August 13 Bulletin

Claremont United Church of Christ Sunday, August 13, 2023 10:00 am Welcome home! Regardless of your age, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, abilities, or faith background, we are glad you’re worshiping with us today. You belong here.

A CELEBRATION OF WORSHIP CLAREMONT UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST PRELUDE In His Presence arr. Joyce Jones Dr. Carey Robertson, organ CALL TO SABBATH INTROIT Circle of Friends James K. Manley CALL TO WORSHIP One: Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness.” All: We come seeking the clarity and guidance you offer. One: Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” All: We come with hearts of thanks for the kinship made possible through Christ. One: Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives connected to me will live a fruitful life.” All: We come to deepen that connection. May we allow it to be the source of our fullest and most fruitful lives. OPENING HYMN #207 Just as I Am WOODWORTH WELCOME CONFESSING OUR SHORTCOMINGS We believe the lies and deceptions that tell us that you are far off, that we are not important, or that we are undeserving of your love and attention. Rather than allowing you to make us into new creations, we remain too easily chained to negative parts of our past and unwilling to trust you with our future. God, may we see ourselves the way You see us. May our hearts be fully alive to our true identities as your beloved children. Teach us to hear Your voice, to understand Your heart, and to live lives that overflow with Your love. Amen. RECEIVING GOD’S GRACE One: I do not understand the mystery of grace – only that it meets us where

we are but does not leave us where it found us. God’s grace meets us today, right where we are, eager to forgive us and ready to help us. All: Through grace we are saved. Thanks be to God. PASSING OF THE PEACE One: May the peace of Christ be with you. All: And also with you. LITURGICAL SONG Where Children Belong James Ritchie This, this is where children belong, welcomed as part of the worshiping throng. Water, God’s Word, bread and cup, prayer and song: This is where children belong. SERMON ON THE STEPS Rev. Laurel Capesius OFFERING/MUSIC This Is Me Benj Pasek & Justin Paul Lacey Jo Benter, vocalist DOXOLOGY LASST UNS ERFREUEN Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise Christ the word in flesh born low, Alleluia! Alleluia! Praise Holy Spirit evermore, One God, Triune, whom we adore, Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! DEDICATION SCRIPTURE Exodus 1:15-21 (Common English Bible) 15 The king of Egypt spoke to two Hebrew midwives named Shiphrah and Puah: 16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women give birth and you see the baby being born, if it’s a boy, kill him. But if it’s a girl, you can let her live.” 17 Now the two midwives respected God so they didn’t obey the Egyptian king’s order. Instead, they let the baby boys live. 18 So the king of Egypt called the two midwives and said to them, “Why are you doing this? Why are you letting the baby boys live?” 19 The two midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because Hebrew women aren’t like Egyptian women. They’re much stronger and give birth before any midwives can

get to them.” 20 So God treated the midwives well, and the people kept on multiplying and became very strong. 21 And because the midwives respected God, God gave them households of their own. SERMON Rev. Jude Johnson All I Needed to Know About Life, I Learned at Camp “Be Brave, Be Bright, Be You” ANTHEM Brave Sara Bareilles & Jack Antonoff PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE & THE LORD’S PRAYER To honor the power of both the traditional and new versions of the Lord’s Prayer, we will alternate which version we pray each week. One: …We pray these things using the words you teach us, saying together, All: Our Father/Mother/Creator who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom/kin-dom 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. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom/kin-dom, the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. BENEDICTION CLOSING RESPONSE Circle of Friends (see next page) James K. Manley POSTLUDE Toccata on “The Ash Grove” David Cherwien Dr. Carey Robertson, organ You are invited to stay in your seats for the Postlude or to exit quietly.

Circle of Friends

ALTAR FLOWERS Today’s flowers are given by Steffanie Peevers and dedicated to anyone who has been affected by a devastating diagnosis of ALS. GUEST PREACHER Rev. Jude Johnson (he/they) is a Board-Certified Chaplain and was just ordained into the UCC this month! They also serve as the Vice Chair for the Southern California Nevada Conference board of directors. They specialize in spiritual care for LGBTQ+ individuals. You may know Jude from their work at Pilgrim Pines Camp or from workshops they facilitate for LGBTQ+ allies on gender identity and sexuality. Thank you for your support of Claremont UCC! You can donate by texting an amount to (909) 343-5901 or scanning the QR code:

Rest, Recognize, and Release \"Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.\" Philippians 4:6 Gratitude and prayer are cornerstones of good Sabbath rest. When we invest in conscious gratitude, we learn to recognize the good things that surround us and the blessings in our lives. When we engage in regular prayer, we learn to release the things that worry us and weigh us down and entrust them to God's attention and care. In both ways - through our gratitude and prayer - we deepen our awareness of the grace and presence of God. Three Sabbath Ideas: • Start a gratitude journal (or a gratitude note on your phone) where you can regularly record things you're grateful for. • Memorize a thankful hymn, and sing it in the car, the shower, or anywhere you want! • Take a walk. Use the time to pray. This week I intend to: __________________________________________________________________ as a commitment to Summer Sabbath.

PLEASE BE IN TOUCH Claremont United Church of Christ 233 W. Harrison Ave., Claremont, CA 91711 (909) 626-1201 | claremontucc.org @uccclaremont Claremont United Church of Christ Executive Pastor, Summer 2023 Directors of Music & Fine Arts Rev. Shannon Barnes Dr. Alexandra Grabarchuk [email protected] [email protected] Dr. David Rentz Senior Pastors [email protected] Rev. Dr. Jacob Buchholz Rev. Dr. Jen Strickland Principal Organist (on sabbatical through August 2023) Dr. Carey Robertson [email protected] Finance & Payroll Administrator Ms. Jocelyn Bocking Building Manager [email protected], x110 Mr. Adam Thomas [email protected], Office Manager x109 Ms. Jasmine Tomita [email protected], Technology Director x101 Mr. Jon Van [email protected], x120 Minister of Children, Youth, & Families ASL Interpreters Rev. Laurel Capesius Ms. Jennifer Stephenson [email protected], x210 Ms. Rebecca McAllister Children, Youth, & Families Moderator (Council President) Assistant Ms. Lyn Childress Ms. Elizabeth Zehm [email protected] [email protected] Pastor Emeritus Junior High Youth Director Rev. Dr. Homer “Butch” Henderson Ms. Zoe Estrada [email protected] Director of the ECC Ms. Kristy Knight [email protected], x114