Bread and More Soup Kitchen continues to serve a free to-go meal every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 5:30-6:15.
PLEASE NOTE:
CHURCH SERVICES RESUMED IN THE SANCTUARY.
MASKS ARE REQUIRED AND SOCIAL DISTANCING RULES APPLIES
Sixth Sunday of Easter
Happy Mother’s Day
A Service of the Word
May 9, 2021 , 10am
OPENING WORDS:
We open our hearts to the presence of God and worship together.
PRELUDE: Love Divine All Loves Excelling https://youtu.be/jPsxqQsnzJA
We open our hearts to the presence of God and worship together.
CALL TO WORSHIP:
Mothers teach us that the path taken
means as much as the destination.
Mothers remind us we are loved
no matter how unlovable we feel.
Mothers teach us not to wait
until tomorrow to say I’m sorry.
Mothers remind us to make
thankfulness a habit.
Mothers remind us that in faith there is fellowship,
and in fellowship there is love.
Mothers hold us, nurture us, help us and lead us.
Mothers are a blessing.
We worship together and
Thank God for mothers!
WELCOME:
No matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey, you’re welcome here…by our church and by our God.
PRAYER OF INVOCATION:
Good and gracious, mothering God, we celebrate this day with thanksgiving for all the mothers in our lives. We give you thanks for those who were and those who are. We thank you for the love and life lessons we have come to know by your grace at work in their hearts. We thank you for your great love for us, O God, for you, like a mothering hen, take us under your wings.
On this Mother’s Day, we pray that your Holy Spirit will enchant us and lift us from all our regular days and empty routines to the surprising joy of your love. Loosen our tongues to praise you with sincere delight. Open our hearts to trust your leading through times of difficulty and days of despair. Calm our doubts and guide us through the mires of fear. Let us worship you with thanksgiving and delight. It is in Jesus’ Name that we gather, and we pray. Amen.”
CHILDREN'S TIME: In celebration of mom
ANNOUNCEMENTS, CELEBRATIONS AND CONCERNS
A TIME OF PRAYER:
Gracious God, we your children praise you and thank you for all the gifts of your grace. Particularly on this day, we are grateful for those who have blessed our hearts with a mother’s love. We thank you for our mothers, and for all who long have mothered us. We thank you for the homes in which we were nurtured and for the love and life lessons we have learned. We thank you for your love and grace, O God, that have long sustained us.
Creator God of all mothers, your love lifts us from mindlessness to the sincerity of being in a caring community. We thank you for the guidance of your Spirit and the promise of joy in Jesus Christ. We seek to love as we have been loved, to risk life itself for the sake of our sisters and brothers, and to bear fruit that will last. Grant us the strength and courage we need.
Bless us, O God, and continue to guide us, we pray. Be with our families and friends and the many we hold close to our hearts.
We pray for those without a home, and those without mothers. We pray for all who struggle to know love and to be loved.
We pray for the many we know to be in need of your healing touch this day. Bless the many on our prayer list and do bless us. We pray in Jesus’ Name who taught us to pray saying, ‘Our Father…’”
ANTHEM
SCRIPTURE LESSONS: Acts 10.44-48, Psalm 98. 1 John 5.1-6, John 15.9-17
SERMON: “A Mother’s Love” (Tammy Torelli)
A Mother’s Day message is difficult to draft and deliver when your mother has recently become an angel watching the world go on from a place of peace with our God and our Brother Jesus. With that in mind this message may be a little different. For the next few minutes, I ask you to be a part of a short journey where we will talk about love, finding direction in life, and our ability to know that no matter the moment we are not alone. Our loving and faithful God is with us.
As I wrote this message a song played and it said, “I walked through the fire because you walked with me.” The words came alive and danced in my head and I thought of both my experiences as a mother and those of being a child from the viewpoint of being a child. My earliest memory is when I was 9 months old and learned to walk. My Mom was there, of course, and she was so tall, a giant really. She would wait for me and rejoice when I reached her. Her joy was so big I remember joining her with laughs and giggles even though I was not sure why.
When I was 4, I had my tonsils taken out and they were so infected I almost died. In that memory there are no smiles, not really, just what I recognize now to be worry. The light in that time of difficulty was that I got to have lots of ice cream. When it was over the worry on Mom’s face was replaced with relief. She knew the possible cost of being so sick but at my age I could not begin to understand.
I will share one more memory, the day by son Lucas, my first born came into the world. My Mom was there waiting when I could have visitors. I handed her my son, and I finally understood how much she loved me. Here I only met this little person hours before and I knew that if it was asked of me, I would give my life to assure he could grow and have happiness in his life. I told her I finally understood how much she loved me and that I would always work to value that love. I never looked at her the same again because I finally understood that for all the difficult paths, she guided me through she would do it again to just be a part of my life, no matter the cost.
I have countless memories of her as I am sure you do of your mother. I pray that when they come to you there are far more smiles than tears as the path of life has many twists and turns.
The biggest difference in these two way of seeing any moment in time is knowing the cost of straying from the path and walking to close to the fire. When we are children we look, we see, we want to experience because we don’t understand. When we mature just a bit, we look for the experiences that will help us to understand more and in doing so we learn the cost or consequence of what could happen, and we hope it is all full of joy and giggles. Many experiences are worth the cost and they set us on a path to make other choices that will shape us. When we finally enter the third stage and are asked to guide others on the path, we do so knowing so much could go wrong. So much could happen, so much will happen, but knowing that, as parents, we still press forward because every step is worth it. Sometimes we walk slowly and take in all we can, other times we walk faster or at least it seems that way, at times we run, but in all cases we move forward. The sun rises and sets, we measure time and in doing so we place our experiences in order according to our years alive on this earth.
Our scripture today talks about love. I often find that the lectionary does not follow our idea of holidays but the one today is especially beautiful as it is about love. Our God who is both and Mother and Father to us all has created and sustains us daily in love. Jesus is talking and says.
As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, (or follow the path) you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.
"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.
I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name.
Jesus understood there was a path before each of us. Just like our Mothers who gave us warnings time and time again, Jesus worked to guide us, keep us in the light, protect us from the fire of life. He was sent by God, but God knew that God’s guidance in our lives was not always heeded. God gave us free will and we surely use it.
I can't help but acknowledge that God realized that we are so stubborn as humans that God has sent and still sends angels into our lives to guide and direct us. Like Rangers in a park, they mark the safe path. They put up signs and ask us to make the right choices, they even take it so far that they work to find us when we have strayed from the path and cannot find our way back on our own. When they find us, they make us feel safe, warm, and better. Ask yourself why? Why would anyone go to so much effort to guide and direct a creature who keeps wandering directly into danger? The only answer I can possibly come up with is Love, Yes Love, Always Love. Let's go back a little earlier to where we talked about my first memory, learning to walk completely unaware of what I was getting myself into but ready to move forward. Remember that thought but focus on the point, there was someone on the other end I was going towards and was ready to receive me in joy and love. When beautiful innocent children walk the path, we gather around them and take the cost whenever we can and we do it in love. Jesus and God do just that for us, they take all they can for us, even onto death. Jesus did just that. He sacrificed his life that we would have life everlasting and would do it again if asked.
We are not alone; Jesus is with us. The Holy Spirit is with us, God is with us, all working together to guide us. There are still times when we will not hear, we will not see, we will not follow but in all those times God will still love us and send us angels in life to guide us. My angel had a name, Dawn Melody, even though she no longer walks this earth I know she is still guiding me because I feel her lifting me in my worst moments and rejoicing with me in my happiest moments. I remember her guidance in my life as I would not be who I am without it. But of all things I remember, I remember her love and I can’t help but smile. That love was given to her by God and Jesus. She shared it with me, and I share it with you. Please share it with all who enter your path that it may grow as it is shared.
I have shared this all with you to celebrate Mother’s Day because by the grace of God we have been placed in each other’s paths. We are walking a path that allows us to move forward and create new memories together.
I challenge you to take the day ahead of you slowly. Trust me, time will go quick enough on its own. Once this day is finished, we cannot bring it back, but we can remember it, live in it again through our memories and we can even take part of it with us as we continue on the path of life. What you bring forward from this day is up to you, but I pray that it your biggest memory of the day will be love.
If your mother is still with you cherish and love her. There was once a time when you depended on her completely. Now you have a choice, and it means so much more. Love her as completely as she loves you making time to continue to make new memories to cherish.
If you are a mother by birth or because special children have been placed in your life God knows your heart. May you continue to help them walk the path ahead of them. I ask you to love your children that they may remember what it is like to be held and feel the warm embrace of the person who loves them for who they are day in and day out.
If your mother has joined our Savior, I pray that your day will be filled with memories of love, moments that make you laugh, and gentle signs left for you to remind you that love transcends a physical form.
Remember your capacity to love is only limited by your understanding of the word. You can always find more love to share, just ask God and it will be given.
I would like to close with a small poem.
My Favorite Thing About My Mom
My favorite thing about my Mom is everything,
Shepherd's pie, meatloaf, and other things too
The things I know about you
You are kind
You are sweet
You make me feel warm
You comfort me when I have a bad dream
You make me feel loved when I need it most
You make me feel better
You make everything better, you are my Mom.
~ By Cassidy Torelli
Our time together is ending. Soon you will go about your day and make new memories. I have a prayer for you as we depart. I pray you will move forward in this day receiving and giving the love that God has shown you. As you do so may it be blessed by God allowing your love to grow with each exchange. Amen
BENEDICTION:
May our Heavenly Parent bless you with a joy that makes your heart sing, bless with the memory of a mother's touch that comforts your heart, and bless you with a mother's love that you will share with others. Be blessed by God and go in peace.
POSTLUDE: I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry - YouTube
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We're biblical, traditional, yet progressive.
We honor and take pride in our
Congregational roots.
We covenant with one another and with God,
as revealed
in Jesus Christ through the illumination of
the Holy Spirit.
We endeavor to walk humbly with God and
strive for justice and peace.
My house shall be called a house of prayer for all people.
Isaiah 56.7
We are an open and affirming congregation in which all persons regardless of race, ethnic background, economic status, gender, age, or personal ability, are equally affirmed into membership, leadership and employment
and joyfully welcomed.
All activities are currently online only. Our church office is open for phone calls at 631-727-2621. Pastor Sean will return your calls. Our secretary, Henza is in the office Wednesday and Thursday mornings.
All activities are currently online only. Our church office is open for phone calls at 631-727-2621. Pastor Sean will return your calls. Our secretary, Henza is in the office Wednesday and Thursday mornings.
Worship resumed in our Sanctuary on Sundays at 10:00am. Masks are required and social distancing rules applies. No matter who you are or where you are in life's journey, you are welcome here.
103 1st Street, Riverhead, New York 11901, United States
Open today | 09:00 am – 12:00 pm |
Our church office is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9:00am-12:00. Church services are held on Sunday at 10:00am, and as for now there will be no coffee hour in the fellowship hall. Sunday School will be held at 10:00 am. (To run concurrent with our worship service)
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