Welcome to this service for this Fifth Sunday after Pentecost.

The main part of the service is included below in a video of our live zoom worship on Sunday morning at 10:00 AM on June 27th. 

The core of the service this week reflected on the story of the woman who had been sick for twelve years and spent all her money on doctors and treatments and gotten only worse–but then in her desperation she reached out and touched the cloak of Jesus as he passed by and “the power that went forth from him” healed her.

The Call to Worship said, “God is still here, the Spirit that filled Jesus, the Spirit that created the earth and nurtures life with its faithful flow of mercy and steadfast love, the Spirit that gives us the insights and power we need to evolve and do hard things, to work miracles of healing, justice and peace—that Spirit is within and around us, and…our task is to open our hearts wide to that Spirit, to seek its way through the complexity of our daily lives, to seek its gifts right now.”

And the sermon, “Each of us will feel called to be an instrument of the power of the Spirit in a different way, and that is good. We need them all. We need what your share of that power will bring into the church and into the world. The important thing is that we reach out to touch the Spirit’s power, that we open to it in faith, that we give our life to it. That is what the world most needs.”

You can see the Order of Worship below. You will also find some portions of our worship that were not included in the live zoom service, including the haiku of the day, a few announcements and the offering.

Thank you for being part of our church community! On July 4, 2021 we will return to the sanctuary for in-person services but we will also continue live streamed and recorded service options.  If you would like to join us by Zoom on Sunday mornings click here. Similarly, our 7:00 PM Thursday Heartfulness Contemplative Training Circle will return to in-person gatherings on July 8th, but several of us will continue to participate by zoom.  For the link, click here.

If you would like to be added to our weekly newsletter list please let us know at unitedchurchofstrafford@gmail.com

You can respond with thoughts about the service or with anything you would like to say by using the comment feature at the end of the post or by emailing us.  You can also bring others into this experience by sharing the link to this webpage by email or social media.

Whoever you are, wherever you are on your journey, you are welcome here and in our church community.

Pastor Tom Kinder         Call to Worship  “Be still, and know that I am God.”  Psalm 46  

Here is this week’s haiku by Mel Goertz: 

Where water pours into a pool,

tadpoles swim on their backs

and play.

Let us worship together…            

Readings  

The scripture readings for this Sunday are Psalm 30:2-4, 11-12; Lamentations 3:22-32; Mark 5:24b-34. You can hear them read on the video below or read the text or download it here: 6-27-21 Service Readings

The Live Zoom Service Recording

Order of Worship (the video is below): 

1. Call to Worship, by Pastor Tom Kinder
2. Introit, “Surely the Presence of the Lord Is in This Place”
3. Scripture Reading, read by Linda Williams
4. Sermon “The Power That Went Forth from Him” by the Rev. Thomas Cary Kinder, Pastor
5. Hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”
6. Unison Lord’s Prayer
7. Introduction to a New Format of Joys and Concerns
8. Postlude, Carol Rousseau, piano

Here is the video: 

Sermon   You can read the text and find a pdf of the Call to Worship and Sermon by clicking here.            

Offering

This congregation is a small but meaningful part of the movement to establish God’s realm of peace, justice and care for God’s creation on earth, actively engaged in serving our community and supporting the wider worldwide movement.

One of the ways we work together and increase our strength beyond our individual abilities is by pooling our resources.  This is hard to do when we are forced apart by the pandemic, so we hope you will take just a minute to use our online donation service.

To make your offering on line, please click here.  (This is a service we are providing through an extremely well established on-line donation company specializing in churches that is recommended by the national United Church of Christ and used by thousands of churches like ours.  To read more about our decision to allow on line donations, click here.)                  

Announcements

To read additional announcements please see our weekly churchwide emails by clicking here.

You can be added to our email list by requesting so at unitedchurchofstrafford@gmail.com.

It is extremely important that we continue to stay closely connected during this transition time.  Please reach out by phone or email to neighbors and other members of the congregation, especially those who live by themselves or are struggling or vulnerable.

Our Deacons, Becky Bailey and Kim Welsh, are coordinating our Deacons Fund and our outreach to people in need of support, and Danette Harris, Chair of our Mission Committee, is leading our work with the Food Shelf.  If you would like to donate or help please email us or use the comment feature on this page.