April 16, 2023
WORDS OF WELCOME
Pastor Amanda Miller Garber
NOMOFOMO
FINAL Just Be (For the 15-25ish crowd) TODAY, Ice House Library, Immediately following worship
Today’s Topic - Bring It! (Bring your questions!)Next Sunday we are celebrating our wonderful campus minister - ABC (Abby Butler Cefalo)!
Please spread the word and be here! We’ll celebrate her in worship and then have a reception upstairs with food and other good things!Grad Sunday is 4/30 - please tell all grads!
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WELCOMING STATEMENT
Eleanor Baker
RISE believes that God has open arms, and so should we. Our Creator wants us to love, accept and affirm every human being, including persons of every age, race, ethnic background, nationality, gender identity, sexual orientation, family or socioeconomic status, educational background, and physical or mental ability. We celebrate our diversity and recognize the sacred worth and dignity of all. Everyone is invited and encouraged to join us as we seek to follow Jesus with mutual respect, understanding, and love.
*Read more about “Why Pronouns Matter” HERE.
SONG
Brent Holl
“Lord of the Dance”
I danced in the morning When the world was begun,
And I danced in the moon And the stars and the sun,
And I came down from heaven And I danced on the earth,
At Bethlehem I had my birth.
REFRAIN:
Dance, then, wherever you may be,
I am the Lord of the Dance, said he,
And I'll lead you all, wherever you may be,
And I'll lead you all in the Dance, said he
I danced for the scribe And the pharisee,
But they would not dance And they wouldn't follow me.
I danced for the fishermen, For James and John
They came with me And the Dance went on.
REFRAIN
I danced on the Sabbath And I cured the lame;
The holy people Said it was a shame.
They whipped and they stripped And they hung me on high,
And they left me there On a Cross to die.
REFRAIN
I danced on a Friday When the sky turned black
It's hard to dance With the devil on your back.
They buried my body And they thought I'd gone,
But I am the Dance, And I still go on.
REFRAIN
They cut me down And I leapt up high;
I am the life That'll never, never die;
I'll live in you If you'll live in me -
I am the Lord Of the Dance, said he.
REFRAIN
THEOLOGICAL EXPLORATION
Pastor Amanda Miller Garber
Caitlin McGeehan
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS AND QUESTIONS OR TEXT THEM TO 833-803-0868!
What does our culture tell us about hope? What images, moments, media, etc come to mind?
What does the church tells us about hope and new life/new beginnings?
At this point in your journey, how would you explain or define hope and new beginnings?
Let’s take a look at today’s scripture…
John 20:19-31 (CEB)
19 It was still the first day of the week. That evening, while the disciples were behind closed doors because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities, Jesus came and stood among them. He said, “Peace be with you.” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they were filled with joy. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father sent me, so I am sending you.” 22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven; if you don’t forgive them, they aren’t forgiven.”
24 Thomas, the one called Didymus,[a] one of the Twelve, wasn’t with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 The other disciples told him, “We’ve seen the Lord!”
But he replied, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands, put my finger in the wounds left by the nails, and put my hand into his side, I won’t believe.”
26 After eight days his disciples were again in a house and Thomas was with them. Even though the doors were locked, Jesus entered and stood among them. He said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here. Look at my hands. Put your hand into my side. No more disbelief. Believe!”
28 Thomas responded to Jesus, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Jesus replied, “Do you believe because you see me? Happy are those who don’t see and yet believe.”
30 Then Jesus did many other miraculous signs in his disciples’ presence, signs that aren’t recorded in this scroll. 31 But these things are written so that you will believe that Jesus is the Christ, God’s Son, and that believing, you will have life in his name.
When we think about traditional Easter themes and messages, does this fit that mold?
What does it say about hope and new life?
Why does this follow the story we typically hear on Easter morning?
What lessons should we carry with us from this story?
SHARE YOUR QUESTIONS OR TEXT THEM TO 833-803-0868
COMMUNION
Pastor Amanda Miller Garber
Servers:
Randy Conley
Kemper-Kite Family
SONG
Brent Holl
“How Can I Keep From Singing”
My life flows on in endless song,
above earth’s lamentation.
I hear the sweet, though far off hymn
that hails a new creation.
Through all the tumult and the strife,
I hear its music ringing.
It sounds an echo in my soul.
How can I keep from singing?
While though the tempest loudly roars,
I hear the truth it liveth.
And though the darkness round me close,
songs in the night it giveth.
No storm can shake my inmost calm
while to that rock I’m clinging.
Since love is Lord of heaven and earth,
how can I keep from singing?
I lift my eyes, the clouds grow thin,
I see the blue above it.
And day by day this pathway clears,
since first I learned to love it.
The peace from love makes fresh my heart,
a song of hope is ringing.
All things are mine, since truth I’ve found.
How can I keep from singing?
(instrumental)
No storm can shake my inmost calm
while to that rock I’m clinging.
Since love is Lord of heaven and earth,
how can I keep from singing?
Final Blessing
~by Kate Bowler
Roy Nelson
Blessed are we who come to You in the discomfort of our doubt,
for we trust that our honest unknowing is a truer and better prayer
than bootstrapping efforts at certainty.
Blessed are we, receiving the gift of doubt,
for we trust that it is a doorway, freeing us to become
that we could not otherwise have known.
Blessed are we, remembering that You God, hold all things together.
You are the invisible scaffolding that supports us,
the canopy of love that protects us in the present,
the stable pillars, sunk deep into our past,
and the Dove that flies confidently toward the future
bearing for us the peace we could never have attained for ourselves.
Blessed are we, settling into the truth that there are things that we can’t know,
settling into the humility that knows this one thing —
that we are of the earth, and You are our God.
Notice this day what you do know and trust. Thank God for it. And leave the rest.
Amen.