Sunday March 10, 2024 Worship Services “Whoever Believes" by Jeanne Ohm
March 10th 2024
Gathering
MUSICAL OFFERING
ANNOUNCEMENTS
· Please join us in Calvin Hall following worship today for fellowship.
· The Gathering Place is open every Thursday.
· Turn Clocks Ahead on Today
· Lady’s Lunch Bunch March 13th, 11:30am @ Yen Ching’s
· Session March 17th
· Pulse Articles Due on March 20th.
· Good Friday, March 29th. The Cross will be carried from Christ Episcopal to St Boniface at 11:30 am. Stations of the cross will begin at noon indoors.
· Easter March 31st
PRAYER REQUESTS
· JoAnn Grimm and Joan Boyd are residents of Fieldstone in DeWitt.
· To the Welcher Family as they Mourn the loss of Judy Welcher
· Bev Hermann as she prepares for hip surgery in April.
· Joan Pinkston, on hospice.
· Ellen and Keith Miller who struggle with health issues. Ellen is at Eagle Point Care Center
· For our brothers and sisters in Israel, Palestine, and Ukraine.
PRELUDE
CALL TO WORSHIP (Psalm 107:1-3, 21-22)
L. O give thanks to the Lord, for God is good; for God’s steadfast love endures forever.
P. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, those God redeemed from trouble and gathered in from the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north and from the south.
L. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
P. The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever.
L. Let them thank the Lord for God’s steadfast love, for God’s wonderful works to humankind.
P. And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices and tell of the Lord’s deeds with songs of joy.
GATHERING PRAYER Gracious God, in order that the children of earth might discern good from evil you sent your son to be the light of the world. As Christ shines upon us, may we learn what pleases you, and live in all truth and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
.
HYMN Now Thank We All Our God #555
CALL TO CONFESSION The faithfulness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting. The mercies of God are new every morning. Beloved, confession of our sin before God is an act of trust in the goodness of God. In confession, we draw near to our maker in candor, knowing that nothing can be hidden from God. As we are honest with God and with one another about those places in our lives that stand in need of God’s healing, we are opened to the mercies of God. So let us confess our sins before our Father.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Holy God, giver of all that is good, we rejoice that you are the source of all that is. The breath of life is a gift from your generous hand. The food we eat is grown in the world you sustain. The community that supports us is called into being by your saving activity. Everything we have is a gift from you. Why, then, do we complain as though manna, raining down from heaven for us even now, is not enough? Why do we worry that your well of living water will someday run dry? It is surely our sin that causes us to live as though we do not trust your goodness. Forgive us, we pray. Teach us again to put all our trust in your promises that never fail. Remind us that we are always in your loving care. Fill us with grace, so that our lives might show forth the fullness of your love for all people. Amen
WORDS OF ASSURANCE (Hebrews10:16-18)
L. This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord:
P. ‘I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds
‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’
L. Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin”
P. Believe the promise of the gospel: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.
SONG OF PRAISE Gloria Patri #579
PASSING THE PEACE & INTERLUDE
May the peace of Christ be with you.
And also with you.
PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.
SCRIPTURE LESSONS
Numbers 21:4-9
4 They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,[a] to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”
6 Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.8 The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.
John 3:14-21
14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
MESSAGE Whoever Believes
HYMN Great Is Thy Faithfulness #276
PASTORAL PRAYER
Eternal God, our story together is one of your unending faithfulness to us, even as we are not always faithful to you. Holy source of all that is good, you have shown us yourself in abundance and mercy, in grace and abiding care. Knowing of your enduring providence, we may come to you with the concerns that weigh heavily on us.
We pray to you for world affairs beyond our control. For the people of Ukraine, Israel and Gaza, we pray for peace, knowing that you alone are the source of true shalom, peaceable kingdom. Where there are those in harm’s way, we pray for protection. Where we ourselves harbor enmity and prejudice, we pray awareness and grace that we may learn forgiveness. Teach us how we may serve you more fully in ways we cannot imagine.
We pray for needs closer to home, for our community. As we enter the season of Lent, we ask that you open our eyes to the needs on our very doorstep. Not give up hope. We see those whose names are known to you and offer compassion and goodwill. We pray for victims of violence. We offer our prayers for those who seek solutions for their problems. Let us not give up hope. Let us not abandon the work of healing the world—we remember that all healing comes from you.
We pray as well for ourselves, our own material and spiritual needs. Where our members suffer from illness and affliction, grant your healing touch, bringing wholeness. For any in our midst who suffer from depression or addiction, give us understanding and compassion. For those who are lonely, may we be a place of friendship, a warm haven where love is shared. To that end, we pray for the church: Universal, Presbyterian, and our own congregation. Enrich our lives with your grace that we might also be repairers of the breach. Lord, who taught us to pray together,
THE LORD’S PRAYER
Lord, who taught us to pray together,
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 debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever Amen
OFFERING OUR GIFTS TO GOD
From the providence of God, all that we need has been given to us. In sufficient abundance that we might share. Let us return our offerings as a sign of our commitment to follow the one who has loved us, even unto death.
DOXOLOGY Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow #592
PRAYER OF DEDICATION
Gracious God, from the overflowing of your love, we have been given abundance upon abundance. Receive, we pray, our offerings and bless them. May we be blessed by their work, as we see your reign among us, through Jesu Christ our Lord. Amen
NICENE CREED
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoken by the prophets. I believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
*HYMN Lord, Dismiss Us with Thy Blessing #538
CHARGE & BLESSING
Go into the World sure of the goodness of God. Remember the promises that God has kept. Be mindful of the ways that God has provided. Keep your eyes on the cross of Jesus Christ, and the new life that is offered to us all, and may the grace, mercy, and communion of our God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, bless you and those you love, both this day and everyday hereafter. Amen.
POSTLUDE
Gathering
MUSICAL OFFERING
ANNOUNCEMENTS
· Please join us in Calvin Hall following worship today for fellowship.
· The Gathering Place is open every Thursday.
· Turn Clocks Ahead on Today
· Lady’s Lunch Bunch March 13th, 11:30am @ Yen Ching’s
· Session March 17th
· Pulse Articles Due on March 20th.
· Good Friday, March 29th. The Cross will be carried from Christ Episcopal to St Boniface at 11:30 am. Stations of the cross will begin at noon indoors.
· Easter March 31st
PRAYER REQUESTS
· JoAnn Grimm and Joan Boyd are residents of Fieldstone in DeWitt.
· To the Welcher Family as they Mourn the loss of Judy Welcher
· Bev Hermann as she prepares for hip surgery in April.
· Joan Pinkston, on hospice.
· Ellen and Keith Miller who struggle with health issues. Ellen is at Eagle Point Care Center
· For our brothers and sisters in Israel, Palestine, and Ukraine.
PRELUDE
CALL TO WORSHIP (Psalm 107:1-3, 21-22)
L. O give thanks to the Lord, for God is good; for God’s steadfast love endures forever.
P. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, those God redeemed from trouble and gathered in from the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north and from the south.
L. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
P. The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever.
L. Let them thank the Lord for God’s steadfast love, for God’s wonderful works to humankind.
P. And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices and tell of the Lord’s deeds with songs of joy.
GATHERING PRAYER Gracious God, in order that the children of earth might discern good from evil you sent your son to be the light of the world. As Christ shines upon us, may we learn what pleases you, and live in all truth and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
.
HYMN Now Thank We All Our God #555
CALL TO CONFESSION The faithfulness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting. The mercies of God are new every morning. Beloved, confession of our sin before God is an act of trust in the goodness of God. In confession, we draw near to our maker in candor, knowing that nothing can be hidden from God. As we are honest with God and with one another about those places in our lives that stand in need of God’s healing, we are opened to the mercies of God. So let us confess our sins before our Father.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Holy God, giver of all that is good, we rejoice that you are the source of all that is. The breath of life is a gift from your generous hand. The food we eat is grown in the world you sustain. The community that supports us is called into being by your saving activity. Everything we have is a gift from you. Why, then, do we complain as though manna, raining down from heaven for us even now, is not enough? Why do we worry that your well of living water will someday run dry? It is surely our sin that causes us to live as though we do not trust your goodness. Forgive us, we pray. Teach us again to put all our trust in your promises that never fail. Remind us that we are always in your loving care. Fill us with grace, so that our lives might show forth the fullness of your love for all people. Amen
WORDS OF ASSURANCE (Hebrews10:16-18)
L. This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord:
P. ‘I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds
‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’
L. Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin”
P. Believe the promise of the gospel: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.
SONG OF PRAISE Gloria Patri #579
PASSING THE PEACE & INTERLUDE
May the peace of Christ be with you.
And also with you.
PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.
SCRIPTURE LESSONS
Numbers 21:4-9
4 They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,[a] to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”
6 Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.8 The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.
John 3:14-21
14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
MESSAGE Whoever Believes
HYMN Great Is Thy Faithfulness #276
PASTORAL PRAYER
Eternal God, our story together is one of your unending faithfulness to us, even as we are not always faithful to you. Holy source of all that is good, you have shown us yourself in abundance and mercy, in grace and abiding care. Knowing of your enduring providence, we may come to you with the concerns that weigh heavily on us.
We pray to you for world affairs beyond our control. For the people of Ukraine, Israel and Gaza, we pray for peace, knowing that you alone are the source of true shalom, peaceable kingdom. Where there are those in harm’s way, we pray for protection. Where we ourselves harbor enmity and prejudice, we pray awareness and grace that we may learn forgiveness. Teach us how we may serve you more fully in ways we cannot imagine.
We pray for needs closer to home, for our community. As we enter the season of Lent, we ask that you open our eyes to the needs on our very doorstep. Not give up hope. We see those whose names are known to you and offer compassion and goodwill. We pray for victims of violence. We offer our prayers for those who seek solutions for their problems. Let us not give up hope. Let us not abandon the work of healing the world—we remember that all healing comes from you.
We pray as well for ourselves, our own material and spiritual needs. Where our members suffer from illness and affliction, grant your healing touch, bringing wholeness. For any in our midst who suffer from depression or addiction, give us understanding and compassion. For those who are lonely, may we be a place of friendship, a warm haven where love is shared. To that end, we pray for the church: Universal, Presbyterian, and our own congregation. Enrich our lives with your grace that we might also be repairers of the breach. Lord, who taught us to pray together,
THE LORD’S PRAYER
Lord, who taught us to pray together,
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 debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever Amen
OFFERING OUR GIFTS TO GOD
From the providence of God, all that we need has been given to us. In sufficient abundance that we might share. Let us return our offerings as a sign of our commitment to follow the one who has loved us, even unto death.
DOXOLOGY Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow #592
PRAYER OF DEDICATION
Gracious God, from the overflowing of your love, we have been given abundance upon abundance. Receive, we pray, our offerings and bless them. May we be blessed by their work, as we see your reign among us, through Jesu Christ our Lord. Amen
NICENE CREED
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoken by the prophets. I believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
*HYMN Lord, Dismiss Us with Thy Blessing #538
CHARGE & BLESSING
Go into the World sure of the goodness of God. Remember the promises that God has kept. Be mindful of the ways that God has provided. Keep your eyes on the cross of Jesus Christ, and the new life that is offered to us all, and may the grace, mercy, and communion of our God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, bless you and those you love, both this day and everyday hereafter. Amen.
POSTLUDE
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