The
Congregations of St. Mark’s and St. David’s
United Church
of Canada
Port
Hawkesbury/Port Hastings, NS
Office:
625-2229, Fax 625-3597, e-mail: stmarksuc@gmail.com
Blog:
http://ourcontactonline.blogspot.com/
Presbytery
Website: inverguyunited.ca
Ministers:
The Whole People of God
Minister: Nan
Corrigan D. M.
Minister of
Music: Al Fougere
November
15th, 2015— Children’s Sunday
Bread Not
Stones: Taking Action to End Child Poverty
Jesus said: “Would
anyone among you offer your child a stone instead of bread, or a
snake instead of fish? If you know how to give your children what is
good for them, how much more will our loving God give good things to
those who ask!”
(Matthew
7:9–11 paraphrased)
On the card attached to the Poverty Dolls
The “Bread Not Stones” Initiative
of
The United Church of Canada
“When a child asks for bread, who of us would give the child a
stone”? From Matthew 7:9
This doll is a symbol of our initiative to eliminate child poverty in
Canada. These dolls, paper dolls and communication with our
governments are all part of our Canada-wide campaign to raise
awareness that hundreds of thousands of children in our country
live in poverty.
Children living in poverty and their families deserve:
Affordable housing
Nutritious meals each day
Affordable child care
A living wage
We need a nation-wide strategy to eliminate child poverty.
We can do it!
**This doll is not safety tested–do not give to children**
Announcements The
Work of Church and Community
WE
GATHER TO WORSHIP GOD
Greeting
One: The peace of Christ
be with you. All: And with your spirit.
*Introit Come
Build a Church
Come build a church with
soul and spirit,
come build a church of
flesh and bone.
We need no tower rising
skyward;
no house of wood or glass
or stone.
Come build a church with
human frailty,
come build a church of
flesh and blood.
Jesus shall be its sure
foundation.
It shall be built by the
hand of God.
Words and
music: Ken Medema Copyright © Ken Medema Music/Brier Patch Music
(ASCAP) 1995. Used by permission.
Call to Worship
(tune “Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush”)
We gather round in this
holy space,
holy space, filled with
grace.
We gather round in this
holy space,
to do as Jesus taught us.
By Brian
Odgen, from Nursery Rhyme Nativities, published by Barnabas for
Children 2011, www.brfonline.org.uk, used by permission.
Opening Prayer
* Hymn Sing
Praise to God, Who Has Shaped VU221
Prayer for Wholeness
One: Merciful God, when
millions of children suffer hunger, we confess that we have not
worked faithfully enough to feed them.
All: When one of every
six children in our nation lives in poverty, we confess that we have
not laboured with love that is deep enough or broad enough.
One: When we give up
trying to solve the huge problems children face, we confess that we
have not been steadfast in our hope.
All: Forgive us, we
pray. Help us to labour more faithfully, lovingly, and persistently
so that one day all children will be loved and protected. Amen.
Assurance of Love
It is time to honour
and celebrate children! God loves and embraces children and adults
and offers us all the opportunity for a fresh start. We are forgiven.
Thanks be to God.
WE
LISTEN FOR GOD’S WORD
1
Samuel 1:4–20 Samuel is born to
Hannah and Eli.
One:
Herein is Wisdom. All: Thanks be to
God.
Responsive
Reading Song of Hannah VU878
One:
First two lines of each verse All:
Final two lines of each verse
Sung Response: My
soul is filled with joy in my Redeemer!
*Hymn My
Lord, What a Morning VU708
Opening the Word &
The Lord's Prayer (paraphrase)
Our dear God, who lives
in heaven,
your name is very, very
special and great.
You look after everyone
who has died and everyone alive.
We want to live here on
earth, with you,
just like you live in
heaven.
Please give us all that
we need to survive.
Sorry for all we’ve
done wrong—please forgive us.
We will forgive
everyone that has done wrong to us.
Please stop us wanting
to do bad things and don’t let anything bad hurt us or make us want
to fight back.
Help us to remember
that you made this planet,
and us, and everything
else on it.
You are in charge of
the world and will be for ever. Amen.
By Jack,
India, and Harry of the parish of St Thomas the Apostle, Elson,
Gosport, UK. Taken from Creative Ideas for Sacramental Worship with
Children
by Simon Rundell (Canterbury Press, UK: 2011), p. 60. Used by
permission.
The Gospel
Acclamation
Matthew 5:1–12
One: Herein is
Good News. All: Praise be to God.
Opening the Word 2
WE
RESPOND IN FAITH
*Hymn Blest Are
They VU896
Minute for Mission &
Offering Our Gifts to God
*Offering
Prayer
Loving God, by your
generosity we have received
all that we have and all that we are.
Grant that we may so use
the things which you have entrusted to our care,
that we may become more and more your children
in spirit and in truth; in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
all that we have and all that we are.
Grant that we may so use
the things which you have entrusted to our care,
that we may become more and more your children
in spirit and in truth; in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Prayers of Thanksgiving
and Concern
WE GO TO SERVE GOD
*
Hymn Now Thank We All Our God VU236
* Commissioning and
Blessing
Let us go now in hope—
to proclaim the message
of God’s love for all God’s children,
to proclaim God’s
call for justice for all God’s children,
to proclaim God’s
peace offered to all God’s children,
to proclaim God’s
vision of shalom—peace and wholeness—for all children.
Let us go now trusting
God to go with us.
*Choral Amen
