South Roanoke United Methodist Church

The season after the Epiphany is a season of Ordinary Time, which includes eight Sundays this year. It is ordinary in that it stands between the two great church year cycles of Advent-Christmas-Epiphany and Lent-Easter-Pentecost, and has no central theme. The first Sunday focuses on the Baptism of Christ and the last Sunday on the Transfiguration. 

TRANSFIGURATION SUNDAY                                            FEBRUARY 26, 2006
 

As Christ cares, we care… We care about all people.
We care about worship… We care about learning.
We care about service… We care about You.
We are a community of Faith growing in God’s Grace. 

9:00 A.M. PRAISE SERVICE
Led By Graceful Praise 

8:50 a.m.-Gathering Songs
9:00 a.m.-Greeting and Singing
Sharing of Joys and Concerns
Children’s Time
Scripture
Sermon
Prayer and Lord’s Prayer
Offering and Special Music
Singing
Benediction

 ORDER OF SERVICE-11:00 A.M. 

+ Indicates the people standing

ENTRANCE 

Words of Welcome, Registration of Attendance and Announcements           Bill Davidson
     (We encourage all of our worshipers to please sign the registration pad as it is passed
       along the pew; visitors are requested  to also list their address. After it has been
       passed, please return it to the center aisle. If you wish to join this church by letter of
       transfer or profession of faith, please check “wish to join” on the registration pad.)
Gathering Music                                 Trio on Duke Street                                 Callahan
+Opening Prayer  259                             Transfiguration                              Bob Garner
+Processional Hymn  182         Word of God, Come Down on Earth         Liebster Jesu 

                                          PROCLAMATION AND RESPONSE
Sharing of Joys and Concerns
     -Harriet Minichan
Children’s Time                                                                                            Bill Davidson
                            (Children leave for Children’s Church. See * below)
+Psalter  755-756                                       Psalm 24                                      Bob Garner
+Hymn  492                    Prayer Is the Soul’s Sincere Desire                    Campmeeting
The Epistle Lesson  (N.T. pg. 168)                                                     I Corinthians 4:1-2
     Pastor:  This is the Word of the Lord.
     People: Thanks be to God
The Gospel Lesson  (N.T. pg. 44)                                                                Mark 9:2-9  
      Pastor:  This is the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
      People: Thanks be to God.
Anthem                                                 Kumbaya                                                 Sjolund
     Kumbaya, my Lord, Kumbaya. Someone’s prayin’, Lord, Kumbaya; Someone’s
     cryin’, Lord, Kumbaya. Someone’s singing’, Lord, Kumbaya. Sing Alleluia!
     Lord, Kumbaya.
Sermon                Stewardship 1: “It’s All About Who Drives”                   Bill Davidson
[Sermon manuscripts are posted on the church website the Monday following the service each week,www.sumc.com]
+Affirmation of Faith  883               A Statement of Faith of the United Church of Canada
+The Gloria Patri  70
Pastoral Prayer                                                                                                             
The Lord's Prayer                                                                                  Hymnal, No. 895
     Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy
      will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And
      forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And
       lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the Kingdom
     , and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
Offering of Tithes and Gifts to God's Work
    Offertory Prayer 
    Offertory
+Doxology                                                                                              Hymnal, No. 95
     Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; praise him, all creatures here below;
     praise him above, ye heavenly host; praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
 

                                                       SENDING FORTH

+Hymn  438                           Forth in Thy Name, O Lord                           Duke Street
+Benediction
+Postlude

+Indicates the people standing 

THOSE SERVING TODAY:
      Cross Bearer: Kemper Steffe
      Acolytes: Andrew Dorsey and Taylor Dayton
      Ushers:   Captain-Thomas W. Ruble, Mark M. Hall, Joseph J. Masters,
                    William G. Sandy, David E. Nedrow, Jack Gregory 

                                         The Altar Flowers Are Given
                                           TO THE GLORY OF GOD
                                        In Honor of Emma Newcomb
                                             On Her 3rd Birthday
                                           By Her Mom and Dad 

   March 5  “What is                          March 12       “The Bible:  You Can Take It At Its Word”
                      March 19       “What Time Is It?—The Christian Calendar”
                      March 26       “The Sacraments:  Signs of God’s Love”
                      April 2           “United Methodists:  Connected and Called”
                      April 9              Conclusion
                                       ___________________________

February 26, 2006   Transfiguration Sunday            Stewardship Series 1:
  Psalm 24; 1 Corinthians 4:1-2; Mark 9:2-9      It’s All About Who Drives

Several weeks ago my daughter, Salina , and I were in court.  We sat there in the courtroom together.  The atmosphere was hushed.  Everyone was quite, respectful, and a bit tense. Finally, the judge came out; spoke for several minutes about a privilege, a privilege granted by the Commonwealth of Virginia to those who qualify.  He described this as a privilege, not a right.  He then proceeded to hand over legal custody of the driver’s licenses to us parents until our sons and daughters were 18, instructing us to further share with them what this privilege and responsibility that is theirs as drivers is all about.   When this new driver’s name announced, the judge handed me the license and gave Salina a handshake.  It was all very hushed, very serious, very respectful  

This (driver’s license), you see, doesn’t belong to you, it belongs to the Commonwealth of Virginia .  You get to use this as long as you manage this privilege responsibly; the moment you are irresponsible, the moment you figure this is a right and gives you “license” to go and do anything you want, the Commonwealth can take it back and revoke this privilege.  It may be your car but the road does not belong to you; you may have the right of way now and then but you don’t own the road.  

To use Christian terminology, the Commonwealth of Virginia entrusts you with the “stewardship” of operating an automobile; as a driver you are a “STEWARD”—a steward is one who is granted the privilege to manage and maintain that which belongs to somebody else with trust and accountability.  

Sometimes we in the church suffers from a weak vocabulary.  Unfortunately we tend to use the term “stewardship” most often during the church’s annual fund drive for the church budget.  But stewardships is not just about money.  Stewardship is all about life.  Stewardship is about our spiritual commitment to love God through prayer, presence, gifts, and service.  Stewardship is the Christian conviction that life is in God’s control, not ours.  

I remember when I first got this (driver’s license).  Actually I remember most clearly my first car—a 1961 Mercury Comet  (jet black with red wheels).  Now Dad remembers well that this vehicle Dad was not very dependable.  I believe we put one engine and two transmissions in it before we finally retired it.  But with this license what did that vehicle mean to me?    Power!  Independence !  Freedom!  I remember it well.  Not bad for a car we soon affectionately began to call by another name, instead of “Comet,” we replaced the letter “C” with the letter “V,”  for obvious reasons.   

Once you get one of these in your hand (driver’s license) you feel like you own the whole world!  Up to that point you had to be driven everywhere you went; if you needed or wanted to go somewhere somebody else had to take you there.  We always want to drive.  Wherever we go in life we want to be in control; wherever life’s true destination we want to get ourselves there—“masters of our own destiny.”  Life, it seems, is all about who gets to drive!  

From the Christian perspective we get life exactly backwards.  We spend our whole lives trying to gain control, be in charge.  When it comes to our lives we want to drive!  From the Christian perspective that’s backwards—the Christian, you see, tries, longs every day to surrender, give up, secede control of life to God.  Disciples of Jesus Christ always want to go wherever Jesus will take them.  To the Christian, too, it’s all about who drives.  

Much the same way we speak of the privilege to drive granted by the Commonwealth of Virginia we Christians talk about the privilege to live granted by God.  When the Christian talks about life we use this term.  “stewardship,” based on the Greek word οικονομοѕ meaning “household” or “economy”—the way God made life.  Stewardship in the Christian tradition is about who drives.  

The 24^th chapter of the Book of Psalms states it clearly:  “The earth is the Lord’s.”  Everything belongs to God.  All that we have, all that we “own” is simply lent to us for awhile.  When God said “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it” God was not bestowing the right to own and use and abuse creation any way you want; God was granting you the privilege to use that which God provides.  You and I are called to so manage and handle the things of life under God’s control.  That is the only way we will ever find ourselves at life’s true destination of fulfillment, wholeness, and joy.  

When God first made us we were already there.   Fulfillment, wholeness, and joy is the way God made life in the beginning.  In the beginning you didn’t have to worry about being in control because relationship with God was so intimate and spontaneous.  God and creature, Creator and created were so close right and good action was innate.  You accepted the privilege of life God granted you and lived life spontaneously just the way God intended.  In the Garden of Eden God and humanity willed one will.  That’s the way we were made.  That’s what we long for now.   

Peter, James, and John thought they finally got there when on the top of the mountain Jesus was transfigured before them.  There they were with Moses, Elijah, and Jesus in the very presence of the kingdom of God .  They could tell by the way Jesus appearance changed…. “we knew it!  This is why we followed Jesus all along!  We’re finally here!  The presence of God!  The kingdom of God that he said was very near!  Let’s build three tents and stay right here in the presence of God.  However we got to our destination we are going to control this…where going to stay right here…..we are going to drive!”  

But it is not long before Jesus (gets back in the driver’s seat) leads them back down the mountain and tells them a secret; he shares with them a great mystery.  That secret, that mystery had to do with his suffering, death, and resurrection.  Through Him God was working to restore human life and all of creation to its original state.  The way there is back down the mountain into the valley where a young boy suffering from a demon needed help.  After Jesus is raised from the dead Peter, James, John and all of his disciples baptized in His name become, to use the Apostle Paul’s terminology “stewards of the mysteries”—stewards of the secret now made known through the Gospel of Jesus Christ  

Now you don’t get a license to live life.  The church doesn’t issue you a life license.  But there are times when the church gathers and, in a rather hushed and very serious and respectful atmosphere, the pastor comes out and speaks of the privilege of life and the responsibilities given us in its living.  Then the church calls forward by name infants and children to come forward as the pastor places water upon the child’s head and presents the infant to the congregation.  Then the church does issue something to the parents on child’s behalf (Baptism Certificate).  In Baptism the church reminds you that your life does not belong to you, you belong to God.  Now it may be that you have many resources at your disposal and under your control in your life but they don’t belong to you.  You may have the freedom of choice in life but you don’t own the road of life.  

“Stewardship”—it’s all about who drives.  It’s about the secret, the mystery, that we always seem to get life backwards.  When we drive we get so full of power and control we end up who knows where?  When we drive we become so desperate to get ourselves to our destination where life has some meaning and value and purpose and wholeness we find the road of life so difficult and ourselves so often full of road rage.  But when God drives you’ve already arrived.  

The Church knows a secret.  The church knows we always get life exactly backwards.  We spend our whole lives trying to get control and master our own destiny when all along we just need to turn over control of our lives to God; when we do we’ve already arrived…or rather, we’ve come home to where we’ve always belonged, returned to life’s true destination we chose to leave so long ago.  Christians know that secret and are, as Paul puts it, stewards of that mystery.  Life is a privilege.  Your life does not ultimately belong to you.  You belong to God.  Living life is a privilege God grants you every day.  Now you have freedom, you can really live life any way you want to and you and I sure have!   

Brothers and sisters, the reason we are so desperate for control is that we left our true destination behind long ago and have been trying to get there ever since.  

No, “stewardship” is not just about money; “stewardship” is all about life.  The church most frequently expresses this truth in the promise we make to faithfully participate in the ministries of the church by our “prayers, presence, gifts, and service.”  South Roanoke Church takes on this stewardship emphasis and program to help us all grow as faithful stewards of God this year.  In this particular season of this emphasis we focus on the Stewardship of Prayer.   Prayer is the beginning of stewardship.  We share more about that next Sunday.  

Once you get one of these (driver’s license) in your hands you feel like you own the whole world—but you don’t own the road.  Driving is a privilege.  You have to follow the rules and always look out for one another.  

When the church gives you one of these (Baptism Certificate) you are claimed again by the God to whom you belong.  When you are baptized you begin to learn again that life does not give you the right to live any way you want.  In baptism we are claimed again by the God who is restoring us to the life God originally made.