Prelude - “Take the name of Jesus with you”[by W. H. Doane] - Sarah Park
Welcome - Liz Meeker
Welcome to Mantua Center Christian Church
-- a community seeking to have open minds, open hearts, and open arms.
- Whether online or in the house this morning, we want to welcome you to our service today. Please take a few moments and greet those seated near you.
- INVITATION FOR MISSION UPDATES:
Ministry Leaders and congregants are welcome to come forward to the mic, to give a mission update or share ways for people to get involved in missions and ministries.
Scripture - Psalm 19:1-4 - Pam Auble
The heavens tell about the glory of God.
The skies announce what his hands have made.
2 Each new day tells more of the story,
and each night reveals more and more about God’s power.[a]
3 You cannot hear them say anything.
They don’t make any sound we can hear.
4 But their message goes throughout the world.
Their teaching reaches the ends of the earth.(Easy English Version)
*Response - Weave #495
Weave, weave, weave us together, Weave us together, in unity and love.
Weave, weave, weave us together, weave us together, together in love.
*Call to Worship - Liz Meeker
One: Come to hear the Word.
All: Come to do the Word.
One: Come to experience Comfort.
All: Come to experience Challenge.
One: Come to find Cost.
All: Come to find Joy.
One: Come to find Humanity.
All: Come to find Community.
One: Come to find Church,
All: Come to find God.
*Opening Hymn - “All Things Bright and Beautiful” #61, v. 1-3
(Refrain)
All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful, in love God made them all.
1 Each little flower that opens, each little bird that sings,
God made their glowing colors, and made their tiny wings. (Refrain)
2 The purple headed mountain, the river running by,
the sunset, and the morning that brightens up the sky. (Refrain)
3 The cold wind in the winter, the pleasant summer sun,
the ripe fruits in the garden, God made them every one. (Refrain)
Invitation to Generosity
Invitation - Liz Meeker
Offertory - “We Shall be Like Him” [by C. H. Gabriel ]
Response - “Give Thanks” #528
Give thanks with a grateful heart, give thanks to the Holy One,
give thanks because he’s given Jesus Christ his Son. Give Thanks!
Offering Prayer - Liz Meeker
Children’s Moment - Pam Auble
Pastoral Prayer & The Lord’s Prayer - Pam Auble
Amazing Creator God, the one beyond naming or fully knowing,
We come before you in awe of the most incredible gift You have shared with
us, with our ancestors and with our children yet to come. The earth. And all that is
in it. Every aspect of Your creation was deemed “Good” and holds a potential lesson
about Your character and about our potential.
In the simple daily act of washing our hands may we recall not only the
cleansing power of water, but its life giving nature. May we remember our baptism
when we committed ourselves to You.
If we notice the wildflowers painting the freeway help us remember beauty is
hidden in plain sight… in the face of every stranger, in the refreshment of friendship,
in the renewal of worship together.
As we’re treated to the evening sounds orchestrated by crickets, birds and
tree frogs, enlighten our understanding to notice that these creatures create
harmony despite their differences.
When we hold a rock in our hands may we be inspired by its long history,
unknown to us, that brought it to this place on earth.
In other words, God thank you for daily gifts of Your created order. And lead
us into lives that reflect all the lessons the creation teaches us as well as the life of
Jesus: accepting the outcast, finding the good, seeking fellowship, working together,
uplifting the lost and lonely, lessons we learned from the life of Jesus and from the
gift of creation.
Our prayers of gratitude pour forth for first responders, fighting fire and
doing the heartbreaking work of clean up and restoration. Give them courage and
endurance. Protect us from compassion fatigue so that we can hear and respond to
people and places in need.
We live our thanks for this faith community by remembering our pastor,
Chad, and his family, as they continue their rest and we continue to gather together
for worship and service. His faithful leadership inspires us even during his absence.
We ask for your healing presence for the community members in need now:
the ones named and unnamed.
Our prayers are at times sporadic, weak, missing, but heartfelt and always
heard by You. Hear this prayer we share now, the one taught to us by Jesus, … Our
Father ….
Holy Communion
Meditation - Rev. Nancy Humes
Hymn - “ O God, Unseen Yet Ever Near” #399, v. 1-3
1 O God, unseen yet ever near, reveal thy presence now,
while we, in love that hath no fear, before thy glory bow.
2 Here may thy faithful people know the blessings of thy love—
the streams that thro’ the desert flow, the manna from above.
3 Awhile beside the fount we stay and eat this bread of thine;
then go, rejoicing, on our way, renewed with strength divine.
Prayer - Brian Hurd
Words of Institution - Brian Hurd
Music - “Thou, my Everlasting Portion” [By S. J. Vail] - Sarah Park
Special Music
“Walk by Faith” [by Sundy Best] - Ryan & Karly Lind and Pam Auble & Beth Schabel
Scripture - Philippians 4:8
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (NRSV)
Sermon - “Walk By Faith” - Pam Auble
Every summer of my growing years my family traveled into a remote spot on
the Key River, in the Georgian Bay Area of Lake Huron, about 4 hours north of
Toronto. Well, that’s now, but in the 1960’s with one way roads we traveled from
Ohio 12 hours by car and then more than an hour by boat for our haven on the
rock. No running water. No stores. No television. Just rocks, waves, trees, an
outhouse, “the bivvy” and a few walleye.
I loved it. One reason was I had a whole week with my dad, who traveled a
lot for work. But another was just those rocks, water and trees. The pink and white
granite rock pervaded all the landscape, with birch trees and evergreens growing
up through the cracks. The water and cloud formations played in tandem everyday
to provide entertainment more refreshing than a Saturday morning line up of
cartoons.
Most days were spent on the water, usually in my Dad’s 12 ft boat with a 7 ½
horsepower outboard motor, pretty skimpy for the big waves encountered on
Georgian Bay. My two brothers, mom, dad and I had a line in the water all from that
small boat. I wanted to catch a fish, but I my attention was more likely focused on
the changing shoreline with grass or rock flowing into the ripples. Then I was on to
the dragon in the cloud shapes. No, now it’s a swing set. Now a circus clown. And
then my attention went underwater to the minnows swarming nearby or the rock
shelf appearing to wave with the water or a sunken bucket or bouy. There was just
so much to see!
As the fishing day came to an end there would be a long boat ride back to the
cabin for a late supper. My dad would captain us back home at top speed, with that
little motor and my chin would rest on the boat’s edge. Soothed by the boat’s
vibration, I absorbed every wave that slapped the boat, memorized by the rhythm,
occasionally interrupted by a dragonfly that somehow managed to buzz along with
us.
Looking back on those summer days, I now know I came to know God more
fully in that place and was I in God’s embrace. I was living within the “WORDS” of
scripture, not written on a page but words that became embedded in my soul, my
heart, my being, my understanding of God’s love and presence.
Have you had an experience like this? Maybe it makes no sense to others but
do you know of a time you found a deeper understanding of the nature of God
because of your exposure to nature?? I could spend the next hour telling stories of
how my faith grew by watching the storm clouds develop and move towards my
porch, handling rocks on the lakeshore, gently touching the tall grass along the path,
leaning uphill into the mountain trail, watching my seedlings grow in the garden,
caressing a pine cone or acorn.
Many of you contributed to the slideshow played earlier. And perhaps these
were the moments when you felt the exhilaration of knowing God’s presence. If you
are willing to do so now, will you turn to a neighbor and share a moment in nature
when God spoke to you?
Our faith ancestors at one time understood there to be TWO sources of the
Word of God; the book of written scripture AND the book of nature. On example of
an ancient faith father is Anthony of Egypt, a desert monk of 250-350 AD. He had
access to no written books and others challenged him about that. His
response? “My book is the nature of created things, and as often as I have a mind to
read the words of God, they are at my hand.” The way I see it, if a picture paints a
thousand words, imagine how much God is saying in an actual sunset!
Daniel Cooperrider, a Kenston graduate, wrote a book entitled “Speak With
The Earth And It Will Teach You”. He explains lessons of faith we can find from
rivers, mountains, trees, clouds, to name a few. For example,
*The root system of a tree actually provides support not just for that one tree
but for the entire community of trees. So that which grounds a tree, its roots, is
what allows it to uphold, feed, nurture its neighbors. What is grounding our
lives? How are we then nurturing our neighbors?
* The three rules of mountaineering: a mountain is always farther, taller and
harder than you think. Attempting to summit the Mountain of knowing God will be
a challenge, a struggle that we may not be able to fully comprehend. If that feels
overwhelming, look at one possible lesson from rivers …
* A river, at our feet, matches a theology of descent, not a God UP UP UP in
the sky, but accessible, down to earth. Jesus practice a theology of descent so He
wasn’t reaching up towards the mighty and powerful rulers of His day, but reached
down to the last and the least, to the down and out. Like a stream, that refreshes
and cools, Jesus came to refresh the forgotten. Like a river, are we refreshing those
most in need?
* And clouds are there, right there. No hike is needed. No wilderness retreat
site. Look out an office window and clouds are present. As we commute in our cars,
clouds can entertain or inspire. Shielding us from too much sun, indiscriminately,
distributing rain on the earth, clouds are vital. As people of faith, are we sharing our
love indiscriminately too? Are we accessible?
When we choose to walk by faith, and not by eyesight alone, we can learn
from what we “read” from God’s creation.
Solid as a rock
Bright as a shining star
Calm as an evening lake
Stand tall as a tree
Wise as an owl
Cool as a creek
Sweet as a rose
It’s frightening to realize the lessons we may be missing if we overlook this
original “book of scripture”. From this Jewish book of prayer “Mishkan T’filah, we’ll
find this warning about missing God’s daily messages …
“Days pass and years vanish and we walk sightless among miracles.
God, fill our eyes with seeing and our minds with knowing;
let there be moments when Your presence, like lightning
illuminates the darkness in which we walk.”
Last month Alicia Evan-Hayes reminded us that God’s beauty chases after
us. And Cooperrider says that beauty is NOT something God tends to be frugal
with. It’s in a sea shell, a smooth stone, a feather, a nut shell, a green valley, a purple
mountain range, a flower growing in a sidewalk crack, a winter storm, a cricket’s
tune. In seeking this beauty there are lessons to be learned, studied, embodied.
And when we are intentional about this faith walk, we can strive to emulate
the very best character of the amazing world God has created for us and entrusted
to us. And when we walk by faith, we may come to respect and want to protect this
gift from God.
May we feel called to learn from God’s creation,
share the lessons and
preserve the source of this inspiration for all God’s children.
Amen
*Closing Hymn - “ This Is My Father’s World” #59, v. 1-3
1 This is my Father’s world, and to my listening ears,
all nature sings and round me rings the music of the spheres.
This is my Father’s world; I rest me in the thought,
of rocks and trees, of skies and seas, God’s hands the wonders wrought.
2 This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise,
the morning light, the flowers bright, declare their Maker’s praise.
Our God has made this world and shines in all that’s fair;
in rustling grass I hear God pass, who speaks to me everywhere.
3 Our God has made this world; oh, let us ne’er forget
that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.
God trusts us with this world, to keep it clean and fair.
All earth and trees, the skies and seas, God’s creatures everywhere.
Benediction - Pam Auble
Thank you Ryan, Karly, Beth, Sarah and Liz
Next week –Ryan will preach
The next week – we welcome back Chad and the Delaney family
May we walk by faith
With eyes open to Your Gifts
Ready to share the inspiration. Let us
Walk by faith … skip a little even.
Postlude - “Come to the Saviour, Make no Delay” [by G. F. Root] - Sarah Park