October 5, 2025
CHIMING OF THE HOUR
WELCOME
PRAYER
God of grace, mercy, and peace,
through the trials and tribulations of life,
many burdens fill our souls with strife.
Instill in us sincere faith
and grant us a spirit of power, love,
and self-discipline,
that we may worship with humility
and steadfast trust
and respond to your holy calling,
according to your will. Amen.
PRELUDE “Prelude on “Middlebury” Gilbert Martin
CALL TO WORSHIP
Through desolation and weeping,
through bitterness and fear,
through anguish and suffering,
through destruction and violence,
this we will remember:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
God’s mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is God’s faithfulness.
So we will not despair, we will keep hope alive.
The Lord is my portion, says my soul,
therefore I will hope in God.
Trust in the Lord, and do good;
take delight in the Lord,
Commit your way to the Lord;
trust God, who will act.
*HYMN No. 757, vs.1-3 “Today We We All Are Called to Be Disciples”
1 Today we all are called to be
disciples of the Lord,
to help to set the captive free,
make plowshare out of sword,
to feed the hungry, quench their thirst,
make love and peace our fast,
to serve the poor and homeless first,
our ease and comfort last.
2 God made the world and at its birth
ordained our human race
to live as stewards of the earth,
responding to God’s grace.
But we are vain and sadly proud;
we sow not peace but strife.
Our discord spreads a deadly cloud
that threatens all of life.
3 Pray justice may come rolling down
as in a mighty stream,
with righteousness in field and town
to cleanse us and redeem.
For God is longing to restore
an earth where conflicts cease,
a world that was created for
a harmony of peace.
*CALL TO CONFESSION
Our faith may be small,
but God’s power is great.
Our sins may loom large,
but God’s promise of forgiveness is sure.
Trusting that God is able to do for us
what we could never do for ourselves,
let us make our confession.
*PRAYER FOR CONFESSION
God of grace,
we confess that the seed
of faith within us is small.
Hope is often absent.
Love is frequently inconvenient.
Our sin keeps us from responding to you.
Tend to us in mercy,
so that we may grow in the ways
of faith, hope, and love,
after the example of Jesus Christ.
*SILENT PRAYER FOR CONFESSION
*ASSURANCE OF PARDON
The grace of God is given to us
in Jesus Christ.
This is good news!
In Jesus Christ we are forgiven!
*RESPONSE No. 757 v. 4 “Today We All Are Called to Be Disciples”
May we in service to our God
act out the living word,
and walk the road the saints have trod
till all have seen and heard.
As stewards of the earth may we
give thanks in one accord
to God who calls us all to be
disciples of the Lord.
*PASSING OF THE PEACE OF CHRIST
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.
To this peace we were called
as members of a single body.
The peace of Christ be with you.
And also with you.
ANTHEM “Exclamation of Praise” Joseph Martin
UNISON PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION
Please join me in the unison prayer…
Faithful God, how blessed are those
who hunger and thirst for righteousness.
Sanctify us by your Word and Spirit
so that we may glorify you
in the company of the faithful;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
SCRIPTURE 2 Corinthians 9:6-15
6The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. 9As it is written, “He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” 10He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. 11You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us; 12for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God. 13Through the testing of this ministry you glorify God by your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ and by the generosity of your sharing with them and with all others, 14while they long for you and pray for you because of the surpassing grace of God that he has given you. 15Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
Pause…
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God!!
SERMON GIVE: OCTOBER 5
*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH “The Nicene Creed”
We believe in one God the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God,
begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,
and became truly human.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven and is seated on the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
*HYMN No. 530 “One Bread, One Body”
Refrain:
One bread, one body, one Lord of all,
one cup of blessing which we bless.
And we, though many, throughout the earth,
we are one body in this one Lord.
1 Gentile or Jew, servant or free,
woman or man, no more. (Refrain)
One bread, one body, one Lord of all,
one cup of blessing which we bless.
And we, though many, throughout the earth,
we are one body in this one Lord.
2 Many the gifts, many the works,
one in the Lord of all. (Refrain)
One bread, one body, one Lord of all,
one cup of blessing which we bless.
And we, though many, throughout the earth,
we are one body in this one Lord.
3 Grain for the fields, scattered and grown,
gathered to one, for all. (Refrain)
One bread, one body, one Lord of all,
one cup of blessing which we bless.
And we, though many, throughout the earth,
we are one body in this one Lord.
THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION
Invitation
People will come from east and west and north and south to sit at table in the Kingdom of God.
They will come with hope, and they will come with doubts. They will come with faith and they will come with fears. They will come with love, and they will come with regrets.
They will come from all over. They will come across all sorts of barriers and boundaries. They will come. They will all come for God longs for it to be so.
Joining God’s people across the globe and joining the saints of every time and place, we come to this table today. Everyone is welcome. God longs for it to be so. God longs to feed with us – all of us – with the bread of life and the cup of salvation.
Prayer of Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts!
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Blessed are you, O God our Creator,
whose image dwells in every face of the human family.
In the faces of the matriarchs and patriarchs of Israel,
we see your desire to raise up a chosen people.
In the faces of judges and rulers,
we behold the sanctity of your law.
In the faces of your priests and prophets,
we witness your passion for justice and righteousness.
So now, joined with the global chorus
of our siblings in Christ around the world,
we glorify you and pray for the day when
the earth will be filled with the knowledge of you
as waters upon the face of the sea.
When the world could wait no longer,
you sent your Son into the world
to show us your many faces:
Unexpected child,
Unwelcomed refugee,
Unhoused wayfarer,
Teacher and rebel,
Healer and provocateur,
Lover of the unlovable,
Toucher of the untouchable,
Forgiver of the unforgiveable,
Loved by the least, feared by authority,
friend of the weak,
foe of the strong.
In all of these faces,
we beheld love’s true form
until the world could stand him no longer, so we made him a cross.
When heaven could wait no longer, O God,
you the broke powers of death
and raised Christ to new life.
Come, Mighty Spirit, upon this bread and cup
that they may be the communion of the body and blood of Christ.
As once you set your face to Jerusalem
to relieve your people’s suffering once and for all—
send now your Holy Spirit to
the people of Palestine,
starving and tired of being starved…
the people of Burundi,
impoverished and tired of being impoverished…
the people of Ukraine,
war-ravaged and tired of being war-ravaged…
the people of El Salvador,
corrupted and tired of being corrupted…
the people of North Korea,
silenced and tired of being silenced…
the people of the United States,
divided and tired of being divided.
By your Spirit unite all peoples in Christ
until we feast with him and all the saints in light.
Through Christ, with Christ, in Christ,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honor are yours, Almighty God, now and forever.
With the confidence of the children of God,
let us pray as Jesus taught, saying, “Our Father…”
The Lord’s Prayer
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. Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Communion
Prayer after Communion
Nourishing God,
thank you for inviting us to your table where all are welcome,
and for feeding us with the bread of life and the cup of blessing.
As you have filled our lives with love and hope,
may we be a source of your love and hope
for those who hunger for your good news. Amen.
PASSING OF FELLOWSHIP PADS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
STEWARDSHIP MINUTE
TITHES & OFFERINGS
God is the giver of all good things,
the one who fashioned each of us with unique gifts
that together make the Body of Christ whole.
In gratitude for all we have received,
we offer our lives back to God — we share our time, our skills, our money
and in so doing, we say “yes” to God’s invitation
to join in Kingdom building work here on earth.
OFFERTORY ANTHEM
*RESPONSE N0. 609 “Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow.
Praise God, all creatures high and low.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise God, in Jesus fully known:
Creator, Word, and Spirit one.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
*PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
O God,
Jesus taught that where our treasure is,
there will our hearts be also.
this hour, we come bringing our treasures—
all that we have and all that we are.
We come seeking your treasure—
treasure that does not fade, decay, or disappoint.
Share with us the treasure of heaven,
that we may boldly share it with others. Amen.
*HYMN No. 529 Draw Us in the Spirit’s Tether”
1 Draw us in the Spirit’s tether,
for when humbly in your name
two or three are met together,
you are in the midst of them.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Here we touch your garment’s hem.
2 As disciples used to gather
in the name of Christ to sup,
then with thanks to God the giver
break the bread and bless the cup,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
so now bind our friendship up.
3 All our meals and all our living
make as sacraments of you,
that by caring, helping, giving,
we may be disciples true.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
We will serve with faith anew.
*BENEDICTION
Let us go from this place trusting that God is with us
and for us in every place.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus, the love of God,
and the companionship of the Holy Spirit be with you
and abide with you this day and forevermore. Amen.
*POSTLUDE