Hybrid Church, 4th Sunday after Pentecost, July 3, 2022 with Communion

Hybrid Church, 4th Sunday after Pentecost, July 3, 2022

Rev. Karen Hollis

Musician: Dorothy Dittrich

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

Whoever you are and wherever you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here!

Welcome! 

If you are gathering in person, on zoom or worshipping at home with the bulletin, welcome! We are one community, one in the body of Christ. 

Prelude

Welcome & Announcements

Centering & Stillness

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

Call to Worship                                                                                     enfleshed, adapted

One:  Come! Let us build a space of belonging and connection.

All:    The Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer draw us into relationship!

One:  The Holy Spirit is within us, between us, and beyond us,

All:    beckoning us towards life beyond systems of domination.

One:  Let us worship God -- the Web of Life,

All:    the Interconnecting Rhythm of Love.

Opening Prayer                                 

God of Relationship, make vivid the many ways we depend on each other. Lift up all who labour for the greater good and all who serve in your name. We desire to honor, as you honor, those who care for our bodies, who harvest our food, and who clean our shared spaces. We yearn for a world where labor is shared equitably and where all may be well-rested and deeply dignified. Amen.

Hymn: Draw the Circle Wide           v. 1,2                            MV #145

            1 God the still-point of the circle

Round you all creation turns

Nothing lost but held forever

in God's gracious arms 

(Refrain)

Draw the circle wide, draw it wider still.

Let this be our song: no one stands alone.

Standing side by side, draw the circle,

draw the circle wide...

2 Let our hearts touch far horizons

So encompass great and small

Let our loving know no borders

Faithful to God's call (Refrain)

Prayer of Confession and Emptying          

God, we come before you with our worries and anxieties, our feelings of loneliness and helplessness, our desire to manage and control; we acknowledge how difficult it is to wrap our minds around the state of the world. Help us to distinguish between things can and cannot control . . . the things we need to take up and that which we need to let go. 

Please join me in the Palms Down Palms Up Prayer                                 

Release 

Begin by placing your palms down as a symbolic indication of your desire to turn over any concerns you may have to God.

Receive 

After several moments of surrender, turn you palms up as 

a symbol of your desire to receive from God.  

Commune

 You’re invited to spend a few remaining moments in silence and stillness with the Holy presence that is always here with us. Allow God to commune with you, to love you.                     

 from Richard Foster’s book Celebration of Discipline

Assurance of Grace

Thanks be to God for the love that meets us right where we are. Thanks be to God for the courage to tell the truth and hear once again, you are beloved and free!

Passing of the Peace

The Peace of Christ that surpasses all understanding binds us together in this worship space. Let us share this peace with one another:

One:    The peace of Christ be with you! 

All:      And also with you!

You are invited to turn to those directly around you and share Christ’s peace. Those on zoom, please unmute and share with one another.

Reader: By the gift of your Spirit, calm and quiet our souls that we may hear your Word today and be lifted up to walk with you. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen

             

Psalm 30  (VU p. 757)      Reader: Shelagh Huston                    

 I will extol you, O God, for you have lifted me up;

          you have not let my enemies triumph over me.

O God, my God, I cried to you for help.

and you restored my health.

          You brought me back from the dead;

          You save my life as I was going down to the Grave.

Let all your servants sing praises to you,

and give thanks to your holy name.

          Your anger is but for a moment,

but your kindness is life eternal. R

In my prosperity I said,

          “I shall never be shaken;

          your favour, O God,

          has made me as firm as any strong mountain.”

You turned your face away from me,

and I was greatly dismayed.

I called to you; I made my appeal:

          “What profit is there in my death,

          in my going down to the Grave?

Will the dust give you praise?

Will it proclaim your faithfulness?

          Hear, O God, and be gracious to me;

          O God, be my helper.” R

You turned my morning into dancing;

          you stripped off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

so that my heart will sing your praise without ceasing.

          O God, my God, I will give thanks to you forever. R

Gospel Reading           Reader: David Soy

As is your custom, please stand or sit for the reading of the gospel. 

Reader:           God be with you.         

All:      And also with you

Reader:           The Good News of Jesus Christ according to Luke

All:        Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 (NRSV)

After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest. Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace to this house!” And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the labourer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.” But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, “Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.” ‘Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.’ The seventy returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!’ He said to them, ‘I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.’

       Reader: This is the Gospel of Christ.   

       All:        Praise be to Jesus Christ       

Reflection        (attached)

Silent Reflection

Hymn: My Soul Cries Out v. 1&2           MV #120

1 My soul cries out with a joyful shout

that the God of my heart is great,

and my spirit sings of the wondrous things

that you bring to the ones who wait.

You fixed your sight on your servant’s plight,

and my weakness you did not spurn,

so from east to west shall my name be blest.

Could the world be about to turn?

Refrain

My heart shall sing of the day you bring.

Let the fires of your justice burn.

Wipe away all tears, for the dawn draws near,

and the world is about to turn.

2 Though I am small, my God, my all,

you work great things in me,

and your mercy will last from the depths of the past

to the end of the age to be.

Your very name puts the proud to shame,

and to those who would for you yearn,

you will show your might, put the strong to flight,

for the world is about to turn. Refrain

Affirmation of Faith

You are the new song.

You are the next beat in my heart.

You are the praise and possibility. 

You are the present and the future.

I believe the Light of the World has come this day. 

I see it now in all days. 

Those gone and those to come aflame in love.

Your love wrapped in human form,

Your love learned in justice and in mercy,

Your love risen over death.

I believe love has come on this day.

I believe love has and will always come.                                             

Prayers of the People      Susan Brockley             

One:  Loving God

All:    Hear Our Prayers

Lord’s Prayer (sung)        VU #959

Our Father in heaven, 

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come, 

your will be done

on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins

as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial

and deliver us from evil,

for the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours,

now and for ever.

Invitation for Offering                                                                            

Doxology            CP #669

Praise God the Source of life and birth,

Praise God the Word, who cam to earth.

Praise God the Spirit, holy flame.

All Glory, honour to God’s name.

Lay Assistant please come forward

Offering Prayer      enfleshed

Living Christ, we see how the world could be -- ecosystems cherished and preserved; workers in our communities cared for reverently. And yet our minds and spirits anguish over the ways which systems of domination plow over the living. We aim to live differently together. Bless our offerings to our radical, gentle, and precious care for each other. Amen

Invitation to Communion

On the night of his arrest, Jesus shared a meal with his companions.

He took bread, blessed it, broke it, gave it to his disciples and said:

“This is my body which is given for you.

Do this in remembrance of me.”

After the meal, he took the cup, blessed it, and shared it saying:

“This cup that is poured out is the new covenant.”

In remembrance of all you have done to save us,

we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

Christ was birthed among us.         

Christ was killed among us.

Christ rises again among us. 

Pour out your Spirit on these gifts, O God. Make these ordinary elements into the Sacred gift of your presence with us once again. May they awaken us anew to your everlasting invitation into a life of resurrection. Aliven us in our pursuit of a world where all needs are met, power is balanced, and the worth of every creature and creation is celebrated.

Through Christ, with Christ, and in Christ, 

in the unity of the Holy Spirit, 

all glory is yours, 

Almighty God now and forever, Amen

Breaking the Bread

One:  “I am the bread of life,” Jesus says. “Whoever comes to me will never be hungry; whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

All:    Taste and see that the Lord is good; happy are they who trust in him!

One: These are the gifts of God for the people of God.

All:    Thanks be to God.

Those in the sanctuary are invited to also receive a wafer by following these instructions.

Those on the socially distanced side of the sanctuary, please remain seated to be served in the pew. Those on the non-socially distanced side, please keep to your right as you process up behind the communion table to receive and continue around, back to your seat.

Communion Hymn: Bread of Life                                                  MV #194

1Bread of life, feed my soul,

as the presence of the Spirit makes me whole.

Bread of life, fill my heart

with the grace and mercy you impart.

2I have heard your voice calling,

‘Come, my friend, and share

in the feast that is laid out for you

to show how much I care.’

3Bread of life, help me live

a life as pure and true as Jesus did.

Bread of life, help me see

the boundless love of Christ for you and me.

4I have heard your voice calling,

‘Come, my friend, and share

in the feast that is laid out for you

to show how much I care.’

5Bread of life, feed my soul,

as the presence of the Spirit makes me whole.

Bread of life, fill my heart

with the grace and mercy you impart

Prayer After Communion                                                                Enfleshed

God, by the bread of heaven and the cup of life, you make us one body. Bind us together by your spirit that we might live into your hopes for us, a community centered in Christ and rich in compassion, commitment, courage, and care. May it be so.

Hymn: Go to the World v. 2,3,4    VU #420

2 Go to the world! Go into every place.

Go live the Word of God's redeeming grace.

Go seek God's presence in each time and space.

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

3 Go to the world! Go struggle, bless and pray;

the nights of tears give way to joyous day.

As servant Church, you follow Christ's own way.

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

4 Go to the world! Go as the ones I send,

for I am with you 'til the age shall end,

when all the hosts of glory cry 'Amen!'

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Blessing                                                                                                          Iona Community

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.

A-M:

          The Son’s blessing be yours, wine and water, bread and stories,

          feeding you, challenging you.

N-Z:

          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!