THE HOLY TWITTER NOVEMBER 26 th, 2017 CHRIST THE KING SUNDAY Resurrection Lutheran Church exists to proclaim Jesus Christ as Saviour, in an open accepting fellowship, a loving caring community that reaches out to all people to serve Christ through worshipping, teaching, learning, sharing and giving of ourselves to meet the needs of this congregation, the community and the world, as the Holy Spirit moves us. Resurrection Lutheran Church Telephone: 306-242-4042 310 Lenore Drive, Saskatoon, SK. S7K 6Y1 E-mail resurrectionchurch@sasktel.net Website: www.resurrectionlutheranchurch.ca Facebook: www.facebook.com/resurrectionsaskatoon Pastor: Ali Tote H: 306-249-1428 Cell: 306-371-7742 Secretary/Treasurer: Elaine Leite Office: 306-242-4042 Council Chair: Reché McKeague H: 306-374-2559 WE ARE ALL GOD S CHILDREN! ALL ARE WELCOME! The order of service is Liturgy by Rev. Marlys Moen & Rev. Kathy Martin (used and adapted with permission) Our hymns are in the ELW (red hymnal). GATHERING Processional Hymn (Please rise) All Hail the Power of Jesus Name #634 Words of Welcome
Call to Worship Our Lord, you are King! Majesty and power are your royal robes. You put the world in place, and it will never be moved. You have always ruled, and you are eternal. The ocean is roaring, Lord! The sea is pounding hard. Its mighty waves are majestic, but you are more majestic, and you rule over all. Your decisions are firm, and your temple will always be beautiful and holy. Confession and Forgiveness (based on Jeremiah 23, Colossians 1, Luke 1) While there are many with power in our world - power to hurt us, power to hire or fire us, power to control us - only God has the power to forgive us and make us new people. Let us confess our sins in the presence of God and of one another. Silence for reflection Eternal God, Imagining your reign can be difficult. It is difficult to picture a world governed by your justice and righteousness alone. Our minds are held captive by the worst images of human kings, rulers, and powers. When nobler visions fail and we settle for kingdoms of our own making, correct and forgive us. Free the borders of our imaginations, that we may envision your greater good and celebrate the coming of your reign on earth as in heaven. Amen. Hear the prophecy of Zechariah: Tender mercy and forgiveness are the ways of God. We are forgiven. Let the church say Amen. Children s Chat (Please be seated) The children are welcome to come to the altar steps to have a visit with Pastor Ali and then go to Sunday School afterwards. Greeting (based on Psalm 46) (We will read this responsively) God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns. The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Come, behold the works of the Lord; see what desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Prayer of the Day The Lord be with you. And also with you. 2
Let us pray together. O God of power and might, your Son shows us the way of service, and in him we inherit the riches of your grace. Give us the wisdom to know what is right and the strength to serve the world you have made, through Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. WORD First Reading Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24 God will shepherd Israel. 11 For thus says the Lord God: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. 12 As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. 13 I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. 14 I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord God. 16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice. 20 Therefore, thus says the Lord God to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21 Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide, 22 I will save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. 23 I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. 24 And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I, the Lord, have spoken. The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Advent Blue To begin this journey through the church s year, we go to the beginning, to Advent. The word comes from the Latin adventus, which means "arrival" or "coming". The season of Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve. It is a season of preparation, of waiting and hope. The paraments are blue, the blue of the sky just before the dawning of a new day! In the fullness of time will come the promise. We wait and watch hope and expect not pretending we don t know the story of Jesus birth but in anticipation, in the knowledge that waiting is almost always a part of God s pattern for new beginnings. And so we sing Hymn (remain seated) Wait for the Lord (sing 3 times) #262 Christmas White The season of Advent gives way to the joy of Christmas, to the celebration of this God who comes down to us, it is an amazing thing and we can t quite comprehend this God who comes as a tiny vulnerable little child but it fills us with joy and so we sing 3
Hymn (remain seated) Joy to the World (verses 1, 2, 4) #267 Epiphany White & Green We keep the celebration going right on through the season of Christmas, 12 full days until the eve of Epiphany on January 6 th. The colors for Epiphany begin with white but then move to green. White is always for Jesus, and green is a reminder that we are learning something, growing in our discipleship. In Epiphany we are discovering who this child is and what we find out is stunning! Good news for us and the whole world. It is a season of revelation, ah ha moments where we catch little glimpses of who Jesus is. the light of the world. Starlight leads the magi.as God s light begins to flood out to the world And so we sing Hymn (remain seated) Shine, Jesus, Shine #671 Lent Purple The next 40 days are a journey. It is a long trek one we don t want to make on our own. So we ask Jesus to journey with us as we sing Hymn (remain seated) Jesus, Remember Me (sing 2 times) #616 Gospel Acclamation (Please rise) Holy Gospel Matthew 25:31-46 The separation of sheep and goats. Gospel Response Glory to you, O Lord. 31 When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me. 37 Then the righteous will answer him, Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you? 40 And the king will answer them, Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me. 41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me. 44 Then they also will answer, Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you? 45 Then he will answer them, Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ. 4
Meditation (Please be seated) Hymn of the day (Please rise) Beneath the Cross of Jesus #338 Please be seated Easter White/Gold Good Friday s darkness is broken, shattered forever by Christ s Easter! Jesus is not dead, but alive! Alleluia! And everywhere new life, new hope, new possibilities of a very different world and reign come into sight. Let us stand and sing our joy. Hymn (Remain seated) Jesus Christ is Risen Today (verses 1 &2) #365 The Apostle s Creed (Please rise) inside cover of ELW Prayers of the People Welcoming God s reign of righteousness and mercy, let us pray with people of every time and place. Almighty God, your merciful rule encompasses all the world. As we gather for worship in safety, we pray for places where the church is persecuted. Watch over your people as they witness to your good news. Saint and Holy God, hear our prayer. Give bountiful pastures, safety, and health to herds, livestock, and all animals. May our care for all of your creation reflect your shepherding love for all that you have made. Saint and Holy God, hear our prayer. We pray for international organizations that shine your lift in places of strife. Lead relief and aid workers, leaders and volunteers to seek the lost and provide safety. Saint and Holy God, hear our prayer. Bind up the inured and strengthen the weak, abused, or ill. Give wisdom to counselors, doctors, nurses, and all in professions that provide healing. We pray for all in need especially for those we bring before you now out loud or in silent prayer. Saint and Holy God, hear our prayer. Shepherd your churches to welcome the stranger and immigrant in our midst. Call all your people to welcome, clothe, feed, and visit those in need just as you have provided for the lost and despairing throughout the ages. Saint and Holy God, hear our prayer. We pray for our Bishops Susan and Sid, all our bishops, pastors, diaconal ministers, our lay leaders and all in ministry, and our brothers and sisters in Christ around the globe. Help them with their ministries and guide them to do your works. Saint and Holy God, hear our prayer. Give us the hope to which you call us, our glorious inheritance with all your saints. Enrich our lives with the faith and vision of those saints who have died. Saint and Holy God, hear our prayer. The Lord s Prayer Peace of Christ Please share our Lord s gift of Peace with one another. 5
Offering (Please be seated) Offertory Prayer (Please rise) We praise you O God for Christ who proclaimed your reign of peace and promised an end to injustice and harm. Send your Spirit on these gifts of bread and wine and on all who share in the body and blood of your Son. Teach us your mercy and justice, and make all things new in Christ. Amen. The Day of Pentecost Red The Easter season goes on for a long time, 50 days an eternity! Jesus ascends and the angels that sang his birth now provide the heavenly chorus into which Christ the king is welcomed to heaven. It is not long until the promised Holy Spirit appears. Red the colour of the church. God who arrives as wind, giving us life, and so we sing Hymn Spirit of Gentleness (verses 1 and 3) #396 The Season after Pentecost Green Green is about growing in discipleship.in Christ. What are disciples? What does it look like when you live in Christ? What does it mean for us to claim Christ as our King? These are questions God s people have. Pilate, too had questions about the kind of king Jesus was. Listen to Jesus reply from the gospel of John. SENDING The Crowning of the Church Year Christ the King Sunday The Christ for whom we waited in Advent and welcomed at Christmas the light of the world, and the suffering servant the one nailed to a cross, who rose victorious from the dead Christ our King who rules the world and guides us in ways that this world cannot imagine. This is our King. Let us crown him with lives lived for others. We close with a reading from Colossians 1:11-20 11 May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15 he is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; 16 for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross. Blessing Announcements (Please be seated) 6
Sending Song (Please rise) Soon and Very Soon #439 Dismissal Go in peace. Serve the Lord. Thanks be to God! Special thanks to our musician Corinne Oxelgren, Worship Assistant Stephen Davis, Lector Dory Harder and Ministry Team Matthew. SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR DECEMBER 3 rd Isaiah 64:1-9; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:24-27 PRAYER LIST To add or remove names from the list, please contact the church office. There are pink sheets (with the praying hands graphic) on the greeting table which you may use to fill out a prayer request. They may be given to Pastor Ali or placed in the church office. The list is available on the back counter. New to our Prayer List Bob Fontaine, Danielle and Ashley and their families as they mourn the passing of Marg GIVINGS 2017 Monthly Budget: $15,062; November Givings to date: $3,095 The PAR deposit on November 20 th : $8,068.32. If you would like to sign up for PAR, which makes giving so much easier, forms are available on the back counter or you can talk to Elaine. Thank you for your faithful givings. Chequing Account Balance as of Friday, November 24 th : $ - $1,138.38 HERE S WHAT S HAPPENING NOV 26 th Dec 3 rd Sunday @ 9 am... WWDWWD: A study of our faith 9 am... Choir Rehearsal After Service... Worship Committee Meeting 1:30 6 pm... Saskatoon Children s Choir Rehearsal Monday @ 6:30 pm... Council meeting Tuesday 9 3 pm... Quilting Wednesday 10 3 pm... Artist Group 5:45 pm 9:30 pm... TOPS & AlAnon Friday @ 7 am... Men s Breakfast @ Smitty s Sunday, Dec 3 rd @ 9 am... WWDWWD: A study of our faith 6:30 pm... H2H Confirmation at Good Shepherd 7 9 pm... Scouts Potluck Lunch for Newcomer Family and Back to Church Sunday BACK TO CHURCH SUNDAY Back to Church Sunday will be on December 3 rd. If you didn t receive one last week, there are invitation cards on the back counter. Please pick one up to invite those who have attended before but we haven t seen in a while and those who have never attended. Let s give them a warm Resurrection welcome that day! COME TO THE WELCOMING FEAST On Sunday, December 3 rd, we will be welcoming our Newcomer Family and the people that we have invited to join us for Back to Church Sunday. This will be a very special day 7
so please come with your favourite dishes hot or cold, sweet or savory for this potluck lunch. CHRISTMAS HAMPERS We will be reaching out to the Salvation Army during this Christmas season to help those in our Saskatoon community who could use some of our support to make their Christmas a little more special. We have done this for the past number of years and the families are always more than appreciative for these hampers. We can start to collect funds for this right away, just mark on your envelope what the money is designated for. Thank you from your Social Justice Committee. ADVENT A CALENDAR OF DEVOTIONS 2017 Copies of the Calendar of Devotions are on the back counter. Please help yourself to one. ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A CHRISTMAS CONCERT TO ATTEND? There are 3 choirs in Saskatoon that have members from Resurrection. The Cecilian Singers present With a Voice of Singing on Sunday, December 17 th at 3 pm at Zion Lutheran Church. Brenda Craig, Brenda Jensen and Jill Oliver are members of this choir and have tickets or you can get tickets at McNally Robinson. Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 at the door, 12 and under free. Saskatoon Men s Chorus, present And on Earth, Peace on Sunday, December 10 th at 2:30 pm at Grace Westminster United Church. Special guest Bridge City Brass Band. Edgar Buck, Dave Eaton, Bruce George, Don Meister, Hugh Farmer and Art Davis (did I miss anyone ) are members of this choir and have tickets or you can get tickets at McNally Robins or at the door. Tickets: $20 Adults, $15 Students & Seniors, children under 12 are free. Eclipse presents Canada One Five Oh Ho Ho! on Sunday December 17 th at 7:30 pm at the Broadway Theatre. Della Greer is a member of this choir. Tickets are $25 and are available from Broadway Theatre. OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST 1. There will be an Advent Service of Lessons and Carols on Wednesday, December 6, 2017, at 5:30 p.m. Lutheran Theological Seminary, Saskatoon. This service of Advent lessons and carols weaves together many of the service's traditional elements with the O Antiphons as suggested in Sundays and Seasons (Year B, 2018). In Advent, we wait with great impatience for the celebration of the incarnation. As the days become ever-shorter, come and wait, come and listen to the scriptures promise of a Saviour, and come and sing that promise. 2. You are invited to a free Come and Go Nativity Display Open House at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, 1405-31st St. W., (1 block East of Ave. P) Saskatoon on November 25, 10:00 am-3:00 pm. Get into the season by coming out to view dozens of nativity scenes, hear Christmas music and eat some goodies. There will be activities for the youth. Everyone is welcome. 3. St. Anne s Music Ministry and Friends will present Dominica Hurricane Maria Benefit Concert on December 3 rd at 3 pm at St. Anne s Church, 217 Lenore Drive. Tickets can be purchased with cash or cheque at St. Anne s Church office (306-931-4700) between 8:30 to noon and 1:00 to 4:30, and at the Saskatoon Academy of Music, 629 6 th Avenue North, (306-934-2424). Tickets are $15 per adult or $35 for a family. Donations made to the Red Cross will kindly be accepted. Thank you for your support. 8
4. Together Through Advent - An Ecumenical Journey with Darcie Lich and Rev. Claire Ewert Fisher. Two Saturday mornings, 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Come to one or both sessions! Cost: $20.00 /session, $13.00/optional lunch. December 2: Holy Linoleum - Rediscovering Sacred Ground In Advent. Facilitator: Darcie Lich (Roman Catholic tradition). December 9: Every Creature Singing. Facilitator: Rev. Claire Ewert Fisher (Mennonite tradition). You are warmly invited to participate in this Advent series as we enter into some of the unique themes and invitations of this holy season, and how they intersect with our own lives. This unique series features two educators in our community from different Christian denominations. (See the bulletin board for more details.) Please see the brochure rack and bulletin boards for more information and other events. Please join us for Refreshments in the Fellowship Hall after service. 9