Wilbraham United Church 500 Main Street Wilbraham MA 01095 Phone: 596-2511 x 100 Fax: 596-2512 Email: admin@wilbrahamunitedchurch.org Website: www.wilbrahamunitedchurch.org November 18, 2018 THANKSGIVING SUNDAY 10:00A.M GATHERING MUSIC Celebration and Grace Mazzatenta Processional in C Behnke the Handbell Choir - Andy Villamaino, Trumpet WELCOMING THE LIGHT OF CHRIST CALL TO WORSHIP SUNG: All: This is the day that the Lord has made SPOKEN: One: All good gifts come from the Spirit of God: All: Love, peace, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness are all of God. SUNG: All: This is the day that the Lord has made SPOKEN: One: We gather with grateful hearts, not for things, but for who God is. All: We gather to worship in song and prayer to show God our gratitude. SUNG: All: This is the day One: That the Lord has made All: That the Lord has made One: Let us rejoice All: Let us rejoice One: and be glad in it All: and be glad in it This is the day that the Lord has made Let us rejoice and be glad in it All: This is the day that the Lord has made Marjorie Trimble **GATHERING HYMN Come, Ye Thankful People, Come # 694 (red hymnal) PRAYER OF CONFESSION AND THE LORD S PRAYER (unison) Generous God, forgive our moments of ingratitude, the spiritual blindness that prevents us from appreciating the wonder that is this world, the endless cycle of nature, of life and death and rebirth. Forgive us for taking without giving reaping without sowing. Open our eyes to see our lips to praise our hands to share. May our footsteps tread closer to the path of Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. ASSURANCE OF FORGIVENESS
PSALTER Psalm 150 In the ho ly place In the might Leader: Praise the Lord! Praise God in the sanctuary; People: Praise God in the firmament! Leader: Praise God for the mighty deeds; People: Praise God for exceeding greatness! Leader: Praise God with trumpet sound; People: Praise God with lute and harp! Leader: Praise God with tambourine and dance; People: Praise God with strings and pipe! Leader: Praise God with sounding cymbals; People: Praise God with loud crashing cymbals! Leader: Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! People: Praise the Lord! **PASSING OF THE PEACE GREETING AND ANNOUNCEMENTS Please remember to wear your name tags. If anyone needs a new one, please notify the office! JUNIOR CHOIR ANTHEM: We Can Make a Difference Brown/Olson/Baer MOMENT FOR CHILDREN OF ALL AGES **HYMN We Gather Together #131 (red hymnal) PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE Joys and Concerns Pastoral Prayer Lord we pray for peace, for the healing of creation. May your truth and justice mend every breach; May we learn to live as one. OFFERING OF OUR GIFTS AND OURSELVES Invitation to Give Offertory Anthem With a Voice of Singing Shaw **Doxology Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise God all creatures here below: Alleluia! Alleluia! Praise God the source of all our gifts. Praise Jesus Christ, whose power up lifts! Praise the Spirit, Holy Spirit, Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
LITANY OF THANKSGIVING AND PRAISE (from the Hymnal of the United Church of Christ) Almighty God, from whom comes each good gift of life, we remember your loving kindness and your uncounted mercies as we join in grateful praise: For all your gifts to us and to our human race; for our life and the world in which we live: For the order and constancy of nature; for the beauty and bounty of the world; for day and night, summer and winter, seed-time and harvest; for the varied joys which every season brings: For the work and the truth we are permitted to discover; good there has been in our past, and for all the hopes which lead us on toward better things: For all the joys and comforts of life; for homes and families; for our friends; for the love, sympathy, and goodwill of persons near and far: For the discipline of life; for the tasks and trials which train us to know ourselves and which bring us to accept one another: For the desire and power to help others; for every opportunity of serving our generation in ways large or small: For the gift of Jesus Christ, and everything which is ours as his disciples; for the presence and inspiration of your Holy Spirit throughout our days: For the tender ties which bind us to the unseen world; for the faith which dispels the shadows of earth and fills the closing years of life with the light of hope: God of all grace and love, we have praised you with our lips for all the richness and meaning that life holds for us. Now send us into the world to praise you with our lives, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen SCRIPTURE LESSON Hebrews 10:11-25 And every priest stands day after day at his service, offering again and again the same sacrifices that can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since then has been waiting until his enemies would be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds, he also adds, I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more. Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, my friends, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh), and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
GOSPEL LESSON Mark 13:1-8 As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings! Then Jesus asked him, Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down. When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished? Then Jesus began to say to them, Beware that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name and say, I am he! and they will lead many astray. When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs. One: Our God is still speaking. All: Thanks be to God! SERMON Pastor Chip **PARTING HYMN Now Thank We All Our God #102 (red hymnal) **BENEDICTION **SUNG RESPONSE FOLLOWING THE LIGHT OF CHRIST INTO THE WORLD MUSIC FOR SENDING FORTH Voluntary in D Mouret ** All who are able to stand, may do so. The altar flowers this morning are given to the glory of God by 2 families of the congregation. One arrangement is given in memory of Lois Peck, given by her family. And, one is in memory of Ronald C. Nobbs Jr. on the first anniversary of his passing, given by Susan and Family. Welcome Visitors! Is this your first visit to United Church? Please sign our Guest Pad located in the Narthex. Immediately after the service, we invite you to continue down the central hallway and join us for Fellowship and Refreshment in our Fellowship Hall. MINISTERING TO YOU TODAY Pastor/Preacher: The Rev. Wallace A Hurd IV Director of Music: Mark Jacobson Director of Christian Education: Paul Nesbit Head Usher: Paul Krawczynski Ushers: Nancy Krawczynski, Bill Sanderson, Judy Hoffman and Herb Vieira Greeters: The Weinberg Family Nursery Care: Amy Crocker, Nanette Bernard PLEASE REMEMBER TO TURN YOUR CELL PHONE OFF BEFORE THE SERVICE. FIRST 6 PEWS, DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF THE PULPIT, ARE A SCENT FREE ZONE IN CASE OF EMERGENCY, PLEASE FOLLOW USHER S DIRECTIONS TO EXIT THE SANCTUARY
Please Pray For: Shey McAbee, Nancy Schenk, Pam Burch, Gloria Russell, The Hoffmann Family, Patti Keiser, Sue Pereira and Phyllis Walsh. The victims of violence and their families in our country. Our troops, our country and our world. Wilbraham United Church, UCC & UMC News for the Pews for the Week of November 18, 2018 STOCK AND IRA DONATIONS We are entering the season of gifting and Stewardship. Each year, many taxpayers make significant donations to their churches and other favorite charities that qualify for charitable deductions at tax time. Donating Stock: One option is to donate stock owned for more than a year that has risen in value. This enables the donor to deduct the stock s fair market value and avoid paying a capital-gains tax on the appreciated value. If you wish to donate stock, Joseph Stiefel can tell you how to do so. Donating from a Traditional IRA: The IRS requires taxpayers age 70 ½ or older who have Traditional IRAs to take an annual distribution that is taxed at earned income rates. The IRS allows these same taxpayers to transfer as much as $100,000 a year from an IRA to charity without having to include any of that transfer as income. To qualify, the transfer must be made directly from the IRA to charity. The transfer counts toward the taxpayers required minimum distribution. For more details on IRA distributions, IRS Publication 590-B is available and your investment firm can tell you what they require for the transfer. Your Finance and Stewardship Commissions Old Meeting House: On Sunday, Dec. 2 from 1:00-5:00, the Old Meeting House Museum, 450 Main St., will welcome the public to its annual Winter Tree Festival. The trees, in every room, are provided and decorated by local groups. Mulled cider and baked treats will be served. There is no charge but a free-will offering would be graciously accepted. Saturday, December 8th is HOLLY FAIR!! Please join us from 9am-3pm for a unique shopping experience featuring over 80 juried artisan crafters, our famous Cookie Walk, and enjoy a refreshment in our Holly Cafe while listening to beautiful Christmas music! We need many hands to make this day, our largest fundraiser, a success! We are currently looking for volunteers to: -Help move furniture Thursday afternoon, Dec 7 and Saturday afternoon, Dec 8 -Help the Lug Nuts Friday Dec 7,5-7 pm and Saturday Dec 8, 7-9 am. -Help with parking -Sell raffle tickets Dec 8 -Be Greeters Dec 8 -BAKE COOKIES! Please contact Tammy Trudeau wotrudeau@charter.net or 413-596-4282 if you can help us in any way! Piecemakers- The eight quilts hanging from the balcony today have been created by the Piecemakers Ministry Team. Soon they will be taking them to Baystate Medical Center and will be donating them to the Pediatric Emergency Room. The nurses there will be giving them to needy children who come to the emergency room. The Piecemakers have been working on this project for over 10 years. Using mostly donated materials, we usually meet every other Monday in the Bliss Room to work on making the quilts. Meeting dates are published in the Bulletin and Branchline. If you are interested in seeing what we do or in joining the group, please come and visit us. If you have questions, feel free to ask Evie Auchter, Candy Dearborn, Patty Keiser, Gail Wholley Lima, Claire McCollough, Nancy Peck, Judy Putnam or Suzanne Zeckhausen.
This Week at Wilbraham United Church To find the most up to date schedule throughout the week, go to our church s website and click on EVENTS www.wilbrahamunitedchurch.org Today, 11/18/2018 1pm WUP- FH 4pm Thanksgiving Party- FH 6Pm Al Anon Monday 11/19/2018 9:15AM Yoga- YR 9:30AM Nursery School- FH 6pmWUP- FH 7pm Finance Committee- lib Tuesday 11/20/2018 9:30AM Nursery School- FH 7pm Yoga- YR Wednesday 11/21/2018 3:30 GS- HR 6pm Al Anon- YR 6:30pm CS- HR(+) Thursday 11/22/2018 Thanksgiving Day 6:30AM Turkey Trot- FH Friday 11/23/2018 9:30AM-12:30PM Thrift Shop Saturday 11/24/2018 9:30-12:30 Thrift Shop