This Sunday @ SRCC

Sunday, March 18, 2007

2007-03-16T15:01:00.000-07:00

Adult Forum &
All-Ages Sunday School begin @ 9:30
Worship begins @ 10:30
All are Welcome!

Adult Forum
Love that Welcomes
Scriptures: Joshua 5:9-12; Psalm 32; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:1-3; 11b-32
Nothing in God’s creation is ever so lost that it is beyond God’s finding. God seeks reconciliation with all, extending forgiveness and welcoming us to a place at the joyous feast. In what ways might our communities and the world be changed through our own ministries of reconciliation in Christ’s name?
Discussion Leader: Carrie Butler

Worship
Fourth Sunday in Lent
God’s Gifts in the Wilderness: The Prodigal Gift
Let us eat and celebrate; for this child of mine was dead and is alive again, was lost and is found!
Scriptures: Joshua 5:9-12; Psalm 32; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:1-3; 11b-32
Prayer for the Weekend: Merciful God, thank you for forgiving us time after time and welcoming us always as your beloved children. Expand our hearts, that we ight be agents of your reconciliation in our families and communities. Amen.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Mary Hogan; Scripture Reader: Sandy Mitchell; Choir: What Wondrous Love; The Ramblers: Hope for a Home; Gospel Drama: The Prodigal Son by the Logos Children!

Sunday, February 18, 2007

2007-02-16T10:55:00.000-08:00

Adult Forum 9:30 a.m.
God’s Glory: The Story of the Transfiguration
Scriptures: Exodus 34: 29-35; Psalm 99; Luke 9:28-36
As we turn toward the Season of Lent, Jesus is turning from the moment of transfiguration glory toward the time when God’s power and presence will be revealed in a new and surprising way. What does it mean in our lives to be open to the depths of God’s presence and the many mysterious ways that presence is revealed?
Discussion Leader: Jennifer Davidson

Worship 10:30 a.m.
Mardi Gras & Transfiguration Sunday The Serious Work of Sacred Silliness & Holy Hilarity
Scriptures: Exodus 34: 29-35; Psalm 99; Luke 9:28-36
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: Holy God, your glory and power energize our lives. Bathe us in the warm glow of your love and faithfulness. Transform us each day to live as part of your story. Amen.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Angela Yarber; Opening Processional: Logos Children; Choir: Let the People Praise; The Ramblers: Allelujah, Baby

Are you starting to consider baptism?
In the ancient churches, Lent was a time set aside for preparation for baptism. If you and/or your child are beginning to explore this possibility as a step of faith, please talk with Greg, Angela, or Jennifer. We’ll be offering some special classes on baptism during the Sunday school hour for three Sundays in Lent. You don’t have to have you mind made up! Just let us know if you’re interested in knowing more.

Words for Meditation

The Privileges of the Child
1. To be in the midst of the congregation, not on the sidelines.
2. To wander among us during worship, being the responsibility of each of us.
3. To give answers during children's time without being laughed at.
4. To be called by name by each adult.
5. To be a valued person in the congregation.
6. To be led to faith by the Christlike love, care, and model of each adult.
7. To be an active participant in worship.
from Assembly Mennonite Church
Goshen, Indiana

“I learned the value of humor during the time of Stalinist terror. I was twenty then. I could always recognize a person who was not a Stalinist, a person whom I needn’t fear, by the way he smiled. A sense of humor was a trustworthy sign of recognition. Ever since, I have been terrified by a world that is losing its sense of humor.”

--Czechoslovakian novelist Milan Kundera
in an interview with Philip Roth

“My goal is to say or do at least one
outrageous thing per week.”
–Maggie Kuhn

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
…I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people’s gardens
And learn to spit.
…But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.
--excerpt from “Warning” by Jenny Joseph

Sunday, January 28, 2007

2007-01-26T18:49:00.000-08:00

Adult Forum &
Sunday School begin @ 9:30
Worship Begins @ 10:30
All are welcome!

Adult Forum
Living Love
Focus Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Love provides for the possibility of life lived in the close quarters of the Body of Christ. Our love for one another and the world grows out of God's gracious love for us. Prophecy that prepares us to receive God begins in the speaking and doing of love. Such love enlivens community. Such love persists. By such love we are fully known. Paul urges the community of Christ to love expressed in action. How might this text shape or transform the way we embody love today, especially in the context of community? How does love prepare us for God, and how does God prepare us for love?

Worship
4th Sunday after the Epiphany
Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; Jeremiah 1:4-10; Luke 4:21-20; (Psalm 71:1-6)
Prayer for the weekend as you prepare for worship: Love is who you are, O God. Love is how you have come in Jesus Christ. Love is how you call us to be the Body of Christ. Teach us to love in word and action. May we persist in love, even as you persistently grace us and all with your Love. Amen.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Jodie Tooley; Adult Choir: Joy in the Morning

Sunday, January 14, 2007

2007-01-12T13:57:00.000-08:00

Coffee Time @ 9:15
Adult Forum &
Sunday School @ 9:30
Worship @ 10:30
All are welcome!

Adult Forum
Revealing Love
Focus Scripture: John 2:1-11
Additional Scriptures: Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 36:5-10; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11
We can depend on God's abundant love. Whether offering renewal to those without hope in Isaiah's time or changing water into wine at the wedding of Cana, God gives us extravagant gifts. The abundant gifts of God's Spirit work in the midst of the community of God's beloved people to reveal Christ, then and now. In what ways does Jesus' life and ministry reveal God's abundance to you? In what ways does God continue to bring abundance into the world today?
Discussion Leader: Lenita Shumaker

Worship
2nd Sunday after the Epiphany
Celebrating the Witness of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Scriptures: 1 Kings 19:9-18; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; 1 Peter 2:1-10
Additional Readings: Selections from Letter from Birmingham Jail and Beyond Vietnam
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: O God, it is your will to hold both heaven and earth in a single peace. Let the design of your great love shine on the waste of our wraths and sorrows, and give peace to your church, peace among nations, peace in our homes, and peace in our hearts.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Head Usher:Max (Jim) Foust; The Ramblers: How Much Can One Heart Hold (Kate Campbell) and When God Made Me (Neil Young); Adult Choir: On Eagles Wings

Words for Meditation
from Martin Luther King, Jr.

Love must be our regulating ideal.
…If we fail to do this,
our protest will end up as a meaningless drama
on the stage of history,
and its memory will be shrouded
with the ugly garments of shame.
Montgomery Improvement Association, December 5, 1955,
Recounted in Stride Toward Freedom, 1957

I learned that the inseparable twin of racial injustice
was economic injustice…
Here I saw economic injustice firsthand,
and realized that the poor White
was exploited just as much as the Negro.
Stride Toward Freedom, 1957

I am absolutely convinced
that there is no basic difference
between colonialism and segregation.
They are both based on a contempt for life,
and a tragic doctrine of White supremacy.
So our struggles are not only similar;
they are in a real sense one.”
SCLC African Freedom Dinner, April 20, 1959

If today’s church does not recapture
the sacrificial spirit of the early church,
it will lose its authenticity,
forfeit the loyalty of millions,
and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club
with no meaning for the twentieth century.”
Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963

Sunday Morning, December 24, 2006

2006-12-22T08:54:00.000-08:00

Daily Devotionals are being published on the Worship & Spiritual Growth Blog.

Important Note: There will be no Adult Forum or Sunday School Classes on December 24 or December 31. Classes will resume on January 7.

Morning Worship begins at 10:30 am
All are welcome!

Fourth Sunday of Advent
Surprising Joy!
Come sing carols and celebrate the good news!
Focus Scripture: Luke 1:39-55
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: O God, we delight in your amazing and surprising ways. Open our hearts this Christmas season to sing with Elizabeth and Mary your song of justice and salvation to all the world.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Jennifer Davidson; Adult Choir: Hallelujah, Glory Hallelujah and A Child of Peace.

God's work of salvation is full of surprises. God chooses young Mary to be the mother of Jesus. God chooses the elderly Elizabeth to bear a son, John. God chooses little Bethlehem as the birthplace of the Messiah. The prophetic voices of Mary and Elizabeth invite us to rejoice in the surprising joy and justice of God's reign and to bear this news to the world.

Though it may seem surprising and, at times, hard to believe, God also chooses to act in our lives. We are called to sing along with Mary and Elizabeth -- to rejoice in God's Messiah and prophesy to the reign of justice and hope that Christ brings. God's Spirit fills us with power, that ordinary lives might bear God to the world. In what ways can we encourage each other as we proclaim the reign of God in word and deed?

Sunday Evening
Christmas Eve Service begins at 5:00 pm
A Time of Meditation and Music
All are welcome!

Sunday, December 17, 2006

2006-12-15T11:05:00.000-08:00

Daily Advent Devotionals are being posted on the Worship & Spiritual Growth Blog.

Adult Forum 9:30 a.m.
What Should We Do?
Opening Ourselves to the Challenge of Deeper Intimacy with God
Focus Scripture: Luke 3:7-18
Additional Scripture: Isaiah 12:2-6; Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7
Preparing the way for God’s Messiah relies on openness to change. Intimate relationship with God moves us through questions into expectations, through repentance into actions of sharing. The good news does not consist of promises limited to a distant future. God is near. God rejoices over us. In love, God invites us all into renewed relationship.
Discussion Leader: Doug Davidson

Worship 10:30 a.m.
Third Sunday of Advent
Scriptures: Isaiah 12:2-6; Zephaniah 3:14-20; Luke 3:7-18
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: What should we do, O God, to open our lives to you? What changes of mind do you have in mind? Break open to us the good news of your coming, that we may open wide the way for your grace and justice—and deeper relationship with you. In Jesus Christ, amen..
Preaching: Jennifer Davidson; Worship Leader: Doug Brown; Sacred Dance: The Ramblers with Angela Yarber; Adult Choir: Calypso Christmas; Logos Kids: Donne Moi Le Main

Words for Meditation

What good is it to me
if this eternal birth of the divine Son
takes place unceasingly
but does not take place
within myself?

And,
what good is it to me
if Mary is full of grace
and if I am not also full of grace?
What good is it to me
for the Creator to give birth to his/her Son
if I do not also give birth to him
in my time
and my culture?
This, then,
is the fullness of time:
When the Son of God
is begotten

in us.

This is the fullness of time –
when the Son of God is begotten in you.

–from Meditations with Meister Eckhart

Sunday, December 10, 2006

2006-12-08T15:43:00.000-08:00

Daily Advent Devotionals are being posted on the Worship & Spiritual Growth Blog.

Coffee Time begins @ 9:15 a.m.
Adult Forum & Sunday School begin @ 9:30 a.m.
Worship begins @ 10:30 a.m.
All are welcome!

Adult Forum
And You, Child
Focus Scripture: Luke 1:69-79
Additional Scripture: Malachi 3:1-4; Philippians 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6.
Zechariah blesses his newly born child. The blessings cascade into promises of hope for the people and a call to ministry for John. The role cast upon John recalls the prophecy of Malachi and anticipates God’s reign. The immanence and hope of God’s reign must be announced. The way of God’s Messiah must be prepared. What do you hear Zechariah’s song affirming about life, self, vocation, and God: as they relate to John; as they relate to you? In what ways do we strike a faithful balance between relying on God to bring the ‘not yet’ of God’s reign, and our bearing witness to God’s reign already among us?
Discussion Leader: Doug Davidson

Worship
Advent Choir Sunday—Come, Celebrate the Good News in Song!
Scriptures: Malachi 3:1-4 and Luke 1:68-79
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: Blessed are you, O God, for the gifts of children and future—and for the time you entrust into our hands to be stewards of these gifts. May we speak well, in word and deed, the grace of our saving, and thus prepare others to carry that word forward.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Angela Yarber; Good News of God-With-Us: Mary Hogan

Words for Meditation

Now, it is the nature of a word
to reveal what is hidden.
The Word that is hidden
still sparkles in the darkness
and whispers in the silence.
It entices us to pursue it,
to yearn and sigh after it.
For it wishes to reveal to me
something about God.
–from Meditations with Meister Eckhart

The key for understanding incarnation
is to think small.
How ironic,
in a culture that prides itself
on thinking big, bold, and brash
—especially at this time of year—
we have to retrain ourselves
to look for the God
in the small and unexpected.
Craig Kocher, preacher at Duke University Chapel.

Sunday, December 6, 2006

2006-12-01T16:21:00.000-08:00

Coffee Time begins @ 9:15 a.m.
Adult Forum & Sunday School begins @ 9:30 a.m.
Worship begins @ 10:30 a.m.
All are welcome!

Adult Forum Kairos Prison Ministry
We are privileged to welcome Darrell Wise from Kairos Prison Ministry as our special guest this Sunday. The purpose of Kairos is to establish strong Christian communities among the population of correctional institutions. Through a systematic, structured program, the residents of correctional institutions are given the opportunity to experience a religious renewal and to accept God’s call to a life of Christian witness and service to one another during their stay in the institution and beyond.This is done by small prayer and share groups of the residents through the example of their transformation, their silent witness and their Christian love. Come find out more about this amazing program. Discussion Leader: Darrell Wise

Worship
First Sunday of Advent
The Days are Coming
Scripture Readings: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25:1-10; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: God, help us to trust our way into your future. Let these coming days transform our practice of discipleship now. And may we find in you the hope that sustains, the vision that renews, the Spirit who empowers. Amen.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Jennifer Davidson; Choir: Carols for Advent

Words for Meditation

The earth is at the same time mother.
She is mother of all that is natural,
mother of all that is human.
She is mother of all,
for contained in her are the seeds of all.
The earth of humankind contains all moistness,
all verdancy, all germinating power.
It is in so many ways fruitful.
All creation comes from it,
yet it forms not only
the basic raw material for humankind
but also the substance
of the incarnation of God’s Son.
--from Meditations with Hildegard of Bingen.

God wills all persons to be saved.
Pray for the whole world,
bid this very earth to become a heaven.
Pray especially to be freed from the evil of greediness.
Pray to recognize others who are in need—
for there is no such thing as “my” bread.
All bread is ours
and is given to me,
to others through me
and to me through others.
For not only bread
but all things necessary for sustenance in this life
are given on loan to us
with others
and because of others,
and for others
and to others through us.
–from Meditations with Meister Eckhart

Sunday, November 26, 2006

2006-11-24T16:10:00.000-08:00

Adult Forum @ 9:30 a.m.
Sacred Dance & Worship
In preparation for an afternoon workshop on this topic, we'll be led in an exploration of sacred dance in worship.
Discussion Leader: Angela Yarber

Worship @ 10:30 a.m.
Reign of Christ Sunday
Scriptures: John 18:33-37 and Revelation 1:4b-8. Also see 2 Samuel 23:1-7 and Psalm 132:1-12
Prayer for the Weekend: Holy God, Alpha and Omega, we give thanks that you encircle time with your presence and creation with your love. As you bring all things back to you, enfold our hope and our life in your grace. Amen.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Doug Davidson; Head Usher: Stu Harris; Choir: Thanks We Sing

Words for Meditation

The Almighty One
– who is, and who was, and who is to come –
encircles us in hope before and beyond all time.
Thanks be to God!
What enduring hope do you celebrate?
What enduring truth shapes your daily living?
How does our faith community express its hope in God’s eternal truth?

Psalm 132: 1-5; 11-12
O Lord, remember in David’s favor
all the hardships he endured;
how he swore to the Lord
and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,
“I will not enter my house or get into my bed;
I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids,
until I find a place for the Lord,
a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.
The Lord swore to David a sure oath
from which he will not turn back:
“One of my sons of your body I will set on your throne.
If you sons keep my covenant and my decrees
that I shall teach them, their sons also,
forevermore,
shall sit on your throne.”

The Feast of Christ the King was added to the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church in 1925 and, since 1970, has been observed by Christians in general on the last Sunday prior to Advent. Several churches refer to it as “Reign of Christ Sunday.” The lectionary readings provide an opportunity to explore what it means to live as members of God’s realm, and/or to explore the new images of kingship and leadership that Jesus modeled.

The church year comes to a close with this Sunday while next Sunday begins a new year and a new season. Although, in some ways, it’s just a continuation—for the Christ on whose reign we focus today is the same one whose coming we begin to anticipate again next week.

Sunday, November 5, 2006

2006-11-03T11:01:00.000-08:00

Adult Forum, 9:30 a.m.
Preparing for the Propositions
This Adult Forum will be an opportunity to review the Propositions which will be appearing on the ballot this Tuesday. We'll discuss them, explore the issues, gather collective wisdom, and raise questions. This is not a time of advocacy (though strongly committed perspectives are certainly welcome!), but a time of exploration.You're invited to bring any resources you may find helpful. Discussion Facilitator: Jennifer Davidson

Some Links you may find helpful:
Smart Voter by the League of Women Voters for nonpartisan election information.
California Church IMPACT ballot recommendations from the California Council of Churches' advocacy partner in ministry

Worship, 10:30 a.m.
Communion Sunday
Scripture: Ruth 1:1-18, Psalm 146, and Mark 12:28-34
Prayer for the weekend in preparation for worship : Through whom will you join us, O God, when we set out on paths not famiar? For whom would you have us bear your presence, when they feel abandoned? In turning us toward you, O God, turn us toward one another. Amen. Worship Leader: Trevor Hanbridge; Preaching: Greg Ledbetter on "Heart, Mind, Soul, Strength"; Choir: A Classic Communion.

Words for Meditation

A Grandmother’s Faith

They went together—those
wrinkled hands and tattered
book. And something in the
awe with which she held it
made me think she held
a sacred fire.

The old brass-bound Bible
came to her from her mother,
and hers before that, too,
through more generations than
I know how to reckon—faded,
cracked, worn with us.

I wonder how it felt to hold
the past within her hands—
how many broken hearts found
comfort there, how many searching
minds were fed; how many fears
were calmed in its reading; what
songs of joy were hummed over it;
what secret tears still stain its pages?

I loved to hear her talk to God,
and when she prayed, I sometimes
imagined I felt God near. It was a
very safe place to be—with God and her.
I liked her God, so wrapped up in the
small goings-on of daily life—not too
far away and busy with eternal
things to take notice of one small child.

The Bible became mine today, and
my smooth hands look somehow out
of place—and somehow right at home.
Like her, I hold the accumulated joys
and sorrows of my heritage and join
my life with theirs. There is a
strength to it—forged by faithful
living in the presence of a loving
God. The line still holds—all those
who have gone before, myself, and those
who are to come.

-Marie Livingston Roy

Sunday, October 22, 2007

2006-10-20T20:37:00.000-07:00

Adult Forum, 9:30 a.m.
Exploring God's Response to Job
Discussion Leader: Lura Bublitz

Lectionary readings: Job 38:1-7 (34-41); Psalm 104:1-9,24,35c; Hebrews 5:1-10; Mark 10:34-45

Worship, 10:30 a.m.
Preaching: Pastor Greg
Worship Leader: Angela Yarber
Lead Usher: Brian Kearins
Sermon Title: “Out of the Whirlwind … Wisdom”

Who Has the Wisdom?
Who holds the wisdom that is at creation’s core and in the midst of Job’s own predicament? A whirlwind reverses Job from questioner to the one questioned. Another reversal occurs when the conventional wisdom of privilege is met by the gospel wisdom of humility pronounced by Jesus. Seekers of wisdom may encounter more questions than answers in its finding.

After a time of profound questions, Job proclaims his faith in God: “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you.” We, like Job and the disciples, are called to trust God in the midst of our questions. When have you, like Job, experienced the presence of God? In what ways have your questions helped you to grow in faith and trust?

Prayer for the weekend as you prepare for worship:
Creator God, we cannot hope to know all that is and will be – and when we think we do, deliver us from the arrogance of ignorance. Our hope rests in your wisdom. By that wisdom, lead us through uncertainty and steady us in love. Amen.

Words for Meditation

In the Quiet Curve of Evening
Click on the title above and press play to hear a sample of this song

In the quiet curve of evening, in the sinking of the days,
In the silky void of darkness, you are there.
In the lapses of my breathing, in the space between my ways,
in the crater carved by sadness, you are there.

In the rests between the phrases, in the cracks between the stars,
In the gaps between the meaning, you are there.
In the melting down of endings, in the cooling of the sun,
in the solstice of the winter, you are there.
In the mystery of my hungers, in the silence of my rooms,
In the cloud of my unknowing, you are there.
In the empty cave of grieving, in the desert of my dreams,
in the tunnel of my sorrow, you are there.

Words, music copyright © 1993, Juliana Howard
www.wearethecircle.com. Used by permission.

Sunday, October 15, 2006

2006-10-12T11:40:00.000-07:00

Coffee Time begins 9:15 a.m.
Adult Forum begins 9:30 a.m.
Worship begins 10:30 a.m.
All are welcome!

Adult Forum
Where Are You?
Focus Scripture: Job 23:1-9, 16-17
Additional Scripture: Psalm 22:1-15; Mark 10:17-31; and Hebrews 4:12-16.
Job appeals for justice in the search for God. The cries of our world voice the psalm’s lament of God’s seeming abandonment. Our questioning and protests presume God’s hearing. Our wondering with the disciples over who can be saved presumes salvation as possibility. To ask God “where are you?” presumes one who can and will answer.
Discussion Leader: Lura Bublitz

Worship 10:30 a.m.
Scriptures: Psalm 90 and Hebrews 4:13-16
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: O God, you were with us when we took our first breath. Since our mothers gave us birth, you have been our God. Do not be far from us when trouble is near and there is no one to help. Stir our faith when we falter – and tune our spirits to resonate with your grace.
Preaching: Jerry Neale; Worship Leader: Greg Ledbetter; Head Usher: Brent Adams; Special Music: Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen); Logos Kids: Down by the River

If you started reading the book of Job last week, you may wish to continue doing so. If our only exposure to the book of Job were the texts provided by the lectionary for reading in worship, we would not have a very good idea of the full scope of the book. This week, while we’re not reading Job in worship (we are in Sunday school!), you may still wish to round out your experience of this beautiful, evocative book by reading Job 15:1 – 28:28.

Words for Meditation

Pied Beauty

Glory be to God for dappled things—
For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;
For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;
Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings;
Landscape plotted and pieced—fold, fallow, and plough;
And all trades, their gear and tackle and trim.

All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)
With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;
He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:
Praise him.

Gerard Manley Hopkins
English, Victorian Poet & Jesuit Priest

"We sense God's presence even, or especially, in "the dappled things"—things mottled as well as uniform, crooked as well as straight, sweet as well as sour, blemished as well as beautiful, surprising as well as predictable, and, yes, in things painful as well as pleasurable. God does act in our imperfect, irregular, dappled world and in our frail personal lives."

Daniel B. Clendenin, PhD
www.journeywithjesus.net

Sunday, October 8, 2006

2006-10-06T09:17:00.000-07:00

Coffee Time begins at 9:15 a.m.

Adult Forum begins at 9:30 a.m.
Worship begins at 10:30 a.m.
All are welcome!

Adult Forum 9:30 a.m.
Hurricane Katrina & Global Warming
Come and engage in discussion with one another after viewing a brief video about hurricane Katrina and its relationship to global warming. This is an Adult Forum in anticipation of our screening of An Inconvenient Truth happening this evening at Shell Ridge!
Discussion Leader: Rick Mitchell

Worship 10:30 a.m.
Scriptures: Job 1:1, 2:1-10 and Mark 10:13-16
Mental Health Awareness Sunday
Prayer for the Weekend as You Prepare for Worship: Where are you, O God, when meaning eludes us and answers sound like mere rationales? When children die, when elders lose their faculties – where is your hand then? When we do not understand, O God, do not let go of us. Amen.
Preaching: Rev. Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Rev. Angela Yarber; Head Usher: Stu Harris; Choir: Halle, Halle, Halle

This Sunday we will be reading a selection from the book of Job. If our only exposure to the book of Job were the texts provided by the lectionary for reading in Sunday worship, we would not have a very good idea of the full scope of the book. This week you may wish to round out your experience of Sunday’s scripture by reading Job 1:1—Job 14:22.

Words for Meditation

If I’m not for me, who will be?
If I’m only for me, what am I?
And if not now, when?

--from Pirkei Avot, a Hebrew collection of sayings
appearing at the top of the image Identity (above)

We Do Not Walk Alone
In an interview with Anne Lamott, who is no stranger to pain, Linda Buturian asked her what she most wanted to convey to her son Sam about God. "I want to convey that we get to be human," Lamott answered. "We get to make awful mistakes and fall short of who we hope we're going to turn out to be. That we don't have to be what anybody else tries to get us to be, so they could feel better about who they were. We get to mess up right and left. We get to keep finding our way back home to goodness and kindness and compassion. . . I want him to know that no matter what happens, he's never going to have to walk alone. . . That's what I'm trying to convey to Sam.
--from Shouts and Whispers; Twenty-One Writers Speak About Their Writing and Their Faith, ed. Jennifer L. Holberg (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2006).

from The Book of Job
"There was once a man in the land of Uz
whose name was Job.
That man was blameless and upright,
one who feared God
and turned away from evil. . . .
So The Accuser went out
from the presence of the Lord,
and inflicted loathsome sores on Job
from the sole of his foot
to the crown of his head.

Job took a potsherd with which to scrape himself, and sat among the ashes."

Sunday, October 1, 2006

2006-09-28T12:40:00.000-07:00

Coffee Time begins at 9:15 a.m.

Sunday School at 9:30 a.m.
Worship begins at 10:30 a.m.
All are welcome!

Sunday School Adult Forum
Real People Changing the World!
Around Christmas time every year at Shell Ridge we offer opportunities for alternative gift buying through Heifer International, an organization dedicated to ending hunger and caring for the earth. In this week's Adult Forum, we have the opportunity to find out more about Heifer International, especially their microenterprise program of empowering entrepreneurship. In particular, we will be focusing on social entrepreneurs, "real people changing the world." So even if you know all about Heifer International, this will be something new and amazing to learn about!
Discussion Leader: Sandy Mitchell

Worship
World Communion Sunday
Scriptures: Esther 7:1-6; 9-10; 9:20-22; Mark 9:38-50
Prayer this weekend in preparation for worship: Help us, O God, to recognize the times in which we live and to choose to live faithfully. Grant us courage to stand with and speak for those at risk. As we are able, help us to preserve community and to experience as gift the time you entrust into our hands. Amen.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Jennifer Davidson; Head Usher: Micky Holmes; Communion: Karen DeWeese, Karen Duran, Dick and Lenita Shumaker; Choir: Come to Your Feast and We Come to the Table Where Bread is Broken.

Sunday, September 24, 2006

2006-09-22T21:03:00.000-07:00

Coffee Time begins at 9:15 a.m.
Sunday School begins at 9:30 a.m.
Worship begins at 10:30 a.m.
All are welcome!

Adult Forum
Who Is Great?
Focus Scripture: Mark 9:30-37
Additional Scriptures: Proverbs 31:10-31; Psalm 1; James 3:13-4:3, 7-8a
When we open our hearts and minds to the texts for today, we confront the radical nature of God's wisdom. In the surprising reversals we encounter, we hear Jesus' call to live against the grain. As people of faith, we desire intimacy with God and a place in God's sovereign realm. How can we recognize the presence and meaning of God's gift and way of wisdom?
Discussion Leader: Jodie Tooley

Sunday's Worship
16th Sunday after Pentecost
Scriptures: Psalm 1 and Mark 9:30-37
A prayer for the weekend in preparation for worship:
Thank you, God, for welcoming us into your presence and drawing us into your community. Inspire us to offer to others what we have received from your abundance, especially to those who might otherwise go unnoticed or unloved. In Jesus Christ, amen.
Preaching: Pastor Greg; Worship Leader: Jennifer Davidson; Lead Usher: Jim Eklund; Choir: We Are the Church

Words for Meditation

A New Greatness
That's your new definition of greatness . . . It means that everybody can be great. Because everybody can serve. . . You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in phsyics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love. And you can be that servant. --Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) "The Drum Major Instinct," sermon. Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta, Georgia. February 4, 1968

Who Is Great?
Jesus sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me." --Mark 9:35-37

Sunday, September 17, 2006

2006-09-15T21:32:00.000-07:00

Coffee Time begins at 9:15 a.m.
Sunday School begins at 9:30 a.m.
Worship begins at 10:30 a.m.
All are welcome!

Adult Forum
Risky Wisdom
Focus Scripture: Mark 8:27-38
Additional Scripture: Proverbs 1:20-33; Psalm 19; James 3:1-12
Turning points come when we encounter God's unconventional wisdom inviting us to risk for the gospel's sake. Jesus' disciples discover the Messiah who risks suffering for the well being of all people. Wisdom calls us to turn and follow unexpected paths. Will we venture to live by such a ricky wisdom, trusting and hoping in God's presence?
Discussion Leader: Jodie Tooley

Sunday's Worship
15th Sunday after Pentecost
Scriptures: Proverbs 1:20-33 and James 3:1-12
A prayer for the weekend in preparation for worship:
Grant us wisdom, O God -- wisdom to know that faithfulness invites, not avoids risk; wisdom to see where your path leads, when the path we prefer leads elsewhere; wisdom to know your love for us, and to recognize our call in so loving others.
Preaching: Greg Ledbetter; Worship Leader: Warren Holmes; Lead Usher: Brian Kearins; Choir: Many Gifts

Words for Meditation

Letting Go of Fear and Taking Up Risk

It is your cross to bear,” some people are told. “If you suffer, it is because you are bearing a cross like Jesus did. Deny your desire for wholeness and accept the suffering as your burden to bear. Jesus said that we had to lose our lives in order to find them. That’s why you’ve lost yours. Don’t worry. You’ll receive your reward in the life to come.” Too many suffering people in the world have heard this terrible distortion of what Jesus said – people living in poverty, violence, illness, or loss. The gospels do tell us that Jesus said, “Deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me.” But this is not a morbid, masochistic acceptance of suffering. Rather, Jesus was inviting his disciples – and note that the address here is to community, not to individuals – to take a risk by joining him in a radical choosing of God’s way of life over a more conventional and safe but life-denying way. Another way of putting it might be, “Come on people. Let go of your fear. Take a risk on God. Put your lives on the line. What good will it be if any of us preserve our lives but lose our very reasons for living? Safety won’t do us much good then. So come on. Take a risk. Follow me as I walk in God’s way of wisdom that leads to abundant life. --Seasons of the Spirit

"Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe. . . For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.” 1 Corinthians 1:21 & 25