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Phones: 253-7698 • Phone/Fax: 253-8668 Email: chccucc@myfairpoint.net • Website: www.chccucc.org | ||||
Pastor..................................................... Reverend Carol Asher Home Phone: 744-7864 E-mail: clsasher2@aol.com Ministers.............................................................. All Members Director of Music............................................ Secretary............................................................. Diane Lamper Ukama/Partner........ |
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This Week in Our Church Family
Boldface = Church-sponsored events
Sunday (2/28) 10:00 am Worship and
11:00 am Fellowship and Refreshments in Gilpatric Hall
Monday (3/1) 8 & 9:00 am T’ai Chi
8:30 am Boot Camp (Mon.-Fri.)
Tuesday (3/2) 7:30 am Spirituality
5:30-6:30pm
Wed. (3/3)
Thursday (3/4) 6:00 pm T’ai Chi
Friday (3/5)
Saturday (3/6) 8:00am Al-Anon
Sunday (3/7) 10:00 am Worship and
11:00 am Fellowship and Refreshments in Gilpatric Hall
Thank You to Today’s Volunteers
Ushers: | Natalie Smith & Mary Moore | Nursery Care: | Gabby Smith |
Liturgist: | Greeters: | Pam & Joe Hulkow | |
Acolytes: | Travis Manville & Logan Nash | Fellowship Hosts: | Dave & Lynne Sias |
February 28, 2010 10:00 a.m.
Morning Worship for the Second Sunday in Lent
Large print bulletins available—please ask an usher.
An asterisk (*) indicates “Please stand if you are able.”
Gathering for Worship
PRELUDE “Here Yet Awhile” Bach/Whitford
IN THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH (announcements)
PREPARING THE WAY
Entering into Worship
CHORAL INTROIT
RESPONSIVE CALL TO WORSHIP
L: There is something more,
P: Or something missing,
L: That sends us searching in the dark,
P: Looking for answers,
L: Risking a question.
P: We are drawn here,
L: Because God has touched us,
P: And has given us hope,
L: Whispered our name.
P: Here in this place,
L: We journey toward grace
P: And know the “something more”
L: Is revealed in the love of Jesus’ face.
*OPENING HYMN “I Have Decided to Follow Jesus” Hymn #344
*GATHERING PRAYER (in unison)
We gather this day to worship our God, whose words and ways challenge us. God invites us to lose our selfishness to find ourselves. God calls us to be fools in the world to show forth the wisdom of Christ. God urges us to empty ourselves to discover life’s fullness. God bids us to be obedient to a divine will so we might know true freedom. We come to worship our Creator, seeking to have our faith challenged into growth. We root our faith in worship seeking to find nourishment for our spirits in this growing season of Lent. We pray together as Jesus taught us…
*LORD’S PRAYER (using “debts”)
CHILDREN’S STORY “Take Off the Mask”
(Children will leave to go to their classes at this time.)
A Time of Sharing
PRAYER JOYS AND CONCERNS
When we stop praying, “co-incidences” stop.
ANTHEM “Is It I, Lord?” Ruth Elaine Schram
CALL TO PRAYER
“Hush now in quiet peace, be still your mind at ease;
The Spirit brings release, so wait upon the Lord.”
PASTORAL PRAYER
CHORAL RESPONSE
MOMENT FOR
OFFERING
Organ Offertory “Lento” Cesar Franck
*Doxology (sung by the people)
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise God, all creatures here below,
Praise God, above, ye heavenly host,
Creator, Christ, and Holy Ghost. Amen
*Prayer of Dedication
Reflecting on God’s Word
SCRIPTURE Mark 9: 33-41 (p. NT) 10:35-45 (p. NT) p. 45; 47 NT
SERMON “Climbing the Ladder of Success”
A TIME OF REFLECTION (on insert)
UNISON PRAYER (on insert)
Sending
*CLOSING HYMN “Where He Leads Me” Hymn #346
*BENEDICTION
ORGAN POSTLUDE “The Gospel Trumpet”
“He Could Have Been a Success”
(Jamie Buckingham “Translating the Word” Charisma, June 1984)
It’s a recruiting ad. The ad shows a man with a six-day growth of beard, his shirt ripped and hanging open, a canteen on his belt, his pants rolled up above his knees, his shoes in his hands, wading across a swirling, muddy jungle river. The caption reads: “Jim was voted ‘Most Likely to Succeed.’ Now look at him.” Underneath, the recruiting copy continues: “It’s too bad. Jim had it made. Personality, initiative, a college degree with honors. Success and the ‘good life’ were his for the asking.”
“Now look at him. Backpacking across some jungle river. Giving his life to a preliterate people barely out of the Stone Age. Painstakingly creating a written alphabet from a previously unrecorded babble of sounds. Working day and night translating the pages of the New Testament. Exposing the senselessness of superstition and ignorance. Relieving pain and introducing the possibility of health. Building a bridge of love and understanding to a neglected people.”
“And to think... Jim could have been a success.”
The ad closes: “If you are interested in Jim’s kind of success, contact the Wycliffe Bible Translators...”
The Road to Success
The road to success is not straight.
There is a curve called Failure,
A loop called Confusion,
Speed bumps called Friends,
Red lights called Enemies,
Caution lights called Family.
You will have flats called Jobs.
But, if you have a spare called Determination,
An engine called Perseverance,
Insurance called Faith,
And a driver called Jesus,
You will make it to a place called Success.
Don’t confuse fame and success—
Madonna is one; Helen Keller is the other.
Love
“Jesus, knowing that God had given all things into His hands... took a towel...” He washed the disciples’ feet. He could have taken a throne, or a scepter, or a crown, but He took a towel.
Love always does what it does not have to do. People do not have to go to foreign lands and become missionaries; love sends them there. Paul did not have to go to prison and spend nights in dark dungeons with a bleeding back and with his feet in stocks; love sent him there. A mother does not have to watch her baby through long days and weary nights, but love makes her do it. Yes, love always does what it does not have to do, yet love has to do what it does because it is love.
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit - just as you were called to one hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of us all. Ephesians 4:3-5
This verse is for you to think about and learn. Adults, please help your smaller children learn the part that is bolded.
Week Two Status
“Climbing the Ladder of Success?”
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
1. How would you define “status” in Christian terms?
2. What does it mean in these modern times that “whoever wants to be great must become the servant… and whoever wants to be first must be last”?
3. Who are the “greatest” in our society?
And who are the “least among us”?
Focus for the Week
Look for ways this week to respond to the call to forgo status and be a servant.
Prayer
Fill our hearts, O Lord, with the desire to be servants, in the way Jesus taught us and showed us.
Trouble us to look intentionally for “the least of these” in our community.
Direct us to our own path of servanthood.
Give us strength and commitment to pursue that path amidst the pressure to compete for prestige, power, and wealth.
Help us, O God, to recognize all others who are “for you” and to accept and support gracefully their faithful witness.
Amen.
Going Deeper
1. Some contemporary Christian preachers and teachers are well-known and earn high incomes from television programs and best-selling books. Compare the recognition and status of the disciples to that of religious leaders today. Reflect on or discuss how receiving such recognition may or may not be a mistake.
2. Many organizations and institutions print the names of donors grouped by categories, based on the amount of their contributions. What are the positive and negative aspects of this practice? Should churches adopt this practice? Why or why not?
3. The disciples felt threatened by the good works of someone who was not part of their immediate faith community. What do you perceive as being threatening to the beliefs or practices of your faith community? What is the basis for your perception? Jesus said, “Whoever is not against us is for us”; reflect on your perception in light of Jesus’ statement.
4. Can you identify in your life a frequent purchase, buying habits, or regular activities that reflect a desire for acquiring status above “the least of these”? In what ways might you consider adjusting your purchasing habits or your activities during Lent as an intentional response to Jesus’ call to be servant to all?
5. Have you ever been a participant in a foot-washing? If not, try to imagine how you might feel as a participant in this practice. Which experience did you, or would you, find more difficult--washing another person’s feet or having your feet washed? Explain your answer. Read John 13:14; how might we interpret for ourselves Jesus’ call to his disciples in this verse?
Another way of putting this question might be, what would this level of Christian servanthood look like in your own life?
Announcements
Welcome to all!
The Bible says: “Draw near to God and God will draw near to you” (James 4:8). May all barriers between God and ourselves be removed. Let us open our spirits to the Spirit of God and discover the power and peace of God surging within us. Blessings on all!
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Welcome Lee Phillips
Thank you to Lee for ably filling in at the organ while
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Those Who Follow Jesus
During Lent we will focus on the disciples whom Jesus called to follow Him—those long-ago disciples whose names are mentioned in scripture and those disciples who are called today. Those first disciples were the most unlikely candidates—even after three years of learning from Jesus, most of them didn’t “get it”. They made many mistakes during their on-the-job training program, yet Jesus put all His faith in them. We will look at those mistakes and try to learn from them. We will begin our reflection during the worship service in response to the sermon. There are guide questions to “go deeper” individually or as a group, if people want to gather after the fellowship time.
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Tuesday Morning Spirituality Group
During Lent, this group will be “going deeper” using the questions on the insert, reflecting on the previous Sunday’s sermon and theme. All are welcome to join this group as this new focus is begun.
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Our mission of the month is the Mission Trust Fund. The interest on this fund provides extra money to benefit the many missions you support.
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Al-Anon Meetings on Saturday mornings
Al-Anon is a group meeting for those whose lives are impacted by the alcoholism of a family member or friend. A group will be meeting in the church parlor on Saturday mornings, beginning next week. Please pray for the members of this group, but respect their need for privacy and anonymity. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Newsletter
Your March newsletter is ready and waiting for you in the box in Gilpatric Hall. Please pick yours up and save the postage.
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