October 31st, 2021 All Saints & Anniversary Sunday
Watch this Service at: www.graceunitedthornbury.ca/live
Leading us today in worship:
Minister: Rev. Christine Smaller
Music Director: Dr. Christopher Burton
Lay Leader: Bonnie Hammond
Soloist: Bonnie Hammond
Leader: regular font ~ All: bold font ~ Sung Words: bold italic font
You are welcome to respond in prayers throughout the service. At this time in compliance with Public Health guidelines there is no singing.
Prelude:
Little Preludes (selections) ~ J.S. Bach
Greeting:
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
And also with you.
Welcome & Territorial Acknowledgment
Call to Worship:
In all our weakness and strength,
with our youth-filled spirits and aging bodies,
we come to be your people, O God.
Strong in faith and eager with questions,
singing our praise and whispering our prayers,
we come to be your people, O God.
Filled with saintly determination
yet mindful of our human limitations,
we come to be your people, O God.
Made strong in your endless love for us,
we know ourselves to be yours and
we come to be your people, O God.
May we truly become your people today. Amen.
Opening Prayer:
Beloved, through the love shown to us by Jesus,
we can be sure that we are God’s children now.
The Spirit of Christ is among us in this gathering
and the nature of Christ is revealed within us.
We are becoming more and more like Christ each day.
Therefore, let us live joyfully as God’s people;
saints and instruments of God’s way.
Opening Hymn: VU 395 Come in and Sit Down
Refrain
Come in, come in and sit down,
you are a part of the family,
We are lost and we are found,
and we are a part of the family.
1. You know the reason why you came,
yet no reason can explain;
so share in the laughter and cry in the pain,
for we are a part of the family.
Refrain
Come in, come in and sit down,
you are a part of the family,
We are lost and we are found,
and we are a part of the family.
2. God is with us in this place,
like a mother's warm embrace.
We're all forgiven by God's grace,
for we are a part of the family.
Refrain
Come in, come in and sit down,
you are a part of the family,
We are lost and we are found,
and we are a part of the family.
3. There's life to be shared in the bread and the wine;
we are the branches, Christ is the vine.
This is God's temple, it's not yours or mine,
but we are a part of the family.
Refrain
Come in, come in and sit down,
you are a part of the family,
We are lost and we are found,
and we are a part of the family.
4. There's rest for the weary and health for us all;
there's a yoke that is easy, and a burden that's small.
So come in and worship and answer the call,
for we are a part of the family.
Refrain
Come in, come in and sit down,
you are a part of the family,
We are lost and we are found,
and we are a part of the family.
Anniversary Thoughts
Prayer for Illumination:
Holy One, we know that you constantly breathe new life into every word of scripture. Help us hear the Living Word you desire to share with us today.
Scripture:
Isaiah 25:6-9 (NRSV)
On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines,
of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.
And he will destroy on this mountain
the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
the sheet that is spread over all nations;
he will swallow up death forever.
Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,
and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the Lord has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
This is the Lord for whom we have waited;
let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
Revelation 21:1-6a
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
“See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away.”
And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.
Response:
The Word of God for the people of God.
Thanks be to God.
Musical Interlude:
Improvisation on a Hymn ~ C. Burton
Anniversary Thoughts
Hymn: VU 706 Give thanks for life the measure of our days
1. Give thanks for life, the measure of our days,
mortal, we pass through beauty that decays,
yet sing to God our hope, our love, our praise,
Hallelujah, hallelujah!
2. Give thanks for those who made their life a light
caught from the Christ-flame, bursting through the night,
who touched the truth, who burned for what is right,
Hallelujah, hallelujah!
3 And for our own, our living and our dead,
thanks for the love by which our life is fed,
a love not changed by time or death or dread,
Hallelujah, hallelujah!
4 Give thanks for hope, that like the wheat, the grain
lying in darkness does its life retain,
in resurrection to grow green again,
Hallelujah, hallelujah!
Prayers of the People
We notice the saints around us, O God;
They have time for their friends and their family members.
We want to be like them. (silence)
We notice the saints around us, O God;
They see a neighbour in need, and they are ready to meet that need.
We want to be like them. (silence)
We notice the saints around us, O God;
they are aware of an injustice in the local community, or beyond this nation,
and they find a way to bring change.
We want to be like them. (silence)
We notice the saints around us, O God;
they have a strong faith,
and are ready to nourish their faith in Christian community.
We want to be like them. (silence)
Today we remember those saints who have gone before us.
Lighting of the memorial candles
The Lord’s Prayer:
As a child turns to a loving caregiver who watches over them, we turn in prayer to you O god, who are our heavenly parent, our mother,
Our Father who art in heaven…
Anniversary Thoughts
Passing the Peace:
The Peace of Christ be with you all.
And also with you.
Everyone is invited to share the peace of Christ by offering a message in the chat box.
You may also wish to think of someone you would like to pass the peace to this week.
Music while we share the Peace of Christ:
Theme and Variations ~ F. Mendelssohn
Invitation to the Offering
Prayer of Dedication:
Faithful God, you ask us to be faithful people.
In this community, you ask us to be people of justice.
In this community, you ask us to be people of mercy.
In this community, you ask us to be people of peace.
Be with us as we try to be faithful
in large ways and in small ways
so your eternal community may come in every way.
A single stone placed in the offering plate honours all our gifts.
Donate online: www.graceunitedthornbury.ca, select “Give”
or contact the office by email: accounting@graceunitedthornbury.ca
or phone: 519-599-2438 to arrange a cheque pick-up, or an e-transfer
Mail: Grace UC, 140 Bruce St. S. PO Box 219, Thornbury, ON N0H 2P0
Care, Prayer, Share
Announcements:
Closing Hymn: VU 713 I See a New Heaven
Refrain
I see a new heaven.
I see a new earth as the old one will pass away,
where the fountain of life flows and without price goes
to all people who abide in the land.
1. There, there on the banks of a river bright and free,
yielding her fruit, firm in her root, the Tree of Life will be.
Refrain
I see a new heaven.
I see a new earth, as the old one will pass away,
where the fountain of life flows and without price goes
to all people who who abide in the land.
2. There, there where death dies and our lives are born again,
body and soul, struggling but whole like flowers after the rain.
Refrain
I see a new heaven.
I see a new earth, as the old one will pass away,
where the fountain of life flows and without price goes
to all people who abide in the land.
3. There, there where the darkness brings visions from above.
There where the night, bearing new light, reveals the promise of love.
Refrain
I see a new heaven.
I see a new earth, as the old one will pass away,
where the fountain of life flows and without price goes
to all people who abide in the land.
4. There, there where we work with the love of healing hands.
Labour we must, true to our trust To build a promised new land.
Refrain
I see a new heaven.
I see a new earth, as the old one will pass away,
where the fountain of life flows and without price goes
to all people who abide in the land.
Commissioning and Benediction
Sung Blessing: Go Now in Peace
Go now in peace. Never be afraid.
God will go with you each hour of every day.
Go now in faith, steadfast, strong and true,
Know God will guide you in all you do.
Go now in love, and show you believe.
Reach out to others so all the world can see.
God will be there, * within, around, above.
Go now in peace, in faith and in love.
Amen, amen, amen.
* alternate words: watching from above
Postlude:
Fantasia in D Minor ~ G.P. Telemann
*****
RESOURCES USED (all with permission)
Prayers and Liturgies:
- Call to Worship: Seasons of the Spirit Congregational Life • All Saints Day – Year A
- Opening Prayer: Seasons of the Spirit Congregational Life • All Saints Day – Year A
- Prayer of Dedication: Seasons of the Spirit Congregational Life • All Saints Day – Year A
- Prayers of the People: Adapted from prayers to Share: Responsive Prayers for each Sunday of the Church Year by David Sparks. Copyright © 2004 Wood Lake Publishing
Hymns and Sung Responses:
- “Come In, Come In and Sit Down” Words: James K Manley 1984, alt. Music: James K. Manley 1984, arr. Darryl Nixon 1987. Words and Music copyright © 1984 James K. Manley. Arrangement © 1987 Songs for a Gospel People. Used by permission One License # 608577
- “Give Thanks for Life” Words: Shirley Erena Murray 1986. Words copyright © 1987 Hope Publishing Company. Used by permission One License #608577
- “I See a New Heaven” Words: Carolyn McDade 1979. Music: Carolyn McDade 1979, harm. Janet McGaughey ca.1991, alt. Words and music copyright © 1991 Carolyn McDade. Used by permission One License # 608577.
- “Go Now in Peace.” Words by Don Besig and Nancy Price. © 1988 Harold Flammer Music, Inc. Alternate words used with permission. Reproduced with permission, One License, #608577.
Scripture Passage from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission.
Prelude: Little Preludes. (selections) J.S. Bach
Interlude: Improvisation on a hymn. C. Burton
Passing of the Peace: Theme and Variation F. Mendelssohn
Postlude: Fantasia in D Minor G.P. Telemann
(All Public Domain)
