Long Green Valley Church of the Brethren
Long Green & Kanes Rds., near Glen Arm, Md.
July 27, 2003
Worship 10:00 am Sunday School for all ages 11:15 am

  Morning Praise (9:45 am)
  Announcements
  Prelude

*Responsive Call to Worship                                                                       662

*Hymn                           "When morning gilds the skies"                               644

*Opening Prayer (a-9)

  Scripture                                      Psalm 23

  For Children                 "Jesus helps you be you"
                  (Pre-school thru 2^nd grade children then leave for Sunday School)

  Sharing a joy, a concern, a word of testimony or praise

  Hymn                            "There is a place of quiet rest"                                   5

  Pastoral Prayer

  Returning our Tithes and Offerings                   Jeremiah 23:1-6

  Offertory

*Response                               (sung to #574, "What a friend we have in Jesus")
       "As thou, Lord, hath lived for others, so may we for others live;
         Freely have thy gifts been granted, freely may thy servants give.
         Thine the wealth and thine the silver, thine the wealth of land and sea,
         We but stewards of thy bounty, held in solemn trust for thee."
                       (From the hymn "Son of God, Eternal Savior" by Somerset Lowry)

*Dedication (off-e-1)

  Scripture                                   Mark 6:30-46

  Message            "A Lonely Place ... a Crowded Shore"

*Hymn                                "Where winds the road"                          (see insert)

*Benediction

#'s are from Hymnal: A Worship Book

Worship leaders - see basic guidelines

Responsive Call to Worship

Leader: Come, let us worship 
People: For we are the people of God's pasture.
Leader: Come, let us worship and bow down, 
People: For we are the sheep of God's hand.
Leader: Come, let us worship and bow down, 
               before the Lord, our Maker.
All: For the Lord is our God,
               and God desires our worship!

by Earle W. Fike, Jr., from We Gather Together,
©1979 Brethren Press.
    

For Children
"Jesus helps you be you"
Psalm 23:1-3

need: A scissors and a piece of paper

         When King David was a young boy he was a shepherd who took care of sheep. The sheep needed a shepherd. Without a shepherd they would get lost or die because they had no food or water.
         Since most of you have not seen sheep and shepherds, maybe you can understand it this way. This is a scissors. What is it supposed to do? That s right— scissors are made to cut things. I also have a piece of paper. Can the scissors cut the paper? Sure, but only if someone uses the scissors. Someone has to give it power. Someone has to guide it. See how it cuts when I use it. But it can do nothing by itself.
         David knew that sheep were the same way. Someone had to guide and direct the sheep. If a sheep living in a wilderness did not have a shepherd, it would die.
         David knew that he was like a sheep. He needed someone to guide him and give him strength. He needed help. By himself he could do nothing right. But he was not by himself. The Lord was his shepherd. The Lord gave him strength. The Lord guided and protected him.
         We want to learn the same lesson that King David learned. By ourselves we are like a sheep that will get lost, or like a scissors that can do nothing unless someone uses it. But we do not have to be by ourselves. Jesus has come to be with us. Jesus lived a long time ago, but he can still be with us today because he did something very special for us. He died for us. He gave his life to pay for our sins. When he died he was taken away from us. But he came back to life. He had taken away the one thing that can separate us from each other. He removed death from our lives. Even though he had died, he lived again. He still lives with us.
         Jesus is our shepherd. He leads us and protects us. If you think of yourself as the scissors, think of Jesus as the one who gives power to the scissors. Think of him as the one who guides it as it cuts.
         We can live by ourselves just as a scissors can be a scissors without cutting anything. But when Jesus is with us, he gives us a purpose for living. We can serve God. We can love and help other people. We can enjoy ourselves. All because Jesus is with us as a shepherd who guides and directs us.
         Jesus helps you be you. He helps you enjoy your life here. He promises to take you to heaven with him. He helps you know your life has a purpose.

from The Psalms for Children, by Eldon Weisheit, (out of print).
   

Pastoral Prayer

written closer to the time (if not at the moment)

Benediction

May the re-creative power,
        the Sabbath rest of the Lord
                 enable you to this coming week
                          to live out your faith,
                                   rooted in God,
                                   balanced in the Holy Spirit, and
                                   sent forth in the name of Jesus Christ.
                                             To him be glory and honor. Amen.