South Church in Andover
United Church of Christ

THE WORSHIP OF GOD
ORDER FOR THE SERVICE

February 12, 2006
Sixth Sunday of Epiphany

Let the prelude be a curtain of music which brings us into the sanctuary to worship God.
 Let necessary conversation be gentle and the preparation we make together be prayerful.

PRELUDE     Voluntary in D     James Hook

WELCOME       

Introduction of Visitors and Guests
Announcements  Bread & Roses  Sandy Meldrum
         Nominating Committee

Exchange of Peace

The peace of Jesus Christ be with you.

And also with you.

INTROIT   Jesus Loves Me     Carol Choir

CALL TO WORSHIP     

Thy steadfast love, O God, extends to the heavens,

Thy faithfulness to the clouds.

Thy righteousness is like the mountains of God,

Thy judgments are like the great deep.

How precious is Thy steadfast love, O God.

Your children take refuge in the shadow of Thy wings.

For with Thee is the fountain of life.

And in Thee do we see the light.

O Come, let us worship God.

And may the words of our mouths and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable and pleasing to the Lord.

* HYMN  When Morning Gilds the Skies    #35 blue

PRAYER OF INVOCATION AND LORD’S PRAYER

 sACRAMENT OF cHRISTIAN BAPTISM

Brenda Hannaford Bryan, Bae Lee Bryan and Kai Lee Bryan

Congregational Response:    (unison)

On behalf of the whole Christian Church, we now receive Brenda, Bae and Kai into our love and care.  We promise to uphold them in the fulfillment of their vows and to be a Christian community which encourages love for God and neighbor, and nurtures in their spiritual life a Christ centered faith, hope and joy.

LET THE CHILDREN COME        

Children in grades K-High School may move to their church school classrooms.
Parents of children up to age 7, please go to your child’s classroom after worship.

SCRIPTURE     Psalm 30     (see insert)

* HYMN  Come Sing to God #181 Red

scripture        II Kings 5:1-14, Mark 1:40-45     (see insert)

SERMON  Jesus the Healer     Dr. Mutti

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE         

MISSION THAT MATTER                Bread & Roses     Ted Hubbard

OFFERING OF OUR GIFTS IN THANKSGIVING

Invitation

Offertory Anthem               Lord, I Trust Thee  G.F.Handel

* Doxology

* Dedication Prayer            

* HYMN  Crown Him with Many Crowns #199 blue

* BENEDICTION

  RESPONSE  May the Grace of Christ  Fred Graham

POSTLUDE     Concerto in A minor: Allegro     J.S.Bach

* Those who are able may stand.

Participating in Today's Service:

Greeters: Tara and Tony Clark, Holland and Darren

Acolytes: Molly Machain and Matthew Johnson
Deacon: Jim Vanderpol

Youth: Erik Geffken

Usher Supervisor: Jon King

Scriptures For This Day        New Revised Standard Version

Psalm 30

I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up, and did not let my foes rejoice over me.

O Lord my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me.

O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.

Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name.

For his anger is but for a moment; his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.

As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.”

By your favor, O Lord, you had established me as a strong mountain; you hid your face; I was dismayed.

To you, O Lord, I cried, and to the Lord I made supplication:

“What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness?

Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me! O Lord, be my helper!”

You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever.

II Kings 5: 1 - 14

Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. Now the Arameans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” So Naaman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. And the king of Aram said, “Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.” He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments. He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me.” But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel.” So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.” But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, “I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage. But his servants approached and said to him, “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.

Mark 1: 40 - 45

A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I do choose. Be made clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, saying to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.