​Prelude
*Call to Worship                                                Psalm 46:1-3, 8-11
God is our refuge and strength
  a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
  though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
  though its waters roar and foam,
  though the mountains tremble with its tumult.
Come, behold the works of the Lord;
  see what desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
  he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
  he burns the shields with fire.
The Holy One says,
“Be still and know that I am God!
  I am exalted among the nations,
  I am exalted in the earth.”
The Lord of hosts is with us;
  the God of Jacob is our refuge.
 
*Hymn 275           A Mighty Fortress Is Our God       Text: Martin Luther, 1529
                                                                                      Translator: Frederick H. Hedge, 1852        
 
Prayer of Confession
Almighty God,
We confess that we have taken your commandments and turned them into rules.
We have criticized those who have fallen short
 and selfishly proclaimed ourselves righteous.
We have failed to understand the spirit of the commandments
 and the way you showed us to live-
loving God and loving neighbors.
Forgive us for turning your law into burdens
 and ignoring the glorious freedom from sin, gained by the
 saving death and resurrection of  our Lord Jesus Christ.
 
 
Hymn  698                     Take, O Take Me As I Am
Assurance of Grace                             1 John 4:16
God is love.
Those who abide in love, abide in God,
and God abides in them.
Friends, believe the good news of the gospel.
Know you are forgiven and be at peace.
 
Scripture Readings       
  Romans 1:17; Ephesians 2:8; 1 Peter 2:5; 2 Timothy 3:18; Matthew 11:29-30             
 
The Morning Message    
 
 
This is a special day in the life of those churches who trace their history to the Protestant Reformation. That includes us and our Lutheran and Reformed brothers and sisters. Other protestants acknowledge Reformation Sunday for the contributions the Reformed Movement made in the life of the Christian Church, and even influenced their own denominations.
 
Presbyterians trace their history to the 16th century and the Protestant Reformation. Our heritage, and much of what we believe, comes from the faith and writings of John Calvin, whose first vocation was the practice of law in France.
 
Calvin did much of his writing from Geneva, Switzerland. From there, the Reformed movement spread to other parts of Europe and the British Isles. This new movement gave great consideration to which form of government would be most effective for the church. Some thought the church should be governed by bishops and became the Episcopalian Party. Some believed the church should be governed by elders, and became the Presbyterian Party. Still others believed government should be conducted directly by the congregation, and they became the Congregationalist Party.
 
The name Presbyterian comes from the Greek word, presbuteros, which means “elder.” It is used 72 times in the New Testament in reference to church leadership. Presbyterian church government emphasizes that the leadership of the church is to be shared between pastor and session, what we also call Teaching Elders and Ruling Elders. Our strong emphasis on church government is our heritage from John Knox and the Scottish Presbyterians.
 
Many of the early Presbyterians in America came from England, Scotland, and Ireland. The first American Presbytery was organized at Philadelphia in 1706. The first General Assembly was held in Philadelphia in 1789. The first GA was convened by the Rev. John Witherspoon, the only minister to sign the Declaration of Independence.
 
The Presbyterian Church is distinctly confessional and connectional. I always like to say you can’t be anonymous in the Presbyterian Church. We are family. We believe the faith that unites us is always stronger than disputes that divide us.
 
So what is unique about the Presbyterian Church?
 
We are distinctive in two major ways: we adhere to a a pattern of religious thought known as Reformed theology and the representative form of government that values both ministers and members.
 
What is Reformed theology?
 
The Shorter Catechism, that many of us learned as children, says that our chief end, or primary goal in life, is to “know, or glorify, God and enjoy God forever.” Theology is a way of thinking about God and how God relates to the world God made.
 
We affirm the holiness of the One who creates, sustains, rules and redeems the world out of love and grace. I think we see this clearly in our Sacrament of Baptism, especially infant baptism. That’s a topic that deserves a much more detailed discussion, but, here’s what I want to lift up for today: When parents present their child, the evidence of their love, for baptism, they affirm their belief and reliance on Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. They claim the promises of the Christian faith for their child until he or she can learn and accept them as their own. By the work of the Holy Spirit, that child is washed in the waters of baptism, received into the family of faith, marked and sealed as Christ’s own forever. He or she is surrounded by love and supported in prayer, disciplined and guided, not with threats about the wages of sin, but, in ways that echo with a note of grace.
 
Some of the principles articulated by John Calvin are still at the core of Presbyterian beliefs. Among these are the sovereignty of God, the authority of Scripture, justification by grace through faith, and the priesthood of all believers.
 
These are all good features of the faith we express as Presbyterians. John Calvin, Martin Luther, Jan Hus, Zwingli, Knox, Bonheoffer, and others, have given us a foundation upon which we can advance the Kingdom as we are called.
 
Calvin insisted that the Holy Spirit continues to work in both individuals and institutions, transforming us, sanctifying us, and conforming us to the image of Jesus Christ. The church, Calvin explains, is also in the process of changing. It is “Reformed and always reforming, according to the Word of God.”
 
Friends, the Word of God is living and active in the world, making all things new, in and through Jesus Christ. We are being ever-transformed by this Word. As we consider the challenges of every day life in the United States, we may think there is no hope of ending violence, or poverty, or racism, or lawlessness, or any other obstacle to peace and human progress. But our faith teaches us otherwise. Did Jesus not feed a couple thousand people with a little boy’s lunch, heal a man so mentally ill that his family banished him to live in the town graveyard? Did not Jesus raise a twelve year old girl from the dead? Did he not go to the cross, dying in our place, that we might live?
 
Yes, our needs, the worlds’ needs, are staggering. This is the Good news: God isn’t finished with us yet.
 
“Soli Deo Gloria.” To God alone be the glory.   
 
 
*Hymn   630                     Fairest Lord Jesus, verses 1 and 2
*Affirmation of Faith       The Apostles’ Creed p. 35
 
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
 
Presenting Our Tithes and Offerings
Prayer of Dedication
We give Thee but Thine own,
whatever the gift may be.
All that we have is Thine alone,
a trust, O Lord, from Thee. Amen.
 
*Hymn 360   Fairest Lord Jesus, verses 3 and 4
 
*Blessing
For all that God can do within us,
for all that God can do without us.
Thanks be to God!
For all in whom Christ lived before us,
for all in whom Christ lives beside us.
Thanks be to God!
For all the Spirit wants to bring us,
for where the Spirit wants to send us.
Thanks be to God!
The blessing of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
 be with you today and always.  Amen.
 
*Postlude

Prelude
 
Welcome and Announcements
 
Call to Worship
                                                    
Praise the Lord! O give thanks to the Lord, for God is good;
For the Lord’s steadfast love endures forever.
Who can utter the mighty doings of the Lord,
or declare all God’s praise?
Happy are those who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times.
 
Hymn                                         307  God of Grace and God of Glory
 
Affirmation of Faith                 A Declaration of Faith, PCUSA, 1985
 
We are certain that Jesus lives.
He lives as God with us,
touching all of human life with the presence of God.
He lives as one of us with God.
Because he shares our humanity,
He has bound us to himself in love.
We declare that Jesus is Lord.
We have an advocate in
the innermost life of God.
His resurrection is a decisive victory
over the powers that deform and destroy human life.
His lordship is hidden.
The world appears to be
 dominated by people and systems that do not acknowledge his rule.
But his Lordship is real.
It demands our loyalty and sets us free from all the lesser lords who threaten us.
We maintain that ultimate sovereignty
now belongs to Jesus Christ.
In every sphere of life,
Jesus is Lord.
He has been from the beginning.
He will be Lord at the end.
Even now he is Lord.
 
Prayer of Confession
 
Lord, you see how stubborn we are, how quickly we turn from you toward idols of our own making. We forget your providential care, the countless ways you provide, your gracious response to our cries for help.
We give attention to our own needs and sometimes neglect the needs of others.
We cannot justify our behavior, we can only confess it, repent, and ask again for your mercy. Forgive us, Lord, that we may bear faithful witness, in word and deed, to your love and grace.
 
Hymn  698         Take, O Take Me As I Am
 
Take, O take me as I am; summon out what I shall be.
Set your seal upon my heart and live in me.  Repeat.
 
Assurance of Pardon
 
God pours out mercy and grace. God never gives up on us, but frees us to live lives worthy of our calling.
Friends, believe the good news of the gospel. Know you are forgiven and be at peace.
 
Old Testament Reading                  Isaiah 25:1-9O Lord, you are my God;
   I will exalt you, I will praise your name;
for you have done wonderful things,
   plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
For you have made the city a heap,
   the fortified city a ruin;
the palace of aliens is a city no more,
   it will never be rebuilt.
Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
   cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
For you have been a refuge to the poor,
   a refuge to the needy in their distress,
   a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat.
When the blast of the ruthless was like a winter rainstorm,
   the noise of aliens like heat in a dry place,
you subdued the heat with the shade of clouds;
   the song of the ruthless was stilled.

On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
   a feast of rich food, a feast of well-matured wines,
   of rich food filled with marrow, of well-matured wines strained clear.
And he will destroy on this mountain
   the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
   the sheet that is spread over all nations;
he will swallow up death for ever.
Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,
   and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
   for the Lord has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
   Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
   This is the Lord for whom we have waited;
   let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
 
New Testament Lesson                            Philippians 4:1-9Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.
I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
 
 
Sermon             A Reflection of God’s Glory…a Human Being Fully Alive
 
Of all the skills needed to be effective in ministry there is one that does not come easily or naturally to me. A pastor should be a “non-anxious presence.” We can certainly understand why this is important: church folks and even entire congregations can be consumed by anxiety. For good reason. Our lives have been altered in so many ways during this pandemic. But they have been altered before and the world has continued to turn. Still, we worry.
 
A fellow pastor says it was during one of those times of extreme worry, he took his family on a hike. He described it as a brisk, early spring morning, the scent of sweet blooms in the air. Beautiful. Perfect. This was during a time that he was convinced he had a terrible disease lurking in his body and the thought was paralyzing for him and exasperating for his wife and family.
 
As they climbed the trail, he had a “eureka” moment and he blurted out to his wife, “You know, right now, at this very moment, I feel as though I am healthy. I do not think I am dying of anything. I feel certain of it!”
 
His wife didn’t think he could see, but he did see her roll her eyes, as I am also inclined to do. Then she said that was exactly what she had been telling him for weeks, and since it was settled, could they just enjoy the day?
 
Believe it or not, that was a novel thought- Having enough room in his head to enjoy the moment he was in.
 
Later his wife sent him an NPR story that explored the relationship between spending time outside and mental health. The story described something the Japanese call “sinrin-yoku,” or “forest bathing.”
 
The theory goes that when we are obsessing about something, we have a tendency to draw into ourselves and retreat to our familiar spaces- a room or an office. Being confined to a physical space can trap our thoughts and we dwell on them. However, going outside-to the mountains or the beach or even our yards, allows our thoughts to escape into that atmosphere like billowing smoke from a fire.
 
Sounds good, but, will this really work? Well, it’s helpful, but good intentions and wide-open spaces are not the cure-all for pervasive anxiety. Sometimes professional help is necessary and we should be aware of that.
 
Scripture can help. In his letter to the Philippians, Paul writes, “Do not worry about anything, rejoice in the Lord always.”
 
According to the Anxiety and Depression Society of America, anxiety affects 40 million adults a year. And that was before Covid 19.
 
My friend, the hiker, says, this Philippians passage spoke to him that day hiking with his family. Especially verse 8:
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things.”
 
Think about this: Paul wrote these words while in prison-a closed space where he could ruminate for long days about his fate. But, as dreadful as it might be, Paul saw himself as a prisoner for Christ, a high calling, writing to the members of a persecuted church, re-directing their thoughts.
 
What did Paul know about psychology? We don’t know, but we do know that he was on the right track when he encouraged those early Christians to train their minds on the things that give life meaning and purpose.
 
Thoughts have power. Sometimes when I am about to step up to the pulpit, I feel my pulse race and it’s hard to catch my breath. It’s an awesome thing to proclaim God’s Word to people, even people I know like family. I’ve been doing this a long time now, about thirty years. I still get stage fright.
 
So, I do a breathing exercise my doctor taught me: take a deep breath, hold it for ten seconds, exhale for ten seconds. I do this three times and I can feel much more at ease. My pulse slows down. My anxiety is reduced.  I can breathe.
 
My friend, Susan, practices centering prayer. Other friends practice meditation or yoga to reduce their anxiety and raise their awareness and appreciation for life.
 
If you are not inclined to try any of those practices, then, take a walk. Read the newspaper outside. Drive to work or to Grandma’s by a different route. You will notice something new. This creates new pathways in our brains. We feel hopeful, inspired, optimistic.
 
Irenaeus was a theologian of the fourth century. His words hold wisdom for today:
“The glory of God is a human being fully alive.”
 
A friend of mine was undergoing treatment for breast cancer. She was young, with a young family to raise. She had a lot to live for. Even on the hard days, she had a lot to live for. I visited her one day and she took me around her house. She would pull out a drawer and there would be a slip of paper with these words of Paul: “The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but, in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” And, “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, right, pure, lovely…think on these things.”
 
She had these verses, like little treasures, all over her house. She had a potentially deadly disease, and it took a lot of strength to cope with it and follow all the medical protocols. Cancer is a six-letter word that strikes terror in all our hearts.  But, she was training her mind to think about joy, delight, beauty, and grace, because those things are life-giving, not life-taking.
 
I offer these thoughts to you in hopes that, in this time of great upheaval, that your senses will perk up, that you may notice what is admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy.
 
So that you may be a reflection of God’s glory…you…fully alive.
 
 
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
 
Blessing
May the God of endurance and encouragement, grant you to live in such harmony with one another that with one voice we may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
 
Postlude
​

​​​Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
*Call to Worship
God says,” I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts;
And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
 
*Hymn  2    Come, Thou Almighty King
 
Prayer of the Day
Merciful God,
in Jesus Christ you do not call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.
Draw us away from the easy road that leads to destruction,
and guide us into paths that lead to life abundant,
that in seeking your truth, and obeying your will,
we may know the joy of being a disciple of Jesus Christ our Savior,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.
 
First Reading     Hebrews 4: 12-16         
Time With Our Young Disciples
Second Reading                Mark  10:17-31
Morning Message
 
You reach into your mailbox and pull out a stack of paper and envelopes. You find an ad for the local grocery store, a power bill, a magazine you will never read, and something different. In a stiff, thick envelope, with your name in an embellished script, is an invitation. How intriguing. What could it be?
 
When that happens at our house, I open everything else before I open the mysterious envelope. I let the suspense build. Maybe it’s a wedding invitation…or a graduation announcement…or an invitation to a party for a famous person coming to town.
 
Imagine how you would feel to receive a personal invitation to join Jesus in his life and work, to be a disciple, walking alongside him daily. Sit with that a moment. How would you answer?
 
In our text, the man we have always called “the rich, young ruler” kneels in sincere deference before Jesus and asks the central question of the faith: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
 
This man is apparently a Jew and Jesus reminds him that he knows the Law, the Ten Commandments, he has been raised in the tradition of the Torah.  And the young man says, “I get that, Jesus. I have kept them faithfully my whole life long.”
 
What the text says next is perhaps one of the most revealing moments in all the gospels: we get a glimpse into the heart of Jesus. Jesus, looking at him, loved him. The text doesn’t say he looks at him with pity. It doesn’t say Jesus looks at him with disapproval. No. Jesus looked at him the same way he looks at us: Jesus loved him.
 
Jesus extends an invitation to come and follow him. But not before he points out that the young man lacks one thing. Jesus says, “Go sell your stuff, and come back ready to travel, ready to bring people into the fold so they, too, can have eternal life.”
 
How would you respond? Run back to your house and put a for sale sign in the yard? Call Goodwill or Habitat and ask them to send a truck?
 
I’d like to think that’s what I would do.  I’ll let you in on a secret. Ed and I have talked about moving for years. You know, find a house that’s all on one floor.  All it takes is one look into the garage and we’re over that notion. Like the man in our story, we have much stuff.
 
What does this young man do? After hearing how much it costs to become a disciple, the man slumps his shoulders and sadly walks away.
Many others have been called to follow Jesus by this time. And, according to scripture, they have left kith and kin, their jobs, their comforts, their possessions, and have become disciples. This may be the only example of someone refusing the call to discipleship in all of scripture.
 
This man rejected Jesus. Because to follow Jesus meant he would pay too high a price. He would have to give up his wealth. And that is no small thing.
 
And I can really identify with the problem. Perhaps this man had a family. What would happen to them? We know he had a prominent position in the community. He would have to give that up.  He probably enjoyed more creature comforts than the common folk. He always had tickets on the 50 yard line of the arena.
 
And Jesus tells him to unburden himself of all these distractions if he wants to find true treasure: life that never ends.
 
The gospel, the New Testament scriptures, is our witness to just how risky it can be to be met by Jesus. I think, instead of criticizing this poor fellow, we might give him credit for being honest.
 
I read a story recently, a first-hand account of a man who had converted to Catholicism from the Evangelical branch of the Christian faith. He spoke about how much it had changed him. He intended to live out his faith by applying those things he had been taught in his Confirmation classes. He said it was not easy. In fact, at times, he knew he was making different choices than he did before he converted. He lost some friends. He lost some business contacts. His faith did cost something. But, it was worth the cost for the peace he felt in his heart. Jesus gave his life for him. He would gratefully give up something for Jesus.
 
Clarence Jordan, the renowned preacher of the social gospel, is said to have once visited a large integrated church in the deep south in the 1960’s. Well, you can imagine how unusual that would have been.
 
Jordan is said to have asked the old country preacher how he had accomplished this. “How did you get the church this way?”
 
“What way?” the preacher asked.
 
Jordan went on to explain his surprise at finding a church so thoroughly integrated, not only with blacks and whites, but rich folk and poor folk all in one warm, hospitable fellowship.
 
The preacher said, “Well, when our preacher left our small church, I went to the deacons and said, “I’ll be the preacher. The first Sunday as preacher, I opened the book and read, “As many of you as has been baptized into Jesus has put on Jesus and there is no longer any Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, males or females, because all of you is one in Jesus.’
Then I closed the book and I said, “If you are one with Jesus you are one with all kind of folks. And if you ain’t, well, you ain’t.”
 
Jordan asked what happened next.
 
“Well,” the preacher said, “the deacons took me into the back room and told me they didn’t want to hear that kind of preaching no more.”
 
Jordan asked what he did then, “I fired them deacons,” the preacher roared.
 
“Then what happened?” asked Jordan.
 
“Well,” said the old preacher, “I preached that church down to four. Not long after that, it started growing. And it grew. And I found out that revival sometimes don’t mean bringin’ people in, but getting’ people out that don’t dare to love Jesus.”
 
Friends, I think that is the issue before us today, the question the text is asking of us:
Do we dare to love Jesus with our whole heart, and soul, and mind, and strength? Or do we need to let go of something, lose something, in order to deepen our relationship with Jesus?
 
Listen to the wisdom of Saint Francis of Assisi:
Make me a channel of your peace.
Where there is hatred let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, light.
Where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand.
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is pardoning that we are pardoned,
it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
 
May it be so for all of us.  Amen.
 
 
*Hymn  468   In My Life
*Affirmation of Faith         The Apostles’ Creed
*Hymn  581             Gloria Patri
 
Sharing Our Joys and Concerns
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
 
Presenting Our Tithes and Offerings
Prayer of Dedication
Generous God,
we thank you for your many gifts. We are all too aware of how we might fit through the needle’s eye. And so, in gratitude, we return a portion of our wealth to you that our offerings may build and sustain the ministry of this congregation and bring hope to our neighbors in need.  Amen.
 
*Hymn  442     Just As I Am
 
*Blessing
Go now, and may God be glorified in your life, in your song,
in Christ’s church, and in God’s world.  Amen.
 
*Postlude

​Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
*Call to Worship
To those who are hungry, Jesus says:
“Come and eat! There’s more than enough for all!”
To those who are thirsty, he says:
“Come and drink! It’s free for the taking!”
Stop wasting your money on food that doesn’t satisfy.
Come to me and you will find everything you need!”
 
*Hymn  318                 In Christ There Is No East or West
 
Prayer of Confession
Merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done and what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart and mind and strength.
We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
In your mercy, forgive what we have been,
help us amend what we are,
and direct what we shall be,
that we may walk in your ways,
to the glory of your holy name. Amen.
 
Assurance of Forgiveness
The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting.
I declare to you, in the name of Jesus Christ,
our sins are forgiven. Be at peace with God and one another.  Amen.
 
First Reading           Isaiah 65: 17-25
 
Time With Our Young Disciples
 
New Testament Reading         John 21:15-17
Morning Message
 
Today Christians around the globe are celebrating World Communion Sunday, a day when we are urged to embrace the Biblical vision of unity and peace. Not as a far-off dream, but as Christ’s calling to us.
 
World Communion Sunday is a gift of the Presbyterian Church to the larger ecumenical body of Christ. The first observance was at the Shadyside Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, in 1933. The Rev. Dr. Hugh Thompson Kerr was the pastor. It was from his vision that the day was set apart for the purpose of promoting peace and global witness. Years later, his son, the Rev. Dr. Donald Kerr, reflected on his father’s vision.
 
“The concept spread very slowly at the start. People did not give it a whole lot of thought. It was during the Second World War that the spirit caught hold, because we were trying to hold the world together. World wide Communion symbolized the effort to hold things together, in a spiritual sense. It emphasized that we are one in the Spirit and the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
 
It seems to me, we are trying to hold the world together in the 21st century. Wild weather, a pandemic, inflated prices on everything, civic unrest, job insecurity, food insecurity. And more.
 
 Noted theologian, Karl Barth, is remembered for saying this about preaching: “Hold the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other.”
 
Rev. Christine Chakoian of Los Angeles says the first time she heard the gospel preached that way wasn’t at her church, but in her parents’ family room. It wasn’t from a pulpit, but a record player. It was Simon and Garfunkel’s “7 O’Clock News/Silent Night.”
 
Silent Night is one of our most beloved Christmas carols, a lullaby that the Christ Child and the world he came to save, would “sleep in heavenly peace.”
 
But, in this particular recording, over that carol, another sound intrudes, growing louder and louder. The voice of a reporter announces that demonstrators have been forcibly evicted from  the US House of Representatives. And then the grim announcement that unless there is asubstantial increase in the effort in Viet Nam, the US should look forward to five more years of war.
 
And then the reporter signed off, “That’s the 7 o’clock news. Good night.”
Christine Chakoian says she has been thinking about that Simon and Garfunkel song a lot lately, and Barth’s words of preaching advice. There is a taught tension between the Bible’s vision for the world and the world’s news. Let’s consider just a few.
 
The Bible says: “No more shall there be the sound of weeping, or the cry of distress.”
The New York Times says: “An incalculable Loss: America has reached a grim milestone in the Coronavirus outbreak.”
 
The Bible says: “They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.”
The newspaper says: Political Battle Erupts Over Homeless Encampment on Venice Boardwalk.”
 
The Bible says: “The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox.”
The newspaper says: Collateral Damage of COVID-19: Rising rates of domestic and social violence.
 
We find these competing truths in our own town. What are we supposed to do? God promises peace, but violence exists, poverty exists, disease and death exist.
 
One way we can respond is to just look the other way. Don’t concern ourselves with social ills. Ignore the Bible. It’s irrelevant today. It certainly doesn’t compel many people to action. Judging by the inactivity in my own neighborhood on Sunday mornings, I’d say this is the prevalent attitude.
 
But, Christians don’t get off the hook here. We have to do better than that.
 
We could take the eschatological approach and lean into the time to come when Christ returns to make all things new and establish the peaceable kingdom. God will take care of this in God’s good time. No worries. This approach reminds me of a high school friend of mine who decided not to apply for college admission because he believed Christ’s return was imminent.
 
We could concentrate on our personal salvation.  It is important. Jesus saves. But, Jesus saves us for what purpose? What is the work or mission for which Jesus has called us?
 
Christine Chakoian says we could set all those approaches aside and try another way- the prophetic way. “A way that lifts up God’s end game vision and at the same time, opens our hearts to let Christ make a difference now.
 
That’s the prophetic way, the Gospel way-where God’s reign can be real, even now. Where peace is not a pipedream, where God assures that none of his beloved sheep goes hungry.”
Is that too naïve, too idealistic? Or is there a way to embrace that vision for the world God created and loves?
 
Seminary Professor Fred Craddock shares this story of how the reconciliation of faith and current events came together in his classroom.
 
At the beginning of many seminary classes, a student leads the class in prayer or shares a brief devotion. Maybe the student brings along a guitar and invites everyone to sing a hymn or chorus. This was a part of seminary education that I loved. Every lecture, every assignment, was wrapped in the Word read and proclaimed, and sealed with prayer.
 
On this particular day the student leading devotions stepped up to the front of the class with her yellow legal pad. It had a lot of writing on it. Fred thought this could take a long time.
 
The student spoke sofly, first in one foreign language, then another-one sentence repeated over fifty times in different languages. Fred said it was only when she spoke in German, Spanish and French, that he began to understand what she was saying. She ended in English with these words: “Mommy, I’m hungry.” And then she sat down.
 
Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me? Feed my sheep.”
Jesus asks all of us here, “Do you love me? Feed my sheep.”
 
Christine Chakoian offers these thoughts to us who are even now praying about the world’s great problems and waiting in hope for the coming kingdom:
 
“Cynicism is the fate of realists who clearly see the present, but see nothing of God’s vision for the way the world could really be. That vision is before us now: where wolves and lambs can feed together; where all of God’s hungry children are fed at the table of grace.”
 
It takes some imagination and not a little courage to live into God’s vision. But, that is the call of Christ on our lives: to feed his sheep, so that every single one of the children of earth is fed- fed with security, fed with love, fed and bread.
 
 
*Affirmation of Faith                   Apostles’ Creed
*Hymn    581          Gloria Patri
 
Celebrating the Sacrament of Communion With Our Global Family
Prayer After Communion
Holy One,
we have been strengthened at this table, by loaf and cup,
and will live in gratitude for the dying and rising of Jesus Christ, our Savior and friend.
And we will become bread for a hungering world.
And we will become drink for those who thirst.
And the blessed will become the blessing,
and everywhere will be the feast. Amen.
 
*Hymn  761        Called As Partners In Christ’s Service
 
*Blessing
This is a vision of the way it can be, the way it should be:
Shouts of welcome, a joyful procession,
a community celebrating Christ’s transforming power in unity.
As we go out, may we hold fast to his vision of goodness,
giving ourselves to God’s love,
pouring it out into the world in God’s name.  Amen.
 
*Postlude

​Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
 
*Call to Worship
Gracious God,
give us pure hearts that we may see you,
humble hearts that we may hear you,
hearts of love that we may serve you,
hearts of faith that we may live in you,
reverent hearts that we may worship you,
here and in the world beyond our doors,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.   Amen.
 
*Hymn 32             I Sing the Mighty Power of God
Prayer of the Day
Direct and help us, O Lord, in all our deeds,
that by what is begun, continued, and ended in you,
we may glorify your holy name,
and finally. by your mercy, come to know the joy everlasting life,
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.
 
First Reading               Esther 7:1-6; 9-10; 9:20-22
 
Time With Our Young Disciples
 
Gospel Reading           Mark 9:38-50
Morning Message
 
Nah nah nah nah nah!
That’s universal for:
 “Caught you!”
“Shame on you!”
“I’m telling Mom…or Dad…or the teacher.”
“I’m better than you are!”
 
The first few verses of today’s text remind me of some over-eager kids running up to the teacher on the playground to tattle on a classmate. I’ve been on both sides of that, I confess.
 
The disciples, eager to follow the rules of this new movement, have encountered someone performing a healing rite, in this case, casting out demons, doing so in Jesus’ name. It’s the use of Jesus’ name that catches their attention. The healer wasn’t one of the twelve, so the act wasn’t
legitimate, at least they way they saw it. So, they try to stop him.
 
Apparently they were unsuccessful and they run to Jesus. “Master, someone is practicing healing without a license!”
Surely, Jesus would drop what he was doing and follow them to the scene of the crime so he can rebuke the wrong-doer. He would set the healer straight. Only the qualified were eligible to do deeds of power in Jesus’ name. All others were cheap imitations.
 
But, that’s not what happened. Once again, Jesus does the unexpected. The shame and blame aspect of this report doesn’t grab his attention. What grabs him is that a believer has tapped into the source of power and changes the life of one who suffered. He doesn’t need to itinerate with Jesus and the twelve to be legit.
 
He goes on to lay a pretty heavy message on the disciples. He tells them they are in the wrong in confronting the believer. Jesus calls them “little ones,” indicating they are young in the faith. The greater sin would be for the disciples to break that new believer’s spirit.
 
Jesus says even the smallest kindness done in his name comes from a holy place.
To underscore his message, Jesus tells them that if they think it’s their duty to inspect the activity of new believers, they are way off the mark. It would be better if they drowned in the sea. That’s pretty serious.
 
He carries that further and tells them to be aware of their own sins and stop committing them, even if they have to amputate the body part involved in the sin.
Reading between the lines, we can almost hear Jesus saying that there are greater challenges ahead of them and getting hung up in the trivial would only sap their strength. There;s a lesson there for all of us.
 
In a few years, the fledgling church will be under persecution. They would have to identify aand reject false religions. And they did at great peril. They refused to sacrifice to the Roman gods. The penalty for that was high. You might be forced into slavery or used for sport in the Coliseum. Or, even worse, failing to pay homage to the Roman gods might earn you the mutilation of your body in order to serve as warning to the rest of the community.
 
Threats have always been a strong source for control. Who wants to sign up for slavery or mutilation? Not many. But, thanks be to God, some came to faith, or found their faith strengthened by those whose courageous allegiance was to Christ.
 
I have never been persecuted for my faith. Our community is full of Christian churches. There are Jewish and Muslim houses of worship as well. As the people of God, they all do Godly work. They provide places of welcome and inclusion, free from threats.
 
I do know someone who was persecuted for her faith, my friend, Mary. Originally from Malawi, she had come to the US for her education. She earned three degrees and became a sought-after college professor. But it was her faith that motivated her and she lived it out in joy.
 
Church membership in Malawi came with a price. Mary and her family were Presbyterians. Her brother and father were elders, which meant that they performed all the tasks a pastor would perform  here. They were responsible for the spiritual needs of a whole community.
 
Malawi is a poor country. Mary and her family belonged to a movement of citizens who were trying to improve the lives of the people through self-development, to get people off the streets and into respectable occupations.
 
Mary helped women start cottage industries and retail shops. Others in the family entered politics so that they might turn around a government that had oppressed the people for far too long. While she was in Huntington, her brother was elected Vice President of the country.
 
Their reward was to be repeatedly attacked. Their home was burned down. Her husband died a suspicious death. She came to the states, along with some of her children and her niece. They worked hard and they came to know the peace and safety we enjoy as American citizens. And yet, they always carried a duty to the people of their homeland, whose faith comes with a price.
 
We do not face that kind of oppression. No abusive regime stands between us and our faith. We do have challenges to our faith. COVID has changed our lives, our communities, and our churches.
 
The Church may change, but she will not die. The church is the body of Christ and he is very much alive. And he has a message for such a time as this.
 
He turns the conversation to the subject of salt. In the English language there are a number of expressions, idioms, referring to salt. “He is not worth his salt.” “Taken with a grain of salt.” “ Salt of the earth.”
 
Salt is an important element. The human body needs salt. The word “salary” derives from the Latin word “salarium,” and literally means “salt money.” Salarium was the money paid to Roman soldiers. Some historians have concluded that the soldiers may have actually been paid in salt. In days gone by, newborn babies were washed with salt. Salt has an element of healing. It has been used as a disinfectant. And, of course, salt adds flavor to food and can be used in preserving it.
 
Jesus tells his friends that everyone will be salted with fire. What did he mean? Fire is a method of purification. Precious metals come from the ground admixed with iron and other minerals.  Subjecting them to fire purifies the gold or silver, separating them from the other metals. So, too, a Christian’s life will be tested and challenged but in this way, we, too, are purified. We grow in grace. The churchy word for this process is sanctification. With age and experience we draw ever closer to God in Christ.
 
Jan Richardson is a pastor, artist, and author. She offers these words about our text today:
And, so, in this season,
may we give ourselves
to the fire that shows us
what is elemental.
and sacramental.
that reveals what remains
after all that does not have
substance or savor
falls away.
May we turn
our eyes
our ears
our hands
to the beauty
for which we are formed
and bear with grace
the patterns
that blossom upon us
who live salted
and singed.
 
May the fire of purification reveal the Holy One in your heart.  Amen.
 
 
*Hymn  418           Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling
*Affirmation of Faith                The Apostles’ Creed
* Hymn 581                               Gloria Patri
Sharing Our Joys and Concerns
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
Presenting Our Tithes and Offerings
 
 
 
Prayer of Dedication
Lord God, as we offer our hearts and our treasure, may they be used to pass on the promises of your kingdom- of hope, of peace, and of life, to all in need of your presence in their, and our, lives.  Amen.
 
*Hymn 716            God Whose Giving Knows No Ending
*Blessing
Go now in the power of the Spirit,
that you may proclaim Christ’s redeeming love to the world,
and continue forever in the risen life.  Amen.
 
*Postlude

​Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
*Call to Worship
To your name, O Lord,
help us to bow the knee and all its worshiping,
bow the head in all its thinking,
bow the will and all its choosing,
bow the heart and all its loving.  Amen.
 
*Hymn 31   Let Us With a Gladsome Mind
 
Prayer
God and Father of all,
you have willed that the last be first and you have made a little child the measure of your kingdom.
We may be reluctant to embrace humility and service, for to do so may imply work and will require a spirit of cooperation and compromise.
Give us the wisdom which is from above,
so we may understand, that, in your sight, the one who serves is the greatest of all.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Whose service gives us life and hope.  Amen.
 
Hymn   698                  Take, O Take Me As I Am
Assurance of Grace
God’s Word is truth: That Jesus Christ came into the world to redeem and re-form our lives.
The old life is gone and a new life has begun.
Your sins are forgiven.
Be at peace with God, one another, and yourselves.  Amen.
 
First Reading
Time With Our Young Disciples
Gospel Reading   Mark 9:30-37
Morning Message
 
We Americans love our sports. And right now its football time. Friday night lights, Game Day Saturday, Football Sunday Night, (And afternoon), Monday Night Football, and my personal favorite…Monday Night Football on Thursday nights.
 
Travel a wee bit up the road to the high school, and it gets even better for sports fans: football, soccer, volleyball, Cross Country, and cheerleading are all in full motion. I don’t know what season heralds the arrival of swimming and archery. Maybe one of you can enlighten me.
 
As I was thinking about all these exhibitions of human strength and discipline and beauty, and, let’s face it, youth, I began to see them not as individual sports. Instead, I began to see more clearly what they all have in common: competition. It seems to me, it’s the thrill, the potentiality present in competition, in contest, that energizes these games, matches, and meets. Who wins and who loses and all the drama leading up to the final moments.
 
We all want to be on the winning side of the field. We all want to feel the excitement, if only in our dreams, of an Emma Raducanu raising that Silver trophy up for the cheering crowd at last week’s US Open finals.
 
Maybe we don’t have to be taught to compete. It just unfurls from somewhere in our nature. Awhile back, we met our daughter and son-in-law and grandson at a particular store at the mall. Ed and I parked and walked to the entrance to wait on the others. They were right behind us.
We heard a car door slam with a little more force than necessary and the next thing we knew, our three year old grandson stomps up to his grandfather and announces, “I’m so angry with you, PaPaw. You beat us.”
 
Well, of course, we did the wrong thing and laughed, which made him madder. Reconciliation came by way of a big toy shark tucked under Tad’s arm as he and his granddad walked through the store.
 
In our text, we find the disciples jockeying for position. Position is another word for power. A hierarchy of power helps us organize civilization and all its sub-sets. Think about the many ways we experience this daily. Where we work, where we shop, how we do our banking, our tv viewing. All of these things come to us through some system of production and delivery. Someone has to be the decider. There are a lot of deciders in our life.
 
I was sharing this with Robin’s dad last week. Robin told him I knew his nephew. And indeed, we were high school classmates and we both worked at the other drug store on Route 60. Mike was higher up the ladder. He got more hours and maybe a few cents per hour than I did. Why? Because he made the home deliveries. Being the delivery boy was a sought after position and when there was a vacancy it was a big deal. Competition exists everywhere.
 
In our text, the disciples are just having a conversation. It may not have been academic, so much as just “shooting the breeze.” But, Jesus hears them and it is what he does next that tells us the most about who Jesus is in this setting.
 
What Jesus doesn’t do is settle the argument. Nor does he placate all of them, saying, “Now, now, you’re ALL my favorite.”
 
No. Jesus bends down and picks up a little child, maybe a child of one of the disciples’ own. And he says, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.”
 
Children occupied an interesting place in the first century household for Jews and Romans alike. They represented the future, carrying on the family name, providing for their aging parents, and producing the next generation.
 
But, in the present, they were a liability. They were one more mouth to feed. The younger the child, the more likely they were to become sick and die.
 
They participated in household labor, but weren’t all that productive. Many historians believe that children were on about an equal status with a slave. They had no power. And there was no CPS or school system to report cases of abuse or neglect.
 
And Jesus said we must welcome people such as these powerless, vulnerable, defenseless children. Once again, Jesus turns our expectations upside down. It is a great reversal in the name of justice. The adult conversation is about power and position. Jesus transforms it into a lesson on welcome.
 
There are four babies about to be born in my extended family over the next few months. They will be celebrated, wrapped in the softest blankets and cutest sleepers. Their care will be the subject of many a conversation. You know the drill:how will this child be fed? Will Mom or Dad go back to work?  How soon?
 
Before long, they will be vaccinated and educated and enrolled in piano lessons and signed up for one of those great American icons of competition…T-ball.
And it is a good thing. A good and full life with parents who love and guide and discipline and protect.
 
Protection that far too many children will never experience, which is a tragedy.
 
This week I heard a book review that was absolutely shocking. The author is Rachel Denhollander, and the book is about the abuse she suffered as a young gymnast. What Is a Girl Worth? That’s the title and it’s relevant to our scripture text today. That’s what it comes down to, the question behind the question: how much is a child, boy or girl, worth?
 
The US Senate held a hearing this week at which at least four elite US gymnasts testified. These are athlete that we’ve seen and cheered for when they represented the country at the Olympics. They all testified to the hideous abuse they endured by their team doctor. They told their parents, they complained, some of them not even old or experienced enough to know what was happening to them. The complaints went nowhere. Investigations were cursory, if they were conducted at all. They girls were silenced, ridiculed, their abuse diminished.
 
The result was disastrous. The abuser had unfettered contact with dozens of young children before he was stopped. This was a sick power system that de-valued children, little girls in this case. Even as adults, the young women who testified described the lasting effects of the physical and psychological violence done to them. They are now seeking justice from a justice system that was woefully broken.
 
Who is the greatest? Well, greatness, in Jesus’ economy, or his power structure, doesn’t come from competitions won on the field or in the classroom or boardroom. Greatness is wrapped up in humility. Like those swaddling clothes in which Mary wrapped Jesus.
 
Greatness recognizes who the vulnerable are. Greatness points the way to hope. Greatness rises up with courage and compassion to defend the weak. Greatness calls us to look out for the welfare of those who can least affect their own welfare. In this text, it is children, but, it could be anyone, even elite, privileged, and celebrated gymnasts.  Power can be used for evil when it seeks to dominate, humiliate, and demean.
 
So, we look for the right use of power. Like sharing who controls the remote control on Sundays.
 
How we wish all contests could be settled so simply.
 
So, I hope you enjoy the smaorgasbord of sport this week. Cheer for your teams. May the best ones win.
 
But, remember competition has no place in the kingdom of God.
 
In the early churches of Paul’s day, there were some mighty power struggles. He wrote to them. advising them with these wise words:
 
Love one another with brotherly, sisterly, affection.
Live in harmony with one another.
Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight.
May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Jesus Christ, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, welcome one another as Christ welcomed you, for the glory of God.
Finally, aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace and the God of love and peace will be with you.
 
May it be so for all of you.  Amen.
 
 
*Hymn 727  Will You Let Me Be Your Servant  Verses 1-3
*Affirmation of Faith   The Apostles’ Creed  p. 35
Sharing Our Joys and Concerns
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
Presenting Our Tithes and Offerings
Prayer of Dedication
We give with gratitude for all our God has given us. In the upside down world of the Gospel, we measure our wealth not by what we have but by what we can give away.
Lord, God, receive our offerings today to bless your church, your creation, and your children, wherever there is need.  Amen.
 
*Hymn 727    Will You Let Me Be Your Servant    Verses 4-6
*Blessing
*Postlude

Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
Call to Worship                  Psalm 46:1-3, 7
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in times of trouble.
Therefore, we shall not fear, though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be hurled into the sea,
though the waters rage and foam,
though the mountains tremble at the tumult.
Lord God of hosts, be with us still.
 
*Hymn   687           O God, Our Help in Ages Past
 
Prayer of the Day
Strong God of love,
your Son, Jesus, told us that in this world we will endure tribulation.
If we should suffer for righteousness sake,
save us from self-righteousness.
Give us grace to pray for our enemies,
and to forgive, even as you have forgiven us.
Through Jesus Christ, who was crucified, but is risen.  Amen.
 
Hymn 698               Take, O Take Me As I Am
Assurance of Forgiveness
“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me;
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.”
In the name of our gracious Savior, our sins are forgiven.
Be at peace and pray for the peace of the world.
 
First Reading
 
Time With Our Young Disciples
Presentation of Bibles
                    “As Jesus grew taller, he continued to grow in wisdom.
            God was pleased with him and so were the people who knew him.”
                  Marren Foster, Hunter Miller, Kinley Napier, Barrett Seay
Gospel Reading
Morning Message
 
If you read the September edition of our church newsletter, much of this message will sound familiar. But, as we came closer to September 11, I felt compelled to return to it.
 
Last week had been a heavy week for Ed. He fell asleep soon after coming home Friday afternoon. Later, we set out on a “Fri-date” Destination? The exotic and acclaimed Midway Drive In, followed by ice cream at Austin’s. We had the high school game on the radio. I remembered the words of a dear friend, a great cheerleader for Huntington, would sometimes say. “Life is good. Why would anyone want to live anywhere else?”
 
Indeed. The little outing had revived us. We would be ready to cheer on our favorite teams Saturday. We might even get a little work done around the house. The weekend was looking hopeful.
 
Which brings us to today. Rally Day, and the return to some of our usual offerings. We have just recognized our younger members and presented them with a Bible, our rule of faith and life for centuries. We will gather again this evening to break bread or cake, to laugh and play and enjoy our fellowship.
 
Life is good. We thank God for it every day.
 
But, it’s quite the contrast, isn’t it?
 
Try to remember the kind of September
when life was slow and oh, so mellow.
Try to remember the kind of September
when grass was green and grain was yellow.
Try to remember the kind of September
when you were a tender and callow fellow.
Try to remember, and if you remember,
then follow, follow.
 
“Try to Remember,” by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt, is the signature song from The Fantasticks, the musical comedy that premiered off-Broadway in 1960.  It directs the audience to recall the sweet times of the past, when love was fresh and uncomplicated. The popular show ran continuously until January of 2002, for a total of 42 years, making it the world’s longest-running musical.
 
It was known for its small cast, sparse set, an orchestra consisting of piano and harp, and the intimacy of a small theatre. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen The Fantasticks. The plot was classic love story, reminiscent of Romeo and Juliet or A Mid-summer’s Night’s Dream. The cast was always superb and the music just beautiful.  I never grew tired of it.
 
For those of us who witnessed the catastrophic events of September 11, 2001, “Try to Remember” prompts other memories, and an unwelcome return to the scenes of death and destruction that engulfed New York City, Washington, DC, and rural Pennsylvania on that bright fall morning. As the day unfolded, the entire nation shared in that suffering. For some, the suffering will never end this side of heaven.
 
So much has changed since that day. The grief and loss were profound. Our senses of safety and security were gravely diminished. Fear seemed to hang like a pall over us. Even now, a “new normal” can be elusive. The disruption of the pandemic testifies to that.
 
On this, the twentieth anniversary of the 9/11 events, we may likely feel some of the same horror of that time- the sadness, the anger, the urge to retaliate. These are normal responses and we need to sit with them awhile.
 
But, I hope you will also remember that day’s many courageous and heroic acts, the strength and determination of injured people pulling others out of piles of concrete, steel, and refuse. I hope you remember the hundreds of first responders who ran into the face of danger. I hope you will recall the numerous accounts of kindness and compassion, the stories of strangers sitting with the dying, so that they did not take their final breaths alone.
 
We have been saturated in recent days by 9/11-inspired media presentations. Some are just too brutal to watch. But, some are filled with hope. One that touched me deeply was the show that focused on the children whose fathers were killed in the attacks. Many who were not yet born.
 
So many of the now-adult children described a sense of connection they felt with the father who never held them, or taught them to ride a bike, or dropped them off at school. Many had followed in their fathers’ footsteps, becoming firefighters, EMTs, or police officers themselves.
 
And they paid tribute to the strength and commitment of their mothers.
 
One of the most moving stories was that of a young woman from Bengladesh. She and her husband had come to the United States so that he might pursue an academic career as a physicist. After 9/11, her veiled head and dark complexion made her a target for hatred and ridicule. She had little to no support, even though she and her small children were victims, too.  And yet, she persevered.
There was a video of the day she took her driver’s test. When she was told she had passed, this beautiful, sad, young woman began to sob as if her heart would break. Driving was something her husband did. It was a cultural thing. This was just one more thing that confirmed how drastically her life had changed.
 
Today, her children are grown and successful. They made a good life in the face of overwhelming challenges. They are resilient.
 
I hope you will consider the power of human resilience, the result of our deep need to restore order and set even higher dreams for our community, our nation, and the world. I hope you will notice progress made in a multitude of human endeavors. I hope you understand that inspiration knows no limits.
 
I also hope you will remember that in the days following 9/11, we found strength and comfort in our Christian faith. We turned to scripture and prayer and gathering together for worship. We participated in outreach ministries. We re-committed ourselves, our homes, and our churches to the pursuit of peace, not only for ourselves, but for all people and nations, races, and religions.
 
In these things, we do find purpose and meaning. Grace is not over-rated. The acts of worship, at home and at church, still set us on a firm foundation. The fellowship of the faith community still provides a place of belonging, where we know we are welcome and loved. Acts of care and compassion still connect us to the Christ who gave of himself, even unto death, that we might live.
 
Try to remember when life was so tender
that no one wept except the willow.
Try to remember the kind of September
when love was an ember about to billow.
Try to remember and if you remember
then follow, follow, follow…
 
Deep in December, it’s nice to remember
although you know the snow will follow.
Deep in December, it’s nice to remember
the fire of September that made us mellow.
Deep in December, our hearts should remember
and follow, follow, follow…
 
 
*Affirmation of Faith                  The Apostles’ Creed  p, 35
*Hymn             Gloria Patri
Sharing Our Joys and Concerns
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
 
Presenting our Tithes and Offerings
Prayer of Dedication
Blessed are you, O God, maker and giver of all gifts.
Use us and what we bave gathered to bless the world with your love and grace,
through the One who gave his life for us.  Amen.
 
*Hymn  39          Great Is Thy Faithfulness
*Blessing           Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi
Lord, make us instruments of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let us sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
Grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.  Amen.
 
*Postlude

​​Prelude
Welcome and Announcements              John R. Thomas
 
*Call to Worship
Look to the mountains! Look to the hills!
Love comes to us with joy!
The world is filled with beauty.
Flowers appear on the earth, birdsong brightens the day.
Crops yield their produce in abundance,
The air is filled with sweetness.
The summer of God’s love is with us.
Let the oil of gladness anoint your souls.
Arise and sing for joy!
 
*Hymn 14           For the Beauty of the Earth
 
Prayer of Confession
God of justice and righteousness,
your call beckons us:
to live faithful lives,
to turn from wickedness,
to walk in your ways.
Yet it is easy to turn aside:
to speak a thoughtless word,
to ignore those in need,
to strike out in anger,
to forget your ways.
Forgive us.
Implant your word in our hearts,
and cleanse us from all evil.
By the power of your love,
save us, that we might fully love and serve you.  Amen.
 
Words of Assurance
God’s word has the power to save us.
God has anointed us with gladness,
forgiven and freed us,
to live holy and joyful lives.    Alleluia! Amen.
 
 
First Reading         Song of Songs 2:8-13  
 
Time With Our Young Disciples
 
Second Reading               James 1:17-27           
Morning Message
 
The Fifth Grade Choir at an elementary school near us took a short road trip to present their Christmas program at a local nursing home. They were very fifth grade. Confident at the school, the big kids, top dogs, they dominated the playground equipment. Take them out, though, and they were not so confident. Stand them up and have them sing in front of the elderly and infirm, and all kinds of anxiety emerges.
 
The teacher lined up the students. She cued the recorded accompaniment tape and directed them through several songs, some with a little choreography. They reached the end of the performance. The staff and residents seemed to have been charmed. They enthusiastically applauded.
 
The parents who had driven that day began to gather the kids in groups and head to their cars. But, not before the teacher called them all together in the lobby and blessed them out for giving a lousy performance. Words were used that should never come out of any teacher’s mouth. She was angry. And everyone in eastern Cabell County could surely hear her railing at her students.
 
The kids were shocked, embarrassed. Some started crying. Most of them walked to the cars with heads hanging.
 
And, the parents were angry. Not at the kids. They did their best and should have been commended for their efforts. We were angry at the teacher for her outrageous behavior and language. It was demoralizing and abusive in my opinion.
 
I delivered my group to their classroom and stomped down the hall to the principal’s office. I had never done this before but I went straight to his desk and started to describe what had just happened. But, I was so upset I couldn’t get the words out and I, too, started to cry.
 
The principal got up and came around the desk. He took my arm and said, “Let’s walk.”
And so we did. Not a word said between us for awhile.
 
And then, this wise and gentle man said, “You know, Cinda, this is a special time of year. To some of us, it is sacred. A child is coming who will change the world. He brings the good news of salvation. We are filled with gratitude and love.
 
But there is a competing spirit that does not want that good news to be shared with the world. That spirit does all kinds of cruel things to ruin the Spirit of Christmas. I see it every year. You just witnessed it. I’m very sorry that the children heard those mean words. I’ll take care of it. You go on home and settle down. When we get upset, the devil wins.”
 
Many of us struggle with anger. Maybe we are the victims of anger or maybe we are the aggressors. Maybe we have created a toxic environment in order to have control over others.
 
Some of us may have lived in anger-filled homes or worked in conflicted settings. This fills us with fear and anxiety. It steals our joy and often keeps us trapped in unhealthy relationships and situations.
 
Just as damaging, maybe we were taught to hide signs of hurt or anger, to deny or bury them. That’s not good either. Do you know what therapists call depression? Anger turned inward.
 
So, it’s a real problem.
 
We can’t completely avoid anger. Sometimes it is justified. Jesus got angry. We remember how angry he got when he went into the temple courtyard and overturned the tables of the moneychangers because they were cheating God’s faithful people. Sometimes anger gives us the impetus to act, to address a need, to correct a wrong.
 
Anger has been described as “When what is doesn’t line up with what ought to be.”
 
The world has a lot of big, complicated, generations-deep problems. We can get angry about some of those. I am angry when someone is discriminated against because of their race or gender or age. I am angry when the disabled are ignored. I am angry when little children are neglected and abused. I am angry when my aging relatives are dismissed. And I’m angry when someone endangers others for their own selfish ends.
 
I’ve heard a lot of angry speeches this past week as the US has begun to withdraw our troops from Afghanistan. I received a text message at 7am Friday about it.  Seriously. Facebook was just as bad. It is full of mean-spirited messages that only result in more of the same.
 
Do you know what happens inside us when we get angry? Anger is a natural response to a perceived threat.  It causes your body to release adrenaline, your muscles tighten, and your heart rate, body temperature, and blood pressure rise. That’s good if you are being chased by a bear.
 
But, consider this: in a wildfire, if fire begins at the root level of certain species of trees, the fire burns the tree from the inside out. You can’t tell how badly the fire has damaged the tree until you take a whack at it and you see the flames consuming it from within.
 
Anger can do the same thing to us. If we aren’t careful, it can burn us up from the inside out.
 
The Rev. Dalton Rushing offers a simple test to determine if our anger is righteous and useful or serves no purpose other than burning you up on the inside:
Ask yourself, have you been slow to listen? Slow to speak? Has your anger come about deliberately, with thoughtful consideration? Does your anger have a direction?  Does it face outward, toward the needs, defense, or welfare of others? Does your anger prompt you to make life better for all people or does it stop with your own comfort or progress or recognition?
 
Martin Luther called the Book of James “The Epistle of Straw.” He was critical of what some call “works righteousness.” He believed James would lead people to think they could earn their way to salvation, which cheapened the grace that comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
 
The Epistle of James is short in length, but long on virtue. It does focus on doing as well as hearing the word of God. How we behave, react, and respond to the events of our lives gives an important witness to our faith. It gives us the momentum to change “what is” into “what ought to be.”
 
Prayer
Gracious God, teach us the fine art and practice of anger. May our hearts be broken by the things that break yours and direct us to the kind of true devotion that makes us agents of healing and wholeness. Amen.
 
 
*Affirmation of Faith             The Apostles’ Creed     Glory to God p. 35
 
Sharing Our Joys and Concerns
Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer
Presenting Our Tithes and Offerings
Prayer of Dedication
God of light and beauty, every gift is from you.
Even our ability to give is a blessing of your love.
We offer what we have and what we are that you may use our gifts
to give birth to a world of peace and understanding,
where none are in need,
and all are drawn into your embrace.  Amen.
 
*Hymn   692           Spirit, Open My Heart
*Blessing
In everything, let us offer our thanks to God.
In our darkness and questioning,
in our relief and rejoicing,
in the assurance that God holds us in love,
that we may cheerfully serve others,
replacing fear with the hope born of Eternal Love.  Amen.
 
*Postlude
 
 
Announcements
Today is ECCHO Sunday. School supplies and underwear are being received at this time, along with our customary contributions of cereal.
 
We also receive the Centsability Offering today for the relief of hunger in our community.
 
Rev. Harkless will be away next week. Worship will be led by Jim Musgrave, friend and former pastor.
 
Rally Day Events:
(use the two announcements from Harold and Kevin)

​Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
*Call to Worship                                                   Joshua 24:15
Choose this day whom you will serve.
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
 
*Hymn  361        O Christ, the Great Foundation
 
Prayer
O, Lord, our God,
wellspring of all that is,
you are the sea on which we float,
the wind that fills our sails,
the storm that buffets,
the calm that brings us peace.
Open our ears to hear your word,
our eyes to see your beauty,
our hearts to be warmed by your love.
Free us from the bonds of sin and selfishness,
and make us over to be bearers of your joy and peace.  Amen
 
First Reading         Psalm 84 
 p.
 
Time With Our Young Disciples
 
Second Reading    Deuteronomy 32:11; Job 38:29; Hosea 13:8; Psalm 131:2; Matthew 23:37-39
Morning Message      “Bears, Eagles, Hens…and Jellyfish”
 
“The Bible says a minister is the husband of one wife. You can’t be the husband of any wife. So, you can’t be a minister.”
 
I remember exactly where I was when I heard that pronouncement. I was standing in front of my grandmother’s living room fireplace, dusting the mantle. I was seventeen and close to the end of my senior year in high school. My grandmother had just asked what I planned to study in college. I don’t know what she expected, but, hearing that I wanted to be a minister wasn’t it.
 
Her reaction shocked me. It was swift and harsh. It hurt my feelings…all of them. I thought she would be pleased. She lived at the church. My grandmother was someone through whom I saw God.
 
I never met my grandfather. He died before I was born. My dad would say he built houses and Baptist Churches while his mother raised four kids, ran a grocery store, served as church clerk, taught Sunday School, planned every church dinner, visited the sick, and helped the needy.
 
One of my favorite memories was watching her make unleavened bread for Communion. She moved around her kitchen with reverence, her dress covered with a big apron, her hair caught up in a net.
 
My grandmother’s words stung that day. But, it served as a teachable moment.
 
You see, my growing faith and my grandmother’s generations-deep faith had just crashed into each other. This would be the first, but certainly, not the last time I would be challenged by an interpretation of scripture that differed from mine. It would not be the last time my call to ministry would be called illegitimate.
 
Thankfully, I was raised in the more tolerant Presbyterian Church, one that was illumined by love and grace, not shuttered by prohibitions and judgment.
 
Youth group gave my life meaning at a critical time. It was a warm and welcoming environment. Discussion was how we learned about God and one another. We tackled hard topics like capital punishment, abortion, war, euthanasia. We asked questions that stretched our imaginations, like, is God male or female? We were taught that God is Spirit, that God is so awesome that it was not possible to adequately name or describe God with our limited language.
 
My grandmother and I never spoke of the ministry again. There was no room for discussion or imagining in her faith. There was also no reason to tell her that when Steve picked me up for youth group, we stopped at the Snack Shack for root beer on the way home.  
 
Obviously, I did follow the call into ministry. I am blessed every day by this life. But, it hasn’t always been positive. Nearly fifty years after that short exchange with my grandmother, women in ministry still run into those who question their faith and call. Some are refused fellowship in the community because they are women. Churches may still encounter criticism when led by a female pastor.   
 
God calls both women and men into ministry. That’s good news. We need both masculine and feminine perspectives in worship, in study, in fellowship, and in reaching out to the neighborhood and the world.
 
So, to that end, over the years, I have meditated on Scripture texts like the ones I read a few minutes ago: passages that describe feminine images of God. The ones that are most moving for me are the ones that depict God as Mother. While all women are not mothers, we are all, men and women, born of mothers. Developmental psychologists say this is our first love relationship.
 
Picture this: God comes to Job in the whirlwind and asks, “Where were you when the sea burst forth from the womb, when I made the clouds its garment, the dense clouds its wrap? From whose belly does ice come…who gave birth to heaven’s frost?” God is giving birth to the forces of nature using the imagery of a woman giving birth.
 
In Isaiah, God says, “Like a woman in labor, I will moan; I will pant, I will gasp.” God is in the process of giving birth to the whole creation, including God’s children. And, apparently it is not an easy birth. It is hard work.
 
The synoptic gospels-Matthew, Mark, and Luke, describe the faith and life of Mary, the mother of Jesus, mother of God, offering her body and intentions for God’s purpose.
 
The birth image continues in the gospel of John, when Jesus tells Nicodemus that if he wants to see God’s kingdom, he must be born again. In Romans, Paul speaks of the whole creation groaning as it labors toward redemption and new life.
 
I think my favorite female image is Hosea 11:4, in which God says about Ephraim, “I was to them like those bent who lift infants to their cheeks. I bent down to them and fed them.”
 
These images describe the essence of mothering, the relationship of a woman to the child she loves. Such imagery describes a God who has the capacity and the desire to bend down, to lift up and hold, to stroke, to cover, hug, feed, bathe, and to hold us.*
 
And then, there are these lively pictures of God as a mother in the animal kingdom. The ones that say, “God is like a mother”…animal of some sort, and then describe the characteristics of that animal.
 
Like this one in Hosea:
God is like a mother bear raising her cubs. Affectionate, nurturing, resourceful, intelligent, and gentle… until she or those kids are threatened and then she mercilessly claws you to pieces.
 
Or this one in Deuteronomy:
God is like a mother eagle. The bird with the keen eye, so sharp it can detect another eagle fifty miles away and prepare for a possibly hostile encounter. She is strong and fearless. She nurtures her babies carefully and teaches them one by one how to fly. She takes them out for test runs and catches them if they begin to falter. As the babies learn to fly, the mother tears pieces of her nest away, so that there is less and less for the babies to cling to. And soon they are on their own.
 
And this one: God as a mother hen. Though it’s another bird, it is certainly different from the magnificent eagle. We might well picture God as a mother hen in a red chintz apron standing at her kitchen counter pickling cucumbers. But, should a storm blow in, or a predator come lurking, she gathers her kids under her ample wings and shields them from harm.  
 
My husband and I made it to the beach for a few days this summer. One morning, a group of excited, happy kids, accompanied by two women, took their place beside us. They may have been a family or maybe just friends, but it was obvious they had a close relationship and had done this more than once. They had a system.
 
Soon umbrellas, blankets, chairs, and coolers were in place and one of the women ran into the surf with the children, who were immediately shrieking and frolicking in the cold swirling waves.
 
Suddenly, there was an ear-splitting scream and one of the children, a little boy, came running out of the water and toward the woman under the umbrella. His cries were loud and distinct. If you’ve spent much time at the beach, you knew what had happened: he had been stung by a jellyfish.
 
The child was inconsolable. From a couple of umbrellas down the beach, a woman appeared with first aid supplies. They quickly examined and cleaned the wound and applied some topical medication.
 
Eventually the little guy calmed down. But, he had been so traumatized that he was not going anywhere near the water. Ever. The other kids invited him to play in the water with them, but, he just shook his head. He stayed under the umbrella with Mom. They played with some little trucks and had a snack. At some point he laid his head on her leg and took a nap. The other mom offered to take her place for awhile, but she silently waved her off. They were ok.
 
We never saw them return to the water that day. But, we had the feeling that all was well anyway.  As we packed our stuff to head back inside, I thought, “God is like the mother who sits all day with her child, bearing witness to his pain and fear.”
 
God calls pastors who will never be the husband of one wife. God calls women, men, and children to serve the church. God calls people whose faith journeys are smooth and unfettered. And God calls people whose faith journeys look more like a zip line over the New River Gorge.
 
God is like a mama bear with her cubs, eager to play and ready to defend; God is like a mother eagle nudging her young out of the nest when it’s time to get their learner’s permit; God is like a plump mother hen sheltering her biddies under wide-spread wings.
 
And God is like a mother whose gentle presence comforts her child more than salve on a jellyfish sting.
 
 
Affirmation of Faith                    A Brief Statement of Faith, PCUSA, 1991
We trust in God the Holy Spirit,
everywhere the giver and renewer of life.
The Spirit justifies us by grace through faith,
sets us free to  love God and neighbor,
binds us together with all believers in the one body of Christ, the Church.
The same Spirit, who inspired the prophets and apostles rules our faith and life in Christ through Scripture, engages us through the Word proclaimed, claims us in the waters of baptism, feeds us with the bread of life and the cup of salvation, and calls women and men to all ministries of the Church.
In a broken and fearful world, the Spirit gives us courage to pray without ceasing, to witness among all peoples to Christ as Lord and Savior, to unmask idolatries in Church and culture, to hear the voices of peoples long silenced, and to work with others for justice, freedom, and peace.
In gratitude to God, empowered by the Spirit, we strive to serve Christ in our daily tasks and to live holy and joyful lives, even as we watch for God’s new heaven and new earth, praying, “Come, Lord Jesus!”
 
Hymn 581        Gloria Patri    
 
Sharing Our Joys and Concerns
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer
 
Presenting Our Tithes and Offerings
Prayer of Dedication
Almighty God, from whom all blessings flow, may you find us ever-thankful for the abundance of your gifts. Accept this offering as a sign of our thanks and praise. May they serve to strengthen our commitment to know, love, and serve you this and every day. Amen.
 
*Hymn   462    I Love to Tell the Story
 
*Blessing
And now, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all,
now and always.  Amen.
 
*Postlude
 
Announcements
 Rally day  announcement from Kevin