Long Green Valley Church of the Brethren
Long Green & Kanes Rds., near Glen Arm, Md.
October 3, 2004
Worship 10:00 am, Sunday School 11:10 am

  Morning Praise (9:45 am)
  Announcements
  Prelude

  Call to Worship                      2 Timothy 1:1-14

*Hymn                   "I know not why God’s wondrous grace"                      338

*Opening Prayer

  Scripture                                   Luke 17:5-10

  For Children                    "Mustard Seed Faith"
                                         (Pre-schoolers then leave for Sunday School)

  Hymn                                (vs. 1) "My life flows on"                                    580

  Scripture                             Lamentations 3:19-33

  Message                              "Morning Mercy"

  Hymn                                (vs. 2) "My life flows on"                                    580

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

  Prayer Song                "The Steadfast Love of the Lord"                 (see insert)

  Pastoral Prayer

  Returning our Tithes and Offerings

  Offertory

*Hymn                                "Great is thy faithfulness"                                   327

*Benediction

#'s are from Hymnal: A Worship Book

Worship leaders - see basic guidelines

Call to Worship
2 Timothy 2:1-14, NRSV

1- We enter worship this morning through what is, in reality, the beginning of a personal letter.

2- As you listen, be drawn toward to the One who stood behind both sender and receiver of it long ago,

1 - the One who has inspired believers down through the centuries with these words.

2 - Get ready to stand and sing your faith-filled response. But now, listen:

1- (pause) From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,

2 - To Timothy, my beloved child:

1- Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 - I am grateful to God--whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did--when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy.

1- I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.

2 - For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands;

1 - for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.

2 - Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace.

1 - This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

2 - For this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher, and for this reason I suffer as I do.

1 - But I am not ashamed, for I know the one in whom I have put my trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard until that day what I have entrusted to him.

2 - Hold to the standard of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

1 - Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.

2- (pause) Stand, if you are able, and sing your faith.
   

Opening Prayer

         O God of grace, mercy, and peace, may your Spirit re-kindle in us a fire that no hurricane can put out, no misfortune can diminish, no outer circumstance can smother. Empower us this hour to remember who we are, and to - without shame - speak the truth as you have revealed it to us. We may not know all the "why’s," "how’s," and "where’s" of this life to which you have called us. But we know in "whom" we have believed. Thank you, God, for being who you are.
         By faith we pray in Jesus’ name. AMEN
   

For Children
"Mustard Seed Faith"

borrowed from Scolding the Snakes, by Ruth Gilmore, p. 112

Pastoral Prayer

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

Returning our Tithes and Offerings

         Faith the size of a mustard seed, that’s what Jesus spoke about. There are, indeed, times when that’s about as much faith as we seem to have when facing into the storms of life, when the words, "I can’t," describe our ability better than, "I can." ... Still, a mustard seed! Tiny. Almost invisible - yet mighty. That’s what Jesus said. Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?
         If such a little bit of faith goes such a long way, I wonder what an apple seed size would do? "I can’t" becomes "I can!" "We can’t" transforms into "we can!" Ponder this as the plates are passed. Will you respond to the Lord with an "I can do all things through him who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13) kind of faith? After all, God’s faithfulness to us is truly great. May "mustard seed" be the size of your faith, not the extent of what you return to the Lord... Ushers?
    

Benediction