UNION CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF HANCOCK
We respect tradition — and we welcome inclusive language about people and expansive language about God. Please pray using words most meaningful to you.
Open and Affirming of ALL God’s Children
July 21, 2024
This service will be in-person and on Zoom at 9:30 a.m. (Recorded for Facebook and YouTube)
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 822 2425 2518
Passcode: 755650
The first pew in front of the pulpit has books and quiet activities for people of all ages.
Please find something that suits you, take it to your pew, and return it after the service.
Silent Prayer
God of the wind and water, rocks and trees, turtles and loons… we see you and are grateful for the natural beauty of this place we know as Pilgrim Lodge… this place that had been known and loved by the People of the Dawn long before we became its stewards. We pray for the courage, O God, to explore our relationship to this unceded land and her original people.
* Indicates points in the service when we stand in body or spirit
Announcements
Prelude
Welcome
*Introit Be Present Here PL Song Book #51
Be present here, most gracious God, from whom all goodness springs.
Make clean our hearts, and feed our souls on good and joyful things.
*Call to Worship A LITANY FOR OUTDOOR MINISTRY
One: God of all creation, we praise your holy name!
All: We thank you for lakeshores and mountaintops, for burning stars and beating hearts.
One: We thank you for the beauty of the Earth that surrounds us, and fills us,
All: for the presence of Christ in one another, and the chance to find it in ourselves.
One: We remember how Jesus withdrew to the wilderness to pray, and then returned to community.
All: We thank you for the opportunity to follow Jesus into the wilderness, and to know we are in an integral part of creation.
One: We thank you for communities of faith everywhere.
All: For monasteries, retreat centers, and outdoor ministry programs whose mission is to provide sacred space.
One: God, please bless and protect all camps. Hear our prayers for a summer that is safe, meaningful,
All: and FUN!
One: Bless all our United Church of Christ Outdoor Ministry sites and programs: staff, volunteers, and, of course, campers.
All: Thank you for Pilgrim Lodge!
One: May we all do our part to nurture this ministry of inclusion, where children and adults are encouraged to discover their true self, and the divine spark within, around and between them.
All: Help us to set the table for the bountiful feast that You offer.
One: We ask for blessing and love for our friends in New Hampshire, at Horton Center.
All: Be with us in worship, and song, in conversation and scripture, in balloons and variety shows, in shaving cream whiffle ball and picnics, in group building and laughter, in sunsets on the lake, and ice cream on the boardwalk.
One: Let our time at camp be like a refreshing jump into the cool lake on a warm summer day.
All: so that we may return to the world ready and willing to do Your will, and do our part to bring about a work of healing, reconciliation and justice. AMEN!
*Passing of the Peace (ASL) and Lighting of Peace & Justice Candle
*Hymn Part of the Family PL Song Book #76
Chorus:
Come in, come in and sit down;You are a part of the fam’ly.We are lost and we are foundAnd we are a part of the fam’ly.
You know the reason why you came,Yet no reason can explain,So share in the laughter and cry in the pain,For we are a part of the fam’ly
God is with us in this place,Like a Mother's warm embraceWe're all forgiven by God's grace,For we are a part of the fam’ly
Children and elders, Middlers and teens,Singles and doubles and in-betweens.Strong eighty-fivers and streetwise sixteens,We are a part of the family.
Greeters and shoppers, longtime and new,Nobody here has a claim on a pew.
And whether we're many or only a few,We are a part of the family.
Chorus:
Come in, come in and sit down;You are a part of the fam’ly.We are lost and we are foundAnd we are a part of the fam’ly.
There's life to be shared, in the bread and the wine.We are the branches, Christ is the vine.This is God's temple, it's not yours or mine,But we are a part of the family.
There's rest for the weary, and health for us all.There's a yoke that is easyAnd a burden that's small.So come in and worship and answer the call,For we are a part of the family.
*Invocation (in unison)
Creator God, we thank you for the world you have made and filled with such beauty. Open our eyes, we pray, to behold your gracious hand in all your works. Inspire us to rejoice in your loving kindness that we may learn to serve you with gladness. Amen
Children’s Message
Hebrew Scripture Psalm 104:24-25
24 O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.
25 There is the sea, great and wide; creeping things innumerable are there, living things both small and great.
Special Music
Message Reflections on the week at Pilgrim Lodge Rev. TJ Mack
*Hymn I Am a Promise PL Song Book #8
Refrain:
I am a promise, I am a possibility.I am a promise with a capital “P.”I am a great big bundle of potentiality.
And I am learnin’ to hear God's voice,And I am tryin’ to make the right choice,I'm a promise to be anything God wants me to be.
I can go anywhere that He wants me to go.I can be anything that He wants me to be. I can climb the high mountain,I can cross the wide seaI am a great big promise you see.
Prayers of the People – Sharing Joys & Concerns
Our Father (Creator, Mother) 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
Lead me Lord, lead me in thy righteousness, make thy way plain before my face.
For it is thou Lord, thou Lord, only, that makest me dwell in safety.
Invitation to Offering –
Offertory A Celtic Pastorale David Lasky
*The Doxology
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise God, all creatures here below;
Praise God for all that love has done; Creator, Christ, and Spirit, One. Amen
*Prayer of Dedication Thank you, God – PL Style PL Song Book after #91
Thank you God for making us one.
Thank you God for making us one.
Thank you God for making us one.
Chorus:
A-le-lu-ia (clap) praise the Lord.
A-le-lu-ia (clap) praise the Lord.
A-le-lu-ia (clap) praise the Lord.
Here at Pilgrim Lodge. (clap, clap)
Hymn Won’t You Let Me Be Your Servant PL Song Book #11 Won’t you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you?Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant, too.
We are pilgrims on a journey, we are travelers on the road;We are here to help each other go the mile and bear the load.
I will hold the Christ-light for you in the shadow of your fear;I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear.
I will weep when you are weeping; when you laugh, I’ll laugh with you.I will share your joy and sorrow till we’ve seen this journey through.
When we sing to God in heaven we shall find such harmony,
Born of all we’ve known together of Christ’s love and agony.
Won’t you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you?Pray that I might have the grace to let you be my servant, too.
*Benediction (Chaplain Kate Braestrup, Maine Warden Service)
May love and strength be in my hands, may love and courage be in my heart, may love and wisdom be in my mind. May God go with me and work through me, today and in all my days. Amen
*Sung Blessing The Christian Edelweiss PL Song Book after #56
May the Lord, Mighty God, bless and keep you forever;
Grant you peace, perfect peace, strength in every endeavor.
Lift your eyes and see God’s face;
Love will leave you never.
May the Lord, Mighty God, bless and keep you forever.
Postlude
(Please remain seated for the Postlude)
If you are visiting with us today, please sign our Guest Book in the back of the sanctuary.
Our Monteux student musicians this morning are Mary Kimble, horn and JT Adinolfi, tuba.
Mary Kimble is a horn player from Cincinnati, Ohio, and is currently obtaining a bachelor’s in horn performance at the Eastman School of Music in the studio of Peter Kurau. At Eastman she performs in numerous large ensembles, and enjoys playing chamber music in her horn quartet, wind quintet and the Eastman horn choir. Outside of music, Mary enjoys crocheting, watching sports and taking long walks.
Julian (JT) Adinolfi is a Tuba and Bass Trombone player based in Northern New Jersey and New York City. He is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Instrumental Music Education from Montclair State University. He holds the Principal tuba position in the Montclair State University Wind Symphony and the Montclair State University Symphony Orchestra, Principal Bass Trombone and Second Tuba in the Grammy Award-winning New York Youth Symphony Orchestra, and a founding member of the Hermes Brass Quintet, which is the brass quintet in residency at the 2024 Kinhaven Young Artist Seminar. Throughout his time and Montclair State, JT has collaborated with Bruce Yurko, Evelyn Glennie, Michael Daughtery, James Blachly, Irfan Tengku, DECODA, Armando Bayolo, Christian McBride, Arturo Sandoval, Eric Whitacre, Eric Jacobson, Xian Zhang, and the New Jersey Symphony. During the summer of 2021, JT traveled to Prague and Vienna with the Montclair State University Wind Symphony to perform at the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Wind Ensembles. Beyond low brass, JT is an active member of the Montclair State University Chorale where he has performed Faure’s Requiem and Orff’s Carmina Burana with the New Jersey Symphony. He also holds a teacher’s assistantship with the Keyboard Musicianship department, where he gives private piano lessons to music majors taking keyboard classes.
Support our Church Financially
Please visit Hancock (Maine) UCC on Facebook or our new webpage www.hancockucc.com
or visit this link to our PayPal account: paypal.me/hancockucc
or mail offerings to:
Union Congregational Church, PO Box 443, Hancock, ME 04640 (Attention: Treasurer)
Contact Us
207.422.3100 207.323.6743
Many thanks to those who make this service possible –
in front of the camera and behind the scenes.
Music Minister – Debbie Riley
Deacons – Sally Knapp & David Wildes
Liturgist – Sarina Brooks
Audio-Video Support – Ron Schwizer
Office Administrator – Vicky Espling
Student Ministry Intern – Sarina Brooks
Settled Minister – Rev. TJ Mack
The Body of Christ – You
Resources:
Much of this service was supplied by Mary Angela Davis.
"Permission to podcast / stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE,
License #A-738532. All rights reserve
Part of the Family
Words and Music - ©1984 J. Manley Publishing
Contributors: James K. Manley
I Am a Promise
Copyright ©1975 William J. Gaither.
All rights reserved. International Copyright Secured. Used by permission.
Won’t You Let Me Be Your Servant
Copyright © 1977 Scripture In Song (℅ Integrity Music)ASCAP ℅ Integrity Media, Inc.
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