May 19th, 2024

Pentecost Sunday

Find this service at www.graceunitedthornbury.ca/live

Leading us today in Worship:
     Minister: Rev. Dr. John Greg. Smith
     Music Director: Dr. Christopher Burton
     Scripture Reader: Carol Clarke

Leader: regular font ~ All: bold font ~ Sung words: bold italics.
Asterisk * Indicates when the congregation may stand if able.

We Gather 

PRELUDE
Fantasy on the tune "Thornbury" - arr. C. Burton

WELCOME

*INTROIT:   MV #14
“Where Two or Three are Gathered in My Name”

Where two or three are gathered in my name,
I am there, I am there.  (X4)

The CHRIST CANDLE
As we gather together on this Pentecost day,
We turn to light the candle which reminds us:
Christ’s spirit dances within us,
Christ’s spirit enlivens us, and gives us life.
Christ’s spirit feeds our souls, heals our spirits
And sends us back to the world with hope.
May it be so!  AMEN!

OUR COMMITMENT to SAFE SPACE & ACKNOWLEDGEMENT of the LAND
We believe all people are made in the image of God and are entitled to dignity and respect.  At Grace United Church we try to offer a safer, inclusive and generous space for all who are seeking a faith community.  We offer full participation of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities, all races, ages and abilities in the life and work of the ministry.

Grace United Church is situated on the traditional territories of the Anishinaabek, Petun, Huron-Wendat, and Mississauga peoples, located within the boundary of the region of Treaty 18 of 1818. We humbly acknowledge the First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples of Canada as traditional stewards of the land on which we work and worship and are committed to working actively toward genuine restitution and reconciliation.

CALL to WORSHIP
Holy Spirit, you are our Fire:
Come now and light our hearts on fire!
Holy Spirit, you are our energy:
Come now and energize us for the new life ahead of us.
Holy Spirit, your love is all consuming:
Come now and overwhelm us with your power.
Holy Spirit you are the Breath of Life:
Come now and breathe new life into us!
Holy Spirit, you are theTransforming Presence:
Come now and transform us from the inside out!
Holy Spirit, you are the Purifier of Hearts:
Come now and clean out the cobwebs in our minds!
Holy Spirit, your presence illuminates our souls,
Warms our spirits,
And limbers up our hands for the work of Jesus in our world:
Come and be the light for our journey ahead!
Come Holy Spirit Come!

* HYMN: VU #202
“O Breath of Life” (tune 437)

1. O Breath of life, come sweeping through us,
revive your church with life and power;
O Breath of life, come, cleanse, renew us
and fit your church to meet this hour.

2. O Wind of God, come bend us, break us
till humbly we confess our need;
then, in your tenderness remake us,
revive, restore - for this we plead.

3. O Breath of love, come breathe within us,
renewing thought and will and heart;
come, love of Christ, afresh to win us,
revive your church in every part.

OPENING PRAYER
Thank you God, for the gift of your Holy Spirit on this day of Pentecost!
Holy Spirit, you are welcome in my mind!
You are welcome in my heart!
You are welcome in my spirit!
Holy Spirit, you are welcome in our family circles!
You are welcome in our church!
You are welcome in this time of worship!
Holy Spirit
Fill us once again with the gift of your spirit.
Renew us, and re-energize us with the fire and breath and power of Pentecost.
Remind us who we are, that we belong to you.
Ignite once again the courage and compassion,  strength and love,
Already coursing through the inner reaches of our own spirits.
Holy Spirit,
Help us restore all the lost connections in our lives.
Help us restore the connections with all our relations, and with all of nature.
Help us restore the connections with your unconditional love for all beings.
Help us restore the connections to the One who fashioned us for love,
Turned our hearts to justice,
And set our own inner spirits ablaze with passion for the truth.
Holy Spirit,
You are welcome in my mind!
You are welcome in my heart!
You are welcome in my spirit!
Thank you God, for the gifts of your Holy Spirit on this day of Pentecost!
AMEN!

SUNG RESPONSE: VU #381
“Spirit of Life”   (seated)

Spirit of Life, come unto me.
Sing in my heart all the stirrings of compassion.
Blow in the wind, rise in the sea;
move in the hand, giving life the shape of justice.
Roots hold me close; wings set me free;
Spirit of Life, come to me, come to me.

We Listen 

SCRIPTURE READINGS
Psalm 104:   (From Psalms for Praying,) Responsive

Bless the Lord O my soul!
Bless the One who clothes the earth with justice and mercy.
Bless the one who adorns the earth with radiant light.
Bless the one whose radiance covers the waters.
Bless the One whose Breath is the Breath of Life.
You shine on the clouds;
You ride on the wings of the wind!
The wind, the Spirit of Life, carries your voice.
Your fire refines the dross of our souls.
You created the earth, the mountains, valleys, trees and streams.
You water the earth, quenching its thirst with Living Water.
You give life to the birds who sing among the branches of the trees.
The majesty of Creation is seen throughout the land;
The sounds of creation mingle with the music of the spheres.
You shine on the clouds;
You ride on the wings of the wind!
The wind, the Spirit of Life, carries your voice.
Your fire refines the dross of our souls.
And as for your people, you love them and guide them.
You know all our hearts;
In wisdom you have created them all.
The works of your love are sure;
Even as the earth trembles, yet you are with us.
I will abandon myself into your hands as long as I live;
I will sing praises to you as long as I have breath!
You shine on the clouds;
You ride on the wings of the wind!
The wind, the Spirit of Life, carries your voice.
Your fire refines the dross of our souls.

Second Reading
Acts 2:   1 – 21   (New International Version)

The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.  Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.  They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.  When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken.  Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans?  Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language?  Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,  Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome  (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.  These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning!  No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

 “‘In the last days, God says,
    I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
    your young men will see visions,
    your old men will dream dreams.
 Even on my servants, both men and women,
    I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
    and they will prophesy.
 I will show wonders in the heavens above
    and signs on the earth below,
    blood and fire and billows of smoke.
 The sun will be turned to darkness
    and the moon to blood
    before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
 And everyone who calls
    on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

RESPONSE
These words from scripture are meant to guide us, nurture us, and teach us.
Thanks be to God!

ANTHEM
"What God Can Do" - Nancy Price and Don Besig

SERMON: “Will the Church Survive?”

We Respond 

*HYMN: MV #98
“Like a River of Tears”

1. Like a river of tears your love pours upon us; 
like a sunshine of blessing your grace will sustain us;
like a star-studded sky your spirit shines o’er us,
renewing our spirits with courage and faith.

2. Like a bird in free flight by windows around us;
like a wind in the forest that breathes life among us;
like a phoenix that’s rising from ashes around us,
renewing our spirits with vision and grace.

3. Like a pillar of cloud you promise to guide us;
like a bright fiery bush you come to speak to us;
like a calm cooling breeze your spirit breathes in us,
renewing our spirits with loving embrace.

4. Like a lover’s caress your spirit revives us;
like a song of the soul you come to be with us;
like a prayer of the hear you heal and restore us,
renewing our spirits, the future to face.

PRAYER of DEDICATION for OUR OFFERINGS
The work of creating a world that works for all,
Requires many gifts, many talents, many resources.
We bring all that we have, our courage, our strength,
Our prayers and our dreams,
Our gifts of time and treasure,
And all the love and acceptance we embody,
To create God’s world of justice and joy.
Thanks be to God.  AMEN

Donate online:   www.graceunitedthornbury.ca,  select “Give”
     or contact the office by email: accounting@graceunitedthornbury.ca
     or  phone: 519-599-2438 to arrange a cheque pick-up, or an e-transfer
     Mail: Grace UC, 140 Bruce St. S. PO Box 219, Thornbury, ON N0H 2P0
     or Offering Plate at the back of the sanctuary.

     Care, Prayer, Share

PRAYER of the PEOPLE
The Lord’s Prayer, Casa Del Sol version

Ground of all being,
Mother of life, Father of the universe,
Your name is sacred, beyond our speaking.
May we know your presence always;
may your longings be our longings
in our hearts and in our actions.
May there be food for the human family today
and for the whole earth community.
Forgive us the falseness of what we have done
as we forgive those who are untrue to us.
Do not forsake us in our time of conflict
but lead us into new beginnings.
For the light of life, the vitality of life, and the glory of life
are yours now and forever.
Amen

What’s Up at Grace?

We Go Out 

*HYMN: VU #625
“I Feel the Winds of God Today”

1. I feel the winds of God today;
today my sail I lift,
though heavy oft with drenching spray
and torn with many a rift;
if hope but light the water’s crest,
and Christ my bark will use,
I’ll seek the seas at his behest,
and brave another cruise.

2. It is the wind of God that dries
my vain regretful tears,
until with braver thoughts shall rise
the purer, brighter years;
if cast on shores of selfish ease
or pleasure I should be,
O let me feel your freshening breeze,
and I’ll put back to sea.

3. If ever I forget your love
and how that love was shown,
lift high the blood-red flag above;
it bears your name alone.
Great pilot of my onward way,
you will not let me drift.
I feel the winds of God today;
today my sail I lift.

*COMMISSIONING

*SUNG BLESSING
“In All of my Life”

In all of my life
In all of my ways
In all my priorities
Through all of my days
In all that I choose
In all that I say:
May love be supreme in my life
This I pray.

In all of our life
In all of our ways
In all our priorities
Through all of our days:
In all that we choose
In all that we say:
May love be supreme in our lives
This I pray!

POSTLUDE
“Courante” - G.F. Handel

***** 

LITURGY SOURCES: The following are used with permission:
Call to Worship and prayers are written by Rev. John G. Smith
The Lord’s Prayer – Casa Del Sol version.

HYMNS and SUNG VERSES
- “Where Two or Three are Gathered:” Words and music: Bruce Harding, 2002, after Matthew 18:20. Words and music copyright © 2002 by Bruce Harding, www.evensong.ca. One License #608577
- “O Breath of Life”:-Tune 437. Words: Elizabeth A.P. Head. Music: © 1974 Ron Klusmeier Words: public domain. Music: CCLI #11203479.
- “Spirit of Life:” Words, Music: Carolyn McDade © 1981 Carolyn McDade, 76 Everett Skinner Rd., Plainville, MA 02762, USA. Harmony: © 1992 Unitarian Universalist Association, 25 Beacon St., Boston, MA 02108-2892 USA. Words, Music: Carolyn McDade. Harmony: Unitarian Universalist Association. One License #608577
- “Like a River of Tears:” Words: John Oldham, 1996.Music: Ron Klusmeier, 1997. Words copyright © 1996 by John Wesley Oldham. Music copyright © 1997 by Ron Klusmeier, www.musiklus.com. One License #608577.
- “I Feel the Winds of God Today:” Words: Jessie Adams 1907 © 1933 National Adult School Organisation, MASU Centre, Gaywood Croft, Cregoe St., Birmingham B15 2ED, England. Music: English and Irish traditional melody. Arrangement: Ralph Vaughan Williams 1906. Used by permission of Oxford University Press. Words: National Adult School Organisation. Music: Public Domain. Arrangement: Oxford University Press
- “In All My Life:” Sung benediction – Used with permission, © 2005 Scott Kearns.