Bulletin

Welcome to United Christian Parish! Use the bulletin as guidance as you worship.
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MAY 24 ORDER OF WORSHIP

PRELUDE

WELCOME

SONG
“The Spirit, Holy Spirit”
by Cathy Skogen-Soldner
The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-moving us on!
The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-moving us on!
The power of the Spirit is moving us on, moving us on, moving us on!
The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-moving us on!

The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-making us strong!
The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-making us strong!
The power of the Spirit is making us strong, making us strong, making us strong!
The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-making us strong!

The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-giving us hope!
The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-giving us hope!
The power of the Spirit is giving us hope, giving us hope, giving us hope!
The Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit is a-giving us hope!

CALL TO WORSHIP *                      
One: Let us rejoice and call upon God’s name.
All: Holy God, your people have gathered in this space.
One: God, pour out your Spirit:
All: Upon all people, young and old, near and far, friend and stranger—all neighbors.
One: Empower us to speak for justice.
All: Grant us visions of peace.
One: Inspire us with dreams for the future.
All: On this day of Pentecost, we also give thanks for the gift of this community—for the life of this parish, born and sustained by your Spirit.
One: We rejoice in your faithfulness through every season of our shared life. As the early church was born in wind and fire, so you have shaped us as your people here.
All: We give thanks for all who have worshiped, served, loved, and grown in this place.
One: God, pour out your Spirit, that we may be a living sign of your presence in this place and time.
All: Let us worship and praise!

OPENING SONG *
“Every Time I Feel the Spirit” (#282)
Refrain: Every time I feel the Spirit
moving in my heart I will pray.
Yes, every time I feel the Spirit
moving in my heart I will pray.

Upon the mountain my God spoke,
out of God's mouth came fire and smoke.
Looked all around me; it looked so fine,
I asked my God if all were mine. [Refrain]

Oh, Jordan river, chilly and cold,
it chills the body, but not the soul.
There's only one train on this track;
it runs to heaven, then right back.  [Refrain]

OPENING PRAYER *
One: Come, Holy Spirit, open our hearts to the beauty and brokenness of this world. As on the day of Pentecost, come to us now in whirlwind, in flame, and in holy cacophony to disrupt life-as-usual.
All: Reveal God’s grace to us in unexpected places, in unexpected people, and even in unexpected moments of chaos.
One: For you, O God, hovered as spirit over the restless waters, bringing forth the orders of creation.
All: You, O God, breathed your Spirit into the world, creating goodness and life.
One: By this Spirit, stir up in us new life, holy restlessness, and relentless inspiration to sing your praises into this world as release and as resistance.
All: And as you once formed your church by the power of your Spirit, so you have formed this parish into a place of grace, gathering, and witness. We give thanks for this day, for this community, and for the story you continue to write among us

CALL TO CONFESSION *
One: God of the Pentecost Spirit, your blessings rise like fire, fall like rain, and move like wind.
All: You pour out goodness and grace upon every age, every gender, every race, every place, every people group, and every generation.
One: Your love and justice are available to all, yet human structures, systems, and prejudices create barriers around those blessings. And so we offer ourselves to your presence, God of grace, through the love of Christ and the calling of the Spirit,
All: the Spirt that Jesus promised, the Spirit of truth—the Spirit we encounter at Pentecost— that abides with us, comforts us, and advocates for us.
One: It is by the inspiration of this very Spirit that we come before God, trusting that we can name out loud our brokenness, our sin, and our need for grace. Let us confess our sins, first together and then in a moment of silence. Let us pray…

PRAYER OF CONFESSION *
All: God of mercy, we confess to you the ways in which we have grieved your Spirit: by ignoring the needs of others to avoid our own discomfort, by being afraid of differences and slow to seek understanding, by letting our boundaries become barriers and our identities become idols. We have fanned the flames of anger and division.  We have neglected our stewardship of your good creation. Forgive us, renew us, and remove from our hearts all fear, anger, and greed. Lead us by your Spirit into the way of compassion and mercy, for the sake of Christ Jesus.

SONG
“Spirit of the Living God” (#283)
Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me;
Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.  
Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me.
Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON *

GLORIA *
Glory to God, whose goodness shines on me,
and to the Son, whose grace has pardoned me,
and to the Spirit, whose love has set me free.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. Amen.
World without end, without end. Amen.
World without end, without end. Amen.
World without end, without end. Amen.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. Amen.

PASSING THE PEACE

OFFERING & CAPITAL CAMPAIGN PLEDGE DEDICATION
One: God of the Pentecost Spirit, on this day when your Spirit was poured out upon the church in wind and flame, we give you thanks for the life you have breathed into your people.
All: From the very beginning, your Spirit gathered believers, formed communities of hope, and called the church into being. Today we celebrate that same Spirit alive among us—in this congregation, in this place, and in this moment of our shared life.
One: Receive now these gifts offered for the renewal and care of this sacred space. Just as the early church devoted themselves to the work of your kingdom, so we dedicate these offerings for the strengthening of your ministry here.
All: Bless these gifts given for our capital improvement campaign.  May they help this church continue to be a house of prayer, a shelter for the weary,  a place of welcome for neighbors and strangers, and a beacon of Christ’s love in this community.
One: As we care for these walls, roofs, and rooms, remind us that your true dwelling is among your people. Fill this place—and our lives—with the fire of your Spirit, that generations yet to come may worship, learn, serve, and rejoice here.
All: We dedicate these gifts with gratitude and hope, trusting that the Spirit who gave birth to the church is still building it among us today.
One: In the name of Christ, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

DOXOLOGY
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
praise Christ, all people here below;
praise Holy Spirit evermore;
praise Triune God, whom we adore.
Amen.

CHILDREN’S TIME

SONG
“The Day the Spirit Came Down”
by Jerry & Petie Hebenstreit

SCRIPTURE (Acts 2:1-21)

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

SONG
“Praise the Lord!”
by Dave Tiller
Praise the Lord!
Hallelujah! Oh, my soul.
Holy Spirit!
Hallelujah, Praise the Lord.

Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord.
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord.
Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord; Praise the Holy Spirit. 
(Mandarin, Latin, German, Ukrainian)

Like a child who has grown with age,
United Christian Parish is fifty-three.
Celebrate! Share wine and song,
We’re on our own to do as we please.

Many faces, colors, ages,
Everyone in their own tongue,
Hears the good news many ways,
And celebrates diversities.

Like a child who has grown with age,
Our new horizons have just begun.
Look Ahead! The world’s our stage
Along with new responsibilities.

Embrace traditions and new ideas;
Share the Word with everyone.
Build a catholic understanding;
Serve in our communities.

We know the promise Jesus made,
The Holy Spirit dwells among
All who serve faithfully,
As we befriend our enemies.

Hallelujah, Oh my soul.
Pour Your Spirit on us all.
May Your Glory last forever.
Hallelujah, Praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

SCRIPTURE (Philippians 4:4-7)

SERMON

LITURGICAL DANCE
“Salvation”
by Elton John and Bernie Taupin

COMMUNION

LORD’S PRAYER
All: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kin(g)dom 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. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kin(g)dom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever.

PRAYER
All: Holy and Precious Spirit of God, you have brought us together, with all of our glorious differences, to find unity at the table of Christ. You have fed us with the bread that sustains life, and you have sated our thirst with the cup of salvation.  Thank you, dear Creator, for your overwhelming love that created us in diversity and gathers us in common love. May the bread and the juice, the fire and wind inspire us today to make a difference in this world of joys and sorrows. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we pray. Amen.

SONG
“Like the Murmur of the Dove’s Song”
by David Ashley White
Like the murmur of the dove's song,
Like the challenge of her flight,
Like the vigor of the wind's rush,
Like the new flame's eager might:
Come, Holy Spirit, come!

To the members of Christ's Body,
To the branches of the Vine,
To the Church in faith assembled,
To her midst as gift and sign:
Come, Holy Spirit, come, come!

With the healing of division,
With the ceaseless voice of prayer,
With the power to love and witness,
With the peace beyond compare:
Come, Holy Spirit, come, come!

AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
Left: We believe in God the Creator: hovering as the creative Spirit before the worlds were made, speaking the cosmos into being, flinging stars across the sky, singing the seas to their limits, drawing up the dry land, greening the earth, animating creatures great and small, and breathing into us the very spirit of life.
Right: We believe in Jesus Christ, the living Word: the teacher, healer, the boundary-crosser, the model of forgiveness and mercy, the caller of disciples, the embodiment of humility and service, the bringer of peace, and the bestower of the Spirit of comfort, advocacy, and truth.
All: We believe in the Holy Spirit: who disrupts the tired patterns of the world, who crashes through barriers, who seeks out disciples from every corner of the earth, who inspires hearts to do justice and to love kindness, who gathers the Church, and who unites us across all time and space into one body, with the communion of saints, across all time and space, for the eternal glory of God. Amen.

CLOSING SONG *
“Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness” (#286)
Refrain: Spirit, Spirit of gentleness,
blow through the wilderness calling and free,
Spirit, Spirit of restlessness, stir me from placidness,
Wind, wind on the sea.

You moved on the waters,
you called to the deep,
then you coaxed up the mountains
from the valleys of sleep;
and over the eons you called to each thing:
“Awake from your slumbers
and rise on your wings.” [Refrain]

You swept through the desert,
you stung with the sand,
and you goaded your people
with a law and a land;
and when they were blinded
with idols and lies,
then you spoke through your prophets
to open their eyes.  [Refrain]

You sang in a stable,
you cried from a hill,
then you whispered in silence
when the whole world was still;
and down in the city
you called once again,
when you blew through your people
on the rush of the wind. [Refrain]

You call from tomorrow,
you break ancient schemes.
From the bondage of sorrow
all the captives dream dreams;
our women see visions,
our men clear their eyes.
With bold new decisions
your people arise.  [Refrain]

CLOSING MESSAGE *

POSTLUDE

*Rise in body or spirit