Thanks and Giving

Welcome

Announcements

Sheet at the back where you can write down your favorite hymn — Choir practice every Thursday at 7pm, everyone is welcome regardless of ability, so please come out and join the choir.

Community Bible Study starting on Wednesday Nov. 3rd at 7pm. We will be studying the Book of James. Everyone is welcome. Please sign up by by email or giving the church a call. Also over the next couple of weeks invite at least two non- St.Andrews members to join us in this Study

If you have any ideas, suggestions, or things you would like to see happening at the Church, please let me know by email, telephone, text or in-person.

Call to Worship (Responsive)

O give thanks to the LORD, call on his name,

make known his deeds among the peoples.

Sing to him, sing praises to him;

tell of all his wonderful works.

Glory in his holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

He is the LORD our God;

his judgments are in all the earth.

He is mindful of his covenant forever,

of the word that he commanded,

for a thousand generations.

Prayer of Invocation

Almighty God,

Lord of heaven and earth,

in you we live and move and have our being.

You are the one who does good to all people,

making your sun to rise on the evil and on the good

and sending rain on the just and on the unjust.

Favorably behold us your servants, who call upon your name,

and send us your blessing from heaven, giving us fruitful seasons,

and satisfy us with food and gladness.

May both our hearts and our mouths be continually filled

with your praise, giving thanks to you in your holy church,

through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen

Opening Hymn:

#559 Come Ye Thankful People, Come

Call to Confession

Come now, let us settle the matter,”

says the LORD.

“Though your sins are like scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red as crimson,

they shall be like wool.”

Prayer of Confession

Loving God, we gather today, rich in blessing,

somehow believing that we merit the wealth and comforts we enjoy.

Forgive us, our God, for comfortably closing our eyes

to the faces of the poor that stare blankly in our direction.

Lord, have mercy on us.

With bellies full of grain and meat,

we offer token gestures to the hungry in our world

and we feel we have done enough.

Forgive us, God, for keeping a distance between “us” and “them,”

for closing our ears to the cries of the hungry.

Christ, have mercy on us.

With hands tightly clasping our treasures on earth,

we cannot reach out to our oppressed brothers and sisters around this world.

Forgive us for clinging to our own possessions rather than to you.

Unite us with hearts of thanksgiving,

that we may work to ensure freedom and justice for all.

Lord, have mercy on us.

Assurance of Pardon

Hear the good news:

This saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance,

that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.

He himself bore our sins

in his body on the cross,

that we might be dead to sin,

and alive to all that is good.

I declare to you in the name of Jesus Christ,

you are forgiven.

Thanks be to God.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the Evil One.

For Thine is the Kingdom, the power and the glory,

Forever and ever. Amen.

Responsive Reading

Psalm 90:12–17 ESV

12 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. 13 Return, O Lord! How long? Have pity on your servants! 14 Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. 15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil. 16 Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. 17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

Music Ministry

Choir, Give Thanks

Scripture

Mark 10:17–31 ESV

17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ ” 20 And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” 21 And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. 23 And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” 28 Peter began to say to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Children’s Lesson

Who here has seen a camel? They are a very big animal, could you imagine one trying to walk through a door? How about trying to pass through the eye of a needle?

📷Jesus is saying something very exaggerated today. How can a Camel pass through the eye of a needle? That is absolutely not possible.

Why did Jesus use the example of a camel passing through the eye of the needle in today’s scripture? He is trying to explain something this man who asked him ‘What do I Do to inherit eternal life?’ The way the man asks the question is important. He asked ‘What must I do...’ this means that the man thinks that getting into heaven is related to the things that he does in his life.

Jesus knows that the man has been a good person. In fact, he has actually been better than a good person, he has actually kept many of the Ten commandments in his life. He has loved his neighbours as himself, never stole anything, never lied, never gotten angry. I do not think anyone here today could claim that they have never lied, stole and especially never gotten angry.

Jesus knew that the man told the truth, so he looked at the man with love, and told the young man the one thing that was preventing him from getting into heaven. Jesus did not tell him this to hurt him, he told the man this because he loved him and wanted him to get into heaven. Jesus told the man ‘To sell everything he had and give it to the poor.’

This made the man sad, because he had lots of money and lived in a wonderful place with lots of things. Giving up all of his wealth was something he just did not feel like he could do.

You see this man, even though he had kept many of the commandments about loving his neighbour, had not been keeping the commandments about loving God. The man had a false idol, something he valued more than his relationship with God. We all can guess that he loved money more than his relationship with God.

Are we any different than that man? I do not think so, many of us put things ahead of our relationship with God. For many parents it might be money, or work, or social activities and for the children it might be friends, games, sports or even school.

Jesus tells us in the scripture that he knows that all humans do this.

The important part comes after when explains what he said to the disciples. Jesus knows we all struggle putting Jesus first and that is why there is nothing we can do. Instead, Jesus has already done everything for us because he loves us.

Jesus Said something on the cross that is especially important for all of you to know. We find it in

John 19:30 ESV

30 When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

It meant that all his work was done. He had paid the price for all of our sins. Jesus knows we will all struggle, he knows we will all make mistakes, he knows sin will tempt everyone of us and because of that he knows that there is nothing we can do to save ourselves, so he did it for us.

Jesus teaches us today that we can be saved because of him. Everything we do, we can do because of him. We can share things with people in need because Jesus will look after us.

God’s love is eternal and there is nothing we can do to earn that love; we just need to place our trust in Jesus and try to live the life he asks us to in the bible.

Dear God. We ask that you help us place you first in our lives. We are thankful for your love and want to love you the same way in which you love us. Be with us everyday in our lives and help us to live as examples of Christ in this world. Amen

Hymn Before Sermon

#560 For the Beauty of the Earth Verses 1,345

Prayer for illumination

Lord, our God,

in the reading and proclamation of your Word,

we pray you will illumine our minds and hearts

so that we may hear and understand your Word,

know and live according to your Word,

and become living letters of your Word,

equipped to follow Jesus

in every part of our lives,

by the power of the Holy Spirit,

through Christ, our Lord, the living Word. Amen.

Sermon

I looked up Thanksgiving on Wikipedia and found this:

On January 31, 1957, the Governor General of Canada Vincent Massey issued a proclamation stating: "A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed – to be observed on the second Monday in October."

I wonder how many of the people out there celebrating Thanksgiving today are acknowledging Almighty God in their celebration and meals. Like many Christian Holidays, Thanksgiving has for the most parts become a secular celebration, and even many Christians who celebrate the holiday have pushed the reverence of God to the sidelines and instead are focused on the turkey and family.

I was thinking about this as a wrestled with the scripture for this week. What is the lesson that God wanted me to take away and share this week based upon this scripture reading?

Mark 10:17 ESV

17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

We are brought into this story with the words ‘as he was setting out on his journey’ I think there is an important change in Mark’s language we need to recognize here. In the previous weeks we have always seen Jesus travelling, he was going to Capernaum, or Judea or along the Galilee. But here we are not told where he is going, instead we are told it is a journey that Jesus is setting out on, and those of us who have read ahead should recognize that this journey he is going on is his final journey, the one which ends up with him upon the cross.

As he starts out a man runs up before him and kneels. Her supplicated himself before the lord, showing him respect and reverence as a great teacher. This man shows us by his body language that he is a true follower, he is like the Syrophoenician woman or many of the others who come before Jesus and knell to him, recognizing him as the Messiah.

His words do the same thing, ‘Good Teacher,’ He calls Jesus the Good Teacher. Someone who is better than anyone else. Someone who teaches properly, without and personal bias or agendas. This man recognizes Jesus the Messiah as the priest, the savior, and the king in his action and in his words. He then seeks guidance on how he shall obtain eternal life in the kingdom of the Lord.

Mark 10:18–19 ESV

18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ ”

At first Jesus confronts him over the usage of the word good. Jesus asks the young man about his reasoning for calling him a good teacher. He does this because the ‘Shema,’ the Jewish creed of confession claims that there is only one God and only that God is good.

When Jesus states that ‘No one is good except God alone’ he is setting up the young man for an important lesson. The ‘Shema’ words it closer to ‘No one is good except God, who is one,’ so what Jesus is asking the young man is, ‘Are you calling me God, are you recognizing me as one of the divine trinity?’

Take note that he does not give the man time to respond but instead follows up immediately with questions that come out of the 10 commandments.

I am sure that many of you recognize these commandments. These are the commandments that are often summarized by the ‘love your neighbour as yourself’ summary of the commandments. These are the commandments that many of the modern churches of the world are focused upon in their sermons and missions. Yet, Jesus does not ask these questions in the order they appear. Instead, he moves them around. He begins with the six through ninth commandments, the adds in ‘do not defraud.’ Which makes sense in relation to ‘Love your neighbour as yourself’ and could be considered to fall into the realm covered by the tenth commandment to not covet. Then he returned to the fifth commandment to honor one’s parents.

The question we should find ourselves asking at this point is why the man is asked about all of the commandments related to man’s behaviour with his fellows, yet none of the commandments about his relationship with God have been asked. Is this why Jesus focused in on the ‘Shema’ the truth that these is only One Good God?

Instead, we are given the mans response.

Mark 10:20 ESV

20 And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.”

The man responds as many of us would, ‘I have kept them since my youth.’ I am sure many of us who would assume that this man is a good follower of Jesus. When he knew Jesus he rushed to him, he knelt down before him in respect and reverence, and he praised him with his words. This young man is like many Christians today, anyone who looks at them would look and see someone they were convinced is one their way to heaven. Someone who shows such obedience to God and his commandments must surely be saved.

I am actually pretty confident that this man was even telling the truth. I believe that he lived according to the Talmud, the Jewish book on the law to the letter. He probably had not broken any of those commandments since his youth. In the young man’s eyes, he was good, and he had earned his salvation. He is almost seeking out Jesus as a way to confirm his goodness.

This is why Jesus goes back to the definition of the word good. No one is good except God.

Notice it does not say that no one can do good except God. We are all capable of doing God, yet the truth is no one is actually good, we are all plagued by our own temptations and sins which we struggle with everyday. Yet this man feels that he has done good all his life.

This is the critical point in this interaction. Jesus intentionally did not ask about the first four commandments, the commandments that deal with our ‘love the lord your god with all your heart, soul, mind and strength’ section of the scripture. While this young man may indeed be telling the truth about these commandments within the law, is he truly adhering to the rest of the commandments.

Mark 10:21 ESV

21 And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

Again, there is a particularly important word here, ‘love,’ the Greeks had many different words for love. Many modern Christians assume love is love, but biblically its not that simple, the love that Jesus uses here is agape, the reciprocal love between God the father and humans, the love we are called to have with fellow Christians in this world. Jesus looks at this young man with the true love that we are all called to have as his followers.

I want to focus on this just a second longer, because this is an argument that is often brought up by people who criticize Christianity. They say that we are supposed to be loving unconditionally, like a parent has loves their child, and this is absolutely true. This is the closest way for us to understand what Agape love means in a modern context. However, their understanding of unconditional love and the meaning of Agape love are vastly different. They define unconditional love as ‘a love that accepts someone regardless of their actions or beliefs.’ Agape love is similar, ‘a love that accepts someone regardless of their actions or beliefs but tells them of their need to repent of sinning for their own salvation.’

Jesus is going to show us what true Christian love means in his words to this man. He looks upon this man with love and tells him of the one thing he needs to truly be saved. He tells the man to go sell his possessions and to give the proceeds to the poor and that after doing so he will receive his rewards in heaven and be able to come and follow Jesus.

Jesus knows that this man has been able to show love to his neighbors but has not been able to do the same to God. He challenges the man to give up the things that he has placed higher in importance than God, his possessions. This should sound familiar to those who have been attending over the last few weeks. It is after all a reoccurring theme in this section of the Gospel of Mark. Die to yourself; stop seeking out your own personal will and obey Jesus. Pick up your cross by obeying God’s commandments and giving of yourself to your community and the world around you, knowing that you may receive persecution and discrimination because of your faith.

Jesus is calling for this young man to not just obey the laws as they are written, but to understand them spiritually and what they actually ask for.

There is another lesson here for us, God asks for us to obey all of his commandments, not just those that are related to loving your neighbour. We are called to not only seek Biblical justice in the world, but we are also called to have Biblical righteousness. This means in our actions we need to have both an obedience to God’s law and his will.

True Agape love means more than just social justice, it means that we are willing to confront those things that go against God’s will even if it makes us unpopular with the greater society of the world. It is understanding this that often gives me the courage to get up in front of a congregation and speak of the Gospel, even when I know that it will be difficult. My love for my congregation and the people of the world goes beyond making you like me; I would much prefer you hate me and find salvation than like me and receive damnation.

This is why Jesus looks lovingly on the man and shows him that he is in fact not really following God’s commandments, instead the man is following his own desire to be saved and looking to calculate what is required for his salvation instead of loving the Lord. He points out the man is willing to follow God, up until his following God interferes with his lifestyle.

This is a common issue in the world today. Many Christians could be this man, willing to follow Christ up until what he asks of them goes against their preferred lifestyle.

Mark 10:22 ESV

22 Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Then they are like this man and either walk away from Christianity or begin to change Christianity to remove those things which go against their chosen lifestyle.

Jesus knew if he had asked the man if he had any other Gods or Idols, the man would be answering definitively ‘no.’ He even asks the tenth commandment in a different form because he knows that this man does in fact covet his own wealth. This man does have another God, he idolizes his wealth. Through his request Jesus points out that while the man believes he is willing to help his neighbor, he is not willing to do so if it interferes with his ability to maintain his own standard of living.

The man believed that what he had earned was his and failed to recognize that everything he had came from God.

The reality of the situation is that in this moment, this man whom Jesus loved, was having his love of Christ challenged. The man went away sorrowful because he knew that the cost of being a follower of Jesus was beyond what he thought he would be required to pay.

Again, notice that it says he went away disheartened and sorrowful, yet we do not know whether or not he followed through and did what was requested of him.

I think many of us here today can empathize with this man. When we look at our faith and we truthfully examine ourselves, we know we have false idols, we know we place things of this world above that of Jesus in our lives. We are also disheartened and saddened because we know that to be a faithful follower, we need to give up these things, the temptations of money, power, success, pleasure, all of those things which we make idols ahead of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, it should be no surprise to us that the disciples were also struggling to understand what Jesus had told this man.

Mark 10:23–25 ESV

23 And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”

They struggled, because like many people who follow the modern prosperity gospels, the Jews of the time believed that health and wealth meant that you were a faithful servant of the Lord. When the Disciples saw this man and his wealth, they thought this is a man we should all aspire to be, look at his possessions, he must be blessed. Look he obeys the laws better than any of us is capable of, surely this man is going to find salvation. So, hearing Jesus tell the man to sell it all and give it away shocked them. The were probably fluttering through thoughts in their minds thinking if someone who is this blessed cannot enter the Kingdom of God, what hope do those who have nothing have of even coming near the Kingdom of God.

Especially when Jesus compares it to passing a camel through the eye of a needle. An impossible task. And one that we can all easily picture in our minds. A small sewing needle, likely made of bone at the time, and the beast of burden, there is absolutely no way for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. In fact, I have enough difficulty passing a thread through the eye of a needle, I could imagine trying to get anything larger through one.

There was a common misconception in the Middle Ages that the eye of the needle was a gate in Jerusalem, one that the camel could not pass through unless it was unloaded and crawled through. Many people taught that this was what Jesus spoke of when He spoke of a camel passing through the eye of the needle. It spoke of the humility you needed to enter the kingdom of heaven and as beautiful as that image may be it is false. There is no gate and there never was one that has ever been discovered.

The truth is that Jesus was speaking of an actual needle and an actual camel and the impossibility for those who have idols in their life to enter the kingdom of Heaven.

Mark 10:26–27 ESV

26 And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”

Understandably now, the disciples are perplexed. How is anyone supposed to be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven?

In Jesus’s answer we are given the Gospel. Jesus explains to them that with God anything is possible. Even the impossibility of a camel passing though the eye of a needle becomes a reality with the power of God.

This is our hope. In this word the truth of salvation is revealed, all of us who are sinners can be saved, not through any action of our own, but instead through the grace of God. Any who have their eyes opened to the realization that it is our God that provides us with everything in our lives, right down to the very breath we breathe, may also be saved by the incredible grace and mercy of God.

Like this man, we may walk away because we feel the price is too high, but when we recognize our dependence upon God for our eternal salvation and come to server him alone, we receive our salvation and the right to live in the Kingdom of Heaven.

God can save anyone, anyone, regardless of their sins! God can save someone at any point of their life and from any religious background. God can save anyone that he chooses to save and in doing so start the process of sanctification through the Holy Spirit in their lives.

We need to remember this in our lives. Many Christians are like this man, thinking that they have salvation through their own actions, and having idols in their life. The scripture is meant to help open our eyes to these things and help us find true salvation through God’s grace.

No one is a good person, except God alone. Our goodness does not earn us a place in heaven. Our goodness does not justify the sins in our life. Our goodness which we calculate through attendance to church, volunteering or even offerings are not the same as a real faith and trust in Christ.

It is Peter who brings this to the forefront when he speaks to Jesus.

Mark 10:28–30 ESV

28 Peter began to say to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.

Peter essentially says to Jesus, ‘We have done this; we gave up all we had to follow you.’ All of the disciples had dropped their livelihoods and followed Jesus.

Andrew, Peter, James, and John had all walked away from their lives as fishermen. Perhaps even owners of their own business, yet when Jesus called them, they had laid aside their nets and become fishers of men.

Matthew was a man who was hated by most, a tax collector for the Roman government. He would have enjoyed some wealth, living in much better conditions than those around him. Yet he also set aside everything to become a follower of Jesus.

Simon was the Zealot. A man who was devoted to overthrowing the Roman Empire. Yet, he set aside his political and revolutionary ideals to become a follower of Jesus.

Each of the disciples had walked away from the comfort of the lives they knew to become a follower of Jesus. Each of them has also been challenged constantly as we have seen week by week to realize that they are called to die to self, to pick up their cross, to endure persecution and to be the Salt and light of the world. Just following Jesus was not all that was asked, it was going to take sacrifice, each disciple was giving of their life in some way to the kingdom of Heaven. Whether through time or money or support or evangelism each was called to be a contributing member to the Kingdom and its development here on earth.

We even see this in Paul, who was a Jewish leader and persecutor of Christians who through the grace of God becomes on of the Lords greatest advocates in the scripture. Paul gave up everything, to step into the position of the ones he used to torture and execute knowing that that same destiny could befall him.

Jesus acknowledges this and reminds them of what he had taught them earlier. The real treasure is your soul, your eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven.

This is the message of the scripture. Those who recognize that everything they have comes from the Lord our God and are willing to give up all they have to become a follower of Christ will receive a hundredfold those blessings. They will be blessed in the eternal Kingdom of Heaven for the giving they have here on Earth.

Here on Thanksgiving, we are given a message of thankfulness and giving through the scripture.

We are called to be thankful for all we have. To offer praise and prayers of thank to God because our very life was given to us from him.

We are also called to share what we have with the world around us, not because we will gain from it here on earth, but because as Christians we are called to give ourselves to build upon God’s kingdom here on Earth. Like the wealthy man in today’s scripture, we are called to give of ourselves, our homes, our families, and our possessions to those who are in need.

We are called to remember what we were taught earlier

Mark 9:35 ESV

35 And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”

So, as we go forth from service today, I pray

· That each of us would offer thanks to God for all he has given us, the good and the bad.

· That each of us would consider what things we idolize in our life and pray for God’s guidance in how to overcome these things

· That each of us would take time to consider what we can give to God’s kingdom in service and in possessions.

Let us all be filled with thanks to our lord and spread blessings he has given each of us; time, wealth, knowledge, and other blessings to help those in need and to glorify his kingdom.

Let us Pray,

A Prayer of Thanksgiving and for Strength

We give you thanks upon thanks, O Lord our God, Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, by all means, at all times, in all places. For you have sheltered, assisted, supported, and led us on through the past times of our lives, and brought us to this hour. O good and loving, grant that we may pass this holy day, and all the times of our lives, without sin, with all joy, health, salvation, sanctification, and fear of you. O Lord God, drive away from us and from your holy Christian and apostolic Church all envy, all fear, all temptation, all the working of Satan, and all conspiracy of wicked men. Supply us with things good and profitable. In whatever ways we have sinned against you, in word, deed, or thought, pass over in your love and goodness. Do not forsake us, O God, for we hope in you. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one and from his works; by the grace, compassion, and goodness of your only Son. Amen.

Source: The Divine Liturgy of St. Mark

Hymn:

#65 All People On the Earth Do Dwell

Invitation to Offering

He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food

will supply and multiply your seed for sowing

and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity,

which will produce thanksgiving to God through us;

for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints

but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God.

In joy, we offer our gifts now to God.

Offering

Presenting our tithes and offerings is an act of worship. I want to encourage you to write a cheque and drop it in the mail to the church using your envelope, if you have one. (St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, PO Box 161, 1 Drummond St W, Perth, ON K7H 3E3) We also have another option for you for giving and that is you can make an e-Transfer.

This note from our treasurer. E-transfers are now accepted. Please note the new email address for this purpose only. [e-mail] Please include your Offering Envelope # in the message section of the INTERAC transfer page you fill in. If you wish any part of your donation to go to a specific fund (eg Presbyterian Sharing) please mention this in your message.

Offertory Prayer

All good things come from you, O God,

and with gratitude we return to you what is yours.

You created all that is, and with love formed us in your image.

When our love failed, your love remained steadfast.

You gave your only Son, Jesus Christ, to be our Savior.

All that we are and all that we have

are a trust from you.

And so, in gratitude for all your gifts,

we offer you ourselves and all that we have,

in union with Christ’s offering for us.

By your Holy Spirit make us one with Christ,

one with each other,

and one in ministry to all the world,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen.

Closing Hymn

#556 Now Thank We All Our God

Pastoral Prayer

Kind and Generous God,

on this Thanksgiving weekend,

we pause to give you thanks for all those things, both great and small,

those moments of wonder and those ordinary exchanges

which fill our lives with meaning and offer us a sense of well-being.

Merciful and Generous God,

as we give thanks for the harvests of the earth and its goodness,

show us how to live respectfully in creation

and protect all that is precious to you.

In a year when harvesting has been disappointing in many places,

show us how to share what has been produced so that no one goes hungry.

Just and Generous God,

we pray for the good of your world and the common good in our community.

Where there is hostility between peoples or nations,

inspire leaders to show wisdom and courage in decision making.

We pray for areas hard hit by flood, storm, fire or earthquake,

and for all those struggling with the impact of the pandemic.

May neighbours with resources maintain generosity and compassion

for the long work of reconstructing lives and livelihoods.

Healing and Generous God,

we pray for all those facing health challenges or difficult times for any reason,

and we pray for family and friends under stress or in sorrow

Give us patience and understanding as we draw near to them

and help us reach out with compassion.

O God, in Jesus Christ we have met your generous love and mercy.

Through our lives and by our prayers,

reveal his love and mercy in this generation,

for it is in his name we offer these prayers. Amen.

Benediction

Almighty God, the one who created the world and everything in it,

the one who came to die for you, the one who lives within you,

loves you now and always, will never leave you or forsake you,

and holds you tight as you leave this place.

With a grateful heart, go in peace.