished me but did not give me over to death.
Refrain: “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!”
Reader: Open to me the gates of the temple, that I may enter and give
thanks to God.
ALL: This is the gate of God; through it the righteous shall enter.
Reader: I thank you for you have answered me; you have become my
salvation.
ALL: The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief
cornerstone.
Reader: This is God’s doing, marvellous in our eyes.
ALL: This is the day that God has made, let us rejoice and be
glad in it!
Refrain: “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!”
Reader: Save us, O God, we pray.
ALL: God, we pray, give us success.
Reader: Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
ALL: We bless you from the house of God.
Reader: God, our God, has given us light;
ALL: with palm branches in hand let us march to the altar.
Reader: You are my God, and I will thank you;
ALL: you are my God, and I will extol you.
Refrain: “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!”
Second Reading: REVELATION 1: 4-8 (Gwen Jamieson)
John greets the seven churches of Asia…
Gospel Reading: JOHN 20: 19-31 (Rev. Jope)
Thomas doubts until he sees Jesus for himself…
Message: “If Easter Is True…
Now What Do We Do?”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 170 “O Sons and Daughters, Let Us Sing”
(Hallelujah intro and then the four verses found on the next page…)
Offering: Silas Kovats – Piano solo
*Offertory Doxology: (To the tune of VU # 217)
“This Sunday we are shown the wounds
Where nails have pierced the healing hands;
Hallelujah, hallelujah!
Of one who paid with all he had
To free our hearts, to free our lands;
Sing praises, sing praises,
Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah!”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Closing Prayers: (Rev. Jope)
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Sung Lord’s Prayer: VU # 959
*Commissioning: (unison)
This week, as we go about God’s work of peace, reconciliation, and compassion, may we feel surrounded by God’s presence and may we always remember that we are loved beyond measure… we go now in peace...Amen!
*Hymn: VU # 179 “Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Give Thanks”
Benediction
Sunday April 21st, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! APRIL 14th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
EASTER SUNDAY
One can only say, “Hallelujah!!”
“Women were not allowed to testify in Roman courts because they were not considered reliable…with this in mind, how important it is that women first saw the resurrected Christ! God’s audacity is clearly revealed in choosing the women as the first witnesses, just as at the birth of Jesus the angels appear not to the emperor but to the lowly shepherds…how important this is!...how inclusive!...how REAL!!” Amen!
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
*Processional Introit: MV # 121 “Hey Now! Singing Hallelujah!”
(We will sing verses 1 and 4 and 5 as the ‘Easter Cross’ is unveiled…)
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Call to Worship:
Leader: O Spring! Where art thou? Those mornings where the birds are singing, where tulips poke up, where the winds are warm…where art thou?...We know that the Earth testifies for you…it is coming.
ALL: O Lord! Where art thou? The tomb opens, the linens empty, the disciples see him…witnesses testify…he is risen!!!
Leader: O People! Where art we? The piano plays…the pews become filled…the chorus rises…worship testifies, we are at church…Alleluia! Alleluia!...and we come with no doubt
ALL: We are called: called to be people of the dance, dancing amidst this season, filled with hope. Let us enter into the joy of the risen Christ, in whom we worship.
Leader: Are you prepared to be astonished?
ALL: We come with open hearts and spirits ready to experience amazing things.
Leader: Come then, and ready yourselves for Holy Mystery.
ALL: May grace fill us and awe delight our coming and going, in this time of worship.
Leader: We now bring the light of Christ alive into this sanctuary and into all of our lives once again as the Risen Christ moves through this place.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Opening Prayer:
Leader: (Explanation of the words for our opening prayer…)
ALL: The stone has got to be rolled back from the tomb again and again every year so…so, let’s roll up our sleeves.
He is not coming back you know. He is not coming back unless it is we who rise for him, we who lay healing hands on the despicable and rejected like he did on his behalf. He is not coming back unless it is we who rage for righteousness in his insistent voice, we who love the sinner, even knowing that the ‘sinner’ is no farther off than our own heartbeat…
He will not be back to join us at the table, to share God’s extravagant banquet, God’s love feast, all are invited, come as you are…
And so it is you and I who must feed for him, must say the grace and break the bread and pass it to the left and dish up the broiled fish (or pour the wine) and pass it to the right.
And treat each one so tenderly as though just this morning he made the personal effort to make it back from heaven, or from hell, but certainly from death, to be by my side…
Because if by some miracle (and why not a miracle?) he did come back, wouldn’t he want to see us like this?
Wouldn’t it be a miracle to live for just one day so that if he did, by some amazing feat, come riding into town, he would take a look around and say, “This is what I meant!!”
And we would say, “It took us a long time…but we finally figured it out”…
Oh, let us live to make it so…you are the resurrection and the life…you are my heart’s yearning…Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 155 “Jesus Christ Is Risen Today”
A Time for All Ages: “Easter Gift”
Hymn: VU # 166 “Joy Comes with the Dawn”
First Reading: ISAIAH 65: 17-25 (Barbara Spence)
A new heaven and earth; the wolf and the lamb together…
Second Reading: 1 CORINTHIANS 15: 19-26 (Barbara Spence)
We die in Adam and are made alive in Christ…
Gospel Reading: JOHN 20: 1-18 (Rev. Jope)
Meeting at the empty tomb…
Message: “Who First Shared the Good News
With Each of You?”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 289 “It Only Takes a Spark (Pass It On)”
(During the singing of the third verse, this would be your opportunity of passing the PEACE to each other, either by your shaking of hands, of allowable hugs, or by ‘Namaste’ intent…)
Offering: “Hymn of Promise,” – LUC Choir
(The congregation is invited to join in with verse 3 found in VU # 703)
*Offertory Doxology: VU # 217
“All creatures of our God and King,
Lift up your voice and with us sing:
Hallelujah, hallelujah!
Bright burning sun with golden beam,
Soft shining moon with silver gleam,
Sing praises, sing praises,
Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah!”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Closing Prayers: (Rev. Jope)
(The closing prayer will be interspersed with VU # 958…Rev. Jope will prompt)
“Hal-le, hall-e, hal-le lu-jah! Hall-e, hal-le, hal-le lu-jah!
Hal-le, hal-le, hal-le lu-jah! Hal-le-lu-jah! Hal-le-lu-jah”
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Sung Lord’s Prayer: VU # 959
*Commissioning: (unison)
From the coldness of the ground comes beauty. From the horror of the cross comes grace. From faith shattered comes the passion for justice. We go from here to live in beauty, with grace, and for justice...Amen!
*Hymn: VU # 173 “Thine Is the Glory”
Benediction
Sunday April 14th, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! APRIL 14th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
PALM SUNDAY Our Final Entry In To Holy Week
“In silence you hear the call to turn within. See the light that exists inside you and freely, willingly, shine that light on the world. You never know the impact you can make on another person’s life. You may never know if you made a difference so keep shining anyway. Sometimes the best rewards are no rewards at all…one person can change the course of history. YOU are that person just as Jesus was that person!!”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
*Processional Introit: VU # 124 “He Came Riding on a Donkey”
(We will sing verses 1 and 2 as the Palm fronds are placed on the walkway…)
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Call to Worship:
Leader: Jesus is about to approach Jerusalem and we now know that our journey of Lent is nearing its ending.
ALL: There will be a colt waiting for him and he will ride it into the city of “those who crucify their prophets”.
Leader: The crowds will gather around him, crying out… ”Hosanna!! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God!” So wave your palms!...Wave them high!...Sing out loud!.... This is the day!!!
ALL: We celebrate his arrival in Jerusalem. We take our part in the excited crowd. We bow before the King, riding on a donkey.
Leader: And we wave our palms in the air…and we are all a part of the crowd which celebrates the arrival of the one for whom we’ve been waiting for. Are we ready for what will happen next?
ALL: So we wave our palm fronds…we sing out loud to the triumphant entrance…we all come to worship! So as we are in community and together in worship may we always be reminded that God is here with us and that this entry into Jerusalem needs to happen for our world to break open to peace.
Leader: And so now, we focus ourselves once more upon the extinguishing of our Lenten expressions of light.
A Lenten Extinguishing of Candles Liturgy:
Leader: We have now experienced the five Sundays of Lent. In that time, we have seen how God hears and accepts our laments, and how tests in the form of temptations can become a time to build resilience.
ALL: We have seen a God who offers both forgiveness and abundance when we have the courage to let go and trust.
Leader: Today, we join a parade of celebration, one that will unfold much differently than we can imagine.
ALL: So let us extinguish our sixth candle to remind each of us that allow this candle to go out, that there is still light.
(Extinguishing of the sixth candle)
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
Celebration and joy, O God, are all we want, yet the shadow of the cross falls across our path. Sustain us as the contrasts of light and darkness inform our worship. Guide us to find new realities in your never ending story. Open us to the life you offer from palm to cross and continually open us to the purpose which is found in the relationship that exists between you and ourselves. You know the way to become closer to you as this week unfolds. Creator God, through your wisdom, give us clearer vision of your intention, so that we may find the path of intention that is our calling to be your disciples as we enter into Jerusalem with the great teacher of peace…Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 124 “He Came Riding on a Donkey”
(Verse # 3)
A Time for All Ages: “ The Palm Planes”
Hymn: MV # 119 “God Our Protector”
(Sung through twice with instrumental bridge)
First Reading: ISAIAH 50: 4-9a (Barbara Penhale)
They struck my back and plucked my beard…
Second Reading: PSALM 118: 1-2, 19-29 (Barbara Penhale) The stone which the builders rejected…
Gospel Reading: LUKE 19: 28-40 (Rev. Jope) Jesus enters into Jerusalem to cheering crowds…
Message: “Our Prayer Walk
Responding
*Hymn: “What the Lord Has Done in Me”
Offering: “How Beautiful,” T. Paris – LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: MV # 18
“Lord, Prepare Me to Be a Sanctuary” (Sung twice)
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Closing Prayers: (Rev. Jope)
(The closing prayer will be interspersed with VU # 951…Rev. Jope will prompt)
“Holy, holy, holy, my heart, my heart adores you!
My heart is glad to say the words: You are holy, God!”
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer:
*Commissioning: (unison) And now, may the grace of God uphold us, the peace of god surround us, the love of God flow from each of us to the other, and may the strength of God protect us and bring us safely through this day and all days. And may our fears flee with the strength of our gathered faith. Amen!
*Hymn: VU # 352 “I Danced in the Morning”
Benediction
Sunday April 7, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! APRIL 7th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
FIFTH SUNDAY of the SEASON of LENT {COMMUNION}
A Service of Our Focusing on Our Journey into Lent.
“Everything in life has its own time. There is time to celebrate and there is time to mourn. This is the time for reflection and transformation. Let us look within and change into what we ought to be.” – Aaron Saul
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Call into Lent: MV # 85 “Take, O take Me as I Am”
(Sung through 2X’s)
“Take, O take me as I am; summon out what I shall be;
set your seal upon my heart and live in me.”
A Quieting of Our Heart (A few moments of Meditation…)
Call to Worship:
Leader: It is into this place of worship where each of us takes time to centre and to ground ourselves in the Spirit.
ALL: Our lives are sometimes hectic and oftentimes we forget to allow ourselves to just be held in the palm of God’s hand.
Leader: All of us are children of the Lenten journey and we need this time of worship to ‘recharge our spiritual batteries’. We need to know when it’s time to slow down and to allow the Spirit of the Living Christ to replenish our spirits.
ALL: May the gift of grace surround us this morning as we spend this time in prayer, in song, in reflection, and in being present with each other.
Leader: O come to us O God of the ages, God of the present, and God of our futures. Come and anoint us with the perfume of peace.
ALL: We are ready. We are waiting. We are sensing that today may lead us forward into places where each of us may be called to anoint others with our blessings of hope, of peace, and of reconciliation.
Leader: And so now, we focus ourselves once more upon the extinguishing of our Lenten expressions of light.
A Lenten Extinguishing of Candles Liturgy:
Leader: Lest we think that Lent is only a somber time, let us remember that it is also a rich and abundant time.
ALL: Just as the desert is not a barren place but, in fact, a very fertile yet largely unknown place, Lent provides opportunities for us to see and experience incredible abundance and extravagance.
Leader: Too often, we miss these moments because they appear alongside difficulties or sadness.
ALL: So let us extinguish our fifth candle to remind each of us that allow this candle goes out, there is still light.
(Extinguishing of the fifth candle)
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
(This opening prayer is based upon a Korean vision and taken from: Dare to Dream:
A Prayer & Worship Anthology From Around the World: Geoffrey Duncan, Ed.)
O God, a stone is thrown into a calm lake and the stone makes waves; spreading, reaching to the far end. Let us throw stones into a deadly calm lake, from all edges of the lake, no matter how small is the stone, no matter how small is the wave.
The lake is like the world…..
The lake is like people’s minds…..
The lake is like sisterhood and brotherhood…..
The lake is like human bondage…..
The lake is like chains of oppression…..
The stone brings awakening. The wave is a movement and the movement spreads when all of us, standing together, on all sides around the lake, keep throwing our little stones. The wave will never cease until the whole lake starts bubbling with life… till the whole lake makes its own spring to keep its own life going. We are the ones who can begin this process. We are the ones who are called to create new and living springs…Amen.
*Hymn: MV # 144 “Like a Healing Stream”
A Time for All Ages: “Quinterra Legacy Garden”
Hymn: VU # 563 “Jesus, You Have Come to the Lakeshore”
First Reading: ISAIAH 43: 16-21 (Heather Mayers)
Look, I am doing something new…
Second Reading: PHILIPPIANS 3: 4b-14 (Heather Mayers)
I count everything as loss, but knowing Christ…
*Hymn: VU # 129 “Said Judas to Mary”
Gospel Reading: JOHN 12: 1-8 (Rev. Jope)
Mary anoints Jesus with costly ointment…
Message: “The Power of Anointing --
The Power of Blessing”
Responding
*Hymn: MV # 79 “Spirit, Open My Heart”
Offering: “All in All,” Jernigan – LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
“May we anoint and bless each one
And may the clouds open to sun
For when we come in unity
We build our God’s community.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
The Sacrament of Communion
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them to our God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
ALL: It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Leader: God of many names, we thank you for all that you are and for all that you do in the world. As Creator, you made all things and are continually creating. As Divine Parent, you nurture and sustain us. As the One Holy Trinity, you invite us to dance with you to the lilt of life and time. And through Christ, you have named us as your adopted children. Therefore, with all your people, in every time and place, we sing the triumphant hymn of your glory:
MV # 203 (Holy, Holy, Holy -- Sanctus and Benedictus)
O holy, holy, holy God, O God of time and space.
All earth and sea and sky above bear witness to your grace.
Hosanna in the highest heav’n, creation sings your praise.
And blessed is the One who comes and bears your name always!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
ALL: Hosanna in the highest!
Leader: And we come to this table to remember how you became human under the name of Jesus who on the night when your name was betrayed shared food and wine with those he loved. He took bread, a sign of health and life, broke it and shared it with them naming it for his body, the bread of life. And he took a cup of wine, a sign of celebration and joy and shared it with them naming it after his life blood. We come here to do the same in memory of Christ.
Breaking of the Bread
Pouring of the Cup
Leader’s Prayer: Come, Spirit of God, and move over these signs of life and celebration, this bread and wine, that we may take them as the bread of life and the wine of blessing. As we stand around this table, may we be your people, committed to your kingdom whose name is peace…Amen.
The gifts of God, for the people of God…come…for all is ready.
(Our communion Hymn being sung through distribution is:
VU # 471 “Eat This Bread and Never Hunger”)
Blessing
Closing Prayers: (Rev. Jope)
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer:
*Commissioning: (unison) May we go forth with a spirit that notices the best in people, a heart that forgives the worst, a mind that forgets the bad, and a soul that never loses faith in God…Amen!
*Hymn: MV # 222 “May the Peace of God Be Your Peace”
Benediction
A Thank-you to our communion servers this morning:
Louise Poudrette
Nancy Prince
Daryl Sedor
Roger & Beckie Scroggins
Sunday March 31, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! MARCH 31st, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
FOURTH SUNDAY of the SEASON of LENT
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation, and of Our Continual Journey into Lent.
“A song isn’t a song until you sing it and love isn’t love until you give it away. The sacred centre is about the songs of our hearts to be given away, about hearing our song and then singing it. Is there a song in stone, in a rock? If one looks at the statue of David which Michelangelo crafted, there is truly a song in stone! When it was unveiled, someone asked him how he had done it…
He replied that he simply looked at the marble, saw David within it, and then chipped away all that was not David…he left the song.”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Call into Lent: MV # 62 “There Is Room for All” (Sung through 2X’s)
“There is room for all in the shadow of God’s wing;
There is room for all, sheltered in God’s love.
And I rejoice and sing, “My refuge and my rock,
in whom I trust.”
There is room for all, there is room for all!”
A Quieting of Our Heart (A few moments of Meditation…)
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=3+minute+video+with+nature&&view=detail&mid=47E411CFD5607C974B3147E411CFD5607C974B31&&FORM=VRDGAR
Call to Worship:
Leader: In the dark hours past midnight, God is sitting alone… waiting;
ALL: waiting for the crunch of tires as the car turns into the driveway; waiting for the turning of the key in the lock and the creaking of the stairs; waiting for the beloved child’s safe return.
Leader: God is waiting…waiting for us; we will come home – yes we will! Yes we will!
ALL: God is our refuge, mighty and secure; God guides us on a treacherous path and carries us in the crook of the arm, a Rock with sure footing, when storms of life would wash us away.
Leader: A new day has come, a new week has begun. We, too, need to be a new people as we walk through this season of Lent. We need to be a people with a new vision and a new purpose.
ALL: We need to be a people with a new understanding of Jesus’ life and teachings; a people with a new desire to live with respect in creation; a people with renewed faith and hope. This is why we’re here…to listen to the voice of the Spirit. Let us worship together, in community, and in knowing that God is here with us.
Leader: And so now, we focus ourselves upon the extinguishing of our third Lenten expression of light.
A Lenten Extinguishing of Candles Liturgy:
Leader: The events of Lent and our own personal reflections constantly remind us that no matter where we are or what has happened, God is here and will help us if we ask.
ALL: Today, we hear about a son who was lost and a father who finds him.
Leader: This happens when the son finds the humility to admit his mistakes and ask his father for help.
ALL: How much more our Mother/Father God will help us if we honestly admit our mistakes and accept God’s unconditional forgiveness.
(Extinguishing of the third candle)
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
O Great Creator…sometimes we wander into far countries of the soul without ever thinking where we are going. We take your love for granted; we presume that we can always find our way back to you when we really need you, when we’re not busy, when it’s more convenient. And then, we find ourselves in places where we do not want to be and we wonder how we got there. Lonely and afraid, sometimes we do not know where to turn…. (Silence….)
So God…speak to us…please…we’re listening…speak to us of mercy and of forgiveness. Stir up within us a longing to be with you once again. Help us find the way to the place where we have always belonged. Open our hearts and our minds to your ways so that we may carry your love to the world. Let the Christ light shine in us and may these words of our hearts be real and from our yearnings to be whole…Amen.
*Hymn: MV # 1 “Let Us Build a House (All Are Welcome)”
A Time for All Ages: “Puppies For Sale”
Hymn: MV # 133 “Jesus Laughed Out Loud”
First Reading: JOSHUA 5: 9-12 (Sue Spratt)
God takes away the shame of Egypt from the people…
Second Reading: 2 CORINTHIANS 5: 16-21 (Sue Spratt)
Anyone in Christ is a new creation…
Gospel Reading: LUKE 15: 1-3, 11b-32 (Rev. Jope)
The prodigal son; the prodigal father…
Message: “The Wasteful, Uncontrolled, Extravagant, Profligate, Dissolute, Reckless, and Prodigal – Son!”
(…and…you just may know who he is…)
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 229 “God of the Sparrow
Offering: “Let Us Stay Together for a Time,” (Iona community) LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
“This fourth Sunday we’re put to test
to pursue love with all the rest
of lies and cheating, hate and scorn
and nurture those who are forlorn.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Prayers of the People: Elizabeth Marshall
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Sung Lord’s Prayer: VU # 959
*Commissioning: (unison) May Christ lead each of us on a path of passionate discipleship that abounds with the joy of the Spirit and the love of God, to always be enjoyed and shared with all…
Amen!
*Hymn: VU # 647 “Travel On, Travel On”
Benediction
Sunday March 24, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! MARCH 24th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
THIRD SUNDAY of the SEASON of LENT
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation, and of Journeying Into Our Lenten Experience.
“The Lenten season is the spiritual equivalent of an annual physical exam; it’s time to take stock of our lives, our hearts. Keeping Lent, however, is potentially dangerous, precisely of this focus on the heart. After all, it is much easier to read a book on prayer than to spend time leisurely speaking with God. It is much easier to fast from certain foods than it is to totally change your life around. It is much easier to write a cheque than to spend time in ministries of mercy. So consequently, Lent is easily trivialized. The point of Lent is not to give up chocolate; it’s to give up what disconnects you from God.”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Call into Lent: MV # 7 “Gather Us In” (Sung through twice)
“Gather us in, ground us in you.
Gather us in, ground us in you.
Gather us in, gather us in,
Ground us, ground us in you.”
A Quieting of Our Heart (A few moments of Meditation…)
Introit: MV # 117 “By the Well, a Thirsty Woman”
Call to Worship:
Leader: Come, O you faithful people, come and find the quiet centre where God may enter in. The words, “Be still, be still”, echo silently in our hearts as we yearn for the holy presence.
ALL: We all gather as God’s people: hungry for that holy presence, ready for God’s word to us, and to move to places of action of peace and justice for all.
Leader: Together we seek to know God’s will and to walk in God’s way.
ALL: We journey in the way of faithfulness, trusting in God’s steadfast love.
Leader: Lead us, O God, as we journey into this Lenten season. Teach us to follow the Christ who summons us to new life.
ALL: Let us worship and be strengthened to follow. Let us come into God’s presence with thanksgiving. And so now, we focus ourselves upon the extinguishing of our third Lenten expression of light.
A Lenten Extinguishing of Candles Liturgy:
Leader: Now almost halfway through our Lenten journey, we are invited to look at our own lives and consider what we need to keep and what we need to let go.
ALL: It could be anything from a bad outfit, to an outdated method of relating to others, to a toxic relationship.
Leader: As we honestly examine our own souls, we will find that they are often cluttered.
ALL: Now is the time to let go of all that interferes with our relationship with God and nurture those parts of our lives that lead to wholeness and faithfulness.
(Extinguishing of the third candle)
Opening Prayer: (Unison) (unison – based upon Luke 19: 3-6)
O Holy One…this Lent we are yearning to wear a Zacchaeus heart. We are wanting to hear you call our name just as you did his. We are anxious to know that you are inviting yourself to our homes. We are humbled, amazed, excited, and astounded, just as he was. But that is where the desire to wear a Zacchaeus heart stops, because we know what happens when you visit someone’s house. Conversations occur. Choices are presented. Changes happen. That’s because you look for more than dust when you come to visit and you talk about things more vital than the weather. You move into the heart’s dimension. You gaze deeply. You don’t just dwell. You interact. You activate. You dwell so lovingly that the truth cannot be resisted. This Lent, help us to welcome you and yearn for your love. Grant us a Zacchaeus heart that turns around and sees the truth. We need the gaze of your love to remind us of our truest selves. We, too, need the strong call to make amends and to start anew. Come into our time of worship, O Holy One, and stay at our house today…Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 288 “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”
A Time for All Ages: (Just a bit of humour when we are sometimes so
surrounded by tragedy and violence of all sorts.)
Hymn: MV # 115 “Behold, Behold, I Make All Things New”
First Reading: ISAIAH 55: 1-9 (Nancy Prince)
Come, buy wine and milk without money!…
Second Reading: 1 CORINTHIANS 10: 1-13 (Nancy Prince)
I will not let you be tested beyond your strength…
Gospel Reading: LUKE 13: 1-9 (Rev. Jope)
The parable of the barren fig tree…
Hymn: VU # 111 “As the Sun with Longer Journey”
Message: “Grace and Manure –
You’ve got to Be Kidding!” Responding
*Hymn: MV # 174 “Soil of God, You and I”
Offering: “Body, Mind and Spirit,” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
“May each of us be touched by grace
For we’re together in this place.
It’s filled with hearts, it’s filled with soul,
and community’s the endless goal.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart: (Rev. Jope)
(This morning’s closing prayer will be interspersed with: VU # 952)
“Through our lives and by our prayers
your kingdom come.”
Leader: O Gracious One…O One who journeys with each of us through- out our lives; be with us in our Lenten journeys as we experience new- ness or possibly ‘skin-shedding’ as we seek what is life-giving and empowering. The words from Ecclesiastes come to mind and may we offer these changed words to you as prayer – as gift – as a yearning:
ALL: There is a time for everything, a time for every season under heaven: A time to be insecure and a time to have security….a time to have strong opinions and a time to let them go…
“Through our lives and by our prayers
your kingdom come.”
Leader: A time to be confused and a time to have clarity…a time to be healthy and a time to be sick…a time to be young and a time to be old…
ALL: A time to experience success and a time to know failure… a time to feel at peace and a time to face conflict…a time to have friends and a time for loneliness…a time to be weak and a time to be strong…
“Through our lives and by our prayers
your kingdom come.”
Leader: A time to feel lost and a time to find the way home…a time to shed the skin and a time to welcome a new one…
ALL: May each of us search for true meanings of what it means to be followers of Christ and may we act upon those understandings.
“Through our lives and by our prayers
your kingdom come.”
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer: VU # 959
*Commissioning: (unison)
May we go forth with a spirit that notices the best in people,
a heart that forgives the worst, a mind that forgets the bad,
and a soul that never loses faith in God…Amen!
*Hymn: VU # 639 “One More Step Along the World I Go”
Benediction
Sunday March 17, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! MARCH 17th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
SECOND SUNDAY of the SEASON of LENT
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Deep Meditation,
and of Journeying Into Our Lenten Experience.
“Lent is a period of fasting, moderation, and self-denial traditionally observed by Catholics and some Protestant denominations. It begins with Ash Wednesday and ends with Easter Sunday. The length of the Lenten fast was established in the 4th century as 46 days (40 days, not counting Sundays)”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Call Into Lent: MV # 84 “In You There Is a Refuge” A Quieting of Our Heart (A few moments of Meditation…)
Call to Worship:
Leader: The time has come for us to worship God;
You who are weary, worship in your weariness;
You who are hurting, worship in your pain.
ALL: Give us the courage of Jesus, who did not shrink from confronting evil.
Leader: You who are fearful, worship in your fearfulness;
You who are rejoicing, worship in your joy.
ALL: Give us the dedication of Jesus, who was not diverted from proclaiming God’s dream.
Leader: Lead us, O God, as we journey into this Lenten season. Give us the compassion of Jesus, who saw the suffering ones, and was moved to help them.
ALL: May the warmth of God’s love welcome us. May the grace of Jesus’ life inspire us. May the movement of the Spirit among us lift our hearts in praise. And now, we focus ourselves upon the extinguishing of our second Lenten expression of light.
A Lenten Extinguishing of Candles Liturgy:
Leader: As we continue our Lenten journey, we see more of Jesus’ life. We see times when he was angry and hurting, and he cried out to God and to those around him.
ALL: We, too, find ourselves angry, hurting, and needing to lament at times.
Leader: It is in these very times that we can remember Jesus and the God who never tired of his laments (or ours), but rather provided understanding and a way through the difficulty.
ALL: So today, we extinguish this second Lenten light to remind us of Jesus’ humanity. We do this knowing that Jesus had anger and pain. His courage in the face of these human traits provides courage for us in our trials.
(Extinguishing of the second candle)
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
This is the wilderness time, when every path is obscure and thorns have grown around the words of hope. Be the wings of our strength, O God, in this time of wilderness waiting.
This is the time of stone, not bread, when even the sunrise feels uncertain and everything tastes of bitterness. Be the wings of our strength, O God, in this time of wilderness waiting.
This is the time of ashes and dust, when darkness clothes our dreams and no star shines a guiding light. Be the wings of our strength, O God, in this time of wilderness waiting.
This is the time of treading life, waiting for the swells to subside and for the chaos to clear. Be the wings of our strength, O God, in this time of wilderness waiting…Amen
*Hymn: VU # 409 “Morning Has Broken”
A Time for All Ages: “An Irish Blessing”
https://www.andiesisle.com/an.irish.blessing.html
First Reading: GENESIS 15: 1-12, 17-18
(Jocelyn Barton Cheffins)
“God seals the covenant with Abram and Sarai”…
Second Reading: PSALM 27 (VU # 754)
(Jocelyn Barton Cheffins)
“God is my light and my salvation”…
Refrain: “God is my light and saving health,
I shall not be afraid.”
Jocelyn: God is my light and my salvation, whom then shall I fear?
ALL: God is the stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?
Jocelyn: When the wicked close in to devour me,
ALL: it is they, my enemies and my foes, who stumble and fall.
Jocelyn: If an army should encamp against me,
my heart shall not be afraid;
ALL: if war should arise against me,
even then I will not be dismayed.
Refrain: “God is my light and saving health,
I shall not be afraid.”
Jocelyn: One thing I have asked of God, for which I long:
that I may dwell in God’s house all the days of my life,
ALL: to gaze on your beauty, O God,
and to seek you in your temple.
Jocelyn: For in the time of trouble you will give me shelter;
ALL: you will hide me under the cover of your tent,
you will set me high upon a rock.
Jocelyn: And now you have raised my head
above my enemies round about me.
ALL: Therefore I will offer in your dwelling
a sacrifice with great gladness.
Refrain: “God is my light and saving health,
I shall not be afraid.”
Jocelyn: Hear my voice, O God, when I call,
have mercy and answer me. Your face, O God, I seek.
ALL: Do not hide your face from me;
do not reject your servant in anger,
you who have been my helper.
Jocelyn: Do not cast me off, or forsake me, O God my saviour.
ALL: Though my father and mother forsake me,
my God will take me up.
Refrain: “God is my light and saving health,
I shall not be afraid.”
Jocelyn: Teach me your way, O God,
ALL: lead me on a level path,
safe from those who lie in wait for me.
Jocelyn: Do not give me up to the will of my enemies,
ALL: for liars and false witnesses arise against me.
Jocelyn: I believe that I shall see God’s goodness
in the land of the living.
ALL: Wait for God; be strong, and take courage;
yes, wait for God!
Refrain: “God is my light and saving health,
I shall not be afraid.”
Gospel Reading: LUKE 13: 31-35 (Rev. Jope)
Jesus cries over Jerusalem as a hen over her chicks…
Hymn: MV # 62 “There Is Room for All”
Message “Never Losing Sight of What Is Real”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 116 “Giver of the Perfect Gift”
Offering: “As We Seek Your Face,” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
“The Lenten time is filled with dread,
for we can’t see what’s up ahead.
We journey on into unknown
and hope that each of us has grown.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart: (Rev. Jope)
(This morning’s closing prayer will be interspersed with:
MV # 175 “May We but Wait”)
“May we but wait upon Love’s word,
Knowing our prayer is heard.”
Leader: God called our names in the flutter of a dove’s wing sailing on a spring breeze, but we were afraid to spread our arms and take the sky, for the parched ground was all we knew and on the dove flew……
ALL: God called our names in the voices of a choir singing, but we were afraid to stay and join the song, for a painful silence was all we felt, a dry plain, a desert was where we dwelt, and the voices faded away…….
“May we but wait upon Love’s word,
Knowing our prayer is heard.”
Leader: God called our names in the whisper of a sigh, for in this place beyond words we begin to cry, and a child led us through the shadows of our fears, to a spring whose water washed away our tears, and quenched our thirst to be in God’s love and God’s healing……
ALL: God gave us the courage to face the fear of healing, the pain of wounds which spend time stealing away, our daring to fly, and our caring to sing, and in this place our wholeness begins…
“May we but wait upon Love’s word,
Knowing our prayer is heard.”
Leader: O God of the wild places, God of the raven sky, guide us through the forests that stand starkly, that darkly hide the corners of our hearts, where fear, doubt, and anger lie. God of the wolf and God of the bear, help us dare to face the wilderness, for in your care wilderness becomes healing space, not stealing courage and giving is despair…
ALL: and with your arms around us, at the place where still water and bare rock meet, wilderness becomes the quiet retreat…
“May we but wait upon Love’s word,
Knowing our prayer is heard.”
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: VU # 649 “Walk With Me”
*Commissioning (unison): Let us go from this place as a new creation, crafted by the word, conformed to the shape of Jesus Christ, so that all who meet us may know him in us, and come to love him through us…Amen!
Benediction
Sunday March 10, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! MARCH 10th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
FIRST SUNDAY of the SEASON of LENT
{BAPTISMAL SUNDAY}
A Service of Prayer, of Baptism, of Song, of Deep Meditation,
and of Entering Ourselves Into Our Lenten Journey.
“Lent stimulates us to let the Word of God penetrate our life and in this way to know the fundamental truth: who we are, where we come from, where we must go, what path we must take in life…”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Call Into Lent: MV # 18 “Lord, Prepare Me to Be a Sanctuary”
“Lord, prepare me to be a sanctuary,
pure and holy tried and true;
with thanksgiving, I’ll be a living sanctuary for you.”
(Sung through twice…)
Call to Worship:
Leader: In this season of Lent we gather as people of faith.
In this season we gather as people on a journey – a journey which may be one of the most important ones in which we’ve ever embarked upon.
ALL: We come seeking food for our souls. We come to outfit ourselves for the sometimes harshness of life.
Leader: We gather as people seeking a deeper relationship with our God. We gather as one family, open to the Spirit’s prodding.
ALL: We come seeking knowledge. We come to face the diversities of our cultures, our different moods, our constant hopes, and our never-ending dreams.
Leader: We all come together to obey Jesus’ command, “Watch and pray.” Our lives become watchful and prayerful.
ALL: Seeking Sabbath time may we be aware, O Holy one, of your Spirit leading and uplifting us this day. Let us, as a community of believers, enter into the Lenten wilderness….walk with us into our new sunrise.
A Lenten Extinguishing of Candles Liturgy:
Leader: Today is the first Sunday of Lent……we will recall and remember a part of Jesus’ life and our own lives.
ALL: Today, we extinguish this first candle to remind us of the temptations in life. We do this knowing that Jesus experienced many temptations. His courage in the face of these trials provides courage for us in our trials.
(Extinguishing of the first candle)
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
O God of countless pathways of our lives, at this beginning of Lent, we return to you. We turn away from all that clutters up our lives and makes them junkyards of despair: our endless worrying, our wondering who is doing better than we are, our secret hope that we can take it with us, the grudges we have cherished like precious gems, the harsh judgments and the easy prejudices, the conviction that we are just so very, very busy, all the attempts to let everyone know how deserving we are… (Silence)
At the beginning of Lent we return to you, o God, to your love, to your mercy, to your forgiveness, to your promise of a fresh start, a clean slate, a reformatted website. Please welcome us in the name of Jesus Christ, who told us that you would…Amen
*Hymn: VU # 644 “I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry”
A Time for All Ages: “Three Sunday Ditties”
“All Who Are Thirsty” (Rev. Jope)
(The Seyoum family are invited to come forward during the
singing of “All Who Are Thirsty” along with our Chairperson, Daryl Sedor)
Sacrament of Holy Baptism
ZAYNE SERTSAI SEYOUM
(During the baptism the congregation will be invited to stand if they are able and to share in their commitment and also voicing The New Creed… following the baptism we will sing VU # 454 (Baptismal Benediction)
First Reading: DEUTERONOMY 26: 1-11 (Jackie Lynas)
“My father was a wandering Aramean”…
Second Reading: PSALM 91 (VU # 807) (Jackie Lynas)
I will raise you up on eagle’s wings…
Jackie: You who dwell in the shelter of your God, who abide in God’s
shadow of life,
ALL: say to your God: “My refuge, my rock in whom I trust!”
Jackie: The snare of the fowler will never capture you, and famine will
bring you no fear;
ALL: under God’s wings your refuge, God’s faithfulness your
shield.
Refrain: “And I will raise you up on eagle’s wings
bear you on the breath of dawn,
make you to shine like the sun,
and hold you in the palm of my hand”
Jackie: You not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day;
ALL: though thousands fall about you, near you it shall not come.
Jackie: For to the angels is given a command to guard you in all your ways;
ALL: upon their hands they will bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.
(Refrain)
Jackie: “Because they have set their love upon me I will deliver them,
ALL: I will uphold them because they know my name.
Jackie: When they call to me I will answer,
ALL; I will be with them in trouble,
Jackie: I will rescue and bring them to honour.
ALL: With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my saving power.”
(Refrain)
Gospel Reading: LUKE 4: 1-13 (Rev. Jope)
Jesus tested in the desert…
Message “Why Lent?”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 384 “The Lone, Wild Bird?”
(Verses 3, 4, and 5)
Offering: “Jesu, Joy of Our Desiring,” J.S. Bach (Instrumental)
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
“The wilderness is what we see,
no water, plant, no bird, nor tree;.
we enter in to walk this day
and trust that God will show the way.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart:
(Unison) “Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other…
Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.” (Colossians 3: 12-14)
Leader: (Rev. Jope)
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: MV # 8 “And on This Path”
*Commissioning (unison): Go out into the world, searching for all who are lost. As we reach out with open hands and open hearts, let our ministry be shaped always by God’s love…Amen!
Benediction
Sunday March 3rd, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! MARCH 3rd, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
{COMMUNION}
TRANSFIGURATION SUNDAY
(A complete change of form or appearance into a more beautiful or spiritual state.)
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Deep Meditation, and of
Sharing at Table
“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning…but anyone can start today and
make a brand new beginning…so folks, let’s all focus on a new beginning!”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Leader: As this Candle of Christ is lit amongst us this morning, may it serve as a reminder for each of us that the light of Christ shines ever so brightly in this community of faith.
Introit: VU # 375 “Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness”
(Chorus – Verses 1 -4, Chorus)
Call to Worship:
Leader: It is into the light where each of us is welcomed to enter – it is into the light where each of us finds our way.
ALL: This morning, we come together to bathe in the light. We come together to sense and to experience the ‘Spirit of Gentleness’.
Leader: Our morning worship is but a small testimony of the faith which each of us has. It’s a time to come together to share in our stories and to share in our lives.
ALL: In the breathtaking mountaintop experiences, Glorious God, You transform us! In the wonder-full experiences of everyday life, Personal God, You transform us.
Leader: Through the overcoming of adversity, through quiet endurance, patient God, You transform us.
ALL: Through a willingness to take a stand, through an unwillingness to let the powerful get their way, Eternally Good God, You transform us!
Leader: So People of God, each of you, I invite you to come up the mountain and wait there, patiently, for something to unfold.
ALL: People of God, everyone present, we come up to the mountain, to wait, to stay, to remain…in the presence of the One whose grace is sufficient for all our needs. We listen for that still, small voice that speaks into our lives, “Be still, and know that I am God”.
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
Transforming God, Ever-changing Holy One, we give thanks for your loving presence in our lives, for the opportunity to answer your call to us, and for the transformation you bring about in us when we truly answer that call. Help us to know that change, that growth, and that improvement in each of us is as clear as when the disciples saw the transfiguration of Jesus on the mountaintop and they became changed. Make us yours in this hour of worship, O God, and hold us fast to your heart and close to your living breath. Instill in each of us a willingness to let go and to begin our preparations for the Lenten journey. Empower us, strengthen us, encourage us, and ultimately, lead us to ways of your peace and your love. May this time of worship be a gift for us and a gift to you…Amen
*Hymn: VU # 661 “Come to My Heart”
A Time for All Ages: “Transfiguration Sunday:
Why Do We Celebrate It Before Lent?”
*Hymn: “Be Still,” Paul Rumbolt (Sung through 3 X’s)
“Be still, be still, be still and know that I am God.
I am exalted in the nations and the earth,
Be still, and know that I am God”
First Reading: EXODUS 34: 29-35 (Carol Phillips)
Moses is radiant as he comes down the mountain…
Second Reading: 2 CORINTHIANS 3: 12 – 4: 2 (Carol Phillips)
We are bold in our hope…
Hymn: VU # 333 “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling”
Gospel Reading: LUKE 9: 28-43 (Rev. Jope)
Jesus is transfigured upon the mountain…
Message “Seeing, yet Not Believing”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 642 “Be Thou My Vision”
Offering: “Be the Centre,” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
“We climb the mountain one by one
to view the rising of the sun.
With arms outstretched we grasp the sight
which drives away all fears on night.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Service of the Table
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them to our God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
ALL: It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Leader: God of many names, we thank you for all that you are and for all that you do in the world. As Creator, you made all things and are continually creating. As Divine Parent, you nurture and sustain us. As the One Holy Trinity, you invite us to dance with you to the lilt of life and time. And through Christ, you have named us as your adopted children. Therefore, with all your people, in every time and place, we sing the triumphant hymn of your glory:
MV # 203 (Holy, Holy, Holy -- Sanctus and Benedictus)
O holy, holy, holy God, O God of time and space.
All earth and sea and sky above bear witness to your grace.
Hosanna in the highest heav’n, creation sings your praise.
And blessed is the One who comes and bears your name always
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
ALL: Hosanna in the highest!
Leader: And we come to this table to remember how you became human under the name of Jesus who on the night when your name was betrayed shared food and wine with those he loved. He took bread, a sign of health and life, broke it and shared it with them naming it for his body, the bread of life. And he took a cup of wine, a sign of celebration and joy and shared it with them naming it after his life blood. We come here to do the same in memory of Christ.
Breaking of the Bread
Pouring of the Wine
Leader’s Prayer: Come, Spirit of God, and move over these signs of life and celebration, this bread and wine, that we may take them as the bread of life and the wine of blessing. As we stand around this table, may we be your people, committed to your kingdom whose name is peace…Amen.
The gifts of God, for the people of God…come…for all is ready.
(During communion, MV # 200 “You Are My Body” will be sung)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart: (Rev. Jope)
(Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: VU # 651 “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah”
*Commissioning (unison): We are people blessed by God, for those who have seen the transfigured Christ are blessed in order to be a blessing in this world. We are transformed people. Journey in the light of the transfigured Christ as you leave this place, taking the blessing and love of Christ into the world……..
Amen!
Benediction
Thanks to our servers this morning:
Shirley Roddick, Jeannie Butterworth, Nancy Prince, Ted Prince, and Daryl Sedor.
Thanks to our communion set-up folks.
Thanks to our reader: Carol Phillips
And, thanks to our greeter and our ushers!!
Sunday February 24th, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! February 24th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
SEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation, and of Being Moved By the Spirit of Togetherness.
“May the rivers of grace and miracle flow through your heart…may a full share of Spirit pour through your soul…may the light of God’s flame burn through your mind…may you be forever changed” {The Art of Imaginative Preaching}
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Leader: As this candle is lit this morning, may it be a reminder to us that the Light of Christ, the Light of Love, the Light of Blessing, shines through our worship, through our lives, through those moments of what may seem darkness to us and also those moments of wonderful joy.
Introit: VU # 944 “Holy, Holy, Holy (Santo, Santo, Santo)” (We will sing this through 2 X’s)
Call to Worship:
Leader: Come, all of you who are God’s people! God has called us from the highways and the streets and the byways of the world. Come, all of you who are God’s people!
ALL: We are here and yes, we’ve come as we’ve been called from our homes, from our workplaces, and from all of those dwellings where we reside or work.
Leader: Come, all of you who are God’s people! Yes you! God has called us into community so come, and place yourself beside your neighbours and your friends.
ALL: We are here and we have responded to God’s call.
Leader: So listen. Can you hear that sound? Listen…it’s there, thumping ever so quietly in your chest. Once again I say, Listen!
ALL: We hear and feel the call of the very vitality of life, for we have come to connect once again. We have come to connect with the source of life and love. So come, O Holy Spirit! Come and fill us with wonder and awe during this hour for we are ready. We now open ourselves to prayer to you:
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
Today, as last Sunday, here at Lakeview United Church, we gather and have gathered for worship and for work -- they go hand in hand. Our working together to build the kingdom, our financial decisions, our offering to serve the church whether on a working committee or through personal time, treasure, or talents, come out of our conviction that Christ has called each of us, all of us, to serve as disciples. Our ministry is rooted in the biblical witness of Jesus’ first disciples and inspired by the Holy Spirit leading us on. We thank you for your church, Christ’s body of celebration, compassion, and cooperation. We thank you for the variety of people and gifts that come together in your name. Forgive us when we become self-righteous and impatient with one another. Help us work for the common good. We pray through Christ, our foundation and our hope…Amen
*Hymn: VU # 289 “It Only Takes a Spark (Pass It On)”
A Time for All Ages: “Loving to the End”
*Hymn: MV # 54 “Alleluia (Monteiro)” (Brazilian ‘Alleluia’)
First Reading: GENESIS 45: 3-11, 15 (Heather Dorin) Joseph reveals his identity to his brothers…
Second Reading: PSALM 37: 1-11, 39-40 (Heather Dorin) Understanding resurrection… VU # 763
Refrain: “Commit your way to God and trust the One who takes your part.”
Heather: Do not fret because of the wicked, or envy those who do evil.
ALL: For they soon wither like grass and fade away like the green leaf
Heather: Trust in God and do good;
ALL: dwell in the land and there find safe pasture.
Heather: Find your delight in God,
ALL: who will grant the desires of your heart. (Refrain)
Heather: God will make your vindication shine like the light,
ALL: the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
Heather: Be still before God and wait patiently;
ALL: do not fret because some prosper in evil schemes.
Heather: Let go of anger and abandon wrath.
ALL: Do not fret – it can only do harm. (Refrain)
Heather: Those who do evil shall be cut off,
ALL: but those who look to God shall inherit the earth.
Heather: In a little while the wicked will be no more;
ALL: you will look where they were and their place will be empty.
Heather: But the meek shall inherit the earth;
ALL: they shall enjoy fullness of peace.
Heather: Salvation for the righteous comes from God, their refuge in times of trouble.
ALL: God helps and delivers, and rescues from the wicked those who seek shelter. (Refrain)
Hymn: MV # 108 “I Know Your Word (Tua Palavra)”
Gospel Reading: LUKE 6: 27-38 (Taken from “The Message’) Love your enemies; be merciful…
Message “Sometimes ‘Love’ is Hard to Swallow”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 563 “Jesus, You Have Come to the Lakeshore”
Offering: “O Lord, Have Mercy,” Paraguay/Hopson LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
We’re called to serve in any way
to offer sunshine every day
for those who may find life is tough --
we need to offer love enough!
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart (Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: MV # 212 “Sent Out in Jesus’ Name”
*Commissioning (unison):
In the spirit of living in this world with different cultures, differing ideologies, different geographies, and different understandings of how life is to be lived, may we all go into the realms of God’s creation, holding out our olive branch, so that we may become one in peace and in joy…Amen!
Benediction
Sunday February 17th, 2019
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! February 17th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation, and of Focusing on the Beatitudes or the Blessings.
“Peter, will you be my valentine?” Peter answers, “Jesus, you know everything. You know I want to be your valentine.” (Rough translation of John 21: 17)
Jesus also speaks to you…“Will you be my valentine? Will you be my friend?”
And maybe we could answer this way, “You know everything…you know I want to be your valentine.”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Leader: As this candle is lit this morning, may it always remind each of us that the Light of Christ, the Light of Love, the Light of Blessing, shines through our worship, through our lives, through those moments of darkness and also those moments of great joy.
Introit: (Please remain seated) MV # 106 “I Am the Dream”
Call to Worship: (Based on 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 and words from C.S. Lewis)
Leader: This is the Sunday of the Beatitudes or what we name ‘Blessings’. And blessings come in the form of affection which stops the soul from shriveling. It warms us like an old dog’s wagging tail or the purr of a kitten.
ALL: How warmly we are blessed. Friendship sees us on our way, and holds us through the darkest hour.
Leader: How strongly we are blessed. Passion sets our eyes ablaze and binds us soul to soul.
ALL: How fiercely we are blessed. But deep beneath affection’s warmth, friendship’s constancy, the melting bliss of cupid’s arrow, there beats the heart that gives itself away, a steadfast love that is the mark in us of God.
Leader: Gentle Shepherd, Constant Friend, Lover of the Soul, you are the Ground and the Source of all.
ALL: How greatly we are blessed as each of us are blessings to each other!
Opening Prayer: (Unison)
O Breath of Life, you invite each of us to come and to catch our breath. Do you mean that we can really come and take a “time out”? Are we being allowed to slow down and to rest?.......
We hear in the quietness, “Yes…come and breathe.” ……..
Can we really come and slow our hurried rush?..................
Are we allowed to take time to finally become?..................
And you answer to us, “Come, and inhale the breath of life.”……
Can we really come and concentrate on life’s rhythms?......
Are we truly allowed to be inspired by the Divine?..............
And you say, “Come, and exhale the tensions and tasks of everyday living.”…….
So, O God, we breathe in your grace; we exhale our pain.
We breathe in Christ’s promise; we exhale our sometimes brokenness. We breathe in the Spirit’s insight; we exhale our preconceptions. O God, who breathes life into our souls, who takes our everyday struggles and transforms us, incarnate your hope within us that we might grow in wisdom and in faith, that we might become ever more your disciples, that we might walk in your Way…Amen
*Hymn: VU # 222 “Come, Let Us Sing”
A Time for All Ages: “And What Is a ‘Blessing’ Really?”
*Hymn: MV # 30 “It’s a Song of Praise to the Maker”
First Reading: JEREMIAH 17: 5-10 (Sue Spratt)
Those who trust in God are like trees planted by water…
Second Reading: PSALM 1 (Sue Spratt)
Blessed are those who follow God’s law…
Hymn: VU # 381 “Spirit of Life”
Gospel Reading: LUKE 6: 17-26 (Taken from “The Message’)
The Beatitudes upon the plain…
Message “Beatitudes…2019”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 896 “Matthew 5 (Blest Are They)”
Offering: Musical Interlude during the Offering
*Offertory Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541)
We set our sights on what is real,
for on our lives you’ve set the seal
that each of us belongs to you
and now we know what we must do.
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart: (Unison)
(A Credo from Dorothee Solle)
I believe in God who did not create an unchallengeable world, a thing incapable of change, who does not govern according to eternal laws that remain unaltered or according to a natural order of rich and poor, of the expert and the ignorant, of rulers and subjects.
I believe in God who willed conflicts in life and wanted us to change the status quo through our work – through our politics.
I believe in Jesus, the Christ, who was right when he, like each of us, just another individual who couldn’t beat the village office, worked to change the status quo and was destroyed… looking at him I see how our intelligence is crippled, our imagination stifled, our efforts wasted because we do not live as he did.
Every day I am afraid that he died in vain because he is buried in our churches, because we have betrayed his revolution in our obedience to authority and our fear of it. I believe in Jesus Christ who rises again in our lives so that we will be free from prejudice and arrogance, from fear and hate, and carry on his revolution and make way for his kingdom.
I believe in the Spirit that Jesus brought into the world in the brotherhood of all nations. I believe it is up to us what our earth becomes; a vale of tears, starvation, and tyranny or, a city of God.
I believe in a just peace that can be achieved in the possibility of a meaningful life for all people. I believe this world of God’s has a future…and now we share in silence, the prayers of our hearts: (Prayers of this Community of Faith)
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: MV # 209 “Go, Make a Diff’rence”
*Commissioning (unison):
In the name of God who is love, who dreamed us up in the first place, to be all that we can be, may we go forth to live and love extravagantly, that the world God dreamed up might be all that it can be…Amen!
Benediction
Sunday February 10th, 2019:
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! February 10th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY
A service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation,
and of having the spirit come upon you.
“When have you witnessed something that so awed you, it changed the way you live?”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude:
Welcome & Announcements
Lighting the Candle of Christ
Introit: #96MV “And When You Call for Me” 3X [seated]
Call to Worship:
The Light of Christ’s presence is a daily promise.
All week long, we take it on our journey with us,
and on Sunday, we pause to give thanks together.
Without you…
the body of Christ is incomplete.
Without me…
some gifts are lost.
Without her…
we may not have all we need…
without him…
to live out God’s call…
without them…
to live justice and healing in the world.
We are not all the same.
But we are all needed.
Wanted.
Loved.
In this time and place,
In all times and places.
Thanks be to God! …Richard Bott, Moderator, UCC
*Hymn: #562VU Jesus Calls Us
Prayer of Faith: [unison]
God of all being,
You have called us to be your own.
We long to respond to your call
Openly, fully, lovingly.
Hear our deepest desires and yearnings,
Help us to listen and to share
To heal and to be healed.
Bless us with an awareness of your presence
Deep within our soul.
Surprise us with your mysteries
In the midst of our living.
Transform us with the assurance of your love.
In all that we say and do,
Stay with us as we follow Jesus
Out into the deep water
Responding to God’s call.
Renew our faith and confirm our call
To love this world as you do,
praying together as Jesus taught us,
saying, Our Father… (The Lord’s Prayer VU 921)
Time for All Ages: “A Funny Fish Tale”
Hymn: #113MV Jesus Saw Them Fishing
Engaging
First Reading: Psalm 138 with refrain, VU page 860
Gospel Reading: Luke 5: 1-11, page 836 Reader: Doug Jamieson
Message: “Considering God’s Call”
Our Spirits Respond
*Hymn: #567VU Will You Come and Follow Me
Offering
Offertory Christ in Me, LUC Choir
*Doxology #541
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise God, all creatures high and low,
Give thanks to God in love made known:
Creator, Word and Spirit, One.
*Prayer of Dedication:
Our Lives are for Blessing
Pastoral Prayers
*Hymn: #563VU Jesus, You Have Come to the Lakeshore
*Commissioning: [unison]
Strengthened by the stories of Jesus
And the gift of the Spirit.
Let us take up our calling
And go deeper into life and faith.
Remaining as always in community
Committed and responsive
In Christ’s name.
*Benediction
Postlude
Lakeview United Church
Seeking Spiritual Renewal and Growth in Caring, Affirming Community
3023 63rd Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T3E 5J6 403.242.5760
Minister – Jope Langejans 403.831-2117
Council Chair - Daryl Sedor
Office Administrator - Eduarda Kristanto 403.242.5760
Choir Director - Marie Taylor
Minister Emeritus: Rev. Gerry Scharff
Please visit our websites:
www.lakeviewunitedchurch.com and www.lakeviewunitedchurch.cca
Sunday February 3, 2019
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! February 3rd, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
{COMMUNION SUNDAY}
FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation, of Sharing in
Communion and of Having the Spirit of Love Descend.
And God says to us, “If you’re struggling to keep an even keel, let me take
over the oars for a while”…hmmm…pretty good words of wisdom if we just ask,
don’t you think?
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Leader: As this candle is lit this morning, may it always remind each of us that the Light of Christ, the Light of Love, shines through our worship, through our lives, through those moments of darkness and also those moments of great joy.
Introit: VU # 375 “Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness”
(Refrain, verses 1 – 4, refrain)
Call to Worship:
Leader: It is into this place of worship where we enter ourselves with body and soul. It is in this place where the Spirit of the Living Christ is felt among us.
ALL: It is in this place where community abounds – where each person is special and where each one is welcomed with open arms to the table.
Leader: We come hungering and we come thirsting. Some come with heavy hearts and some with lightness of being. All are welcome for in Christ, there is no Jew or Gentile – only humanity.
ALL: With this in mind, may each of us know that worshiping together breaks down the walls of denominational differences – one God, one Christ, one Spirit, one people in praise.
Leader: May the Spirit touch each of us this morning in our singing, in our prayer-time, in our listening to the words from the sacred text, in our meditation, and in our sharing at table. May each of us sense the holiness in this time and on this communion Sunday in the month of February.
ALL: We are ready…our hearts are open…come, O Spirit, into this time of sanctity.
Opening Prayer: (Interspersed with MV # 15 “Holy Sacred Spirit” )
O Creating God, may we love all that you have created – the whole and every grain of sand in it. May we love every leaf, every ray of your light. May we love the animals, love the plants, and love everything. And if we do love everything, we will perceive the divine mystery in things.
MV # 15 “Holy sacred Spirit, breathe your breath on us.
Holy sacred Spirit, breathe your life in us.”
Once we perceive it, we will begin to comprehend it better every day. And then we will come at last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love so help us, O God, to see my brother with the eyes of Christ, to hear my sister with the ears of Christ, to taste my neighbours’ hunger with the mouth of Christ.
MV # 15 “Holy sacred Spirit, breathe your breath on us.
Holy sacred Spirit, breathe your life in us.”
So help us to smell creation’s beauty with the nose of Christ, to touch the world’s pain with the hands of Christ and to love life, each life, every life, with the heart of Christ.
MV # 15 “Holy sacred Spirit, breathe your breath on us.
Holy sacred Spirit, breathe your life in us.”
May this time of worship bring us closer to you and closer to each other as we share at table – the table of life and the table of love…and what is love?
Leader: “Love is something if you give it away – give it away –
and give it away…
Love is something if you give it away,
you end up having more.”
*Hymn: VU # 264 “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”
A Time for All Ages: “A Letter From Fred” https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=a+letter+from+fred+sweet+lorraine&&view=detail&mid=CD68FF5871EE0DEF3D82CD68FF5871EE0DEF3D82&rvsmid=100B77D814727AB43D71100B77D814727AB43D71&FORM=VDQVAP
*Hymn: MV # 92 “Like a Rock”
First Reading: I CORINTHIANS 13: 1-13 (Jean Scott)
Love is patient and kind…
Gospel Reading: LUKE 4: 21-30 (Rev. Jope)
Jesus is driven out of Nazareth…
Message “Practice Love Always…
For We Are Summoned”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 509 “I, the Lord of Sea and Sky”
Offering: “O God of Matchless Glory,” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (VU # 506 “Take My Life and Let It Be)
#1“Take my life, and let it be
consecrated, all for thee;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
#5 Take my love: and I will pour
at thy feet its treasure store;
Take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Service of the Table
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them to our God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
ALL: It is right to give our thanks and our praise.
Leader: God of many names……Therefore, with all your people, in every time and place, we sing the triumphant hymn of your glory.
MV # 203
“O holy, holy, holy God, O God of time and space.
All earth and sea and sky above bear witness to your grace.
Hosanna in the highest heav’n, creation sings your praise.
And blessed is the One who comes and bears your name always!”
Leader: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
ALL: Hosanna in the highest!
Leader: And we come to this table….We come here to do the same in memory of Christ.
Breaking of the Bread
Pouring of the Cup
Prayer (ALL): Come, O Spirit of God, move over these signs of life and of celebration, this loaf and this cup, that we may take them as the bread of life and the wine of arrival. As we stand around this table, may we be your people, committed to your kingdom whose name is peace…Amen.
Leader: The gifts of God, for the people of God…Come…for all is ready.
(Communion hymn sung during the distribution: MV # 200 “You Are My Body”
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart (Rev. Jope)
(These words are taken from: Holy Ground: Liturgies and Worship Resources for an Engaged Community, The Wow of Creation – David Hawkey)
Prayers of this Community of Faith
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: MV # 171 “Christ Has No Body Now but Yours”
*Commissioning (unison):
Let us go from this place of prayer to lives of prayer and action. May we be ready to proclaim the Good News, despite the obstacles in our way. May we stand firm and have courage as we live the Good News into reality…Amen!
Benediction
Sunday January 27, 2019
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to WORSHIP!! January 27th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
THIRD SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation, and of Having the Spirit Come Upon You.
“Averting war is the work of politicians; establishing peace is the work of education.” (Maria Montessori) “We cannot imagine that children will muddle through childhood picking up peaceful ideas here and there. We need to teach it, make room for it, spend money on it, invest time in it, discuss it, and learn from success stories.” (Carolyn Pogue – Observer – Dec. 2006)”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Leader: As this candle is lit this morning, may it always remind each of us that the Light of Christ shines through our worship, through our seasons, and through all of our lives – wherever we may be.
Introit: MV # 28 “God of the Bible (Fresh as the Morning)”
(Verses 1, 2, and 3)
Call to Worship:
Leader: The God of new life has called us to this place. May we enter with joyful hearts and with a willingness to experience this new life. We come to worship in the Spirit and we come to do this in community. Together, our voices become as one.
ALL: VU # 951
“Holy, holy, holy, my heart, my heart adores you!
My heart is glad to say the words: You are holy, God!”
Leader: The God of love has called us to this place. May we enter with loving hearts and with a willingness to share in this love. We come to worship God and we come to taste the springs of new life. Epiphany is an awakening, a new beginning, new challenges, and new horizons.
ALL: VU # 951
“Holy, holy, holy, my heart, my heart adores you!
My heart is glad to say the words: You are holy, God!”
Leader: The God of prophetic words and deeds has called us to this place. The God of healing has called us to this place. We come to worship and to answer with commitment and with thanksgiving as we open ourselves up to the calling of Jesus the Christ.
ALL: VU # 951
“Holy, holy, holy, my heart, my heart adores you!
My heart is glad to say the words: You are holy, God!
Santo, santo, santo. Mi Corazon teadora!
Mi Corazon te sabedecir: Santo eres Dios!”
Opening Prayer (Unison)
O most gracious God, we come to you in this time of worship as seekers. We have different reasons for being here…each of us. We have different ideas of what you may be in our lives. You are different genders to some of us and non-gendered to most of us. What we do know is that you are love and this transcends everything. Let us not get confused or mired in defining things but let us be open to your countless blessings, of which we are also included. We are your people, your children, and your instruments of peace. We are your many hands which mold this world. Let us always be artists of what is right and of what is a blessing in your eyes. This time of worship is an indication of our commitment to your ways. Instill in us something which will be recognized by others as a sign that we are your people and that our ways are your ways. Make us mindful that we are only human and that our mistakes can and will be forgiven…Amen
Leader: Love shoulders all things, accepts all things, anticipates all things, and tolerates all things. Love never terminates. Because God loves us, we are also forgiven so know that you are and that you are truly loved…Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 589 “Lord, Speak to Me”
A Time for All Ages: “No Bounds” (Telling it like it is)
First Reading: I CORINTHIANS 12: 12-31a (Louise Poudrette)
Now you are the body of Christ and each one a part…
Gospel Reading: LUKE 4: 14-21 (Rev. Jope)
Jesus, the embodiment of the words of Isaiah…
Message: “Discovering Your Neighbours Love”
Responding
*Hymn: MV # 6 “Holy Spirit, Come into Our Lives”
(Verses 1, 5, and 6)
Offering: “What the Lord Has Done In Me,” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: VU # 376 “Spirit of the Living God”
“Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.
Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.
Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me.
Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Prayers of the People (Barb Penhale)
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: VU # 646 “We Are Marching (Siyahamba)”
1st Verse – “We Are Marching”
2nd Verse – “We Are Singing”
3rd Verse – “We Are Marching”
*Commissioning (unison): Broaden our horizons and challenge us to open our minds to new ways and opportunities. Stretch our imagination and be with us as we exercise our creativity with your glory in mind, O God. May we travel in peace – in joy – and with the knowing that we are all truly loved…Amen!
Benediction
“GO IN EPIPHANY WONDER”
Sunday January 20, 2019
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to WORSHIP!! January 20th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
SECOND SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Meditation, and of Sharing of Self With Others.
“There is always some things which we can truly relate to and it has to do with one of the most normal things in your kitchen – your tea kettle. Even though it’s up to its neck in hot water, it continues to sing!!”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Leader: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall
abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” (Psalm 91 – KJV)
Introit: MV # 62 “There Is Room for All” (Sung through two times)
Call to Worship:
Leader: In the homes, let labour cease as we prepare ourselves in worship to the One who breathes us.
ALL: In the streets, let there be peace as each of us settles into this moment of worship.
Leader: In this church, in this place of sacredness to many, let music ring as we once again come into community.
ALL: In each heart, let praises sing to the Holy One.
Leader: (based upon John 2: 1-11) All is ready: the couple, the guests, the food, and the wine…the wedding can begin.
ALL: We have gathered to celebrate and to give thanks.
Leader: The gifts are here – each one given in the Spirit’s name.
ALL: We have gathered to celebrate and to give thanks.
Leader: Be we young or old, we are beloved of God.
ALL: We have gathered to celebrate and to give thanks.
Leader: We are here, all of us, in the name of the Triune God. Morning has broken for us so let us sing to the rafters:
*Opening Hymn: VU # 409 “Morning Has Broken”
Opening Prayer (Unison)
Is what each of us is doing our unique, particular calling? In the sacred stillness of our hearts, we hear your assuring answer:
Yes, what you are doing is your calling? Is what each of us is doing less important than what other disciples are doing? In the stillness of our hearts, we hear your assuring answer: No, what you are doing is important! We give you thanks that you invite each of us – whoever we are and with whatever our gifts are – to follow you as the unique and gifted persons we are. We give you thanks that you don’t expect – or want – us to do the same things as the next disciple does. Help us to speak your love, O God, as only we know how to speak. Help us to be about the tasks you call each of us to do as only we know how to do them. We ask that you continue to bless us with the tools each of us requires, so that, always, we will live lives of faithful disciple- ship in your name…Amen.
A Time for All Ages: “Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show“
https://www.bing.com/search?q=Brother+Loves+travelling+Salvation+Show&src=IE-SearchBox&FORM=IESR3A&pc=EUPP_
First Reading: I CORINTHIANS 12: 1-11 Page 933 (Peggy Gibennus)
Different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit…
Gospel Reading: JOHN 2: 1-11 Page 863 (Rev. Jope)
The wedding in Cana…
Message: “Where there is Great Love,
There is Always Miracles!”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 372 “Though I May Speak”
Offering: “Potter’s Hand,” Darlene Zsheck LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology:
“The wedding feast is to begin;
You’re all invited, come on in
And find your seat at table spread
And dine with me with wine and bread.”
Prayer of Dedication: (Leader)
Blessing
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart (Leader)
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Hymn: VU # 884 “You Shall Go Out With Joy (Isaiah 55)”
*Commissioning (unison): We entered worship, aware of the light of God that shines through the life of Jesus the Christ. And now we depart, carrying that light of truth into the world, to share and to inspire to all whom we meet…Amen.
Benediction
“GO IN EPIPHANY WONDER”
Sunday January 13, 2019
God’s People Together
Welcome to WORSHIP!! January 13th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
BAPTISM of the LORD SUNDAY
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Listening, and Possibly Getting Your Feet Wet.
“All authority has been given me both in heaven and on earth; go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations. Baptize them in the name of Abba God, and of the Only Begotten, and of the Holy Spirit. Teach them to carry out everything I have commanded you. And know that I am with you always, even until the end of the world.” (Matthew 28: 18b – 20 – The Inclusive Bible (Egalitarian translation)
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude: VU # 652 Be Still, My Soul
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Introit: MV #77 Be Still and know (2x)
Call to Worship:
Leader: Have you heard the voice of God speaking to you?......
Have you heard the whisper in the silence?........
God’s voice is strength…hearing it gives life.
ALL: It could be the lapping waves of the ocean on the shore…it could be the gentle rains as they dance upon the earth…it could be the roaring waterfall – these may only be some of the ways in which God speaks to us.
Leader: God’s voice could sound thunderous as giant cedars fall in its power…yet…it is also like a gentle breeze charming both fawns and calves as they dance upon hillsides and fields.
ALL: We can hear God roar in the fiery volcano and we can also listen for God’s voice in the rustling leaves. Listen for God in the trickling of water which slowly slides down the baptismal foreheads.
Leader: Yes…we have heard God speak to us in one or more of these many ways.
ALL: So now we come together to tell God’s glory in worship and in praise. May we hear the voice of God speak to us in this time together as we share in all that we are.
Leader: So with this in mind, let us join together in song:
*Opening Hymn: VU #651 Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
Opening Prayer (Unison)
O Jesus of a new day, angels hold their breath for you, child of the morning, adult of a new dawning, as the Spirit moves anew over the waters of the Jordan. There in the current, there in the stillness, as you meet the shining light reflecting from the surface, our God rejoices over you. Welcome to the new world of peace and of hope…your journey is now to begin.
What will it bring? We don’t know; but the One who was there in the moment you were born will be waiting for you everywhere you go.
You have learned the language of living and of loving, the words to think and to speak, and the deeds to do and just to be is to know God’s loving touch – creation sees its joy fulfilled in you.
What will it bring? We don’t know; but the One who was there in the moment you were born will be waiting for you everywhere you go.
Let us tune our hearts to hear heaven singing and to share our joy with the world. Help us as we worship to reframe all that we are and do in your love…Amen.
A Time for All Ages: “Baptism in Georgia, USA“
Hymn: MV # 92 Like a Rock (2X)
First Reading: ISAIAH 43: 1-7 page 585 (Heather Mayers)
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you…
Second Reading: ACTS 8: 14-17 page 892 (Heather Mayers)
Peter and John baptized the converts in Samaria.
Meditation Time: (Rev. Jope)
Gospel Reading: LUKE 3: 15-17, 21-22 page 834 (Rev. Jope)
Jesus is baptized in the river Jordan…
Message: “You Gotta’ Get Wet!”
Responding
*Hymn: MV #144 Like a Healing Stream
Offering: Jesus, Joy of our Desiring - Instrumental
*Offertory Doxology: VU #541
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise God, all creatures high and low;
Give thanks to God in love made known:
Creator, Word and Spirit, One.
Prayer of Dedication: (Unison)
For the gift of creation, the gift of your love, and the gift of the Spirit by which we live, we thank you and give you the fruit of our hands. May your grace be proclaimed by the gifts that we give…Amen
Reading: REV. 21: 1-6 page 1007
Hymn: VU #713 I See a New Heaven (verses 1 & 4)
Hymn: VU #380 She Flies On (verses 1 & 2)
Hymn: VU #375 Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness (verses 3 & 4)
Reading: 1 Peter 1: 15-16 & Introduction
Hymn: VU #672 Take time to be Holy (all 4 verses)
Blessing
Prayers of the People (ending with The Lord’s Prayer) VU #960
*Hymn: VU #352 Lord of the Dance (verses 1 and 5)
*Commissioning (unison): Go out as seekers after truth. Go out as bearers of light. Go out as tellers of Good News: you are loved, you are blessed, and, you are free…Amen.
Benediction (Rev Gerry Scharff)
Hymn: VU# 842 Unto the Hills (verse 4 only)
Sunday January 6, 2019
Welcome to WORSHIP!! January 6th, 2019 (Year ‘C’)
EPIPHANY SUNDAY {Communion Sunday}
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Listening, and Greeting 2019.
“The power of silence is greatly underestimated.
When you have nothing to say…say nothing.”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Introit: VU # 8 “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming”
Call to Worship:
Leader: Rejoice! This is the day that God has made! This is a new day…a new year…a brand new beginning, for each and every one of us.
ALL: We are all blessed with this new time. May we worship together as new people and may our praise and music engage us in this new life in Christ.
Leader: Let us gather to worship the one who has called us into being by offering us the first gift of all – life itself.
ALL: As we sing, pray, meditate, share in silence, and listen to others, may God’s sustaining presence fill us with new meaning and renewed joy. We can then confidently work creatively with God to care for ourselves, each other, and the earth.
Leader: Let us open our eyes and our ears to all that surrounds us, for God is with us, embracing us, loving us, and guiding us.
ALL: So today we begin a new journey in a new year. Today we are open to being inspired by an old story with a treasured message so we are here to worship together and to be in solidarity with each other.
Leader: So with this in mind, let us join together in song:
*Opening Hymn: “Christ, Be Our Light” (First 2 verses)
“Longing for light, we wait in darkness.
Longing for truth, we turn to you.
Make us your own, your holy people,
light for the world to see….
R: Christ be our light! Shine in our hearts.
Shine through the darkness.
Christ be our light! Shine in your church
gathered today.
Longing for peace, our world is troubled.
Longing for hope, many despair.
Your word alone has pow’r to save us.
Make us your living voice.
R: Christ be our light! Shine in our hearts.
Shine through the darkness.
Christ be our light! Shine in your church
gathered today.”
Opening Prayer (Unison)
O Kind God, as we begin this New Year, we ask that you guide us into it with the sense of your loving direction, ever-present Spirit, and unending wisdom. We give thanks for the accomplishments of the past year and eagerly anticipate your gracious work among us in the year ahead. May today mark not only the beginning of the year but a new beginning in a life of faith. Renew us, we pray, for the living of our days. Give to us, we pray, keen sensitivity that we may see where you are at work around us – and courage necessary to enter into that great work. We ask that our lives may be molded into the image of the Christ and that our witness to his name will be clear and bold. And grant that we may walk closer to you at this year’s ending than at its beginning so come, and fill us with wonder and awe during this hour as we share at table, share in song, and share in these words of this prayer…Amen.
A Time for All Ages:
“This Little Light of Mine”
{Chorus} This little light of mine, I’m gonna make it shine
This little light of mine, I’m gonna make it shine
This little light of mine, I’m gonna make it shine
Let it shine, shine, shine…Let it shine!
{1)Everywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine
Everywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine
Everywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine
Let it shine, shine, shine…Let it shine!
{Chorus}
{2}All up in my house, I’m gonna let it shine
All up in my house, I’m gonna let it shine
All up in my house, I’m gonna let it shine
Let it shine, shine, shine…Let it shine!
{Chorus}
First Reading: ISAIAH 60: 1-6 (Nancy Gillean)
Arise, shine; for your light has come…
Gospel Reading: MATTHEW 2: 1-12 (Rev. Jope)
The visit of the magi…
Message: “God’s Gifts are for Everyone”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 87 “I Am the Light of the World”
Offering: “How Brightly Beams the Morning Star” -- Instrumental
*Offertory Doxology: (Third verse of VU # 81 “As with Gladness Men of Old”)
“As they offered gifts so rare at the manger crude and bare,
so may we with holy joy, pure and free from sin’s alloy,
all our costliest treasures bring, Christ, to you, our heavenly King” Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Service of the Table
(In Lakeview United Church, we serve communion through intinction…you are offered the bread of peace and in turn, it is dipped into the cup and together, words of blessing are offered to you as the Holy Meal takes place…)
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them to our God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
ALL: It is right to give our thanks and our praise.
Leader: God of many names……Therefore, with all your people, in every time and place, we sing the triumphant hymn of your glory.
MV # 203
“O holy, holy, holy God, O God of time and space.
All earth and sea and sky above bear witness to your grace.
Hosanna in the highest heav’n, creation sings your praise.
And blessed is the One who comes and bears your name always!”
Leader: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
ALL: Hosanna in the highest!
Leader: And we come to this table….We come here to do the same in memory of Christ.
Breaking of the Bread
Pouring of the Cup
Prayer (ALL): Come, O Spirit of God, move over these signs of life and of celebration, this loaf and this cup, that we may take them as the bread of life and the wine of arrival. As we stand around this table, may we be your people, committed to your kingdom whose name is peace…Amen.
Leader: The gifts of God, for the people of God…Come…for all is ready.
(During communion, we will be singing VU # 74 “What Child Is This?”)
Blessing
Prayers of the People (ending with The Lord’s Prayer) (Rev. Jope)
*Hymn VU # 91 ”The First Nowell” (Verses 1 - 4)
*Commissioning (unison): We entered worship, aware of the light of God that shines through the life of Jesus the Christ. And now we depart, carrying that light of truth into the world, to share and to inspire…Amen.
Benediction “Christ, Be Our Light” (Last 2 verses)
“Longing for light, we wait in darkness.
Longing for truth, we turn to you.
Make us your own, your holy people,
light for the world to see….
R: Christ be our light! Shine in our hearts.
Shine through the darkness.
Christ be our light! Shine in your church
gathered today.
Many the gifts, many the people,
many the hearts that yearn to belong.
Let us be servants to one another,
Signs of your kingdom come.
R: Christ be our light! Shine in our hearts.
Shine through the darkness.
Christ be our light! Shine in your church
gathered today.”
Postlude
(Thank-you to our wonderful ‘servers’ this morning – Roger & Beckie Scroggins, Hank & Judy Klassen and Daryl Sedor)…
“GO IN EPIPHANY WONDER”
7 pm Christmas Eve Service
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to this Holy Night!!
A Traditional Christmas Eve Service Telling of the Christmas
Story through Scripture, Song, Prayer & Candlelight.
“Christmas is not a time or a season but a state of mind. To cherish peace and good will, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas. If we think on these things, there will be born in us a child of peace and over us will shine a star sending its gleam of hope to the world.
Gathering (Singing Carols beforehand) *Indicates please rise as you are able
*VU # 59 “Joy to the World” (Verses 1 and 2)
*VU # 43 “Go, Tell It on the Mountain” (All verses)
VU # 47 “Still, Still, Still” (All verses)
Choral Prelude “O Christ-Child Sweet,”
Jacqui Lynn Fidlar (mezzo-soprano)
Lakeview United Church Choir
A Welcoming to Christmas Eve (Rev. Jope Langejans)
*Introit VU # 50 “He Is Born (Il Est ne)” (First two verses)
Lighting of the Christ-Candle:
Leader: Tonight is Christmas Eve and I share this thought with all of you…what if we spent a good part of one day filling our chest cavity with a vision of love at every deep breath?.......knowing the need for the Holy one in our lives and in this sometimes heartbroken world, we light the candle of Christ as a shining symbol that God is with us, born in Jesus this night. (Lighting)
Call to Worship:
Leader: Hush…hush…listen…can you hear it?
ALL: I think we can if we focus on the silence…
Leader: It’s a mother’s tears…a father’s sigh of relief…the hustle and bustle of the night…hush…listen…can you hear it?
ALL: Yes, we believe we can…
Leader: It’s the rhythm of your heart…it’s the blessing of your neighbour…it’s the cry of the newborn child…can you hear it?
ALL: We hear in the silent places and in the songs of praise, in the peace of the night and in the chaos of the morning, in this place, and in all places, we hear God’s love.
Leader: It’s alive! It’s abundant! It’s for you! It’s for all!!
ALL: And now, here we are, on Christmas Eve, together, and witnessing the birth of a new dawning of peace on Earth.
*Opening Hymn: VU # 71 “’Twas in the Moon of Wintertime”
An Opening Prayer for Christmas Eve (Rev. Jope Langejans)
An Affirmation of our Faith for Christmas: (unison)
We believe in God, who put music in the universe, so that the birds and the wind, the animals and the insects, and the very stars in their courses are makers of melody. We believe in the God at the centre of Christmas, whose hope for the world was imagined by seers and foretold by prophets. We believe in Christ, whose message of love and grace enables us to sing from the depths of our being, praising our Creator God. We believe in the Holy Spirit, who touches the strings of our lives the way a master musician touches the strings of a harp, causing us to produce beautiful resonance in the lives of others. We believe in the beauty of the manger, transformed by the coming of Jesus, and in the eligibility of every simple place to be ennobled by his presence. We believe in shepherds, in gold and frankincense and myrrh, in angels filling the sky with music, in nights of wonder and moments of grace. We believe in worship, not because it is reasonable or sensible but because we can’t help it: our heart sings in response to our faith – especially on an evening such as this where God touches the Earth once again with living hope…Amen.
Passing of the Peace of Christmas
*Hymn: VU # 44 “It Came upon the Midnight Clear” (Verses 1 and 4)
Older Testament Passage: ISAIAH 9: 2-7 (Rev. Jope)
Musical Response: “O Holy Night” (Karen Shippey-Heilman, soprano)
First Christmas Passage: LUKE 2: 1-7 (Nancy Gillean)
Second Christmas Passage: LUKE 2: 8-14 (Barb Penhale)
*Hymn: VU # 38 “Angels We Have Heard on High” (verses 1 and 2)
Third Christmas Passage: LUKE 2: 15-20 (Heather Mayers)
Christmas Message Rev. Jope Langejans
*Hymn: VU # 55 “In the Bleak Midwinter” (verses 1 and 2)
Christmas Eve Offering
*Offertory Doxology: VU # 74 “What Child Is This“ (verse 3 only)
Prayer of Dedication: Rev. Jope Langejans
A Christmas Prayer: Rev. Jope Langejans
CANDLELIGHTING
(The Christ candle will be taken from the Advent Wreath and brought down the aisles, lighting the outside candles…please hold your candle up when it is lit and the person beside you can tilt theirs and light their candle and so on until all of the candles are lit…when we’ve transformed the sanctuary into ‘light’ we will sing “Silent Night”)
Hymn VU # 67 ”Silent Night”
*Commissioning (unison): Go back into the world with Christmas in your hearts, and remembering the love God has for you. Give peace, fellowship, and love to your neighbour…..Go into this evening with true Joy in your soul….Merry Christmas!!
*Benediction
*Hymn: VU # 60 “O, Come All Ye Faithful” (Verses 1 and 3)
Postlude
5 pm Christmas Eve Service
God’s People Together LAKEVIEW UNITED CHURCH
KIDZ & KAROLZ CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE
A Service of WONDER and of MYSTERY! December 24th, 2018
(All carols for this service can be found in the Voices United Hymn book or seen on the screen…)
Prelude (Sing-along with your favourite Christmas carols)
VU # 69 “Away in a Manger” (all verses)
VU # 38 “Angels We Have Heard on High” (all verses)
VU # 73 “The Virgin Mary Had a Baby Boy” (all verses)
A Welcoming to Bethlehem! (Leader)
ALL: This evening we welcome each other in the wonderful Spirit of Christmas Eve and we wait for the coming of the Christ-child into our lives once again. Through song, through story, through togetherness and through sharing in the light, may our hearts become open to the wonder of this season and what it means in all of our lives. The story is old…the story is new. It’s about a child born in a place no one would expect. The people are ready. Are you ready, for now we gather again… to listen…to wonder…to laugh and to love. Let us open ourselves to the mystery of this evening!!
Hymn: VU # 60 “O Come, All Ye Faithful”
(Verse # 1 with Thomas Joiner on trumpet)
Hymn: The Little Drummer Boy
Hearing the Story:
LUKE 2: 1-7 (Sue Spratt)
Hearing the REAL Story (The Little Drummer Boy)
Hymn: VU # 56 “Jesus, Our Brother” (Verse #2)
Hearing the Story:
LUKE 2: 8-14 (Heather Dorin)
Hearing the REAL Story (The Little Drummer Boy)
Hymn: VU # 38 “Angels We Have Heard on High” (Verse #1)
Hearing the Story:
LUKE 2: 15-20 (Nancy Prince)
Hearing the REAL Story (The Little Drummer Boy)
Hymn: VU # 38 “Angels We Have Heard on High” (Verse #2)
Hearing the Story: MATTHEW 2: 1-5a (Jope Langejans)
Hearing the REAL Story (The Little Drummer Boy)
Hymn: “We Three Kings” (Verse #1)
Hymn: VU # 73 “The Virgin Mary Had a Baby Boy”
Hymn: The Little Drummer Boy
We offer our gifts (Christmas Offering) --- Instrumental
Christmas Eve Prayer (Leader)
Lighting of the Candles in the Advent Wreath and Lighting the Candle of Christ and Sharing in the Light…
Candles for the adults and glow sticks for the younger folk.
VU # 67 “Silent Night” (Verse #1 sung twice)
Benediction
Hymn: VU # 59 “Joy to the World” (Verse #1)
(Thomas Joiner on trumpet)
Merry Christmas!
“We wish you a Merry Christmas,
We wish you a Merry Christmas,
We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Good tidings we bring to you and your kin,
Good tidings of Christmas and a Happy New Year!”
“We wish you a Merry Christmas,
We wish you a Merry Christmas,
We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!”
Sunday December 23rd, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church Welcome to: the Fourth Sunday of the Advent Season!!
THE SUNDAY OF LOVE
Minister: The Reverend Jope Langejans
THEME: ‘Loving in the Light’ [Communion Sunday]
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Opening Ourselves to the Advent Stories, and of Living in the Light of Love.
Gathering *Gives you the opportunity to stand if you are able to…
Prelude
Announcements
Welcoming & Lighting the Candle of Love
Leader: Tomorrow evening, as the darkness begins to surround us, in a far-away land the sun begins to rise on a new day as the world rejoices in the birth of the Holy Child. Like children waiting for Christmas morning, we lie awake in our beds. Christmas is nearly upon us and God’s love will shine. Soon, we will open the curtains to welcome the light of day.
(Two purple candles & the pink candle are lit)
Candle-lighter: {Nancy Rose} Today we kindle the Advent candle of Love. We welcome the warmth that lightens the winter chill, the warmth of passionate embrace, the warmth that comes from the heart of God. Come, Holy Stranger, messenger of Love on this Advent journey: welcome us as we welcome you. We receive the light of Love.
Introit: VU #7 “Hope Is a Star” (All four verses)
Call to Worship:
Leader: It is upon this Sunday of Love where all of us need to be mindful that God has called us to be loving people – for God is Love itself and the power of this is unimaginable.
ALL: We come together on this last Sunday of Advent to profess our Love for each other and for our world.
Leader: Come, people of God, come and begin your journey to Bethlehem once more…step by step by step. Let us journey through the gift of these Advent days until, like Mary and Joseph, of necessity and weariness, found their place at the manger.
ALL: We come to make our journey in hope, in trust, in confidence, and in a deep Love for what is real, for we always must remember that God is with us.
Leader: In the ancient desert, in our modern wilderness, God is ever among us showing us the paths of Love.
ALL: So as we worship together on this last Sunday of the Advent season and wait with expectant hearts for the birthing of a new dawn, let us open our hearts to song as the rhythms move us to actions of Love:
*Opening Hymn: VU # 9 “People, Look East”
Prayer of Approach: (Unison)
ALL: O God of Love…O Word made flesh…you came to dwell among us long ago. No matter how dull and lifeless, or how happy and fulfilling our lives may be, there is always need for a deeper awareness of your hopeful presence. There are signs of your coming, signs of your continued presence, everywhere in our lives. Freshen up our vision so that we can recognize your dwelling within us and among us as we move hurriedly in this busy season of the year. May our lives be filled with Love for all those who come our way. May our lives be filled with light as we sometimes journey in darkness. May your gifts of light and Love gift us with hope for our world and may our worship service this morning be open to your in-dwelling Spirit…Amen.
Time for All Ages: “Gold Wrapping Paper”
*Hymn: VU # 73 “The Virgin Mary Had a Baby Boy”
Engaging MICAH 5: 2-5a (Nancy Gillean)
…Micah’s announcement of who is to come to bring peace.
A Special Dutch Hymn: “Ere Zij God” Niesje Bates
Jochem Langejans
LUKE 1: 57-79 (Rev. Jope)
…And Zechariah’s lips are finally opened.
Message: “Living and Loving in the Light”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 43 “Go, Tell It on the Mountain”
Offering: “Before the Marvel of This Night,” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Tune of VU # 541)
“With Love and light we see quite clear
that nothing’s there for us to fear
for having God as loving guide
will bring us safely to the other side.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Service of the Table (Incorporating VU # 55)
Leader: God be with you.
ALL: And also with you.
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them up to God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to God.
ALL: It is right to give God thanks and praise.
Leader: God of all times and places, we gather at your table of grace….
We remember the fragility of that revelation, as well as the hope he stirred and imagination he inspired, and we sing:
VU # 55 “In the Bleak Midwinter” Verse #1
Leader: We remember Jesus, the one who blazed a new and risky path….even those who gave him over to death, and we sing:
VU # 55 “In the Bleak Midwinter” Verse #2
Leader: On that night, in the midst of great confusion and fear, Jesus broke bread with friends, saying:
“This is my body, which I give for you and for all. When you do
this, remember me.” (Breaking of the loaf)
With a blessing, he took the cup and offered it to them saying:
“This cup is God’s covenant which is given for all. When you drink this,
remember me.” (Filling of the cup)
VU # 55 “In the Bleak Midwinter” Verse #3
Leader: Come to us, life-giving Spirit of God. Bless us, these gifts, and what we do here, so that we might sing your song of Love for your people and for your world.
All in Prayer: God of all, we pray for your people:
For those who are afraid and oppressed, offer them courage.
For those suffering conflict and fear, may your bring peace.
For those who long for food and water, may they be filled.
For those who long for justice, may it be fulfilled.
We pray also for ourselves and our community:
That those in hospital and in care feel your strength.
That those who are alone and anxious feel you near.
That those who are ill in body and in spirit be comforted.
That our friends and family be blessed by healing and love.
Leader: Hear our prayers, O God,
ALL: and in your mercy, answer.
Leader: We pray these things, trusting in God’s faithfulness revealed:
ALL: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
VU # 55 “In the Bleak Midwinter” Verse #4
Leader: Come, for the table is ready…gifts of God for all of you, the beloved children of God.
(“What Feast of Love?” Sung to the tune of Greensleeves)
Slide Pageant (Hymns sung during Slide Pageant presentation)
Blessing
Prayers of the People: (Our Prayers for the People this morning will be both in English and in French and we will share in the English words and Louise Poudrette will lead in the words in French for those who would also Love to partake.)
English: God of the morning and the evening, as we rush about our days,
French: Dieu de laube comme du crepuscule, du matin au soir nous nous precipitons dans nos journees,
English: often dismissive of your signs…give us pause.
French: afferes et anattentifs aux signes que tu nous donnes: fais en sorte d’interrompre notre course folle.
English: As we orient ourselves to your direction, let us become aware of your silence, let us notice your beauty,
French: En nous orientant deliberement selon tes prescriptions, que s’eleve en nous la conscience de ton salience, de ta beaute,
English: so that we may move in time with you again. In Jesus’ name we pray.
French: afin que tu redeviennes le compagnon de toutes nos heures. Nous t’en prions, au nom de Jesus.
Together: AMEN!
And we now share the words of the timeless prayer which Jesus taught us:
Lord’s Prayer
Commissioning (unison): You may become instruments of Love…each of you…in times of strife. Take up your call and go, spreading the message of Love to all. Be continually reminded that you are the best in the sight of God and the world…Amen.
*Hymn: VU # 1 “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”
(Verses 1 and 2, 6 and 7)
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday December 16th, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to: the Third Sunday of the Advent Season!!
THE SUNDAY OF JOY
Minister: The Reverend Jope Langejans
THEME: Receiving ‘Joy’
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Opening Ourselves to the Advent
Stories, and of Living in the Light of Joy.
Gathering *Gives you the opportunity to stand if you are able to…
Prelude
Announcements
Welcoming & Lighting the Candle of Joy
Leader: As increasing light colours the skies in a chorus of pinks and reds, birds, also, raise their song of greeting for the coming day. Like that coloured sky, these flames remind us of the growing light that announces Jesus’ birth with a chorus of angels’ songs proclaiming a new day. May we pause to hear the twitter of that song and join our voices to the joyful cries of praise at Jesus’ birth.
(Two purple candles are lit)
Candle-lighter: { Kayla and Isabelle } Today we kindle the Advent candle of Joy. We welcome the spark that dances with the Holy Spirit, the spark that fires and inspires our souls, the spark of creativity and wonder. Come, Holy Stranger, evangelist of Joy on this Advent journey: welcome us as we welcome you and receive the light of Joy.
Introit: MV # 4 “All Who Are Thirsty”
Soloist: “All who are thirsty, all who are weak, come to the fountain.
Dip your heart in the stream of life.
Let the pain and the sorrow be washed away
in the waves of his mercy as deep cries out to deep.
ALL: “Child of God…come.
Child of God…come.
Holy child…come.
Holy child…come.”
Soloist: “All who are thirsty, all who are weak, come to the fountain.
Dip your heart in the stream of life.
Let the pain and the sorrow be washed away
in the waves of his mercy as deep cries out to deep.
ALL: “Child of God…come.
Child of God…come.
Holy child…come.
Holy child…come.”
Soloist: “Holy Spirit come….As deep cries come.”
Call to Worship:
Leader: We are a people open to anticipation and we are truly ready for a celebration.
ALL: So we say, ‘Behold, the birth of the Christ child is to be expected.’
Leader: We are a community of faith that remembers the message of hope, peace, joy, and love that God shared with all.
ALL: So we say, ‘Behold, the birth of the Christ child is near.’
Leader: We are a community inspired to live lives of service and of wholeness.
ALL: So we say, ‘Behold, the birth of the Christ child will change who we are
Leader: in this time of worship and beyond.
ALL: We are all pilgrims on a journey to Bethlehem. We move with confidence and with hope, for God is by our side.
Leader: We are believers, on an excursion. We move ahead, knowing that we are not alone.
ALL: We are neighbours, on an expedition. We head into the unknown, confident that God goes with us.
Leader: So come, all of you pilgrims on this birthing journey and let us all worship in unity and raise our voices in song:
*Opening Hymn: VU #7 “Hope Is a Star”
(Verses 1, 2, and 3)
Prayer of Approach: (Unison)
ALL: O God of Joy, you surprised the world that first Christmas when you came as a little child. You could have come as a king on a throne but instead you chose a place where animals were kept and where only the lowest of the low could find refuge. So this morning, we ask that you surprise us once again with some unexpected arrival of your presence. In a day when folks can orbit the earth in space stations, we call upon you to orbit our hearts. In a day when satellites surround the world, we ask that you become a satellite to our needy lives. In a day when thousands of people gather from all nations of the world to turn back the clock of climate change, give us faith for fear, strength for weakness, and victory for defeat. Come and instill a new vision of Joy in all of our hearts and move us in directions of life-giving actions. Be with us this day as we worship together and as we become, once again, people of a deeper Joy…Amen.
Time for All Ages: “Where DO we find Joy?”
*Hymn: VU # 249 “Rejoice in the Lord Always”
(We’ll sing this through as many times as needed.)
Engaging ZEPHANIAH 3: 14-20 (Nancy Gillean)
…A promise of a new day and Israel’s golden age.
PHILIPPIANS 4: 4-7 (Nancy Gillean)
…Rejoice in the Lord always
*Hymn: VU # 12 “She Walked in the Summer (The Visit)”
LUKE 1: 39-56 (Rev. Jope)
…Mary and Elizabeth come together and rejoice
Message: “Receiving Joy Through Anonymous People”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 23 “Joy Shall Come”
(Sung through two to three times)
Offering: “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Tune of VU # 541)
“We feel the Joy upon this day;
we know we’ve seen a better way
to open selves to heal our earth
throughout the season of rebirth.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Blessing
Prayers of the People (Meditation Time): (Unison)
ALL: O God of Joy, God of Bethlehem’s baby boy, we bow before you in this season of goodwill to thank you for the goodwill you have shown to us. We do not always deserve the gifts that enrich our lives, yet they continue to come. Teach us to live in sensitivity and awareness, that we may know each one of them and respond with grateful hearts. Forgive us for the anxieties that choke our existence, and help us to be free and happy.
As you have entered our lives through a lowly cattle stall, make us ready to enter our lives of others through the humblest of offices. Take away our false pride and sense of self-importance, that we may live openly toward others and relate to them on the basis of care and compassion. Let the star that led the wise men to the stable shine in our hearts and imaginations this Christmas and lead us to worship him where he may be found: in the hovels of the poor, at the tables of the hungry, at the bedsides of the sick, in the excited faces of little children. Comfort those who mourn, heal those who are ill, and mend the lives of those who are broken as we act as your children in this world. And we now share the words of the timeless prayer which Jesus taught us:
Lord’s Prayer
Commissioning (unison): And now may the brightness of Hope, the brilliance of Peace, and the intensity of Joy be our gifts as we leave this time and place of worship. May we go strength- ened because we have been together in this place and touched by God’s Spirit. May we continue to be a light to the world, that everyone might see the kindness of God…Amen.
*Hymn: MV # 220 “Hope Shines as the Solitary Star”
(We sing Hope, Peace, and Joy)
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday, December 9th, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to: the Second Sunday of the Advent Season!!
THE SUNDAY OF PEACE
Minister: The Reverend Jope Langejans
THEME: Breathing In ‘Peace’
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Opening Ourselves to the Advent
Stories, and of Searching for that which is Peace.
Gathering *Gives you the opportunity to stand if you are able to…
Prelude
VU # 10 “Prepare the Way of the Lord”
“Prepare the way of the Lord! Prepare the way of the Lord!
Make a straight path for him, make a straight path;
Prepare the way of the Lord!”
Announcements
Welcoming & Lighting the Candle of Peace
Leader: In the early hours of every morning, the inky blue of the sky slowly begins to turn purple, heralding that the night is passing and morning comes. As the flame begins to burn, we are reminded of the gentle wind that each dawn brings, pushing us closer to your promised reign. As we wait through the time of Advent for the celebration of Jesus’ birth, may we be drawn together in the Spirit’s peace.
(Second purple candle is lit)
Candle-lighter: {Dakota Hawk} We welcome the glow that causes us to pause, the glow that entices us to gather together, and the glow that shines in hearts of goodwill. Come, Holy Stranger, welcome us as we welcome you as we receive the light of peace.
Introit: MV # 19 “Maranatha” (sung through three times)
*Call to Worship:
Leader: It is upon this Peace Sunday where we are all reminded that God has called us to peace – for God is peace itself. May we have the vision to see that each of us, in some measure, can help to realize these aims. Where there are ignorance and superstition,
ALL: let there be enlightenment and knowledge.
Leader: Where there are prejudice and hatred,
ALL: let there be acceptance and love.
Leader: Where there are fear and suspicion,
ALL: let there be confidence and trust.
Leader: Where there are tyranny and oppression,
ALL: let there be freedom and justice.
Leader: Where there are poverty and disease,
ALL: let there be prosperity and health.
Leader: Where there are strife and discord,
ALL: let there be harmony and peace.
Leader: In this time of worship, may we be firmly rooted in living lives with peaceful purposes. Let us now open ourselves to the gifts of song as we share in our opening hymn:
*Opening Hymn: “Christ Be Our Light”
Prayer of Approach: (Unison)
ALL: O God of Peace…we know that peace is never earned with easy words. Peace and love are always alive in us, but we are not always alive to peace and love. We remember the words which Jesus gave to us, “Peace I leave with you, my own peace I give to you.” May these words invade, flood, and shake the foundations of our hearts and our lives, in this community, in this city, in our daily lives, in our witness to the world; let peace break out. We meet together in worship and may we express our love for one another, our commitment to each other, and point us beyond ourselves to the needs of the world, both locally and abroad. You make peace within us. Let us claim it! You make peace between us. Let us share it! Our approach was and is in peace, and we were established in the Spirit of unity…
Amen.
Time for All Ages: “An Unlikely Messenger”
*Hymn: VU # 272 “Open Your Ears, O Faithful People”
Engaging MALACHI 3: 1-4 (Jean Scott)
A refiner’s fire and a launderer’s soap…
*Hymn: VU # 333 Love Divine, All Loves Excelling”
LUKE 1: 26-38 (Rev. Jope)
The angel Gabriel announcing God’s message to Mary…
Message: “Breathing In the Winds of Peace”
Responding
*Hymn: MV # 120 “My Soul Cries Out (Canticle of the Turning)”
Offering: “The Perfect Rose,” J. Leavitt LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Tune of VU # 541)
“Bless all peacemakers in this place,
and shine our peace to the human race;
for actions which we practice here
will rid our world of all its fear.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Blessing
Prayers of the People (Meditation Time): (Unison)
Leader: Is it worth it…pushing through the crowds at the shopping mall, agonizing over those little gifts that you persistently tell yourself that you need to pick up for that distant cousins?
ALL: Is it worth it?
Leader: The travel on busy highways, the delays at the airport, the constant line-ups wherever you go?
ALL: Is it worth it?
Leader: The competing demands on our time: carol concerts, Christmas pageants, duty visits to family members, hurried reunions with friends?
ALL: Is it worth it?
Leader: The needs of competing charities, the cost to the family budget. The cost to the emotional health of family members?
ALL: is it worth it?
Leader: And then a housebound church member thanks you for a visit, a child displays innocent joy in the Christmas play, a family member in a senior’s residence hugs you as you leave, and the family shares memories around the festive table:
ALL: and in a far-off place and in a time far from our own, a baby stirs, and a mother smiles and looks wistfully into his eyes…it is worthwhile!
(Words of Assurance)
Leader: In the hurry and anxiety of Christmas preparations you go with us, O God, encouraging us to take a break, bringing us peace in the midst of the rush.
ALL: You will settle us down, you will point us to Jesus, your anointed one. You will bring us to the stable to worship and to adore. And, loving God, we are extremely grateful…
Lord’s Prayer
Commissioning (unison): May the candle of peace burn brightly in our hearts, preparing the way for the Christ child. May we be the signs of peace in our world, as we prepare during this season of Advent. And, may we always know that we never go alone for God our Creator, Jesus our Brother, and the Holy Spirit, the winds of Peace, are our constant companions…Amen.
*Hymn: “Soon and Very Soon”
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday December 2, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to: the First Sunday of the Advent Season!!
THE SUNDAY OF HOPE [COMMUNION]
Minister: The Reverend Jope Langejans
THEME: The Waters of ‘Hope’
A Service of Prayer, of Song, of Sharing in the Sacrament of Communion, and of Opening Ourselves to the Advent Stories.
Gathering *Gives you the opportunity to stand if you are able to…
Prelude
Announcements
Welcoming: (Leader) As we look toward the night sky, we see the sparkle of stars set against the depth of infinite space. We feel humbled by the vastness of the universe and overwhelmed by what we do not know. Like another star sparkling in the night, we light our first candle to add to the billions of lights all around us. Holy Light, you shine with hope in the challenges of our world. (A purple candle is lit)
Candle-lighter: {Kurt Perkins} Our hope is firmly grounded in God, who holds our lives and who is always at work for our good, and for the good of the world. Hope burns brightly in the December darkness. Hope will be our guide as we journey again…to Bethlehem.
Introit: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” VU # 1 (first verse)
“O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lowly exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.”
*Call to Worship:
Leader: Look around you, the world is filled with many gifts. May you celebrate the gifts of the people whom you work, serve, and care for. Be open to the gifts of God’s people everywhere.
ALL: God is the source of all gifts.
Leader: Look around you…life is filled with many gifts. May you be blessed by the gifts shared by loved ones with whom you share life and from whom you have learned much. Be open to the love shared in these gifts.
ALL: Christ is the embodiment of God’s love.
Leader: Look around you…each day is filled with many gifts. May you give thanks for the gifts of all those who are a part of The United Church of Canada. Be open to the faith revealed in these gifts.
ALL: The Spirit is alive in these gifts.
Leader: Once more, look around you…God gives joy for one and all.
ALL: We look around us and find joy in abundance to share.
*Opening Hymn: “Herald! Sound the Note of Gladness ” VU # 28
Prayer of Approach: (Unison)
ALL: O Advent God, O God of anticipation, grant us thankful hearts today for our choicest gift, our dearest guest. Let not our souls be such busy inns that have no place for Christ, but quiet places of prayer and praise. Help our minds to be places where holy thoughts pass up and down. May you find in us fit company, a place where the needful cares of life are put away and where a sweet space is kept for you, where adults and children watch and await your coming. And when you come again, may you find all things ready and our church family waiting for no new master, but for one long-known and loved. Even so, come, Lord Jesus, come…Amen.
Time for All Ages: “A Returning King,” (a true story of what had appeared in the Associated Press of January 19, 1999)
*Hymn: “Hope Shines as the Solitary Star” MV # 220
Engaging JEREMIAH 33: 10-11b ; 14-16 (Jude Sampson)
A righteous branch from David’s line….
*Hymn: “Isaiah 40 (Comfort, Comfort My People)” VU # 883
LUKE 1: 5-25 (Rev. Jope)
The beginning story of Zechariah and Elizabeth…
Message: “Swimming in the Waters of Hope”
Responding
*Hymn: “Water Flowing From the Mountains” MV # 87
Offering: “I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Tune of VU # 541)
“We sit and wait…anticipate,
the coming of a new-born child.
Our hearts are open to receive
the gift from God so meek and mild.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Service of the Table (Communion)
Leader: God be with you.
ALL: And also with you.
Leader: Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them up to God.
Leader: Let us give thanks to God.
ALL: It is right to give God thanks and praise.
Leader: In the rich dark night of winter, God makes an astounding promise………
We gather at this table, praying that crooked ways be made straight, that valleys’ peace be lifted up and that mountains’ might brought low so that all God’s people might rejoice together, saying:
ALL: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the one that comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest!
Leader: We give thanks for the mystery and the wonder revealed that first night…..
With your people of all times and places, we await with hope the fulfillment of your vision for all creation.
ALL: Bless us, O God, and these your gifts.
Encourage us to share your life and love,
which makes us, and the gifts we share, truly holy.
Leader: Transform us, O God, and your world, and bless your children:
those who feel alone and afraid…
those whose souls and homes are broken by violence…
those who will go hungry, thirsty, and cold tonight…
those who long only to hear that they are loved…
God made known in Jesus Christ,
ALL: hear our prayer.
Leader: We pray these things, trusting in God’s faithfulness revealed:
ALL: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
(Sharing the Loaf and the Cup)
(Communion Hymn: MV # 200 “You Are My Body”)
{Thank-you to our servers today: Barb Foster, Peggy & Bob Gibennus, Heather Mayers, and Daryl Sedor.}
Blessing
Prayers of the People: (Rev. Jope)
Lord’s Prayer
Commissioning (unison): May the candle of hope burn brightly in our hearts, preparing the way for the new birth. May we be the signs of hope in our world, as we prepare during this season of Advent. And, may we always know that we never go alone for the Holy Trinity are our companions…Amen.
*Hymn: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” VU #1 (verses 2 & 7)
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday November 25, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to: SUNDAY WORSHIP!! REIGN of CHRIST SUNDAY!!
Minister: The Reverend Jope Langejans
THEME: Going Into Advent & Christmas,
What Have We Left Undone?
A Service of Prayer, of Song, and of Moving With the Spirit!
And here’s the quote for this Sunday: “Never, ever, mistake knowledge for wisdom… knowledge helps you make a living, wisdom helps you make a life.” (Sandra Carey)
Gathering *Gives you the opportunity to stand if you wish to…
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Introit: “God Our Protector” MV # 119 (Sung through twice)
*Call to Worship: (Susan Lukey, High River U.C., High River, AB. Gathering,
Pentecost 2 2018, page 49. Used with permission)
Leader: Sunrise, sunset. Winter, spring, summer, fall. The cycle of seasons, the cycle of the sun, wisely guides us in life. So, too, the cycle of the Christian year offers wisdom and guidance, following the path of Jesus, the wisdom of the ages. Advent --
ALL: four weeks to prepare, anticipate, and wonder, with hope and love.
Leader: Christmas --
ALL: 12 days to celebrate the birth of Jesus, “God-with-us.”
Leader: Epiphany --
ALL: several weeks for new insights, new ways of seeing.
Leader: Lent –
ALL: 40 days (not counting Sundays) to reflect upon our lives as followers of the Way and to make course corrections, as needed.
Leader: Easter –
ALL: 40 days of celebrating Jesus’ resurrection and for watching for and welcoming new life in our midst.
Leader: Pentecost –
ALL: one day to welcome the energy of Spirit’s dance into our lives.
Leader: Season of Pentecost –
ALL: ordinary time for learning and living as followers of the Way.
Leader: Season of Creation –
ALL: five weeks to reflect on our relationship with God’s creation.
Leader: Reign of Christ –
ALL: the final day of the church year, a time to name God, as known through Jesus, as the higher power in our lives.
Leader: Today we come to the end of the church year. The cycle is complete. The new Christian year begins tomorrow.
ALL: We come to worship God, the wisdom, the power, the guidance for our lives.
*Opening Hymn: “Yahweh Be Praised” MV # 51 (Sung twice)
Prayer of Approach: (Unison)
ALL: Thank-you, kaleidoscope God, for all of the strong colours which came to us through the season of Pentecost. Thank-you for the blues and the greens: sometimes rippling and sometimes raging, scouring and roaring in gales of the Spirit – winds of change. Thank-you for the reds and the yellows: sparking and blazing, leaping and alighting in tongues of fire – torches of courage. Thank-you for whites and silvers: quieting and consoling, inspiring and soaring in dove of peace – messenger of hope. Thank-you for all of these colours of love and longing, wildness and wisdom, challenge and compassion. So colour our lives by your mighty Spirit, that we change, find courage, radiate hope - for this is thanksgiving more precious than words. Kaleidoscope God, come into this place and move each of us…Amen.
Time for All Ages: “Setting the Stage for Our Advent Journey,
Even Before it Begins.”
*Hymn: “Behold, Behold, I Make All Things New” MV # 115
(Sung through two or three times)
Engaging 2 SAMUEL 23: 1-7 (Bob Gibennus)
David’s last words glorify God….
REVELATION 1: 4b - 8 (Bob Gibennus)
I am the Alpha and the Omega…
*Hymn: “Our Lord, You Stood in Pilate’s Hall”
(Sung to the tune of “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks” (Winchester Old)
See the words up on the screen…)
JOHN 18: 33-37 (Rev. Jope)
Pilate asks Jesus, “Are you King of the Jews?”…
Message: “What Have We Left Undone?”
Responding
*Hymn: “God of the Bible (Fresh as the Morning) MV # 28
Offering: “Jesus, Be the Centre” LUC Choir
*Offertory Doxology: (Tune of VU # 541)
“May we but wait upon love’s touch,
encourage those who may have much
to give so freely from the heart
to offer folks a brand new start.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Blessing
Prayers of the People: Wayne Gordanier
(Interspersed with Paul Rumbolt’s “Be Still”)
“Be still, be still, be still and know that I am God.
I am exalted in the nations and the earth.
Be still, and know that I am God.”
The Sung Lord’s Prayer: VU # 959
Commissioning (unison): The seasons of the church year come and go. The seasons of the calendar year come and go. The seasons of our lives change from one to the next. The call of the gospel remains constant. Jesus’ call to “come and follow me” is spoken each day. May God give us what we need to answer, “Here I am, send me!”…Amen.
*Hymn: “Rejoice, the Lord is King” VU # 213
A Short Message from your Pledgefest Folks…
Benediction
Postlude
Sunday November 18, 2018
26th Sunday after Pentecost November 18th, 2018
Welcome to: SUNDAY WORSHIP!! IT’S A SINGING SUNDAY!!
Minister: The Reverend Jope Langejans
Special Guests: The Corpus Christi Male Chorale (CCMC)
THEME: And What Is Our Rock and Our Foundation?
A Service of Prayer, of Song, and of Moving With the Spirit!
And here’s the quote for this Sunday (sometimes called ‘Children’s Sunday):
” After church one Sunday, the young lad announced that he wanted to become a preacher... “Wonderful,” says Mom… “And what made you decide?”… “Well, since I go to church anyway, I’d rather be standing up and yelling instead of sitting down and listening.”
Gathering *Gives you the opportunity to stand if you wish to…
Prelude
Welcoming and Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Introit: “The Lord is My Light” (CCMC)
*Call to Worship or Gathering and Coming Together:
Leader: Welcome to each and every one…welcome to this time of worship. What is worship really? What is it meant for?
ALL: To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God. In our coming together, we are saying firstly that “we believe” and secondly, “that we are willing to act upon our belief.”
Leader: So if worship is a statement of our belief and the actions which are around it, then what is the purpose of worship?
ALL: To worship is to feed the mind with the truth of God. To worship is to purge our imaginations by the beauty of God.
Leader: So then, how are we to put our beliefs into action and how does this work for us as not only a congregation but also as those who may receive?
ALL: To worship is to open our hearts to the love of God and to devote our will to the purpose of God. To worship is to fill out ‘toolbox’ for what we need to mend our broken world – person by person. So come, let us join together in song as we sing one of the timeless hymns of many years ago:
*Opening Hymn: VU # 264 “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”
Sunday’s Reflection of the Heart: (Unison)
ALL: O Holiest One, O God of us all, we open our eyes to find that you have blessed each of us with a new day even before we thought to ask – it’s just here for us to enjoy. We thank-you, O Holy One, for your generous provision. Help us and all those present this morning who have gathered here in Lakeview United Church to discover your less obvious blessings. Give us:
the courage to ask that our church and its mission be
vital and life-giving;
the stamina to search for Christ-like pathways;
the boldness to knock and confess our need of the Holy
Spirits’ power;
And the grace to walk through doors you open for us.
We give thanks, o God, that through Christ we know you both listen and respond. Come into this place of worship and surround us with your presence so that each of us may be a gift to others…Amen.
Time for All Ages: “”
Corpus Christi Male Chorale “ The Animals are Comin’ ”
“ Down By the Riverside ”
Engaging 1 SAMUEL 1: 4-20 (Gwen Jamieson)
Samuel is born to Hannah and Eli….
HEBREWS 10: 11-14 (Gwen Jamieson)
Provoke one another to love and do good deeds…
*Hymn: VU # 635 “All the Way My Saviour Leads Me”
MARK 13: 1-8 (Rev. Jope)
Not one stone of the temple shall be left standing…
Message: “Our Rock and Our Foundation”
Responding
*Hymn: VU # 716 “My Life Flows On”
Offering: (CCMC) “Soon All Will Be Done”
*Offertory Doxology: VU # 541
“Praise God from all blessings flow;
praise God, all creatures high and low;
give thanks to God in love made known:
Creator, Word and Spirit, One.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Blessing
Corpus Christi Male Chorale “It Is Well With My Soul”
Prayers of the People (ending with The Lord’s Prayer) (Rev. Jope)
Commissioning (unison): As we go, may we know the blessing of God in every place we find ourselves.
May we see God’s blessings in everyone we meet.
May we be God’s blessing to everyone we meet.
God is with us. We are not alone. Thanks be to God…Amen.
Choral Benediction (CCMC) “Grace Be Unto You”
Postlude
Deepest thanks from all of us at Lakeview United Church to The Corpus Christi Male Chorale in their sharing of their gift of music!! You are all truly blessings indeed!!
November 11, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
WELCOME TO YOUR TIME OF WORSHIP!!
A SUNDAY OF REMEMBRANCE
Welcome to Your Service of Prayer, Song, and of Continual Blessings.
“Some folks live throughout their lives with only seeing a hopeless end…
I would rather live my complete life through believing that there is an endless hope!”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
*Processional
*Presentation of Colours
*Laying of the Wreaths
*Last Post (Thomas Joiner – Trumpet)
*Minute of Silence
*Reveille
In Flanders Fields (James Cameron & Lucas Pope)
The Soldier’s Cry / Words of Remembrance
Leader: They shall grow not old, as we who are left grow old…age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun, and in the morning, we will remember them
ALL: We will remember them.
(You Tube, Remembrance Day Videos, Canada)
*O Canada
Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
*Introit: VU # 556 “Would You Bless Our Homes and Families” (Verses 1 and 4)
Call to Worship:
Leader: Through every generation, through times of hope and times of fear,
ALL: through times of war and times of peace,
Leader: through times of loss and times of joy,
ALL: you are God!
Leader: In the first moment of grief,
ALL: in the long, empty nights,
Leader: in the chaos of war, in the search for answers,
ALL: you, God, are with us!
Leader: When we pause in the midst of our busy lives,
ALL: when we remember those who suffered and those who died,
Leader: when we pray to you saying, your kingdom come,”
ALL: you are God!
Leader: Today we wear our poppies as symbols of the right to freedom:
ALL: the crowd responding to the words of Martin Luther King Jr,
“I have a dream…”
Leader: This is the symbol of the desire for justice and a symbol of God’s
love overcoming evil and hatred.
*Hymn: MV # 154 “Deep in Our Hearts”
Morning Prayer & Blessing (Unison):
(With this opening prayer we will be utilizing VU # 278
“In the Quiet Curve of Evening”)
ALL: O God of many names, we pray for peace within ourselves, in our relationships, in our communities, in our world. May we be empowered to do the work of peace wherever we may find ourselves so that you may work through each of us. We give you thanks today for the devotion and courage of all those who have offered military service for this country: for those who have fought for freedom.
(Sing: “In the Quiet Curve of Evening” verse #1 VU # 278)
ALL: Where there is terror or fear, may we help create calmness. Where there is the silence of repression, may we help to give voice. Where there is only violence, may we help to show other ways. With all of our hearts we pray for peace which flows from Holy Love, which permeates all living beings, which permits children to play – open and unafraid and not living with fear or anger.
(Sing: “In the Quiet Curve of Evening” verse #2 VU # 278)
ALL: O Holy Wisdom, you inspire us to remember and live with our memories both of combat and of peace…for we know that peace is generosity, peace is compassion, peace is justice, and peace is extended to all. O God, hear our prayer and help us be the answer.
(Sing: “In the Quiet Curve of Evening” verse #3 VU # 278)
A Time for All Ages: Painting Peace
*Blessing of Each Other as We Share in the Peace of Christ
(Let us all be mindful that it is flu season and a simple Namaste is maybe all which is needed…)
Engaging With the Sacred Text
Older Testament Reading: RUTH 3: 1-5; 4: 13-17 (Barb Penhale)
Ruth marries Boaz and restores the family line…
Gospel Reading: MARK 12: 38-44
(Rev. Jope)
Message: “God’s Strength is Found in Our Weakness”
Hymn: VU # 713 “I See a New Heaven”
Offering: Dona Nobis Pacem (LUC Choir)
*Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU 217 “All Creatures of Our God and King”)
“We give so we can further peace;
We give so we can mend our Earth;
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.
We give because we care for all
And wait upon a brand new birth.
Sing praises, sing praises,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Closing Meditation: (Rev. Jope)
Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Commissioning: We go from here ready to take risks for the sharing of the Good News. We go from here ready to give of ourselves for the
gospel of Christ. We go from here certain that God is with us. We go knowing that we are never alone…Amen!
*Hymn VU # 684 “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace”
*Benediction
*Recessional
Postlude
Deepest thanks to all of the Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, Ventures, their Leaders and their Parents and Families
for participating in today’s special Remembrance Sunday Service…You are all truly blessings!!
November 4, 2018
GOD’S PEOPLE TOGETHER LAKEVIEW UNITED CHURCH
Welcome to Worship
Leading Worship Today: Bob Gibennus, Licensed Lay Worship Leader
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Music for Gathering
Greeting: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Response: And also with you.
Acknowledging the Territory
Welcome to Lakeview United Church, located near the banks of the Elbow River and the Weaselhead conservation area. We acknowledge with respect the history, spirituality and culture of the Indigenous Peoples for whom this was once the sacred gathering ground of the buffalo and the healing place of the Medicine Tree, the peoples with whom Treaty 7 was signed. We recognize our responsibility, as signatories to that treaty, to live with respect on this land and in peace and friendship with its people.
Welcoming & Announcements
*Gathering Hymn: Come in, Come in and Sit Down VU #395
*Blessing of Each Other as We Share in the Peace of Christ
Call to Worship:
(written by Kate Crawford, Huron Shores United Church, Grand Bend Ont. Gathering, Pentecost 2 2018, page 46. Used with permission)
Leader: People of God, prepare your hearts!
All: We prepare them, as many have done in this place before us.
Leader: People of God, prepare your spirits!
All: We prepare in spirit and become aware of the great communion of saints all around us.
Leader: People of God, prepare to worship!
All: Generation after generation have lifted their voices in worship, and we take our place among them, faithful to the tradition we have inherited, breathing new life into it in our own day, passing it along to those who come after us.
Leader: Let us worship God!
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
*Hymn: In Loving Partnership We Come VU #603
Opening Prayer: For the Communion of Saints VU #719
God of the ages, we praise you for all your servants who have done justice, loved mercy, and walked humbly with their God. We praise you for all who have sought your new creation, and who, by their steadfast faith, have shown their discipleship in Christ Jesus. We praise you for those we have known and loved, and pray that we, with them, may follow in the way of Christ, and, at the last, dwell in your holy city, sharing the inheritance of the saints in light, through your son, our savior, Jesus Christ. Amen
A Time for All Ages: Stained Glass Saints (Peggy Gibennus)
*Hymn: Let There Be Light VU 679
Engaging with the Sacred Text
Matthew 1:2-6a The genealogy of David the son of Abraham
Matthew 5:14-16 You are the light of the world
Reflection: Does Your Light Shine? (Bob Gibennus)
*Hymn: Spirit, Open My Heart MV #79
Responding
Pledgefest
Offering: Blest Are They (words and music by David Haas) LUC Choir
*Doxology “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow” VU #541
Prayer of Dedication
Blessing
Lighting candles for the saints
Prayers of the People (and Lord’s Prayer)
Transitioning the light of the Christ Candle
*Commissioning:
And now into God’s world we go, with our faith refreshed and renewed. May we pass the faith of the saints on to our children and their children. Amen
*Sung Benediction “Go Now in Peace” Don Besig and Nancy Price
Music for leaving
October 28, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
Welcome to Worship
Leading Worship Today: Bob Gibennus, Licensed Lay Worship Leader
Music for gathering
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
*We sing together: “Where Two or Three Are Gathered” MV #14
*Blessing of Each Other as We Share in the Peace of Christ
(Let us all be mindful that it is flu season and a simple Namaste is maybe all which is needed…)
Welcome and Land Acknowledgement
Welcome to Lakeview United Church, located near the banks of the Elbow River and the Weaselhead conservation area.
We acknowledge with respect the history, spirituality and culture of the Indigenous Peoples for whom this was once the sacred gathering ground of the buffalo and the healing place of the Medicine Tree, the peoples with whom Treaty 7 was signed.
We recognize our responsibility, as signatories to that treaty, to live with respect on this land and in peace and friendship with its people.
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
*We sing together: “We Are One” (verses 1,2,4) VU #402
Call to Worship:
Leader: This is the day that God has made.
ALL: We will rejoice and be glad in it!
Leader: If you’ve had a great week, and are ready to begin a new, even better one …you’ve come to the right place.
ALL: We bring our joys and celebrations to God!
Leader: If you’ve had a difficult week, and need comfort and reassurance…you’ve come to the right place.
ALL: We bring our sorrows and brokenness to God!
Leader: If you are worried or concerned about something or someone in your life…you’ve come to the right place.
ALL: We bring our fears and concerns to God!
Leader: This is the day that God has made.
All: Something good will happen to me today!
Praying into the presence of God:
Leader: God of all peoples; We have come to this place to meet you; to walk with you; to be blessed by you; and yet…There are times, God, when we feel like we have to shout to get your attention.
All: Come to my heart, Lord Jesus; (VU 661 V.1 without refrain)
Teach me to walk in your way.
Come to my heart, Lord Jesus;
Come to my heart today.
Leader: There are times, God, when we behave in ways we wish we hadn’t. Help us to be the kind, loving people you created us to be.
All: Fill me with love, Lord Jesus; (VU 661 V.2 without refrain)
Teach me to walk in your way.
Fill me with love, Lord Jesus;
Fill me with love today.
Leader: Remind us, O God, that the Risen Christ lives deep within each of us. May this sacred hour we spend together with you, and each other spark something wonderful in us.
All: Answer my prayer, Lord Jesus; (VU 661 V.3 without refrain)
Teach me to walk in your way.
Answer my prayer, Lord Jesus;
Answer my prayer today.
A Time for All Ages: The Christmas Guest (Peggy Gibennus)
*We sing together: “Spirit of the Living God” VU #376
Engaging with the Sacred Text
JOB 42: 1-6; 10-17
Job Acknowledges God’s Power; Job’s fortunes are restored.
MARK 10: 46-52
The healing of blind Bartimaeus.
Bob Speaks: “Where is God?”
We sing together: “I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry” VU #644
Responding
Life and Work of the Church (Announcements)
Gathering our gifts:
*Doxology VU #541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Prayer of Dedication
Blessing
Prayers of the People (and Lord’s Prayer): (Gwen Jamieson)
Transitioning the light of the Christ Candle (Bob)
*Commissioning:
And now into God’s world we go,
to continue our walk with Christ
in all the places life calls us to be.
May we go in joy and peace.
*Sung Benediction “Go Now in Peace” Don Besig and Nancy Price
Music for leaving
October 21, 2018
God’s People Together Lakeview United Church
WELCOME TO YOUR TIME OF WORSHIP!! October 21st, 2018
A BAPTISMAL SUNDAY IN THE SEASON OF PENTECOST
Welcome to Your Service of Prayer, Song, and of Continual Blessings.
“It’s not what we eat but what we digest which makes us strong; not what we gain but what we save which makes us richer; not what we read but what we remember which makes us learned; and not what we profess but what we practice which gives us integrity.”
(Francis Bacon 1561-1612)
Gathering
*Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Processional
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
*Introit: MV # 12 “Come Touch Our Hearts”
Call to Worship:
Leader: Out of the scramble and busyness, the pains and competing choices of our lives, we all come together on this Sabbath morning to worship. We come to witness living water upon foreheads as the Spirit comes alive.
ALL: We come to give our thanks for this special time as we ground ourselves once more in our faith, once more in our belief that we can, and will, make this world a place of shalom – a place of peace.
Leader: This place, this sanctuary, gives us freedom from the many conflicting messages swirling around us to consider the question, “What must we do to perform your works?”
ALL: So on this Sunday, this day of rest, we are reminded of the faith which we have to build bridges and not walls, to construct meaningful dialogue and not words of hatred.
Leader: So we call upon our God to quiet us in this time together. May we know that in this time of worship we may draw closer to what is truly important in the life which has been so freely given to each of us.
ALL: And once again, we say thank-you for this time to live into our faith, once more in what is truly empowering and truly real.
*Hymn: VU # 333 “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling”
Morning Prayer & Blessing (Unison):
Leader: “Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.” (Psalm 81:10)
ALL: Come, O Holy Spirit…help us to replace the busyness of life with a simpler lifestyle, so that we focus on ‘the deeper things’ in life and allow time for others. Nourish our yearning to understand and to appreciate ourselves; keep us from being too self-oriented and unmindful of others’ needs. Fill us with trust in your consoling presence. Calm us when we are anxious and troubled about many things. Help us to have the courage to empty ourselves of everything that does not contribute to the transformation of this world. Continue to create a deep hunger for you within us. Feed us with “the finest wheat” of your joy, your peace, and your love. Often replenish our weary spirits with an enthusiasm and energy that comes from surrendering our lives to you. Be our wisdom as we search for meaning in a world fraught with pain, suffering, hostility, and division. Keep us hungry for you, O Source of Life, so that we will always ache and yearn a bit for you...Amen.
(Joyce Rupp, Out of the Ordinary: Prayers, Poems and Reflections for Every Season)
A Time for All Ages: H.C. Booth Day
*Blessing of Each Other as We Share in the Peace of Christ
(Let us all be mindful that it is flu season and a simple Namaste is maybe all which is needed…)
“All Who Are Thirsty” (Rev. Jope)
The Sacrament of Holy Baptism
THOMAS JOHN HARRISON
IVY BRYNN KATHLEEN STARKO
The New Creed
Baptismal Benediction Hymn: VU # 454 “May God Who Creates You”
Introduction of New Members to Lakeview United Church.
META LYNAS
HEATHER DORIN
Engaging With the Sacred Text
First Reading: JOB 38: 1-7; 34-41 (Heather Dorin)
God’s rebuttal to Job’s complaint…
Second Reading: HEBREWS 5: 1-10 (Heather Dorin)
Christ learned obedience and was made perfect…
Gospel Reading: MARK 10: 35-45 (Rev. Jope)
James and John request to sit on Jesus’ right and left…
Message: “Obedience vs Holy Desire”
Hymn: VU # 560 “O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee”
Offering: “Jesus, Be the Centre” (LUC Choir)
*Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU 217 “All Creatures of Our God and King”)
“Come to this place with open hearts
And see what God freely imparts;
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.
It’s love and blessing; peace and joy,
That nothing ever can destroy.
Sing praises, sing praises,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Closing Meditation: A Blessing for You (Rev. Jope)
Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
*Commissioning: The Spirit blows us into places unexpected. We go to find those like us, lost and alone, to build a network of loving kindness. God’s grace blesses us and keeps us. We go to proclaim the blessing of the good news, sharing Jesus’ story in word and in deed. May we now go in peace, in love, and in compassion for each other…Amen
*Hymn VU # 264 “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”
*Benediction
Postlude
October 14, 2018
GOD’S PEOPLE TOGETHER Lakeview United Church
Guest Minister: Rev Rob Taylor
Gathering * indicates “Please rise as you are able” Greeting and Welcome Announcements
Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love. (2 John 1:3)
Jesus said: “All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11:27)
“And the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name.” (John 14:26)
This day as we gather in worship we give glory to God who reveals himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
“Lighting of the Christ Candle”
Officiant: Jesus Christ is the Light of the world.
People: Alight no darkness can extinguish.
Officiant: May his word be a lamp to our feet and a light upon our path.
People: That we may walk before God in the light of life.
( Psalm 56:13)
O Gracious Light, pure brightness of the everlasting Father in heaven, O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed! Now as we come to the rising of the sun, and our eyes behold the dawning brightness, We sing your praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. You are worthy at all times to be sung by happy voices, O Son, O Giver of life, and to be glorified through all the worlds.
Officiant: Let us praise the Lord our God.
People: Let God’s name be praised, Alleluia!
Introit: VU #356, “Seek Ye First”
Call to Worship: The Song of Ezekiel (Ezekiel 36. 24-28)
I will take you from the nations, and gather you from every country, and bring you home to your own land. I will pour clean water upon you, purify you from all defilement, and cleanse you from all your idols. A new heart I will give you, and put a fresh spirit within you; I will take from your body the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my spirit within you, that you walk in my commandments and observe my ways. You shall dwell in the land I promised to your forebears; we shall be God’s people and He will be our God.
*Opening Hymn: VU #341, “Beautiful Saviour”
Gathering Prayer: Almighty God, in our baptism you adopted us for your own. Enliven, we pray, your Spirit within us, that we, being renewed both in body and mind, may worship you in sincerity and truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
A Time for All Ages:
*Hymn: VU #289, “It Only Takes A Spark”
Blessing of Each Other as We Share the Peace of Christ.
Engaging with the Sacred Texts First Reading: Job 223:1-9, 16-17. Job makes known his his complaint against God!
Second Reading: Hebrews 4:12-16. The word of God is living, active, sharper than a two-edged sword.
Gospel Reading: Mark 14:17-31. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.
Message: “From the Garden to the City of God” Rev. Rob Taylor
*Hymn: VU “I See a New Heaven”
Offering: “Lord, have mercy” LUC Choir
*Doxology: VU #541, “Praise God from whom all Blessings Flow.”
Prayer of Dedication: God of Life, you provide us these gifts of the earth, these resources of our life and our labour. Receive them, offered in great thanksgiving, and use them to set a table that will heal the whole creation; through Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Light. Amen.
Prayers of the People: Lord in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Our Father…
Hymn: VU #661 “Come to my Heart”
*Closing Prayer Holy and compassionate God, shape us to be humble and courageous. May your words come to life in our serving and in our witness, that we might speak a living voice of healing and justice to all the world, through Jesus Christ, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.
*Hymn: VU #884 “Joy Shall Come.”
*Benediction
Dismissal: Officiant: Go in Peace. Sound the good news. People: Let God’s name be praised, Alleluia
October 7, 2018
God’s People Together
Lakeview United Church
WELCOME TO YOUR TIME OF WORSHIP!! October 7th, 2018
THANKSGIVING SUNDAY/WORLDWIDE COMMUNION
Welcome to Your Service of Prayer, Song, and of Continual Blessings.
“Grace is available for each of us every day – our spiritual daily bread – but we’ve got to remember to ask for it with a grateful heart and not worry about whether there will be enough for tomorrow” (Sarah Ban Breathnach)
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Processional
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
*Introit: VU # 820 “ Psalm 100 – Make a Joyful Noise”
Call to Worship:
Leader: Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth …make the shuttles sound a rhythmic beat as all the earth weaves a shawl.
ALL: Hear the hum of the potter’s wheel, shaping goodness in our hands. Make the sky, the sun, and the moon emerge from the painter’s brush
Leader: Make a poet’s iambic metre tell the stories of life and of faith.
ALL: Worship God with gladness, come into the Holy presence singing, dancing, painting, sculpting, and making poetry.
Leader: Worship God, all the earth, with sounds and shapes of holiness. In front of us this morning, is the table for the world, a feast which will be spread for all people. No one is rich enough to pay for this meal; no one is too poor to join in.
ALL: This is God’s awesome gift to humankind. With joy and thanksgiving we come. May we now open ourselves to holiness, truth, imagination, openness, and devotion as we come at Christ’s call – to remember, to worship, to live, and to give thanks.
*Hymn: VU # 375 “Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness”
Morning Prayer & Blessing (Unison):
ALL: At this sacred season we come with thanksgiving into this holy place remembering that before the mountains were formed you knew us and patterned the swirls on our fingertips and coloured our eyes. God of infinite variety and magnitude, we praise you for life’s seasons of bittersweet and beauty, sunshine and rain, livestock and fowl, orchards and vineyards, feast days and holidays, for our life, for our breath. Creator God, to you we sing songs of thanks-giving, songs of thanks-living. You have blessed us in these days with an abundance beyond our wildest dreams. We celebrate, on this day, the year which has gone by. We remember rain, sun, heat, and cold. We have watched the crops grow and now we give thanks for all that you have provided. Be with us this day, receive our thanksgiving, and hold up for us the visions of your kingdom that we might be forever grateful….Amen.
A Time for All Ages: BRYON ANDERSON
*A Thank-you Hymn: (Sung to the tune of Edelweiss)
“Thank-you God, on this day, for our many good blessings.
Thank-you God, on this day, for our many good friendships.
Glory to you, may you hear our prayer, guide us on forever.
Thank-you God, on this day, for our blessings and friendship.
Bless our friends, bless our homes, come O God and be here.
May our talk glow with peace, bring your love and surround us.
Friendship and peace may they bloom and grow,
bloom and grow forever.
Bless our friends, bless this day, bless our world forever.”
*Blessing of Each Other as We Share in the Peace of Christ
Engaging With the Sacred Text
First Reading: JOEL 2: 21-27
Do not fear, O soil, for God will provide…
Second Reading: PSALM 126
Those who sow in tears reap in joy…
Epistle Reading: I TIMOTHY 2: 1-7 (Rev. Jope)
Offer prayers for everyone…
Message: “How Do We Demonstrate Our Faith –
Especially in Our Giving and Receiving”
Hymn: VU # 232 “Joyful, Joyful We Adore You”
Offering: “Halle, Halle, Halle,” Hal Hopson (LUC Choir) *Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU 217 “All Creatures of Our God and King”)
“We’ve come to offer gratitude
For friends and life and air and food -
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.
These gifts that come from your own grace
That put a smile upon our face.
Sing praises, sing praises,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Service of the Table
Thanksgiving
Leader: Gracious God, we praise you and give you thanks.
ALL: It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Leader: For the love we name Creator God, and all that is. For the one we name Jesus Christ and his message of peace, justice, and inclusiveness that is the realm of God. For the renewing strength and freedom of the Spirit always present on the breath of life.
ALL: We give thanks for the presence of God in the midst of life.
The Celebration
Leader: We remember the stories…
All: how Jesus gathered with friends, strangers, and those who resisted him, to tell them of a re-imagined way of living and being.
Leader: A way that did not conform to the standards of the Roman Empire or any other system of governance, that suppressed people until starvation and deprivation resulted in death.
ALL: In this way, Jesus empowered people then, and empowers us now, to imagine alternatives, and to live them out in new relationships and new communities.
The Loaf and the Cup
Leader: So in our time and in this place, with today’s issues before us, let us continue the tradition: to break bread together.
ALL: We remember what that tradition says, how, at the end of a journey, among friends, gathered round a table…
Leader: Jesus took bread, gave thanks, and broke it, and gave it to his friends:
ALL: “This bread is broken, as my body will be. Eat this bread and become my body, for Love’s sake in a broken world.”
(bread is broken)
Leader: We remember, too, how Jesus poured a cup of wine, offered thanks for it, and gave it to his friends:
ALL: “This wine is poured out, as my life will be. As you drink, give thanks for all I have given.” (the cup is filled)
Leader: Sharing this bread and wine with his friends, Jesus invited them to eat and drink with thanksgiving:
ALL: “Remember all that I have been to you.”
Leader: Bread….the very stuff of life, in which is gathered up warm sun, rich soil, gentle rain, human labour, and knowledge and skill….Grape juice, our vine….fruit of the vine, nurtured, tended, harvested, and pressed out for us to drink.
ALL: May the Spirit of Love within us be a source of healing and consolation. May the Spirit of Love among us strengthen us when we feel weak, warm us when we are cold-hearted, bend us when we are stubborn, move us when we are uncaring, guide us in the way of love. May the Spirit of Love surrounding us shine in all we do….Amen.
Communion
(Bread for the journey, and wine for our arrival)
Hymn during Communion: VU # 466 “Eat This Bread, Drink This Cup”
Closing Prayers of the People: (Rev. Jope)
*Commissioning: Let us leave this time and place of worship remembering God’s goodness to us: a goodness known in Creation, in our relationships, and most especially known in Jesus the Christ. Let us commit ourselves to lives of thanksgiving and thanks-living, remembering that when we are simply grateful, life is simply great! Let us go now, with smiles on our faces, with joy in our hearts, with purpose and in kindness, to be God’s people in all the places life calls us to be.
(Rob Root, Peterborough, Ont. Gathering, Pentecost 2, 2018,
page 44, Used with permission)
*Hymn VU # 236 “Now Thank We All Our God”
*Benediction & Postlude
September 30, 2018
God’s People Together
Lakeview United Church
WELCOME TO YOUR TIME OF WORSHIP!! September 30th, 2018
19th SUNDAY of PENTECOST {CREATION TIME #4}
Welcome to Your Service of Prayer, Song, and of Continual Blessings.
“There are sometimes two kinds of Christians: those who complain because God puts thorns on the roses, and those who praise God for putting roses among the thorns……
…so…which one are you?”
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Processional
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Piikani or Peigan, Kainai or Blood, Tsuut’Ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
GENESIS 1: 24 – 2: 4 Rev. Jope
(The Inclusive Bible – The First Egalitarian Translation)
Introit: VU # 293 “We Praise You, Creator” (Les cieux at la terre)
Call to Worship:
Leader: When you sit in your easy chair in your home, whether it’s in your living room or somewhere else, can you hear the sounds around you?...possibly the sounds of an airplane?.... or maybe the whoosh of a car or a truck?...the hammering of nails?...or maybe the ticking of your clock?...
ALL: These are people sounds. These are sounds which we hear every day – day-in and day-out. Sometimes they grate upon our spirits.
Leader: If you listen closely…and ever so closely when you possibly are in a place of quietness…can you hear the sound of the wind…the sound of the breeze?...the rustle of the leaves?... the song of a bird?...possibly the buzz of a fly?...
ALL: These are nature sounds. They are always there but sometimes hidden under the noises that we make with our ever-moving pace of humanity.
Leader: And if we listen even closer than close, can we hear the distant wash of the waves on a shore?...can we hear the grinding of rocks as tectonic plates shift?...can we hear the roar of a glacier as it calves off an iceberg?...or the vibration of light as it travels the cosmos?...
ALL: These are creation sounds. They are sounds of life and of death and sounds of new life, born once again.
Leader: If we listen ---
ALL: we hear creation speaking, we hear creation shouting, we hear creation crying, we hear creation singing.
Leader: When we listen and speak what we hear, when we help others to listen and speak what they hear, when we speak with those who will not listen, and with those not willing to hear –
ALL: we worship God! Alleluia!
*Hymn: VU # 242 “Let All Things Now Living”
Morning Prayer & Blessing (Unison):
ALL: O Creative and Creating God, you are the sea and you are the sky…you are the rock and the tree and the creature – of song and of rhyme and discord and of perfect harmony…and we know, inside of ourselves, that you are breathtaking in what you can do and in what your imagination can create. We call upon you this morning to bless each of us with knowledge in our bodies, our hearts, and our minds, that you are with us in this moment, and in every moment. Would you bless us with joy of all creation, with your desire for its wholeness, with your will for its renewal…in the most wonderful dance of the Spirit, in the name of the Christ who shone your love to the world, we open with these words of prayer to you, the giver of all things…
Amen.
A Time for All Ages:
*Hymn: MV # 42 “Praise God for This Holy Ground”
*Blessing of Each Other as We Share in the Peace of Christ
Engaging With the Sacred Text
First Reading: EXODUS 3: 1-12 (Jean Scott)
Moses being called at the burning bush…
Second Reading: 1 KINGS 19: 9b -12 (Jean Scott)
Finding God in the silence…
Gospel Reading: MATTHEW 6: 24-34 (Rev. Jope)
Stop worrying about what to eat or drink…
Message: “Where We Are at This Moment Is Holy Ground”
Hymn: MV # 174 “Soil of God, You and I” (Holy Ground)
Offering: “Take This Moment” J. Bell / G. Maule (LUC Choir)
*Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU 217 “All Creatures of Our God and King”)
“Creator God we call to you
To teach us what we need to do
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.
Healing this planet, healing Earth,
And bring about a brand new birth.
Sing praises, sing praises,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Closing Prayers of the People: Jean Scott
*Commissioning: The seasons of the church year come and go. The seasons of the calendar year come and go. The seasons of our lives change from one to the next. The call of the gospel remains constant. Jesus’ call to ‘come, follow me” is spoken each day. May God give us what we need to answer:
“Here I am, send me!”…Amen
*Hymn VU # 296 “This is God’s Wondrous World”
*Benediction
Postlude
September 23, 2018
September 16, 2018
God’s People Together
Lakeview United Church
WELCOME TO YOUR TIME OF WORSHIP!! September 16th, 2018
17th SUNDAY of PENTECOST {CREATION TIME #2}
Welcome to Your Service of Prayer, Song, and of Blessings.
“If you hear that someone is speaking ill of you, instead of trying to defend yourself, you should say: “They obviously don’t know me very well, since there are so many other faults that they could have mentioned!” (Epictetus)
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Processional
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Pikani, Kainai, Tsuut’ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Introit: MV # 7 “Gather Us In” (piano only as Genesis 1:1-13 is read)
Call to Worship:
Leader: It is time for each of us to listen…to listen very closely; to listen with intention and openness to the Spirit to guide us…
ALL: We sit and listen to the hum of the Earth… (Pause)
Leader: We sit quietly and listen to the murmuring of the swaying grass… (Pause)
ALL: We quietly sit and listen to the rustling of the trees, to the buzzing of the insects, to the song of the sparrow… (Pause)
Leader: Do you hear it?...listen closely…listen closely as the melodies of creation sing…shout…creak…and whisper around us.
ALL: We are listening closely as our hearts sing within us…we are listening as all creation yearns for nurture.
Leader: But do you hear it?...as we take these moments to listen, we remember God’s call of creation: “Let there be!”
ALL: And so, in this time of gathering, let there be honest reflection. Let there be radical discernment. Let there be creative stirring. Let there be space for connection. Let there be nurture and care.
Leader: Come!...all of you!...come and worship with one another and with all of creation!
*Hymn: VU # 278 “In the Quiet Curve of Evening”
Morning Prayer & Blessing (Unison):
(Taken from the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth)
ALL: O Creating God, we know that there is beauty in the forms of creation and we need to voice our deepest thanks and offer our own blessings:
…on smelling fragrant woods or bark, we give thanks and blessings to you who created these fragrant woods.
…on smelling odorous fruits, we give thanks and blessings to you who gives a goodly scent to fruits.
…on smelling fragrant spices, blessings, O God, who created diverse kinds of spices.
…on smelling fragrant oils, we give thanks and blessings to you who created fragrant oil.
…on seeing lightning, falling stars, mountain peaks, great deserts, thank-you, for these creations.
…on hearing thunder, our blessings to you, o God, whose strength and might always fills the world.
…at the sight of the sea, our gratitude for creating such a vast expanse of waters.
…on seeing beautiful trees or animals, blessed are you, our Creator God, who has such as these in the world.
…and on seeing the rainbow…thank-you, O God, for remembering the covenant, faithful to this covenant, and keeping promises…Amen.
A Time for All Ages: “Our Population Clock” https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+humanity&&view=detail&mid=BD74D504B6BD3204819FBD74D504B6BD3204819F&&FORM=VRDGAR
*Hymn: MV # 135 “Called by Earth and Sky”
*Passing of the Peace of Christ to Each Other
Engaging With the Sacred Text
First Reading: PSALM 104: 1-9 (VU # 826) (Barb Penhale)
God’s care over all what has been created…
REFRAIN: “Bless, O my soul, The Almighty,
who rules all creation.”
Reader: Praise God, O my soul.
ALL: Eternal God, you are great indeed.
Reader: You clothe yourself with light like a garment.
ALL: You spread the heavens like a tent; you lay out the beams
of your dwelling on the waters above.
Reader: You make the clouds your chariot,
and ride on the wings of the wind.
ALL: You make the winds your messengers,
and flames of fire your servants.
Reader: You fix the earth on its foundations,
so that it can never tremble.
ALL: You cover the earth with the ocean as with a cloak.
REFRAIN: “Bless, O my soul, The Almighty,
who rules all creation.”
Reader: When the waters covered the mountains,
they fled at your rebuke;
ALL: at the sound of your thunder, they took flight.
Reader: They flowed over the mountains, ran down the valleys to the
place you had appointed for them.
ALL: There you set limits not to be passed, that they might not
again cover the earth.
REFRAIN: “Bless, O my soul, The Almighty,
who rules all creation.”
Second Reading: GENESIS 9: 8-9, 12-13 (Barb Penhale)
God’s setting of the rainbow in the sky…
Message: “The Connection Between
Creation ~~~~ Humanity”
Hymn: VU # 282 “Long before the Night”
Offering: “Abundant Life” (Ruth Duck, Ron Klusmeier)
*Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”)
“Creation is for us to hold;
not to be squandered or be sold
so future children may not see
what God envisioned it to be.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Closing Meditation: (Unison)
ALL: O God, whose power is great beyond our knowing, whose love runs deeper than our hurtful actions of neglect, who holds all of creation in your tender embrace:
let us love, not only in words or speech, but in truth and
in action,
let us be stewards of deepened relationships and
interactions,
and the givers of life to creation that surrounds us.
We come to you in this quiet place seeking your reassurance and your hope. Come and cradle us in your arms of love. As we inhale, breathe your life into our hearts. As we exhale, help us to let go of heavy expectations and anxieties. Help us to feel your love as close to us as the breath we breathe. Today, o God, we admit to the places where we fall short – where we are not able to give enough, do enough, and nurture enough. Inspire in us a longing to be better stewards and help us to live out our
covenant commitment. Allow the dreams and hopes that we have – for ourselves, for our communities, and for all of creation – to sprout forth with energy and new life…and now, we share in the prayers of the people and then share in words of The
Lord’s Prayer:
Prayers of the People
The Lord’s Prayer
*Commissioning (unison): Go from this place, letting your anxious worries cease. May the lilies of the field and the birds of the air inspire you to see God in all you do…Amen
*Hymn VU # 312 “Praise with Joy the World’s Creator”
*Benediction (Rev. Jope)
May the blessing of Jesus, who announced God’s righteousness, of the Creator, who fills Earth with beauty, and of the Spirit, who nurtures awe, bless, inspire, and empower each of you…Amen.
Postlude
September 9, 2018
God’s People Together
Lakeview United Church
WELCOME TO YOUR TIME OF WORSHIP!! September 9th, 2018
16th SUNDAY of PENTECOST {CREATION TIME #1}
Welcome to Your Service of Prayer, Song, and of Blessings.
“By three methods we may learn wisdom: first – by reflection, which is noblest; second – by imitation, which is the easiest; and third – by experience, which is by far, the bitterest” (Confucious)
Gathering *Indicates please rise as you are able
Prelude
Processional
Land Acknowledgement: We acknowledge that we are worshiping today on the traditional lands of the Blackfoot Confederacy, as well as in Treaty 7 territory which includes the Siksika, Pikani, Kainai, Tsuut’ina, and Stoney Nakoda Nations.
Announcements
Lighting of the Candle of Christ
Introit: MV # 130 “Rise Up”
Call to Worship:
Leader: As the sun endures, and the moon glows,
ALL: changing days speak of God’s glory.
Leader: As the rainbow arcs through grey clouds,
ALL: colours speak of God’s glory.
Leader: As Earth provides sustaining food,
ALL: harvest speaks of God’s glory.
Leader: As people gather to praise God’s name,
ALL: we speak of God’s glory.
Leader: This is a place of refuge, a place where we can be together within the Spirit.
ALL: We pause briefly to refresh our souls so that we may refresh the soul of Creation.
Leader: Let us gather to call ourselves into mindfulness of the sacred gift of time: worship time and Sabbath time. Let us open with song as we share in the words of ‘Long before Time’…
*Hymn: VU # 248 “When Long before Time” (all 6 verses)
Opening Prayer of Approach (Unison):
ALL: O Creative and Creating God, creation sings of your glory and speaks of your goodness:
from picturesque countryside to reaching skyscrapers,
from untamed wild lands to cookie-cutter suburbs,
from spacious ocean beaches to crowded city streets:
wherever we are…there creation speaks.
Forgive us when we fail to join creation in her continual song of praise. Forgive us when, overcome with pride, we forget that creation is not ours to shape and mold; it is yours, and we are a part of it. Forgive us when we abuse, defile, and strike Earth with our greed, selfishness, and ambition. Forgive us when we attack what we are charged to love, and fail to face the stinging reality of our actions and thus sow hardship for future generations to reap. Forgive us, O God, for all the ways we have failed to sing your praises with all creation…Amen.
Leader: God’s grace is a soothing and healing balm that we can never earn or deserve. It relieves pains, heals stings, and frees us to sing God’s praises joyfully. Receive the blessed assurance of God’s grace! Amen.
A Time for All Ages: Creation and its Glory! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_38JDGnr0vA
*Hymn: VU # 289 “It Only Takes a Spark” (Pass It On)
*Passing of the Peace of Christ to Each Other
Engaging With the Sacred Text
First Reading: GENESIS 11: 1-9 (Heather Mayers)
The building of the Tower of Babel and different languages…
Second Reading: PSALM 148 (Heather Mayers)
The Psalm of many praises to where praises need to go…
Gospel Reading: MARK 7: 24-30 (Rev. Jope)
The Syrophoenician woman and her daughter… Message: “Caring for Creation Isn’t New –
Environmentalism Is”
Hymn: VU # 360 “A Woman and a Coin – The Coin Is Lost”
Offering: “Christ in Me,” (John Chisum, Nancy Gordon, George T Searcy)
*Doxology: (Sung to the tune of VU # 541 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”)
“This place we live on is our Earth
It’s been our home since day of birth;
We need to hold it in respect
And not to fall into neglect.”
Prayer of Dedication (Rev. Jope)
Closing Meditation: (Unison – We will be utilizing
MV # 75 “Veni Sancte Spiritus” )
“Holy Spirit, come to us, kindle in us the fire of your love.
Holy Spirit, come to us. Holy Spirit, come to us.”
ALL: God, Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer, Holy Mystery, in the gift of creation you speak for us. The weed protruding through the sidewalk crack speaks of your grace, that with you the unexpected should be expected, the impossible made possible. We pray for those who are without hope…
“Holy Spirit, come to us, kindle in us the fire of your love.
Holy Spirit, come to us. Holy Spirit, come to us.”
ALL: May we hear you speak in the disobedient wildflower, a reminder that your tenacious hope grows in seemingly hopeless places. The plastic bag blowing in the wind speaks of your word to the lonely. We pray for those who feel discarded and rejected by society…
“Holy Spirit, come to us, kindle in us the fire of your love.
Holy Spirit, come to us. Holy Spirit, come to us.”
ALL: May we hear you speak in the gentle wind that lifts up and carries what others have long since forgotten. The horrific powers of the sea speak of your majesty and mystery: we cannot control the waters which build up and tear down. We pray for the many gifts of nature that we cannot understand and we pray for those who have been affected by natural disasters…
“Holy Spirit, come to us, kindle in us the fire of your love.
Holy Spirit, come to us. Holy Spirit, come to us.”
ALL: May we hear you speak in the awesomeness of the elements as we ask for our protection. The colours dancing at the break of dawn speak of your beauty and our gratitude, that we are enhanced and transformed by the diversity of colours that touch every part of our lives. We give thanks for this church community and ask that you bless the individual gifts that you have generously scattered within each of us. The beauty of creation gives voice to these and all of our prayers as we sing together:
VU # 959 ‘The Lord’s Prayer’…
*Commissioning (unison): And now we leave this time and place to continue our journey as God’s people: surrounded by the wonders of God’s creation, accompanied by the One who shared our existence, enfolded in the purposeful caring of the Spirit, to be God’s faithful people in all the places life calls us to be…Amen
*Hymn VU # 249 “Rejoice in the Lord Always”
(Sung three times through…)
*Benediction (Rev. Jope)
Postlude
Thank you to the Jamieson’s for the PPT and bulletin photo submission