Service Sunday February 2, 2025
Worship Leader: Worship Leader: Rev. Max Ward
Music Director: Melissa Stephens
(For a Printer Friendly PDF version click this link)
All are Welcome!
Watch a video recording of the whole service using YouTube below.
The Gathering
Welcome and Announcements.
Focusing Moment.
FOCUSING ON THE CHRIST CANDLE:
Acknowledgement of Land
As we gather, we take a moment to remember that the land we call the Haliburton Highlands is the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe peoples. We seek to learn about past wrongs, act with justice in the present, and pray for a better future together in the spirit of truth and reconciliation.
Written by Natacha Pearen, Trinity-St. Stephen’s U.C., Amherst, N.S.
Gathering, Advent/Christmas/Epiphany 2024-2025, p.45. Used with permission.
THE APPROACH
HYMN: “O God beyond All Praising” VU #256
1 O God beyond all praising, we worship you today
and sing the love amazing that songs cannot repay;
for we can only wonder at every gift you send,
at blessings without number and mercies without end:
we lift our hearts before you and wait upon your word,
we honour and adore you, our great and mighty Lord.
2 The flower of earthly splendour in time must surely die,
its fragile bloom surrender to you our God most high;
but hidden from all nature the eternal seed is sown,
though small in mortal stature, to heaven's garden grown:
for Christ, your gift from heaven, from death has set us free,
and we through him are given the final victory.
3 Then, hear O gracious Saviour, this song of praise we sing.
May we, who know your favour, our humble service bring;
and whether our tomorrows be filled with good or ill,
we'll triumph through our sorrows and rise to bless you still:
to marvel at your beauty and glory in your ways,
and make a joyful duty our sacrifice of praise.
CALL TO WORSHIP:
One: We are gathered in this place. We are scattered in different homes, in different communities across the country.
ALL: We come together now in Jesus’ name. We claim his promise that he will be with us.
One: Across the distance, our spirits reach out to God and to one another.
ALL: We come together now, as a community of praise and worship. In the Spirit, we are one.
Written by John Moses, Aylesford U.C., Aylesford, N.S.
Gathering, Advent/Christmas/Epiphany 2024-2025, p.46. Used with permission.
A NEW CREED: Read In Unison
We are not alone; we live in God’s world.
We believe in God: who has created and is creating,
who has come in Jesus, the Word made flesh,
to reconcile and make new, who works in us and others by the Spirit.
We trust in God.
We are called to be the church: to celebrate God’s presence,
to live with respect in Creation, to love and serve others,
to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus crucified and risen,
our judge and our hope. In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. We are not alone. Thanks be to God.
HYMN: “Precious Lord, Take My Hand” VU #670
1 Precious Lord, take my hand,
lead me on, let me stand,
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn;
through the storm, through the night,
lead me on to the light:
take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
2 When my way grows drear,
precious Lord, linger near,
when my life is almost gone,
hear my cry, hear my call,
hold my hand lest I fall:
take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
3 When the darkness appears,
and the night draws near,
and the day is past and gone,
at the river I stand,
guide my feet, hold my hand:
take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION: Read In Unison
God, we are a broken people, living in a broken world. It is not fashionable to admit this. Usually, we regard ourselves as pretty good folks, only in need of a little tweaking here and there. But the problem goes deeper than that. In this African Heritage/Black History Month, we cannot escape the recognition that racism is not about the actions and attitudes of a few people. It is deeply engrained in our culture, and very few of us are beyond its reach. We need your challenge to be honest. We need your forgiveness to cleanse our souls. We need your call to change and actions. We need your guidance to free everyone from the bondage of racism. We pray in the name of Jesus the Christ, who came to call us to repentance and newness of life.
WORDS OF ASSURANCE:
One: The testimony of the tradition of Israel, together with the testimony of the tradition of the church, is that God longs for a world of justice, equality, and freedom. Surely, the arc of history is bent toward this reality as we join with God in the repair of tis world. Let us not be discouraged.
ALL: Thanks be to God.
Written by John Moses, Aylesford U.C., Aylesford, N.S.
Gathering, Advent/Christmas/Epiphany 2024-2025, p.54. Used with permission.
MINISTRY OF MUSIC:
THE WORD
SCRIPTURE: Jeremiah 1:4-10
Leader: Hear and listen to what the Spirit is saying to the church.
ALL: Thanks be to God.
MESSAGE:
“Jeremiah’s Call Is Our Call”
Listen to an audio recording of the message below or read it at the bottom of this page.
HYMN: “Like a Rock” MV #92 - sung three times
Like a rock, like a rock, God is under our feet.
Like the starry night sky God is over our head.
Like the sun on the horizon God is ever before.
Like the river runs to ocean, our home is in God evermore.
OUR RESPONSE
CANDLE LIGHTING LITURGY
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE and THE LORD’S PRAYER: (sung VU #960)
HYMN: “I, the Lord of Sea and Sky” VU #509
1 I, the Lord of sea and sky,
I have heard my people cry.
All who dwell in deepest sin my hand will save.
I who made the stars of night,
I will make their darkness bright.
Who will bear my light to them?
Whom shall I send?
Refrain Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.
2 I, the Lord of snow and rain,
I have borne my people's pain,
I have wept for love of them; they turn away.
I will break their hearts of stone,
give them hearts for love alone.
I will speak my word to them.
Whom shall I send? Refrain
3 I, the Lord of wind and flame,
I will tend the poor and lame,
I will set a feast for them; my hand will save.
Finest bread I will provide
till their hearts be satisfied.
I will give my life to them.
Whom shall I send? Refrain
AFFIRMING MOMENT:
PRESENTATION OF OUR OFFERINGS
OFFERTORY PRAYER:
Bless, O Lord, these gifts and offerings, that they may be a sign of our intention—to serve you fully. Use what we are offering to strengthen the ties that bind our lives to the grace, appreciation, joy, and jubilee Jesus once embodied. Let it all be the gospel truth for our time. If one of your peoples suffers, we all suffer. If our gifts can bring honour to even one of your people, we will rejoice together in your name. And so we offer our gifts to calm suffering and increase rejoicing. Amen. Written by Jeff Werner, Wasaga Beach U.C., Wasaga Beach, Ont.
Gathering, Advent/Christmas/Epiphany 2024-2025, p.50. Used with permission.
SUNG BLESSING: VU #454 (First time, CHOIR, Second time, ALL)
May God who creates you give light,
may God who sustains you make you wise,
may God who protects you give you joy,
may God who surrounds you give you peace. ©
Sending Forth:
A Time of Fellowship
© Music Reproduced with permission under License number A-605748, Valid for: 26/10/2024 - 25/10/2025; One License - Copyright Cleared Music for Churches.
Sermon 2 February 2025
“Jeremiah’s Call Is Our Call”
Jeremiah 1:4-10
Gracious God, be with us today in this place, in the Scriptures and in our words.
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts praise your Holy name. Amen.
The story of Jeremiah is not an original one.
God speaks to Jeremiah of how he will become a great prophet.
Jeremiah, like any other ordinary person, resists and uses the logical excuse that he does not know how to speak for he is only a boy.
Scholars believe that Jeremiah could have been as old as 20.
God on the other hand, has come prepared to talk to Jeremiah and reassures Jeremiah that he can do it.
He can do it because God will give him the words to say.
God will be with him and guide him.
Jeremiah has a choice to make, ignore God and continue to do things his own way or follow God and do things God’s way with God’s guidance.
This story is not much different from that of other prophets and church leaders that we have heard before.
The story of Moses comes to my mind.
He didn’t want to lead his people out of Egypt.
Yet God knew he could do it and God helped him.
What about Jonah?
God asked Jonah to go to Nineveh and preach there.
Jonah said no and set sail in a boat going away from Nineveh.
Eventually, even Jonah served God.
Many of Jesus’ disciples too didn’t realize their own potential in themselves until after they had been following Jesus for a while.
Today is no different in many respects to the days when Jeremiah was a boy.
Today, God gives us many gifts to share with one another.
God gives us opportunities to use and share those gifts within the church and also outside of the church in our community.
Take myself for an example.
I’m sure that many of you have heard my call story before but I will share a little of it with you now.
This is how it happened when I decided to follow God and try to be a minister.
I’d like to emphasize the word try.
In early 1998, I came to realize that my life was not headed in the direction that my spirit longed for it to go.
God was urging me and calling me to try something new.
Later, I discovered that was… trying to be a United Church minister.
My first reaction to this calling was,
“Not now God, can’t you see, I’m just a young man, still in school.
I hate public speaking and no one will listen to me anyway because I am not old enough yet.”
But God was prepared for my lack of confidence back then.
God provided many encouraging friends and relatives.
God also opened the door to an opportunity to go to Emmanuel College.
It was then that I made a conditional deal with God.
I prayed to God and the deal was that I would give it a try but that I was going to need help.
That is the short version of how I got here today.
I don’t claim to be an excellent preacher.
I don’t even think that I am a very good one either but I am still giving it a try.
I know that practice makes perfect… or at least builds confidence.
That is why I say the same or a similar prayer before each sermon.
I say it partly to remind myself that I am not speaking here alone but with the Holy Spirit guiding me.
Well, enough about me, Jeremiah, initially didn’t have the confidence to follow God.
With God’s support and guidance, Jeremiah tried to become the prophet that God wanted him to be.
God didn’t call Jeremiah without promising to be with Jeremiah and to give him the words to say.
God equipped Jeremiah with what he needed to follow God.
God said to Jeremiah, “Don’t say, ‘I’m only a boy.’
I’ll tell you where to go and you’ll go there.
I’ll tell you what to say and you’ll say it.
Don’t be afraid of a soul.
I’ll be right there, looking after you.”
God also said to Jeremiah, “Look! I’ve just put my words in your mouth - hand-delivered!”
God gave Jeremiah the words to say.
Jeremiah was not alone.
Like Jeremiah, we all initially don’t have the confidence to serve in the church or in our community.
That is something that I am still working on and we all work on.
But we need to keep trying.
Here it is, Groundhog Day, a month into the beginning of a new year already.
[Next Sunday is the Annual Meeting.]
What is happening right now in our congregation?
Well, we are preparing for the Winter and Spring when all of our Christian programming begins again after Christmas.
I have had conversations with different people regarding the Board, [Choir], Worship, Property & Pastoral Care.
Are we looking for volunteers again this year?
Yes! We are always looking for more help.
Some people may say that they cannot commit to helping because they feel they don’t have the skills or gifts that are needed.
Some no longer feel equipped to be a Pastoral Care Giver because of his or her age or health.
What does this story of Jeremiah’s call say to those people?
What does Jeremiah’s call say to all of us?
It says that God calls all of us in unique ways.
It says that God calls all of us to help out in our community in a way we might not expect that we are able to help.
It says that God calls all of us to serve in the church, no matter what our age may be.
We are never too young or too old to serve God.
I know that many of you are already involved in the church and I appreciate that.
But I also know that there are some people that just need a little bit of encouragement from folks like us.
They need to be encouraged to come out a little more regularly and lend a helping hand somehow.
They need to be reminded that God can do great things through them too… even if they don’t always know what to say.
This past week, I have been reflecting on the future of our church.
I’m sure each of us has similar thoughts and some different thoughts too about what our future will be.
One thing I hope we all share in our thoughts of the future is that we can’t do church alone.
Church is, by definition, a community organization.
Let’s continue to reach out into our community, not only to offer help but, maybe more importantly now than ever, to encourage members of the community to help us too.
We need to be reminded of the many gifts we have to offer and the many gifts our friends and neighbours can share with us.
So remember, whatever the gift is that we have to offer, God is there with us to guide us.
The Holy Spirit is there with us to give us the words to say.
We are not all alone.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
