Gathering in Worship Offered by the People of the Church of Christ, Union
Fifth Sunday of Lent March 18, 2018 10:30 am
Meditation
“Knowing what must be done does away with fear.” — Rosa Parks
From there to Here
Welcome & Announcements
Welcome to this service of worship! During the service, you are invited to rise in body or in spirit, standing or sitting, at points in the service marked “ ”.”
Please sign in using the pew folder, passing it back down the row so all can greet one another by name, and place the sheet in an offering plate. We’re glad you’re here!
¨ Prelude The Gift of Love Larry Sue
Debbonnaire Kovacs, Laura Nagle, Lisa Vaughn; Handbells
¨ Call to Worship
One: Today is a new day, a day of new covenant.
All: Love moves us, God calls us.
One: Not carved on cold stone, our covenant is written on our hearts.
All: Written in many colors, overflowing with hope and beauty, let us open our hearts so God’s Word can shape us.
One: In worship, in life, let us rejoice for the rainbow promise, God’s love in God’s hour.
¨ Opening Hymn #402 De colores De Colores
¨ Prayer of Approach and Confession
As we consider what needs to change in our lives we ask our selves hard questions. This Lent you are invited to engage these questions from Kentucky poet, Wendell Berry from his work “Questionnaire.” Both literally and figuratively, in the silence of truth, consider what the Spirit might be calling you to know, change, or acknowledge in your life.
From Questionnaire:
State briefly the ideas, ideals, or hopes,
the energy sources, the kinds of security,
for which you would kill a child.
Name, please, the children whom
you would be willing to kill.
One: We ask for your direction, your patience, your love and the strength to make changes that matter.
All: Forgive us and place a new heart within us.
¨ Words of Assurance
One: The poet reminds us:
“It may be that when we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work and when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey. The mind that is not baffled is not employed. The impeded stream is the one that sings.”
God is with you, knows the justice and mercy you need, and will help you practice resurrection.
All: Thanks be to God!
¨ Passing the Peace of Christ
All who come to this sanctuary are welcome companions on this day! You are invited to turn to those nearest you and greet them with words of peace and joy.
The Living Word among us
Anthem For the Beauty of the Earth Sally DeFord
Union Church Choir; Susan Pross Kramer, flute
- For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies, for the love which from our birth over and around us lies, Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
- For the beauty of each hour of the day and of the night, hill and vale, and tree and flower, sun and moon, and stars of light, Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
- For the joy of human love, brother, sister, parent, child, friends on earth, and friends above, for all gentle thoughts and mild, Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
Hebrew Scripture Lesson Jeremiah 31:31-34 (p. 932)
Children’s Moment as the children return to their seats we sing:
May God’s presence guard, protect and guide you. God bless you, God bless you. Our savior’s loving arms be ever ’round you. God bless you, God bless you.
Following the Children’s Moment, children kindergarten through 5th grade are invited to Children’s Church in Cowan Chapel. They are also welcome to stay in the service if they prefer. The Children’s Worship Center in the back of the sanctuary has toys, books, and drawing materials for children (or adults) who would like help staying present in the service. For children preschool age & under, care is available in the Nursery, downstairs in Room 104 off the playground.
Sung Psalm 119:9-16 Debbonnaire Kovacs, cantor p. 702
The Psalms were originally musical compositions. During Lent we will pray the psalms in musical form with congregational responses. Please sing the response when invited.
Gospel Lesson John 12:20-33 (p.1301)
Sermon Trouble on the Hour Rev. Kent Gilbert
Praying it Forward
Ringing of the Peace Bell
The Union Church Peace Bell was created by Jeff Enge in honor of Union Church member Carl Eschbach (1904-1998). A twin bell hangs in Berea’s sister province in Japan and is also rung in the hope of peace for all nations.
Silent Prayer and Prayers of the Community
Our Lord’s Prayer
One: Our Maker, our Mother, and …
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name;
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us;
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
GIfts Given for Love to Flow
Our gifts help sustain this particular community of caring by sustaining the building, pastors and staff, and all the materials that make our ministry of healing, justice, and teaching available to all in need. In addition, a good portion of our contributions flows out to aid to those in need via many external agencies.
This can now be done online or by text to 859-448-3403 (Example: Text “$50.00 Offering” to contribute to the ongoing ministries, or add “youth,” or “missions” or designation of your choice to benefit one in particular.
Your contribution is love made visible. Thank you!
Offertory Prelude and Fugue, BWV 850 J.S. Bach
Sean Lee, piano
¨ Doxology
From Here to There
¨ Closing Hymn #578 Profetiza, Pueblo mio Prophesy
¨ Sung Benediction Bless the Lord, My Soul Taize
Especially in our prayers
Each week we join millions of Christians who pray for one another through the ecumenical prayer cycle and, locally, the Berea Ministerial Association’s prayer cycle. Let us hold the people Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and our brothers and sisters at First Church of the Nazarene in our hearts, and pray for them. Please hold these concerns in your prayers, today and throughout the week.
Prayer requests to be printed may be sent to the office anytime before 10:00 am Fridays.
¨ Our church family members in nursing homes, or who are homebound: Ruth Butwell, Edith Hansen, Nancy Hindman, Loyal Jones, Mary Miller, Alva Peloquin
¨ Dan Rohrer, who is suffering from a severe liver disorder.
¨ Dave Wellinghurst, diagnosed with glioblastoma after surgery for a brain tumor. Good news! His cancer is responding to treatment better than expected
¨ Gary Dillon, significant other of Betty Sarafin, critically ill with cancer.
¨ For Luke Woodie, recovering from bile duct cancer surgery at home.
¨ Steve Boyce, recovering at home.
¨ Students rallying for sensible gun laws at the National March, Saturday March 24 in Washington DC., and around the country. We pray for their voices to be heard, and for ears to hear. Together, we can unite to save lives and live better.
¨ Jennie Kiteck, at home after successful colon cancer surgery.
¨ For those affected by violence in every form. May God soothe their spirits and heal them of all that harms them. May we be healed, too, of our complacency, of unhelpful habits of thought, deed, or speech, and of our unawareness so we can become agents of change and grace for a more beloved community.
¨ Alejandra Sanchez’s sister in El Salvador, Marco Amalia Sanchez, suffering the final stages of cancer. Alejandra would like our prayers for Marco and the family.
Announcements
You Matter! Please Sign the Register, Check in on Facebook/Twitter and try a nametag! It’s hard to get to know people elsewhere, but we don’t want it that way at church. Let’s all try to get to know each other better.
Let’s Do Lunch! Join us for the final Lenten Lunch this year! This is a chance to get to know that new person you haven’t said hello to; it’s a chance to catch up with younger friends and surrogate grand parents. Lenten Lunches build community and are places for holy conversations. Suggested donation $5, or ½ hour of help cleaning up! Bring a friend!
Menu: an Irish fest for St. Patrick’s Day!
Annual Meeting today, after lunch & worship. Each year in the spring, all members and friends of the church gather for a meal and important conversation. After worship today we’ll share the 165th such gathering of Union Church.
Dances of Universal Peace March 18, 3:30 pm, Community Room. Led by Carla Gilbert.
Birthday Party for Carla Gilbert, March 24: Our wonderful Church family is invited to celebrate Carla Gilbert’s 80 years at a special party and reception, 1-3 pm, March 24, Union Church Community Room. Cake cutting will be at 1:45pm, but drop in anytime. No gifts, but please consider a card or written appreciation that we can share in her memory book! — Kent and Diana
Time to order Easter lilies! You can do that online or using the paper slip i— $15 each. We’ll pick them up and arrange them, you can take them home after the season.
Help for Easter Week needed!
Palm Sunday set-up, 10-12 Saturday March 24.
March 31, 9-12 to decorate for Easter! We’ll have plenty of coffee!
We need captains for these tasks:
- Balloons
- Easter Egg Hunt
- Ushers
- Procession help
Call the office if you can help—thanks!!
Community Sing based on An Other Kingdom March 27, 7 pm, sanctuary, led by Ana Hernandez, a composer, singer, author, and songwriter who will visit Berea College for three days, sponsored by the Campus Christian Center and Union Church. All welcome!
Bread for the World Offering of Letters at WNL March 28 “For Such a Time as This” is the 2018 theme for this year’s Offering of Letters. Union Church has been a covenant member of Bread for the World since 2004 and participates in the annual Offering of Letters, writing to our Senators and Representatives to raise our voices in support of programs such as WIC and SNAP that assist families struggling with food insecurity, as well as international food assistance programs. The Offering of Letters is an annual event with participation from people of faith across our nation.
Following the WNL meal on March 28, writing materials and sample letters will be provided. Bread for the World continues to confirm that individual heartfelt letters do make a difference with our elected congress people. We collect the letters at the end of the evening and mail them.
Our Offering of Letters coordinates with the campus Empty Bowls event at Woods-Penniman Commons and we will have bowls hand made by Berea College students available for purchase, as well. The money raised from the Empty Bowls event supports Food Banks in our area. Mark your calendars now and join these efforts on March 28.
One Great Hour of Sharing Offering Next Week, Palm Sunday. One Great Hour of Sharing is the special mission offering that carries God’s message of love and hope to people in 138 countries. Churches work with international partners to provide sources of clean water and food, education and health care, small business micro-credit, emergency relief, and advocacy and resettlement for refugees and displaced persons. OGHS also supports domestic and international ministries for disaster preparedness and response.
Post Pictures for The Lent Photo-a-day Project! One theme per day, and you can post them and share using hashtag “#UCLent2018”. Use the same code in facebook’s search box to view these visual prayers.
Older iPad Needed: Do you have an older generation iPad you no longer use? The AV system we use in the Community Room would benefit from a dedicated iPad for church and rental use. It must have the older, wider power connection to work, but other than that, any iPad will be more than enough to power the system. Contact the office or Rev. Kent if you can help!
Stone Soup Uke Group meets WEEKLY! Looking for some community joy? The Stone Soup Uke Group is now meeting at Union Church every Sunday from 1:30- 3:30 in Room 101 on the lowest level – handicap accessible. You don’t have to know a thing about music – we sure don’t! We are a bunch of beginners who are learning this thing together. You can check out a Ukulele from the library to try it out. Come at 1:00 if you want some help tuning and learning the basics. Kids are welcome. No pressure, just fun. Contact Laura with questions: joyfulsunflower @gmail.com
Berea United Methodist Church invites everyone to their Lenten Lunch series, Wednesdays at noon a their Parish House on Fee St. Lunch & a speaker, no charge. Schedule on the back bulletin board. Special musical guest, Pearl Marshall, will play a handbell solo this week.
Help Sustainable Berea get a 10-to-1 Matching Grant by the end of March! If Sustainable Berea can raise $5,000 by the end of this month, every dollar will be matched 10 to 1, $50,000! Funds will be used to purchase food-
bearing trees and shrubs, and pollinator-feeding perennial flowers to be given to individuals and groups throughout the city. With that will come the education and information for proper care of young trees and plants. We’ve already raised about $1700! You can make Berea healthier, more resilient, and more beautiful with your contribution! Make checks to “Sustainable Berea” with “matching grant” in the memo line and drop it in the plate OR to online go to: https://donorbox.org/neighborhood-perennials-project-matching-grant-2. Please also forward this message to like-minded people and encourage them to make a donation before March 31!
To watch the 1-minute video, go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=679S0ZjeoR4
Official Record Book Still Missing :(. Have you seen the sign-in book we use to record new members’ joining dates and attendance at meetings? Did you look in your car? What about at home? It’s been missing since November and maybe some-one accidentally took it home or tucked it somewhere for safe keeping? It’s black padded leather, about 8 1/2 x 11. Help!
Please Sign up to Read Scripture or to Help Greet and Usher! Please use our electronic sign up system, http://signup.com/go/xkdVtB, where you can pick a date that works for you and get reminders! OR you can also call the office and we’ll get you on the lists.
Berea Leadership Experience for Youth, July 16-20. Berea Leadership Experience will hold its camp for kids to learn skills of conflict resolution, media literacy, mindfulness, and appreciation of nature the week of July 16th -20th, 9 am – 2 pm for kids in incoming grades 2-8. We are also seeking sponsors for scholarships and other financial donations to make this camp possible for as many people as possible. Sponsorships are $60 to cover one student. Checks can be made or online donations can be designated to Union Church, memo line “Berea Leadership Experience.” Thank you!
Coming up …
March 24 – 10-12 set up for Palm Sunday
1-3 Birthday Party for Carla Gilbert, Comm. Room
March 25 – Palm Sunday, One Great Hour of Sharing offering
March 27 – Community Sing, 7 pm, Sanctuary
March 29 – Maundy Thursday Service 7 pm foot and handwashing, if desired. 7:30 pm service
March 30 – 12:15 pm Good Friday Worship Service, Sanctuary
March 31 – 9-12, Saturday spruce-up & decorate for Easter!
April 1 – Sunrise Service—awaiting details
9:30 am – Kids’ activities and Easter Egg Hunt
10:30 am – Union Church, Easter Service Celebration of the Resurrection!
April 20 – SaraCare Celebration
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