The Celebration of the Gospel
August 3, 2014 —8th Sunday after Pentecost
“God’s kingdom is like yeast that a woman works into the dough for dozens
of loaves of barley bread – and waits while the dough rises.”
— Matthew 13:33
______________ We Gather as The Body of Christ
GREETING
PRELUDE In Verdant Pastures
Robert J. Powell
* CALL TO WORSHIP (Micah 6:6-8)
Leader: With what shall I come before the Lord?
All: Shall I come before God with burnt offerings?
Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil?
Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression?
He has told you, O mortal, what is good. What does the Lord require of you
but to do justice and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God?
* SONG Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee
Blue hymnal #89
CHILDREN’S TIME
[We invite you to sign and pass the red attendance pads down the row—and back again, so you can learn your neighbor’s names.]
____________________ We Attend to the Word
PRAYER OF THE DAY
God of grace, surely you are in this place. Open the eyes and ears of our hearts. As we breathe in and out, you are around and within us. Open the depths of our souls. May we be present to you, who are so infinitely present for us. Amen.
THE WORD IN SONG Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child
arr: Moses Hogan (Jennifer Wynn, Soloist)
OLD TESTAMENT Jeremiah 31:31-34
RESPONSE: The Word of life. All: Thanks be to God.
NEW TESTAMENT Acts 17:22-28
RESPONSE: The Word of God for the people of God All: Thanks be to God.
GOSPEL Matthew 13:33
RESPONSE: This is the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. All: Thanks be to God.
SERMON Rev. Maggie Monroe-Cassel
SONG They’ll Know We Are Christians by Our Love
Black hymnal #2223
THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
RESPONSE: This is my prayer. All: This is our prayer.
THE LORD’S PRAYER
PASSING THE PEACE
___________ We Are Sent in Ministry to the World
OFFERING OUR GIFTS
OFFERING SONG When Morning Gilds The Skies
Joseph Barnby
* PRAYER
Gracious God, we give you these gifts as symbols of our lives. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. By your Spirit in us, help us to work with you, for the sake of the healing of the world, in the name of Christ. Amen.
THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH IN THE WORLD
* SONG For All the Saints
Blue hymnal #711
* THE BLESSING AND SENDING FORTH
RESPONSE Please stand and sing to your neighbors:
May the grace and peace of Christ be with you my friends.
Go and share the love of God, love that never ends.
POSTLUDE Our Father In Heaven
J.S. Bach