A Gathering in Worship Offered by the People of the Church of Christ, Union
Twenty-sixth Sunday after Pentecost 10:30 am
Meditation
Necessity may well be called the mother of invention but calamity is the test of integrity. ~ Samuel Richardson
From There to Here: We Gather
Prelude
Welcome Rev. Kent Gilbert (Hon. ‘22) & Dr. Cheryl Nixon
¨ Call To Worship Alice White (’80), Reader
One: We come from East and West, North and South…
All: And yet are still one people, seeking the presence of the Lord, the ear of the most high.
One: Our help is in the name of God, who makes heaven and earth.
All: Let us come from every corner of creation to lift our voices in praise and worship.
¨ Opening Hymn #70 God Is Here! Abbot’s Leigh
1. God is here! As we your people meet to offer praise and prayer, may we find in fuller measure what it is in Christ we share. Here, as in the world around us, all our varied skills and arts wait the coming of the Spirit into open minds and hearts.
2. Here are symbols to remind us of our lifelong need of grace; here are table, font, and pulpit; here the cross has central place. Here in honesty of preaching, here in silence, as in speech, here, in newness and renewal, God the Spirit comes to each.
3. Here our children find a welcome in the Shepherd’s flock and fold; here, as bread and wine are taken, Christ sustains us as of old. Here the servants of the Servant seek in worship to explore what it means in daily living to believe and to adore.
4. Sovereign God, of earth and heaven, in an age of change and doubt keep us faithful to the gospel; help us work your purpose out. Here, in this day’s dedication, all we have to give, receive: we, who cannot live without you. We adore you! We believe!
¨ Prayer of Approach and Confession
One: Let us confess our sins before God and one another that we may be freed from them, transformed, and better fit for better service. Let us Pray…
One: Most merciful God, you created and are creating still. In your presence even the valley of the shadow of death can feature a feast; the cup of your mercy overflows for our need. We confess that have been stuck in feedback loops of worry and anxiety. Our fears have made us cruel even to those we love and made enemies of strangers we barely know. We have loved power more than people; We have grasped for our own good at the expense of other people’s children. We have not behaved as family should and we seek your forgiveness and correction.
All: Send now your love and teach us the better way. Forge forgiveness in us from the fires our failures and free us from bondage to the systems that wreck us and your world. We humbly pray in Jesus name: Amen.
¨ Words of Assurance
¨ 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.
Word and Worship
Anthem The Presence of the Lord Earlene Rentz
Berea College Homecoming & Union Church Choirs; Dr. Stephen Bolster, conductor
When trials come, friends fail, and the heavens appear as brass; when earth appears as iron, when all hope is gone. Hold on, stand still, and you will see the face of God. The Holy Presence, Shekinah, will lead you a cross Jordan. Hold on through the storm, our God will comfort and restore you. The Presence of the Lord will go with you. Hold on, stand still, our God will go before you. Hold on, the Lord Divine will comfort and guide you. Hold on, the Lord will comfort and restore you. God will go before you, always watching o’er you. You will see the face of God. The Presence of the Lord will go with you. Hold on.
Scripture Reading Psalm 16
Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” As for the holy ones in the land, they are the noble ones in whom is all my delight. Those who choose another god multiply their sorrows; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names upon my lips. The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; I have a goodly heritage. I bless the Lord, who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I keep the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; my body also rests secure. For you do not give me up to Sheol or let your faithful one see the Pit. You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Children’s Moment
as the children return to their seats we sing:
May God’s blessings 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.
Scripture Reading Mark 13:1-8
As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.” When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?”
Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.
Sermon Trauma and G.R.A.C.E. Rev. Kent Gilbert
Video Reflection
A chance to take in what we have heard.
Living Prayer
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
Embodied Prayer
You are invited to reflect and pray at the candle table. You may also choose to source the essential ingredient of solitude and private prayer, remaining with your own thoughts in your pew.
Feeling the Anxiety of Tumbling Temples? Practice G.R.A.C.E*
¨ Gather Your Attention: take it back from all the little distractions. Breathe in and out until it is safely home.
¨ Recall Your Intention: In a few minutes of prayer or conversation, remember who you are meant to me, how you hope to serve, what you hope to bring to the current moment.
¨ Attune: first to self, then to others. Lots of systems internal and external might not be at their best. Take your condition and the condition of those around you into consideration.
¨ Consider What Will Serve: What does compassion require of you right now? What has not yet been tried, seen, heard, loved? How can you hold integrity and offer well-being to others without sacrificing it?
¨ Engage and Seek the End with Well-Being: embody what you now know and hope to do. Seek to end with wellness, even if the goal is not achieved. What do you need for that? What resources would you ask God for in this work? Practice, repeat, and re-do, as you move with GRACE in your world.
* These suggestions were developed by Joan Halifax, noted chaplaincy trainer and founder of the Upaya Center.
Offertory We Are not Alone Pepper Choplin
Berea College Homecoming & Union Church Choirs; Dr. Xiangtang Hong, conductor
We are not alone. God is with us. We are never alone, for God is with us. Now, through all our days, always, forever and ever, we are never alone.
A Chance for Generosity: www.easytithe.com/union
A community of caring relies on support. Your recurring or one-time donation will make a ministry of healing, justice, and teaching available to all in need.
¨ Use your smart phone or computer and go to www.easytithe.com/union. No registration required, but registering once makes future generosity simply an amount and a click.
¨ Baskets for checks or cash are located at the head of each aisle for those who wish to make an in-person donation.
¨ Give by Text. Text an amount to 859-448-3403 (Example: Text “$50.00 Offering”).
¨ Give by Mail to: 200 Prospect St., Berea, KY 40403.
Your contribution is love made visible. Thank you!
¨ Doxology Old Hundredth
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.
Silent Prayers & Prayers of the Community Marisa Fitzgerald (’99), Reader
Lord of the storm, we are praying for GRACE to be in your presence despite the tumult of our daily lives. We are reaching for the wisdom and compassion as we navigate challenge and change. For the kingdom to come, for the breath and push and fire to see it through, we come with some boldness and some desperation: You hear the cries of your people and you know the power in the bones of our fear.
When the world is too much with us, and we are too little with you, draw us close to your divine wisdom and holy vision. Carry us through transition and trouble, through rage and revolution, until all your children can sit at the welcome table in joyful communion. May we not fail you, nor each other, in the changes love demands.
Holy one, we pray as Jesus taught us, reaching to you as…
Our Lord’s Prayer
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.
¨ Hymn #436 God of Grace and God of Glory CWM Rhondda
1. God of grace and God of glory, on your people pour your power. Crown your ancient church’s story, bring its bud to glorious flower. Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, for the facing of this hour, for the facing of this hour.
2. From the evils that surround us, and assail the Savior’s ways, from the fears that long have bound us, free our hearts for faith and praise. Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, for the living of these days, for the living of these days.
3. Cure your children’s warring madness, Bend our pride to your control. Shame our reckless, selfish gladness, rich in things and poor in soul. Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, make our broken spirits whole, make our broken spirits whole.
4. Set our feet on lofty places, gird our lives that they may be, armored with all Christ-like graces, in the fight to set us free. Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, in the quest for liberty, in the quest for liberty.
5. Save us from weak resignation, to the evils we deplore; let the search for your salvation, be our glory evermore. Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, serving you whom we adore, serving your whom we adore.
From Here to There
Community Connections
Announcements
We share opportunities for Beloved Community and ways to serve. Please see the listing of church & community events, prayers, and notices in the pages following the service.
Lighting the Justice Candle to Lead us Forth
This week marks the Transgender Day of Remembrance (November 20) a time dedicated to honoring the memory of transgender people who have been murdered through anti-transgender violence. Hate towards the transgender community can also result in violence towards oneself and so this week we pay tribute to The Trevor Project (thetrevorproject.org), a nonprofit that provides suicide prevention and crisis intervention information and support to LGBTQ+ young people year round, 24/7.
Recently passed state anti-transgender legislation has led to significant increases in suicide attempts among non-binary and transgender youth nationwide. Political policies put forward during the presidential campaign have contributed to negative impacts on their mental health, as well.
The Trevor Project offers free counseling, conducts research, works to educate the public and to change hearts and minds, and acts as an advocate for acceptance and basic human rights. They envision a “world where all LGBTQ+ young people see a bright future for themselves.” Love demands that we all share that vision and actively work for inclusion and well-being. The Trevor Project suggests that ways to help include volunteering (including training to be a peer counselor), contributions, and/or partnering with them.
The Joy of Welcoming New Members
Partnership & Purpose
Today presents an opportunity to covenant together! All who would like to are welcome to join the church family – you will be received in joy.
Questions of the Congregation and New Members
¨ Covenant of Welcome
And we, the members and faithful friends 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
¨ Choral Postlude The Music’s Always There John Rutter
Berea College Homecoming & Union Church Choirs; Dr. Xiangtang Hong, conductor
Every morning will soon turn into evening, and springtime will soon turn into fall; every memory must fade like a passing parade, and youth become a time you just recall; but the good times together seem so magical: like music that lasts your whole life through; when it’s ended it never really dies away ’cause the music’s always there with you.
Every new day could be a time of harmony if people could only be in tune: all the visions you could share, magic castles in the air seem to fade away and vanish all too soon, but the magic you share when you make music won’t leave you when the time has come to part; and it feels like you never have to say goodbye, ‘cause the music’s always there in your heart.
Our Prayers for Others
¨ 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 (World Council of Churches Ecumenical Prayer cycle: union-church.org/ministries/prayer. Let us hold the people of East Timor (Timor Leste), Indonesia, and the Philippines and our brothers and sisters at Berea Church of Christ in our hearts, and pray for them today and throughout the week.
¨ Mary Ellen Sarafin, Betty’s sister, suffering from cirrhosis.
¨ If you want to help those affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, donations of money are best; and Church World Service and the Red Cross are “on the ground” now. Giving directly to them is the best way to help. Please don’t try to travel to affected areas.
¨ All the people of Ukraine for their safety and sovereignty. Prayers also that the government of Russia will turn to reason & respect for their own peoples’ lives as well as for Ukrainian families.
¨ All those affected by the devastating losses in the current conflict in the Middle East.
¨ Our church family members in nursing homes or who are homebound: Jerry Cooper, Jan Hamilton, Betsy Hoefer, Dorie Hubbard, Susan Kramer, Lois Morgan, Sara Parker, Cheryl Payne, Alva Peloquin, Laura Robie.
¨ All those suffering from mental strain, trauma, and disease: may God soothe and heal all who are troubled.
¨ Members and Friends who need safer housing and income security.
¨ JoAnn Russell, Reda Hutton’s aunt, facing several medical challenges.
¨ For all those caring for others in their illnesses and needs: may God give them both strength and encourage-ment in this work of costly love.
¨ Erikke Meadows’ mom, Prudy Meadows, with COPD.
¨ The Guild family as Will continues his struggle with brain cancer and stroke.
¨ Dottie Blackburn is in The Terrace for rehab. Cards welcome. 1043 Brooklyn Blvd., Berea.
¨ Ally Nurre, recovering from knee replacement surgery.
¨ Nancy Adams, at the sudden death of her brother, Joseph Mark Adams, on Nov. 10.
¨ The Taylor family, at the death of Barb’s niece.
¨ Phyllis Hughes’ family and friends, at her passing on November 12, at age 80. Phyllis graciously donated her body to UK Medical research, and arrangements will be made at a later date.
¨ Celebrations with Prayers of Joy!
Birthdays: Nov. 18 – John Wylie, Steve Sherman; 19– Dale Brown; 21 – Tina Hemphill; 22 – Chip Bailey, Ben Groth; 25 – Ally Nurre, Donna Daniels, Rina Tanaka
If we haven’t got your important dates, let us know. We’ll help you get connected in FellowshipOne Go!
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