GATHERING MUSIC
WELCOME and ANNOUNCEMENTS
LIGHTING THE PEACE CANDLE Barbara Donohue, liturgist
We should begin by ensuring that every child in the world is able to eat and go to school. Let us internationalize children, no matter where they are born, by treating them as a world heritage deserving of the entire world’s attention.
Cristovam Buarque, Brazil, university professor and senator
PRELUDE Won’t You Let Me Be Your Servant
Richard Gillard/arr. Betty Pulkingham
CALL TO WORSHIP based on Pat Rodgers, Canada
When our hearts turn to stone
the sun still rises and the moon still sets and rain still falls.
When our hearts turn to stone
flowers still bloom and food still grows and we are fed.
When our hearts turn to stone
babies are born and life goes on, past grief and sorrow.
As we gather this day, may our hearts be softened and awakened.
May life and love course freely through us once more!
MUSICAL REFLECTION When Love Is Found English folk melody
SCRIPTURE READINGS
Let us prepare ourselves for the word of God as it comes to us in the reading of Holy Scripture. Our hearts and minds are open.
Luke 1:46-55 and Mark 10:35-45
For the word of God in scripture, for the word of God among us, for the word of God within us. Thanks be to God.
TAOIST READING Lao-Tzu, b. 571 BCE
SERMON Mama’s Boy Rev. Kim P. Wells
UNISON PRAYER from Brazil
Come Holy Spirit,
prepare us to change everything that imprisons
the life that comes from you.
Amen.
MUSICAL INTERLUDE Adagio cantabile (Op. 13, Mov. 2)
Ludwig Beethoven
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of Lakewood United Church of Christ, as part of the Church Universal is to:
- Celebrate the presence and power of God in our lives & in our world.
- Offer the hospitality and inclusive love of Christ to all people.
- Work for God’s peace and justice throughout creation.
MORNING OFFERING
Morning offerings may be brought forward and placed in the plates on the altar.
Offertory Viennese Ladies’ Ländler (excerpts) Schubert
Prayer of Dedication Rory Cooney
My heart shall sing of the day you bring
Let the fires of your justice burn
Wipe away all tears
For the dawn draws near
And the world is about to turn! Amen.
PREPARATION FOR PRAYER
Sois la Semilla (You Are the Seed) Cesáreo Gabarain
You are invited to write your prayer requests on the sheets provided in the bulletin and bring them forward and place them in the basket on the altar. Please observe physical distancing.
MORNING PRAYER-SAVIOR’S PRAYER
Holy One, our only Home, hallowed be Your name.
May your day dawn, your will be done,
Here, as in heaven. Feed us today, and forgive us
As we forgive each other. Do not forsake us at the test,
But deliver us from evil. For the glory, the power,
And the mercy are yours, now and forever. Amen.
* BENEDICTION Helen Keller, 1880-1968
To keep our faces toward change
and behave like free spirits
in the presence of fate
is strength undefeatable. Amen!
*POSTLUDE Prelude No. 4 in F Major Faure
For the safety and comfort of all, please wear a mask. Thank you!
Circle of Concern: Jeff Wells and family, Dave Radens, William Owen-Cowan, Jen Degroot, Carolyn Moore, Ann Quinn, Maggie Brizendine, Janet Hall, All those suffering from COVID-19 and all healthcare workers, Schools: Students, families, teachers, and staff
Announcements
Facebook Live The 10:30 a.m. service is being streamed on Facebook Live.
Operation Attack OA needs donations of cereal, peanut butter, canned meat, fruit, vegetables and soup, dried beans, and mac/cheese. Donations may be placed on the shelf in the hallway at church.
Anti Racism Demonstrations The church will resume its witness against racism with weekly demonstrations along the sidewalk of 54th Ave. S. Make your own sign or use one of the signs at the church. Demonstrations will be held Sundays from 5:30-6 beginning Sunday October 3. In case of rain, the demonstration will not be held that week.
Electronics Recycling The church is collecting a load of electronics to be taken to an electronics recycling company in Clearwater. The electronics are dismantled and usable components, parts, and substances are recycled. Given the current problems getting the materials to produce electronic equipment, this recycling service has become even more important. If you have anything you would like recycled, please bring it to the church and put it on the built-in desk in the Church Office. These are some of the items that are accepted for recycling: computers, amps, batteries, cables and connectors, cd players, cassette players, cell phones, televisions, etc.
Looking Ahead to Sunday Oct. 31 – Day of the Dead On the last Sunday in October, the service will involve celebrating those who have died who have been significant in our lives. You are invited to give some thought to someone who has been particularly influential in your life. Perhaps it is a family member or someone you knew in the past. Or maybe it is an historic figure from the past. Whose legacy lives on in you? Who inspires you? During the service, you will be invited to tell the congregation about who you would like to honor and why they are important to you. Can’t be in church that Sunday? Write something brief and it will be read in the service.
Wednesday Workshops Ahead! The Florida Conference of the United Church of Christ is offering a series of Wednesday Workshops on Zoom at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct 27: Justice, Advocacy, & Action- We’ve got voting rights concerns, environmental justice concerns, mass incarceration and death penalty concerns, a health care system that does not include nearly a million Floridians in the midst of a global pandemic, farm workers still facing harassment and injustice, just to name a few. What can we do to press for expansion of voting rights rather than suppression of them? The Zoom Meeting ID is 361-687-8295, and here’s the link to connect: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/3616878295.
Lakewood United Church of Christ 2601 54th Ave. S. St. Petersburg, FL 33712
727-867-7961 lakewooducc@gmail.com Lakewooducc.org
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
Lakewood United Church of Christ 