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November 21

CCLI license #1913561

Lakeview Presbyterian Church
Service of the Word for November 21, 2021
Christ the King and Thanksgiving Sunday
A Season of Gratitude, Stewardship, Thanksgiving

Welcome: Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Questions for Reflection: For what are you truly thankful?  What does being thankful mean to you?  What is the evidence of your thankfulness?

Prelude:  “O What Shall I Render?”   TPH #557 sung by Keisha Prime

Call to Worship

Bless the Lord, our Creator and King, who counsels and guides us.
   Because we keep the Lord ever before us, we shall not be moved.
Rejoice in the Lord who redeems! Let your hearts be glad!
   Our spirits rejoice and our bodies rest secure in God’s grace and mercy.
For God does not give us up to death but shows us the path of life.
Praise the Lord!

Opening Prayer
Holy God, Lord of all that is and is to come, you made the world and called it good. We offer songs of thanks for your steadfast love, and lift our voices in praise, for though we have wreaked havoc on your good creation, yet you promise to renew and restore our lives.   Receive our thanks for the bounty of the earth which has sustained us and the hope in which we live.  Amen.

*Hymn “Come, Ye Thankful People, Come”                          TPH # 551

Call to Confession
God waits in mercy to forgive.
Let us confess our sin before God and one another.

Prayer of Confession
Forgive us, Lord, when we think too highly of ourselves and clamor after privilege and honor.
   You have given us every good gift for life abundant.  Have mercy on us in squandering your gifts.  Restore in us a sense of awe for your creation and unity with one another, that we may live faithfully for you.  In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon
This is the good news, the God of creation is still providing our every need, and the God of grace is calling us into newness of life, forgiven and set free.
As a people forgiven by and reconciled to God, let us forgive ourselves and one another and show signs of love and reconciliation to one another.(please show signs of peace and unity while maintaining your social distancing.)

A Stewardship Message                                   Barbara Thornton

Prayer for Illumination
Almighty God, speak your Word to us, and guide our feet, in paths of faithful service. Amen.

Reading from the Hebrew Scriptures: First Chronicles 16: 8—16a
    O give thanks to the LORD, call on his name, make known his deeds among the peoples.  Sing to him, sing praises to him, tell of all his wonderful works.  Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.  Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his presence continually.  Remember the wonderful works he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of his servant Israel,children of Jacob, his chosen ones.  He is the LORD our God; his judgments are in all the earth.  Remember his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations, the covenant that he made with Abraham,

Reading from the Gospel of Matthew 6: 25—33  
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink,1 or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?  And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.  But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you -- you of little faith?  Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?'  For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But strive first for the kingdom of Godand hisrighteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Hymn (please remain seated) “Now Thank We All Our God”   TPH # 555

Sermon       “Don’t Worry . . .”         The Rev. Russell Lehman

Sermon by The Rev. Russell Lehman

Affirmation of Faith 
We believe in one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who gathers, protects and nourishes the Church from the beginning of the world to the end.
The Church is holy; the Church is universal; it is the fellowship of God’s children, called together from the whole of humanity to proclaim God’s wonderful deeds.
We believe that the genuine faith in Jesus Christ is the only condition for membership in this Christian church.
We praise God that race, class, gender, or culture does not determine who belongs to this Church.
We believe that the Church belongs to God and that it should stand where God stands: against injustice and with those who are wronged.We commit ourselves to reject all forms of injustice in ourselves and amongst us; and to struggle against all forms on injustice and every teaching that allows injustices to flourish.

Sharing of Joys and Concerns

Pastoral Prayer

The Lord’s Prayer

This is a modern translation, but feel free to use the words of your choice

  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
  your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
  Give us today our daily bread.
  Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
  Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil.
  For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. 
Amen.

Statement about Offering our Gifts 
People of God, the Lord has given us so much.  Let us praise the Lord through our Gifts for the uplift of God’s kingdom.

      Donations can be mailed to Lakeview Presbyterian Church at 1310 22 nd Av S,  St Petersburg, FL, 33705 or given online through our website  lakeviewpresbyterianchurch.org

Special Music

Prayer of Dedication
God of all creation, we offer these gifts back to you.  Multiply them so that they might help build up your kingdom on earth.  All glory, praise, and honor are due to you, now and forever. Amen.

Hymn    “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”                             TPH # 276

Announcements

Charge/Benediction
Give thanks to the Lord by words of praise and deeds of kindness. May the Lord continue to bless and keep you, this day and forevermore. Amen!

Postlude                        “Count Your Blessings”          AAHH #533