Notes on the Notes – September 10, 2023
First Sunday in the Season of Creation
Welcome Sunday!
This week’s music:
“Let Us Build a House (All are Welcome)” (MV #1)
“Let us build a house where love can dwell and all can safely live,
a place where saints and children tell how hearts learn to forgive.
Built of hopes and dreams and visions, rock of faith and vault of grace;
Here the love of Christ shall end divisions:
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
Let us build a house where prophets speak, and words are strong and true,
Where all God’s children dare to seek to dream God’s reign anew.
Here the cross shall stand as witness and as symbol of God’s grace;
Here as one we claim the faith of Jesus:
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
Let us build a house where love is found in water, wine and wheat;
A banquet hall on holy ground, where peace and justice meet.
Here the love of God, through Jesus, is revealed in time and space;
As we share in Christ the feast that frees us;
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
Let us build a house where hands will reach beyond the wood and stone
To heal and strengthen, serve and teach, and live the Word they’ve known.
Here the outcast and the stranger bear the image of God’s face;
Let us bring an end to fear and danger;
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
Let us build a house where all are named, their songs and visions heard
And loved and treasured, taught and claimed as words within the Word.
Built of tears and cries and laughter, prayers of faith and songs of grace;
Let this house proclaim from floor to rafter;
All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.”
Our opening hymn of welcome and inclusion was written by Marty Haugen in 1994. Each verse of the hymn shares the dream of what God’s house can be. One this Welcome Sunday, what are our dreams for Windsor Park United Church? What role do we each play in making this a welcoming place?
Hear the hymn at: https://youtu.be/mTdxFRfEoMs
“That We May Be One”
“That we may be one,
One with the world,
One with each other,
One in the Lord.
Rooted in earth or soaring high.
Rivers and lakes that touch the sky.
Water and rock, wind and flame,
We join our hearts,
That we may be one,
One with the world,
One with each other,
One in the Lord.
Elder and youth, hopes and fears.
Stories to tell with smiles and tears.
Sharing our dreams, our lives, our faith,
We join our hearts.
That we may be one,
One with the world,
One with each other,
One in the Lord.”
This hymn was written by Diana Chappell in 2013. The words express a wish that we may be one with each other and with all of creation.
“I Will Love the Lord”
“I will love the Lord,
I will love the Lord with all my heart,
Mind, soul, and strength;
And my neighbour,
My neighbour as myself.
Let no wall divide us now.
Let nothing come between.
In differences our strength be found;
The bonding love of Christ be seen.
I will love the Lord,…”
This week’s anthem is by Sheldon Curry and was written in 2003. The words of the chorus are often referred to as the “Great Commandment” and are found in the gospels of Matthew (22:36-40), Mark (12:28-31) and Luke (10:27).
Hear the song sung by The Harmony Singers in 2022:
“For the Gift of Creation” (VU #538)
“For the gift of creation, the gift of your love,
And the gift of the Spirit by which we live,
We thank you and give you the fruit of our hands.
May your grace be proclaimed by the gifts that we give.”
Our offering dedication is from the United Methodist Book of Worship (1991). The composer, Steve Garnaas-Holmes is a United Methodist pastor in Montana. During this Season of Creation, we offer our time, talent and treasure in thanks to God for all of God’s gifts.
“God Works Through Us”
“God works through us and among us lives when we share gifts that the Spirit gives.
Though different skills may to each belong,
Like notes combined, we make a new song.
We will work side by side,
And see our faith applied,
Letting the Spirit guide all that we do
We plant the seed and we tend the earth, but God gives life and attends its birth.
The loaf we break and the cup we share remind us of the new life we bear.
We will work side by side,
And see our faith applied,
Letting the Spirit guide all that we do
Christ lays foundations on which we build;
Our efforts joined create hopes fulfilled.
Not walls that separate soul from soul,
But life in harmony is our goal.
We will work side by side,
And see our faith applied,
Letting the Spirit guide all that we do
Our ties are stronger than what divides;
In peace our common intent abides.
We’re called to forge a community;
In Christ we find a new unity.
We will work side by side,
And see our faith applied,
Letting the Spirit guide all that we do.”
Our closing hymn was written by Allan Baer in 2010. He says, “Some of my songs take relatively little time to write. Others begin with a flourish of inspiration, but then annoying shortcomings emerge and won’t let go, even though they may be minor… That seems to highlight what happens as God is working through us – we take some enthusiastic steps forward, but then a disappointed step backwards. Our hope is that in the end, we are further ahead as we seek the peace and new life that can follow from applying one’s faith. We have been given the building blocks for that new life; now our challenge is to add to that foundation. Worrying that our efforts aren’t perfect the first time around isn’t helpful – our sense of perfection only seems to last until we hear what others think of what we’ve done! No wonder Christ suggested that we leave the perfect in God’s hands. In song, we have a reminder that so much of what needs to be done is only possible with the help of others. A song becomes just a scrap of paper if it is never sung by another. So let the life we build be a song of harmony, not discord. And building new life will take work; the courage to reassess what has been done; and the willingness to keep on singing.” (Source: https://www.crossroadsunited.ca/spirit/)
“Jesus, Lord, Our True Example”
“Jesus, Lord, our true example, you have shown how we must live.
Teach us how to share with others everything we have to give.
Let our days be spent in service: bring us by your grace to know
Healing is the church’s calling, and the path that we must go.”
As we go into the coming week, we ask Jesus to be with us and guide us in our living, both as individuals and as a church community. Our benediction response is sung to the tune “Ode to Joy.”
Bonus video:
