Epiphany Service for November 17

 

Epiphany Church Announcements for this week

*The flowers in the Sanctuary today are to the Glory of God and in loving memory of our dear Vicki given by her family.

*Christmas Star Bazaar.  Saturday November 16.  9:30 to 12:30.  Baking.  New items  and gently used treasurers. Grocery Draw.  Set up 1:00 on Friday Nov. 15.  Cash only.

*Thank you to Millard George funeral home for the Christmas donation to our church.

*Mandarin Lunch.  Sat. Nov.23.  11:30 a.m.  Sign up.

*DRAWS:  Tickets available at Bazaar 

*Cookie draw, $5, 5 for 20$.  Sandra W.

*Handmade Afghan by Heather Jamieson.  $2 or 3 for $5.  

* Hockey tickets (Millard George) $2 or 3 for $5.  Judy C.

*Cookies needed!! Sat. Dec. 7. Before 10 a.m. please.  Tickets 5 for $20 or $5 each.

*Mint smoothies Sandra $3

*Christmas Card program.  Sheets at the back.  Thank You

*White Gift & Toonie lunch.  Sun Dec.1.  our food outreach.  

*Christmas Decorating. Tues. Nov. 26.  All welcome.  10 a.m. 

*Carols and Lessons Service Sunday December 8.  7 p.m.  .  Followed by tea and goodies.  Cookie Raffle Draw. 

*Christmas Eve.  7:00 Carols.  7:30 Service.   

*New Year’s Eve Tuesday December 31^st

Variety Show at 8:30 PM featuring Denise Pelley, Adam, Kydra, Jack Sizeland and Stephen. Pizza, music and dancing to midnight. For tickets call 519-615-2210 or visit www.alvegoroottheatre.com.  $35.00 includes complimentary chips, Everfresh pizza, midnight bubbly.   Licensed.  Cash bar.  

Meat/Veggie Pie Making Day  Saturday January 18,  9:00 am start. Come and help and have fun socializing. Orders can be placed through Barb by calling 519-680-0649.

Trivia Night – Sat.January 25th  7:30 – 10:00 pm   Book tickets at www.alvegoroottheatre.com or by calling 519-615-2210.

Turkey Dinner.  Sat. January 22.  $25.00 includes Tea, Coffee, Dessert.  A great Christmas Gift.  

*Our food cupboard.  Butch  519-615-9106.

*Canadian church calendars.  $8  Barb

*Cancelled stamps. Gloria Thompson.

*Rinsed empty drink containers Dan Davies

*There are three ways to support our church.  Volunteering at events.  Generosity.  Prayer.  Our church is a team

 

*If you wish, our regular weekly donations or special donations may be sent to our Envelope Secretary:

Barb Smallman

4860 Whiteoak Road

London, Ontario

N6E 3Y8

 

519-680-0649

 

Bible Readings for Nov 17

• 1 Samuel 1:4-20

• 1 Samuel 2:1-10

• Hebrews 10:11-14,(15-18),19-25

• Mark 13:1-8

 

 Epiphany Audio Service for Nov 17

 

Opening:

Providing God,
you journeyed with Ruth
and comforted Hannah
when their lives were burdened by grief.
Grant us faith to believe you will provide a future
where we see none,
that bitterness may turn to joy
and barrenness may bear life. Amen.

Reading Mark 13:1-8

The end and the coming of the Son

13:1As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!”

13:2Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”

13:3When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately,

13:4″Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?”

13:5Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray.

13:6Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray.

13:7When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come.

13:8For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

 

Sermon 

Don’t worry, be thankful

Fresh out of business school, a young man answered a want ad for an accountant. Now he was being interviewed by a very nervous businessman who ran a small business that he had started himself.

“I need someone with an accounting degree,” the businessman said. “But mainly, I’m looking for someone to do my worrying for me.”

“Excuse me?” the accountant said.

“I worry about a lot of things,” the business man said. “But I don’t want to have to worry about money. Your job will be to take all the money worries off my back.”

“I see,” the accountant said. “And how much does the job pay?”

“I’ll start you at eighty thousand,” said the businessman.

“Eighty thousand dollars!” the accountant exclaimed. “How can such a small business afford a sum like that?”

“That,” the businessman said, “is your first worry.”

 

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could pay somebody to do our worrying for us? It is amazing how many things we can find to stress us out.   

===

There is an old Irish poem by an unknown author that goes like this: “Why worry? In life there are only two things to worry about: Whether you are well, or whether you are sick. Now if you are well, you have nothing to worry about. And if you are sick, you only have two things to worry about: whether you get better, or whether you die. If you get better, you have nothing to worry about. And if you die, you only have two things to worry about: whether you go to heaven, or whether you go to hell. Now, if you go to heaven, you have nothing to worry about. And if you go to hell, you’ll be too busy shaking hands with your friends that you won’t have time to worry. So why worry?”

==

The word “worry” comes from an old Anglo-Saxon word meaning to strangle or to choke. While we need to be attentive to life’s concerns, worrying about them “chokes” the joy out of life. Worrying is like driving a car with one foot on the accelerator and the other foot on the brake. The wheels are spinning, a lot of rubber is being burnt, but you are going nowhere.

Or as someone has said: “Worry is like a rocking chair. It will give you something to do but it won’t get you anywhere!”

====

After all, gratitude is the perfect antidote for anxiety. 

Is this not a parable of our lives? We can all think of times when Christ has blessed our lives and we were not even aware of it and we love Him for it.

A recent study found that people who jot down what they are thankful for each week feel more optimistic about their lives, exercise more, and even have fewer visits to the doctor than people who write down things that annoy them or even neutral events. There is something about the spirit of gratitude that is healing to the body and the soul.

==

When University of Connecticut psychologist Glenn Affleck interviewed 287 people recovering from a heart attack, he discovered that people who found some positive benefit from their attack were less likely to suffer another attack within eight years. He recommends that each day we write down one or more things we are grateful for, and read the journal once a week.

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Dr. Joseph Murphy agrees. In his book The Power of Your Subconscious Mind he describes a man who epitomized this kind of outlook on life.  He says: “A number of years ago, I stayed for about a week in a farmer’s house in Connemarra on the west coast of Ireland.  He seemed to be always singing and whistling and was full of humor.  I asked him the secret of his happiness, and his reply was: ‘It’s a habit of mine to be happy.  Every morning when I awaken and every night before I go to sleep, I bless my family, the crops, the cattle, and I thank God for the harvest.’” 

There is something about a grateful attitude that seems to cause blessings to flow into a life. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that worry “strangles” or “chokes” life, as we noted earlier. Gratitude allows for blessings to flow whereas anxiety chokes them off.

==

But there’s one thing more to be said. A person who experiences true gratitude seeks to be a channel of blessings to others. A truly grateful person cannot hoard God’s blessings. A grateful person seeks to allow their blessings to flow through to others.

There is a story that comes out of World War II about a man with a truly grateful heart. His name was Fred “Hargy” Hargesheimer. Hargy’s plane was shot down over the Pacific Ocean on June 5, 1943. Hargy parachuted into enemy territory in Papua, New Guinea. Finding shelter in an abandoned native hut, he lived for weeks on snails he found in a riverbed. Daily he recited the 23rd Psalm and reflected on the hope his faith gave him.

Natives in the area found Hargesheimer after a month. They showed him a note written by an Australian soldier that said that they could be trusted because they had saved other pilots. They were Christians, and at great risk they protected the American pilot from capture by the enemy.

Eventually, Hargy made his way off the island by submarine. Years later, while corresponding with a missionary, he discovered his rescuers needed a school. All on his own, Hargy raised $15,000 for a school building.. He also brought in teachers. A few years later he built a library and clinic. 

Fred Hargesheimer knew he had lived a blessed life, so he decided to return those blessings to those who helped him. 

==

That’s not the exception but the rule for people who are truly grateful. 

They want to pass on those blessings to others. 

But we  already know that, don’t we? 

We are here this day to give our thanks to God for our many blessings, 

and we long to pass on the blessings that we have received. 

We have discovered that gratitude is the perfect antidote for anxiety. 

And we have discovered that a person who experiences true gratitude seeks to be a channel that blessings can flow through to others.

 

 

Hymn:

 

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God,

the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.

He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit

and born of the Virgin Mary.

He suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died, and was buried.

He descended to the dead.

On the third day he rose again.

He ascended into heaven,

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again

to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy catholic Church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting. Amen.

 

Prayers:

Friends in Christ,

God invites us to hold the needs of our sisters and brothers

as dear to us as our own needs.

Loving our neighbors as ourselves,

we offer our thanksgivings and our petitions

on behalf of the church and the world.

 

 

Prayers: 

Barry and Linda B; (Church); Debbie R. (Mary Liz)Jamie; Jackie M (Gloria); Paul; Suzanne; Peter (Ron and Jan);  Kenny;  Jim T.; Norma A,;Dave F.; Peter T.;  Dan B.;.(Garfield & Diane Mike J.; Scott H.; Lisa (Keeling), Roger & Maxine M.; Wendy; Eric P,; Beverley P.;, Sarah-Jane P.; Linda H.; Jacquie and Cam .; Janice  & Darrin R;  .(Suzie D.)

 

 

Hear our prayers, God of power,

and through the ministry of your Son

free us from the grip of the tomb,

that we may desire you as the fullness of life

and proclaim your saving deeds to all the world. Amen.

 

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 trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation;

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,

the power and the glory,

for ever and ever. Amen.

 

Glory to God,

whose power, working in us,

can do infinitely more

than we can ask or imagine.

Glory to God from generation to generation,

in the Church and in Christ Jesus,

for ever and ever. Amen.

 

Prayer based on Scripture:

Timeless One,

you create all moments of our lives,

giving each its meaning and purpose.

Strengthen us to witness continually

to the love of Jesus Christ,

that we may hold fast in times of trial,

even to the end of the ages. Amen.

 

Blessing from the Book of Common Prayer:

The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, be amongst you, and remain with you always. Amen.

 

Our Parting Blessing Song:

May God’s blessing surround you each day

As you trust Him and walk in His way

May His presence within guard and keep you from sin,

Go in peace,  go in joy, go in love.

Go in peace,  go in joy, go in love.