OAK HILL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH September 24, 2017 25 th Sunday in Ordinary Time 10:30 a.m. TIME OF QUIET PREPARATION As you arrive in the sanctuary, please quiet and prepare yourself for worship. Relax your body; quiet the inner dialogue of your mind; be open and receptive to God s Spirit in our midst. *those who are comfortable, please stand THE WORD CALLS US TOGETHER PRELUDE Gentle Shepherd, Come and Lead Us Gaither *CALL TO WORSHIP One: We seek the kingdom of heaven. Many: Even when it doesn t look like what we think it might One: We seek God s justice and God s peace. Many: Even when that requires a whole lot of work One: We seek God s promise. Many: And we cling to its hope. One: We seek to be in God s presence and witness to God s love. Many: Come! Let us worship our God! One: Come! Let us worship the one who is always there. Many: Come! Let us worship the one who surprises us. One: Come! Let us worship the one who is always faithful. Many: Come! Let us worship the Lord! *OPENING HYMN Your Faithfulness, O Lord, Is Sure No. 42 PRAYER OF CONFESSION Unison: God of grace and constant provision, we confess that we have doubts. We worry and wander. We lose faith and flee. We grow weary and frustrated, we complain and lose interest. We refuse to listen. We are jealous. We are selfish. And we are afraid. But you are always there, always moving, always expanding, always sharing, always listening, and always loving us still. Forgive us. Pour out your grace and send forth your spirit to renew our journeys and strengthen our commitment. Fill us with your love, that we might trust and serve you always, through Christ our Lord. Amen. PRAYER OF CONFESSION (Continued) Silent Prayer of Confession Assurance of Pardon RESPONSE OF PRAISE (Cantor sings responses through first, followed by the congregation) Praise the God of our salvation! Hosts on high His power proclaim; Heaven and earth and all creation laud and magnify His name. (repeat) *SHARING THE PEACE (Share the peace of Christ as you feel led, with a wave, a smile, a kind word, or a handshake.) TIME FOR GROWING DISCIPLES (At the conclusion of the Time for Growing Disciples, children ages birth to 3 rd grade may stay in worship or go to the nursery.) ANTHEM All Creatures of Our God and King King-Perry Chancel Choir PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION FIRST SCRIPTURE READING Matthew 20:1-16 (see insert) SECOND SCRIPTURE READING Exodus 16:2-15 (see insert) SERMON The Rev. Erin Counihan MEDITATION IN MUSIC *AFFIRMATION OF FAITH (unison) The Apostles Creed I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God s only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
*HYMN In a Deep, Unbounded Darkness No. 850 OFFERING OUR GIFTS (Please sign the Friendship Register found at the end of the pew. Complete information, including your email, and pass pad along to those worshiping with you. ) *Prayer of Dedication Offertory I Lift Your Name Ruiz *Doxology Glory to God, Whose Goodness Shines on Me No. 582 CONGREGATIONAL JOYS AND CONCERNS AND PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE THE LORD S PRAYER (unison) 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 debts, as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen. MOMENT FOR MISSION Elder Toby Eckert LIFE OF THE COMMUNITY (Not merely announcements, but the activities of our life together that reflect our day-to-day responses to God s call for faithfulness, and your invitation to join in!) *CLOSING HYMN Hope of the World No. 734 *BENEDICTION POSTLUDE Tell the Good News Bartlett 4111 Connecticut St. Louis, MO 63116 (314) 664-5525 office@oakhillpcusa.org (office) www.oakhillpcusa.org Sunday, September 24, 2017
Peace and Global Witness Offering Today s Minute for Mission is to share a bit about the Peace and Global Witness Offering, which we will collect next week on World Communion Sunday. A gift to the Peace & Global Witness Offering enables the church to promote the Peace of Christ by addressing systems of injustice across the world. Individual congregations are encouraged to utilize up to 25% of this Offering to connect with the global witness of Christ's peace. Mid councils retain an additional 25% for ministries of peace and reconciliation. The remaining 50% is used by the Presbyterian Mission Agency to advocate for peace and justice in cultures of violence, including our own, through collaborative projects of education and Christian witness. Hurricane Relief Presbyterian Disaster Assistance is continuing to accept donations to support hurricane relief work in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico. If you would like to donate please go to www.pda.pcusa.org. AROUND THE PRESBYTERY SAVE THE DATE: PRESBYTERY-WIDE MIDDLE SCHOOL RETREAT! Friday and Saturday, October 27-28 You Were Born For A Time Such As This Calling all middle school students to experience a weekend at Mound Ridge through the eyes of a superhero! Arrive on Friday night for worship, small groups, and s mores by the campfire, then on Saturday join in more worship, a mission project, and so much fun! $40 per student includes overnight lodging, breakfast and lunch, and all programming. For more information or to register, contact Katie Kautz at kkautz@firstunitedpres.org. Also, coming soon: Religions of the World Tour The History Team of the Presbytery of Giddings-Lovejoy is presenting a tour of Religions of the World on Friday, November 10. The tour will begin at 8:30 a.m. at Kirkwood Presbyterian Church (100 E. Adams, Kirkwood) and will return there around 3:00 p.m. The cost is $47 per person, which includes tour and gratuities. Lunch is at your own expense at Assumption Greek Orthodox Church. Reservations can be made by contacting Betsy Stoll at 314-821-0533. Rev. Erin Counihan, Pastor Rev. Dr. Alan Meyers, Parish Associate Mrs. Susan Brown, Minister of Music Rev. Jillian Embrey, AMEN St. Louis Director Ms. Carole Adams, Secretary Bulletin Deadline: Wednesday, 12:00 noon in writing. ACTIVITIES THIS WEEK September 3, 2017 Sunday 9:45 a.m. Choir Rehearsal 10:30 a.m. Service of Worship After Worship Fellowship Time in the Large Assembly Room After Worship Meeting for Students and Parents about Confirmation in the Theleos Room Monday 7:45 8:00 a.m. Prayer Pause Wednesday 11:00 a.m. Wednesday Bible Study Class in the Faith and Fellowship Room 6:30 p.m. Stewardship and Property Committee Meeting in the Faith and Fellowship Room 7:30 p.m. Mission Committee Meeting in the Theleos Room Thursday 6:30 p.m. Thursday Bible Study Class in the Theleos Room We welcome you to worship at Oak Hill. We greet everyone in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and celebrate the gift of God s incarnate love through our worship and service. Everyone is invited to a time of fellowship and refreshment in the Large Assembly Room (downstairs) immediately following worship.
Today s Liturgist is Jeff Dahl. Greeters are Millie Crittenden and Don Stanford. Ushers are Dena Roper, Sarah Gibson, Mary LaTragna, and Steve Stoltz. Nursery Caregivers are Heather and Brian Beckman. The Worship and Christian Education Committee is hosting the time of fellowship in September. As a church family, we shall be praying this morning and all week for the following members and friends. You may wish to contact them to indicate your interest and ask if they have any special prayer concerns. Carole Adams Anne LaTragna Maureen and Ricardo Johanning If you have a specific prayer request to share with the congregation, please fill out the yellow prayer request form in the pew and place it in the offering plate. For prayers and congregational support during the week, call Pastor Erin or the church office. A Note from the Church Office: While our Office Administrator Extraordinaire, Carole Adams, is out for a bit, please email Pastor Erin directly with any bulletin or newsletter announcements. Remember that Newsletter articles are due on Monday! Attention Parents and Students! Today, after Worship, we ll have a Confirmation Class Meeting. Students who are in middle or high school who are interested in confirmation (joining the church as members) and their parents are invited to this meeting to discuss what confirmation might look like this year. Bring your calendars and your commitments, your ideas and creative suggestions, and meet in the Theleos Room after worship! Looking forward to what we will create together! Halloween Trick or Trivia Benefitting AMEN St.Louis Mark your calendars and get your costume ready! Join us and have a ghoulishly good time! A Trivia Night right here at Oak Hill, benefiting our ministry with AMEN St. Louis. Tickets are $25 individually or $160 for a table of 8. Doors open at 6, trivia begins at 7. To purchase tickets, email Jillian Embrey at amenstlouis@gmail.com. A note from our Parish Associate: To the Oak Hill family, Today, September 24, is the 45th anniversary of my ordination to the ministry of Word and sacrament. During more than half of those 45 years I have been a part of Oak Hill. I am profoundly grateful for all the opportunities for service the pastors and people of the church have given me, and for your love and friendship in the Lord. Thank you! And thanks be to God. I look forward to our future together. Sincerely, Alan Meyers COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS "Waste Land" Love Song: We All Gotta Do Free Poetry Reading at the Missouri History Museum Commemorate the birthday of St. Louis s T. S. Eliot (born September 26, 1888) with this one-of-a-kind poetry experience presented by Words in Motion. Poets Lenny D. Smith and Kevin McCameron will present a mash-up of Eliot s The Waste Land in its original, unedited entirety. You ll also hear poems from Eliot s 1909 1917 collection, Inventions of the March Hare, as well as The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, edited by Smith. TODAY at 2pm at the Missouri History Museum, in the Lee Auditorium. Tower Grove Farmer s Market HARVEST FESTIVAL Sept. 30 th 8 AM - 3 PM Come kick-off the fall with 100 local vendors, 3 bands, kids activities, food, drinks and more! Admission is $5 per person or $10 per family. This event is a fundraiser for the Tower Grove Farmer s Market. Save the Date: Chalk Walk South Grand Calling all artists! We want YOU to make sidewalk chalk art. Professionals, amateurs, kids, sign up right here right now: https://goo.gl/forms/hwirqjkics6jgtii3. Free of charge, all are welcome! $750 in cash prizes for judged categories and for community favorites. Join us Saturday, October 14 for a chance for the community to come together to celebrate artistic talent, fresh air and everything that South Grand has to offer. Rest stops with local music, activities and refreshments from 10am-4pm for you to enjoy as you explore the area, plus activities for kids and a local beer garden behind Commerce Bank! Stop by or stay all day as chalk art appears, but be sure to vote for your favorite! Artists will be making the magic happen all day, with voting open from 10am-7pm in Ritz Park. Last but not least, if it rains, we ll try for the next day October 15!
FIRST SCRIPTURE READING Matthew 20:1-16 1 For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 When he went out about nine o clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; 4 and he said to them, You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right. So they went. 5 When he went out again about noon and about three o clock, he did the same. 6 And about five o clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, Why are you standing here idle all day? 7 They said to him, Because no one has hired us. He said to them, You also go into the vineyard. 8 When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first. 9 When those hired about five o clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. 10 Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. 11 And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, 12 saying, These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat. 13 But he replied to one of them, Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? 14 Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. 15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous? 16 So the last will be first, and the first will be last. Leader: This is the Word of the LORD People: thanks be to God! SECOND SCRIPTURE READING Exodus 16: 2-15 2 The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 3 The Israelites said to them, If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger. 4 Then the Lord said to Moses, I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on other days. 6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, In the evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 7 and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your complaining against the Lord. For what are we, that you complain against us? 8 And Moses said, When the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening and your fill of bread in the morning, because the Lord has heard the complaining that you utter against him what are we? Your complaining is not against us but against the Lord. 9 Then Moses said to Aaron, Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, Draw near to the Lord, for he has heard your complaining. 10 And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. 11 The Lord spoke to Moses and said, 12 I have heard the complaining of the Israelites; say to them, At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the Lord your God. 13 In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14 When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. 15 When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, What is it? For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. Leader: This is the Word of the LORD People: thanks be to God!