Church family, we are blessed with your presence today in worship. Today we explore a beautiful passage telling the story of Hannah. Hannah was the mother of Samuel who went on to anoint King David. We can learn a lot from the courage and faithfulness of Hannah and will hope to find a way to apply to our everyday lives. Thank you for worshiping with us and may God bless you in this hour and the week to come!
Welcome to Mantua Center Christian Church! We are a community seeking to have open minds, open hearts, and open arms.
Prelude - “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty” [by Saralsund Gesangbuch] - Sarah Park
Scripture - Romans 8:35, 37-39
35Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
*Response - Weave
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 - Leighton Baynes
ONE: A word of encouragement came from the prophets to people;
ALL: Live a life that is full – build, plant, eat, love, do justice--
ONE: Pray for your community and world
ALL: Keep God in the center of all that is.
ONE: We come to worship today with hope in our hearts
ALL: For something happens here that reminds us that we can live as God desires
ONE: God has made a promise of faithfulness to us
ALL: and we can trust the promise. Let us worship the Lord!
*Opening Hymn - This is the Day #286, 2 times
This is the day, this is the day
that the Lord has made, that the Lord has made
We will rejoice, we will rejoice
And be glad in it, and be glad in it.
This is the day that the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.
This is the day, this is the day that the Lord has made.
Invitation to Generosity
Invitation - Leighton Baynes
Offertory
Music: “Nearer, my God, to Thee” [by L. Mason]
The Doxology #46
Praise God from whom all blessings flow; praise God, all creatures here below;
praise God above, ye heavenly host: Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
Offering Prayer - Leighton Baynes
Children’s Moment - Rev. Chad Delaney
Pastoral Prayer & Lord’s Prayer
Communion
Meditation - Brian Hurd
Hymn - When you Do This, Remember Me #400, v.1-2, 4
1 You my friend, a stranger once, do now belong to heaven.
Once far away, you are brought home into God's family.
"When you do this, remember me."
2 Now my Lord is also yours, my people are your own;
embraced together in God's arms, I enfold you now in mine.
"When you do this, remember me."
4 So let us renew our faith, remembering our Lord;
to our strong hope we will hold fast, unshaken to the end.
"When you do this, remember me."
Prayer - Brian Hurd
Words of Institution - Rev. Chad Delaney
Music: “Down at the Cross Where my Saviour Died” [by J. H. Stockton]
Scripture - 1 Samuel 1:3-11, 19-28
3 Now this man used to go up year by year from his town to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the Lord. 4On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters; 5but to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb. 6Her rival used to provoke her severely, to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. 7So it went on year after year; as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. 8Her husband Elkanah said to her, ‘Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? Why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?’ 9 After they had eaten and drunk at Shiloh, Hannah rose and presented herself before the Lord. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. 10She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord, and wept bitterly. 11She made this vow: ‘O Lord of hosts, if only you will look on the misery of your servant, and remember me, and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a male child, then I will set him before you as a nazirite until the day of his death. He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants, and no razor shall touch his head.’
19 They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord; then they went back to their house at Ramah. Elkanah knew his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. 20In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, ‘I have asked him of the Lord.’21 The man Elkanah and all his household went up to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice, and to pay his vow. 22But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, ‘As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, that he may appear in the presence of the Lord, and remain there forever; I will offer him as a nazirite for all time.’ 23Her husband Elkanah said to her, ‘Do what seems best to you, wait until you have weaned him; only—may the Lord establish his word.’ So the woman remained and nursed her son, until she weaned him. 24When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine. She brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh; and the child was young. 25Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. 26And she said, ‘Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord. 27For this child I prayed; and the Lord has granted me the petition that I made to him. 28Therefore I have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord.’
She left him there for the Lord.
Sermon - Keeping Our Promises Rev. Chad Delaney
*Closing Hymn - Standing on the Promises #552, v.1-2, 4
1 Standing on the promises of Christ my King, through eternal ages let his praises ring;
glory in the highest, I will shout and sing, standing on the promises of God.
[Refrain:]
Standing, standing,
standing on the promises of God my Savior;
standing, standing,
I'm standing on the promises of God.
2 Standing on the promises that cannot fail, when the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
by the living Word of God I shall prevail, standing on the promises of God. [Refrain]
4 Standing on the promises I cannot fall, list'ning every moment to the Spirit's call,
resting in my Savior as my all in all, standing on the promises of God. [Refrain]
Benediction - Rev. Chad Delaney
Postlude - “Standing on the Promises”[by R. K. Carter] - Sarah Park