The Ram in the Bush

June 28, 2026 Genesis 22:1-14 The Ram in the Bush 5th Sunday After Pentecost Year A Prelude Greeting Call to Worship When our way seems unclear, and we are surrounded by loud and conflicting voices… God will provide. When we, like Abraham, are trying to be faithful and seem to have no good choices available to us… God will provide. When we, like Isaac, are led by those we trust into unjust and harmful situations… God will provide. Family in Christ, we gather today to worship God, who meets us in places of fear, confusion, and despair. We gather to worship God, who provides a way toward abundant life when no way can be found. Thanks be to God! Amen. Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, January 2026. Opening Prayer Lord, the hearts of all turn to You in hope; and You give them what they need. You open Your hand and satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing. We, too, turn to You again, longing to be filled— to eat of the Bread of Life, to drink from Your life-giving streams, to taste Your goodness and live. May the time we spend together in Your presence nourish our hearts and minds; may it strengthen our relationship with You, and renew our commitment to live in this world as Your faithful disciples. For You alone are God, the Source and Sustainer of life. In Jesus’ name, Amen. Written by Christine Longhurst at the re:Worship blog, https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2011/07/opening-prayer-feed-us-lord.html. Song Rock of Ages, Cleft for me UMH 361 A Sermon for all Ages Children's Sermon: "God Loves to Hear You Laugh" Scripture: Genesis 22:1-14 Object: A smiling face emoji, a toy that giggles, or simply your own laughter. Good morning, boys and girls! I have a question for you. What makes you laugh? (Let the children answer: funny jokes, tickling, pets, brothers and sisters, cartoons, etc.) I love hearing children laugh. When children laugh, everyone around them smiles too. Laughter is one of God's wonderful gifts. Today we heard a Bible story about Abraham and his son Isaac. It is a story that can sound a little scary, but it also reminds us of something very important. God loved Isaac very much, and God made sure that Isaac was safe. God never stopped caring for him. Do you know something else about Isaac? His name means "he laughs" or "laughter." Before Isaac was born, his mother Sarah laughed because she thought she was too old to have a baby. Then, when Isaac was finally born, that laughter became laughter of joy! Every time Abraham and Sarah called Isaac's name, it reminded them that God had brought happiness into their lives. So even in today's difficult story, we remember who Isaac is—a beloved child whose very name reminds us of joy and laughter. God wants children to be loved, protected, and encouraged. Every one of you is precious to God. God has given you parents, grandparents, teachers, church members, and friends to help you grow strong, kind, and faithful. You know what else encouragement does? It helps people laugh! When someone tells you, "Great job!" or "I'm proud of you!" or "You can do it!" it makes your heart feel lighter. It helps you smile. Can you think of someone who encourages you? (Allow a few responses.) Now here's another question. Can you encourage someone else? Maybe you can tell a friend, "You're doing great!" Maybe you can thank your parents. Maybe you can make someone who's feeling sad smile or laugh today. When we encourage one another, we share God's love. So every time you laugh this week, remember Isaac. His name means "laughter," and it reminds us that God loves children, delights in their joy, and surrounds them with people who care for them. Let's try something together. On the count of three, everyone give your biggest smile... and then your happiest laugh! (Count to three and laugh together.) That's a wonderful sound! I think God loves hearing children laugh. Let us pray. Dear God, thank You for loving every child. Thank You for giving us families, friends, and our church to encourage us. Help us to make others smile, to share kindness wherever we go, and to remember that Your love fills our hearts with joy. Thank You for the gift of laughter. In Jesus' name, Amen. Prayer of Saint Thomas Aquinas Give us O Lord, steadfast hearts, which no unworthy thought can drag downward, unconquered hearts, which no tribulation can wear out, upright hearts, which no unworthy purpose may tempt aside. Bestow upon us also, O Lord our God, understanding to know you, diligence to seek you, wisdom to find you and a faithfulness that may finally embrace you; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Saint Thomas, Italy, 13th Century) Passing of the Peace Scripture Genesis 22:1-14 Sermon The Ram in the Bush Sarah went without a child for over 73 years. When her son was born she named him Isaac – meaning laughter. She wanted to celebrate the joy that he bought to her life. She also remembered her laughter, when God said that she would have a baby at 90. When she thought of the ways that God works and the surprises that come upon us – she couldn’t help but to name the baby Isaac. In your life, what is it that brings you joy? What is it that makes you laugh? We know that for Sarah, it was her baby boy. But we cannot be sure about Abraham. The scripture for last week and for this week- Genesis 21 and 22 are two parts of the 2nd most difficult story in the bible. These two chapters are the stories of how Abraham tried to kill both of his sons and blame it on God. Our scripture for today is the story of a promise given, a promise taken away and a promise restored. In the Hebrew understanding, this story is a sacred story – it called the binding of Isaac, it focuses on the faith of the son Isaac, not the father Abraham. Young Isaac travels with his father, carrying the wood. He asks his father where is the sacrifice. When he sees the knife pointed at him, I bet he also asks why his father is trying to kill him, and how will he ever be able to move on from this and still love his father. The story is important because in the midst of the trauma, it is a story of love – How God saved Isaac. We are Isaac in our lives during those times when our dreams are threatened and God pulls us through. It is our story of hope when the Lord provides. In the story, as Abraham prepares to sacrifice Isaac, he notices a ram in the bush. And he trusts that God will give him the strength to continue to listen and to follow. In spite of the important lessons, this is strange and confusing. It seems that the people that should have been protecting Isaac, are the people who put him in danger. His mother, his father, and even God cannot be trusted in parenting. Last week It is God who tells Abraham to banish his oldest son, Ishmael. It seems God would rather Ishmael be banished in the desert than put in the family will. And this week it is God who tells Abraham to take his heir, Isaac into the wilderness to be sacrificed. That is not the God that we know. Does God call us to do mean things to people? To hurt innocent children? There are still a lot of people who say that this story was a test of faith. God wanted to see if Abraham would be obedient to an order that he did not agree with. Would Abraham put God’s word above all else, including family. I am not convinced that this is a test, I think it was a moment of discernment. A time to think through what God was really saying. Years ago, Abraham heard to voice of God telling him to step out on faith. God calls us to new places – but very rarely does God give us a road map. We don’t have all of he answers, and we have no idea of what will happen along the way. Sometimes along the way, we may get a clear sign that we are in the right place, but we won’t get a step by step instruction manual. I think Abraham was following God, listening to God, but not always sure of what he heard. At the time, it was pretty common to sacrifice children to the gods. Many people in many cultures believed that sacrificing their children bought them special favor. Child sacrifices were a thing for over 5000 years. It was practiced widely until the 1500’s. I recently heard a sermon that in many ways we still sacrifice our children to a wayward world. Children are exposed to trauma, they are held captive with their parents, they don’t have access to food, shelter and education. In 1965, Bob Dylan wrote a song called Highway 61 – the first verse says Oh God said to Abraham, “Kill me a son” Abe says, “Man, you must be puttin’ me on” God say, “No.” Abe say, “What?” God say, “You can do what you want Abe, but The next time you see me comin’ you better run” Well Abe says, “Where do you want this killin’ done?” God says, “Out on Highway 61” In the bible, As Abraham raises a knife in Isaac’s face and angel grabs his hand and says that is not necessary. Isaac probably lived with the vision of that moment for the rest of his life. This story is known as the akedah in Jewish tradition, because this is the moment Abraham realized that God didn’t call parents to sacrifice their children. God did not call people to hurt people. The Hebrews were the first culture in that part of the world to realize that God was not a God of hatred and violence toward children. What could have been a tragedy turned into a moment of grace. The moment where the promise could have disappeared from the world became the moment that the promise lives on today. The promise still lives in the children who make us laugh. I said that this was the 2nd worse story in the whole bible. Can you guess what the worse story is? It is the story of God’s only son being killed on a cross. Isaac was spared, Jesus was killed. Abraham and Isaac travelled 3 days to Mount Moriah, Jesus spen 3 days in a grave. Isaac returned home to his mom and went on with his life. Jesus rose from the dead and changed the life of the whole world. On Friday, Carol Hall and I watched a movie called the Great Awakening. It was how the message that Liberty was a gift from God was spread throughout the colonies. The movie started with a young Benjamin Franklin talking with his dad. He dad explained that he was the tenth child – destined to be a servant of God. His dad didn’t call Benjamin Franklin a sacrifice, he called his a tithe. His dad wanted him to become a preacher, but was willing to support young Benjamin’s dream of becoming a journalist/printer. Andrew Young, former Ambassador to the UN, was talking about his daughter's decision to work in a very dangerous part of Africa. Young said something like, "When we brought her to church and Sunday school, when we had her baptized, we didn't really know that she was going to take all of this religion so seriously! It's sort of scary to realize that you are putting your own child at risk when you bring her to the Lord!" (4) God doesn’t give us a road map to live, but God does give us a glimpse of the future. It unfolds in the eyes of our young people. It unfolds in the moments of grace, it unfolds in the things that make us laugh. When we see God in the situation, we can relax, because we know that God will provide. For twenty-six years my wife was a public school teacher. The last eight years she taught kindergarten in a very tough classroom. She spent more time in social work than she did in school work. It is hard to study even as a little child when you come to school hungry. Her students said to her one day, “Mrs. Olds, you don’t know how lucky you are. You live in a brick house. Bullets won’t go through brick houses. You are a very fortunate person.” On the second day of kindergarten one year, a little boy came up to her and said out of the blue, “Mrs. Olds, why didn’t you come?” And she not knowing what on earth he was talking about, knelt down to him and said, “What do you mean, why didn’t I come?” He said, “Why didn’t you come when my mama died?” She said, “I’m so sorry, I didn’t know your mother had died, how did it happen?” He looked up to her and with tears in his eyes said, “Well, everybody knew it, it was on the television. My daddy choked my mama to death. Why didn’t you come?” I can never quite forget the echo of that child’s question in my mind—“Why didn’t you come in my hour of need?” Whatever you do with this story from Genesis, it is no invitation to mistreat children. You see, Isaac trusted his father completely. Can you? Abraham takes all the questions of his young son and answers them with a profound ritual that is repeated throughout this old story. With every question there is this answer: THE LORD WILL PROVIDE. Have you enough faith to proclaim that to your children? The Lord will provide. God will provide faith for the journey. God and Abraham had climbed too many mountains already for him to stop now. And as impossible as it all seems, Abraham gets up early one morning and sets out for Mt. Moriah. Somebody once said that when things get difficult, don’t pray for smaller mountains, just ask for increased climbing ability, because the Lord will go with you when it is difficult. In the end of the story, God is the hero – because God provides. We can be grateful that our understanding of God has evolved over time, and that he sent his Son Jesus to help us to see the meaning of grace clearly. There is a lot that we can get from this story of the binding of Isaac – the promise continues, we can follow even when we don’t have all of the answers, God will provide. GOD WILL PROVIDE AS MUCH HELP AS YOU WILL RECEIVE. So listen carefully, look for grace, trust the God in the process. This is essentially the end of Abraham’s story. Genesis chapter 23 is about the death of Sarah, and chapter 24 is about the death of Abraham and the beginning of Isaac’s family. Before returning home from Mount Moriah, Abraham told his son that they would return to this place, he named the place God will provide. I think I spend most of my life in that place- trusting God to provide. So Abraham called the name of that place, "The Lord Will Provide." Maybe not the way we want. Maybe not the way we desire. But the Lord will provide. The Lord will give life again. Jesus said, "Ask, and it will be given to you." But he also said, "Not as the world gives do I give to you." That means, the Lord will provide, but maybe not in the way that we anticipate. But he will provide at some time, and in some place, and in some manner, that we least expect. Maybe like this. James Angell, a Presbyterian minister, was awakened on Saturday night, in the middle of the night, with a phone call. It was the Saturday before Easter. The phone call was the Highway Patrol telling him that his twenty-one year old daughter, Susan, has been killed in an automobile accident. Susan was on her way home. She was going to spend Easter Sunday with her mother and father. She was killed on the way home. With courage and with faith that I can only marvel at, Jim Angell, just a few hours after receiving that news, entered his pulpit on that Sunday morning, and preached on the victory that Christ has given us over death through his Resurrection. Later he wrote a book about those days, a beautiful little book called, O Susan! It is a book that would be a help to other people as they try to make their way through that same dark valley. He said that there is a long period when the loss is almost more than you can bear. It is like you are at the end of the rope, and you have to tie a knot on the end of the rope so that you have something to hold on to. Then, he said, something happens. He warns that it will happen in different ways and at different times to different people. But for him it happened this way. A dear and trusted friend came into his study one day, and talked bluntly to him. He said, "Jim, you've got to face this. For the rest of your life this is a fact that you just have to live with. You can do two things about it. You can use it, use your fresh depth of feeling to make life finer, or you can let it crush you, and go through the rest of your life whimpering. Angell wrote that those words from his friend reminded him of the words of the hymn, "Shun not the struggle, face it. 'Tis God's gift." Not the accident. That's not God's gift. Not the tragedy. Not the sorrow. That's not God's gift. But the grace, the power to use those events to make life deeper and richer, that is the gift. When Jim Angell finally realized that, he let his daughter go, and found his life again. The end of sorrow comes when we can trust that no matter what happens to us, "The Lord will provide." ChristianGlobe Networks, Inc., Collected Sermons, by Mark Trotte In recognizing God’s grace, we find God’s laughter. Let’s pray….. Song Faith of our Fathers UMH 710 Pastoral Prayer Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment Offertory Prayer Faithful Provider, we bring our gifts with trembling hands and trusting hearts. Like Abraham on the mountain, we don’t always understand the path ahead, but we believe in your promise: that you will provide. We offer these gifts, not as bargains or sacrifices to earn your love, but as signs of our trust in you. Use them, we pray, to bless others—to meet needs, to heal hurts, to build hope. And as you provide for the world through us, keep us faithful to your calling, even when the way is unclear. May our giving be our “Here I am,” ready and willing to serve. In Christ’s name, Amen. (Genesis 22:1-14) (United Methodist Board of Discipleship) Announcements Closing Prayer for YouTube Be confident that the Holy One will provide For the promise of God is trustworthy And the presence of God is enduring Therefore, show up in the world With boldness and clarity That justice and righteousness will prevail In the name of Holy Love and Everlasting Peace May it be so for you and through you. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Cheryl Lindsay) Community Time – Joys and Concerns Benediction May God go with you, blessing you with divine provision, making paths where there were none before, and leading you into flourishing in the most impossible of places. Amen. Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, January 2026. Additional Illustrations A man named Victor Fried, in an essay titled “Too Broken to Be Fixed,” tells of how he grew up as an angry child who lashed out at others. His family had taught him that “if something went wrong, it was always someone else’s fault.” He learned to distrust people. And this distrust resulted in anger and alienation and lashing out at the world. The situation only worsened as Victor became an adult. He says of his mindset at that time, “Finally, you ask yourself the question: Why are so many people out to get me? And the only logical answer is that even God hates you. So, if you were like me, you return the favor and hate God right back. My belief that God hated me grew as the years passed, and I perceived each setback as further evidence that my belief was correct.” One thing that gave his life meaning was his job building custom furniture in a wood shop. One day, Victor spotted a man walking down the street carrying an elegant Queen Anne chair. He recognized it instantly as a valuable antique, and he asked the man if he could have it. It only had a broken rung, and Victor knew he could fix it. The man said, “No.” Then he threw the chair into a Dumpster, permanently breaking its frame and ruining it. This moment reinforced Victor’s belief that people are no good and God didn’t care about him. A year later, Victor’s anger and sadness finally drove him to burn out. He drove down to the Missouri River one icy-cold day with the intent to throw himself into the water and either drown or freeze to death. But as he stood on the riverbank, he suddenly recalled the angry man who had thrown the Queen Anne chair into the Dumpster. And he heard a voice say to him, “If you’re going to throw that away, may I have it?” Victor says he knew it was the voice of God. His lifetime of anger and fighting and broken relationships came to mind. And yet, now he could see how God loved him in spite of all these things. He suddenly understood that God is unconditional love and had loved him throughout his life. And now God was asking Victor to turn his life over to Him. So instead of falling into the icy river, Victor fell to his knees on that riverbank and gave his life to God. This moment was the start of healing a lifetime of anger and loneliness. (2) “If you’re going to throw that away, may I have it?” What do we have to believe about God to commit our entire lives to Him? We have to believe, first of all, in His goodness, in God’s unconditional love for us. If God is love, then God doesn’t want appeasement from us. He wants a relationship with us. If God is love, then His goal is not to leave our wounds and heartbreaks and challenges unredeemed. God’s goal is to work all things together for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to God’s purposes (Romans 8:28). But if that’s true, how do we explain the sacrifice God asked Abraham to make? God rarely provides us with a road map for our faith journey. When you commit your life to God, you are taking a leap of faith. You have no idea where God will lead you. You have no idea what sacrifices you may be called to make. Like Jimmy, you don’t have to know what to do; you just have to be ready to do it. What would it take for us to be ready like that? We have to trust in the goodness of God and that God is working out His eternal purposes through our obedience. We will never see the end result of our commitment in this lifetime. We may never see how God works through our sacrifices to bring about His kingdom. But we can trust, as Abraham did, that the Lord who Provides will provide what we need to remain faithful to Him until the day we see God face-to-face. Until then, we will keep our eyes fixed on the cross as our guarantee that God so loved us that He gave His Son, His only Son, that whoever believes on him shall not perish but have everlasting life. Both of Abraham’s sons had to go through a “passing of age” ritual. In the chapter before, we read about Abraham’s firstborn son, Ishmael, through Sarah’s handmaid Hagar, and his desert “christening.” In that story, Abraham is pained for Hagar and Ishmael to be sent off into the desert, presumably to die. But God reassures Abraham and calls upon his faith. Abraham allows for them to be sent away, and God rescues both Hagar and Ishmael from the glaring heat, training Ishmael to be a “leader” of other nations. Ishmael today is known as the father of Arab nations. Abraham had to first sacrifice his son Ishmael to death by desert banishment in faith that God would take it from there. The scriptures tell us that “God dwelt with Ishmael from that time onward.” A farmer was out driving his tractor one day when he rolled onto a stretch of gopher mounds. The earth crumbled beneath one tire and the tractor rolled over on its side. Luckily, the farmer escaped the situation with only a few bruises. He went home and told his wife. She breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Honey, the Lord sure was with you." The farmer surveyed his bruises and answered, "Well, if He was, He sure got a rough ride." In 1958, America's first commercial jet air service began with the flight of the Boeing 707. A month after that first flight, a traveler on a piston-engine, propeller-driven DC-6 airliner struck up a conversation with a fellow passenger. The passenger happened to be a Boeing engineer. The traveler asked the engineer about the new jet aircraft. The engineer was wildly enthusiastic about this new, improved way to travel. He began speaking at length about the extensive testing Boeing had done on the jet engine before bringing it into commercial service. He recounted Boeing's experience with engines, from the B-17 to the B-52. When his traveling companion asked him if he himself had yet flown on the new 707 jet airliner, the engineer replied, "I think I'll wait until it's been in service awhile.'" Even enthusiastic talking about our faith doesn't mean much if we aren't also willing to put our lives where our mouth is. (3) The question for the day is: How much do you trust God? Abraham learned that behind the clouds of uncertainty God awaits. He placed his total trust in God and his trust was not misplaced. My guess is that Abraham was a different person when he descended from the mountain. From that moment on Abraham realized that God would take care of his son, Isaac. From that moment on he realized God would provide whatever was necessary for the fulfillment of His promises. Let us first of all consider this story through the eyes of Isaac. This dream child of Abraham and Sara is raised with love and unusual devotion. His name means laughter and he brings great joy to his parents. His mother even manages to excommunicate Isaac’s half-brother, Ishmael, into the wilderness so that there would be no sibling rivalry. Isaac had it all. When his daddy drags him out of bed before daylight to make this mysterious, frightful trip into the unknown, I can only imagine the kinds of questions that had to be on the young adolescent’s mind. The first question I would have asked is, “Where are we going? It is summer time. Years ago, about this time of the year, I remember loading our two boys into a borrowed station wagon and heading for Florida for a week’s stay in a loaned condominium. We were about 50 miles away from home when the questions started from the back seat. “Are we there yet? How much further? Can we stop now?” That is when our oldest son (back in the days before seat belts) leaned over the back seat and put his arms around my shoulders and said, “Dad, when we get to where we’re going, where will we be?” Inquiring children always want to know. “Is this a camping trip, Dad? Why isn’t Mother coming? How long will we be gone?” Questions like these had to come from Isaac’s lips. Teddy Roosevelt once said, “It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly... who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat.” [2] A pastor was making a wooden trellis to support a climbing vine. As he was pounding away, he noticed that a little boy was watching him. The youngster didn't say a word, so the preacher kept on working, thinking the boy would leave. But he didn't. Pleased at the thought that his work was being admired, the pastor finally said, "Well, son, trying to pick up some pointers on gardening?" "No," he replied. "I'm just waiting to hear what a preacher says when he hits his thumb with a hammer." (1) That's a tricky position to be in, isn't it? Would you or I pass that test? I hope so. Sometimes, we don't even know when we're being tested. But that's not the case in today's Bible passage. Here is the second truth: The most important help he provides is for our greatest need—forgiveness and salvation. Because all of us are tainted by sin, there is no way we can spend eternity with a perfect God unless our sin problem is resolved. That requires someone able and willing to pay for our sin. That requires someone who has no sin problem of his own. That requires someone perfect and full of love for us. Indeed, that requires God himself. And so, Jesus, God in human form, went to a cross as the perfect sacrifice for the sin of all believers. The saga of Abraham and Isaac on Mount Moriah was a preview of the cross of Calvary. The eternal Christ-Spirit, probably said to God the Father, “Father, we will come back to this same mountain one day, won’t we?” And God the Father said, “Yes, Son, we will return here.” And the Christ-Spirit said, “And when we return, I will be the sacrifice on the altar, isn’t that true?” And God the Father, who would not allow Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, was willing to sacrifice his Son for us, so great is his love for us. And so, many centuries later when John the Baptist saw Jesus, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29) God not only provides forgiveness and salvation, but also grace sufficient for every need. To call on God is to make the ultimate 9-1-1 call. God is instantly available to all believers to help in wise and wonderful ways. As one stands to the West of the temple area in the old city of Jerusalem and gazes upon the remains of the Temple of Herod now spoken of as the "wailing wall," then looks beyond to the domineering Dome of the Rock, it is to recall the great epochs of history and tradition associated with the place called "Mount Moriah." How much of human history and the traditions of the "people of God" is linked to that spot! One of the most moving and poignant of those traditions is the story of Abraham’s ultimate temptation recorded in Genesis 22.

A God for Everyone

October 19, 2025 Jeremiah 31:27-34 A God for Everyone 19th Sunday after Pentecost Prelude Greeting Call to Worship We have gathered once again, Lord of all and Lord of us. We come to lift our prayers, and to sing your praises once again. We come to ask and hope and long to see your justice in the land. We worship in that hope and will work in that Spirit. Derek Weber, March 2025 Opening Prayer Holy God, we turn to you this morning, aware of the gift you give us in scripture. You offer us your truth in story, in song, and in hard teachings. Help us recognize the goodness of what’s offered. Encourage us to seek what you offer. Challenge us to discipline ourselves to learn. Inspire us celebrate the love which expands in us as we draw closer to you and to your ways. AMEN. (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Song Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart UMH 500 A Sermon for all Ages Grapes and apples Good morning, everyone! Have you ever eaten a grape that was really sour? (Make a funny face—pucker up!) Yeah, it makes your mouth wrinkle up, doesn’t it? Let’s pretend I gave you a sour grape, and then your friend’s mouth puckered up instead of yours! Wouldn’t that be strange? That’s what the people in the Bible were saying in Jeremiah’s time. They said, “The parents ate sour grapes, and the children’s teeth were set on edge.” That means, “We’re having a hard time because of what someone else did.” But God said, “No more sour grapes! I’m going to plant something new.” God wanted each person to take care of their own heart and choices. God said, “I will plant and watch over you.” Isn’t that wonderful? (Chat GPT.5) Object: an apple for display and apple seed packets, enough for everyone Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you like apples? I do, too. I want to tell you a little story today about a famous man named Johnny Appleseed. His real name was John Chapman. Back around 200 years ago, John Chapman traveled all across the United States planting apple orchards. Everywhere he went all across America, John Chapman planted apple seeds. He loved apples, and he believed they were healthy for people, and so he planted them wherever he went. And soon people started calling John Chapman by the nickname of Johnny Appleseed. We can be thankful that Johnny Appleseed decided to spread good stuff like apple seeds wherever he went. But Johnny also spread a weed called dog fennel everywhere he went. Johnny thought that dog fennel was a good plant, but actually it's not. The dog fennel weed gets into gardens and crops, and keeps the good crops from growing. Also, dog fennel weed is really smelly. So everywhere Johnny Appleseed went, he spread a good thing, apples, and he spread a bad thing, dog fennel weed. You know, you and I are like Johnny Appleseed. Each day, we choose whether to spread good stuff or bad stuff in other people's lives. If we are nice to other people, if we share our things, if we tell other people about God's love, then we are spreading good things in their lives. If we are mean to other people, if we are rude, if we don't show God's love to others, then we are spreading bad things. We can choose what we spread. This new year, let's choose (start handing out the apple seed packets) to only spread the apple seeds. Let's spread goodness wherever we go. Dynamic Preaching, Collected Sermons, by King Duncan Prayer for Transformation and New Life Beloved God of All, We often feel deserted by Divine Justice and Peace, especially after absorbing the news each day. We allow ourselves to fully walk away from spreading Good News of your love and grace after feeling the lack of mercy in our world. We would rather be silent in places of comfort instead of shining your light in our pain-present reality. Our hearts can not bear knowing of any further wrongdoings. Open our souls to your healing. Embolden us to be persistent in our quest to do justice and love kindness. May we follow your light when the shadows attempt to swallow our resolve. Amen. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Michelle Torigian)) Words of Grace Our souls continue to open to the healing and hope of God. May we embrace the glow of God’s grace as we seek ways to care for our neighbors. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Michelle Torigian) Testimonies Joe and Joellyn Byers Scripture Jeremiah 31:27-34 Sermon A God for Everyone The Blame Game Sour grapes culture in the bible Jeremiah’s use of the blame game The last chapter of Jeremiah – change of heat and a change of tone. Very heavy seems like there is no hope A town with no hope A Little town in Maine, flagstaff was scheduled to be flooded in order to make way for a new damn. People knew for months that their town was doomed. Roofs needed to be repaired, buildings needed to be fixed. But no one was willing to spend on a house that they knew was going to be destroyed in the future any way. People noticed that as time got closer for the town to be destroyed – thinks started to look more and more bedraggled. No one was willing to fix anything or clean up anything. There was no hope, there was no freedom, no reason to try to do anything different. If God doesn’t love you, if God is threatening to divorce you and to forget all about you – what is the point of living in God’s will? Why obey laws that are designed to mess you up? Jeremiah knew that he had to create a new future, a future with hope, a promise that if you mess up, God will let you start all over again. God wont hold sin against When we have no hope, we don’t try. Song that God loves you. Gives us three promises – thus says the lord 3 promises. Final message that god loves you, and will be with you Boy and the comic books Son moved by fathers tears Wangerin has a wonderful story, called "Matthew, Seven, Eight, and Nine" about how he tried to stop his son Matthew from stealing comic books. He tried various uses of the law over several years and continued to fail. Finally, he resorted to something he rarely used: a spanking. He did it deliberately, almost ritualistically, and he was so upset when he finished that he left the room and wept. After pulling himself back together, he went in to Matthew and hugged him. A number of years later, Matthew and his mother were doing some general reminiscing, and Matthew happened to bring up the time when he kept stealing comic books. "And you know why I finally stopped?" he asked. "Sure," she said, "Because Dad finally spanked you." "No!" replied Matthew, "No, because Dad cried." He cared for me, and his tears made all of the difference. Tone of the Hebrew religion starts to change. Less about blame shame and guilt and more about love, forgiveness, mercy. Jeremiah’s story is about hope through God’s love. Understands us – wants us to succeed. So that we can show love to others Piano teacher A piano teacher once told her students, “My goal isn’t that you play from memory—it’s that you play from the heart.” Years later, one student became a nurse. During a long night shift, she sat beside a dying patient and quietly hummed that same piece she’d learned years ago. She said, “I didn’t need sheet music. The song was still in me.” Finally all familiar with passwords – if you don’t write it down, you lose it Don’t need a password for Gods love - inside of us. Mission We are God’s co-gardeners. The mission field isn’t just “out there”—it begins in the soil of our hearts and spreads wherever God plants us. When we invest our prayers, presence, gifts, and service, we join God’s renewal project. Discipleship True discipleship is not memorizing commands but embodying Christ’s compassion. It’s when forgiveness flows naturally, generosity feels joyful, and service springs from love—not duty. Stewardship Stewardship is not a program—it’s a response of people whose hearts are alive to God’s presence. When the covenant is written on our hearts, generosity becomes second nature. We give, serve, and care because we know God personally. Let us pray….. Song Love Divine, All Loves Excelling UMH 384 Prayers of the People (Do not print) O Lord our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You created the heavens and the earth and placed us in your world to glorify and enjoy you forever. And yet we have recognized the despair, dismay, and injustice; the violence and the disasters of the world in which we live. We seek to be faithful to you and your glory and yet, our hearts and souls are unsettled and troubled. We come to you in need of the healing and peace that only you can provide. And so, we pray for rest. We pray for rest for those weary from the demands of a culture that has turned us into consumers. Rest for those weary from unmet requests and unjust treatment. Rest and healing for those weary from illness, grief, loneliness, and loss. We pray for attention. We pray for attention for those distracted by too many good things. We pray for attention for those who feel like a pinball instead of a plant with roots running deep. We pray for attention to your gifts of grace that we might know delight. We pray to say no. We pray to say no to destructive forces and idols that pull us away from you, O Lord. We pray to say no to the ways we take your creation for granted and destroy what you have placed in our care. We pray to say no to all that addicts us to unhealthy behaviors and relationships. We pray for nourishment. We pray that we might nourish our souls with your Word. We pray that we might nourish our bodies with fruits, vegetables and exercise. We pray that we might nourish our minds with the truth. We pray for the log in our eyes. We confess that we are overly concerned with the behavior and belief of others. We confess that we fail to accurately see our own faults and failings. We confess that we pull back from others instead of working together for justice, freedom, and peace. We pray that you might speak to us. We pray that your Word might dwell within us and be engraved upon our hearts. We pray for the right words to speak in troubled times. We pray that your Spirit might give us eyes to see and ears to hear the new Word you are still speaking today. We pray for wonder and awe. We pray that beyond our hope and imagination, you might bring peace to war-torn lands. We pray that you might surprise us in the ordinary after long waits. We pray that we might see your fingerprints in our own. Finally, we pray for all those needs unnamed that trouble and unsettle our souls, needs known to you and bigger than we can handle on our own. Into your hands, O Lord, we place these prayers, longing for the day when you will make all things new. As we wait with anticipation and hope, we join our voices with disciples of all the ages to pray as Jesus has taught us, “Our Father …” (Presbyterian Outlook, Matthew Rich) Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment Jesus asked the question in Luke 18: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Today as we come to our time of offering, let’s recognize this is one act which demonstrates our faith. We give because we have faith, expressed through the ministries and work of this congregation (name one or two). We give because we have faith, knowing our financial support will help build up this congregation, allowing us to show God’s love in the midst of apathy, distrust, and selfishness. We give because we have faith in Jesus, the one who taught his followers to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the least – to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. So this invitation is for each and all of us to give financially, to give our talents, to give our time. Give in response to the abundance we have received: life, air, water, food, and so much more! Let us share our morning tithes, gifts, and offerings. Prayer of Thanksgiving Generous God, thank you for your abundant gifts by which our lives are blessed. Thank you for the ways you offer us your commandments and decrees to support the destitute and care for the widows and orphans. Thank you now for these gifts and for each one who has given, that we might use these resources to help create life on earth as it is in heaven. AMEN. (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook May the God of Hope stir us to awaken to Divine dreams. May the Christ of Light embolden us to use our voices May the Spirit of Peace fill us with the resolve to transform our world. With help from the Holy One, we will never lose heart! (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Michelle Torigian) Community Time – Sharing of Joys and Concerns Benediction Here in this place, God transforms us into disciples, so we may share the grace etched upon our hearts. Here with these people, compassion is written on our hearts, so we may join Jesus in bringing justice to all. Now, in these moments, the Spirit is breathed into us, so we can be as persistent as God in bringing hope to the world. © Thom M. Shuman Additional illustrations You could answer every question on the Jeopardy board in the Bible category and still not have a living relationship with God. That's knowledge about God. And it has very little use in life. But personal knowledge of God comes from a relationship with the Lord. We get this knowledge when we invite Jesus to become the Lord and Savior of our lives. Only when we make that commitment do we begin to know the Lord in a personal way. A father took his young son to a major league baseball game along with one of the father's friends. The father's friend had a son who was a pitcher for one of the major league teams. It was the father's intention to stay after the game and have his friend's son introduced to his own boy. After the game, the trio made their way to the locker room door and waited for the players to come out. As they waited for his friend's son to come out, some of the star players pushed away the fans and made a dash for their cars. Other players came out and signed autographs, but the boy didn't really get to talk to any of them. But when his father's friend's son came out, because the lad was with his dad, the player took the time to shake his hand, to talk to him, and to greet him as a real human being. After that experience, the young boy paid a lot of attention to that player's career. He did so because he felt he had a relationship with the player. He had met him face to face, and that made all the difference. A symbol of God’s love A baby bird asked his mother, that is air – she said no words to her baby, she just spread here wings and flew. A baby fish asked its mother- what is water – she said nothing, she just swished her tail and started to fly. A baby ant ask his mother what is dirt, she said nothing she just dug a little more. A baby child asked her mother what is love – she opened her arms and hugged the baby. A God fearer asked God what is forgiveness – he sent his son to the cross to die for you. What better promise do you need of God’s love for you? Live your live dwelling in the love of God.

The Prophecy of the Summer Fruit

July 20, 2025

Amos 8:1-12

The Prophecy of the Summer Fruit

Year C

 

Prelude

 

Greetings

 

Call to Worship

God calls us here to worship. We carry many worries and are distracted

by many things, but here, in this time and place, we are invited to set

them aside, to be fully present. Let’s pause and take a deep breath.

We remember who we are:

We are the body of Christ.

We remember whose we are:

We are God’s beloved children.

We remember our chief purpose:

To glorify and enjoy God forever.

Let us worship God!  (Presbyterian Outlook, Stephanie Sorge)

 

Invocation

Abiding God, we invite you to inhabit our space. We long to renew our minds, restore our souls, and rest our presence before you. Still, we bring the burdens we carry into this gathering. We hold our responsibilities, cares, and concerns. Let us bind ourselves in your love and strength and the community of faithful and curious. We affirm that this time with you and one another equips and fortifies us for the journey and helps us discern the better way. Be glorified in our worship. Be honored by our praise. Be known by your people, O Creator, Teacher, and Friend. In your many names, we pray. Amen.  (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Cheryl Lindsay)

 

 

 

 

Song

 

A Sermon for All Ages

 

Responsive Reading    Psalm 52 (Common English Bible)

Hey, powerful person!
    Why do you brag about evil?
    God’s faithful love lasts all day long.
² Your tongue devises destruction:
    it’s like a sharpened razor, causing deception.
³ You love evil more than good;
    you love lying more than speaking what is right. Selah
⁴ You love all destructive words;
    you love the deceiving tongue.

⁵ But God will take you down permanently;
    he will snatch you up,
    tear you out of your tent,
    and uproot you from the land of the living! Selah
⁶ The righteous will see and be in awe;
    they will laugh at those people:
⁷ “Look at them! They didn’t make God their refuge.
    Instead, they trusted in their own great wealth.
        They sought refuge in it—to their own destruction!”

⁸ But I am like a green olive tree in God’s house;
    I trust in God’s faithful love forever and always.
⁹ I will give thanks to you, God, forever,
    because you have acted..
In the presence of your faithful people,
    I will hope in your name because it’s so good.

 

 

Scripture     Amos 8:1-12

 

Sermon the Prophecy of the Summer Fruit

 

I am so excited!  It is summer time and things are starting to grow.  And I get to enjoy all of the wonderful fruits and vegetables that are available fresh this time of year.  Corn, zucchini, blueberries, cantelope.  I picked my first tomatoe of the year, and more are starting to grow.

 

When you think about it, a bowl of summer fruit tells us everything that we need to know about God.  The bible is full of life lessons about fruit.

Strawberries are my favorite fruit. I even love strawberry plants, for once they preached a powerful sermon to me which I've never forgotten. I was on my hands and knees in my garden pulling weeds, when suddenly I noticed something I had seen hundreds of times before but never caught the lesson. It was the "runners" on the berry plants. From the main vine a number of slender shoots extend like arms in all directions. They are thin, green stems creeping along the ground, being pushed out by that mysterious power in the mother plant. After reaching out about 6 inches, the end penetrates the ground and developes roots. Then the leaves of the new baby plant shoot upward. All the while, before the infant plant is able to sustain itself, it receives nourishment from the parent through the "runner."  When the new growth is fixed in the ground, the "runner" resumes its journey and reaches out another 6 inches, still nourished by the original clump of berries. Then the process is repeated. And while one plant is multiplying, there are several others doing the same thing in different directions. I forgot all about the weeds and saw only that mother plant sending out its runners. This caused me to cry out, "O God, make me like those strawberries, reaching out in a effort to multiply and bring forth fruit."

Source: Unknown

Fruit represents our faith, we are called to be faithful by being fruitful.

 

For instance, summer is the perfect time to talk about stewardship.  We are called to take care of the things that God cares about.  Also the assurance that God will provides for us.  We can plant the seeds, we can care for the plants, but only God provides the fruit.  This summer we are having a mini stewardship session to encourage us to think about the needs of the ministry.  During the days of the Bible, people were encouraged to bring their first fruits of harvest to the temple.  Today our first fruits can be  our money, our time, our talents and skills.  It can be other things like paper products, cleaning supplies, office supplies or helping with a ministry of the church.  First fruits are proof of God’s love for us, it is also an obvious sign of our faith and what is inside of our hearts.

 

Two Fruit Trees - Different Fruit

      A farmer one planted two fruit trees on opposite sides of his property.  The one he planted to provide a hedge hide the unsightly view of an old landfill; the other to provide shade to rest under near a cool mountain stream which ran down beside his fields.  As the two trees grew, both produced began to flower and bear fruit.  One day the farmer decided to gather the fruit from the tree nearest his house " the one used to provide a hedge from the landfill.  As he brought the fruit inside the house, he noticed that it was a little deformed " the symmetry of the fruit was not very good, but still the fruit looked edible. Later that evening, while sitting on his porch the farmer took one of the pieces of fruit for a snack.  Biting into the fruit, he found it to be extremely bitter, and completely inedible.  Casting the fruit aside he looked across the field to the other tree over by the mountain stream.  After walking across the field, the farmer took a piece of the fruit from the other tree and bit into it.  Find the fruit to be sweet and delicious he gathered several more pieces of fruit and took them to the house.

      The fruit was greatly affected by the nutrition of the root.  Just as the tree grew by the landfill to be bitter, and the tree by the stream produced sweet fruit, so the Christian has a choice.  He can either put down his roots into the soil of the landfill of fleshly pursuits, or into the cool refreshing stream of the person of Jesus Christ.  We must understand that the root bears the fruit.  The fruit of the Christian is the outward evidence of the inward motivation. 

 

      Psa 1:1-6, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish."

 

A fellow I was reading enjoys telling something that he and his brothers did as children (my notes did not record his name; sorry).

When they misbehaved and were sent to their room, they were secretly pleased. Just outside their window stood an old fruit tree. The boys would softly raise the window, climb down the tree, and play in the field behind the house. After a bit, they would climb the tree, slip inside and close the window. Then, they’d call downstairs to mom and dad, asking if they hadn’t suffered enough.

One day they heard Dad tell Mom he planned to cut the tree down. “It hasn’t borne any fruit in years.” The boys panicked and went into action.

Pooling their money, they ran to the village market and bought a sack of apples and a spool of black thread. That evening, they slipped out the window and tied the apples onto the tree.

Next morning, they waited eagerly for Dad’s reaction.

Soon they were pleased to hear him call out, “Mary! Come see! It’s a miracle! That tree is covered with apples.”

The boys were congratulating themselves. Then they heard Dad say, “It really is a miracle…because that’s a pear tree!”

(The parents had the wisdom and good humor to allow the tree to survive.)

Just as a good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and vice versa, pear trees do not bear apples. We reap what we sow.

 

It is Jesus who says that we are known by the fruit that we produce.  Another fruit lessons in the bible is in the book of Galatians.  Paul says that the fruits of the spirit are “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”

When those things are present in our lives and our actions then God is near.  The new testament just builds upon the aspects of God listed in the Hebrew bible.  The main aspect of God are love, mercy, holiness and justice.  When we talk about giving first fruits, we are talking about love and mercy.  When we talk about the fruits of the spirit we are talking about holiness.

Our scripture in Amos teaches us about the important aspect of justice.  God has a soft spot for the poor, the vulnerable, those who are suffering because of unjust systems.  In Amos 8 – Amos sees a vision of summer fruit.  There are a lot of positive lessons to learn from a bowl of fruit – it is nutritious, good to eat, and a sign of summer growth and abundance.  But fruit does not last very long.  If one fruit goes bad, it affects all of the other fruit around it.  Once it goes bad, it smells and is inedible.

If fruit represents faith – Amos’ message to us is that good faith can turn to bad faith pretty easily.  Amos is concerned that people have stopped caring for others, people have gotten greedy, they chose to take care of themselves at the expense of others.  People even come to church to look good on Sunday and are very cruel people during the week.

God is not pleased.  Fruit can look good on the outside and be rotten on the inside.  Amos warning is that when summer is over, and fruit goes bad it is thrown out and destroyed.  Amose gives us another warning – our stomaches may be full, our bank accounts may be full, our calendars may be full, but in reality our life will be empty – unless we put God first.

In the scripture, God speaks to Amos and asks him what does he see.  God says  Hear this, you who trample on the needy and destroy
        the poor of the land, Surely I will never forget what they have done.

Back in 2002, Rick Gillespie-Mobley gave a sermon on stewardship that I thought was pretty good.¹ It was more of a devotional. But he gave an illustration that I thought was outstanding. At the beginning of that sermon he shared a story that I think beautifully illustrates a major problem in Evangelical Christianity.

He told about a father who wanted to do something special for his five year old son, Jimmy. He asked his son to get ready, and said that they were going to go out for treat. The son was very happy, but when his dad said that this time he could pick anything he wanted, Jimmy was very, very excited. Jumping up and down he said he wanted McDonald's French Fries. Now, keep in mind that he's a five year old, so those of you who are jaded by McDonalds can hold your horses and not spoil the story.

Anyway, they went to the local McDonalds. And Jimmy was expecting a small sized French Fries, but his eyes lit up as his dad told the cashier that he was ordering a super-sized French Fries and a coke. After dad had paid for the snack, Jimmy was almost dancing with anticipation. Even during prayer he could hardly wait to start digging into those fries. As soon as prayer was done, Jimmy started eating the French Fries with obvious delight. And of course, it delighted the father that his son was enjoying such a simple treat. How easy was that be? It didn't cost much to bring delight to his son's heart. And enjoying the moment, dad reached over the take a couple of fries. And to his surprise, the son pulled the fries close to his body, quickly put his arms around the fries, building a kind of fort, and sad, "No, these are mine."

And dad was a bit shocked. But he pulled back his hand and kind of stared at his son for a bit. And during those moments he had an epiphany of how God must feel when God asks for a couple fries from the container of our life. He was thinking to himself, what is this little rascal thinking? I just wanted a couple of the fries. And after all, I am the source of these fries. I was the one who offered to take him out, I super-sized the order so that I could share it with him, I paid for it, and gave it to him. And he doesn't want to share anything. And apparently my little pip-squeak of a son has forgotten that I am stronger than him, so building a fort with his arms seems rather silly. I'm not going to force him, but it seems kind of silly.

And then he thought, “Why did I even want a couple of fries? It's not like I was hungry. And if I was, I could have bought my own. For that matter, I could buy ten containers of fries. It's not that I need the fries. I just wanted to share in his moment of joy and I wanted him to include me in his moment of joy.” One or two fries would not have made much difference to him as an adult. He just wanted Jimmy to invite him into this wonderful little world that he had made possible for his son, rather than excluding him.

And I think that is such a wonderful metaphor of what often goes wrong with our stewardship. God has given all of us a metaphorical bag of French Fries. Some of us have small bags, and others have big bags, and some even have super-sized bags. Some of your bags might have curly fries, and others might have jalapeño flavored fries. But God has given every one of you some things.

And like that dad, God desires to sit down at the table with us for some fellowship and connection time. When He reaches over to use some of the blessings he has freely given to us, far too often we say, "No God, these are mine. Go get your own fries." And it hurts God's feelings (speaking anthropomorphically, of course). It's not as if God needs our French Fries. He doesn't need anything. He has made all things. He made us, and gives us strength, and enables us to find employment, and prospers us in so many different ways. And God doesn't ask us to give because He is hurting. He could just utter the word and there would be billions of French Fries. So why does He ask us for any? He asks us to give because he wants us to find the delight of what it means to become more like Him.

David and the men in this chapter had it right. God had prospered them with super-sized French Fries, and it was their absolute joy to share those French Fries with God and to offer God more. And rather than looking at every word of this chapter, I thought I would give a rapid overview of 20 verses that show 15 right ways of engaging in stewardship that are better than Jimmy's hoarding.

 

 

What gifts has God given to us, What did God ask for us in return? When were we not willing to share with God? How can we share our fries with God?  What greed is rampant in the world today? What does God want us to do about it in faith?

A bowl of fruit teaches us all that we need to know about our faith.  Let’s enjoy our fruit while it is summer!  Let’s Pray!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Song

 

Prayer of Intercession

O Christ, your cross speaks both to us and to our world.

In your dying for us,
You accepted the pain and hurt of the whole of creation.

The arms of your cross stretch out
Across the broken world in reconciliation.

You have made peace with us.
Helps us to make peace with you
By sharing in your reconciling work.

May we recognize your spirit
Disturbing and challenging us to care for creation
And for the poor who most feel the effects of its abuse.

O Christ, the whole of creation groans.
Set us free and make us whole. Amen.

From the Iona Community’s Iona Abbey Worship Book (Wild Goose Publications, Iona Community, 2001). Re-posted on the re:Worship blog at https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2013/10/prayer-of-intercession-colossians-1-15.html.

 

 

Lord’s Prayer

 

Stewardship Moment

Life is all about choices and how we allow God to be present in our choices.  Banana here – represents something that you received recently – present, money earned, something weren’t expecting.   Lesson for today, is first fruits and putting God first in everything that we do.

Peel banana – peel off a tenth and put it aside.

Most of the banana left.   Life starts to happen.  Friend stops by and invites your out for ice cream – spend a dollar. Still have 8 dollars left.

Next day, your family goes to Catfish days – want to eat out – spend 3 dollars.  How much left?

Go to the store and you want a candy bar – 1.50. how much left

End of the week spent it all – but we set aside a tenth – still have money to put in church

Many people do it the opposite – so excited to get their gift – that that can’t wait to dive in – and in the next week. Nothing is left for God.    That stewardship calls us to put god first in everything that we do – not just money – but time talents, gifts.  Give our first fruits to God – have left to be blessed.  Everything else falls into place.

Have that opportunity to give first fruits to God.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Loving God, you have given us life and called us to new life as disciples of Jesus Christ.  In gratitude and thanksgiving, we offer back to you our lives, symbolized in these gifts of coin and check.  Help us continue to offer “the better part” not only today but each day of our lives.  AMEN (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving)

 

 

 

Announcements

 

Closing Prayer for Facebook

Many tasks await us and distractions abound. Having been fed by the

Word of God and refreshed and inspired by the Holy Spirit, we go from

this place, renewed by our call to witness to and share God’s love in a

world that so desperately needs it.

As we do so, may the grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ, the love of God,

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you, now and always.

Amen.  (Presbyterian Outlook, Stephanie Sorge)

 

 

Community Time Joys and Concerns

 

Benediction

As you go,
Boast in the goodness of God
Live in the abundance of God’s love.
Remember that you are more than enough.
Find rest and joy in the day.
Know hope and safety in the night.
Go, in peace to love and to serve.  (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Cheryl Lindsay)

 

 

 

Additional Illustrations

Many Christians spend six days a week sowing wild oats and then come to church and pray for crop failure.

Source: Unknown

False Advertising

“Recently I saw a bag of potato chips with a bold declaration splashed across the front: ‘Zero grams of trans fat.’ I was glad to know that I wouldn’t be consuming any trans fat, which research has shown is detrimental to my health. But then I flipped the bag over and read the ingredients list, which included things like ‘yellow #6’ and other artificial colors, and partially hydrogenated oil (which is trans fat, just a small enough amount that they can legally call it ‘0 grams’). I thought it was incredibly ironic that these chips were being advertised in a way that makes me think they are not harmful, yet were really full of empty calories, weird chemicals, and, ironically, trans fat. It struck me that many Christians flash around their ‘no trans fat’ label, trying to convince everyone they are healthy and good. Yet they have no substantive or healthful elements to their faith” (Francis Chan, Crazy Love [Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2008], excerpted in Charisma Leader, November 4, 2008, https://ministrytodaymag.com/index.php/features/17801-serving-leftovers-to-a-holy-god).