The gospel of Mark moves from very public spaces to a very private one: the home of Simon and his brother Andrew. There they find Simon’s mother-in-law, who lies gravely ill. This is another indication we have that Jesus’ disciples, in addition to leaving their nets behind, also leave families—wives, mothers, mothers-in-law, and most likely, children. More deeds of power are performed, but what about the families? How does Jesus’ ministry impact them?
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Healing the Brokenhearted
Psalm 147:1-11, 20c; Mark 1:29-39
Union Presbyterian Church
February 4, 2024
Sharing the Light of Christ, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
Liturgist: Cindy Surrena Preacher: Rev. Pat Raube
Welcome Rev. Pat Raube
Announcements Cindy Surrena
Prelude Colin DeLap
“I Love To Tell the Story,” Carol Tornquist
©2006, Word Music, LLC
Used by permission, CCLI License #CSPL068847
* Call to Worship Cindy Surrena
Sing to God with thanksgiving and praise!
Let every living thing raise its voice: Our God is great!
God is all might, and God is all wisdom!
How good it is to sing to God with joy!
God’s love is steadfast, from generation to generation.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
* Hymn #606 W & R “As Your Family, Lord, Meet Us Here” (Public Domain)
As your family, Lord, meet us here,
As your family, Lord, meet us here,
As your family, Lord, meet us here,
O Lord, meet us here.
At your table, Lord, we are fed,
At your table, Lord, we are fed,
At your table, Lord, we are fed,
O Lord, feed us here.
Fill our spirits, Lord, with your love,
Fill our spirits, Lord, with your love,
Fill our spirits, Lord, with your love,
O Lord, with your love.
Make us faithful, Lord, to your will,
Make us faithful, Lord, to your will,
Make us faithful, Lord, to your will,
O Lord, to your will.
As your family, Lord, meet us here,
As your family, Lord, meet us here,
As your family, Lord, meet us here,
O Lord, meet us here.
* Call to New Life
* Prayer for Wholeness and Peace
Gracious God, it’s tempting to give up and give in, to hide from the injustices of the world, to protect ourselves and our own, to turn off the evening news because we can’t bear to hear bad news any longer. Forgive our sins of escape, of ignoring, of turning our backs on those in need. Forgive our sins of apathy when you call us to action. Renew us, Holy God, by your grace. Strengthen us to follow Christ’s call. In his name we pray. Amen.
* Words of Assurance
The steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting.
God heals the brokenhearted and binds up our wounds.
The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
If God is for us, who can be against us?
We are forgiven. We are made whole.
Thanks be to God! Amen.
* Sharing of the Peace
May the peace of God be with you.
And also with you.
Let us offer one another a sign of God’s peace.
Scripture Psalm 147:1-11, 20c
Hallelujah! How good it is to sing praises to our God!
How pleasant it is to honor God with praise!
The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;
he gathers the exiles of Israel.
The Lord heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
The Lord counts the number of the stars;
and calls them all by their names.
Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
there is no limit to God’s wisdom.
The Lord lifts up the lowly,
but casts the wicked to the ground.
Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
make music upon the harp to our God,
who covers the heavens with clouds
and prepares rain for the earth,
making grass to grow upon the mountains.
God provides food for the cattle,
and for the young ravens when they cry.
God is not impressed by the might of a horse,
and has no pleasure in the speed of a runner,
but finds pleasure in those who fear the Lord,
in those who await God’s steadfast love. Hallelujah!
Time With Young Disciples Rev. Pat Raube
Music: “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands,” Eugene Thomas.
©1986, Word Music.
Used by permission, CCLI License #CSPL068847
Scripture Mark 1:29-39
As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed by demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons, and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.
In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also, for that is what I came out to do.” And he went throughout all Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.
Response Holy Wisdom, Holy Word:
Thanks be to God!
Meditation
* Affirmation of Faith From the Confession of 1967
In Jesus Christ, God was reconciling the world to Godself. Jesus Christ is God with humanity. He is the eternal Son of the Father, who became human and lived among us to fulfill the work of reconciliation. He is present in the church by the power of the Holy Spirit to continue and complete his mission. This work of God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is the foundation of all confessional statements about God, humanity, and the world. Therefore, the church calls humanity to be reconciled to God and to one another.
Anthem Choir
“Wounded Alleluias,” Craig Courtney
©2022, Beckenhorst Press, All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.
License #A-728112. All rights reserved.
Lord, heal our wounded alleluias.
Touch our fragile, simple praise.
Comfort every troubled, wayward song
With Your gentle grace.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
In the stillness of our inmost thoughts,
Each broken song redeem.
Move Your bow across our silent strings,
That we might learn your theme.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Write in us Your hymn of hope and wonder,
Craft each needed chord with care.
Fix in us Your wondrous harmony,
A symphony to share.
Help us trust Your grand design,
Composer of the heart.
Make us now Your instruments of peace
And let the music start.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
Alleluia.
The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper/ Prayers of the People
The Invitation
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.
The Great Thanksgiving
Sanctus
“Holy, Holy, Holy Lord,” Marty Haugen
©1984, GIA Publications, All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.
License #A-728112. All rights reserved.
Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power, God of might,
Heaven and earth are filled with Your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is He who comes
In the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest,
Hosanna in the highest.
The Story of the Supper
…Let us proclaim the mystery of our faith:
Christ has died,
Christ is risen,
Christ will come again.
The Gracious Spirit
Prayers of the People
We pray in the name of Jesus, the One who taught us to pray together:
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
Our Father, 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 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.
The Communion
Music during Communion:
“I Surrender All” with “Depth of Mercy,” Janet Vogt.
© 2006, Lorenz Publishing Co. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.
License #A-728112. All rights reserved.
Prayer After Communion
* Hymn #699 W & R “Let Us Break Bread Together,” Carlton R. Young
©1965, Abingdon Press, All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.
License #A-728112. All rights reserved.
Let us break bread together on our knees;
Let us break bread together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees,
with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.
Let us drink wine together on our knees;
Let us drink wine together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees,
with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.
Let us praise God together on our knees;
Let us praise God together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees,
with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.
* Benediction
Postlude Colin DeLap
“Sweet, Sweet Spirit,” Mark Hayes.
©1962, Manna Music Inc.
Used by permission, CCLI License #CSPL068847
Where an * is indicated, please rise in body and/or in spirit.
“W & R” ~ the red Worship and Rejoice hymnal.
“PH” ~ the blue Presbyterian Hymnal
The “Call to New Life” and “Prayer for Wholeness and Peace” were adapted from prayers written by the Rev. Teri McDowell Ott for the Presbyterian Outlook.
TODAY’S HYMNS
Throughout February, as we celebrate Black History Month, we will be singing Spirituals out of the African American tradition.
In today’s first hymn, “As Your Family, Lord, Meet Us Here,” anonymous folk lyrics are set to a tune originating from the Gullah/ Geechee people of coastal Georgia. The music, the familiar tune Kumbaya, comes from a people originally brought to this land from the coast of West Africa. In a 1926 recording of the spiritual in the national archives, a Gullah man sings in his Creole accent: “kumbaya” meaning, simply, “Come by here,” an appeal for God’s presence in times of oppression.
Our closing hymn, “Let Us Break Bread Together,” is from the Gullah/ Geechee people of South Carolina. This is a spiritual of the Underground Railroad and was used by enslaved people to convey plans for escape. Breaking bread, mentioned at least 20 times in the Christian Bible, also came to mean trust, confidence, and comfort with an individual or a group of people.