Long Green Valley Church of the Brethren
Long Green & Kanes Rds., near Glen Arm, Md.
October 13, 2013
Worship 10:00 am          Sunday School 11:10am

  Beginning with Praise (9:50 am)          "Jesus, the very thought of thee"          588
  Announcements
  Prelude                                   "Morning Hymn"                        Gordon Young

   Stretching with Word                 Psalm 66:1-4

*Stretching with song   "Awake, arise, O sing a new song"                            56

*Call to Praise                             Psalm 66:5-8

*Hymn                                    "Great is the Lord"                                         87

*Opening Prayer

  A Moment for Mission                CROP Walk

  Scripture                                Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7

  For Children                     "This Is Our House"               by Hyewon Yum

  Sharing a joy, a concern, a word of testimony or praise
                                 (please be brief, and aware of God's listening presence)

  Hymn                                 "Healer of our every ill"                                    377

   Pastoral Prayer

  Scripture                                2 Timothy 2: 8-15            Laughing Bird Version

  Returning our Tithes and Offerings

  Offertory                                       "Adagio"                                    Beethoven
                              (Please sign the attendance pad and pass it on)

  Gospel                                     Luke 17:11-19

  Response                   "Give thanks with a grateful heart"                       (insert)

  Message                     "And he was a Samaritan" (mp3)

*Hymn                              "O bless the Lord, my soul"                                600

*Benediction

*Postlude                      "A Wonderful Savior is Jesus..."                    Kirpatrick

*Rise in body or in spirit

#'s are from Hymnal: A Worship Book

Worship leaders - see basic guidelines

Stretching with Word
Psalm 66:1-4

(the choir gets into place up front during the Prelude, where they stand during this reading)

1 - Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;

2 - sing the glory of his name;

1 - give to him glorious praise.

2 - Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!

1 - Because of your great power, your enemies cringe before you.

2 - All the earth worships you;

1 - they sing praises to you,

2 - sing praises to your name.

(pause to indicate scripture reading has ended, then:)

1 - God’s Word stretches our spiritual muscles.

2 - Let us stretch our physical muscles as we sing.

1 - Please rise as you are able

2 - and follow the choir with your body and your voice.

1 - We will sing thru the song first, without motions.

2 - The 2nd time thru, we’ll start stretching.

Call to Praise
Psalm 66:5-8

(as they read, the choir moves from center to side, no longer the focus)

1 - Come and see what God has done:

2 - he is awesome in his deeds among mortals.

1 - He turned the sea into dry land;

2 - they passed through the river on foot.

1 - There we rejoiced in him,

2 - who rules by his might forever,

1 - whose eyes keep watch on the nations –

2 - let the rebellious not exalt themselves.

1 - Bless our God, O peoples,

2 - let the sound of his praise be heard…

Opening Prayer

             Great God, we open ourselves to you this hour, seeking your guidance and energy for the path which lies ahead of us this week. We are trying to follow your Son, Jesus. Sometimes, however, we stumble or get lost. Thank you for picking us up and helping us to walk again. Thank you for seeking out and finding us wherever we have wandered and then leading us back on our Way. We trust that you are here with us now through your Holy Spirit. We pray that we will receive what we each need to receive from you, whether it be in the words spoken, in the silences or the songs, in the connections we make with your people gathered here, or in what is unseen but no less real. Bless this time, O Lord. In your name we pray. Amen.

A Moment for Mission

             Our community CROP Walk is coming up on Oct. 27. Our congregation has been an active part of this event since it started in our local area 18 years ago. We walk on the NCR Trail, with registration at the Papermill entrance, beginning anytime between 12:30-1:30pm. Car-pooling is encouraged since the parking lot there can fill up quickly, especially when the weather is good. Folks from our church will host a refreshment table along the way. As the starting and ending point is the same, walkers can travel the 3 miles up to Sparks and return, or they can choose a sooner turn-around spot. It depends upon what you feel capable of doing.  Port-a-pots are located at Papermill and Sparks.
            The first CROP Hunger Walk was in the 1960s (other non-profits have since copied the walk format to raise funds). Now more than 2,000 communities across the U.S. join in CROP Hunger Walks each year. The original concept was both to raise money to help alleviate world and local hunger, and to raise awareness that in many places around the globe people need to walk great distances for water or food. Having help start a local CROP Walk in his previous church, Pastor Pete was part of the initial planning committee in 1995 that began this event in our community. Then, the added benefit of encouraging church-folk from various denominations to come and walk together was part of the rationale. Won't you join in - as a walker, as a sponsor of a walker, or as a host at our hospitality table along the way?
  

For Children
"This Is Our House"

             Suggested by Storypath (an excellent resource) as a good read for children connected to the Jeremiah passage, This Is Our House by Hyewon Yum tells a simple story of a house becoming a home over the years by an immigrant family. The prophet Jeremiah instructed God's people long ago to settle into the foreign land to which they were exiled and "build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease" (29:5-6). This family in Hyewon Yum's delightful picture book does just this. We are currently making use of story books during worship to help our youngest ones, who understand "circle time," to enter into our service.
            As we shift from this book to our sharing of joys and concerns, we pay attention to the rest of Jeremiah's encouragement: "But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare" (29:7). Another book we could have chosen with this latter verse in mind, as suggested by Carolyn Brown, is The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles. Follow that link to listen to it read in video format.
    

Pastoral Prayer

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

Returning our Tithes and Offerings

             It is time to collect the offering. In passing the plate, however, don’t pass up your own calling. God gives each of us work to do, and provides the energy to do it. As you give toward the ministry of this church, think about your own ministry, what God might be inviting you to do or be this week. Hold your head high as you prayerfully move in that direction.

             Ushers, please come forward and receive our offering. Everyone, please remember to sign and pass the attendance booklets. If there is a need you have, please alert us to it.
    

Benediction

Go now, and live fruitfully where God has placed you.
Pray and strive for the welfare of those you live among,
and do your best to present yourselves to God
as faithful workers with no need to be ashamed.

And may God open the pathways before you;
May Christ Jesus cleanse you and make you whole;
And may the Holy Spirit keep your spirits alive
            and your feet from stumbling.

©2001 Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net