Sunday Service July 24, 2022

Payette United Methodist Church
July 24, 2022 – 11:00 AM
Pastor Mary Beth Boesch

Welcome and Announcements

Gathering Hymn: “Family of God”
I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God -
I’ve been washed in the fountain,
cleansed by His blood!
Joint heirs with Jesus
as we travel this sod,
For I’m part of the family,
the family of God.

Calling Song: “Standing in the need of Prayer“  UMH#352 all verses
Refrain:
It’s me, it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer.
It’s me, it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer.

Not my brother, not my sister, but it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer.
Not my brother, not my sister, but it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer. [Refrain]

Not the preacher, not the deacon, but it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer.
Not the preacher, not the deacon, but it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer. [Refrain]

Not my father, not my mother, but it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer.
Not my father, not my mother, but it’s me, O Lord,
standing in the need of prayer. [Refrain]

Responsive Reading: Psalm 138 (CEB)
One: I give thanks to you with all my heart, Lord.  I sing your praise before all other gods.
Many: I bow toward your holy temple and thank your name for your loyal love and faithfulness because you have made your name and word greater than everything else.
One:  On the day I cried out, you answered me.  You encouraged me with inner strength.
Many: Let all the earth’s rulers give thanks to you, Lord, when they hear what you say.
One: Let them sing about the Lord’s ways because the Lord’s glory is so great!
Many:  Even though the Lord is high, he can still see the lowly, but God keeps his distance from the arrogant.
One:  Whenever I am in deep trouble, you make me live again; you send your power against my enemies’ wrath; you save me with your strong hand,
Many:  The Lord will do all this for my sake.  Your faithful love lasts forever, Lord! Don’t let go of what your hands have made.
 
Unison Invocation
God of love, to whom our hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden; cleanse our hearts by the power of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Scripture Readings 
Before reading, the reader prays the following words:
One: God, open our hearts and minds, that as the scriptures are read and your Word proclaimed, we may hear with joy what you say to us today.

O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. And all the people said:
Many: Amen.

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 18:20-32 (CEB)
Then the Lord said, “The cries of injustice from Sodom and Gomorrah are countless, and their sin is very serious! I will go down now to examine the cries of injustice that have reached me. Have they really done all this? If not, I want to know.”

The men turned away and walked toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing in front of the Lord. Abraham approached and said, “Will you really sweep away the innocent with the guilty? What if there are fifty innocent people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not save the place for the sake of the fifty innocent people in it? It’s not like you to do this, killing the innocent with the guilty as if there were no difference. It’s not like you! Will the judge of all the earth not act justly?”

The Lord said, “If I find fifty innocent people in the city of Sodom, I will save it because of them.”

Abraham responded, “Since I’ve already decided to speak with my Lord, even though I’m just soil and ash, what if there are five fewer innocent people than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city over just five?”

The Lord said, “If I find forty-five there, I won’t destroy it.”

Once again Abraham spoke, “What if forty are there?”

The Lord said, “For the sake of forty, I will do nothing.”

He said, “Don’t be angry with me, my Lord, but let me speak. What if thirty are there?”

The Lord said, “I won’t do it if I find thirty there.”

Abraham said, “Since I’ve already decided to speak with my Lord, what if twenty are there?”

The Lord said, “I won’t do it, for the sake of twenty.”

Abraham said, “Don’t be angry with me, my Lord, but let me speak just once more. What if there are ten?”

And the Lord said, “I will not destroy it because of those ten.”

New Testament Reading: Colossians 2:6-15 (CEB)
So live in Christ Jesus the Lord in the same way as you received him. Be rooted and built up in him, be established in faith, and overflow with thanksgiving just as you were taught. See to it that nobody enslaves you with philosophy and foolish deception, which conform to human traditions and the way the world thinks and acts rather than Christ. All the fullness of deity lives in Christ’s body. And you have been filled by him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not administered by human hands. The circumcision of Christ is realized in the stripping away of the whole self dominated by sin. You were buried with him through baptism and raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. When you were dead because of the things you had done wrong and because your body wasn’t circumcised, God made you alive with Christ and forgave all the things you had done wrong. He destroyed the record of the debt we owed, with its requirements that worked against us. He canceled it by nailing it to the cross. When he disarmed the rulers and authorities, he exposed them to public disgrace by leading them in a triumphal parade.
 
One: God’s word for God’s people!
Many: Thanks be to God!

Praise Hymn:  Desert Song    James Boesch
Verse 1
This is my prayer in the desert
When all that's within me feels dry
This is my prayer in my hunger and need
My God is the God who provides

Verse 2
This is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flame

Chorus
I will bring praise
I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain
I will rejoice
I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

Verse 3
This is my prayer in the battle
When triumph is still on its way
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand

Bridge
All of my life in ev’ry season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship
 (REPEAT) 

Verse 4
This is my prayer in the harvest
When favour and providence flow
I know I'm filled to be emptied again
The seed I've received I will sow
​
Prayers of the People
One: Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting.
 
For Christ is risen.
Many: Christ is risen, indeed!
 
One: Are there any requests?
(The congregation is invited to speak their requests. After each request is spoken, we all respond in unison, “Lord, hear our prayer.”)
 
One: Grant, Almighty God, that all who confess your Name may be united in your truth, live together in your love, and reveal your glory in the world.
 
Guide the people of this land, and of all the nations, in the ways of justice and peace; that we may honor one another and serve the common good.
 
Give us all a reverence for the earth as your own creation, that we may use its resources rightly in the service of others and to your honor and glory.
 
Bless all whose lives are closely linked with ours, and grant that we may serve Christ in them, and love one another as Christ loves us.
 
Comfort and heal all those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit; give them courage and hope in their troubles, and bring them the joy of your salvation.
 
We commend to your mercy all who have died, that your will for them may be fulfilled; and we pray that we may share with all your saints in your eternal kingdom.
 
And now, because we often fail to love, because we acknowledge that we are sinners living in sinful systems, and because we acknowledge that we are all in need of God’s mercy and grace, let us confess our sins.
 
Many: God of the living and the dead,
We confess that we have sinned against you by what we have done and by what we have not done,
We remember our broken promises and missed opportunities;
The gifts we have taken for granted;
The love we have not shown or returned;
Forgive us, comfort and heal us, lift our guilt from us,
That we may walk in freedom and grace to the glory of your name.
Amen.
 
One: May God who is both power and love forgive us and free us from our sins; heal and strength us by the power of the Holy Spirit; and bring us to new life through Christ our Lord. In the name of Jesus Christ, we are a forgiven people!
Many: Thanks be to God!

Offering Prayer

Prayer Hymn: “Bind Us Together”   TFWS# 2226   
BIND US TOGETHER, Lord, Bind us together
With cords that cannot be broken.
Bind us together, Lord,
Bind us together,
Bind us together with love.

There is only one God,
There is only one King;
There is only one Body,
That is why we sing:

Message:   Pastor Mary Beth Boesch  Luke 11:1-13 (CEB)  
One: This is the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.
Many: Glory to you, Lord Christ!
 
One: Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
 
Jesus told them, “When you pray, say:
 
‘Father, uphold the holiness of your name.
Bring in your kingdom.
Give us the bread we need for today.
Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who has wronged us.
And don’t lead us into temptation.’”
 
He also said to them, “Imagine that one of you has a friend and you go to that friend in the middle of the night. Imagine saying, ‘Friend, loan me three loaves of bread because a friend of mine on a journey has arrived and I have nothing to set before him.’ Imagine further that he answers from within the house, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up to give you anything.’ I assure you, even if he wouldn’t get up and help because of his friendship, he will get up and give his friend whatever he needs because of his friend’s brashness. And I tell you: Ask and you will receive. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened to you. Everyone who asks, receives. Whoever seeks, finds. To everyone who knocks, the door is opened.
 
“Which father among you would give a snake to your child if the child asked for a fish? If a child asked for an egg, what father would give the child a scorpion? If you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”
 
This is the Gospel of our Lord.
Many: Praise to you, Lord Christ!

Closing Hymn: “What a Friend we have in Jesus”  UMH#526 all verses   
What a Friend we have in Jesus,    
all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations? 
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged;
take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful
who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden,
cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do your friends despise, forsake you?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In his arms he’ll take and shield you
You will find a solace there.

Sending Forth/Unison Benediction
One: May God bless you and keep you; may God’s face shine upon you and be gracious unto you; may God’s countenance be lifted upon you and give you peace, from this day forth and forevermore. Amen.
Many: May the peace of the Lord go with us, wherever God may send us. May we embody the love, grace, and mercy of Christ to those we meet along the way. Amen.

Prelude
Thank you for worshiping with us today!

(CCLI License #11132266)