Introduction to Worship for 9/18/2016

1 Timothy 1:12-17

The letter of Timothy retells the story of Paul and his encounter with the risen Christ. Written from Paul’s perspective, the letter talks about the ways in which this experience changed the apostle’s life. The writer knows that Paul was not deserving of God’s understanding, yet God is loving. This is grace and it is the catalyst for transformation and growth. Once full of cruelty and hatred, Paul is transformed from one who tried to squash the good news of Jesus to one who proclaims it. How wonderful to know that God never gives up on us. Like Paul we are free to grow in God’s love.

Family activity (can be adapted to families of all ages)

Get out family photograph albums and note the many different ways family members have grown and changed over the years. Talk about some of the invisible, internal changes as well.

Take a quiet moment to reflect on examples of personal transformation, and where these experiences have led.
What responsibility do you think individuals have when they receive the gift of God’s transforming love? In what ways do individuals continue to develop and nurture this gift?

New prayer concerns

Bill & Joyce's family: Janet, bone cancer; Grace- lost husband a month ago, broke her hip 2 weeks ago.

Alice- total knee replacement.

Ted- in an apartment, continued prayers for healing.

Cancer: Jeanie- starting chemo; Linda starting chemo and radiation

Alex in hospital

Dylan & Holly- changes

all those who have started new school year

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Introduction to Worship for 8/27/17

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Introduction to Worship for 7/23/2017

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Introduction to Worship for 9/24/2017

Bless the Water: This week our creation theme is Water. As an introduction to the theme, we will be looking at the beginning of the second creation story in Genesis. Genesis 2:4b–14 In the first story (Genesis 1:1––2:3), water is there from the beginning, and creation is an act of separating everything else from the waters, and then bringing life to the land—after light and darkness and planets and the sun and moon are brought forth. In the second story, the land has already been created, and there is a stream that waters all of the land. God creates the human from the land, and we can’t grasp the pun in English, but adam (human or man) is made from adamah (humus or earth). We’re probably most familiar with verses 8 & 9 in this text, when God creates a garden and puts adam into the garden with the green and growing things, including the tree of life and the tree of good and evil. But then the author describes the four rivers that surround the garden, a...

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