October 25, 2009                9:00 and 11:00 a.m. Services

  RINGING OF THE BELL – GATHERING OF THE PEOPLE

  WELCOME AND CONCERNS OF THE CHURCH

  PRELUDE – “Le Vermeil Du Soleil”                                        Boëly

  INTROIT – “This Is the Day the Lord Hath Made”               Ford

  CALL TO WORSHIP                                                (responsively)

Let your minds ponder the manifold works of God.

Let your spirits soar amid the wonders of creation.

             Life pulsates in its fullness, all around us.

The earth teems with the goodness of God.

Sun and rain proclaim God’s infinite imagination.

Moon and stars sing the glory of the Eternal One.

          All wisdom and insight come from God.

     We depend upon God for the gift of life.

We gather to worship and praise the God of all people.

We come to experience the God we only dimly perceive.

          We reach out for answers; we get better questions.

        We yearn to find meaning and purpose for our days.

*HYMN – “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”       red hymnal No. 363

  PRAYER OF CONFESSION                                         (all uniting)

Loving and Forgiving God, we confess that apart from you and your life among us, there is no health within us. We are tempted to compare ourselves with others for our advantage.  We want privilege without pain, greatness without sacrifice, and glory without hard work. We expect immediate rewards for doing right.  We talk about serving you, but do not want the rank of servant.  We have lots of ideas about how others might humble themselves and reconcile with us, but we do little to reach out to others with mercy and grace.   We are lost without you, O God.  Heal us with your higher truth  until our life is one with your life; in Jesus Christ.   Amen.

  ASSURANCE OF PARDON

*GLORIA PATRI                                                                       

  WORD FOR THE YOUNG                                                    (9:00)

  EPISTLE LESSON – James 5.13-16                            Bible p. 983

  CHOIR RESPONSE – “Confitemini Domino”                          Taizé

  GOSPEL LESSON – Matthew 9.18-26                         Bible p. 790

  SERMON – “Shifting Horizons of Health”

                                                                      Rev. Dale B. Rosenberger

  TIME OF REFLECTION AND RESPONSE

  HYMN – “There Is a Balm in Gilead”               blue hymnal No. 501

(Congregation remains seated.)

  OFFERTORY – “Is There Anybody Here?                     Traditional

                                                                                          arr. Hampton

*DOXOLOGY                                                                             

*PRAYER OF DEDICATION

  PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE                                     (responsively)

How can we approach a glory so great as yours, O God?

          We seek to honor your majesty and mystery.

Foremost is the mystery of your care and concern.

          You are the source of our healing and wholeness.

We know there is no happiness for one, until there is for all.

          So it is with the reconciling of all this world’s pain.

  PASTORAL PRAYER

            LORD’S PRAYER (“debts…debtors”)

*HYMN – “Wonderful Words of Life”             blue hymnal No. 323

  BENEDICTION                   (congregation seated)

  BENEDICTION RESPONSE – “Go In Love”                          Besig

(inside back cover of red hymnal)

  POSTLUDE – “Ein Feste Burg”                                      Buxtehude                                                                                        

*All who are able, please stand.

*****************************************************

Notice our worship begins slightly differently these days. The handbell sounds to call us from conversations with one another to our Deacon at the lectern. The Deacon briefly offers the day's concerns.  The Prelude is musical contemplation to prepare and begin worship.  The Introit strikes a further note of praise leading to the call to worship.  The Deacons and staff hope this will enhance our flow of worship. The staff and Deacons welcome any questions or comments you have.  Let us worship God!

D-YECH Supermarket Gift Cards:   Who would think that the everyday act of supermarket shopping can result in an effective means of helping to prevent homelessness?  Well, it actually can when you use the gift card program sponsored by D-YECH.  5% of the amount spent using these cards goes to the Housing Assistance Corporation which, in turn, uses these funds to help qualified families in danger of losing their homes in a time of misfortune.  Give it a try some time.  It’s easy! Check us out between services.

CHURCH STAFF        PHONE:385-3543        FAX:385-3219

Senior Pastor………………………………………………….Rev. Dale B. Rosenberger

Associate Pastor………………………………………………………..Rev. John C. Brink

Organist/Choir Director...........................………….……………..Maggie Bossi

Bell Choir Director…………………………………………………………...Barbara Wells

Director, Women’s Song & DUC Singers……Rev. Bette Anne Crowell

Church School Facilitator and

  Youth Fellowship Coordinator…................……………………….Cindy Fiscus

Office Administrator..........................………………….…..Nancy McKiernan

Financial Secretaries..................……….….Jane Springer, Judy Berrien

Sexton………………………………………………………………………………...David Crocker

¿(Church Web Site:  www.duchurch.org)

CHURCH NEWS AND NOTICES                        10/25/09                                                                                                                

We welcome guests to our worship services today.    We hope that you will share in the Fellowship Hour following the service.

Today's altar flowers

are given by

Peter and Judy Berrien

“In memory of loved ones.”

All are invited to join our pastor Dale Rosenberger in our second Dennis Union Church sponsored Habitat for Humanity Global Village Work Trip to Guatemala.  The dates for this home-building trip with the poor of Central America are January 23-31, 2010.    Our group of no more than fifteen will raise funds to construct homes and then travel to build the homes, just like last time.  You might remember during that trip in 2007, homes for 12 families were built as a result of the generosity of many. This pilgrimage forever changed the lives of those 12 families, but also the lives of our participants. A deposit of $500 will secure your spot. Make your check to Dennis Union Church, memo Habitat Work Trip to Guatemala. 

Endowment Committee News:  The Endowment Committee has arranged to have Attorney Laura McDowell-May give us a presentation on Long Term Care and Estate Planning on November 10th at 2:00 p.m.  This presentation will have a lot of important and interesting information.  There will be ample time for questions, and helpful forms will be distributed.  Please call Nancy at the church office to reserve your seat. Light refreshments will be served after the meeting.

New Member Gatherings:  Why not belong to Dennis Union Church, this joyous fellowship of faith?  New Member gatherings are being held at our church this Wednesday, October 28 and Wednesday, November 4 at 7:00 p.m.  New members will join the church on Sunday, November 15.  For further information, please talk to Rev. Dale Rosenberger or Rev. John Brink.

“Ideas” Silent Auctions:  We have been gifted with three pieces of art, from Jim Stackpole and Carol Gwynne, for silent auction.  Jim Stackpole has hand sculpted a birdhouse of our own church, and Carol Gwynne has donated two of her beautiful paintings (hanging in the hall across from the parlor).  View and bid on them during our Fellowship hours.  The winners will be announced on December 19^th at our Dickensian dinner!

Men’s Talents on Display!  The Men’s Fellowship harbors many and diverse talents.  In our effort to assist the church to reach its financial goals, we contribute not only from the proceeds of the summer pancake breakfasts, but offer the results of these talents to members of the church and the community this holiday season in a silent auction of bird carvings, watercolors, bird houses, bird feeders, tapestries and other items handcrafted by our members.  We invite early bids on the items on display each week.  These bids will remain attached to each item until the final bid date at the Boar’s Head Festival on December 19.

World Community Day – November 6:  “Piecing Earth Together” is the title of this year’s celebration which will be held at First Parish Church in Brewster.  Paul Hebert and his daughter, Mary Horsman, of Champ Homes will speak to us concerning what we can do to make our homes, our community, and our world environmentally sound.  Champ Homes now have solar panels on two of their homes and sell energy back to NSTAR!  Registration information is on the Women’s Fellowship bulletin board, or you can call Bev Brink at 508-375-0606.

THIS WEEK IN THE LIFE OF OUR CHURCH

TODAY                           9:00 & 11:00  Worship

Oct. 25                 10:00 & 12:00 Fellowship Hour

                                      10:15 Children’s Choir

                                       2:30 “Death of a Salesman”

                                       4:00 Youth Fellowship

MONDAY                        6:30 Adult Ed. – John Brink

Oct. 26                      

TUESDAY                       9:30 Clergy mtg.

Oct. 27                          5:00 Confirmation class

WEDNESDAY                   3:30 Girl Scouts

Oct. 28                           5:15 Bells

                                        7:00 Village Improvement mtg.

                                        7:00 Choir

                                        7:00 New Member Class

THURSDAY              10:30 Bible Study

Oct. 29                   5:30 Bible Study

                                        6:00 DUC Singers

                                       6:30 Book Study

                                        6:45 Al-Anon

FRIDAY

Oct. 30

SATURDAY                  

Oct. 31               

SUNDAY                        All Saints Sunday  (Chancel Choir)

Nov. 1                             Stewardship Ingathering and Celebration

                                     10:15 Children’s Choir/4:00 Youth Fellowship

Twenty-first Sunday

after Pentecost

October 25, 2009

STEWARDSHIP

“Sharing One Bread, One Body Together”

WOMEN WORK

I do know of at least two men of Dennis Union Church who are wonderful bread bakers.  Perhaps there are many more who cherish the art of creating bread with its rising, kneading, shaping and baking their special and delicious kind of loaves.  Both Peter Berrien and Hans Stern have given us loaves of their breads for our weekly bread display on our altar table.  Thanks to both men for their gifts!

But in the Bible, it is women who provide the bread for the stories.  In Genesis 18, Sarah bakes bread for the three angelic visitors who predict that she will give birth to a son.  In 1 Samuel, we meet Abigail, wife of a rich but abusive man, who refused to feed King David’s army.  Abigail, a peace maker, gathered over 200 loaves of bread and meat and fruit and brought them to David herself, thereby averting a deadly battle in which many would have been killed.  In 1 Kings, we hear of a terrible drought in the land and meet a starving woman as she prepares to bake her last bit of flour into bread for herself and her son.  When the Prophet Elijah, thirsty and starving himself, asks to be fed instead, she, by her faith, is rewarded with flour and oil to sustain her throughout the drought.  And in the 10^th chapter of Luke, we meet the two sisters from Bethany to whose house Jesus came as a guest.  Martha prepares most of the bread to feed the guests and complains to Jesus that her sister, Mary (who chose to sit by Jesus and learn along with the other disciples) needs to help her with the preparations.  Jesus gently reminds Martha that she is anxious and doing too much…  All these women of faith shared the bread of their lives.  May we be as inspired to share the bread of our lives as well.                                                      –Ginnie Haskell

AUCTION NEWS

After our October 17^th meeting, we are ready to gear up for our 2010 Auction!  The Auction Pick-Up Crew (who operates all year long) is now accepting calls to pick up auction items.  Pick ups are on Tuesday mornings.  To get on the list for a pick up, call Nancy in the church office (508-385-3543).

The Pick-Up Crew is also inviting women to join them in securing items for the auction.  You are invited to work every week or work on occasional Tuesdays – to suit your schedule.  For more information or to sign on with the crew, please call David White at 508-385-5079.

TRYING SOMETHING NEW!

This year, we’re going to combine the December ‘09 and January ‘10 Steeple Bell.  Many churches do it to save money AND time during the Christmas season.  Anyone wishing to put an article in the newsletter for December or January is asked to have it in the office by November 13^th.  Thanks!