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

Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost

September 17, 2017                  10:30 am 

Meditation  
“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” ― Louis B. Smedes

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 Procession of Praise A.B. Sherman
Union Church Handbell Ensemble
¨  Call to Worship
 One: Bless the Lord, O People!
All: Bidden or Unbidden, God is present to us!
One: God in mercy seeks us. God in compassion is working out our healing.
All: We enter, we strengthen, we learn, we praise, we bless! Let us worship the God of our salvation!
¨  Opening Hymn #23 There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy In Babilone
¨  Prayer of Approach and Confession (unison)
We confess, almighty God, that we have not always been merciful, nor shown your face to others when we have felt wronged. We have attacked problems with problems, and have separated ourselves from the very people we call “sister” or “brother.” We have craved forgiveness, but been slow to understand it, and have found it hard to offer.
By your mercy may we become merciful. By your grace may we move gracefully toward others and toward the self-honesty that restores our souls. For the wrongs we have done, we are sorry, and ask your forgiveness and strength as we make a new path to a greater good. Amen. —Kent Gilbert
¨  Words of Assurance
One: God’s mercy IS like the wideness of the sea, so much vaster than human minds can take in. There IS a new way, you CAN be restored, and God WILL empower every step toward grace. We have this promise from Christ himself, that all who seek shall find. We are forgiven and changed.
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

Blessing of the Robes
Anthem Grant Us Thy Peace Felix Mendelssohn
Union Church Choir
Grant us Thy peace, Almighty Lord, Thou source of every blessing! Feeble and frail, trust we Thy word, all things in Thee possessing. In Thee is our hope and safety.
Hebrew Scripture Lesson Psalm 103:1-13
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 parents) 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.
Gospel Lesson Matthew 18:21-35
Sermon Doing Unto Others… Rev. 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.
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                    Gaudio Exultans V.W. Stephenson
Union Church Handbell Ensemble
¨  Doxology                 Avery/Marsh

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
¨  Closing Hymn  God, How Can We Forgive Leoni
¨  Benediction & Sending Forth
    Postlude Tuba Tune C.S. Lang
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 Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay and our brothers and sisters at First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) 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, Mary Miller, Alva Peloquin, Gloria VanWinkle.
¨ All those suffering from loss due to recent hurricanes. See announcements for how to donate.
¨ In celebration and thanksgiving for Rev. Rachel’s 5 years of ministry at Union Church! Thanks be to God!
¨ Joan Bates and family, at the death of her nephew, Greg Coy, who died while on vacation in the Bahamas.
¨ Sally Zimmerman, in the loss from pancreatic cancer of her dear friend Joe Edmiston, a colleague at the Presbyterian Church USA national offices.
¨ Harriet Goble, recovering from a serious fall and brain trauma. 
¨ Chris McKenzie’s grandmother Zane Brown, recovering from a ruptured aorta .
¨ Rebecca Bradshaw-Cates, recovering from surgery for ovarian cancer.
¨ Amy Williams, recovering from a car accident. She would appreciate some help with meals and rides as she recovers: www.mealtrain.com/trains/4d7r22.
¨ Rev. Rachel’s cousin, Jeff Small, father of two small kids, who is on a heart transplant waiting list.
¨ Dan Rohrer, who is suffering from a severe live disorder.
¨ Hazel Morris’ sister, Phyllis, in Berea Hospital.
¨ Nancy Hindman, recovering slowly from surgery.
Learn more about the church next week! Come One Come All!  Each fourth Sunday of the month anyone wanting to know more about Union Church or wanting to explore church membership, as well as new members, are invited to come to the Classroom two doors past the church after worship for conversation with the Pastor and the Community Life and Growth Board.
Celebrate With Us…5 Years of Rev. Rachel! Our Associate Pastor for Faith Development and Community Life and Growth joined Union Church in September of 2012. We honor her extraordinary commitment and celebrate the gifts God has sent to us all through her ministry. Please join us for a reception immediately following service in the Community Room downstairs.
We would like to thank the Pross, Payne, and Bates families for their generous bequests in memory of beloved family members. With the combination of each of these generous memorial funds, we have been able to purchase new choir robes for our bell and chancel choirs. These robes will serve many years to the music program that is strongly growing.
Bloodmobile Tuesday, 11-5, Community Room.
Get your FLU SHOT next Sunday noon—2 pm in the Classroom.
Donations to hurricane victims can be made through Church World Service, which already has teams on the ground working. You can donate by listing “Church World Service Disaster Relief” in the memo line of a check, or by going to Union Church’s “Donate” page and clicking “Church World Service Disaster Relief” in the drop-down box after you sign in.
Did you know Kentucky ranks as the fourth hungriest state in the nation, tied with Alabama? With 17.6% of households at risk of hunger, compared to the national average of 12.7%, there is plenty to do. That’s why Kentucky Campus Compact, in collaboration with host Berea College CELTS (Center for Excellence in Learning through Service) and several other colleges, universities, and non-profit organizations, would like to invite you to take action:
On Saturday, September 30, 2017, the second annual Kentucky Hunger Dialogue will rally college students and others interested in eliminating hunger to take action.
This year’s theme, “Asset-Based Responses to Hunger,” will highlight successful programs already at work in our communities. Alongside non-profit and state agencies, students from colleges and universities across the commonwealth will spend the day networking, learning, and building coalitions. Sponsored by Kentucky Campus Compact and hosted by Berea College this year, the Kentucky Hunger Dialogue will present tools for engagement with hunger on three levels: emergency response, food systems, and policy change.
Learn more, and register at www.kyhunger dialogue.com. Registration deadline is Friday, Sept. 22.
Help Wanted!  We have an ongoing need for volunteers to help with Sunday services.  Can you be a worship leader, greeter, coffee angel, etc.?   For details go to the church website, union-church.org and click on “Volunteer” near the upper right corner (or talk to Doug Hindman).
Scribes to help our Pastors. You may see a member of the Pastoral Relations Board standing near the pastors as they greet folks on their way out of the worship service. These are scribes—their job is to note  important conversations and details the pastors might forget in the activity.