Long Green Valley Church of the Brethren
Long Green & Kanes Rds., near Glen Arm, Md.
January 27, 2008
Worship 10:00 am, Sunday School 11:10 am

  Morning Praise (9:45 am)
  Announcements
  Prelude

  Call  to Worship

*Hymn                              "Shepherd of tender youth"                                 480

*Opening Prayer (Unison Reading)                                                              718

  The Tercentennial Minute

  Old Testament Scripture           Proverbs 1: 1-7

  Hymn                                  "Morning has broken"                                     648

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

  Prayer

  Returning our Tithes and Offerings

  Offertory

*Unison Dedication

  New Testament Scripture         Acts 9:10-15

  Special Music                           "Cornerstone"
                                      (Congregation to join in second time through)

  Message                    "History – What Good is it?"
                                                     Gary Miller

*Hymn                            "O God, our help in ages past"                               328

*Benediction

#'s are from Hymnal: A Worship Book

Worship leaders - see basic guidelines

Call to Worship

God looked into emptiness and created all that is.
God spread out the earth in its diversity with
mountains and valleys, rivers and fertile plains.
There were patches of flood and fire, of dryness and of vivid green,
embraced by wind and sea, a sun-filled landscape of hospitality.
And, threading through it all, like weavings of golden hope,
were dreams of justice and compassion and gentle streams of peace.
God gathered all peoples into community, gave a sigh of joy
And set us free to choose our path in a daring adventure of trust.
This is our God.
This is the wonder of our calling in faith.
Let us worship God.

Before first hymn, read:

Opening Prayer

Leader: Eternal God,
               we give you thanks for the founders of your church,
                 for those whom you called and formed in the image of your Son,
                 for those who suffered and died for their faith.
People:   We thank you for the cloud of witnesses.
Leader: We give you thanks for the reformers of your church,
                   for their rediscovery of truth,
                   for their eagerness to live simply,
                   for their faithful study of your word,
                   for their endeavor to serve their neighbors.
People:   We thank you for the cloud of witnesses.
ALL:    God of our forebears,
                give us the courage and wisdom
                   of the saints who have gone before us;
                form us in the image of your Son;
                renew your Holy Spirit's work in our generation.
             May we live and serve under the rule of Jesus Christ
                until your reign comes.  AMEN

Hymnal #718
adapted from "Litany of Thanksgiving,"
by Edward K. Ziegler, from The Adventurous Future,
ed. Paul H. Bowman, copyright © 1959 Brethren Press.
 

Tercentennial Minute
William Beery Cheats Death

            William Beery cheated death at least twice, and the Church of the Brethren hymnody is the better for it. 

            Born on April 8, 1952, near Bremen Ohio, he was the tenth of thirteen children.  It is said that the doctor took one look at the newborn and told his mother that he would not survive.  The prediction proved incorrect. Though he was sickly as a child, survive he did – for nearly one hundred and four years!

            The Brethren experiment in higher education was in its infancy when Beery went to what became Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania.  The school had only completed one year of operation when Beery arrived in 1877, only to see the school closed because of a smallpox epidemic.  Beery was afraid if he went back home he might never return so he and a couple of classmates when to a deep gorge about fifteen miles away known as Old Forge.  They settled into abandoned dwellings and built tables and chairs with equipment at an old saw mill.  Farm families turned them away out of fear that they might carry contagion – although a teenaged Martin Grove Brumbaugh walked several miles to bring them milk.

            The school reopened for the spring semester.  William Beery went on to teach at Juniata, and later to work at the Brethren Publishing House in Elgin.  He wrote over a hundred hymn tunes, many of them to poems written by his wife, Adaline Hohf Beery.  Beery remained active all his long life, performing on the Chicago TV station WLS on his 103^rd birthday.  He died on January 28, 1956.  Three of his hymn tunes can be found in Hymnal: A Worship Book – "Take my hand and lead me, Father," #601, "Savior of my soul," #549, and "Lo, a gleam from yonder heaven," #591.

by Frank Ramirez, pastor of the Everett, PA Church of the Brethren
posted by permission                        
The Everett church graciously makes available these weekly vignettes from Brethren history
to all who are interested during this 300th anniversary year of our denomination.
Frank will be the guest preacher for our Homecoming on October 26, 2008
(this is our congregation's 100th anniversary year)
  

Old Testament Scripture
Proverbs 1:1-7
(New Living Translation)

These are the proverbs of Solomon, David’s son, king of Israel.
Their purpose is to teach people wisdom and discipline,
to help them understand the insights of the wise.
Their purpose is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives,
to help them do what is right, just, and fair.
These proverbs will give insight to the simple,
knowledge and discernment to the young.

Let the wise listen to these proverbs and become even wiser.
Let those with understanding receive guidance
by exploring the meaning in these proverbs and parables,
the words of the wise and their riddles. 

Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Before the next hymn, read:

         Our second hymn this morning is often incorrectly attributed to Cat Stevens who made a popular version of the hymn back in the 70’s.  In reality, it was a favorite hymn long before it was a commercial success.  It was written back in 1922 and is found in the hymnals of many denominations.  It is an example of the many hymns and scripture passages from the bible which were used by the secular world.  Again this is a part of the history of the church.  Please turn in your hymnals to #648, "Morning has broken."
  

Pastoral Prayer

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

Returning our Tithes and Offerings

         In Matthew 6:24 Jesus said that it is not possible to serve God and money.  Most people apply this verse to the wealthy, but it includes all of us.  Financial uncertainty such as our country has experienced with the stock market in recent days can cause us to lose our focus on our Source and on what God has called us to do. It is important for us to keep our priorities in order.  Please consider this as the ushers wait upon us for our tithes and offerings.
     

Dedication

         God of money and minds, savings and service, land and love. We come at this time to honor you with our substance. All we have, Lord, we give to you. Accept these offerings. May we always remember the Source from which they have come. Amen.
        

New Testament Scripture
Acts 9:10-15

         In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, "Ananias!" "Yes, Lord," he answered.
         The Lord told him, "Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight."
         "Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name."
         But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.

Read before Special Music:

         Through the years the Church of the Brethren has had many prolific composers of music, our pastor being one of them.  The song we are about to hear was written by Shawn Kirchner, a professional musician and song writer.   A Manchester graduate, he was the Music Coordinator for the Annual Conference at Boise, Idaho in 2003.

"Cornerstone"
  

Benediction

"May the past be a light of benediction on thy present,
  May the present be a radiant searchlight on thy future,
  May the future be a beautiful haven of well-earned rest,
       Through Jesus Christ our Lord." Amen.