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The 21st Sunday after Pentecost at First Church Wallingford! October 17, 2021 10:00am

Our Worship Series: ROOTED AND ESTABLISHED IN LOVE

The flowers on the altar are given in memory of my mother, Ruth Bennie,

on what would be her 100th birthday by Marjie Martin.

(+ Please rise in body or in spirit)

GATHER

Prelude Air from Suite 3

Air from Water Music

J.S. Bach / G.F. Handel

Welcome

Centering Music Sanctuary

John Thompson and Randy Scruggs arr. Nylea Butler-Moore / Copyright 1982 Whole Armor

Lord, prepare me to be a sanctuary, pure and holy, tried and true With Thanksgiving, I’ll be a living sanctuary for you.

Call to Worship

Leader: O Gracious God our holy Guide,

People: Give us wisdom to perceive you, intelligence to understand you;

Leader: Give us diligence to seek you, patience to wait for you;

People: Give us eyes to see you, and a heart to meditate on you.

All: And grant us, O God, a life to proclaim you, through the power of the Spirit

known to us in Jesus Christ. We worship together in his name!

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PRAISE +Opening Hymn of Praise ♪NCH#558 Oh How Glorious, Full of Wonder

+Call to Confession and Silent Reflection

Liturgist: Our God is merciful and compassionate, slow to anger and filled with unfailing

love. God is close to all who call upon God in truth, and listens to their desires for help.

God saves us from all that would separate us. Therefore, let us bring our prayers and

confessions to God knowing that they will be heard and we will be forgiven. We pause in

the quiet.…(silence is held…)

Unison Prayer of Confession: In the beginning was the birth of wonder. The first cells

were marvelous in their simplicity. The first flower bloomed in beauty. The first sound, a

chorus of praise. Every hill and valley was alive with splendor and all creation was cloaked

in wonder and mystery. The sunlight danced upon the waters. The winds sent the birds

soaring high. God was a patient Creator, waiting for all things to come into their fullness.

We are also a part of this wondrous creation, even though we often fall short of God’s

hopes for us. We know that we need God’s forgiveness on behalf of one another and the

earth. We pray to the God of changing seasons to also change us with mercy and grace.

We pray in the name of the one who patiently makes all things new. Amen.

+Words of Assurance: Jesus knows our every weakness and loves us still. Awaken to the

promises of Christ’s amazing grace. The Good News in Christ is that when we bring our

whole selves before God, we are granted the strength and courage to face each new day

with the promise of transformation. Living into this promise we give thanks to our God!

Anthem Go into the World

Natalie Sleeth Copyright 1979 Choiristers Guild

Time with the Children

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LISTEN

Scripture Luke 13:6-9, 18-19

Then Jesus told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came

looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three

years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why

should it be wasting the soil?’ He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig

around it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can

cut it down.’”

Jesus said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare

it? It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and

became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.”

The Word in Music We Are Called

David Hass arr. Mark Hayes Copyright 2014 GIA Publishers

Reflection The Rev. Kathleen T. Cunliffe

RESPOND and SHARE

Prayers of the People and Pastoral Prayer

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 evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

Offertory Moment

The Passing of the Peace of Christ (from a distance!)

+Closing Hymn of Hope ♪NCH#28 For the Beauty of the Earth

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RETURN

Commission and Benediction

Response The Trees of the Field

Stuart Dauermann Copyright 1975 Lillenas Publishing Co.

You shall go out with joy and be led forth with peace;

The mountains and the hills forth before you;

There’ll be shouts of joy, and all the trees of the field will clap, will clap their hands.

And all the trees of the field will clap their hands, (clap clap)

The trees of the field will clap their hands, (clap, clap)

The trees of the field will clap their hands, (clap, clap)

While you go out with joy.

Postlude Hornpipe with Water Music

G.F. Handel

♪ Our hymns are located in the black New Century Hymnal (NCH), and in the red

Pilgrim Hymnal (PH), as well as inserts in the bulletin.

♪ The Chimes were played today by Debbie Clark.

© Thank you to our Liturgist for today, Bernie Annunziata!

If you are interested in serving as our Liturgist, please see Pastor Kathy.

Portions of the service have been reprinted by permission of The Pilgrim Press from the Pilgrim Hymnal © 1958 and The New Century Hymnal ©1995. All rights reserved. Printed under One License.net A-718386.

Portions of the service have been utilized/reprinted under CCLI License # 11565928.

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Announcements for the week of October 17, 2021:

Covenant Conversations… Are you interested in making a deeper connection with our congregation? We will begin offering opportunities for Covenant Conversations where you can learn more about our church and the wider United Church of Christ, as our denomination. You can ask questions, find out how to be more actively involved in our ministries, share in conversation with our pastor and church leaders, and meet others who are also considering membership. Most importantly, it will give us a chance to get to know YOU better!

Please join us following worship on either/both Sunday, October 24 or Sunday, October 31 at 11:30am in the Guild Room (lowest level to the right of the kitchen.) Our time together will be about an hour for information and conversation. Then, if you choose to make a deeper commitment of covenant relationship with us, we will welcome you officially during the service of worship on Sunday, November 14. We hope you will embrace this opportunity and will be keeping you in our prayers! <>< <>< <><

Upper Room Devotional: Copies of the Upper Room Devotional booklet are also

available in the Narthex. Feel free to take one home!

The 8:00am Worship Service has resumed and will now take place on the Communion Sundays and the Third Sunday of the month. Our next 8:00am services will be held on

November 7 and 21. If you have any questions, please see Pastor Kathy or our Sr.

Deacons: Holly Francke and Greg Whitehouse.

Altar Flowers…Would you like to provide altar or pedestal flowers in honor or in memory

of someone to beautify the sanctuary space during Sunday worship? Donations towards

this effort can also be made to the Flower Fund which provides flowers when sponsors

are not available for a particular Sunday. Please contact the church office or email Lori

Barron at lorifolkbarron@gmail.com with any questions or to sponsor flowers for a

particular Sunday. Thank you!

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Our Prayer List: This week we offer our Christian sympathy to the family of Frances McClure who died this past week. Frances is the mother of Jean Hall. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, November 6, at 3:30PM at the B.C. Bailey Funeral Home. There are no calling hours. Please keep Jean and the rest of the family in your thoughts and prayers.

We celebrated the wedding of Elizabeth Roberge and Allen Camp, on Saturday afternoon. The flowers on the pedestals are gifted for our enjoyment. We pray that their lives together will be filled with God’s blessings. We continue prayers for:

David Lick

Claudia Hartman

Beverly Lastig

Kimberly Kearney

Margaret Traynor

Christina Landon (Karen & David Brown’s

daughter)

Pam Savenelli

Bill Hawthorn (Jessie DePonte’s father)

Ben Steinhilper (Melissa Masi’s son)

Stephen Trcka

Bob Berlepsch

Fred Bouza

Cayllie Alicki (Eric Ruys' daughter)

Army Specialist, Andrew Coleman, (grandson

of Sally and Stuart Coleman)

Bunny Drummond - Bellacicco, her brother,

Jim Petry, and her mother, Jane Petry

Joan Filkins (Charlie Filkins' Mom)

Ashley Sibley (Bernie Annunziata's great niece)

Tom Jastermsky

Stacie Folk ( Lori Folk-Barron's sister-in-law)

Gabe and Jude Heidenis (Bernie and Tony

Annunziata’s grandsons)

Jack Grotti

We thank You for prayers for ALL who are

connected with our congregation and with

those who love and care for them!

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First Congregational Church of Wallingford Important Upcoming Events You "Caught the Spirit" in September!

Let's "Regather, Come Home, and Keep the Spirit Afire" with this Cornucopia of Fellowship Events this fall and holiday season!"

• October 22, 2021 – Silk’n Sounds in Concert in the Sanctuary o 7 PM, Free and open to the public with reception to follow after the concert. A free will offering will be collected.

• November 6, 2021 – All Church Regathering Dinner in Congregational Hall

o We’ll have dinner, music (thanks to a special DJ) and dancing. Watch for ticket information and more details coming soon.

• November 7, 2021 – Regather for A Pastries and Coffee Hour

o Regather after the All Saints Day service for pastries and coffee. Come visit with us, see the newly renovated Congregational Hall, hear about the ministries and projects going on in the church, and sign up for events.

• November 20, 2021 - Thanksgiving Food Drive/Collection o Gather your Thanksgiving food donations for local families. This will be a drive through/drop off event in the morning

behind the Meetinghouse. Stay tuned for more details.

• November 20, 2021 - Game Night for all ages! o Bring your family (however you define it!) and have some fun sharing a meal (probably pizza and snacks) and enjoying

some laughs together as we pull out our favorite board games. Likely start time will be 5:30 PM.

• November 27, 2021 - Church Breakfast and Holiday Decorating o At 9AM, join us for breakfast, Hanging of the Greens and decorating the Christmas tree. An all church event to ready the

sanctuary for the Advent season.

• December 10, 2021 - Wine Night o Join us for this adult event to celebrate fellowship and the holidays at a Wallingford locale to be determined. Stay tuned

for details!

Questions about any of these events? Call the church office at 203-265-1691.

As per current state and federal guidelines, we strongly recommend that anyone within the church buildings for these events wear a mask.

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The First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ

23 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492

Church telephone: (203) 265-1691

Church Office Hours: Tues. – Fri. - 9:00am – 2:00pm

Email: firstchurchwlfd@snet.net (office)

Website: www.firstchurchwallingford.org

Pastor Kathy: revkathycunliffe@gmail.com

Jeanette Gross, DMA: gross7jeanette1@gmail.com