February 16, 2020

ORDER FOR WORSHIP

* Congregation stands

BOLD – Congregation responds

Please be mindful of your volume during the Prelude as we prepare for worship together.

 

PRELUDE                Nocturne                        Chopin

 

SALUTATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

*PASSING OF THE PEACE

*Sanctus

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.

Heaven and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna, hosanna in the highest.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna, hosanna in the highest.

 

*CALL TO WORSHIP                                     Thomas Aiello

Arise, shine, for your light has come!

The glory of the Lord has risen upon us.

Let us praise the Lord together.

The sun shall no longer be our light by day,

nor will the brightness of the moon shine on us,

for the Lord will be our light,

and our God will be our glory.

The Lord will be our everlasting light,

and our days of sorrow will end.

Come, let us sing to our light and salvation!

 

*HYMN No. 559        Make Room within My Heart, O God

 

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Loving God,

In Jesus Christ, your kingdom has drawn near and you have called us to repent.

Turn our hearts and minds back to you.

In Jesus Christ, your light has dawned on all of creation.

Forgive us when we choose to walk in the darkness.

In Jesus Christ, you call the nations to come and worship you.

Forgive us when we restrict access to you and your grace.

In Jesus Christ, you loosen the bonds of injustice and set your people free.

Forgive us when our actions harm and oppress.

In Jesus Christ, your good and perfect law is fulfilled.

Forgive us when we fail to live according to your will.

(Prayers of Silent Confession)

Kyrie (sung):

Choral Leader: Lord, have mercy.

Congregation: Lord, have mercy.

 Christ, have mercy.

 Christ, have mercy.

 Lord, have mercy.

 Lord, have mercy.

 

ASSURANCE OF PARDON/WISDOM FOR LIFE

Hear these words of Jesus:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hid.

What does the LORD ask of us?

To do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with our God.

 

ANTHEM         The Word was God      Rosephanye Powell 

In the beginning was the Word, 

and the Word was with God, 

and the Word was God.

The same was in the beginning with God.

All things were made that have been made. 

Nothing was made, He has not made.

All things were made by Him 

and the Word was God!

 

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

Lord’s Prayer (pew card)

Response                  Cast Thy Burden Upon the Lord

Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee;

he never will suffer the righteous to fall:

he is at thy right hand.

Thy mercy, Lord, is great and far above the heavens:

let none be made ashamed that wait upon thee.

 

*HYMN No. 212                   What Wondrous Love Is This

 

PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION

God of light:

I delight to do your will; may your word dwell within our hearts.

I desire to see your face: reveal yourself to us today.
I want to hear your voice: speak, O Lord, for your servants are listening.

Amen.

 

SCRIPTURE READINGS

Deuteronomy 30:15-20                              p.163

1 Corinthians 3:1-9                                                p.927

       This is the Word of the Lord.

       Thanks be to God.

 

SERMON             Works of God    Rev. Blaine Crawford

 

CONFESSION OF FAITH

* Hymn No. 689   The Church’s One Foundation (v. 5)

 

OFFERING OURSELVES AND OUR GIFTS

Offertory          A New Commandment       Thomas Tallis

A new commandment give I unto you, saith the Lord,
that ye love together, as I have loved you, 
that e'en so ye love one another.
By this shall ev'ry man know 
that ye are my disciples, 
if ye have love one to another.

*Doxology (pew card)

*Prayer of Dedication

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

*BENEDICTION

Response              For the Life That You Have Given

For the life that you have given, 

for the love in Christ made known,

with these fruits of time and labor, 

with these gifts that are your own:

here we offer, Lord, our praises;

heart and mind and strength we bring;

give us grace to love and serve you,

living what we pray and sing.

POSTLUDE  Improvisation on Ode to Joy      Sean Cotty                      

 

All are invited to join us downstairs

For coffee hour following worship.

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Announcements


Music Note 

Throughout the month of February, the choir will be singing a spiritual hymn and anthem every Sunday in honor of Black History Month!

Children at Worship

Children at Worship is a spiritual formation program for children ages 4-9. Children are dismissed following the Junior Sermon and may be picked up from Classroom 2D after the service. There is no Children at Worship today or next Sunday, February 23.

Bible Study

Bible study meets in the library on Tuesday afternoons from 3:30 p.m. until 4:45 p.m. The current study, led by Rev. Crawford, explores and ponders the parables of Jesus.

Reduced Office Hours        

The church office will be open from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. from February 18th through February 21st. The office will be closed on February 17th for President’s Day. Normal hours will resume on February 24th.

Women’s Shelter Volunteers

Every Friday, we house up to ten women in Gessner Hall. We need volunteers to greet, to provide food and hospitality, and to stay overnight. We are especially in need of overnight chaperones. Sign up on our website or speak with our Women’s Shelter coordinator, Maureen Saepia-Chen, following the service

Food for Kids

School’s back in session which means that our Food for Kids ministry is back in full swing. Each week, bags of food are delivered to a local school to give to children who might be at risk of hunger over the weekend.

We are seeking donations of the following items on a regular basis:

 ·       1lb. white rice

·       1 can beans (red or black)

·       2 cans vegetables

·       1 can fruit

·       1lb. box of pasta

·       1 can pasta sauce

·       1 box mac & cheese

·       1 box cereal

·       *1 jar peanut butter

·       *1 jar jelly

*The jars of peanut butter and jelly must be plastic containers.

Music in a Sacred Space

Please join us on Saturday, February 29th at 4:00 pm for a piano recital by Abram Korsunsky. His program will feature exciting standards of the romantic repertoire including Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. The concert is free and open to the public, and there will be a reception to follow in Gessner Hall. Please note the earlier time.

Community Yoga

Join us in Gessner Hall for free yoga on Wednesday evenings at 7:30p.m. If you would like to join the yoga email list, please contact the church office at office@churchonthehill.org. The class is open to all ability levels and mats are available for use.

Bargain Boutique

The Boutique is open on Thursdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m to 1 p.m. Please bring your donations to the basement during these hours.

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 Prayer Requests

Miram Allen

John Babinsky

Diane Blagburn

Lillian Calfa

David Cerqueira

Gracinda Cerqueira

Jose Cerqueira

Marilyn Cooney

Edward Cotty

Rosina Cuticone

Frocione Family

Brooke Graffeo

Jayne Halley

Hotchkiss Family

Jane Lynch

Jorge & Tiffany Martinez

Jean MendleR

Ruben & Eva Munoz

Diane Thorp

Joe Thorsen

Christie Tweed

Alison Venable

Sandy Weston