Prelude
Welcome and Announcements *Call to Worship A Litany for Independence Day As we remember the birth of our nation, and the gifts of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, let us offer our thanks and prayers to God, giver of all good things. For the women, men, and children who braved the long journey by sea to come to this new world. For the tribes and nations who inhabited this land for generation upon generation. For patriots who dreamed of, and labored for, a free nation. For the men and women who laid the foundations of our democracy, and who pledged liberty and justice for all. For those who built this country brick by brick, road by road, and town by town. For the brave soldiers who have left hearth and home to serve our country, for all who paid for our freedom with their very lives. For the innovators and artists, poets and teachers, farmers and factory workers, for all who labor and provide for the common good. For those who protect our community in emergencies and for all who work to restore order when it has been disturbed. For the exquisite beauty of this land, with its peaks and valleys, coasts and deserts, fields and meadows. For our own community, for those who came before us in this place, and for our neighbors near and far. Lord, we pray for these United States, that we might always be a nation which defends and promotes liberty and freedom, truth and justice. That we might always be a nation where all are free to worship and pray. That we might be a beacon of freedom to all those who live under the shadow of terror and hopelessness. That those who are elected to govern and lead would look to you for wisdom and guidance, and carefully guard the public trust. That we would be a people who repent from our sins, and who always return to you and to your ways. Gracious God, Father of all the nations, bless and defend us and our land, prosper the work of our hands, and increase in us your courage, grace and compassion. Hear our prayer, O Lord, our rock and our salvation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. *Hymn 1 Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty! Prayer of Confession Gracious God, our sins are too heavy to carry, too real to hide, and too deep to undo. Forgive what our lips fear to tremble to name, what our hearts can no longer bear, and what has become for us a consuming fire of judgment. Set us free from a past we cannot change, open to us a future in which can be changed, and grant us grace to grow more and more in your likeness and image, through Jesus Christ, the Sovereign Lord. Amen. *Hymn 698 Take, O Take Me As I Am Declaration of Forgiveness Hear the good news! Who is in a position to condemn? Only Christ, and Christ died for us, Christ rose for us, Christ reigns in power for us, Christ prays for us. Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation. The old life is gone and a new life has begun. Friends, believe the good news of the gospel: in Jesus Christ our sins are forgiven. Alleluia! Amen. Time With Our Young Disciples Scripture Reading Isaiah 58:1-12 Morning Message The prophet speaking in Isaiah 58 issues a tall order. For faithful Jews of the time, it was a tall order. It was aspirational. A job description for a real dream team. It is a tall order for all of us who call ourselves Christians, as we, too, adhere to the canon of Scripture established in the fourth century, and still held up as our rule for faith and life these many centuries hence. The goals may be high, perhaps even unattainable this side of heaven, but, there are about a thousand faithful Presbyterians gathered in Salt Lake City this week who will be applying themselves to Isaiah’s vision. The 226th General Assembly began its on-line meetings June 25th, with commissioners joining from their homes or offices around the country. Yesterday, the majority of them traveled to Salt Lake City, where it has been reported that they were welcomed by hundreds of volunteers from all over the Presbytery of Utah. The General Assembly is the highest governing body of the PCUSA. It meets every two years in different locations around the country. This year’s assembly is meeting through July 5th at the Salt Palace in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Now, I’ve been to Salt Lake and there is a Presbyterian Church there, but, we know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the Mormons, dominate the religious landscape. To hold a GA meeting requires lots of volunteer help from what’s called a “local arrangements committee”. I wondered how that would work in Utah, but, I was just ignorant in this. I’ve learned there are twenty PCUSA Churches in the Salt Lake area and they are all on board to keep this important meeting running smoothly. Who goes to GA? Delegates are elected from every presbytery based on membership. The Presbytery of West Virginia sent two commissioners-one Ruling Elder, Susan Perry of Logan’s First Presbyterian Church, and Teaching Elder Rev. Chris Kilbert of the Riverlawn Church in St. Albans. There are an equal number of Ruling and Teaching Elders at GA, because, what does the Book of Order say? Our call is to serve the church, pastor and session together. That is one of our distinctives. We love our polity based on the “Priesthood of all believers,” lay and ordained ministers alike. Although few of the commissioners have attended GA before, all have served in the other church courts: the session, which provides care and oversight of a local congregation, the presbytery, which provides care and oversight of a group of congregations, or the synod, which provides care and oversight for several presbyteries. We belong to the Presbytery of West Virginia and the Synod of the Trinity which is housed in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. What does the GA do? It reviews the work of synods, resolves controversies in the church, is responsible for matters of common concern for the whole church, and serves as a symbol of unity for all of us. It also engages in some pretty awesome worship services. You can join these services on-line. Go to PCUSA General Assembly and follow the directions. You can observe what goes on on the floor of the assembly and keep track of committee actions on-line as well. How does it work? First, reports and recommendations come from various arms of the Presbyterian Mission Agency and the Office of General Assembly. The Stated Clerk and his staff work to ensure that the Presbyterian Church maintains itself as a church. The Office of General Assembly carries out all constitutional, and most ecumenical, functions at the General Assembly. Overtures from synods and presbyteries are the second source of GA business. These governing bodies use overtures to bring recommendations and matters of concern before the whole church. Commissioners Resolutions are the third source of GA business. As a commissioner, one is entitled to sign two resolutions which will come before the whole assembly. The first order of business is to elect the Moderator who will preside over the assembly and represent the denomination for the next two years. Moderators are recommended by presbyteries. I’ve participated in two assemblies as an observer and witnessed the election of one moderator, Rev. Bruce Reyes Chow, I believe the youngest Moderator elected to date. Bruce hails from San Francisco. His young family accompanied him to the floor as he took his vows of installation. It was very moving. The assembly is organized into committees months before it begins deliberations. I understand commissioners receive mountains of documents, maybe less now that we are moving to paperless meetings. They began their work last week. They have finalized their plans to bring recommendations to the floor where the whole assembly will be informed, deliberate and vote. Business is referred back to the presbyteries for adoption. These actions provide guidance for the church in the years ahead. If you want to know more from someone who has attended a GA meeting, I’m sure our very own Kay Adkins will be glad to share with you her experience when she was a commissioner. I believe it was when the northern and southern streams of the church were re-uniting more than thirty years ago. I have a confession: I always look forward to news coming from GA and I’m especially interested in hearing about our commissioners’ experiences. But- I always dread it a little bit as well. Included in every GA are controversial items to be considered. I expect that the most controversial item at this assembly will involve the denomination’s position on the Israel-Palestine conflicts. If history predicts the future, this may be the single item reported on by the national news networks. Other faith groups have held large denominational gatherings this spring and summer: the Episcopal Church, the United Methodist, the Southern Baptist, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, and probably others I’m not aware of. Each has made the news, generally the items most likely to prompt ardent reactions, and I doubt such reports have been very helpful to the people in the pews. The good news for Presbyterians is that recommendations that are approved by the GA will come back to the presbyteries as proposed amendments to the Constitution. Over the course of the next year, presbyteries will inform and debate with their members. and finally we will vote to approve or disapprove the amendment. I mentioned Bruce Reyes-Chow earlier in this message. As a former Moderator, he has offered a prayer for the whole church, especially the commissioners as they do their work over the next week. He asks us to pray these things with him. I’ve edited it for length. God of curiosity, restoration, compassion, and hope, as we gather to discern the mind of Christ and your will, we strive to live into these promises you have made. Let us live into trust enough to bring our whole selves into this space, not to avoid conflict, just get along, or to suppress righteous indignation, but to rage together, fear together, and struggle together. Let us live into grace enough to assume goodness in one another, not to see one another as adversaries, enemies, and the other, but as collaborators, accomplices, and members of One Body. Let us live into courage enough to wrestle with one another, not to destroy, dominate, or diminish the other but to discern, discover, and adventure into what you are calling us to become. Let us live into humility… Let us live into creativity… Let us live into generosity, enough to honor the realities of our time together, offering patience to the moderator, staff, assistants, volunteers, and one another affirming that we are imperfect people, trusting an imperfect process, paying attention to the timer, flags, and microphones, and savoring the honor and privilege of being gathered in this space. Let us live into action enough to transform decisions made into actions lived out, to follow thru on promises made to one another. God, throughout the generations, we have gathered, in different configurations, during different cultural moments, with different attitudes of engagement. We have been agents of healing and hope and we have reinforced systems of hurt and pain. And yet, over and over again, because of and what we have done General Assemblies have been opened up to the surprising abd sweeping movement of the Spirit. May we again and always be open. And the 226th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) says Amen. *Hymn 340 This Is My Song *Affirmation of Faith The Apostles’ Creed p. 35 * Hymn 581 Gloria Patri Sharing Our Joys and Concerns Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer Presenting Our Tithes and Offerings Offertory *Hymn 607 Doxology *Prayer of Dedication Almighty and merciful God, from whom comes all that is good, we praise you for your mercies, for your goodness that has created us, your grace that sustains us, the discipline that corrects us, your patience that has borne with us, and your love that has redeemed us. Receive our gifts, offered in humility and gratitude, that the world may know, love and serve you. We give in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. *Hymn 8 Eternal Father, Strong to Save *Blessing Go out into the world in peace; have courage; hold onto what is good; return no one evil for evil; strengthen the fainthearted, support the weak and help the suffering; honor all people; love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen. *Postlude Comments are closed.
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PastorCinda Harkless Archives
July 2024
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