ST. PAUL’S EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN
CHURCH OF STEINBACH INC. MEMBER OF THE EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH IN CANADA
465 Henry Street, Steinbach MB R5G 0H1 204-326-3758 Fax 204-326-2548
email: [email protected] www.stpaulsteinbach.org
Lead Pastor: Rev. Terry Gudmundson 204-380-3293
Associate Pastor: Rev. Melissa Frankland 204-293-7930
Sunday, June 17, 2018Sunday, June 17, 2018Sunday, June 17, 2018Sunday, June 17, 2018
Welcome to Our Traditional Worship ServiceWelcome to Our Traditional Worship ServiceWelcome to Our Traditional Worship ServiceWelcome to Our Traditional Worship Service
OUR MISSION
God’s purpose for St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church is: Accepting all people through God’s grace,
sharing our faith in Christ, and making disciples.
THIS WEEK’S CALENDAR Monday 7:00 Young Adults Tuesday 7:30 Theology on Tap @ the Signers’ Wednesday 6:30 am Men’s Fellowship Thursday 10:00 Moms & Tots 1:30 Lutheran Church Women Group 2 7:00 All Youth Appreciation Night Sunday Summer Schedule Begins 10:00 am Contemporary Service with Communion & Baptism
LOOKING AHEAD:
• Sunday, June 24, Baptism of Charles Paul Gerbrandt, son of Bryan & Ashley (Falk) Gerbrandt
• Wednesday, June 27, 2:00, Memorial Reception for Kathy Doerksen
• Sunday, July 1, 10:00 am, Contemporary Service with Communion
THE NUMBERS
ATTENDANCE: June 10 (Church Picnic): 200
OFFERING: June 10 - $5,082.00
Did You Know?
The Kingdom of God is like . . .
In our Gospel today, Jesus teaches
the people what the Kingdom of
God is like. Jesus uses many illus-
trations to describe what the King-
dom is like, but for the most part,
many of these Kingdom illustrations are actually
found in Matthew’s Gospel. Today we are treated
to a couple of Kingdom illustrations, where Jesus
describes a very unorthodox way of seeding, and
the miracle of growth from such a tiny seed. All this
Kingdom talk may remind us of a prayer we all
know and love - the Lord’s Prayer. In the second
petition of the Lord’s prayer we pray asking “Thy
(God’s) Kingdom come”. Well, have we ever won-
dered what this actually means? In the small
Catechism Luther explains what it means:
"The Kingdom of God comes by itself even without
our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may
come to us also.” God’s Kingdom, for which we pray
in the Lord’s Prayer, is the recognition of His
authority in this world, and in us as well, which
comes as mysteriously as the way seeds grow. And
today, this is what our Lord is teaching us in the
parable about the mysterious growing power of the
seed. Ultimately, it is God’s grace which causes that
seed to grow, it is not out of our own doing. But
that doesn’t give us the green light to just sit there
and do nothing. Daily, we are still called to plant the
seeds of faith and leave the rest up to God.
I think the wise words of Archbishop Oscar Romero
say it best: "We plant the seeds that one day will
grow. We water seeds already planted, knowing
that they hold future promise. We lay foundations
that will need further development. We provide
yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities. We
cannot do everything, and there is a sense of libera-
tion in realizing that. This enables us to do some-
thing, and to do it very well. It may be incomplete,
but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an
opportunity for the Lord's grace to enter and do the
rest. We may never see the end results, but that is
the difference between the master builder and the
worker. We are workers, not master builders; min-
isters, not messiahs. We are prophets of a future
not our own.” It is for us but to sow the seed, and
get out of the way and let God’s grace take over.
HOLY COMMUNION
G od feeds and renews us with the presence of Jesus Christ. In Christ’s body and blood given to
us, God forgives us and nourishes us for mission. In response to the Lord’s invitation I come - confessing my sin, trusting that the Lord is truly present, believing that to receive Him is to receive forgiveness - to partake of the Lord’s Supper. People of all ages and faith commu-nities are welcome.
Holy Communion is served in a continuous format unless announced otherwise. Participants are asked to fill out a registration card, available in the pews or at both entrances, and place them in the baskets at the entrances, or in the offering plates.
Ushers will direct you toward the aisle to come forward to the serving stations. If you desire to commune, extend your hand to the server who will place a wafer in your hand. If you prefer a gluten-free wafer, simply say “gluten-free” to the server. Wine is served from the chalice or individual cups; white grape juice is served from individual cups.
Come and hold in your hand and taste on your lips the love we cannot comprehend.
FATHER’S DAY BLESSING
Loving God, we give you thanks for the many gifts
you have given us; the gift of life, the gift of those
who love us and especially, today, we thank you
for the gift of our fathers.
We ask your blessing upon our fathers who
gave us rules to live by, standards to uphold, joys to
cherish, faith to live by, hopes worth dreaming of
and who blessed our lives with their unselfish
and unconditional love.
We ask your blessing upon our fathers who are
unable to be with us today. May they know how
much we love and care for them.
We ask your blessing upon adoptive fathers,
that they may always know their special role
of being a true father, a revelation
of God’s love for their children.
We ask your blessing upon fathers who have lost
children through miscarriage, stillbirth, crib death,
sickness, accident and tragedy, that they may have
your continuing strength and courage.
We ask your blessing upon those who
want to be fathers or have another child,
that they may practice patience and feel your love
as they wait and hope.
We remember our fathers who have died
and for the unique way they revealed for us your
love. We ask that you keep them in your care until
the time comes for us to join them in your Kingdom.
And we ask your blessing
upon the fathers standing here before us.
Let the example of their faith and love shine forth.
Give them the strength to live the
faithful and loving lives you call them to live.
Protect and guide them.
Keep them in your care and grant
that their children may always honor them
with a spirit of profound respect.
We ask this in the name of Jesus, our Lord. Amen.
Please Note: Small numbers (eg. p. 211) refer to liturgical settings at the beginning of the Lutheran Book of Worship.
Larger bold numbers (eg. # 239) refer to hymn numbers. The up arrow means the congregation is asked to stand, the down arrow, to be seated.
Welcome & Announcements
↑ Confession & Forgiveness - p. 94-96
Gathering Song:
“Gather Us In” - # 532
GREETING: P. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. C. And also with you.
The Kyrie - p. 203
Canticle of Praise - p. 204
PRAYER OF THE DAY: L. Let us pray together: All. O God, you are the tree of life, offering shelter to all the world. Graft us into yourself and nurture our growth, that we may bear your truth and love to those in need, through Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. Amen.
GOD’S WORD: Reader Linda James
↓ FIRST READING: Ezekiel 17:22-24
22 Thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of a cedar; I will set it out. I will break off a tender one from the topmost of its young twigs; I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain. 23 On the mountain height of Israel I will plant it, in order that it may produce boughs and bear fruit, and become a noble cedar. Under it every kind of bird will live; in the shade of its branches will nest winged creatures of every kind. 24 All the trees of the field shall know that I am the LORD. I bring low the high tree, I make high the low tree; I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. I the LORD have spoken; I will accomplish it.
L. The Word of the Lord. C. Thanks be to God.
RESPONSIVE READING: Psalm 92:1-4, 12-15 (Congregation reads bold parts)
L. 1 It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; C.
2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night, L. 3 to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre. C.
4 For you, O LORD, have made me glad by your
work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy. L. 12 The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. C.
13 They are planted in the house of the LORD;
they flourish in the courts of our God. L. 14 In old age they still produce fruit; they are always green and full of sap, C.
15 showing that the LORD is upright; he is my rock,
and there is no unrighteousness in him.
SECOND READING: 1 Corinthians 3:3-11
3 For you are still of the flesh. For as long as there is jeal-ousy and quarrelling among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving according to human inclinations? 4For when one says, ‘I belong to Paul’, and another, ‘I belong to Apollos’, are you not merely human? 5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, as the Lord assigned to each. 6I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8The one who plants and the one who waters have a com-mon purpose, and each will receive wages according to the labour of each. 9For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building. 10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building on it. Each builder must choose with care how to build on it. 11For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ.
L. The Word of the Lord. C. Thanks be to God.
↑ Gospel Acclamation: “Alleluia” (sung) - p. 205 Alleluia! Lord and Savior, open now your saving word. Let it burn like fire within us; speak until our hearts are stirred. Alleluia! Lord, we sing, for the good news that you bring.
HOLY GOSPEL: Mark 4:26-34
Congregational response after the announcement: Glory to you, O Lord.
26 Jesus also said, ‘The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, 27and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. 28The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. 29But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come.’
FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
JUNE 17, 2018
30 He also said, ‘With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? 31It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.’ 33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; 34he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.
L. The Gospel of the Lord. C. Praise to you, O Christ.
↓ Message Hymn of the Day:
“God of Grace and God of Glory” - # 705 ↑ Apostles’ Creed - p. 105 Prayers of the People Sharing of the Peace ↓ Offering Special Music: “Abide With Me” - Rose Angell Accompanist Eleanor Wiebe ↑ Offertory - Doxology - # 884 The Great Thanksgiving - p. 206-207 The Lord’s Prayer - p. 208 ↓ Communion Hymns (sung during the distribution):
“One Bread, One Body” - # 496 “Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling” - # 608 “You Are Mine” - # 581 “Day by Day” - # 790 ↑ Prayer after Communion The Benediction - Blessing Sending Song:
“Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” - # 890
HOLY COMMUNION
Holy Communion is offered in the CONTEMPORARY FORMAT today. Registration cards are available in the pews and at both entrances. Participants are
asked to fill out a card and place it in the basket provided or in the offering plate. All are welcome at God’s table.
PRAYER REMINDERS
In your prayers this week, please remember Bob Angell, Mary Ann Harder, Laura Heckert, Tina Heckert, Wanda Hoehn, Margaret (Albert) Kihn,
Marlene Klassen, Evelyn (Art) Krentz, Emma Kuehn, Gordon Pachal, Henrietta Reimer, Helmuth Renz, Duane Schultz, Joan Schultz and Elsie Schilke.
SUPPORTING YOUTH FOR CHRIST In keeping with our calling to be a church In Mission for Others, the Rela-tional Ministries Committee of St. Paul’s
encourages the congregation to support Youth for Christ Steinbach in a giving drive that will run until the end of June. Donations may be made through your regular offer-ing by designating “Youth for Christ Steinbach” on the envelope. Thank you for your ongoing support of this vital community ministry.
GIFT OF REMEMBRANCE In a tribute of love and remembrance, a Memorial Gift has been received in loving memory of Adolf Schoenrock, who passed away June 4, 2018, from his family. “We always have you close to us, forever in our hearts.”
SUMMER SERVICE SCHEDULE Starting Sunday, June 24, and continuing through the months of July, August and part of September, there will be one worship service only, beginning at 10:00 am. The service on June 24 will be in the contemporary format with communion.
YOUNG ADULTS NIGHT OUT The next Young Adults night out is tomorrow, Monday, June 18, 7:00 pm at the home of Jacob & Mia. Come for a time of snacks, games and great fellowship. Questions? Call or text Jacob, 204-381-8966. JUST IN! Latest edition of Canada Lutheran. Be sure to take home a copy today. ALSO AVAILABLE: Portals of Prayer (small and large print) and Eternity for Today devotion books for July-September 2018. Available for pick-up at both entrances and at the information center in the narthex.
WELCOME VISITORS If you are a visitor to our church today, we invite you to sign the guest book located in the narthex. Welcome here. May you be blessed as you worship with us.
THANK YOU DEPARTMENT Thank you to all who have assisted with the service today.
THEOLOGY ON TAP
Calling all 30-40(ish) people!
Join us for a casual, relaxed gathering where topics of faith, life and current issues are discussed.
When: Tuesday, June 19, 7:30 pm Topic: Social media and the Bible
Location: The Signers Please BYOB and a snack to share
Call 204-377-9070 for directions, or talk to Rev. Melissa.
