A Gathering in Worship Offered by the People of the Church of Christ, Union

Third Sunday of Easter

Earth Day Sunday

April 19, 2015, 10:30 am

Meditation
In God’s wildness lies the hope of the world – the great fresh unblighted, unredeemed wilderness. The galling harness of civilization drops off, and wounds heal ere we are aware.

–John Muir, from John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir

From there to here

Prelude     Strolling the Barter Green,   from Virginia Highlands Suite Cynthia Dobrinski
Union Church Handbell Ensemble
*  Call to Worship
One:    Awaken, Friends! The new day reveals itself in every moment, and by the grace of God all things are made and made possible!
Bell side:       With every breath we remember that life is a gift from God, borne on             unpolluted air and carried in pure streams, and we give thanks.
Piano side:   With every bite of every meal that sustains us, we know the wonder of God’s diverse and fruitful Earth that feeds us body and soul, and we give thanks.
One:     With every word, we affirm transforming love for each of us, and we give thanks. Friends, Creation is full of God’s glory and all things are made new. Let us worship the God of such provision.

Adapted from “Have you Anything Here to Eat,” Earth Day Resource of the National Council of Churches

*  Hymn #569 Black           Touch the Earth Lightly          Tenderness
*  Prayer of Approach
One:    In loving compassion, we are blessed and made whole by you, O God. In loving compassion, we are fed and we are nourished. In loving compassion, we are placed into relationships with all creation, that your peace and justice might reign. In loving compassion, we are forgiven and wrapped in the warm embrace of a gracious God as we go forth to live connected lives. In this hour may we connect with you, Divine Spirit, and be drawn ever closer to the health of your whole world.
All:      Amen.

Adapted from “Have you Anything Here to Eat,”   Earth Day Resource of the National Council of Churches

*  Passing the Peace of Jesus 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 Word in our Midst

Epistle Lesson      1 John 3:1-7  God’s love makes us children of a greater family.
Anthem    God Is There   Larry E. Schultz   Jubilee and Joyful Noise Choirs
In a song that’s lifted upward, in a prayer that’s whispered low; in this place of holy worship we can feel and sense and know: God is here! God is here in the people gathered near. In this place of holy worship God is here.
In a mother’s strength and wisdom, in a father’s gentle care; in our families, each one different, we discover God is there. God is there!
God is there in our homes, no matter where. In our families, each one different, God is there.
God is in, around, beside us, behind us and before, ever present when we gather to worship and adore. In our homes and in our families we know that God is there; and we become God’s presence in our world and everywhere!
In the love we show our neighbors, in the friendship that we share, in a simple act of kindness we reveal that God is there. God is there!
God is there in our loving and our care. In a simple act of kindness God is there. In this place of holy worship; in our families, each one different; in a simple act of kindness God is there.
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 Children’s Moment, children grades K-3 are invited to Children’s Church, which takes place in the chapel.  If this is your child’s first time attending Children’s Church, please accompany them to fill out a registration form.  Otherwise, children are welcome to follow volunteers to their worship spaces. For children preschool & under, care is available in the Nursery, downstairs off the Community Room. Please pick up your children in the Chapel after the service.
Gospel Lesson          John  20:19-31        Jesus appears after his resurrection and declares the disciples will be his testifiers in the world.
Sermon     Have You Anything to Eat?        Rev. Kent Gilbert

Gifts given for Love to flow

Call to Offering
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.) If you give online, please place an Eastertide offering card from the red pew folder into the offering plate.
Your contribution is love made visible. Thank you!
Offertory              Mountain Mist Mediation  from Virginia Highlands Suite       Cynthia Dobrinski
Union Church Handbell Ensemble
Doxology Praise God  from whom all blessings flow;    Old Hundredth
                  Praise God all creatures here below;
                  Praise God above, ye heavenly host:
                  Creator, Christ, and Holy Ghost. Amen.  

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 Prayers 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.       

From Here to There

*  Closing Hymn #253 Black         Thine Is the Glory       Judas Maccabeus
*  Benediction & Sending Forth
Postlude (please be seated)         Abingdon Revistited  from Virginia Highlands Suite    Cynthia Dobrinski
Union Church Handbell Ensemble
_____________________________
*   Those who wish to  may stand
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 of East Timor, Indonesia and Philippines and our brothers and sisters at Liberty Avenue Baptist Church in your hearts, and pray for them.
Please also hold these concerns in your prayers, today and throughout the week:
* Those in harm’s way in service of our country, and those who wait and worry for them.
* For the victims of violence everywhere, and especially under the influence of racial prejudice and simmering fear. Peace to those everywhere our madness reigns.
* Our church family members in nursing homes, or who are homebound:  Edith Hansen, Nancy Jones, Mary Miller, Averill Kilbourne, Alva Peloquin, Ruth Butwell, Kim Woolridge
* Kelly Mehler
* Mary K. Kauffman
* Michelle Tooley
* Debbonnaire Kovacs
* Ed Doty, Patty Boyce’s brother, as he begins treatment for bladder cancer.
* Elicia Holly, mother of Jessica Holly, who fell and broke both legs.
* Our Confirmation Class members and their mentors
* Tom Frazier, recently hospitalized
* Dodie Murphy, having knee replacement surgery tomorrow, Monday, April 20, at St. Joseph Hospital Main. She expects to be home on Wednesday.
* Tim and Storm Jenkins, a young couple with a sick newborn
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.
Next week Rev. Kent will be away with the confirmation class on their last retreat at Pine Mountain. Confirmation Sunday will be May 24, on Pentecost.
Creation Justice Ministries, formerly the National Council of Churches Eco-Justice Program, develops Earth Day Sunday materials each year to help congregations celebrate and care for God’s Creation. For more information, to make a donation, or for additional Earth Day resources, visit www.creationjustice.org or email info@ creation justice.org
Concert today!! Berea College Women’s Chorus Spring Concert, 3:00 pm Gray Auditorium.  Free and open to the public!
Deadline to register to vote is tomorrow. Kentuckians for the Commonwealth reminds us that tomorrow—April 20—is the deadline to register to vote in Kentucky.
Shopping amazon.com for Mothers Day?  Remember: Amazon Smile will donate .5% of eligible sales to Union Church if you register at https://smile.amazon.com/ch/61-0444677. This is a great way to support Union Church.
Lectures on Religion coming up: Two Franklin B. Moosnick Lectureship in Judaic Studies events are scheduled in Lexington, open to all, no charge. Susannah Heschel, Eli Black Professor of Jewish Studies at Dartmouth College, will present ““Scholar-ship and Ethics: How do Jews and Christians Connect?”  on April 28 at 7 p.m. in Carrick Theater at Transylvania University and on April 29, 7 pm, “The Life and Legacy of Abraham Joshua Heschel: Moral Grandeur and Spiritual Audacity”  at the Ohavay Zion Synagogue.
Fair Housing Training April 29, Madison County Public Library, Berea, 1-3pm. If you are a real estate licensee, landlord, social service provider, housing authority employee, government employee or simply interested in the subject, you are welcome. No charge. Call 502-566-9955 or email juan.pena@ky.gov. See the poster on the back bulletin board for details.
From the Mission Board: Berea College student Ngoc-Anh (Na) Cao has been selected to the Caux Scholar Program from June 26 to July 24 in Caux, Switzerland.  She seeks funding in the amount of $6000 to participate as a Caux Scholar.   The trip to the Caux program is an opportunity to learn with 20 other young people who come from all over the world and have very different, even “conflicting” beliefs.  If you have questions or would like to support her participation, Na Cao can be reached at CPO 287;  859-353-7214; Or linkedin.com/in/aliceca016.  See May Consider for more.
Summer intern looking for a room to rent! A graduate student pursuing his master’s degree from the Clinton School of Public Service will be a summer intern with Berea College CELTS from mid-May through mid-July. He’s looking for a room to rent that is within walking distance of Berea College. If you can host him, please contact Ashley Cochrane at Ashley_ cochrane@berea.edu.