Chiming of the Hour GREENWOOD FOREST BAPTIST CHURCH The Worship of God The Second Sunday After Pentecost Graduation Sunday June 3, 2018 Processional Hymn 58 Welcome to Worship Leader: The Lord be with you, People: And also with you. Recognition of the Graduates Passing of the Peace Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise Rev. Stephen Stacks Rev. Wesley Spears-Newsome Rev. Stacks Preparation for Worship Prelude on St. George s Windsor Flor Peeters Call to Worship (Psalm 139) Leader: O Lord, you have searched me and known me. People: You know when I sit down and when I rise up; Leader: You discern my thoughts from far away. People: You search out my path and are acquainted with all my ways. Leader: Even before a word is on my tongue, People: O Lord, you know it completely. Leader: You hem me in, behind and before, People: And lay your hand upon me. Leader: Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; People: It is so high that I cannot attain it. Leader: For it was you who formed my inward parts; People: You knit me together in my mother s womb. Leader: I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. People: Wonderful are your works; that I know very well. Leader: My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, People: Intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Leader: Your eyes beheld my unformed substance. People: In your book were written all the days that were formed for me.
Leader: How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! People: How vast is the sum of them! Leader: I try to count them they are more than the sand; People: I come to the end I am still with you. Invocation Hymn 565 Offertory Prayer God of Past, Who By Your Spirit Steve Denning Offertory We Walk by Faith and Not by Sight arr. Biery Presentation of the Offering As our offering is presented back to God, we will sing the following doxology: Prayers of the People and Lord s Prayer 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 During the following hymn, children (ages first grade and younger) are invited to go to Children s Time. Parents may pick up their children in the Children s Wing after worship. Hymn 400 Precious Lord, Take My Hand Scripture Reading 2 Corinthians 4:5-12 Gerry Ritter We affirm the reading of Scripture with the following response: Reader: The word of God for us, the people of God. People: Thanks be to God. Anthem O Light Everlasting F. Melius Christiansen O Light Everlasting, O Love never failing. Illumine our darkness and draw us to thee. May we from thy Spirit receive inspiration As we together thy wisdom may see. Make known to all nations thy peace and salvation, And help us, O Father, thy temple to be. Sermon Commencement, Interrupted Rev. Spears-Newsome We affirm each prayer with the following response: Leader: Lord, in your mercy... People: Hear our prayer. 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. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
The Celebration of Communion Here at Greenwood Forest, we practice Communion by the ancient method of intinction. All are invited to come down the aisle to receive the elements. During Communion, a Minister or a Lay Leader will serve the elements from one of four stations in the sanctuary, two at the front and two at the back. You will be ushered toward one of the stations depending on where you are seated in the sanctuary. Please come in a mode of reception. You will be given a piece of bread that you dip in the cup and then partake. You may respond to receiving the elements by saying Amen or Thanks be to God. If you are unable to visit one of the stations, a server will bring the elements to you at your seat. If you do not wish to receive the elements, you are encouraged to come receive a blessing simply indicate this desire verbally or by crossing your arms over your chest. A gluten-free bread option is available upon request. We hope you will join us at the table of the Lord where all are welcome. Prayer of Confession Merciful God, we confess that we have not always loved you with our whole heart. We have failed to be obedient disciples. We have failed to be an obedient church. We have not done your will, we have broken your law, we have rebelled against your love, we ve not loved our neighbors, and we ve not heard the cry of the needy. Forgive us for what we have done and for what we ve left undone, and free us for joyful obedience through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Mystery of Faith Leader: Together we proclaim the mystery of faith. People: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. Hymn 459 Benediction Postlude Please stand as you are able. Come, Share the Lord Rev. Spears-Newsome Prayer Concerns Gilles Bikindou, Margaret Curl, Pat Hudson, Corrie Marsh (Susan Beck s cousin), Annie Poe, Iris Thomas, and Skye Thompson (Mack and Carol Thompson s daughter-in-law) Jennifer Denning-Duke Hospital We extend our sympathy to Frank Decker at the death of his daughter, Lisa Shaffer. Our partner church, Ebenezer Baptist, Cuba, and our brothers and sisters of the Oromo Evangelical Lutheran Mission GFBC by the Numbers Focus on Finance 2017/2018 Budget (MDP + MSP) $900,457 Amount of Budget supported through Stewardship Giving $825,216 (excludes cell tower and GFCC receipts) Week 39 of 52 (May 27) Week 39 YTD Total Giving $14,503 $753,917 Less Designated Giving $ 505 $ 87,650 Actual Stewardship Giving $13,998 $666,267 Stewardship Giving needed to fully subscribe budget $14,847 $632,115 Over (Under) $ (849) $ 34,152 Attendance May 20 May 27 Faith Formation 122 112 Worship 184 136 The Deacon of the Day is Steve Denning, Chair of the Properties Ministry. Today s acolyte is Lucy Beal. Hearing assistance devices are available at the back of the sanctuary.
Announcements and Upcoming Events Acolyte Training Any rising 3rd through 5th graders should attend an Acolyte training/refresher today, Sunday, June 3 immediately following the worship service. We will meet on the front pew, organ side. Summer Sanctuary Choir Rehearsal The first summer Sanctuary Choir Rehearsal will be next Sunday, June 10, right after worship. After a covered dish luncheon, the choir will rehearse from 1-3 pm. College Elizabeth Biser Master of Public Administration University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Master of Social Work University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Marie Collins Master of Divinity Duke Divinity School High School Erica Dean Ritter Cary High School Adult VBS June 17-19 Mark your calendars for Adult Vacation Bible School! We are going to take a deep dive into the book of Daniel together before the children learn about it from us later in the summer. We will begin with a combined Adult Faith Formation Session on Sunday June 17, followed by two nights of music, imagination, and bible study. What do the stories we learned as children from the book of Daniel have to do with our lives now? Sign up for Adult VBS to explore that question! All are welcome, not just VBS volunteers. Dinner and childcare for the two evening sessions will be provided. Sign up at gfbccary.org now! Food, Friends, and Fun Food, Friends, and Fun (FFF) is a summer feeding and enrichment program for neighborhood kids coordinated between GFBC and other area churches. For our work last year, FFF received three awards from state and federal departments of the USDA! To build on our work, we need your help! FFF happens every Thursday from 9 am-12:30 pm at GFBC from June 21 to August 16. If you would like to find out more and sign up to volunteer, please visit bit.ly/2018fff. Yarn Needed for FFF We need yarn to make hats and scarves during the FFF Ministry this summer. Please bring both new and used yarn such as Red Heart and chunky weight to the box outside the church office. For more information or to volunteer to help, call Susan Miller at 919-481-1359.
VBS Volunteers Needed The Children s Ministry requests your time and talent in preparing for VBS 2018. We are currently recruiting Group Leaders and Volunteers. Do you have a specific area you want to help with? If so, let know! We will hold a volunteer training for ALL VBS volunteers on Sunday, July 15 at 2:30pm. If you are signed up to volunteer or planning to sign up, make plans to attend this training. If it will be your first time volunteering with GFBC children/youth, please also make plans to attend the mandatory Abuse Prevention Training on June 10 (see Rev. Spears-Newsome for more details). Backpack Buddies Update Thank you to everyone who contributed to Backpack Buddies this year! We served over 65 students between our two schools, Briarcliff Elementary and Farmington Woods Elementary. We could not do it without your financial support and our dedicated volunteers who shop to keep the shelves stocked, set up, pack, and deliver food. This summer, we will pack bags for one of Farmington Woods summer programs (July 11-27). If you would like to become involved in Backpack Buddies, please contact Judy Vaccaro or Karen Upchurch. GFBC Accepted Into Princeton Seminary Log College Project Princeton Seminary has selected 53 churches from around the country to innovate in youth ministry and they selected GFBC! The Log College Project will put churches leadership in a learning community and help them develop a new model of youth ministry specific to their context. For the next two and a half years, GFBC will also receive extra materials and curriculum as part of the project and be invited to participate in Princeton s research on youth ministry. GFBC also has a chance to apply to be one of 12 churches that could receive a $15,000 grant to put their new youth ministry vision into practice. Vases Needed We are once again collecting flower vases of all sizes for use at Glenaire on Monday mornings when several of our members volunteer. You may place your donations in the box outside the church office. Our Upcoming Guest Preachers We have an exciting lineup of guest preachers to fill the pulpit during Pastor Efird's maternity leave. As you will see, some of these talented proclaimers are from within our congregation and some are friends of GFBC from the wider community. See the list below for information about each week and the person who will bring God's Word to us! Rev. Amanda Warren will preach on June 10. She is a member of Greenwood Forest and is currently serving as our Congregational Care Deacon. She received a Masters of Divinity from McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University. Rev. Dr. Mack Thompson will preach on June 17. He is a member of Greenwood Forest and served as our Interim Pastor in 2010-2011. Before his retirement in 2008, Mack served a number of churches across North Carolina including a more than 20 year tenure at Ridge Road Baptist in Raleigh. Rev. Dr. Rose Cornelius will preach on June 24. She is the Development Director for Dorcas Ministries in Cary. Rose holds a Master of Science in Business from Florida Institute of Technology and a Masters of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary. Rev. Paula Clayton Dempsey will preach on July 1. She is the Director of Partnership Relations with the Alliance of Baptists. She has more than 25 years of ministry experience as a pastor, campus minister, Hospice chaplain, and Director of Advent Spirituality Center.