Encountering God
Call to Worship
1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
2 Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
3 Know that the Lord, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
5 For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.
Prayer of Invocation
Heavenly Father, we come to you wearied and worn after another week. And so we ask you to fill our hearts. Make known to us new mercies this morning. Fill our hearts with a sense of your glory, your majesty, your holiness. May we stand in awe of what you have done for us at the cross. That we, though lowly, sinful people, have hope of eternity with you because we have been covered in the blood of your precious Son. May we never outgrow that reality. May the good news of the Gospel never cease to stir us to praise. And receive our worship this morning, we pray, Amen.
Song of Praise
Come Away from Rush and Hurry ・Video・Lyrics
Confession of Sin
Lord Jesus, I have sinned times without number and been guilty of pride and unbelief, and of neglect to seek you in my daily life. My sins and short-comings present me with a list of accusations, but I thank you that they will not stand against me, for all have been laid on Christ. Deliver me from every evil habit, every interest of former sins, everything that dims the brightness of your grace in me, everything that prevents me from taking delight in you. Amen.
From The Valley of Vision
Assurance of Pardon
18 He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. 19 He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. 20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.
Song of Worship
O Love That Will Not Let Me Go・Lyrics & Video
Prayer of Intercession
Take time individually to confess your sins before the Lord. Then as a family/individually pray for the church, for our leaders, for the world, for the abating of the virus, and other needs you know of. You can always look at the prayer requests in the weekly email.
Offering to the Lord
One of the ways believers worship when physically gathered is through giving. Currently we can’t do that. Many do, however, give online. If you would like to, you can do so here. Or you may mail a check to our mailing address. (Note: if you are out of work and find yourself in need - please contact our deacons).
As a song during this time: In the Secret of His Presence ・Lyrics・Video
Scripture Reading
10 Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. 11 And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. 12 And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! 13 And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, ‘I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. 14 Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.’ 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.’ 17 And he was afraid and said, 'How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.’
18 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, ‘If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.
Message
“Encountering God”
Song of Response
Abide with Me・Lyrics & Video
Scriptural Benediction
16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.