Long Green Valley Church of the Brethren
Long Green & Kanes Rds., near Glen Arm, Md.
May 14, 2006
Worship 10:00 am, Sunday School 11:10 am

Mothers’ Day

  Morning Praise (9:45 am)
  Announcements
  Prelude                       "How Lovely Are Thy Dwellings"                      Liddle
                                                                     (Psalm 84:1-3)

  Call to Worship

*Hymn                              "Thou true Vine, that heals"                              373

*Opening Prayer

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

  Pastoral Prayer

  Anthem                             "Let the Children Come"                             Kemp
                                                                     Alleluia Choir

  Dedicating Children and their Parents

  Hymn                          "Jesus, friend so kind and gentle"                          621
                                (Pre-schoolers leave for Bell Ringers & Sunday School)

  Returning our Tithes and Offerings

  Offertory                     "Songs My Mother Taught Me"                      Dvorak

*Doxology (119A)

*Dedication

  Scripture                                   1 John 4:7-21

  Message                          "An abiding presence"

*Hymn                                    "Lord of the home"                                     490

*Benediction

*Postlude                         "O Christ, in Thee My Soul"                 McGranahan

#'s are from Hymnal: A Worship Book

Worship leaders - see basic guidelines

Call to Worship
John 15:1-8
(from The Message)

Last announcement: "During the Prelude, the ushers will pass baskets down each pew, beginning in the back. Please take one grape and carefully hold it in your hand. Don’t eat it yet. Simply feel its shape and imagine the vine from which it came. Prepare to worship."

1 - Jesus said:

2 - "I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn't bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken."

1 - In your hand is a piece of fruit. By itself it is just one grape, but it comes from a bunch that once hung from a vine. Without the soil beneath and the sun and rain from above, there would be no fruit. The hand of the farmer increases the yield by careful pruning, and picks the grapes when the time is right. This harvest provides food and drink which satisfies the body.

2 - "Live in me,"

1 - Jesus said.

2 - "Make your home in me just as I do in you."

1 - Put your grape into your mouth and savor its taste. It is but one piece of fruit, but it adds flavor to this moment.

2 - "Live in me,"

1 - Jesus said.

2 - "Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me."

1 - We gather on this resurrection day to reconnect to the source of life and to feast in the goodness of the Lord.

2 - "I am the Vine,"

1 - Jesus said,

2 - "you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire."

1 - We join together on this resurrection day to reconnect to the source of life and to feast in the goodness of the Lord.

2 - "If you make yourselves at home with me,"

1 - Jesus said,

2 - "and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is--when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples."

1 - Stand, if you are able, and sing a vineyard song of praise - #373: "Thou true vine that heals the nations."
   

Opening Prayer

         Lord God, we thank you for the good ground beneath us, and the sun and rain from above. We thank you for those who, by their example, have shown us how to live. We have tasted their fruit, and it is upon the same soil that we stand. We thank you for the responsibility you share with us to help raise the next generation. We are blessed as we look to their future with hope, trusting in your abiding presence - that even as things change, your love in Christ Jesus will not.
         True vine that heals the nations, on this resurrection day we again open ourselves to you. Help us to release the weight of our sin and the other burdens we carry, that we might freely step forward by faith onto the path you set before us. May we sense your presence with us at all times, in the middle of the night or in the bright of day. May we know what true love is, that we might dwell in your love, and allow you to make your home in us.
         This we pray in Jesus’ name, for the glory of God and our neighbor’s good. Amen.
   

Pastoral Prayer

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

Returning our Tithes and Offerings

         Little eyes are watching. Remember to share with them the reasons behind your offering, the fruit that you are bearing, and the "wonders of the Lord" that continue to make it all possible. Will the ushers now come forward to receive our offerings, and thus help us to fulfill part of our vows to the Lord? 
   

Dedication

         Yes, Lord, all blessings flow from you. Through these offerings, help us to pass along the gift - in Jesus’ name. Amen.
   

Benediction

         As you leave this place, let real love reside at the center of who you are, the springboard of all your relationships, for love is from God. In fact, God is love. Therefore, don’t let fear rule your life. Instead, allow God’s perfect love to cast out fear... Go in love.