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

First Sunday of Lent March 9, 2014, 10:30 am

Meditation

I am being driven forward

Into an unknown land.

The pass grows steeper,

The air colder and sharper.

A wind from my unknown goal

Stirs the strings

Of expectation.

Still the question:

Shall I ever get there?

There where life resounds,

A clear pure note

In the silence.

—Dag Hammerskjold

From there to here 

Welcome & Announcements
Prelude     Variation sur un théme de Clément Jannequin           Jehan Alain
*  Call to Worship
One:    The walk toward God begins with small steps.
All:      And so it begins.
One:    We walk together, into the wilderness of unknowing and knowing too much, seeking the paths that lead us home.
All:      We are not alone. We walk with God.
One:     We walk with God. We are not alone.
*  Hymn #205 Black           Forty Days and Forty Nights  Heinlein
*  Prayer of Approach and Confession 
One:     Before you, Jesus Christ, we admit how and where we have underestimated our influence, letting our words of silence hurt, abusing trust, betraying confidences.
Lord have mercy;
All:      Christ, have mercy.
One:     We admit how and where we have made a show of our religion, attracting more attention to us, and less to you.
Lord have mercy;
All:      Christ, have mercy.
One:     We admit to where in our lives a vague interest has become a dangerous passion, and we are not sure what to do or whether we are still in control
Lord have mercy;
All:      Christ, have mercy.
One:     Lord Jesus Christ, if we have looked or longed for an easier gospel, a lighter cross, a less demanding savior, then turn our eyes and avert our longing from what we want to choose, to the one who has chosen us. Forgive our unfaithfulness, and, for our better living, give us not the remedy we desire tomorrow, but the grace you offer today.
We ask this for your love’s sake.
All:      Amen.
* Words of Assurance       
*  Passing the Peace of Jesus Christ
All who come to this sanctuary are welcome companions on this day. Please turn to those nearest you and greet them with words of peace.          

the Word In our Midst

Anthem    Walk with Me  arr. Zebulon M. Highben
Union Church Choir
I’m just a poor wayfarin’ stranger travelling through this world of woe, and there’s no sickness, toil or danger in that bright world to which I go.  I want Jesus to walk with me. All along my pilgrim journey, I want Jesus to walk with me. I know dark clouds will gather o’er me, I know my way is dark and steep, yet beauteous fields lie just before me, where souls redeemed their vigil keep. I want Jesus to walk with me, and in his love my path he keeps. I’m going there to meet my Savior, to sing his praises evermore.
Hebrew Scripture Lesson                       Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7

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, Little Church for children Preschool & under is available in the Nursery, downstairs off the Fellowship Hall, and Children’s Church, for grades K-3, takes place in the chapel.  If this is your child’s first time attending Little Church or Children’s Church, please accompany them to fill out a registration form.  Otherwise, children are welcome to follow volunteers to their worship spaces.
Psalm Reflection
Gospel Lesson                              Matthew 4:1-11
Sermon     Lives of Justice and Joy           Kent Gilbert

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. Your contribution is love made visible. Thank you.
Offertory  Liebster Jesu, Wir Sin Hier     J.S. Bach
*  Doxology  Holy Ground   Christopher Beatty
 These are holy hands
God’s given us holy hands
God works through these hands
And so these hands are holy
These are holy hands
God’s given us holy hands
God works through these hands
And so these hands are holy

Connecting the dots and 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.

From here to there 

Introduction and Invitation to Membership
Union Church is a vital and growing family of faith, a home to those committed to the way of Christ’s sacrificial love and service. All who feel led to join will be received in joy, and are welcome to come forward on the last verse of the hymn. Thanks be to God for these ministers among us.
*  Closing Hymn     For Everyone Born     Shirley Erena Murray
*  Questions of the Congregation and New Members    
*  Covenant of Welcome               
And we, the members of this church, renewing our own covenant to God and to each other, do now heartily welcome you to our fellowship, promising to watch over you in love, and praying that you and we may be true witnesses for Christ, a light in the world, and continue to increase in usefulness and joy in his service.
*  Benediction         
*  Benediction Response     We Will Walk with God           Sizohamba naye
* Those in harm’s way in the service of our country and all those who wait and worry for them.
* Judy Royalty,  recovering from surgery
* Harry Piland, hospitalized with pneumonia
* Charles Sisson, at Myrna’s death
* Ashley Cochrane’s mom, Mary Ellen Cochrane, recovering from double knee replacement
* Sandra Bastinelli, friend of Joan English
* Peggy Coyne’s daughter’s future mother-in-law, Jan Dailey-Hosp, awaiting a lung transplant
* Teri VanPelt and Christine Ward. Teri had surgery to try to control her back pain
* Dick Drake, recovering from a fall at home
* Judy Rowell , undergoing cancer treatment and doing well
* Greg Bolster, Steve’s brother, gravely ill with cancer
* Michelle Tooley, with recurrence of melanoma
* For Nancy Jones, back home after week at the compassionate care center in Richmond.
* Naomi Brandenburg, Larry’s mother,      recovering at home after hip replacement
* Our church family members in nursing homes: Rose Brandenburg, Edith Hansen, Klara Welsh, Bernice Robertson
* Naomi Schulz, in seminary in Berkeley, CA.

Lenten Communion Each Sunday… Communion is an important practice that symbolizes our bind both with God and the healing presence of Christ. During Lent communion will be offered at the altar following the postlude for any who would like to receive that special reminder for their weekly journey. You need not be a member of this church or any church to participate.

Join Us For Lunches Today and Every Sunday in Lent! — You are invited to the Community Room immediately following worship for the first of the Lenten Lunches. Today’s lunch is brought to you by the  members of the Community Life and Growth and Nurture and Care Boards and will feature a variety of pasta casseroles, including meat, vegetarian, and a gluten-free alternative, along with salad, bread, and dessert. Donations go toward our church’s operating budget, but all are welcome with or without the ability to make a contribution. Good food, good fellowship, good cause.

Gina Chamberlain to Speak at Wednesday Nite Live, March 12: Gina Chamberlain will give a brief overview of her work this past year on the topic of global fair trade under the auspices of the Presbyterian Church’s Global Hunger Program.
Needed: Crockery, Pottery, Ceramics we can Break! We are preparing for an art project as a Day of Lament, and we need your old crockery to break! If you can donate an item to the service of breaking and making whole, please bring it to the church office.
Got trains? The preschool Sunday School has a large number of train tracks and a bunch of kids who love trains, but we don’t have enough train cars to go around on Sundaymornings. They are the little train cars that fit on little wooden tracks (like in Thomas the Train sets). If you have any old train cars which your children have outgrown, the preschoolers would be so grateful to play with them.
161st Annual Meeting Next Sunday after Church! As ministers of the church, all members help make decisions and guide our way. The Church’s annual meeting is an important gathering to help focus our prayers and energy for the coming year, elect officers, and bring new business before the body. Come for worship, stay for lunch and our meeting. We will install newly elected board members at the end of the meeting. Reports for the meeting are available in the church vestibules today.
FREE Tax Preparation!!!! Did you know that families and individuals who make under $52,000 are eligible to get to get their taxes done for FREE?  There is a location for this service on Berea’s campus open to students, staff and the community.  To schedule an appointment call Tracy Featherly at (859) 985-3276 and if you have any questions, ask Grace McKenzie.  (P.S.  This site can also help you complete your FAFSA if you are interested in going to college.)
Fundraising Concert Sunday, March 16, 3:00 p.m., for the May, 2014 Berea College Concert Choir International Performance Tour to Spain and Portugal Gray Auditorium, Presser Music Building featuring choral music by the Concert Choir and Chamber Singers, and solo vocal music by members of the choirs Stephen Bolster, conductor. Tickets required, and available at the following price levels: Berea Student $5, Supporter $10, Friend $25, and up. Tickets may be purchased beginning Monday, March 10 from choir members, at the College Bookstore, and the Music Office in Presser Hall or by calling the Music Office (859)985-3466 weekdays until March 14.
News of the Family: Loyal Jones reports the great news that Ron Hardert’s book on the dangers of atomic energy will be published by Trafford Publishing, a division of Random House. The title is Button Up: Secrecy and Deception in the Nuclear Fuel Cycle, by Dr. Ron Hardert and Dr. Mark Reader. Many of you will remember that Ron and Linda attended Union Church regularly when they maintained houses both in Berea and in Carefree, Arizona.  Ron is emeritus professor of Sociology at the University of Arizona in Tempe. As a graduate student at the University of Cincinnati and afterward, Ron studied  the migration of Appalachian people to the industrial Midwest during the sixties and seventies. Linda is a specialist in childhood education, and she and Ron have published articles together. It was great to have them with us for a while.