June 12, 2021

Dear Beloved St. Paul’s UMC and Wesley Foundation Family,

Grace and peace to you, beloved Church family. As we continue in the journey of emerging from a lingering pandemic, we are urged on, not by a insatiable desire to return to normal, but by the love of Christ, inviting us into something new! Part of the new thing we are doing is worshiping together in a hybrid way: some gathered together in our sanctuary, and others joining us on our livestream. If you have not already signed up to worship in-person, you can do so here (limited space available), or, if you’d prefer, you can join us via livestream, which you can find on YouTube on our channel, St. Paul’s UMC State College. In order to find our live service (which will go live around 9:55 AM), please click here, and then click on the box near the middle of the screen that says “live” in red on the bottom right corner. The service will begin at 10:00 AM, and we hope you will join us at that time.

If you miss worship at 10:00 AM, do not worry, you can always join us by watching it in its entirety later, by navigating to the link above.

Small Group Discussion
Now that we have transitioned to in-person worship and a livestream, we are continuing to meet together on zoom at 11:00 AM for some small group discussion regarding the themes of worship, while some of us join from the church following the worship service. We would love to have you join us on Sunday, June 13th, at 11:00 AM on Zoom. You can join us by clicking here (if you are using the Zoom App, the meeting ID is: 859 0584 5591 and the Password is: stpauls). It’s never too late to join with others in relationship!
In today’s message, we are urged to look for the new thing that is happening in our midst, as God calls us to walk by faith and not by sight into a new season. Will we discover together the new thing that God is doing? Let us answer with a resounding “yes!”

Grace|Peace,
Pastor Greg
Order of Worship
Prelude: Ryan Ditmer

Greeting: Rev. Greg Milinovich

Call to Worship
One: The Holy One, God of love and justice, calls us to this time together now:
All: We come, to this time or space, thankful to be a part of this community of faith. 
One: God, who calls us by name, has made a home among us,
All: and we rejoice that we are not alone!
One: Come, let us worship the One who is our Rock,
All: the foundation upon which our faith and our family is built!

Opening Hymn: “The Church’s One Foundation” (UMH 545)

Prayer of Confession: Rev. Becky McGee
One: Holy God, you call us to live in mystery, to walk by faith.
All: Yet we long for plans with goals and schedules. It’s hard to live by faith.
One: You call us to place our trust in you, to live according to your direction.
All: Yet we want life to make sense from a human point of view. It’s hard to live by faith.
One: You call us to feel the mystery of life, to marvel at the power of your love.
All: Yet it’s not easy to accept your promise that everything old has passed away, and that you are making all things new. It’s hard to live by faith.
One: Forgive us, God of grace;
All: Forgive us for building on other foundations, and falling away.

Words of Assurance

Passing the Peace

Children’s Message: Virginia Loewen

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:6-10, 14-17, NRSV – Bob Rayman

Message: “Home or Away” – Rev. Greg Milinovich

Pastoral Prayer
 
Offering

Closing Hymn: “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” (UMH 400)

Benediction

Postlude: Ryan Ditmer
Discussion Questions:

  • Pastor Greg talked about how home and away may not be binary opposites, but realities we may experience simultaneously. During the last year, or in this moment, how do you relate to feeling both “home” and “away?”

  • What might the Church (not just St. Paul’s, but the Church of Jesus around the world) have learned during this “out of body experience” of this season? How might God be leading us by faith and not by sight into something new?

  • What do you think it means for us to be “urged on by the love of Christ” not “to live for ourselves,” but as part of a new creation? (see 2 Corinthians 5:14, 15, 17) 
St. Paul's United Methodist Church and Wesley Foundation
250 East College Avenue | State College, PA 16801 | 814-237-2163 | stpaulsc.org