MAIN STREET WORSHIP February 1, 2015 11:00 a.m. LIFE OF THE CHURCH *HYMN “…to comprehend what is the breadth and length and height and depth of God.” Ephesians 3:18 PRELUDE Partita on “If you will trust in God to guide you,” William Albright Jay Whatley, Organist INTROIT Arise, Shine Sanctuary Choir Dr. Terry Morris, Director of Music THE GATHERING Dr. Steve Wende Dan Forrest Rev. John Onstott *GREETING *HYMN O Worship the King O worship the King, all glorious above, O gratefully sing God's power and God's love; Our Shield and Defender, the Ancient of Days, Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise. #73 O tell of God's might, O sing of God's grace, Whose robe is the light, whose canopy space, Whose chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form, And dark is God's path on the wings of the storm. Seek Ye First Seek ye first the kingdom of God And His righteousness; And all these things shall be added unto you. Allelu, alleluia! *FAITHFUL GIVING THE WORD IN SONG COMMUNION MUSIC Laudate Dominum W. A. Mozart Chelsea Wilburn, Soloist Translation: Praise the Lord, all nations; praise Him, all people. For He has bestowed His mercy upon us, and the truth of the Lord endures forever. The Lord is My Light Sanctuary Choir Courtney Ephesians 3:14-19 This is the Word of the Lord! Thanks be to God! THE LORD’S PRAYER Matthew 6:9-13 arr. Malotte Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, As it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, Forever. Amen. Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise God, all creatures here below; Alleluia! Alleluia! Praise God, the source of all our gifts! Praise Jesus Christ, whose power uplifts! Praise the Spirit, Holy Spirit! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! MESSAGE Meditation on a Danish hymn: Jonathan Reuss O Jesu, än de dina (Around you, Oh Lord Jesus, your own you gather) Jay Whatley, Organist Kristen Jones Director of Missions *DOXOLOGY Frail children of dust, and feeble as frail, In Thee do we trust, nor find Thee to fail; Thy mercies how tender, how firm to the end, Our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend. *CONGREGATION RESPONSE Lamb of God Your only Son, no sin to hide, but You have sent Him from Your side, To walk upon this guilty sod, and to become the Lamb of God. O Lamb of God, sweet Lamb of God, I love the holy Lamb of God! O wash me in His precious blood – my Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. Communion will be brought to you so that all may partake of the Sacrament in unison and unity. If you would like a gluten free communion wafer, please notify an usher. Man does not live by bread alone, But by every word, That proceeds from the mouth of God, Allelu, alleluia! *THE WORD IN SCRIPTURE Rev. Ann Spears Leader: Sisters and brothers, all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. We did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but we have received a spirit of adoption. Let us then confess our sin with the freedom of children who know how deeply we are loved. People: Merciful God, your creatures cry – creation groans – but we turn away; we surround ourselves with noise. We are quick to excuse ourselves from responsibility: we are young; we are old; we are tired; we are busy. Lifegiving God, wash us clean. Restore our imaginations and our hearts. Let your courage and compassion flow through our veins until we love with abandon and our hands reach out in blessing, for the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God. Amen. Leader: Sisters and brothers, hear the word of the Lord. In the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, God says unequivocally; irrevocably: you are my own; you are forgiven, and I need you to be about my business in the world. SHARING OF COMMUNION Ask, and it shall be given unto you; Seek, and ye shall find. Knock, and the door shall be opened unto you. Allelu, alleluia! Thy bountiful care, what tongue can recite? It breathes in the air, it shines in the light; It streams from the hills, it descends to the plain, And sweetly distills in the dew and the rain. *CHRIST’S INVITATION #405 Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, and on these gifts of bread and wine. Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood. By your Spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world, until Christ comes in final victory, and we feast at his heavenly banquet. Through your Son Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit in your holy Church, all honor and glory is yours, almighty Father, now and for ever. Amen. Page 182, N.T. Pew Bible Dr. Steve Wende Fear Not: A Heart as Big as God’s GREAT THANKSGIVING The Lord be with you. And also with you. Lift up your hearts! We lift them up to the Lord! Let us give thanks to the Lord, our God! It is right to give our thanks and praise! It is right, and a good and joyful thing, always and everywhere to give thanks to you, Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. And so, with your people on earth and all the company of heaven we praise your name and join their unending hymn: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest! On the night before He went to the cross, our Lord took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread, gave it to His disciples, and said: “Take, eat: this is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” When the supper was over, Jesus took the cup, gave thanks to you, gave it to His disciples, and said: “Drink from this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant, poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” And so, in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ, we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving as a holy and living sacrifice, in union with Christ’s offering for us, as we proclaim the mystery of the faith: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again. *SENDING FORTH Rev. Charles Thompson *SUNG RESPONSE #529 How Firm a Foundation Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed, For I am thy God, and will still give thee aid; I’ll strengthen and help thee, and cause thee to stand Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand. POSTLUDE Fanfare–Toccata on LYONS Jay Whatley, Organist Paul Laubengayer * Please stand, as you are able. ACOLYTES Lindsey Harris, Jr. Austin Ishee CLERGY ON-CALL Rev. Kaitlyn Bowie, 832.668.1800, option 7 • Service of Healing in the Chapel, 12:05 p.m. • Assisted Listening Devices are available from the sound console. • iPads, tablets and cell phones are welcome! Take notes and text points from the message to your friends. Just put your device on “silent.” WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES First Methodist provides multiple environments for relevant, powerful worship. At our Downtown location, the traditional service (Main Street) is at 11:00 a.m., with more liturgical worship (Formal) at 8:45 a.m., Hispanic worship at 11:00 a.m. on the fourth floor, and the alternative service (The Source) at 11:11 a.m. on the sixth floor. At our Westchase location, the 10:30 a.m. service is contemporary, with traditional worship at 9:15 a.m. and Hispanic worship at noon. ANNOUNCEMENTS FIRST METHODIST HOUSTON AT WESTCHASE Invite your friends who live in west Houston to visit our Westchase Campus at the corner of Beltway 8 and Westpark! COME AND SERVE YOUR CHURCH ON SUNDAYS! Make 2015 your year to get involved! There are many ways you can help on Sundays or during the week or from home. Contact Volunteer Coordinator Carolyn Harris at [email protected] or leave a message for her at the church telephone number 832-668-1800. UNITED METHODIST MEN VALENTINE’S DAY BREAKFAST Saturday, Feb. 14th Methodist Men will present their annual Valentine’s Day Extravaganza for the Ladies of First! All ladies of First Methodist are most cordially invited for a complimentary breakfast, traditional Valentine’s flowers, an inspirational talk by keynote speaker Allen Houk, hymn singing, devotional and Christian fellowship. The festivities will begin at 7:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall and all the men and ladies of First are invited. A wonderful time will be had by all! NEW DISCIPLE CLASSES FOR SPRING The Disciple I and IV class schedules are out! Disciple IV will meet Wednesday evenings starting Feb. 4, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m. in Room 405, and will cover the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation. Disciple I will meet Sundays, 12:30 – 2:00 p.m. in LL-9. This is a survey course on the New Testament. Lunch is available for purchase. Contact Harry Collins, [email protected] for more information. WOMEN First Place 4 Health Bible Study meets Wednesdays at noon. Divas (Women’s Sunday School Class) is currently studying Jonah: Navigating a Life Interrupted by Pricilla Shirer. LET’S READ BOOK CLUB Join us Monday, Feb. 2 at 11:30 a.m. on the 5th Floor when Linda Calvert will review The Turning by Davis Bunn. Bring your lunch! The church will provide beverages. MISSIONS 2015 is here! Where will you go with God? More information about the 2015 mission trips to Eagle Pass, Nicaragua, Thailand, Cuba and Honduras can be found online at fmhouston.com. We would love to have you as part of one of these teams. Volunteers needed in Port Houston! We are currently looking for regular volunteers for our kids and youth programs. No Spanish is required! If God is calling you to serve in Port Houston and you can commit to volunteer on a regular basis, please contact Kathrin Meier at 832.343.8105 or [email protected]. Neighbors in Action is hosting a shoe drive for the children and teens of Port Houston Feb. 1-15. Athletic shoes are most needed – cleats are accepted too. They are looking for all sizes – children’s and adults. Shoes can be dropped off at the Downtown Campus (2nd Floor) and other locations in the Heights. For more information, contact Jennifer McClure at 713-818-2317 or Meredith Sipes at 713-426-3244. Looking for Mobile Home for Single Mom. Neighbors In Action is looking for a mobile home for a single mom of three children. If you have a mobile home that you could sell NIA for a special price or if you know of anybody who sells trailers, please contact us at [email protected] or call at 832 343 8105! FIRST METHODIST LUNCH BUNCH Have you ever wanted to try a new restaurant but didn’t way to go by yourself? Lunch Bunch meets the 3rd Wednesday of every month. We will visit Pico’s Mex-Mex, 3601 Kirby Drive, on Feb. 18. To carpool, meet at the church at 11:00 a.m., or meet us at the restaurant for an 11:30 a.m. lunch. Make your reservation by Monday, Feb. 9 with Judy Saenz, 832.668.1836 or [email protected]. CHILDREN Main Street Kids is seeking part time nursery assistants who are available to work a flexible ten hour per week schedule (weekends/nights/days). Candidate must have a heart for Christ and love to teach children, be dependable and flexible. Prior experience working with children is required. Contact Nydia at [email protected].