"Whose Plan Is It Anyway

Call to Worship

L: The Lord has restored our fortunes.

P: Come, you thankful people, come; let us rejoice and be glad!

L: The Lord has brought us near, a people once far off.

P: Come, you thankful people, come; let us rejoice and be glad!

L: The Lord has reconciled us in one body through the cross.

P: Come, you thankful people, come; let us rejoice and be glad!

A: Now we all have access to God in one spirit; let us rejoice and be glad!

Invocation

You, O Lord, are the Good Shepherd. Yet we drift like sheep without a shepherd. We pursue goals that demand too little of us, challenge too few of us, and threaten all of us. Deliver us from our aimless wanderings, O Lord, and lead us into paths of righteousness for your sake and ours.

Offering-YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU, BUT… “…

And Jesus told them a parable, saying, ‘The land of a certain rich man was very productive…But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared? So is the man who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.’” Luke 12: 16-21

It has often been said “You can’t take it with you.” Many a minister has reminded us that you never see a hearse pulling a ‘U-Haul’ trailer. This is the implication of the parable of the folly of the rich landowner…he tried to store up wealth as though it were his forever. We may not be able to take our wealth with us, but we can send it on ahead of us. Jesus tells us that we can be “rich toward God” by giving our money for ministry. By doing so, we will someday leave behind what we’ve accumulated, but we’ll also find in heaven that our gifts to God helped build His kingdom, and our eternal home.

PRAYER

Creator God, in praise and adoration our spirits dance before you today. You have created this wondrous universe and all the magnificent things within it. You have blessed us with so much throughout our lives, even to this day of praise and thanksgiving. Let our spirits soar! Let our hearts sing boldly of your wondrous love. We celebrate your love and presence with us, and it is in the name of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, that we offer this prayer. AMEN.

2 Samuel 7:1-14 New International Version God’s Promise to David 1 After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, 2 he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.” 3 Nathan replied to the king, “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.” 4 But that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying: 5 “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? 6 I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling. 7 Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’ 8 “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. 9 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. 10 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 11 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders[a] over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies. “‘The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: 12 When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands.

Benediction

O God, who longs to continue in us the work begun in Jesus, let us who have been reconciled by Christ become reconcilers for Christ. Send us who have found peace in God's house to make peace in God's world.“May the LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.”