Fifth Sunday after Epiphany
Greetings!

Peace is elusive when we worry about the bad things that can happen to us. It can be found when we turn to God who loves us and blesses us with His grace. When we embrace the Lord we can find peace.

Let us praise God for His wondrous deeds as we worship this day!
Opening Hymn - Sing Praise to God Who Reigns Above
Call To Worship
We gather to worship God,
whose creative imagination never fails:
For the sake of God, we will search for the outcasts.
We gather to praise our God,
whose steadfast love never weakens:
For the sake of Jesus, we will lift up all who have fallen.
We gather to offer our best to God,
who walks with us through eternity:
For the sake of the Holy Spirit, we will walk with the weary.
The Opening Prayer

You lift up those
we step over
in our race to success;
you soak our aching feet
in the waters of life;
you massage hearts
bruised by others.
We praise you,
Rebuilder of crumbling souls

You pick those not chosen
on the playgrounds of life;
you cover open sores
with your grace;
you wander our streets,
inviting those
who huddle in doorways
to feast at your Table.
We follow you,
Bread of Heaven.

You gather those
who are cast aside
by a throwaway society,
and call them by name;
you melt hearts hardened by cynicism
with the warmth of your hope;you energize us
so we can sprint into the kingdom.
We welcome you,
Delightful Spirit.

God in Community, Holy in One,
we come to you as your people.
Praise Hymn: 
Shout to the North
Praise Hymn:
I'm So Glad Jesus Lifted Me
Time For Our Children - Unfortunately, hurt and sickness are all around us. Children in a post-pandemic world are especially aware of the impact illness can have, and might curiously contemplate what healing means. In this message, communicate the importance of our hope in Christ. This talk discusses miracles of Jesus and what it means that He promises eternal life, even if it doesn't bring immediate physical healing.
The Jewish Scripture: Isaiah 40 28- 31
Special Music: Let There Be Peace on Earth - Members of the VUMC Sanctuary Choir, Miles Walter, music director

The Gospel Lesson: Mark 1 29-39
The Message - Pastor Kevan asks, "Have you ever wondered why bad things happen to good people?"
Concerns of the Community

12 Reasons to Support VUMC - An Online Stewardship Campaign

12 videos by church members sharing why they support our church with their prayers, their presence, their gifts and their service. Our first video:
More videos will be posted daily. To share you gifts and make your first mobile donation, we recommend you download the Givelify app for Android or iPhone. Givelify gives you a beautiful, easy giving experience using your smartphone. It’s free to download and use. It’s totally safe and secure.

Make your offerings, and gifts to special envelopes right from the palm of your hand.

You can make your first online donation using Givelify by clicking on the DONATE NOW button in the Offertory section below.
The Morning Prayers

Hear us O Lord, and help us be mindful of the shortness of the time we have upon this earth and so to live in your presence that we might be found righteous before you. Make us instruments of your salvation and channels of your peace. We pray...

A former member is asking for prayers for a friend of his who now lives in Germany. His friend has been in the hospital for a month due to problems with a liver transplant that she had a year ago and now is fighting Covid as well. 

We pray for the vulnerable. For the sick, the aged, the chronically ill, the immunocompromised, those with pre-existing conditions… Lord, protect them from harm. Be their comforter and their strength. For the many in our church family who are vulnerable in health, we entrust them to your loving arms. 

For the 462,918+ in the USA and the 2.31 million worldwide who have died from COVID19 . We ask that you hold in your gentle embrace all who have died and who will die this day. Comfort their loved ones in their despair.

For those waiting to be tested, awaiting results, new positive cases, hospitalizations, ICU beds filled, those near death and who have died. Grant each person and their families grace and patience throughout their unique circumstances.

In these times of the coronavirus, there is grief in our hearts, anxiety on our minds, suffering before our eyes. We need your mercy, your intercession, your love. Lord hear us.

For Pat Washburn's friend Marilyn Maxwell who just passed away after a fight with cancer.

For Charlie Cassidy, who had successful surgery and is now in rehab for about 10 days before he can return home.

For our friends working the Covid19 front lines: Alayne Snyder, Drs. Johnny and Riny Kovoor. and Erik Lindholm. Direct their hands and all their colleagues worldwide, protect them from illness, sustain their energy, we beg in your Name.

We pray those prayers close to our heart.

We ask your guidance for all those who are struggling, who are looking for hope. Where we have felt discouraged, renew us through signs of hope.

We have in out thoughts and prayers friends who have moved afar but are still close in our hearts: Marilyn Van Tine, Pauline and Marty Bluver and their entire family, Barbara and Charlie Cassidy and Erna Burton.

Holy Spirit, as families adjust to everyone being home we ask that You guide people in their new realities. Give spouses grace for each other. Prompt worn-out parents to speak words of kindness and encouragement to their children.

Give peace to people feeling financial strain during these times of uncertainty, bring them comfort and peace, reminding them that You are there for them. Provide for them in their times of need.

We pray, O God, for others around us - that your love and wisdom may touch them - and that they too may come to know the living water of Christ which truly quenches all thirst.

This we pray in the name of Jesus, the one who came to us and who even now walks with us on our journey. Amen
The Sacrament of Holy Communion

The Lord's Prayer
Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done in earth,
as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory,
For ever and ever. Amen.
The Offertory
You lift us to our feet so we can walk with you, Loving God, and you fill us with your gifts so we may pour them out for those around us. Take what we offer and use them in that kingdom work which strengthens the weary, feeds the hungry, and gives hope to the despairing. Amen.
The Benediction
God sends us forth into the world,
so we will go to walk miles in the shoes of others.
Jesus calls us to serve everyone we meet,
so we will become all things to all people.
The Holy Spirit encourages us to let go of our gospel-given rights,
so we may breathe new life into the faint.
Closing Hymn - Take Time to Be Holy
Valhalla United Methodist Church | 200 Columbus Avenue, Valhalla NY 10595
914-949-6252 | valhallaumc@verizon.net