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Bulletin 4/24/2022

WELCOME and ANNOUNCEMNNTS

LIGHTING THE PEACE CANDLE                                      Sally Purvis, liturgist

Lord, make me a channel of disturbance.
Where there is apathy, let me provoke;
Where there is compliance, let me bring questioning;
Where there is silence, may I be a voice.
Where there is too much comfort and too little action,
grant disruption;
Where there are doors closed and hearts locked,
Grant the willingness to listen.
When laws dictate and pain is overlooked. . .
When tradition speaks louder than need. . .
Grant that I may seek rather to do justice than to
talk about it;
Disturb us, O Lord.
To be with, as well as for, the alienated;
To love the unlovable as well as the lovely;
Lord, make me a channel of disturbance.

 Author unknown

PRELUDE                                   

*OPENING READING— The Green Wood Chant                        Jan Richardson

Tell out, my soul,
what my eyes have seen
while the tree is strong
and the wood is green.

When the tree grows old
and the wood is dry,
we will bow our heads
and we’ll raise our cry.

Yet we’ll hold the fire,
and we’ll hold the ash,
and we’ll hold your life
till your sorrows pass;

and we’ll place the dust
in the fertile ground,
and we’ll wait to see
what comes around.

*HYMN                              Joyful, Joyful, We Adore You                                 4

SCRIPTURE LESSON
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.

John 20:1-18

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.

MUSIC

MODERN READING                                             Martin Niemoller, 1892-1984

SERMON                                         CBS               Rev. Victoria Van Vlerah Long

RESPONSIVE READING                                                           Kathy Galloway

Christ our life, you are alive
in the beauty of the earth
in the rhythm of the seasons
in the mystery of time and space
Alleluia

Christ our life, you are alive
in the tenderness of touch
in the heartbeat of intimacy
in the insights of solitude
Alleluia

Christ our life, you are alive
in the creative possibility
of the dullest conversation
of the dreariest task
the most threatening event
Alleluia

Christ our life, you are alive
to offer re-creation
to every unhealed hurt
to every deadened place
to every damaged heart
Alleluia

You set before us a great choice.
Therefore we choose life.
The dance of resurrection soars and surges through the whole creation.
This is grace, dying we live.
So let us live.

MUSIC

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. 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. If you would like assistance, please turn to someone seated near you.

Offertory      

*Time of Dedication                                Kathleen Hughes, adapted

May God sparkle in all of us
as sunlight upon water,
May we radiate for each other
compassion and hope,
My our work be fruitful,
our joys profound,
and our pain redemptive.
In the name of the risen Christ. Amen.

*PREPARATION FOR PRAYER      Standing in the Need of Prayer               519

MORNING PRAYERS- 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                                                     Iona Community, adapted

Lord Jesus,
glorious and resurrected,
give us your hopefulness,
give us your resilience,
give us your peace. Amen.

* SUNG RESPONSE (please form a circle)

Weave, weave, weave us together;
Weave us together in unity and love.
Weave, weave, weave us together,
Weave us together, together in love.

*POSTLUDE                              

For the safety and comfort of all, please wear a mask. Thank you!

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Facebook Live The 10:30 a.m. service is being streamed on Facebook Live.

Support for Ukraine To find more ways to support Ukraine please visit our website and look at the Weekly update for 4/21/2022.

Gratitude! Many thanks to Rev. Victoria Long for preaching this Sunday while Rev. Wells is in Cincinatti attending the memorial service for Jeff’s mother, Betty Wells.

Operation Attack OA needs donations of cereal/oatmeal, mac and cheese, pasta sauce, peanut butter, canned meat, fruit, soup, and vegetables. Donations may be placed on the shelf in the hallway at church.

Toiletries for Celebrate Outreach Celebrate Outreach is a local ministry with people who are living without shelter in St. Petersburg. Celebration Outreach has an ongoing need for men’s and women’s underwear. (Men sizes 30, 32,34 and Women’s sizes 5,6, 7,8.) Also in high demand are socks of all kinds /sizes for both men & women.  Other needed items are Deodorant & disposable razors.

One City Chorus Concert The One City Chorus (70 progressive voices of sundry faiths) presents a free concert at the Lakewood United Methodist Church (5995 MLK Drive South) Sunday, May 1st, at 4:00 PM. A freewill offering will be collected to help the People of Ukraine.

CHURCH STAFF

Pastor- Kim Wells
Music Director- Hilton Jones
Nursery Attendant-Claudia Rodriguez

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

Weekly Update 4/21

Weekly Update: If you are involved with an activity or event that you would like to share with the LUCC family, please send the information to the Church Office by Wednesday.  Please provide the information in paragraph form with pertinent details and links.   THANK YOU!

This Sunday:  So, now that Easter is over, what happens next?  Rev. Victoria Long will talk about that this Sunday.  

If you would like to provide sunflowers for Sunday worship, please contact the Church Office.  727-867-7961 or email at lakewooducc@gmail.com

The service will be streamed live on Facebook.

Masks are required at in-person worship.  

Holy Week Observances

April 14 Maundy Thursday 
The Maundy Thursday service was a moving remembrance of the end of Jesus’ life.  The dimming natural light in the sanctuary brought to heart the significance of the message of the evening.  Many thanks to all who participated!

April 15 Good Friday 
The remembrance on Good Friday involved reading the Gospel of Mark out loud.  Those present took turns reading.  There was a time of reflection.  Then there was time to write an obituary of Jesus and to share if desired.  The service ended with communion.  Many thanks to those who were part of this moving afternoon.  

April 17 Easter Sunday 
The flowers were glorious and there were many alleluias!  It was truly a holy day of blessings to all!

One Great Hour of Sharing Offering

On Palm Sunday LUCC received this special offering that is taken by churches throughout the UCC as well as other communions in the United States. 

  This offering helps people in the US and around the world in their hour of need – natural disaster, drought, war, famine, and other perils.  The gifts are shared with partner churches around the world to offer the help that is needed.  Thanks to the wonderful generosity of the congregation $467 was received for this tangible offering of love!

From Hilton about Singing in Church

It is nice to be singing again. It’s interesting: I can hear how people’s voices are unaccustomed to singing after almost 3 years of not singing! I hope people aren’t straining themselves. They can do actual physical damage to themselves if they sing incorrectly or strain, including nodes on their vocal chords. Maybe it would be best to encourage people to sing, but to take it easy and not strain, to be aware at all times of how it feels and to stop if there’s tension or roughness, soreness, or discomfort. Things are delicate in there. Even too much talking can have injurious effects . . . it happens a lot to actors and politicians (probably preachers too).

Earth Day Event

This Saturday, April 23 from 9:30am – 11:00am, the Creation Justice Task Force is holding a small but meaningful property cleanup event at Lakewood United Church of Christ to honor Earth Day 2022 which is celebrated worldwide on Friday, April 22nd .

We will meet near the Labyrinth under the trees near our Memorial Garden to rake and tidy up the labyrinth walk.  Then we will fan out onto our property and collect any garbage or debris from trees and plants that litter the ground.  We can build a small pile of fallen branches, palm fronds, and other dead plant life for pick up at a later time, or transport it to the 26th Street South recycling center. Garbage can be put in our dumpster.

Being outdoors together celebrating Mother Earth and her beauty and simultaneously tidying up our lovely property can be a wonderful way to honor Earth Day. 

We hope you can join us even for a short while.  Wear work clothes, bring work gloves, a rake if you have one, a plastic bag, a water bottle, sun screen, and a hat!  Snacks will be provided!

Hope to see you Saturday April 23 at Lakewood United Church of Christ!

Happy Earth Day to all!

Pastor Away

Kim Wells will be away from Wednesday 4/20-Thursday 4/28 to attend the memorial service for Betty Wells, Jeff’s mother. Rev. Victoria Long will be preaching Sunday 4/24. If pastoral care is needed, please contact Patti Cooksey. cooksepa@eckerd.edu

Mask Policy at Church

After careful consideration of all of the information that has been received and the views that have been expressed, the advisors and church staff have decided that masks will remain mandatory at church on Sunday mornings and that congregational singing will resume.

The decision has also been made that at the church during the week, masks will be optional depending on the sensibilities of those who are present.

The Sunday morning service will continue to be streamed live on Facebook and posted at the church YouTube channel.

OWL Training Offered

The United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalist Church have worked together to create a comprehensive curriculum on sexuality for all ages – preschool through adult – called Our Whole Lives (OWL). To offer this curriculum, presenters must be trained.

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Clearwater is offering facilitator training for grades 7-12 the weekend of April 29-May 1.

This training could be used in a church setting as well as other settings involving young people. If you would like more information about the training for yourself or someone else, please contact Meredith Olson at learning@uuc.org or 727-531-7704 ext. 205.

There is a cost involved for the training. If you are interested in the training, LUCC can help to offset the cost.

USF St. Pete Program:  Preventing Dementia

The church has been contacted by USF about a research study called “Preventing Alzheimer’s with Cognitive Training (PACT)”.  They are currently enrolling older adult participants at the USF St. Petersburg campus to participate in the program.  They are looking for adults 65 years and older to participate in this important study. For more information, click here.  https://lakewooducc.org/2022/03/25/usf-st-pete-program-preventing-dementia/

How to Help Ukraine

The local Ukrainian Catholic Church is sponsoring humanitarian aid.  There are more details at their website: https://www.epiphanyukrch.com

The national United Church of Christ is also offering ways to support the Ukrainian people.  Here’s a link:  https://p2a.co/nGEvYVL?inf_contact_key=ad8269e3f149ec1ef1efd03de1e233aacc0558ed5d4c28cbfab114022b1ec50d

Toiletries for Celebrate Outreach

Celebrate Outreach is a local ministry with people who are living without shelter in St. Petersburg.  An average of 135 people are served each week.   LUCC was asked to collect toiletries to be distributed to the community at the meals that are provided on Saturday and Sundays each week.  This collection will be ongoing in addition to the food being collected for Operation Attack.  All are invited to donate the following items:

Celebration Outreach has an ongoing need for men’s and women’s underwear. 
Men sizes 30, 32,34 
Women’s sizes 5,6, 7,8. 
Also in high demand are socks of all kinds /sizes for both men & women. 
Other needed items are Deodorant & disposable razors. 

Toothbrushes, toothpaste, disposable razors, bar soap, wash cloths, deodorant, feminine hygiene items, travel size creams, shampoo, body wash, individual packets of Kleenex, hand wipes, toilet tissue, and paper towels are always needed as well.

Many thanks to Janet Blair and Jim Andrews for taking the donations to Celebrate Outreach.  

Inkjet Recycling

The church is continuing to collect used inkjet cartridges.  They are sent to a recycler and the church receives payment for the cartridges provided.  So, don’t throw out your cartridges.  Bring them to church.  Not only do they get recycled but they provide income for the ministry of the church.

Guided Labyrinth Walks

The guided walk is held weekly on Wednesdays at 9:00 a.m. This provides an opportunity to be aware and deepen your spiritual journey. If it is raining, the walk is held on Thursday at 9:00 a.m.

Also, the readings and prayers used on Wednesdays at the guided walk are put in the mailbox by the labyrinth each week for use during the week.

The labyrinth is on the church grounds near the southwest corner of the church property. It is available for use at all times.

Operation Attack Update

News from Operation Attack:  Making a Difference

OA needs donations of cereal/oatmeal, mac and cheese, pasta sauce, peanut butter, canned meat, fruit, soup, and vegetables. Donations may be placed on the shelf in the hallway at church.

Being Covid Safe and In-Person Worship

Please stay home if you are not feeling well.

Please wear a mask while in the church building.  While most people have been vaccinated, this helps visitors to feel safe.  

Additional masks will be available at church to use as needed.

Two hand sanitizing stations are available for use by worshippers.

There is well-ventilated, physically distanced indoor seating in the sanctuary.

Please know that your safety is of primary consideration! 

Safe childcare is provided.

Sundays

Look for the bulletin posted on the church website on Friday: https://lakewooducc.org/category/bulletins/

Watch the service on Facebook Live Sundays at 10:30. https://www.facebook.com/LakewoodUCC

Or on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/LakewoodUCC/videos

Instructions for how to access Facebook Live: For additional assistance, please contact the church office.

Here are some instructions to watch our Sunday services live through Facebook:

Use the following link to visit our homepage: https://www.facebook.com/LakewoodUCC/

On Sunday mornings at 10:30 a.m. please use the link above to visit our homepage. There, after using the link, you will see a section labeled “Happening Now”. This is our Livestream of the Sunday Service.

To watch the live stream, locate and click the “watch video” button in the lower right corner of the screen.

If the link above is not working, there is also a link to our Facebook page on our website. Please try that link located on the Home page of our website.

PLEASE NOTE:  

With the cooler temperatures, we will resume opening the doors and windows for morning worship as we continue efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Sunday services are being held at 10:30 a.m. Masks are required. There is physical distancing. Childcare is provided.

You can also join in on Facebook Live at 10:30. Please see the instructions below. 

USEFUL LAKEWOOD LINKS:

For the above church website links, please note the “Older Posts” button near the bottom of each page.

You can stream Hilton’s music and videos for free at hiltonkeanjones.com/look-listen/ as well as purchase his CDs and digital albums there.

April Birthdays: Zachery Blair-Andrews 4/16, Someone missing? Contact the church office with birthday information.

Circle of Concern: 

Joyce Lee

Christopher and Dana

William Owen-Cowan

Jen Degroot

Carolyn Moore

Ann Quinn is now under Hospice care

Maggie Brizendine

Janet Hall

Yoko Nogami walking the Appalachian Trail

All those suffering from COVID-19 and all healthcare workers

Schools: Students, families, teachers, and staff

Recent Posts:

On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga