Joelle's Sermons

God’s Math

HFUMC/MUMC
July 25, 2021
John 6:1-21

Follow along in this service by clicking
on the links for music, message, etc.,
coming back to the service
after each.

Call to Worship:

The foolish say, ‘there is no God.’
We come, trusting in Jesus,

the face, the voice, the presence of the God who loves us.
The scoffers of our age ask, ‘why do you seek after God?’
We come, in this time,

because God’s grace has spilled over in our lives.
The hopeless around us think, ‘no one cares about me.’
We come, in this time, to this place,

because Jesus has found us and brought us home.

~ Thom Shuman

Praise: Waymaker — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZRwn_Thg2Q

Prayer:

Please take this time to speak out loud the things that have brought you joy and blessing this week. I am sure you have them, but sometimes we have to be reminded to look for them. Thank you Jesus for these things. Then after you have have shared those joys, list your concerns as you would if we were together. Now, let us join together in prayer:

Prayer/Scripture/Message: https://youtu.be/88prwSeeR5k

Hymn: Dear Lord, Lead Me Day by Day — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRFZYpiQ8lw

Offering:

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

On my own what I have to give doesn’t amount to much in the light of all you have given to me and in the face of so much need. Put together as a congregation, what we offer you here in love becomes more, not simply added together, but somehow multiplied in its usefulness. We ask you to bless our gifts and with the addition of your blessing, just as it was with the loaves and fishes, there is enough for all. Amen

Hymn: Lead On, O King Eternal — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnth4bMo-8s

Benediction:

You have been given every good gift for proclaiming God’s presence and God’s love. The world is hungry for this good news. People struggle for words of hope and peace. As you have been blessed, now go to be a blessing in God’s Name. AMEN.

Passing of the Peace of God

Let your hearts sing a new song in place of your benediction song. Reach out to someone in our congregation and place a song in their heart by your contact.

Out of Desperation

HFUMC/MUMC
June 27, 2021
Mark 5:21-43

Follow along in this service by clicking
on the links for music, message, etc.,
coming back to the service
after each.

Call to Worship:

With friends and strangers,
with family and neighbors, we gather:
Come among us, Healing God,
with that love which never ends.
With faith reaching out to touch,
with hearts straining to trust, we hope:
Come among us, Friend of the broken,
with your compassion which makes us whole.
With word and wonder,
with silence and song, we wait:
Come among us, Dryer of our tears,
to lift us to our feet to follow you.

~ Thom Shuman

Praise: God of all my Days — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RocPcgqCDE0

If you have children please share this – if you do not, navigate to the prayer section below. Please register on the Sunday School website by clicking on “log in” in the top right and sign up.

Children’s Church: There is Power in a Touch — https://sermons4kids.com/touching-jesus.html

Prayer:

Prayer/Scripture/Message: — https://youtu.be/-S1zzkl2xG8

Hymn: He Touched Me — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iZr-qvv6PQ

Offering:

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

God of power and might, you bring forth life in the midst of death, healing in the midst of disease, and hope in the darkest places of our despair. You reach out for our hand, that we might be made whole, but also that our hands might bring healing and life to others. May the gifts we offer to you this morning bring life and healing to your children, both near and far. We pray in the name of your Son, our life and our healer. Amen.

Hymn: Jesus Hands Were Kind Hands — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJGHJ1dhOj4

Benediction:

No matter what you are facing
Or who you are!
Come to the feet of Jesus,
He will meet you right where you are at
And share his love and compassion
And teach you to walk by faith and have no fear!

Passing of the Peace of God

Let your hearts sing a new song in place of your benediction song. Reach out to someone in our congregation and place a song in their heart by your contact.

Calm Through the Storm

HFUMC/MUMC
June 20, 2021
Mark 4:35-41

Follow along in this service by clicking
on the links for music, message, etc.,
coming back to the service
after each.

Call to Worship:

The winds of life’s terror and wave-storms of my reality are about to drown me! Splashes of disappointment, pain, fear, and guilt have entered our boat, And I thought you were present. It doesn’t feel like it.
Peace be still.
Your rest contradicts my restlessness, and I am shaken up.
How are you in this boat with me, and yet I can’t feel you?
Peace be still.
You calmed the winds and the waves in the moments of our despair.
Peace be still.
I doubted you, but instead of condemning me, you proved yourself to me
Our doubts are beneath you; our fears are not above you;
Our storms may all surround you, and still they answer to your word. Teach us how to be peace. Teach us how to be. Teach us how to be still.
Peace be still.
~ Valerie Boyer

Praise: Praise You in the Storm — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YUGwUgBvTU

Children’s Church: https://www.umcherkimer.com/blank-page-1

Prayer:

Prayer/Scripture/Message: https://youtu.be/AtQDTtEsu10

Hymn: Stand by Me — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcoXI0Mpr40

Offering:

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

God of the heavens, the land and the water that covers it, we know what it is like to be tossed about in a storm. We know that the faith we profess when days are calm and sunny is challenged and shaky when the storm is furious and the water is swamping our boat. As we offer our gits to you this day, they are given with the hope that we will be better able to let go of what the world tells us will guarantee our security and find our hope and assurance in your redeeming love. Dedicate these gifts in the knowledge that there are other boats besides ours in the same storm. We pray this prayer in the powerful name of Jesus. Amen.

Hymn: Give to the Winds Thy Fears — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hblgvTYG7mA

Benediction:

When you find yourself facing storms….Praise God!
Recognize that you might be on a journey to either learn or grow,
or on a journey to do some great thing that the devil does not want you to do!
Trust in Jesus and keep your eyes on Him.
He loves you and cares and wants to do good for all those who Love Him!
Keep following Jesus and take your eyes off the storm and place them squarely onto Him.

Passing of the Peace of God

Let your hearts sing a new song in place of your benediction song. Reach out to someone in our congregation and place a song in their heart by your contact.

Weeds, Weeds, Everywhere

HFUMC/MUMC
June 13, 2021
Mark 4:26-34

Follow along in this service by clicking
on the links for music, message, etc.,
coming back to the service
after each.

Call to Worship:

Called to be branches in Christ’s body,
We yearn to be connected to the vine.
Called to be mustard bushes offering shade to God’s creatures,
We search for places to plant the seeds of faith.
Called to be growing with God in the midst of this world’s painful questions,
We seek God’s nurturing presence. —Katherine Hawker

Praise:

I Walk by Faith –https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0-eljXhRMM&t=169s

Children’s Church: A Tiny Seed — https://www.umcherkimer.com/post/a-tiny-seed

Prayer:

Prayer/Scripture/Message — https://youtu.be/Ec4Hna7aZxM

Hymn: The Hymn of Promise — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RHek8k5WoY

Offering:

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

Lord of all bounty and blessing, the gifts we offer to you are like seeds. Some will take root nearby, and we will see them grow and bear fruit. Some will be carried far beyond where we can see, and we have faith that they will find good soil and thrive. We thank you for the privilege of being called to sow. Bless with the joy of good fruit the seed we will see and the seed we will never see. We pray this in the loving name of Jesus, gardener and savior. Amen.

Hymn: You are the Seed — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TsTCmBYq4c

Benediction:

Life is a mystery. We walk by faith.
God calls us when we least expect it,
inviting us to be in Christ.
Walk out into the world, knowing that you are part
of God’s life-giving new creation.
Life is a mystery. We walk by faith.
Amen.

Passing of the Peace of God

Let your hearts sing a new song in place of your benediction song. Reach out to someone in our congregation and place a song in their heart by your contact.

Is Our House Divided?

HFUMC/MUMC
June 6, 2021
Mark 3:2-0-35

Follow along in this service by clicking
on the links for music, message, etc.,
coming back to the service
after each.

Call to Worship:
L: In the times of trouble, when all seemed hopeless, I cried out to God.
P: And the Lord heard my pleas and answered me.
L: When I felt lost and alone, I looked for God.
P: And God found me and brought me home.
L: When my life was filled with joy and blessing, I danced and praised God.
P: And God danced and rejoiced with me. Thanks be to God. AMEN.

Praise: Better is One Day —

Children’s Church: Forgiving Yourself — https://www.umcherkimer.com/post/06-06-2021-forgiving-yourself

Prayer:

Prayer/Scripture/Message:

Hymn: Who is My Mother, Who is My Brother? —

Offering:

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

Holy and forgiving God, it is easy for our lives to become singularly focused on our families, yet you call us to a broader understanding of family. We prioritize our money around the needs of our families and especially our children, and you challenge us to a global view of family and to look at all children with the love we look on those who live under our roof. As we give to you, open our eyes to see the wider family; our ears to hear the cries of hurting, hungry children; our hearts to experience the extravagantly generous love you pour down on us. We pray in the name of your son, our brother, Jesus. Amen.

Hymn: Christ for the World We Sing —

Benediction:
Now, let us go into the world as God’s children.
We will go to walk beside all who are in the shadows,
for there, we will find God journeying with them.
Now, let us go into our communities as the family of Jesus.
We will walk with our sisters who work multiple jobs;
we will walk with our brothers who raise children on their own.
Now, let us go into our neighborhoods as companions of the Spirit.
We will walk in peace with those who are so angry,
we will walk with those who have been damaged by hate.

© Thom M. Shuman

Passing of the Peace of God

Let your hearts sing a new song in place of your benediction song. Reach out to someone in our congregation and place a song in their heart by your contact.

See the Forest through the Trees

HFUMC/MUMC
May 30, 3021
John 3:1-17

Follow along in this service by clicking
on the links for music, message, etc.,
coming back to the service
after each.

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him
should not perish but have eternal life.
Let those who know they are redeemed celebrate it!
Those who have been reclaimed from deep trouble!
Though we were as good as dead, God made us alive with the grace of Christ
through whom we are rescued and healed. O give thanks to God for such
unswerving love, for such wonderful deeds for the children of earth.
~ Bruce Prewer

Praise:

Lift High the Cross — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ephp3TVkPVY

How Great is our God — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeWjJi0vueQ

Children’s Message — Listen to the wind of the Spirit –https://www.umcherkimer.com/post/05-30-2021-listen-to-the-wind-of-the-spirit

Prayer: Please take this time to speak out loud the things that have brought you joy and blessing this week. I am sure you have them, but sometimes we have to be reminded to look for them. Thank you Jesus for these things. Then after you have have shared those joys, list your concerns as you would if we were together. Now, let us join together in prayer

Prayer/Scripture/Message — https://youtu.be/bMcTAhH-Uq8

Offering:

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

Holy God, above us, among us, within us: we rejoice this day that while you might have chosen to be unknown to us, you have revealed yourself in many ways. Each encounter with you calls us to return blessings with worship, compassion, and service. So, when we give this day, we do so in gratitude for all your children everywhere. In gratitude, we celebrate you, three and yet one. Amen.

Hymn: How Great Thou Art — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNiNZab-_Jk

Benediction:

Just as God’s Word was sent into the world
to heal and redeem,
so God sends you into the world this day
to be light and love, healing and hope.

Go now to be light for the world!
And may the grace and peace of God the Creator,
the Redeemer, and the Sustainer
come upon you this day
and remain with you always. Amen.
~ by Rev. Kathryn Matthews Huey & Rev. Susan A. Blain.

Passing of the Peace of God

Let your hearts sing a new song in place of your benediction song. Reach out to someone in our congregation and place a song in their heart by your contact.

Can These Bones Dance?

HFUMC/MUMC
May 23, 2021
Ezekiel 37:1-12, 14
Acts 2

Ezekiel has a vision of a valley full of bones receiving life, breath, sinew, and flesh after encountering the word of God. When they arise, they receive Spirit and they dance! As Easter people we celebrate the Spirit that continues to give life and breath to our dry bones. We dare to dance in the face of fear, in the face of cynicism, in the face of despair. We dare to dance “as long as we live” for we, like the early Christians, are the recipients of the Spirit of God which intercedes even when we think we can’t make it to the dance floor.

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

The day of Pentecost has arrived and calls us to dance – to dance in the wind and fire of the Spirit, to feel, to allow exuberance to fill our bodies and souls. With those in Jerusalem on that day, may we dare to dream – to imagine – to let our breath be taken away – and to dance

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

This is the call!
The flames of the Spirit are beckoning.
We lift up our heads to meet the day.
Our focus is on the future and what we might do together.
We fortify our hearts with compassion and action.
When rain comes again, we will open the umbrellas of joy and set out anyway.
For we are called to dance again!

Praise: Holy Spirit —

Prayer/Children’s Time/Scripture/Message — https://youtu.be/MCJeCh8alFM

Dancing for All We’re Worth — This week’s video of Gene Kelly and Singing in the Rain.

Offering:

We know that proclaiming resurrection and daring to dance as we have done this season doesn’t mean that things are all OK. But it does bring us the energy we need if we are to continue to dance the dance of justice and find the steps of service. So let us continue the dance of generosity.

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

Living God, you are the Lord of all! Only you can send your Spirit to bring us new life. You graciously speak your word of hope in times of struggle and uncertainty and in times of joy and peace. We are grateful that you are continually at work in our lives and the world to fulfill your promises. May our giving today show our trust in you. We pray through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Hymn: Spirit of Faith, Come Down — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=encueJkFTYU

Benediction:
As poet Rainer Maria Rilke said,

“That designing Spirit,
the mastermind of all things on earth,
loves nothing so much in the sweeping movement of the dance
as the turning point.”

The Day of Pentecost is a turning point for the church – both then and now!
The Spirit lives in us and still calls us to boldness and brilliance,
to be filled with hope and love and joy,
and to dance with the rhythm of that Spirit.

May it be so in us and in all the church!
And may the Loving God,
Risen Christ,
and Dancing Spirit
fill you with sall you need
for the days ahead.
And all God’s people said,
“Amen!”

Service adapted from Worship Design Studio Dare to Dance Series – http://www.worshipdesignstudio.com

Lifted Up – A Pivotal Moment

HFUMC/MUMC
May 16, 2021
Psalm 47: 1-6
Luke 24:44-53

As Jesus prepares to leave the disciples, he opens their minds and blesses them. The result after he ascends is their return to Jerusalem with great joy and a desire for continually worshiping and blessing God in the temple. What happens when the “eyes of OUR hearts are enlightened?” We know the hope that we have been called to. As we wait for the Spirit with hope, we celebrate with abandon because we have no other ruler than the One who reigns with love and justice.

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

Dancing changes us: it transforms us and brings us to life, awakens our senses. Imagine the dreams and the heartbeat and the life stirring in Jesus and his disciples as he readied them for this next chapter of ministry.

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

This is the call!
Ready yourselves for new life.
We lift up our heads to meet the day.
Get ready to be the hands and feet of Jesus in this world.
We fortify our hearts with compassion and action.
Even when rain sets in, open those umbrellas of gratitude and set out anyway.
For we are called to dance again!

PRAISE: Alive and Breathing — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDvzAgZ5T4U

Prayer/Children’s Time/Scripture/Message — https://youtu.be/j2S8PdaGGlQ

Dancing for All We’re Worth:
This morning’s Dare to Dance video is such a treat. – The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater calling folks to unite..pulling off a wonderful dance despite the pandemic and separation by distance….starting with claps like within our Psalm this morning….uniting dancers from around the world many different languages and ethnicities coming together joining in a common language of dance praising God! I can’t imagine the countless hours that went into creating this video.

Offering:

Next week is the last week of our Easter Season series, for this season ends with Pentecost, when the flames of the spirit danced within all people. We are so grateful for the ways in which you have continued throughout this difficult time of being separated. You have continued to support and give life and movement to the ministries of this church. You are the hands and feet of Christ now in the world. Let us receive our offering.

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

During this time the church is especially challenged to meet payroll and pay bills. We are unable to hold our fundraisers -rummage sales, etc. We still count on you to help us meet our commitments. We have folks among us who have reduced income as a result of the COVID-19 guidelines who may not be able to give as they have in the past.

Use this time to brainstorm ideas in how you can reach out tangibly to others to show God’s love to the people around you this week even while living in a self-quarantine state.

Prayer of Dedication:
Loving God of both comfort and challenge; we have been blessed to know the feeling of being surrounded in your loving arms like a child. Yet we also know that is not a place we can stay. You send us to be part of the world – with all its ugliness, anger, hate, deceit, and betrayals – but not of the world. You call us to give, so that love, compassion, and hope might be set loose, we are not giving as those who are of the world – expecting to receive in the transaction. We give instead out of gratitude for your loving heart, made known to us in Christ. Use us in this way, we pray in the blessed name of Christ, who by your love overcame death. Amen.

Hymn: Hail the Day that Sees Him Rise — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_k1xfIx1d1w

Benediction:
The poet Rumi invites us with these words…
“Dance, when you’re broken open.
Dance, if you’ve torn the bandage off.
Dance in the middle of the fighting.
Dance in your blood.
Dance, when you’re perfectly free.”
May it be so as we go in peace.
And may the Loving God,
Risen Christ,
and Dancing Spirit
fill you with all you need
for the days ahead.
And all God’s people said,
“Amen!”

Service adapted from Worship Design Studio Dare to Dance Series – http://www.worshipdesignstudio.com

Dancing with Unexpected Twists and Turns

May 9, 2021
John 15:9, 11-15a
Acts 10:44–48

Leader: (rap style)
Break forth!
Break out!
Break-fast!
Break dance!
Break it up!
Break into!
Breaker-Breaker!
Break-up!
Break bread!
Take a break!
Emergency brake!

Leader 2: Whoa!!!

Both: What are we talking about?

Leader: Breaking is risky business!
Broken foot!
Broken lives!

Broken hearts!
Broken ties!

BOTH: But what are WE talking about?

Leader: Breaking patterns!
Seeing with new eyes…
Hearing with new ears…
Loving with new hearts…

Breaking the molds that keep us from moving on, moving out…

Breaking through!
Breaking forth!

Let all creation break forth into praises of this,
our awesome God!
Let all creation break forth into praises of this,
our loving Christ!
Let all creation break forth into praises of this,
our enlivening Spirit!

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

Leader (from Psalm 98): O sing to the LORD a new song, for God has done marvelous things. Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises with the lyre and the sound of melody.

With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the LORD. Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it. Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy!

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

Leader: This is the call!
The sun breaks through the clouds.
People: We lift up our heads to meet the day.
We know that God is at work in our lives.
We fortify our hearts with compassion and action.
And when rain comes again, we will open our umbrellas set out anyway.
For we are called to dance again!

Praise — I Come with Joy — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vp8J6DOemus

Prayer – Scripture – Message — https://youtu.be/NJP-Ebrfcks

Dancing with All Your Worth — story of Dare to Dance Challenge started for Finley to have her surgery for Cerebral Palsy that cost $50,000. Finley dreamed to dance….this is a video of the Mission Hospital with the dare to dance challenge for Finley. Similar to the Ice bucket challenge —

Offertory – Our joy is complete because the joy of Christ resides within us. We cannot help but break forth. This joy is available to all, realized the community in Acts. The Holy Spirit finds its way even and especially in what feels like unlikely people and places. Everything in creation and everyone has the potential to offer new insight. Let us support ministries that move us forward to new solutions for a new world through our offering today.

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Use this time to brainstorm ideas in how you can reach out tangibly to others to show God’s love to the people around you this week even while living in a self-quarantine state.

Prayer of Dedication: God of unimaginable love, we have known of your caring since we were babies in our mother’s arms. We have been told the stories of your love, and we have sung songs about your love. These things bring us comfort. What challenges us is the command of Jesus, “As I have loved you, so you should love one another” —not just those who think as we do, pray as we do, and look the way that we do. Help us, through our giving, our living and our loving, to live up to the challenge of loving as you would have us love. In the name of our risen Savior, we pray. Amen.

Hymn: You Shall Go Out With Joy — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unWnWSgoSt0

Benediction:

The poet Hafiz* said,
“Every child has known God,
Not the God of names, Not the God of don’ts,
Not the God who ever does anything weird,
But the God who knows only four words.
And keeps repeating them, saying:
‘Come dance with me, come dance.’”
And may the Loving God,
Risen Christ,
and Dancing Spirit
fill you with all you need
for the days ahead.
And all God’s people said,
“Amen!”

* Hafiz (translation by Daniel Ladinsky)

Service adapted from Worship Design Studio Dare to Dance Series – http://www.worshipdesignstudio.com

Dancing with the Apostle Philip (Message by David Dudgeon)

HFUMC/MUMC
May 2, 2021
Psalm 22:25-31
Acts 8:26-39

We are a resurrection people! Those who seek new life – new beginnings. And we, the church, must be a place of knowing and growing and accepting love. We hear today the question asked by the Ethiopian eunuch: “Here is water. What is to keep me from being baptized?” As we dance into diversity and acceptance, may the Spirit guide our steps for nothing is keeping us from it!

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

Dancing requires that we pay attention to the steps, that we watch for the steps of those who have danced this dance of life before – those whose seeking and questioning and dreaming can lead us to seek and hope and dream. Imagine now a dreamer in whose steps you would like to follow. How did they choreograph their dance of life? Now, imagine yourself following their steps with courage and joy!

Dare to dance with dreamers, sing their song,
Dare to dance their stories, sing out strong.
Dare to dance with freedom your whole life long,
Dare to dance again!

This is the call!
Look to the skies be it rain or shine.
We lift up our heads to meet the day.
Look around and see that you do not dance alone.
We fortify our hearts with compassion and action.
If rain still lingers, open the umbrellas of praise and set out anyway.
For we are called to dance again!

Praise — Guide Me, O My Great Redeemer —

Prayer/Scripture/Children’s Message/Message — https://youtu.be/q29RVPifnCY

Dancing For All Were Worth —

Offering:

Take this time to exercise the privilege of sharing in the work of God by giving your tithe to the church. You have options:

US Mail:
First United Methodist Church of Herkimer
127 N. Prospect Street
Herkimer, NY 13350.

Morning Star United Methodist Church
36 Second Avenue
Ilion, NY 13357

Online Giving for HFUMC (safe and secure)

You can use this link or download the Tithe.ly app from the app store https://tithe.ly/give?c=1695306

Prayer of Dedication:

God of the far-flung universe and God who is closer than our own heartbeat: we long to dwell in your closeness, abiding in you and you abiding in us. However, the call to abide in other places is strong: to abide in the world of popularity and acceptance or in the world of increasing wealth and power centered around our own wants and desires. As we offer our gifts and ourselves to you, help us turn away from other calls and abide in that place of heart’s deepest desire: in your Son, Jesus, and he in us. In Christ, we pray. Amen.

Hymn — God of Love and God of Power —

Benediction
Poet and songwriter Leonard Cohen
penned these words that we can surely lift to God:

“Dance me to your beauty with a burning violin
Dance me through the panic till I’m gathered safely in
Lift me like an olive branch and be my homeward dove
Dance me to the end of love

Oh, let me see your beauty when the witnesses are gone
Let me feel you moving like they do in Babylon
Show me slowly what I only know the limits of
Dance me to the end of love.”

May we follow the lead of the Spirit
as we find expansive ways to dance the dance of love.
And may the Loving God,
Risen Christ,
and Dancing Spirit
fill you with all you need
for the days ahead.
And all God’s people said,
“Amen!

Service adapted from Worship Design Studio Dare to Dance Series – http://www.worshipdesignstudio.com