Service Sunday August 3, 2025
HIGHLAND HILLS UNITED CHURCH
Minden, Ontario
SUNDAY, July 27th, 2025
All are Welcome!
Worship Leaders: Christine Carr,
Debbie Sherwin & Rev. Max Ward
Music Director: Melissa Stephens
(For a Printer Friendly PDF version click this link)
The Gathering
WELCOME & ANNOUNCEMENTS:
FOCUSING ON THE LIGHT OF CHRIST:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF TERRITORY:
THE APPROACH
CALL TO WORSHIP:
One: What brings us to worship?
ALL: Our concerns, yes.
One: Our experiences of community and family relationships, both nourishing and hurtful, yes.
ALL: Our stories of discipleship, how we reached and how we didn’t really try, yes.
One: How we suffer and what we have lost, yes.
ALL: Our need to give praise to God, yes.
One: In worship, we dig into it all.
ALL: We are open to God’s gifts of grace, hope, love, and life in Jesus’ name.
Written by Bill Perry, Belleville, Ont.
Gathering, Pentecost 1 2025, p.37. Used with permission.
HYMN: “Come In, Come In and Sit Down” VU #395
Refrain Come in, come in and sit down,
you are a part of the family.
We are lost and we are found,
and we are a part of the family.
1 You know the reason why you came,
yet no reason can explain;
so share in the laughter and cry in the pain,
for we are a part of the family. Refrain
2 God is with us in this place,
like a mother's warm embrace.
We're all forgiven by God's grace,
for we are a part of the family. Refrain
3 There's life to be shared in the bread and the wine;
we are the branches, Christ is the vine.
This is God's temple, it's not yours or mine,
but we are a part of the family. Refrain
4 There's rest for the weary and health for us all;
there's a yoke that is easy, and a burden that's small.
So come in and worship and answer the call,
for we are a part of the family. Refrain
OPENING PRAYER: Read In Unison
In Christ’s name, we come, O God, ready to be attentive to your voice. Help us to find that still place inside our celebration, to feel the quiet rhythm of your love, echoing the rhythms of our souls. Remind us that we are a part of your love. Remind us that all are a part of your love. Amen.
Written by The Very Reverend Richard Bott, Grace U.C., Burlington, Ont.
Gathering, Pentecost 1 2025, p.40. Used with permission.
MINISTRY OF MUSIC:
LEARNING TOGETHER:
HYMN: “Let Us Build a House” MV #1
1. Let us build a house where love can dwell and all can safely live,
A place where saints and children tell how hearts learn to forgive.
Built of hopes and dreams and visions, rock of faith and vault of grace;
here the love of Christ shall end divisions:
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
2. Let us build a house where prophets speak, and words are strong and true,
where all God’s children dare to seek to dream God’s reign anew.
Here the cross shall stand as witness and as symbol of God’s grace;
here as one we claim the faith of Jesus:
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
3. Let us build a house where love is found in water, wine and wheat;
a banquet hall on holy ground, where peace and justice meet.
Here the love of God, through Jesus, is revealed in time and space;
as we share in Christ the feast that frees us:
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
4. Let us build a house where hands will reach beyond the wood and stone
to heal and strengthen, serve and teach, and live the Word they’ve known.
Here the outcast and the stranger bear the image of God’s face;
let us bring an end to fear and danger:
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
5. Let us build a house where all are named, their songs and visions heard
and loved and treasured, taught and claimed as words within the Word.
Built of tears and cries and laughter, prayers of faith and songs of grace;
let this house proclaim from floor to rafter:
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
THE WORD
Scripture: : Matthew 18:20
&
Poem:
Leader: Hear and listen to what the Spirit is saying to the church.
ALL: Thanks be to God.
MESSAGE:
“Creating Safe Space” – Guest Speaker – Christine Carr
OUR RESPONSE
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE and THE LORD’S PRAYER: (sung VU #960)
HYMN “Draw the Circle Wide” MV #145
Refrain Draw the circle wide. Draw it wider still.
Let this be our song, no one stands alone,
standing side by side, draw the circle wide.
1. God the still-point of the circle,
‘round whom all creation turns;
nothing lost, but held forever,
in God’s gracious arms. Refrain
2. Let our hearts touch far horizons,
so encompass great and small;
let our loving know no borders,
faithful to God’s call. Refrain
3. Let the dreams we dream be larger,
than we’ve ever dreamed before;
let the dream of Christ be in us,
open every door. Refrain
AFFIRMING MOMENT:
PRESENTATION OF OUR OFFERINGS
OFFERTORY PRAYER:
We have been blessed with abundance; we have more than enough to sustain us; we are enriched by your presence, Gracious God. We are overwhelmed by your generosity. We take this opportunity to declare, “Thank you” with our offering. Amen
Written by Fern Gibbard, Penticton, B.C.
Gathering, Pentecost 1 2025, p.47. Used with permission.
SUNG BLESSING VU #402 vs 4
4 We are one as we hear,
as we hear, heart and hand unite;
in the word we receive
there's a sense that God is light.
We are one as we leave,
as we love, we are loved;
and we seek justice in God's ways
as we move together from this place. ©
SENDING FORTH:
A Time of Fellowship
© Music Reproduced with permission under License number A-605748, Valid for: 26/10/2024 - 25/10/2025; One License - Copyright Cleared Music for Churches
