A SERVICE OF WORSHIP ON THE LORD S DAY THANKSGIVING SUNDAY

Transcription

1 A SERVICE OF WORSHIP ON THE LORD S DAY THANKSGIVING SUNDAY November 20, 2016 at 10:00 am Christ the King We Gather Around God s Word Prelude Now Thank We All Our God J. S. Bach Robert Grube, Jr., Organist Welcome Introit We Gather Together Raney Jubilee Bell Choir, Elsa G. Hahn, Directing *Call to Worship Larry Imboden Leader: Be joyful in the Lord, all you lands; serve the Lord with gladness and come before God s presence with song. People: Know this: the Lord alone is God; we belong to the Lord who made us, we are God s people and the sheep of God s pasture. Leader: Enter God s gates with thanksgiving; go into the holy courts with praise; give thanks and call upon the name of the Lord. People: For good is the lord, whose mercy is everlasting; and whose faithfulness endures from age to age. *Hymn of Gathering (insert) "Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy RESTORATION Prayer of Adoration and Confession (unison) Larry Imboden You are holy, Lord. We sing our praises to you and glorify your Name. In your merciful presence we confess our sinfulness, our shortcomings, and our offenses against you. You alone know how often we have sinned in wandering from your ways, in wasting your gifts, in forgetting your love. Have mercy upon us, O Lord, for we are sorry for the many ways we have turned from you. Forgive us, we pray, and help us to live in your light, walk by your ways, and exemplify your love, for the sake of Jesus Christ our Savior, in whose name we pray and offer our silent confession Assurance of Pardon *We Give Glory to God (holding hands) Glory be to the Father And to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, World without end, Amen, Amen. Gloria Patri Time for Children How Lovely Is the House of God Butler Caroler Choir, Elsa G. Hahn, Directing All Thy Gifts of Love Brunner Crusader Choir, Elsa G. Hahn, Directing Children s Message Child care will be provided for infants to 2 ½ year olds in the Nursery on the first floor across from Thomson Youth Center. Class for three and four year olds will be held in their regular classroom. United Sunday School will be held in Thomson Youth Center for children in grades kindergarten through eighth grade. We Proclaim God s Word Prayer For Illumination Larry Imboden Lead us, O God, in the proclamation and hearing of your holy Word, that by your Spirit, we may follow the path upon which our Savior leads. For this we pray in the name of Christ. Amen. Scripture Readings: Old Testament Readings: Zephaniah 1:7, (O.T. pg. 1070) Larry Imboden Gospel Reading: Matthew 25:14-30 (N.T. pg. 34) Rev. Caroline Unzaga Leader: The Word of the Lord. People: Thanks be to God. Sermon: All Good Gifts: Committing to Gratitude Rev. Caroline Unzaga We Respond to God s Word Prayers of the People and The Lord s Prayer Minute For Witness Betty Hogan We Worship With Our Offerings Call For Offering Offertory Anthem Sing To the Lord of Harvest Willan Chancel Choir, Alison Nead, Directing *Doxology OLD HUNDREDTH Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, Ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen *Prayer of Dedication *Hymn of Sending #276 Great Is Thy Faithfulness Benediction Postlude FAITHFULNESS

2 FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF CRANFORD 11 Springfield Avenue, Cranford, New Jersey Phone (908) Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. Mission Statement As the body of Christ inspired by the Holy Spirit, we seek to be faithful disciples, living our lives as a testimony of Christ's love for all. We welcome diversity, and strive to respect and care for all of God's creation. We seek to share God s Word and invite others to live Jesus' commandment to love one another as the Lord first loved us. The Ministers of the First Presbyterian Church, Cranford NJ: The Entire Congregation of FPCC Pastor and Head of Staff Rev. John Christian Kile Associate Pastor Rev. Caroline Unzaga Music Director Alison R. Nead Assistant Music Director Elsa G. Hahn Organist Robert Grube, Jr. Administrative Coordinator Carol Thee Sunday School Administrative Assistant Cindy Devlin

3 FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 11 Springfield Avenue, Cranford, New Jersey Phone (908) TO REACH THE PASTORS Pastor Chris Kile can be reached via cell phone at or at Pastor Chris office hours are Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9am to 2pm or by appointment. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Pastor Caroline Unzaga can be reached at the church office (extension 13) or at TODAY WORSHIP BAGS for children and for toddlers may be found in a basket at the entrance to the sanctuary. Please return the worship bags following the worship service. Prayers of the Church Family Pray for those in the FPCC Family facing health challenges and the loss of family members. Pray for loved ones and friends of the FPCC Family. Please ask for God s daily comfort and the blessing of faithful trust for all who serve in the military, those in leadership of our nation, married couples facing turmoil and our country during this election season. Emergency and immediate prayer support is available for friends and family of the Church! Please join over 100 of us on the First Presbyterian Church Prayer Chain. We would love to have you. There are no calls to make; simply receive s and add them to your prayer list. We are here to help you with this special Spirit-filled ministry. To add someone, contact Linda Thorn at lindathorn427@gmail.com. Call the office if you would like someone added to the bulletin list above. FLOWERS The Thanksgiving arrangement was donated by Dreyer Farms and arranged by Betsy Kluge and Judy Bobucky. ALL GOOD GIFTS Our 2017 Stewardship campaign, ALL GOOD GIFTS, concludes this Thanksgiving Sunday with a celebration of God s blessings to us and of God s gift of so many wonderful members and friends of FPCC. Many members have made their 2017 financial commitment in order that we further our mission to spread the Word and invite others to live Jesus' command to love one another as the Lord first loved us. During this time of year when we are asked to support many deserving charities, we are grateful to all the members of FPCC who have shown, and will show, their belief in the mission of FPCC and their confidence in the people of FPCC to accomplish this mission with their 2017 contribution commitments. Their 2017 commitments now exceed 66% of the total pledged in 2016 and the number of commitments made in over 65% of commitments made in You are invited to join today with those who already pledged. The pew racks contain pledge cards and envelops so that you can put your pledge in the plate offering.

4 Operation Warm Heart ADULT BIBLE STUDY OPPORTUNITY - Bible Explorers meet Sunday mornings from 8:30 am to 9:30 am. All adult are welcome. PRESBYTERIA 101: A PASTOR SYMPOSIUM Do you know what it means to be a Presbyterian? Do you know what we believe and why? With the 500 th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation coming in 2017, this 2 Session course will give a handy overview to our collective beliefs along with some explanations of how we ve come to believe them. Taught by Pastor Chris Kile, the Class will be held TODAY at 11:30 in the Mettam Lounge. Light refreshments will be provided along with childcare upon request. LOOKING AHEAD CALLING ALL CAROLERS! Please join us on December 4 th for caroling! Time is 2 pm. We will go around and sing to some of our church members that are unable to attend worship regularly. After we will enjoy some pizza! Everyone is welcome! NEWS FROM THE GREATER COMMUNITY DONATE NEW SOCKS! Cranford-Elmora Soup Kitchen and Operation Warm Heart have joined together to collect white generic socks for distribution to the homeless. There is a great need for clean, warm socks particularly in the winter. Socks will be distributed in both places this fall and winter. Please consider adding a bag of socks to your next store purchase. All socks can be dropped off at the church office. Contact Jean Wands ( ) or Catherine Felegi ( ) with questions. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Thanksgiving Soup Kitchen Request Thanksgiving is coming! Along with Thanksgiving come TURKEYS. If anyone is eligible for and does not want their free supermarket turkey, please consider donating it to the Soup Kitchen. It will become the main ingredient of our infamous, gourmet turkey stew. A guest favorite! To donate a turkey, contact Jean Wands at or Carol Thee at the Main Office, Thank you and HAPPY THANKSGIVING! DEALING WITH THE HOLIDAYS AND LOSS OF ANY KIND The next Grief Seminar Journey to Wholeness- Healing the Grieving Heart will be held on Sunday evenings from January 8 to February 26, Call Patti Williams to register.

5 Please join us in giving thanks as a community at the Community of Cranford Thanksgiving Service An ecumenical service hosted by The Cranford Clergy Council, representing our 10 houses of worship, and the Interfaith Human Relations Committee Cranford United Methodist Church Walnut and Lincoln Ave. Monday, November 21, 7:00p.m. Our community has so many reasons to be thankful. Please consider joining us, and bringing non-perishable pantry items for local donation. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ADVENT - The Service and Mission Committee invites you to participate in the Reverse Advent Calendar Project this year. Decorated boxes will be available to pick up in the Library on the first Sunday of Advent, November 27 th. How does it work? You simply place one food item in the box on each day of Advent and deliver the box to the church during worship on Christmas Sunday. All donations will be given to Osceola Presbyterian Church s food pantry and Cranford Family Care. If you have any questions, contact Pastor Caroline at caroline.unzaga@firstprescranford.org. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Giving Tree Although hard to believe, this year s Christmas Season is rapidly approaching. Each year First Pres. Cranford has had a Giving Tree loaded with informational tags of children whose families need help in providing gifts of clothes, toys, etc. for Christmas. Once again First Presbyterian Church of Cranford will partner with St. Anneʼs Church of Garwood to collect gifts to go to St. Josephʼs Social Center in Elizabeth. Forty tags are available in Thompson Youth Center TODAY. When you take a tag, sign your name on the list. Gifts must be returned to our church by December 4 th. GIFTS SHOULD BE UNWRAPPED AND INCLUDE TISSUE PAPER IN A LARGE CHRISTMAS BAG. Staple the name tag with the personal ID number in the upper right corner of the bag. Thank you for once again sharing Godʼs Love and helping to brighten Christmas for others who are in difficult circumstances. Advent Study: Under Wraps The Gift We Never Expected Advent is a joyous season like no other. It is the time when Christians slow down their lives, meditate on scripture, and refocus their hearts and minds on Jesus Christ. This season, the Advent study Under Wraps - The Gift We Never Expected is being presented by Larry Imboden each Sunday following Worship and focuses on four characteristics of God that were described in the Old Testament and revealed to mankind through His son, Jesus Christ: God is Expectant; God is Dangerous; God is Jealous; God is Faithful. All are welcome to attend. Refreshments will be provided as will childcare upon request. NOVEMBER 27, DECEMBER 4, DECEMBER 11 and DECEMBER 18 at 11:30 a.m. in METTAM LOUNGE IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ATTEND, PLEASE COMPLETE THE FORM AND RETURN IT TO THE CHURCH OFFICE. YOU MAY ALSO DEPOSIT IT IN THE COLLECTION PLATE AT SERVICES. Name address Telephone number

6 THIS WEEK S FPCC CALENDAR Sunday, November 20 th 8:30 am Bible Study Board Room 10:00 am Worship Sanctuary 10:15 am Sunday School Education Building 11:15 am Fellowship Library 11:15 am Deacons Thomson Youth Center 11:15 am Pastor Symposium on Calvin Mettam Lounge 5:00 pm Inspire Band Practice Choir Room 6:30 pm Youth Fellowship Room 302 6:30 pm Grief Support Group Mettam Lounge PresEvents Deadline Monday, November 21 st 7:30 pm Community Thanksgiving Service United Methodist Church Tuesday, November 22 nd 7:30 pm Operation Warm Heart Organizational Meeting Bates Hall Wednesday, November 23 rd 6:30 am Men s Prayer Breakfast Rustic Mill Diner 10:00 am Pray First Dorothy Snyder Chapel 12:30 pm Church Offices Close for Thanksgiving Thursday, November 24 th Thanksgiving Church Offices Closed Friday, November 25 th Church Offices Closed Sunday, November 27 th 8:30 am Bible Study Board Room 10:00 am Worship Sanctuary 10:15 am Sunday School Education Building 11:00 am Fellowship Library 11:15am Advent Study Mettam Lounge 6:30 pm Youth Fellowship Room 302 6:30 pm Grief Support Group Mettam Lounge Music HURRICANE MATTHEW FUNDING REQUEST Citizens in the Southeastern United States and the Caribbean need monies to help them recover. As you are able, please consider a donation to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. Contributions can be made online by going to pda@pcusa.org or by sending a check to: Presbyterian Church USA, PO Box , Pittsburgh, Pa On the memo line please include # DR Questions: contact Skip Winter ahwinterjr@aol.com or (908)