Online Worship - Sunday, September 20, 2020
Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost
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This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance.
~ Exodus 12:14
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This Sunday is an exciting day in the life of our church! We will witness the baptism and confirmation of 5 youth in our church! While the confirmation program looked quite a bit different than prior years, we recognized that it was an important milestone to recognize and celebrate especially in this In-Between season we are living.
As we continue our sermon series Living in In-Between Times, we will talk about “Remembering Who We Are and Whose We Are.” As the Israelites prepared to depart from Egypt, God instituted a Day of Remembrance, a perpetual ordinance to God. This day was to be celebrated each year so they would not forget who they were and whose they were. In a season when so much looks different, how do we remember who we are and whose we are? Our scriptures are Exodus 12:14-20, Matthew 3:13-17.
Please register your attendance here! You can also list prayer requests as well. To be added to the Prayer Chain click here.
See below for the Order of Worship.
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Sunday Worship
Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost
September 20, 2020 - 11 AM
The Order of Service
Welcome to Trinity online.
As we prepare for a time of worship, we invite you to find an intentional space in your home for worship. We encourage you to light a candle or place something
that reminds you of Trinity or your connection with God nearby. Children are invited to take out their worship boxes to prepare for worship.
Prelude: Allegro Scherzando from “Eight Memories in Watercolor” - Tan Dun
Tyler Stone, piano
Welcome
As we light our candles in the sanctuary, I invite you to join us in lighting your own candle at home. As we place the cross in the holder, we invite you to place something that reminds you of Trinity or your connection with God in front of you.
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Call to Worship:
We gather today to remember who we are and whose we are.
This day shall be a day of remembrance for us.
We remember that despite the journey we are on, you never forget us.
This day shall be a day of remembrance for us.
Let us trust in your everlasting faithfulness.
This day shall be a day of remembrance for us.
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Hymn: When Jesus Came to Jordan - Hymnal no. 252
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Prayer of Confession and Pardon:
Merciful God,
we confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart.
We have failed to be an obedient church.
We have not done your will,
we have broken your law,
we have rebelled against your love,
we have not loved our neighbors,
and we have not heard the cry of the needy.
Forgive us, we pray.
Free us for joyful obedience,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
(Time for Silence and Prayer)
Hear the good news:
Christ died for us while we were yet sinners;
that proves God's love toward us.
In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!
Glory to God. Amen.
Passing of the Peace: We’d love to know you worshiped with us! Please register your attendance here. We also encourage you to comment during the service so we can be in community with you!
Children’s Time: Tom Tyler
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Solo: Reach Out To Others - words by the Choristers and Trebles
Dahae Meserole
Showing how to love and care, giving help and being there, holding others in our prayers, soothing those who might be scared. Reach out to others, listen and hear them, love one another, together we are one. God does not discriminate, teaches us to love, not hate. Inside we are all the same, all created in His name. Reach out to...
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14 This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; on the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses, for whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day shall be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day you shall hold a solemn assembly, and on the seventh day a solemn assembly; no work shall be done on those days; only what everyone must eat, that alone may be prepared by you. 17 You shall observe the festival of unleavened bread, for on this very day I brought your companies out of the land of Egypt: you shall observe this day throughout your generations as a perpetual ordinance. 18 In the first month, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day, you shall eat unleavened bread. 19 For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses; for whoever eats what is leavened shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether an alien or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your settlements you shall eat unleavened bread.
The Word of God for the People of God. Thanks be to God.
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13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved,with whom I am well pleased.”
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.
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Sermon: Remembering Who We Are and Whose We Are
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Invitation to the Offering:
We invite you to consider giving on-line or giving by text! To give on-line, go to Trinity’s website and click on the Giving tab. To give by text, text “GIVE” to 703-783-3034. Further instructions will follow. For further information about online giving, please see the Tithes & Offering announcement below.
Offertory Prayer:
All good gifts come from you, dear Lord,
and from these riches we bring this offering.
Help us to use it for the furtherance of your purpose in this place,
and for the benefit of those in need. Amen.
Liturgy of Baptism and Confirmation
We receive in baptism Samantha Pierson Queen.
We receive in confirmation Taylor Joseph Hoganson,
Elizabeth Joanne Costle-Tyler, Tyler Charles Stone, and Dylan Russell Hoganson.
Confirmands Statement of Faith:
We now reaffirm our faith and state what parts of the faith we have been taught,
that we as people truly believe.
This is our collective letter back to God.
We believe that God is love and mercy, that Christ is God’s embodiment,
and that the Holy Spirit is how God works through us to those who need it.
The Holy Spirit, God, and Jesus are all connected.
We believe that You, God, are the creator of the world and the universe.
You forgive anyone and everyone regardless of whether or
not they deserve it in the eyes of us, your people.
God, You are in every person we have met who has helped us in our lives.
We see you in our friends, our family, our church, everywhere.
We believe Christ is the embodiment of God
in the sense that he represents the Lord’s mercy and kindness.
We believe that You sent Your only son, Jesus,
to die on the cross for our sins.
He was sent here to give us another chance and
to show us that You will give us all as many chances as we need.
Jesus is our savior.
We believe the Holy Spirit is the spirit of God and can have many forms.
The Holy Spirit is energy in all living things including the
energy within our spirit that can rush through us in a really peaceful moment.
She is God with us when we are in need.
When we are having a rough day,
we know that the Holy Spirit is with us working to comfort us.
We know it can be hard to hear, but sometimes we believe more,
other times we believe less.
It is hard for us to believe in Jesus’s salvation because no one comes back from the dead,
but then some days that does not really phase us.
We don’t always feel connected to You and the Holy Spirit
in the way that we’ve always been told we should.
Sometimes Jesus feels like nothing more than another man in a history book.
Even in this, we never stop having faith.
In a way, our faith and You are like the ocean.
The tides rise and fall but the water never leaves us.
So, God, we believe that this concludes our thinking on this matter for now. Amen.
Congregational Responses:
Do you, as Christ's body, the Church,
reaffirm both your rejection of sin
and your commitment to Christ?
We do.
Will you nurture one another in the Christian faith and life
and include these persons now before you in your care?
With God’s help we will proclaim the good news
and live according to the example of Christ.
We will surround these persons with a community of love and forgiveness,
that they may grow in their trust of God,
and be found faithful in their service to others.
We will pray for them, that they may be true disciples
who walk in the way that leads to life.
Commendation and Welcome
Members of the household of God,
I commend these persons to your love and care.
Do all in your power to increase their faith,
confirm their hope, and perfect them in love.
We give thanks for all that God has already given you
and we welcome you in Christian love.
As members together with you in the body of Christ
and in this congregation of The United Methodist Church,
we renew our covenant faithfully to participate in the ministries of the Church
by our prayers, our presence, our gifts, our service, and our witness
that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.
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Hymn: Come, Let Us Use the Grace Divine - Hymnal no. 606
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Dismissal with Blessing:
During this time, children are invited to take one of the stickers and place it on your clothing to remember that you are sent into the world remembering the love of God and Jesus Christ.
Postlude: Rondeau - Jean-Joseph Mouret
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Music Notes
Today’s Prelude is from a collection of pieces by Tan Dun (b. 1957), a classical composer, pianist and conductor. Tan is known for his creative repertoire which spans the boundaries of classical music, multimedia performance, and Eastern and Western traditions. He is most widely known for his scores for the movies ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ and ‘Hero’. Notes from the composer’s website.
Today’s Solo uses a familiar hymn tune, Jesus Loves Me, to which the Trinity Choristers and Trebles, meeting on Zoom during Covid-19, wrote new words. The sermon series “What Love Looks Like” preached by Pastor Grace Han inspired them to write this poem.
Sunday Morning at Trinity Church
The flowers on the altar are given to the glory of God and and in celebration of the confirmands: Elizabeth Joanne Costle-Tyler, Dylan Russell Hoganson, Taylor Joseph Hoganson, Samantha Pierson Queen, and Tyler Charles Stone.
Worship Online this Sunday: While we aren’t meeting in person, we will be worshiping online via livestream on Trinity’s Facebook page and through our website. Each Saturday evening, we will send out an email with links to the worship sites and the bulletin for worship that Sunday. This Sunday, we will invite you to be intentional about finding a space in your home to worship and to be truly present in a time of worship. For additional questions about how to worship online, please contact the Church Office.
Children & Youth Worship Box: Any children or youth who did not receive a worship box and would like one to aid their worship at home, please reach out to Program Director, Hannah Day Donoghue to schedule a time to come pick one up.
New Member Fellowship Time via ZOOM on Sunday after Church: After worship this morning, we invite you to a time of fellowship via Zoom led by our Program Director Hannah Day Donoghue! Join us as we welcome our newest members to full membership of Trinity. We will welcome Sam, Dylan, Eliza, Taylor and Tyler. As part of this we will have some fun engaging in a few Confirmation activities as a group! Click here to join. For questions, contact our Program Director, Hannah Day Donoghue.
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Trinity Church’s Community News
We offer our congratulations to Kipp Maloney and Buddy Ward who were married at the end of August.
We celebrate the 65th Wedding Anniversary of John and Mary Lumsden on September 5th! Many blessings to the Lumsdens on this momentous anniversary. Cards of congratulations can be sent to John and Mary at c/o The Hermitage, 5000 Fairbanks Avenue, #175, Alexandria, VA 22311.
We recognize the marriage of Carlie McGuire and Lucas High earlier this month. Carlie is a member of Trinity UMC and is the daughter of Richard McGuire and Katie Cook.
We pray for the deployment of Daniel Wangelin. Dan is in the Air Force and will be deployed for the next 7 months. The Wangelin family joined Trinity last year. We also pray for Lisa and Leah (10 months old).
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Trinity Church’s Weekly News
Fall Sermon Series - Living in In-Between Times September 13, 2020 -- October 18, 2020: We are living in In-Between Times. Since the challenges of COVID-19 have become a reality, our old world no longer looks very familiar. We have faced changes to almost every aspect of our lives--school, work, home, church, and community. While we know and hope this reality won’t be forever and we trust that we will arrive at a better future, in the meanwhile, we find ourselves in an “In-Between time.” An In-Between time a is a time of wilderness, of expectant waiting, but also a time when life continues. How do we live in this In-Between time? How do we hold onto hope in an unfamiliar place? How do we look forward to the future without fear and anxiety, knowing there are so many uncertainties? Through this 6 week sermon series, we will follow the story of the Israelites in Exodus and Joshua, as they lived in an In-Between time after the Israelites left Egypt but before entering into the Promised land. While they didn’t always get it right, God never gave up on them, and God doesn’t give up on us.
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9/27 - Living in the Disruption
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10/4 - Building for Something Beautiful
- 10/11 - Facing the Future with Faith
- 10/18 - Learning Resilience
Youth Group Kick-off September 27th! We invite all 6th-12th Graders to join us for a virtual Youth Group Kick-Off on September 27th at 5:30 PM. A parent/guardian and youth meeting will occur from 5:30-6 PM and then we will have some fun, just the youth, from 6-7 PM! If you are new to youth group and are not on the youth group email list, please reach out to our Youth Group Leader: Hannah Day Donoghue to get on the list.
Join us for Outdoor Prayer and Communion Services! This Wednesday, we continue to gather at 7 PM for our Outdoor Prayer and Communion Services. We will meet in our Courtyard (the grassy area between the Parsonage and the Church). You are invited to bring your lawn chairs to sit comfortably, or feel free to stand! All participants will need to fill out a Health Acknowledgement form, wear a mask, and practice appropriate social distancing. We are limiting registration to 30 participants each Wednesday. You can sign up here! For questions contact, Jenessa in the Church Office.
Blessing of the Animals: Saturday, September 26th at 9 AM in the Courtyard on Cameron Mills Road side of the church: ALL Creatures Great and Small are to be individually blessed by Pastor Grace. Each pet receives a certificate with its name on it, signed by Pastor Grace. Bring a picture of pets unable to attend. Dog treats and water are provided. Masks and 6 ft distancing required. No retractable leashes, please. If you have questions, please contact Lucelle O’Flaherty at 703-408-4008.
Charge Conference - September 27th at 1 PM: You are invited to participate in Trinity’s Charge Conference on Sunday, September 27th at 1 PM via ZOOM. Charge Conference is the basic governing body of each local United Methodist Church and is composed of all members of the Church Council. The Charge Conference directs the work of the Church and gives general oversight to the Church Council, reviews and evaluates the mission and ministry of the Church, sets the salary for the Pastor, elects the members of the Church Council, and recommends candidates for Ordained Ministry. Our District Superintendent Rev. Jeff Mickle will lead us in a time of holy conferencing, worship and reports. For more information or helping connecting to the meeting via Zoom contact the Church Office. All are welcome to join!
Your Stewardship Co-Chairs are seeking your help!! Your Stewardship Co-Chairs are seeking your help!! We would like to ask you to send us a recent photo of you (or your entire family) that we plan to use in an upcoming stewardship moment. It will not be used for any publication other than church use. Should we decide to do anything else with it, we would require your consent. In addition to photos, as we look forward to Trinity’s 250th Anniversary we would love it if you would send us “stories of Trinity.” This may be your own story (or perhaps a parent that left it for you to retell). Perhaps this will be part of “A Watermelon for God - the Sequel!” Please send your photo (and story if you care to do so), to the Stewardship Team. Thank you in advance for your assistance and cooperation! We really appreciate it. Blessings and peace, Jill and Liz, Co-Chairs, Stewardship.
Please help Trinity support Alexandria City Public School’s 2020 virtual backpack drive. This year’s drive focuses on providing students and teachers with the tools they need to be successful in a virtual learning environment. Funds will be used to provide school supplies and internet access to students in need as well as to help teachers obtain tools that will bring their virtual classrooms to life. To donate, go to Trinity’s Online Giving Portal, select Missions fund and write in “school supply drive” in the comments section. We will be collected donations through the end of September. For questions please contact Jennifer Deibert.
Sign up for Text Alerts from Trinity! We are working on improving our communications! One way we’d like to connect with you is to be able to send you texts alerts with updates about the church. Especially in a season of time sensitive changes, we want to be able to communicate with you quickly and easily. To receive text messages, sign up here!
Join the Trinity Prayer Chain: During times of trial and uncertainty, we pray to grow in our faith and encourage one another. To respond to our growing prayer needs, we will be starting an email prayer chain to share our prayer concerns with one another. We will share joys as well as concerns and needs. If you are interested in being part of this prayer chain or have a prayer request, please email us here.
Drive-through Food Drive for Rising Hope Mission Church: As more and more people are out of work, the demand on food pantries has increased exponentially.
Rising Hope Mission Church, one of our ministry partners, is looking for non-perishable food items (canned meats, pasta, canned tomato products, cereal, coffee, peanut butter, jelly) as well as personal hygiene items (toothpaste, deodorant). Saturdays from 10 AM-Noon, we are hosting a drive through drop off food drive. Just come by the church parking lot (off Cameron Mills). For the sake of safety for all involved, we ask you to stay in your car, so we can have people drop off food one at a time. For additional questions contact Mary Gillman. For future food drive dates, please see here.
Centering Prayer meets weekly on Wednesdays from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM, via Zoom. Centering Prayer is a 20 minute practice to sit in quiet prayer to make ourselves open to God. A reading is shared by the leader with a short discussion prior to the prayer time. Click here to connect. For more information contact, Alva Smircina.
Inova Blood Drive: Want to do something to help people during the COVID crisis?
Missing the Trinity Semi-Annual Blood Drive? We are all in this together! Every day over 200 blood donors are needed to give patients a chance to heal. Help fight area blood shortages by donating at one of Inova’s three donor centers or contact Inova to set up an event with your local neighborhood association. Visit Inova Blood Services or call 1-866-BLOODSAVES (1-866-256- 6372) to schedule an appointment or for more information.
To learn more about COVID-19 precautions Inova is taking click here. For more information contact Carol Bowers. And please Save the Date – Saturday, November 14th from 8 AM – Noon for Trinity’s next semi-annual Blood Drive. (This Blood Drive will only occur if the church has re-opened by that date.)
Join us for “Family Fun Food Trucks” Wednesdays from 4-7 PM. In partnership with the North Ridge Civic Association, join us Wednesdays in August, September and October for Family Fun Food Trucks in our blacktop parking lot! Stay tuned to North Ridge’s Facebook page for which trucks will be available on which days. This is a way for us to support local restaurants as well as raise donations for “Meals for Alexandria Heroes” (to provide meals for first responders, medical professionals and others). We will practice safe social distancing as regulated by the county! Come, eat, support local businesses and be in fellowship (from afar) with one another!
The Lazarus Food Pantry is looking for delivery volunteers. In partnership with Trinity, Fairlington UMC, and ALIVE! the Christ Church Lazarus Ministry has been delivering groceries, Monday through Saturday to Alexandria families in need. Volunteers pick up pre-packed bags of groceries at Trinity and then deliver to around 3 families each time. The date and time of deliveries is flexible. Clients are asked to meet the volunteer outside for a contact-free hand off. For more information, contact Liz Denson.
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Tithes and offerings may be sent to Trinity via normal mail (checks only) or via the online donation portal. You may make online donations directly from your checking account with no check required to be mailed. This will help us immensely as our office will have limited hours to receive and process the checks. However, you may still give by mailing a check - whatever donation you want to provide will be very welcome.
We also have the capability to give by text. Just send a text that says “Give” to: 703-783-3034.
If you want more information on giving by texting works read on:
Step 1. Text the word “Give” - to 703-783-3034. Don’t worry - nothing will be charged to you until you enter your credit card or bank information.
Step 2. You will receive a text back to you saying, “It looks like you are a new giver ; to begin (a link to the text giving site will appear), click on it.
Step 3: A form will appear that will clearly say “Trinity United Methodist Church” at the top left. It will ask you to fill in the following information:
1. Amount you want to give and the fund you want to give to. If you want to give a general offering, you don’t need to write anything! If you want to give to a specific fund, you can use one of the following funds: Lent; Flowers; Music; Pastor (For Pastor’s Helping Fund)
2. How you want to give - credit card or direct deposit from your bank (called ACH bank transfer)
3. If you select credit card, it will ask for your name, address, email address and credit card information.
4. If you select ACH - it will ask for you name, address, email address and bank routing and bank account information
5. At the bottom you can select one time gift or a recurring period. Suggest you select one time gift for the first time.
6. That is it. Then click on Donate Now!
If you made a mistake or change your mind - no worries just send the word “refund” to the same number the last amount you sent them will be refunded to you! Also you can send the word “commands” that will give you a list of
options on how to change your account or update your giving amounts.
Have you wanted to set up electronic giving for Trinity? Great! Here are the simple steps for you to follow
That’s it! But here are a few more things to watch for and questions you’ll be asked:
1. Enter the amount you would like to give.
2. Select what fund to give to; to give your normal donation use “Pledge Giving”
3. Then select one time gift or recurring gift. It helps our church greatly if you can select a recurring giving – either weekly, every 2 weeks, monthly or yearly.
4. Select if you want to give by credit card or a direct deposit from your bank (called ACH).
5. Next enter your credit card or bank information, address and email address
6. And that is it.
As always, Trinity is very grateful for any gifts. It makes everything we do at Trinity possible. If all else fails - please contact Rich McKinney. Thank you again for your giving - no matter how you give!
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Trinity Church’s Upcoming Events
Sunday, September 20th: Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost
11:00 AM Worship at via Facebook Live and Trinity Website
12:00 PM Fellowship Time via Zoom
6:30 PM Trinity Ringers Rehearsal via Zoom
Wednesday, September 23rd
6:00 PM Centering Prayer at via Zoom
7:00 PM Outdoor Prayer and Communion Service in the Courtyard
Thursday, September 24th
8:30 PM Chancel Choir Rehearsal via Zoom
Saturday, September 26th
9:00 AM Blessings of the Animals in the Courtyard
10:00 AM Rising Hope Drive Through Food Drive in the Parking Lot
Sunday, September 27th: Seventeenth Sunday After Pentecost
11:00 AM Worship at via Facebook Live and Trinity Website
12:00 PM Fellowship Time via Zoom
1:00 PM Charge Conference via Zoom
6:30 PM Trinity Ringers Rehearsal via Zoom
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The Welcome Statement of Trinity United Methodist Church is:
“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.” Matthew 10:40
Trinity United Methodist Church is committed to be a congregation of Open Hearts, Open Minds and Open Doors. We believe all people are of sacred worth and dignity as part of God’s creation and as demonstrated by the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. As God’s love extends to all, we welcome everyone without exception, regardless of age, race, ethnicity, gender, family structure, socio-economic or marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental ability, faith history or life experience. We recognize that we are all different, and those differences make us a stronger community of faith as we worship together to grow in our relationship with God and one another.
The Mission of Trinity United Methodist Church is:
Building a strong Christian community to find, share, and celebrate the love of Christ in our hearts, neighbors and our world.
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