8:30 am Sanctuary Service

[Music] so greetings everyone my name is brady witton and i welcome you to worship here at first united methodist church in baton rouge louisiana i welcome those of you who are joining us here in person and those who are joining us at home so today is all saints day it's a day that commemorates the church universal those living and dead both known and unknown those formerly recognized as exceptionally holy people and everyone else like you and me throughout the centuries who have been received into the church through the waters of baptism it's also a day that we recognize those who have finished their race and joined the church triumphant and this year we remember 49 members of our congregation who have died since last all saints day it's my prayer in this time of worship that those who mourn will find comfort and that we will all leave this time remembering that we are not alone i invite you now to join me in the opening litany that's printed in your bulletin there is a time for everything for all things under the sun the time to be born to die a time to laugh and a time to cry a time the time to dance a time to seek and a time to lose a time to forget and a time to remember this day we remember those who gave us life we remember those who enriched our lives with love and beauty kindness and compassion thoughtfulness and understanding we renew our bonds to those who have gone the way of the earth as we reflect upon those whose memory moves us this day we seek consolation and the strength and insight born of faith and now i invite you to stand as we read the record of remembrance hear the names of those who have passed since our last celebration of all saints sunday stephanie alfred gant katie austin donna britt ballard judy burley phyllis burton virginia carradine bobby carver woody chew charles deloney dalton drake gary dunn stephen durrett chris ewing sue fein duke faulkner ruby wall felder sharif gia julia hamilton everett hanson lois hardwick ashley herbich gay johannesson reverend jerry johnson glenda kelly bert knight john kuntz jr jim lefleur douglas mcpherson judy mccall marshall mcvaden laverne moore don pennington stephen pennington biff ritchie reverend gene reeves joshua robinson governor buddy romer iii betty roland agnes ross pamela roy michael shepherd richard simmons mary jane walters helen whitley audrey williams tina wood christopher worley [Music] virginia worley reverend liz wyatt and william zartman and as we remember these i invite you and go ahead and say their names out loud speak over one another to name those who are near and dear to your hearts this day [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] uh [Music] oh [Music] foreign [Music] oh [Music] [Music] yes [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] ah is [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] please be seated and join me in the prayer for illumination for all saints which is printed in your bulletin and available on the screen let us pray almighty god you have knit your people together in one communion in the mystical body of your son jesus christ our lord grant us grace to follow your blessed saints in lives of faith and commitment and to know the inexpressible joys you have prepared for those who love you through jesus christ our savior and lord amen today's reading is from the letter to the hebrews now faith is the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen indeed by faith our ancestors received their approval by faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of god so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible by faith abel offered to god a more acceptable sacrifice than cain's through this he received approval as righteous god himself giving approval to the gifts he died but through his faith he still speaks by faith enoch was taken so that he did not experience death and he was not found because god had taken him for it was attested before he was taken away that he pleased god and without faith it is impossible to please god for whoever would approach him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him by faith noah warned by god about events as yet unseen respected the warning and built an ark to save his household by this he condemned the world and became an heir to the righteousness that is in accordance with the faith by faith abraham who obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance and he set out not knowing where he was going by faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised as a foreign in the land living in tents as did isaac and jacob who were heirs with him of the same promise and what more should i say for time would fail me to tell of gideon and barack samson and jephthah of david and samuel and the prophets who through faith conquered kingdoms administered justice obtained promises shut the mouths of lions quenched raging fires escaped the edge of the sword one strength out of weakness became mighty in war and put foreign armies to flight therefore since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses let us also lay aside every weight and sin that so easily entangles and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us looking to jesus the pioneer and the perfecter of our faith who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross disregarding its shame and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of god this is the word of the lord thanks be to god so all saints day is a really special day in the life of the church it's a high holy day a day we remember and celebrate our spiritual ancestors and commemorate all the faithful who have gone on to glory and as we remember 49 members of our congregation today it's important for us to remember that for some these names are deeply personal for some the names on this list are spouses parents grandparents siblings children friends there are some here whose grief is fresh and of course as we remember these church members who have died it's only natural for others to turn their hearts and minds towards those who are near and dear to them to their dearly departed who have also died and this year for me i think because of covet 19 this day seems especially significant worldwide over 5 million people have died with covid 754 000 in the united states and according to the louisiana department of health 14 615 souls have died with covet 19 in the state of louisiana so while today there's a celebratory nature to today it's a day to celebrate our eternal communion with all the saints but it's also a day that we acknowledge grief and loss and so i specifically want to speak to those of you who are grieving today and what i really hope that you will leave here knowing is just one thing you are not alone you're not alone first because god is with you max lucado tells a story about a neighbor who was trying to teach his six-year-old son how to shoot baskets in a basketball and they were in their backyard and the dad kept taking the basketball and he would throw it up and he'd say here's how you do it son and he'd throw the ball up and the ball would go through the hoop and he'd say it's easy well his son six years old was way shorter than his dad and his son would like try to throw the ball up and he just could not get it up those ten feet and his dad would take the ball again and say come on son it's easy and he just throw it up and go in and and the little boy kept trying to get he just couldn't get the ball up high enough and after about 10 tries in frustration the little boy said it's easy for you up there dad but you don't know how hard it is down here and if we're honest we feel that way about god sometimes don't we don't we sometimes in the midst of our grief and pain and sorrow i want to say to god it seems easy from up there but you don't know how hard it is down here but here's the thing because of jesus christ that is simply not the case because of jesus christ god knows exactly how hard it is down here when jesus took on flesh and walked among us he walked where we walked he was tempted by the things we're tempted by he struggled with the things that we struggled with when jesus's friend lazarus died it's one of the most poignant moments in scripture we're told in two words what happened to jesus you all know this shortest verse in the bible right jesus wept and i love what someone wrote recently about jesus's tears they said this jesus wept before the news came to him he knew that lazarus was dead but still he wept he knew lazarus would be alive again in mere moments but still he wept he knew death is not forever and he knew the eternity and the kingdom of god better than anyone but he wept he wept because knowing the end of the story doesn't mean you can't cry in the sad parts jesus knows our grief it's one of the primary teachings of scripture psalm 34 18 says the lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit one of the most famous passages in all of scripture psalm 23 reminds us yea though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death i will fear no evil why because thou art with me god is with us now listen i don't want to spend today trying to talk you out of your grief with empty words there's no point in that what i hope to do however and i what i hope you experience in this time of worship is to experience the reality of a god who is with us a god who is a refuge and strength a very present help in time of trouble a god who does not leave us comfortless but who comes to us and walks with us and helps us to find strength to press on so i love the story about a woman named molly whose mother was in the hospital struggling with cancer and every day when she'd go to the hospital to visit her mother she'd make her way down to the hospital chapel and and she had in her mind that she wanted to pray for her mother but when she got there she was just so overcome with her fears and her anxieties that she said i didn't know what to say and so she said i would just sit there in silence with my hands clenched and my eyes closed and just sit again not knowing what to say but then one time she looked up and she saw on the walls of that hospital chapel the words to psalm 46 10. be still and know that i am god and when she saw those words she said to herself that i can do and that i can pray and so she just started saying those words over and over again to herself be still and know that i am god be still and know that i am god and when the time came and her mother passed away she found that despite her heartache and despite her tears which were real that somewhere inside of herself there was a deep peace and a deep comfort that she couldn't explain and that she didn't understand and what she discovered is what the writers of the psalms and the writers and the scriptures tell us even in the valley of the shadow of death god is with us maybe particularly in the valley of death god is with us so if you're grieving today one thing i want to invite you to is this in moments of pain when you don't know what to do you're not even sure what to pray just remember this be still just be still and know that god is with you you're also not alone in your grief because we are with you the church is with you uh death is something that touches all of us there are few people here young or old who have not experienced death in some way so i was appointed to this church in 2012 and it's it's funny i was thinking about in my early years here when i would read these lists of names i didn't know who most of the people were but now i've been here i'm in my 10th year i know every single one of these people and one of them is a deer was a dear friend of mine reverend gene reeves while our situations are unique and each of us is different none of us is the first person to experience grief or loss other people know the numbness other people know the yawning other people know the anger other people know the tears you're not alone in this one of the things i often tell people in funerals is that when you're grieving it's a time to lean on others lean on your family lean on your friends lean on your church community it's one of the things we're here for and so i want to encourage you if you know someone who is grieving right now reach out to that person check in on them but i do want to say this be sensitive to what they want and like you know be attentive to what they want everybody grieves differently but reach out check on those people the other thing i want to make sure that everybody knows is we have a wonderful ministry in our church called griefshare and there's a group of people who really do care about journeying with you through grief and so if you want more information about that reach out to me reach out to the church office i'd love to connect you with them and also we do have a longest night service coming up it'll be on december the 16th at 7 p.m here in the sanctuary and it is particularly a service for those who are grieving as we journey through the holidays together so i want to make sure you know those those resources you are not alone we're with you and i also want to say this if you're if you're watching if you're here today and you don't have a church community or a community to be a part of come on we'll take you right this is a great loving group of people and we would love to love on you as you journey through this time so when the prophets foresaw the age to come they pictured a heavenly banquet grander than we could ever imagine the finest of wines the prophet isaiah said and the finest of foods at that banquet we're told that god will wipe away every tear from our eyes death will be no more mourning and crying and pain will be no more at that banquet we will be reunited with the saints who have gone before us and all the company of heaven a great multitude that no one can count john tells us it will be a glorious day but here's what i want you to know we don't have to wait until then to join in the feast through the lord's supper which we're going to join in this morning through the lord's supper we are invited to the eternal table here and now when we gather at the lord's table we enter a sacred space in a sacred time when we gather at the lord's table the door between heaven and earth is cracked just ever so slightly when we eat the bread and drink the cup we do not feast alone in a book called the rhythm of god geddes mcgregor tells of a priest who was asked this question said how many people were at the early celebration of the eucharist last wednesday and the priest responded well there were three old ladies the janitor several thousand arch angels a large number of seraphim and several million of the triumphant of god saints can you picture it that's what happens when we gather at this table together when we gather at the lord's table we don't just commune with god we do that we also commune with each other but we also commune with everyone who is in christ living and dead when you come to the lord's table listen to me god is with you we are with you and your loved one is here in this moment with you you are not alone i hope you find comfort and i hope you find strength in that news today in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit amen christ our lord invites to his table all who love him all who earnestly repent of their sin and seek to live in peace with one another therefore let us confess our sin before god and one another beloved god who was known to our mothers and fathers even to our spiritual forebears have mercy on us we do not always love as you would have us love we do not always do as you would have us do in our stubbornness we turn from you when we should turn toward you hold us dear one comfort us when we mourn the passing of friends and family and help us to know that they are rejoicing in your presence we praise you for the grace you shower on us and constantly forgiving our errors especially the ones that we don't share with any but you hear now the silent fears and worries of our hearts through god's grace we are forgiven by the mercy of our creator through the love of christ and in the power of the holy spirit let us rejoice and be glad glory to god amen would you please stand [Music] um [Music] foreign [Applause] [Music] oh [Music] uh [Music] [Applause] [Music] now [Music] before you take your seats i want to invite you to turn and take a moment and to share the peace of christ with your neighbor and those of you who are at home you can extend those greetings in the comments via text message however you want to do that so i do want to take just a moment and share a few things that are happening in the life of our church this morning and uh as i do i hope you'll take a moment and find the attendance pad that's in each pew and pass that down your row uh and those of you who are online you'll find links to the different things that i'm going to talk about and so there's one thing you'll see in there called a connection card and that's just the way that you can let us know that you're in worship this morning we do want to know you're here if you're visiting with us i offer you a very special welcome and i'm glad you chose to worship with first methodist this morning and please visitors in particular we ask you to fill out one of those connection cards we just want to be able to say welcome and see if we can help you in any way you'll also find prayer request cards in the pews and prayer requests prayer request links online and we will be taking up an offering as part of worship today there will be plates passed here there's also a text to give option and you can always go to the church's website and give a gift there i do want to take just a moment and acknowledge a special guest who's with us this morning reverend jan kerwick who's our baton rouge district superintendent and uh jan was associate pastor here for quite a few years and yesterday was jan's birthday so happy birthday jan and her husband phil and daughter christian are with us as well so welcome welcome to you all so you'll notice an insert in your bulletin uh of a hebrews 11 society and this is something we lift up to you every year on all saints sunday and this this is a list of persons who either have left a legacy gift to our church or who have communicated to the church that they are planning to give a legacy gift to the church and a legacy gift is a gift that goes beyond your life and it's often maybe a gift of real estate or life insurance or stock or something like that and we just always want to encourage you all to be in prayer about remembering the church in your planning i know that so many of us have been so blessed by this community and by giving a legacy gift you are making a way for that ministry to continue into the future so you'll find more information in your bulletin about that and i hope you'll take some time to read that uh i want to make sure everybody knows that we are going to have a there's a group called open health that's going to be here this wednesday and this is in your bulletin as well and they're going to be giving covet 19 boosters and so if you need a booster you can come to the church and do that this wednesday uh no appointment is necessary and again there's more information in your bulletin about that and last week becky poor came and gave us a wonderful testimony and invitation to you all to consider being a congregational care lay minister we had 10 people sign up from that request but you'll find more information on your bulletin about that and want to continue to ask those of you who might feel called to that ministry to pray about that and again there's information in the bulletin that you can read about that with those things said i want to invite our ushers to come forward as we take up our offering today and as they come i invite you to lift your hearts to god in prayer let us pray lord god the earth belongs to you the world and all its people and for the blessings of this life and for the gift of your salvation in jesus christ we give you thanks and praise and lord on this all saints sunday we praise you for all of those who have gone before us that great cloud of witnesses and we recognize and acknowledge that we stand on the shoulders of spiritual giants lord we ask that you would receive this offering may it be used to your glory and to your honor and we pray these things in jesus name amen [Music] oh [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] oh [Music] foreign [Music] oh me [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] oh [Music] foreign [Applause] [Music] um [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] please be seated and i invite those of you who are here if you want to get out of hymnal and open to page 17 you'll see the sung responses to the great thanksgiving there and those of you who are at home you'll find the responses on your screen the lord be with you lift up your hearts let us give thanks to the lord our god it is right and a good and joyful thing always and everywhere to give thanks to you almighty god and so with your people on earth and all the company of heaven we praise your name and join their unending hymn [Music] holy [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] holy are you in blessed is your son jesus christ by the baptism of his suffering death and resurrection you gave birth to your church delivered us from slavery to sin and death and made with us a new covenant by water and the spirit on the night in which he gave himself up for us he took bread he gave thanks to you he broke the bread he gave it to his disciples and said take and eat this is my body which is given for you do this in remembrance of me when the supper was over he took the cup he gave thanks to you he gave it to his disciples and said drink from this all of you this is my blood of a new covenant poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me and so in remembrance of these your mighty acts in jesus christ we offer ourselves and praise and thanksgiving as a holy and living sacrifice in union with christ's offering for us as we proclaim the mystery of faith [Music] pour out your holy spirit on us gathered here and on these gifts of bread and wine make them be for us the body and blood of christ that we may be for the whole world the body of christ redeemed by his blood renew our communion with your saints especially those whom we name before you in our hearts and since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses strengthen us to run with perseverance the race that is set before us looking to jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith by your spirit make us one with christ one with each other and one in ministry to all the world until christ comes in final victory and we feast at his heavenly banquet through your son jesus christ with the holy spirit in your holy church all honor and glory is yours almighty god now and forever amen and now will you join me in the prayer that jesus taught us to pray 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 and the power and the glory forever amen i want to invite those who are going to help us to serve to come forward at this time and as they come i just want to offer a few reminders first of all those of you who are at home are going to be invited to participate in spiritual communion and you'll see more about that in a moment i do want to remind everyone here of something known as the doctrine of concomitants and you'll find this printed in your bulletin but it teaches that uh the christ is spiritually present both in the bread and in the cup and the reason we want you to know that is we'll only be serving the bread this morning still for reasons of sanitation but we want you to make sure you know that you are receiving the fullness of the presence of christ when you only receive the bread uh there'll be three stations uh one to my right one in the center and one to the left uh you'll be guided by the ushers we'll ask those in the balcony to come down first i also want to make sure everyone knows that all of our communion wafers are gluten free so uh as you come remember this god is with you in this moment [Music] in this moment full of the saints even you're dearly departed and for those of you who are joining us at home we've been offering something called spiritual communion and want to continue to do that and so i invite you to join me in the prayer for spiritual communion at this time let us pray lord jesus i believe you are spiritually present in the sacrament of holy communion i love you above all things and hunger to be drawn closer to you although i am unable to be physically present at your table i ask you now to come spiritually into my heart i welcome and embrace you i unite myself to you and to the church past present and future let nothing ever separate me from you or you from me amen and now we'll rejoin our live worship service [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] so [Music] uh [Music] so [Music] so [Music] let us pray almighty god we give you thanks for this holy meal this mystery in which you make yourself available to us and lord having communed with you communed with one another communed with all the saints as we go from this place we ask that you would live in us live through us touch everyone we meet with your presence your love and your grace and we pray these things in jesus name amen so it's always a privilege i kind of did this a little earlier to invite anyone here who is looking for a church family to consider making first united methodist church that church family and church home we have a gathering called believe and belong and we talk about what does it mean to believe in jesus what does it mean to belong to a community of faith in in a way that transforms us there are some things we we do and we live out together and if you're looking for a church to be a part of we'd love to have you as a member of this church and the upcoming date for believing belong is november the 14th it'll be here at the church so it'll be after the 11 o'clock worship service we'll share a meal together and so i'd love to have you come and be a part of that if you have any questions uh reach out to me reach out to sonya feeling her name is in your bulletin and or you can just let us know you're coming and now i invite you to stand as we sing our closing hymn together [Music] oh oh [Applause] [Music] oh uh [Music] foreign [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] oh [Music] [Music] gracious [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] hmm [Music] [Applause] [Music] here [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] you

Channel: First United Methodist Church of Baton Rouge

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Keywords: first united methodist church of baton rouge, united methodist, church

Id: Bb8zYmfrEk0

Length: 64min 0sec (3840 seconds)

Published: Sun Nov 07 2021