Home Church 22nd Sunday after Pentecost All Saints Day November 1, 2020

Home Church 22nd Sunday after Pentecost All Saints Day November 1, 2020

Guest Presider: Rev. John Bullas

We acknowledge these lands upon which we worship are the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation.

Preparing the Space Around Us

Whoever you are and wherever you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here! If you are gathering on zoom or if you are worshipping

at home with the bulletin, Welcome. We are one community and all

part of the body of Christ. I invite you to prepare the space around you

so that for the next hour you can be fully in this worship experience, not to keep out the realities of the world, rather to focus us in the midst of it all on God. If you need to go and get something or shift something around you, feel free.

Invitation

Let us take a few moments to open our hearts and minds as we prepare ourselves to be at one and in communion with the Holy

and Sacred.  (We light the Christ candle). Let us pause and allow the Spirit of God to find its way into this time, space, and the place where we are.  Sit for a moment within your surroundings and

allow them to embrace you with intention and peace.  As you sit, remember the “saints” of the church—those who from the depths of time lit a way for those yet to come.  As we recall their witness to the Gospel of Love, let us lean into the strength of their faith as we carry forward a way of hope for those who follow us.  We will now light candles of remembrance and possibility.  As the flame of our collective faith takes hold, may it proclaim to all the world that justice, peace and harmony is our way.  Let us open ourselves to the One who is with us and within us.  Breathe in the Love that surrounds you.

Quiet Meditation

Greeting               

One:    The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God,

            and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

All:      And also with you                                        

Opening Prayer / Gathering                                   
One:    Come as the gathered of God, brought into God’s storied

presence and saving love.

All:      We give thanks to God, whose steadfast love endures forever.

One:    Come from and with your wanderings and searchings.

All:      We give thanks to God, who companions us on our way.

One:    Come with your thirst and hunger for that which is good,

            and that which brings good.

All:      We give thanks to God, whose goodness does not fail.

One:    Come as those who would be encouraged and transformed

            by God.

All:      We give thanks to God, whose purpose is life renewed

            and redeemed.

One:    With all of God's everyday saints

 All:     We gather today.

Hymn: We Are One v. 1, 2    VU #402

1 We are one as we come, as we come, joyful to be here,

in the praise on our lips there's a sense that God is near.

We are one as we sing, as we seek, we are found;

and we come needful of God's grace as we meet,

together in this place.

2 We are one as we share, as we share brokenness and fear,

in the touch of a hand there's a sense that God is here.

We are one as we care, as we heal, we are healed;

and we share warmth in God's embrace as we pray

together in this place.

Prayer of Confession

One:    The stories we claim, and that claim us, are diverse:

           Stories of stepping out in risk.

All:      Stories of holding back in fear.

One:    Stories of reaching out with forgiveness.

All:      Stories of needing forgiveness.

One:    Stories of conflict and estrangement.

All:      Stories of reconciliation and restoration.

One:    Stories of God-with-us in all these times.

Silent Prayer of Confession

Assurance of Grace

One:    God knows our humanness and loves us in it. God knows our fears, and stands gently, patiently not on the shore but in the water with  arms outstretched,  inviting us to take the next step. Whatever happens, God is more ready to forgive us than we are to forgive ourselves.

All:      Our assurance comes in the gift of God’s presence, in the renewal by the Holy Spirit, in the promise of Christ’s realm.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Peace of Christ

Christ is with us and in the space between us. 

Let us share the peace he brings!

              The Peace of Christ be with you!

              And also with you!

First Reading: Joshua 3:7-17

The Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight

of all Israel, so that they may know that I will be with you as I was with Moses. You are the one who shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” Joshua then said to the Israelites, “Draw near and hear the words of the Lord your God.” Joshua said, “By this you shall know that among you is the living God who without fail will drive out from before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites: the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is going to pass before you into the Jordan. So now select twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. When the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan flowing from above shall be cut off; they shall stand in a single heap.” 

When the people set out from their tents to cross over the Jordan, the priests bearing the ark of the covenant were in front of the people. Now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest. So when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the edge of the water, the waters flowing from above stood still, rising up in a single heap far off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, while those flowing toward the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea, were wholly cut off. Then the people crossed over opposite Jericho. While all Israel were crossing over on dry ground, the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, until the entire nation finished crossing over the Jordan.

Gospel Reading

One:    God be with you.          

All:      And also with you

One:    The Good News of Jesus Christ according to Matthew

All:      Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Gospel Reading:

Matthew 23:1-12

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, ‘The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practise what they teach. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. They love to have the place of honour at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, and to be greeted with respect in the market-places, and to have people call them rabbi. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father—the one in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.

One:    This is the Gospel of Christ

All:      Praise be to Jesus Christ

Reflection: How’s the Water?

Silent Reflection

Hymn: Blest Be The Tie That Binds  VU #602  

1 Blest be the tie that binds
our hearts in Christian love;
the unity of heart and mind
is like to that above.

2 Before our Maker’s throne
we pour our ardent prayers;
our fears, our hopes, our aims are one,
our comforts and our cares.

3 We share each other's woes,
each other's burdens bear;
and often for each other flows
the sympathizing tear.

4 The glorious hope revives
our courage on the way;
that we shall live in perfect love
in God's eternal day.

Apostle’s Creed: Let us affirm our faith . . .

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.

Prayers of the People          Betty Schultze                                                                            

One:    Gracious God,     

All:      Hear Our Prayer

Lord’s Prayer  New Zealand Prayer Book – Jim Cotter

Eternal Spirit, Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver, Source of all

that is and that shall be, Father and Mother of us all, Loving God,

in whom is heaven: The hallowing of your name echo through the universe! The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world! Your heavenly will be done by all created beings! Your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on earth. With the bread we need for today, feed us. In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us. In times of temptation and test, strengthen us. From trials too great to endure, spare us. From the grip of all that is evil, free us. For you reign in the glory of            the power that is love, now and for ever. Amen

Offering

Reflection/Witness     Susan Brockley

Prayer

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. Glory to God from generation to generation, in the Church and in Christ Jesus, for ever and ever. Amen.

Hymn: Guide me O Thou Great Jehovah    VU #651 

1 Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty;
hold me with thy powerful hand;
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
feed me till I want no more,
feed me till I want no more.

2 Open now the crystal fountain
whence the healing stream doth flow;
let the fire and cloudy pillar
lead me all my journey through.
Strong Deliverer, strong Deliverer,
be thou still my strength and shield,
be thou still my strength and shield.

3 When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside;
death of death, and hell's destruction,
land me safe on Canaan's side:
songs of praises, songs of praises
I will ever give to thee,
I will ever give to thee.

Blessing

If you are with another person, you’re invited to bless each other, taking every other line.

One:      The Creator’s blessing be yours on your road, on your journey,    guiding you, cherishing you.

Male:     The Son’s blessing be yours, wine and water, bread and stories, feeding you, challenging you.

Female: The Spirit’s blessing be yours, wind and fire, joy and wisdom,       comforting you, disturbing you.

All:        The Angel’s blessing be yours, on your house, on your living, guarding you, encouraging you. Let us walk together, a community on a journey, sustained in God’s blessing. Amen!

One:      Let us go now in peace to love and serve the Lord.

All:        Thanks be to God! Alleluia!