welcome to church online
May 17, 2020
call to worship
family news
prayer
Living and gracious God,
Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ You have brought us out to a spacious place where we are called to live as those redeemed.
Empower us by Your spirit to keep your commandments, that we may show forth Your love with gentle word and reverent deed to all Your people.
Amen.
scripture readings
Acts 17:22-31, John 14:15-21
Acts 17:22-31
Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’
“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”
John 14:15-21
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
Sermon
communion thoughts
with jordan M.
Hi everyone,
As I have been reflecting this week on what thoughts to share in preparation for partaking of communion, the theme of trusting Jesus has been reoccurring.
At times my life can feel so full that the thought of adding “one more thing” can seem too much. Knowing myself, I sense my brain and body language shutting down. I start to want to shed responsibility and previously easy things start to bother me. I tend to overthink things leading to anxiousness, doubts about my abilities and worth come in to play. I can be so focused on everything I have to do that I forget to be present in the moment, and to offer time to those in my immediate circles that need it (my wife and kids foremost).
With the absence of attending church on Sunday morning, I have been feeling challenged that being a disciple of Jesus is not just something we do, its something we strive to live and follow each day. I know that we know this – that I know this intellectually, but I have started to see that I have been believing (thinking) one way about my relationship with Jesus, but I have not actually been practicing (acting) in a way that would suggest that I am truly acting out my belief.
I have been humming the first few lines of the song Scott shared with us at Easter:
What a Friend We Have in Jesus
What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer!
Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful,
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Are we weak and heavy-laden,
Cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield thee,
Thou wilt find a solace there.
Blessed Savior, Thou hast promised
Thou wilt all our burdens bear;
May we ever, Lord, be bringing
All to Thee in earnest prayer.
Soon in glory bright, unclouded,
There will be no need for prayer—
Rapture, praise, and endless worship
Will be our sweet portion there.
I find the lines in the first verse “Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry Everything to God in prayer!” very fitting to how I have been feeling.
Before you partake of the elements, I encourage you through prayer to lift your burdens to our Lord. To thank him for His sacrifice, His wisdom and for His encouragement to carry our burdens. And then allow yourself to relax, to rest in the spirit and to trust that Jesus is who he says he is. Trials, frustrations, burdens we will still have, but we need to remember that Jesus sacrifice was part of reconciling ourselves to God, and our burdens are not heavy for Him.
“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13 NLT
Amen.
want to share communion live?
Use email or social media to invite others to join you
at a virtual meeting
via facetime / zoom / skype / google hangouts
and work through the elders' guide together (see here).
Some of the elders will also be hosting virtual Communion gatherings
at various times on Sunday.
To find out more, contact them here.
offering
Our community has been blessed to be able to generously give in so many ways.
From peanut butter to diapers, parents and their kids in the last few weeks have received
tangible tokens of God's love thanks to you.
And there have been countless tales of the Church serving each other:
delivering groceries, making repairs, doing laundry and encouraging each other in prayer.
God bless you!
If you would like to give directly to the budget,
e-transfers can be sent to donations@shelbournestreet.com
Benevolence is very important to our Church during these times.
So please reach out to the deacons if you need help
(whether you are unemployed, underemployed, or don't qualify
for assistance).
Let's pray:
Lord, we thank you for all your blessings and for the joy of being able to give.
We pray for wisdom to use our offerings well, in ways that
bless those in need and further Your kingdom.
Amen.
parting blessing
closing worship song
