communion

November 3, 2013 - Communion Service

 

PRELUDE, Kathryn Schneider

 

WELCOME
* CELEBRATION OF FRIENDSHIP
* Gloria Patri  (pew card)                   

* CALL TO WORSHIP AND SALUTATION                                          Vivian Sclafani

Leader:  How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts!
All:  My soul longs for the courts of the Lord, my flesh sings for joy to the living God.
Leader:  Happy are those who live in the house of the Lord, ever singing your praise O God.
All:  Happy are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion!
Leader:  Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Adapted from Psalm 84

* HYMN No. 20:  Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee

* PRAY ER OF CONFESSION  (unison)

Merciful God, hope of our people in every age, we confess that we have sinned against you. We have wandered from your pathways, turned towards idols, lived without compassion, and disregarded the well being of your creation. Do not turn away from us O Lord, but renew your covenant, for only in you will our lives be healed. Guide us and lead us in your ways, for happy are those who live in your house.  Amen.

* KYRIE (pew card)
* ASSURANCE OF PARDON
* SUMMARY OF THE LAW                       

JUNIOR SERMON

ANTHEM:  The Gift of Love, Hal H. Hopson

Though I may speak with bravest fire, and have the gift to all inspire, and have not love; my words are vain, as sounding brass, and hopeless gain.
Though I may give all I possess, and striving so my love profess, but not be given by love within, the profit soon turns strangely thin.
Come, spirit, come, our hearts control, our spirits long to be made whole, let inward love guide every deed.  By this we worship and are freed.  Amen.

SCRIPTURE LESSONS

Psalm 32:1-7, Pew Bible, page 440

Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
Happy are those to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
While I kept silence, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah
Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah
Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to you; at a time of distress, the rush of mighty waters shall not reach them.
You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with glad cries of deliverance. Selah

Luke 19: 1-10, Pew Bible, page 854

He entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.” Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.” Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”

THE SERMON:  Selah, Donna M. Field

WORSHIP OF TITHES AND OFFERINGS
        Offering
        Offertory:  Sine Nomine, Ralph Vaughan-Williams

For all the saints who from their labors rest, who Thee by faith before the world confessed, Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest.  Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou wast their Rock, their fortress and their might, Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well fought fight, Thou in the darkness drear their one true Light.  Alleluia!  Alleluia!
O may Thy soldiers, faithful, true and bold, fight as the saints who nobly fought of old, and win with them the victor's  crown of gold. Alleluia!  Alleluia!  Alleluia!
And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long, steals on the ear the distant triumph song, and hearts are brave again, and arms are strong. Alleluia!  Alleluia!
From earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast, through gates of pearl streams in the countless host, singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Alleluia!  Alleluia!

        * The Doxology  (pew card)
        * Prayer of Dedication

* AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
        * Apostles’ Creed (pew card)                                                                                    

SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION
        Remembering with Love and Hope  (pew card)
        Invitation
        Communion Prayer
                Sanctus  (pew card)
                Mystery of the Faith (unison)
                        Christ has Died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again.
        Words of Institution

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING & INTERCESSION
        Lord’s Prayer (pew card)
        Prayer response, John Yarrington

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.

*HYMN No. 648:  Jesus, I Have Promised

* BENEDICTION
        Response, John Yarrington

The peace of God which passeth all understanding, be with you now and evermore. Amen.

POSTLUDE

ANNOUNCEMENTS

WE WELCOME DONNA MARIE FIELD to the pulpit.  Donna graduated from the New Brunswick Theological Seminary with a Masters in Divinity degree.  She will be leading our worship services until a permanent minister is in place. 

OUR APPRECIATION FOR TODAY’S VOLUNTEERS:

Van Drivers: Gina Lombardo
Coffee Hour Host: Rhoda Jabbour
Greeters: Nina and Bill Proschel, Dorothea Zelnick
Ushers: Ginny and Hong Chan, Nancy Gessner, Irma Karle, Buck Kellaway, Rhoda Jabbour, Jeanne and Steve Sarran and Jerry Good
Children and Worship: Sharon Rivilli and Sarah White
Childcare: Jayne Halley

VAN SERVICE is available for Sunday worship and grocery shopping every other Monday.  If you need a ride to church on Sunday or would like to join them for grocery shopping, speak with Gina Lombardo at (917) 767-2923.

COFFEE HOUR VOLUNTEERS NEEDED – Please pick a date on the Sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in Gessner Hall or see Rhoda Jabbour.

YEAR-ROUND COLLECTIONS –

·         Donations for the Food for Kids Ministry should be brought to the Church office.  This food will be given to families in need in Jamaica, New York.

·         Christmas cards (with Forever Stamps on the envelopes) are collected in a basket in Gessner Hall.  These cards will enable inmates at the Nassau County Correction Center to correspond with their loved ones.                                                                  

PRAYER REQUESTS:  Ruth Bailey, Letty Delgado, Ed Diercks, Dombrowski Family, Edythe Durney, Alfred Gessner, Lisa Gessner, Robert Keller, Fritz Kunisch, Ann Martin, John Molino, Ed Moores, Josephine Rivera, Gloria Scrivano, Janice Serra, Mary Wainwright, Joan Werbel. 

October 6, 2013 - Worldwide Communion Sunday

PRELUDE:                                

The Celestial Banquet, Olivier Messiaen
Amazing Grace, arr. Gilbert M. Martin

WELCOME
*Call to Worship and Salutation, Jeanne Sarran (Sign Language)

Choir:    We stand before you, God, with ready arms reaching for you.
People:   We bow before you, God, with humbled hearts seeking you.
Choir:    We sing before you, God, with glad voices raised to meet you.
People:   We kneel before you, God, with open souls lifted to greet you.
Leader:  Draw your Church together, O God, into one great company of disciples, together following our Lord Jesus Christ into every walk of life, together serving him in his mission to the world, and together witnessing to his love on every continent and island.
Choir:    Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

*HYMN No. 779: Great God, Your Love Has Called Us

SCRIPTURE READINGS

Mark 14: 22-25, Rosa Weed (Spanish)

While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to them, and said, ‘Take; this is my body.’  Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, and all of them drank from it.  He said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly I tell you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.’

 Acts 2: 2-13, Nina Proschel (Russian), Helga Brenner-Khan (German), Linda Diez (French)

Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.  They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.  Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans?  Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language?  Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”  Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

JR. SERMON

ANTHEM:  Amazing Grace, arr. John Rutter

Maureen Saepia-Chen, soprano

Amazing grace!  How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!  I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see.
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved; how precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come; 'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me, His word my hope secures; He will my shield and portion be, as long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail, and mortal life shall cease, I shall possess, within the veil, a life of joy and peace.
When we've been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, we've no less days to sing God's praise than when we'd first begun.

SERMON: A Mouth-full, Donna M. Field

*WORSHIP OF TITHES AND OFFERINGS
Offering
Offertory:  In Remembrance, Buryl Red

In remembrance of me, eat this bread, in remembrance of me, drink this wine.  In remembrance of me, pray for the time when God's own will is done. In remembrance of me, heal the sick.  In remembrance of me, feed the poor. In remembrance of me, open the door and let your brother in.
Take, eat, and be comforted.  Drink, and remember, too, that this is my body and precious blood, shed for you.  In remembrance of me, search for truth. In remembrance of me, always love.  In remembrance of me, don't look above, but in your heart for God.  Do this in remembrance of me.

*The Doxology (pew card)
*Prayer of Dedication

MORNING PRAYERS AND LORD’S PRAYER
LORD’S PRAYER, New Zealand Book of Common Prayer

Eternal Spirit, Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,
Source of all that is and that shall be, Father and Mother of us all,
Loving God, in whom is heaven:
The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world!
Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!
Your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on earth.
With the bread we need for today, feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and testing, strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and forever.
Amen.

INVITATION TO THE LORD’S SUPPER                     Donna Field & Emerson Chen

Christ invites us all to this Holy Feast.  As we gather this morning, we remember our sisters and brothers from above and below the equator, from the North and from Down Under, from every time zone around the globe.  As today's sunlight inches across land and sea - Christians gather to celebrate their place in God's family. All who are baptized in Christ are invited and are welcome.

One:  What do you understand by “the communion of saints”?

All:    First, that believers one and all as members of this community, share in Christ and in all his treasures and gifts.  Second, that each member should consider it a duty to use these gifts readily and joyfully for the service and enrichment of the other members. Come, for the meal is ready!

                                                                               Heidelberg Catechism Q & A 55.

Prayer of Preparation

Confession

One:  To God be the glory: great things God has done!

           To prepare ourselves to partake of this Holy Meal, let us pray:

Healing God, we come before you broken, yet seeking wholeness, isolated, yet seeking community, overwhelmed, yet seeking simplicity, shamed, yet seeking grace:

All:    God, we yearn for the healing you promise.

One:  God of Justice, we come before you selfish, yet seeking a generous heart, arrogant, yet seeking humility, responsible for injustices, yet seeking forgiveness.

All:    God, we yearn for the justice you promise.

One:  God of Peace, we come before you afraid, yet seeking assurance, agitated, yet seeking serenity, angry, yet seeking a forgiving heart.

All:    God, we yearn for the peace you promise.

Words of Assurance

Apostles Creed  (pew card)                                       Jeanne Sarran (Sign Language)

One:  Knowing that through Christ all things are made new, we come to this communion table to be recreated through the bread and cup, and to be renewed in our faith and commitment.

All:    God, we submit ourselves to renewal through you. This we pray through Jesus the Christ, our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

One:  Loving and gracious God who summons galaxies into being, we give thanks and blessings to you.  We bless and thank you for our world.  The diversity of our planet amazes us from the prairies and pampas of the Americas to the dusty deserts of Africa and Asia, from the majestic mountains of Europe to the vast outback of Australia.  We give you thanks for the multiplicity of humanity with our complexity of color and culture yet called into oneness-of-being through Christ. With many tongues, yet with one voice, we honor you saying:

SANCTUS (pew card)

One:  Loving and gracious God who surrounds creation with abundant love, we give thanks and blessings to you. We praise you for your love made known to us through Jesus, which reassures and reconciles us to you, to ourselves and to one another. As Christ is our light to you, may we be lights to others illuminating the path toward communion with you the Holy Spirit and Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

           Together we proclaim the Mystery of Faith -

All:    Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again!

Words of Institution                                             Jeanne Sarran (Sign Language)

Blessing of the Elements

One:  God, may this bread connect us more closely with you and with our neighbors near and far.
All:    Bless this bread, we pray.
One:  May this fruit of the vine remind us of the inter-connectedness of people around the world.
All:    Bless this cup, we pray.
One:  May this simple meal bring us into union with you, your people and your world united in the One Body of Christ.

Sharing the Elements

Prayer of Thanksgiving

All:    Praise God from whom all blessings flow! With thanksgiving, let us celebrate our new life in Christ giving thanks to God our creator and sustainer: Loving and gracious God, thank you for this holy meal. Thank you for Jesus and his all-inclusive love for humanity. Thank you for this day which we worship and serve you.  Amen.

*HYMN No. 697                In Christ There Is No East or West          

*Benediction (unison)                                        Adapted from the Belhar Confession           

We share one faith, have one calling, are of one soul and one mind.
We have one God, are filled with one Spirit and are baptized with one baptism. We eat of one bread and drink of one cup, confess one Name, are obedient to one Lord, work for one cause, and share one hope. Together we come to know the height and the breadth and the depth of the love of Christ. Together we are built up to the stature of Christ, to the new humanity.
Together we know and bear one another's burdens, thereby fulfilling the law of Christ that we need one another, build up one another, admonish and comfort one another and suffer with one another for the sake of righteousness.
Together we pray. Together we serve God in this world.  Let us all go in peace.  Amen.

Postlude: We All Believe in One God, Johann Sebastian Bach

Pastor Donna gives thanks to Emerson Chen, Rosa Weed, Nina Proschel, Helga Brenner-Khan, Linda Diez, Jeanne Sarran, and the Chancel Choir for participating in this morning’s service.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

WE WELCOME DONNA MARIE FIELD to the pulpit.  Donna graduated from the New Brunswick Theological Seminary with a Masters in Divinity degree.  She will be leading our worship services until a permanent minister is in place.

MEMORIAL SERVICE for Hank Brunjes, brother of Donald Brunjes, this Saturday, October 12, 2013, 11:00 A.M. in the sanctuary.  Collation following.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED to do crafts for the Harvest Festival on November 16th.  See Helen Lucas after the worship service or call (718) 353-2940.

OUR APPRECIATION FOR TODAY’S VOLUNTEERS:

Van Driver: Gina Lombardo
Coffee Hour Host: Rhoda Jabbour
Greeters: Nancy Gessner and Eva Munoz
Ushers: Ginny and Hong Chan, Marion Durney, Marie Mark, Jeanne and Steve Sarran, Adriene and Bill Toy and Jerry Good
Children and Worship: Kathy Bracken and Michael Iovale
Childcare: Judie Kellaway

YEAR-ROUND COLLECTIONS –

  • Donations for the Food for Kids Ministry should be brought to the Church Office. This food will be given to families in need in Jamaica, New York.
  • Christmas cards (with Forever Stamps on the envelopes) are collected in a basket in back of church.  These cards will enable inmates at the Nassau County Correction Center to correspond with their loved ones.  

VAN MINISTRY: We offer van service for Sunday worship and grocery shopping every other Tuesday.  If you need a ride to church on Sunday or would like to join them for grocery shopping, speak with Gina Lombardo at (917) 767-2923.

PRAYER REQUESTS:  Ruth Bailey, Letty Delgado, Ed Diercks, Dombrowski Family, Edythe Durney, Alfred Gessner, Lisa Gessner, Robert Keller, Fritz Kunisch, Ann Martin, John Molino, Ed Moores, Josephine Rivera, Gloria Scrivano, Janice Serra, Mary Wainwright, Joan Werbel.

September 8, 2013 - Communion Service

The Church on the Hill

Communion Service

September 8, 2013 11:00 A.M.

* All who are able, please stand.

Please turn off your cellphones.  Thank you.

PRELUDE:     Baroques Suite                         Seth Bingham 

WELCOME
* CELEBRATION OF FRIENDSHIP
* Gloria Patri  (pew card)  

* CALL TO WORSHIP AND SALUTATION Dorien Day

Leader: O come, let us sing to the Lord;
People: Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
Leader: Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
People: Let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
Leader: For he is our God,
People: And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
 Leader: Grace and Peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

* HYMN No.  50 Sing Praise to God Who Reigns Above

* PRAYER OF CONFESSION  (unison)  

Eternal God, in whom we live and move and have our being, whose face is hidden from us by our sins, and whose mercy we forget in the blindness of our hearts: Cleanse us from all our offenses, and deliver us from proud thoughts and vain desires, that with reverent and humble hearts we may draw near to you, confessing our faults, confiding in your grace, and finding in you our refuge and strength; through Jesus Christ your Son.  Amen.

* KYRIE (pew card)
* ASSURANCE OF PARDON
* SUMMARY OF THE LAW  

ANTHEM:     If Ye Love Me Keep My Commandments      Thomas Tallis 

If ye love me, keep My commandments, and I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever.  Ev'n the Spirit of the truth, that He may abide with you forever, Ev'n the Spirit of the truth.

 SCRIPTURE LESSONS 

Philemon 1: 1-21, Pew Bible, page 970

Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and co-worker, to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. When I remember you in my prayers, I always thank my God because I hear of your love for all the saints and your faith toward the Lord Jesus. I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective when you perceive all the good that we may do for Christ. I have indeed received much joy and encouragement from your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, my brother.
For this reason, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do your duty, yet I would rather appeal to you on the basis of love—and I, Paul, do this as an old man, and now also as a prisoner of Christ Jesus. I am appealing to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become during my imprisonment. Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful both to you and to me. I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you. I wanted to keep him with me, so that he might be of service to me in your place during my imprisonment for the gospel; but I preferred to do nothing without your consent, in order that your good deed might be voluntary and not something forced.Perhaps this is the reason he was separated from you for a while, so that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother—especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord. So if you consider me your partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. If he has wronged you in any way, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand: I will repay it. I say nothing about your owing me even your own self. Yes, brother, let me have this benefit from you in the Lord! Refresh my heart in Christ. Confident of your obedience, I am writing to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say.

Luke 14: 25-33, Pew Bible, page 850

Now large crowds were traveling with him; and he turned and said to them, “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.

THE SERMON          The Cost of Discipleship Rev. Doug Estella

WORSHIP OF TITHES AND OFFERINGS

Offering
     Offertory: Let the Mountains Shout for Joy   Evan Stephens  

Let the mountains shout for joy! Let the valley sing and the hills rejoice, let them all break forth into song. Let them shout and sing   and be glad before the Lord. For the wilderness has blossomed as a   rose, and the barren desert is a fruitful field. Joy and gladness now are found therein – thanksgiving and the voice of melody. Let the mountains shout for joy!

     * The Doxology  (pew card)  
     * Prayer of Dedication

* AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
     * Apostles’ Creed (pew card)    

SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION
     Remembering with Love and Hope  (pew card)
     Invitation
     Communion Prayer
          Sanctus  (pew card)
          Mystery of the Faith (unison)
               Christ has Died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again. 
     Words of Institution

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING & INTERCESSION
     Lord’s Prayer (pew card)
      Prayer response                               George Whelpton

Hear our prayer, O Lord; incline thine ear to us, and grant us thy peace. Amen.

* HYMN No.661               Be Strong in the Lord    

* BENEDICTION 
Response                       Harold W. Friedell  

Day by day, Dear Lord, of thee three things I pray: to see thee more clearly, love thee more dearly, follow thee more nearly, day by day.

POSTLUDE:    Voluntary                           Seth Bingham

 WE WELCOME Rev. Doug Estella to the pulpit.  Rev. Estella, an Elmhurst, native, is an ordained minister in the RCA. He served as pastor of the Sunnyside Reformed Church from 2000 to 2006. For the past seven years, Doug has served as a teacher at the Academy of Urban Planning, a public high school in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn where he teaches English as Second Language. During that period, he continues to assist churches with regular pulpit supply. Doug and his wife, Janet, live in Sunnyside with their daughter, Renee.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

World Communion Sunday is October 6, 2013. We are looking for volunteers to help with the service.  If you can read/speak another language, we would love for you to help with the readings and prayers for that day.  There is a sign up sheet in Gessner Hall. All material will be assigned/handed out the Sunday before. See Donna if you have any questions. Many thanks in advance for your help.

OUR APPRECIATION FOR TODAY’S VOLUNTEERS:

Van Drivers: Gina Lombardo
Coffee Hour Hosts: Dina Antonucci, Irma Shubert, Carol Stark 
Greeters: Nina and Bill Proschel, Dorothea Zelnick
Ushers: Ginny and Hong Chan, Judie and Buck Kellaway, Jeanne and Steve Sarran, Adriene and Bill Toy; Head Usher: Jerry Good 

LARGE PRINT BULLETINS are available.  Please ask an usher if you want one.

WOMEN’S CHRISTIAN CIRCLE LUNCHEON, September 21, 2013, 1-3 PM Bring your own sandwich.  Dessert and beverage provided.  A planning meeting for the Harvest Festival.

VAN SERVICE for Sunday worship, call Gina Lombardo at (917) 767-2923.

YEAR-ROUND COLLECTIONS – 

  • Donations for the Food for Kids Ministry should be brought to the Church office.  This food will be given to families in need in Jamaica, New York. 
  • Donations for pets brought to the church office will be given to Worthy Pause to be distributed to local animal shelters.   

PRAYER REQUESTS:  Ruth Bailey, Letty Delgado, Ed Diercks, Dombrowski Family, Edythe Durney, Alfred Gessner, Lisa Gessner, Robert Keller, Ann Martin, John Molino, Josephine Rivera, Gloria Scrivano, Janice Serra, Mary Wainwright.

August 11, 2013 - Communion Service

The Church on the Hill
 Communion Service

 August 11, 2013 10:00 A.M.

* All who are able, please stand.

Reminder:  Please turn off your cell phone. Thank you.

PRELUDE:   Lord Jesus, Christ, Be Present Now Paul Manz

WELCOME
* CELEBRATION OF FRIENDSHIP
* Gloria Patri  (pew card)  

* Call To Worship (Adapted from Psalm 8) Roslyn Andela

Leader: O Sovereign Lord! How majestic is your name!
People: You have set your glory above the heavens!
Leader: When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon, the stars that you have established, what are human being that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?
People: Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.
Leader: Grace and Peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

* SALUTATION 

* HYMN No. 34   Rejoice, Ye Pure in Heart

* PRAYER OF CONFESSION  (unison)

Jesus, who sat at the table with outcasts and sinners, we confess that too often our words and actions are not consistent with our beliefs. Often we ignore the needy, show indifference to the lonely, and reject those who seem different from us. Forgive us we pray. Empower us to reach out in love and acceptance through your name. Amen.

* KYRIE (pew card)
* ASSURANCE OF PARDON
* SUMMARY OF THE LAW

JUNIOR SERMON    

ANTHEM: from Elijah Felix Mendelssohn

The Chamber Choir

O come, everyone that thirsteth, O come to the waters, O come unto Him.  O hear, and your souls shall live forever.

SCRIPTURE LESSON 

Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 Pew Bible, pg. 977

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old—and Sarah herself was barren—because he considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, ‘as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.’
All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them. They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth, for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them.

THE SERMON               Elbow Room Donna M. Field

WORSHIP OF TITHES AND OFFERINGS
Offering
Offertory:  Rejoice in the Lord Alway            Henry Purcell

The Chamber Choir

Rejoice in the Lord alway, and again I say, rejoice!  Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known unto God.  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ our Lord.

* The Doxology  (pew card)  
* Prayer of Dedication

* AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
     * Apostles’ Creed (pew card)    

SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION
     Remembering with Love and Hope  (pew card)
     Invitation
     Communion Prayer
          Sanctus  (pew card)
           Mystery of the Faith (unison)
               Christ has Died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again.
     Words of Institution Elder Dorien Day

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING & INTERCESSION
Lord’s Prayer (pew card)
Prayer response:  Kittery  William Billings

Our Father who in heaven art, all hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done throughout this earthly frame.

* HYMN No. 669 God of Grace and God of Glory

* BENEDICTION
Response:  Henry Purcell  

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ our Lord.

POSTLUDE:  God of Grace             Paul Manz

WE WELCOME DONNA MARIE FIELD to the pulpit.  In May 2013, Donna graduated from the New Brunswick Theological Seminary with a Masters in Divinity degree.  She will be leading our worship services until a permanent minister is in place.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

AUGUST 11, 2013

OUR WORSHIP HOURS will continue at the 10:00 AM hour through Labor Day Sunday, September 1, 2013.  We hope you will give our worship your support through prayer and attendance.   

APPRECIATIONS: Today we thank the Chamber Choir for sharing their musical talents to enhance our worship service.

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL,  starts tomorrow

August 12-16, 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM.  

Kingdom Rock – Where Kids Stand Strong for God

CROP WALK September 22, 2013 – Donation envelopes are available in the back of the sanctuary and in the church office.

FINANCIAL INFORMATION

  • Please consider prepaying your pledge before you leave on vacation.  This will help the summer cash flow problem.
  • Please submit your pledge (estimate of giving) cards for 2013.  If you have already done so, thank you.
  • If you have not given a special offering for your assessment ($93 per member), please help us by making the payment. The Synodical and Classical Assessment is the amount we owe Reformed Church in America for your membership.  

YEAR-ROUND COLLECTIONS – 

  • Donations for the Food for Kids Ministry should be brought to the Church office.  During the school year, this food will be given to families in need in Jamaica, New York. 
  • Donations for pets brought to the church office will be given to Worthy Pause to be distributed to local animal shelters.   
  • Christmas cards (with Forever Stamps on the envelopes) are collected in a basket in Gessner Hall.  These cards will enable inmates at the Nassau County Correction Center to correspond with their loved ones.  

PRAYER REQUESTS:  Ruth Bailey, Letty Delgado, Ed Diercks, Dombrowski Family, Edythe Durney, Alfred Gessner, Lisa Gessner, Robert Keller, Ann Martin, John Molino, Josephine Rivera, Gloria Scrivano, Janice Serra, Mary Wainwright.