February 6, 2022 Worship

 PIONEER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

Worship via Blog        Fifth Sunday after Epiphany       February 6, 2022

 WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Welcome to Pioneer’s blog worship service. Though we are accessing this remotely and unable to look each other in the eye, we are still the Pioneer faith community, gathered as children of God to worship, to be spiritually fed, and to be equipped to go out to serve in Christ’s name—though we do it differently during this pandemic.

 

Pioneer offers worship in several modes:

a)    The blog.

b)   The blog service mailed through US Postal service.

c)    Sermons only, mailed to those who so request.

d)   Zoom services at 10:00 Sunday mornings.

e)    Live worship with masks and social distancing has plenty of room for additional worshipers.

 

We will share the Lord’s Supper as part of this worship service. So please pause and gather your choice of bread and beverage. While the bread and grape juice served in community and led by the pastor in person is our tradition, we are facing times that call for us to do worship in new ways rather than being tied to rigid tradition—much like the early church.

 

-         Session meets Tuesday at 6:00 p.m.

-         Men’s Prayer Group meets Thursday at 8:30 a.m.

-         M&M meets next Sunday following worship

 

Now allow yourself a brief time of silence as you open your hearts and feel God’s presence with you, right where you are.

 

BAPTISM:         Friends, remember your baptism … and be thankful.

 

CALL TO WORSHIP

Holy, holy, holy is the God of hosts;

The whole earth is full of God’s glory.

Our hearts are filled with thanks, O God.

We bring before you our songs of praise.

All rulers of the people are called to praise God.

All people of the earth are subject to God’s rule.

The steadfast love of God surrounds us here.

We have come to see and hear and understand.

Let the thresholds shake with the power of God’s voice.

Let all the people tremble before God’s glory.

God’s purposes endure and will be fulfilled.

Our lives can be channels for God’s grace.

 

PRAYER OF THE DAY

O God, whose presence fills this place of gathering, we bow before your majesty in awe and wonder. When we consider the vast universe of your dominion, we are humbled by your attention to us. Your steadfast love and faithfulness amaze us. Your care for the lowly gives us a sense of our own dignity and worth. Send your gospel to teach us, to save us from ourselves, to lead us into all truth. Show us the tasks we can accomplish for you and grant us the courage to reach out in your name to do them. Amen.

 

OPENING SONG:      “Lay It All Down”                                   LU#92

 

CALL TO CONFESSION

The voice of God shakes the deficient foundations on which we have built our lives. We are summoned to account for our faithlessness. Called as disciples and apostles, we have not followed in the footsteps of Jesus or led others to the grace of God. Let us remind ourselves of God’s sovereignty and confess our broken commitments.

 

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Awesome God, we are afraid to admit the many ways we have failed you. We are sinful people who forget to thank you and who delay consulting with you about the decisions we must make. We prefer the safety of familiar programs, even when they are ineffective. We cling to our routines, even when they cause us to lose sight of your purposes. We are people of unclean lips, dwelling among people who deny your presence and power. O God, we fall down before you seeking forgiveness. (continue with personal prayers……..) Amen.

 

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation.

          The old life has gone; the new life has begun.

Friends, believe the Good News!

          In Jesus Christ we are forgiven and restored to new life!

 

PASSING THE PEACE

          May the peace of Christ be with you.

                   And also with you.

Let us extend the peace of Christ in heart and prayer to one another.

 

GLORY BE TO THE FATHER

 

SCRIPTURE 1:  Isaiah 6:1-8

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and his train filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim; each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory." And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!" Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal which he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth, and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin forgiven." And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."

 

SCRIPTURE 2:  Luke 5:1-11

While the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. And he saw two boats by the lake; but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had ceased speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets." And when they had done this, they enclosed a great shoal of fish; and as their nets were breaking, they beckoned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord." For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the catch of fish which they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men." And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

 

SERMON:           Fishing For More

 

HYMN:             “The Summons”                                                Glory #726

 

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE AND THE LORD’S PRAYER

          God, we thank you and praise you for the very fact that you created us in love. You have shown us that love throughout our lives by the many ways you have provided for us, helped us through the hard times, accepted us as the imperfect creatures that we are, have acted in and through us and others to draw us closer to you, have even called us beloved child. You loved us so much you came in the person of Jesus the Christ to show us how to love, to redeem us, to reconcile us to you, to give us eternal life at home with you. God, hear our prayers of thanks as we receive that love right now in our silence ………..Lord in your grace…Hear our prayers.

We know the closest we can ever come to repaying you is to love you back and to do that by loving each other. Help us God. It isn’t as easy as it sounds. There is so much of our own stuff that gets in the way—our ego, our pride, our need to be right, our resentments, our greed, our insecurities, our fear. Help us to overcome these, dear Lord. Help us to love you and each other as you call us to do. Hear our prayers that we might open our hearts to loving you and each other.  ….. Lord in your grace…Hear our prayers.

Your people need love, Holy God. There is so much pain in the world, so much loneliness, mental and physical illness, ravages of aging, financial uncertainty, strife within families, anxiety about the future, addictions, violence, and despair. Bring into their lives the light and grace and peace that they need. Lord in your grace…Hear our prayers.

 

We pray for those close to us, for ……….

          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.

 

CALL TO OFFERING

When we are genuinely thankful for the steadfast love and faithfulness of God, we are eager to share this bounty. When we truly discern the grace of God, we want others to experience it, too. Christ calls us to reach out to our sisters and brothers with the good news of God’s reign. Our offerings help to take God’s Word to the world.

 

DOXOLOGY

 

PRAYER OF DEDICATION

We have heard your voice, O God. Your presence has moved us to respond. Send us where you want us to go. Use the resources we dedicate here to empower others to witness to your love and care. Fill our lives with thanksgiving. Fill our days with purpose. We rededicate ourselves to work and worship that express our profound gratitude for life and all its opportunities. Amen.

 

THE LORD’S SUPPER

 

   Song of Preparation:

“Let Us Talents and Tongues Employ”                 Glory #526    

 

          Invitation to the Table

          The Lord’s table is not a piece of wood with clay dishes, but a place in our hearts that connects us to our Lord Jesus. It is a place to which we come as we remember his sacrifice, as we seek to experience his presence, as we are nourished to continue his work, as we recognize our community in him despite whatever distance or disease or obstacle that might separate us. It is the place we come to renew our commitment to continue his ministry and mission. Our Lord invites us to the table without condition, simply because we are loved. Come with grateful hearts. Come with joyful hearts.

 

The 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 indeed right, O Holy God, to give thanks for your amazing grace, to praise you for who you are, for who you created us to be. We marvel at the truth that you are with us wherever we may be. Though we worship from home, separated and for some, isolated, it is still in you that we find life and purpose. We are children of grace and nothing can separate us from your love.

          You have given us the gift of your Holy Spirit who unites us, binding us together as one body across the miles. By your Spirit of grace transform our social isolation and distance into a holy community, connecting us to each other by your sacred presence.

          Bless the elements we each have gathered, elements common to our ordinary lives. Let them represent for us the body and blood of our Savior who gave himself for us. Amen.

Words of Institution

          As we share these symbols of bread and cup across the distance, we remember the story of Jesus with the disciples that last night before he was arrested. He took the bread and blessed it and broke it and gave it to them saying “Take, eat, this is my body, given for you.” And with the cup he said, “This cup is the new covenant, my blood poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink of it, remember me.”

          And so we do. As we lift up many pieces in scattered places rather than sharing the same loaf and as we drink from separate cups instead of one, we do so remembering that throughout history God’s people have often been scattered and in exile. Through the power and mystery of the Holy Spirit, we are made one in Christ Jesus. These are the gifts of God for us the children of God.*

          The Bread of Life……………..

          The Cup of Salvation …………….

 

*portions of prayer adapted from prayer by Rev. Steve Kliewer, Interim General Presbyter, EOP

 

Unison Prayer of Thanks

          Gracious God, you have made us one with all your people in heaven and on earth. You have fed us with the bread of life, and renewed us for your service. Help us who have shared Christ’s body and received his cup, to be his faithful disciples so that our daily living may be part of the life of your kingdom, and our love be your love reaching out into the life of the world; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

CLOSING HYMN:  “I’m Gonna Live So God Can Use Me”  Glory #700

 

CHARGE AND BENEDICTION

          Jesus has always called imperfect people to follow him, to learn his teachings, and then to share that with others. You may have already heard God’s call on your life. If not, listen more closely. Then decide what you will do.

          As you do the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit is with you now and always. Amen.

 

CHORAL RESPONSE

May the Lord, Mighty God, bless and keep you forever. Grant you peace, perfect peace, courage in every endeavor. Lift up your eyes and see his face and his grace forever. May the Lord, Mighty God, bless and keep you forever.

 

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LOOKING AHEAD

 

PRAYER CARE:

 

LECTIONARY FOR 2/13/22

Jeremiah 17:5-10; Psalm 1; 1 Corinthians 5:12-20; Luke 6:17-26