ROCKBURN PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
March 27, 2022.
Worship Leader: Stewart Burrows     
Clerk of Session: Shirley McNaughton
Music: Nancy Campbell/Debra Armein
Board of Managers: Robert Waller   
Treasurers: Sophie & Christine Caza                                 
Rockburn Carolers: Eric Pritchard                     
Youth Leader: Christine Caza                     
Sunday School: Grace Sutton
Worship Coordinator/Bulletins: Elizabeth Waller 450-827-2668            Rockburn Website:   Marcelle Chabot  www.rockburnpresbyterian.org
 
PRELUDE                      Chenaniah
PROCESSIONAL:        Thy Word    # 496       Blue Hymnal 

(Hear it below at the bottom of the page)
1. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
and a light unto my path.

When I feel afraid, think I've lost my way,
still you're there right beside me,
and nothing will I fear as Iong as you are near.
Please be near me to the end.

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
and a light unto my path.

2. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
and a light unto my path.

I will not forget your love for me,
and yet my heart forever is wandering.
Jesus, be my guide and hold me to your side,
and I will love you to the end.

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
and a light unto my path.
 
CALL TO WORSHIP
If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation!
Thanks be to God for such great mercy.
Everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!
Thanks be to God for new beginnings!
God has given us the ministry of reconciliation through Christ Jesus.
Together we will make a new beginning in Christ!
Let us worship God with joyful hearts, trusting God to renew us and all things.
We will lift our praises to God with hearts refreshed by grace.
 
WELCOME
 
OPENING HYMN: # 683 I know not why such wondrous grace

(Hear it below at the bottom of the page)
​.I know not why such wondrous grace
to me God has made known;
nor why, unworthy as I am,
Christ claimed me for his own,

Refrain:
but I know whom I have believed
and am persuaded that Christ is able
to keep that which I've committed
unto him against that day.

2. I know not why this saving faith
to me God did impart,
nor how believing in the word brought
peace into my heart,

Refrain

3. I know not how the Spirit moves,
convincing me of sin,
revealing Jesus through the word,
creating faith in him:

Refrain

OPENING PRAYER & THE LORD’S PRAYER           
Lent Four: Repentance
Reader 1: We have been born into a world of sin. We try to do the right thing, but at times we fail, and temptation seems to win. At other times, we seem to drown in our failures, believing nothing good can come from us. We forget that God has called us to repent, and that God remembers our sins no more.
All: We light this candle as a symbol of our trust in Jesus Christ that our sins are forgiven, when we repent and turn back to God.
Prayer: Loving God, help us to turn back to you when we stray. As we journey towards the cross this Lenten season, help us to repent from where we have gone wrong. Amen.
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS, BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES 
 
HYMN:  # 500     Open my eyes, that I may see

(Hear it below at the bottom of the page)
1 Open my eyes that I may see
glimpses of truth thou hast for me.
Place in my hands the wonderful key
that shall unclasp and set me free.
Silently now I wait for thee,
ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my eyes, illumine me,
Spirit divine!
2 Open my ears that I may hear
voices of truth thou sendest clear,
and while the wave notes fall on my ear,
ev’rything false will disappear.
Silently now I wait for thee,
ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my ears, illumine me,
Spirit divine!
3 Open my mouth and let me bear
gladly the warm truth ev’rywhere.
Open my heart and let me prepare
love with thy children thus to share.
Silently now I wait for thee,
ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my mouth, illumine me,
Spirit divine! 

OFFERING:  We have placed an offering collection box in the
                   entrance of the Church.... if you wish to give. Thank you
OFFERTORY PRAYER 
 
HYMN:  #372  Praise him, praise him, Jesus our blessed Redeemer
(Hear it below at the bottom of the page)
1. Praise him, praise him, Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
Sing, O earth, his wonderful love proclaim!
Hail him, hail him, highest archangels in glory;
strength and honour give to his holy name!
Like a shepherd, Jesus will guard his children;
in his arms he carries them all day long.

Refrain:
Praise him, praise him! Tell of his excellent greatness;
praise him, praise him, ever in joyful song!

2. Praise him, praise him, Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
For our sins he suffered and bled and died;
he, our Rock, our hope of eternal salvation,
hail him, hail him! Jesus the Crucifìed.
Sound his praises! Jesus who bore our sorrows,
love unbounded, wonderful, deep and strong.

3. Praise him, praise him, Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
Heavenly portals loud with hosannas ring!
Jesus Saviour, reigneth forever and ever;
crown him, crown him, Prophet and Priest and King!
Christ is coming, over the world victorious;
power and glory unto the Lord belong.
 
SCRIPTURE: OT Joshua 5:9-12

9 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” So the place has been called Gilgal to this day.
10 On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover. 11 The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. 12 The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate the produce of Canaan.
                      NT Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

The Parable of the Lost Sheep15 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable:


The Parable of the Lost Son11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

PRAYER
 
MEDITATION:       Run to Them
            
CLOSING HYMN:  # 350  To God be the Glory
​(Hear it below at the bottom of the page)
1 To God be the glory, great things he has done!
So loved he the world that he gave us his Son,
who yielded his life an atonement for sin,
and opened the life-gate that all may go in.
Refrain:
Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear his voice!
Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice!
2 Great things he has taught us, great things he has done,
and great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son,
but purer and higher and greater will be
our joy and our wonder, when Jesus we see. [Refrain]
 
BENEDICTION & CHORAL AMEN   
POSTLUDE:              Chenaniah
                                         
 
Announcements:                 Welcome Everyone!
Thank you Stewart for leading us in worship.
 
Update on Rockburn Pulpit Supply
April 3 -Lent 5 Kevin Harvey
April 10 -Palm Sunday Stewart Burrows
April 17 Easter Sunday– Debra Armein
April 24 -Kevin Harvey
May 1-
May 8-Mother’s Day Gail MacGregor

ROCKBURN PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
March 20, 2022 - Lent 3
Worship Leader: Debra Armein    
​Clerk of Session: Shirley McNaughton
Board of Managers: Robert Waller   
Treasurers: Sophie & Christine Caza                                
Worship Coordinator/Bulletins: Elizabeth Waller   450-827-2668          Rockburn Website:   Marcelle Chabot  www.rockburnpresbyterian.org
 
PRELUDE:                                  Chenaniah
PROCESSIONAL:                     “Thy Word”  
CALL TO WORSHIP
ONE: May God be gracious to us and bless us, and make His face shine
          upon us
ALL:  May your ways be known on earth, your salvation among all the
          nations
ONE: May the peoples praise you oh God, may all the peoples praise
           you
ALL: May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples
         justly and guide the nations of the earth
ALL TOGETHER: May the peoples praise you oh God, may all the
                             peoples praise you
 
OPENING HYMN   # 677     My faith looks up to thee
WELCOME
 OPENING PRAYER & THE LORD’S PRAYER  
Lent 3: Trust     One : God has proven trustworthy throughout history, but at times we question and doubt, and even deny, God’s presence in our lives. We forget the larger picture at times and focus only on that moment, that period of time, when we experience God’s absence. We worry and fret about what is happening and what will happen next, rather than trusting in our Savior.
All: We light this candle as a symbol of our faith in Jesus Christ that his presence is with us, and that we are not alone.
Prayer in Unison: God of hope, help us to remember the promise that you will never leave us or forsake us. As we journey towards the cross this Lenten season, remind us of your presence, and help us to remember to trust in you. Amen.
 
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS, BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES     
OFFERING:       To follow Co-vid protocol we have placed a collection      box at the entrance.... if you wish to give. Thank you.
OFFERTORY PRAYER
HYMN:       # 675    Precious Lord, take my hand
 
SCRIPTURE:        Ps 86: 1-10
 
MEDITATION:  
HYMN:       # 449       Lord, listen to your children praying
 
Prayer in unison:
Teach me you ways O Lord, and I will walk in your truth:
Give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.
I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart, I will glorify your name forever.
For great is your love toward me: you have delivered me from the depths of the grave. Amen. 
   
CLOSING HYMN:   # 324   Great is thy faithfulness
 
Announcements:                   Welcome to Rockburn Church
 
     Thank you Debra and our music team for leading us in worship today!
 
Update on Rockburn Pulpit Supply
March 27    Lent 4 Stewart Burrows
April 3         Lent 5 Kevin Harvey
April 10       Palm Sunday Stewart Burrows
April 17       Easter Sunday
April 24 Kevin Harvey                                                                 
 

​Prelude   &   Processional   # 496  blue hymnal
 
Call to Worship
One:  Come, all who need help!
All:  Our help comes from God, the one who made heaven and
         earth.
One:  Come, all who desire blessing!
All:  Our blessing comes from God, the God of Abraham, the God
         of the ages.
One:  Come, all who long for salvation!
All:  Our salvation comes from Jesus Christ, the one sent by God
         to save the world. Let us worship God.   Amen.
 
Opening prayer
 
Hymn # 641 One more step along the world I go
 
Words of Welcome
 
Invocation and the Lord’s Prayer
 
Announcements - Birthdays - Anniversaries  
 
Lenten Liturgy
Week Two: Responsibility
One: Jesus has called us to love our neighbors as ourselves, but all too often we let the social boundaries and borders of the world divide us. We build up walls rather than bridges; we keep people out who need to be invited in. We have a responsibility to care for one another as Christ cares for us, and yet we often fail to do it.
All: We light this candle as a symbol of our hope in Jesus Christ to teach us again how to love, how to break down walls and to build bridges.
Prayer (In unison): Creator God, remind us again of our responsibility to care for one another, and to watch out for each other. As we journey towards the cross this Lenten season, help us to love our neighbors as ourselves. Amen.
OFFERING:  To follow Co-vid protocol we have placed a collection box on the table.... if you wish to give.    Thank you
 
Offertory prayer
 
Hymn # 774   Freely, freely
 
Please join me in reading psalm 121
 
I lift up my eyes to the hills – from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.
He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all evil, he will keep your life.
The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time on and forevermore.  Amen.
 
Prayer for illumination
Scripture readings:  Genesis 12: 1-4a
                                   Romans 4:1-5, 13-17

Scripture reading: John 3: 1-17
 
L:  This is the word of the Lord             P:  Thanks be to God
Message
Hymn   #  634  Will you come and follow me
Prayer
Hymn # 674 In the bulb there is a flower
Benediction
Amen… Amen
 
Announcements: 
 
 Good Morning!
 
 Welcome to Rockburn Presbyterian Church!
 
Thank you Gail for leading us in worship today.
 

​

Prelude:    Chenaniah
Processional: Thy Word

Call to Worship:

One : We gather today to worship the One who created us,
All:     The One who calls us,

One: The One who equips us,
All:    The One who loves us without end.

One: With joyful hearts, let us worship God.
          Children of God: welcome!
All:    Welcome to this place of love and grace,

One: Welcome to this place of hope and perseverance.
All: God invites all of us to be a part of His beloved community,

One: God invites all of us to share in His good news:
All:   We are welcome, just as we are. We are loved, just as we
         are.

One: In gratitude for all of this, let us worship God.

Opening Hymn - Rock of Ages - # 240

 
WELCOME:
 
Opening Prayer and The Lord’s Prayer.
All: Our Father, who art in heaven….

One: This is the day that the Lord has made.
ALL: Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Let us pray for all who suffer from political persecution,
from political neglect, from the ongoing effects of Covid.
Let us pray that our political leaders will put the needs of our country and its people before all party considerations.

Let us now pray in the words of our holy example, Jesus Christ, as He taught
His apostles:        ALL: Our Father who art in heaven…
 
Lenten Candle Lighting & Liturgy   Reflection during the weeks of Lent, and at all times, offers us rich moments to strengthen our commitment and our faith.
 
Week One:    Resistance
One : There are many temptations we face in our lives together. We face the temptation of putting our wants above another’s needs. We face the temptation of ignoring problems such as hunger, poverty, war, and disease, with the false hope that they will go away without our intervention. We face the temptations of wealth and consumerism. We face many temptations to stray from the path of our faith.
All: We light this candle as a symbol our faith in Jesus Christ to help us resist the temptations of the world.
Prayer: Lord, help us to keep our feet moving, our hands outstretched, and our hearts open to you. As we journey towards the cross this Lenten season, keep us from temptation and help us to do Your work in our world. Amen
 
OFFERING:  To follow Co-vid protocol we have placed a collection box in the entrance of the Church.... if you wish to give.    Thank you
 
God of Deliverance, you led your chosen people long ago out of the wilderness and into the Promised Land. Your people rejoiced and worshipped you with the first fruits of their labors. Their contributions were a symbol of devotion to your mighty presence in their lives and in the lives of following generations. Guide our gifts so that they may be multiplied to help those still languishing in the wilderness of uncertainty. Help our giving to inspire others as they journey toward the promise of Eternal Life. Through your holy son, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen. Deuteronomy 26:1-11
 
Hymn - He Leadeth Me - # 650
Scripture:

Genesis 1: 26.  Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.”
Exodus 3:3.  Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”
Job 33:4. The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
John 14:20. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.

This is the word of the Lord.
All:Thanks be to God.

Joe's message. ( note from webmaster : Thank you so much Joe for sharing this with all of us!

​Where is God When We Need Him the Most

The Old Testament tells us that upon Creation, God said .”Let us make man in our image after our likeness.” Those simple words present humanity with a huge problem. To begin with, do any of us know what is God’s image? And if we do not know what is His image, how do we determine where He may be when we need Him most?

The ancient followers of the one God, the Hebrews who called Him YHWH, came to the decision that there is but one God. Note that it was blasphemy to give God a face. It was anathema to name Him even. His name is not clearly pronounced as YAHWEH. Rather it is uttered as an expulsion of breath: Y H W H! This is the sound the wind makes in the desert when it has no obstacle to slow it down or bend its turn. YHWH…YHWH. Where did it come from? Where was its origin?

Well, let us go back to the source we know. “Let us make man in our image,” It is obvious we cannot see God. But…The first commandment reiterates that: “I am the Lord thy God. Thou shall not have false gods before me.” YHWH does not reside on a large pedestal in a figure of precious gold. He/she is unseen, unfelt, unheard, untouched, and unsmelled. In other words, He/she can’t be approached by the five senses God gave us to help us navigate this incredible universe. So, where is He? Is He/she hiding? Note that I say, he/she, not just he. I do this because if God is the source of all creation, and we are made in His image. it’s obvious that he/she can’t be single gender focussed, neither male nor female. He/she must include all genders. No,not even only male and female genders. Nelson Wieppert came close to this realization in the benediction he often used and I took the liberty of copying:

“May the love of God, our father, the comfort of God, our mother, and the joy of Jesus, our brother, be with each of us as we leave this place.”

Our native friends believed in God. “They called Him The Great Spirit.” Now that isn’t far removed from “The Holy Spirit.” is it? And Moses, as scripture reminds us, saw God in the form of a burning bush, from which the flame came from within. God was there for Moses when Moses needed him the most.

But what about the rest of us. Haven’t there been times when we needed God and, maybe, he wasn’t there? Where was He then? Don’t we have the right to know? Don’t we feel we have the right to know?

Now, we aren’t all cut from the same cloth. It would be a boring world if that were so. And we must all admit that this world is far from boring. In fact, often it is utterly the opposite from boring. It is exciting, it is dangerous, it is horrifying, it is deadly. Far, far from boring.

You know, there was a song from the 60’s whose title was : “I never promised you a rose garden.” In those few words the lyricist was inspired by God to give us an answer to the question, Where was God when you needed Him most?

But Rabbi Jonathan Sacks offers a more in-depth answer. Let me summarize his words:

Faith is such an intensely personal experience. The answer to where was God in the Holocaust is an answer that is personal to each person who was there. He says,

“The first time I went to Auschwitz I was simply overwhelmed. I stood on the train tracks that brought Jews from all over Europe, to be gassed, to be burned, and to be turned to ash. I went to the lager in Auschwitz, the camp, and saw all the suitcases, the glasses, the hair. The Nazis kept everything, everything they could lay their hands on, except for one thing…their lives…..
I just broke down, and I wept and cried out, “God, where were you?”

“And words came into my mind…not claiming to be revelation…just words. And this is what they said, “”I was in the words, you shall not murder…I was in the words you shall not oppress a stranger…I was in the words said to Cain, the first murder in the bible, Your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground.”” “And suddenly I knew, when God speaks and humans refuse to listen, even God - as it were - is helpless. He knew Cain was about to kill Abel, but He didn’t stop him. He knew Pharaoh was about to kill Israelite children, but He didn’t stop him - Bottom line: God gives us freedom, and He never takes it back. But He tells us how to use that freedom, and when human beings refuse to listen, then even God is powerless.”

Rabbi Sacks then gives us another answer about many Jews in the Holocaust. Some felt that God was with them, personally giving them the strength to endure. He said there were people who lost their faith in Auschwitz. and there were people who kept their faith. And there were still others. There were those people who found new faith in Auschwitz.

Rabbi Sacks tells another story of Victor Frankl, an Austrian neurologist, psychiatrist, philosopher, author, and Holocaust survivor, who had everything taken away from him including his book. He was devastated. Then they stripped him and sent him to the showers. Of course, he felt this was the end. But it turned out that he was one of the lucky ones because this was actually just a shower. Then they gave him other clothes to put on, clothes from another Jew, and he felt something in a pocket that turned out to be two scrap of paper. One had the words torn from a prayer book, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God, the Lord is One.” The second said: “Love the Lord your God, with all your might, with all your soul, with all your heart.”

Frankl said, “Those words transfixed me, they suddenly saved me. And I thought, Now, you must live those words, you must live every single thing you’ve ever taught and practiced. You must do that every day in Auschwitz and give other people the will to live.” And that’s what Frankl did.

So, where is God when we need him most? He is always there. We can know Him in our prayers, in our meditations, but most of all in our actions as they affect others of God’s people.

How do we know his bidding? Inspired scripture for one, perhaps. But perhaps more relevantly, within our own hearts, within our own consciences, where God dwells in every one of us. This is where we find God’s image. This is where he dwells within us. He calls out to our invisible sixth sense, where He resides together with us, where His image merges with ours. Where our likenesses become one with Christ.

Now, in these terrible times for the people of Ukraine, many will be asking, “Where is God?” And we can only answer in words expressed to us by Rabbi Sacks, “He is here with us, He is there with the people of Ukraine. He is with the whole Universe that He alone created. And through our prayers, and through our meditations, and through all our good works, we can find Him, we can recognize Him, and He alone can offer us his one true Word.

Hymn - We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations - # 765
 
Message: Where is God when we need Him most.

Closing Prayer: Psalm 23

Benediction -
Now, by the grace of Yahweh, the one God of Moses and all the world, and by the grace of Jesus Christ, the Son who is both one with the Father, and who has enabled us to be one also with Him and with all mankind, I charge you to go back into the world of the 5 senses and to bring with you the love that Jesus decreed, that we love all people as much as He has loved us, and that we forgive all people for their transgressions as He has forgiven us, by the love of God to all His creation. Amen

Closing Hymn - Amazing Grace - # 670

Amen, Amen….

 
 
Announcements:
 
Good Morning… Welcome to our service today!
 
A huge thank you to Joe for leading us in worship today.
 
Thanks to our music team…
Thanks Debra for filling in for Nancy.​