4th Sunday in Lent

March 22, 2020

Welcome & Announcements

Prayer of the Day

Prelude

Introit

Call to Worship (Psalm 23:1, 3, 5–6) Leader: The Lord is our shepherd; we shall not want. People: God leads us in the paths of righteousness. Leader: The Lord anoints our heads with oil, our cups overflow. People: Surely goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our

lives. All: And we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. *Hymn #288: “I Sing the Mighty Power of God” *Call to Confession *Prayer of Confession: (John 3:19, Eph. 5:12, John 9:21–22, Eph. 5:9, 14) Gracious God, we are people who still love darkness rather than light. We keep shameful deeds secret, but flaunt our occasional acts of virtue. We see ourselves as blameless, but pass judgment on others. We do not stand firmly enough with those who are vulnerable, but step back, protecting ourselves. Forgive us, we pray. Bring us into your light that we may see ourselves rightly. Bring us into your light that we may know ourselves loved. Bring us into your light that we may live more fruitful lives. Keep raising us, we pray, from the deadness of sin, and shine upon us with your grace. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, the light of the world. (Silent Confession) *Declaration of Forgiveness *The Response “You Are the Lord” Inside cover of Hymnal

Children’s Story Prayer for Illumination Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 16: 1-13 PB 255; LP 253

Anthem Every Little Thing Scripture Reading: John 9: 1-41 PB 942; LP 97 Message: Who is Blind? Rev. Ted Dennis

*Apostles’ Creed (Traditional, p. 14) *Hymn #170: “The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll Not Want”

Prayers of Intercession and The Lord’s Prayer (Traditional, p. 16)

Offering

Offertory

*Doxology

*Prayer of Dedication

*Hymn #276: “Great is Thy Faithfulness”

*Charge

*Blessing

*Congregational Response Three Fold Amen Page 586

*Postlude

*Denotes Congregation Stands (PB is Pew Bible, LP is Large Print Bible)

1 Samuel 16:1-13 Revised Standard Version (RSV)

David Anointed as King

16 The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, seeing I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” 2 And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the LORD said, “Take a heifer with you, and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ 3 And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for me him whom I name to you.” 4 Samuel did what the LORD commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, “Do you come peaceably?” 5 And he said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD; consecrate yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he consecrated Jesse and his sons, and invited them to the sacrifice. 6 When they came, he looked on Eli′ab and thought, “Surely the LORD’S anointed is before him.” 7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the LORD sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” 8 Then Jesse called Abin′adab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the LORD chosen this one.” 9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the LORD chosen this one.” 10 And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen these.” 11 And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and fetch him; for we will not sit down till he comes here.” 12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was handsome. And the LORD said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is he.” 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

John 9 Revised Standard Version (RSV)

A Man Born Blind Receives Sight

9 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from his birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be made manifest in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me, while it is day; night comes, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 As he said this, he spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle and anointed the man’s eyes with the clay, 7 saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Silo′am” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing. 8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar, said, “Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some said, “It is he”; others said, “No, but he is like him.” He said, “I am the man.” 10 They said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 He answered, “The man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Silo′am and wash’; so I went and washed and received my sight.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

The Pharisees Investigate the Healing 13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. 15 The Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” 16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” There was a division among them. 17 So they again said to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”

18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight, 19 and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now

see?” 20 His parents answered, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21 but how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for himself.” 22 His parents said this because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if any one should confess him to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue. 23 Therefore his parents said, “He is of age, ask him.”

24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and said to him, “Give God the praise; we know that this man is a sinner.” 25 He answered, “Whether he is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I know, that though I was blind, now I see.” 26 They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” 27 He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you too want to become his disciples?” 28 And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” 30 The man answered, “Why, this is a marvel! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if any one is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. 32 Never since the world began has it been heard that any one opened the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” 34 They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.

Spiritual Blindness 35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of man?”[a] 36 He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to you.” 38 He said, “Lord, I believe”; and he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.” 40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard this, and they said to him, “Are we also blind?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

Church Contact Information

123 West Decatur Street / P.O. Box 125 Phone (937) 456-3754 Office Hours 10-1, M W F

Website www.eatonfpc.org Email office@eatonfpc.org

Pastor - Dr. Timothy E. Dennis - pastorted60@eatonfpc.org

Cell (937) 683-0054 Office Hours 10-1, M-Th

Director of Christian Education & Youth Music Director Beth Pool - Cell (937) 248-1671 eatonfpcyouth@gmail.com

Secretary – Melissa Wiggins – Cell (941) 807-5621

Interim Director of Music – Kelly Smith Organist - Linda Daily Accompanist - Janet Sikora

Elders and Members of Session by Committee:

Moderator of Session – Dr. Ted Dennis

Co-Presidents of the Corp – Josh Haynes & Brad Neavin

Clerk of Session - Emily Medearis Treasurer - Bill Becker Financial Agent – Anne Grim

Christian Education: Stephanie Cooper, Brooke Hartwig, Jacob Wright Amber Fogle, Lauren Schaurer & Jackie Wright

Service & Worship: Linda Daily, Joe DeLuca, Susan Schaurer & Emily Medearis Stewardship & Finance: Tonna Ditmer, Josh Haynes, Kathy McCreary, Brad Neavin,

Carmel Mann & Tesha Smith

This Week:

Sunday, March 22 M T

W

Th F S

Worship 10:30

First Presbyterian Church

Our Mission:

Listening to Gods call, following in the way of Jesus

and serving neighbors through the Spirit.

~ Approved by Session November 2016

123 W. Decatur St. Eaton, Ohio 45320

To Be Remembered In Our Thoughts & Prayers:

“And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive" Matthew 21:22

In our continuing prayers:

Alysone White-Graham - Alysone’s cancer has returned and she will begin very aggressive chemotherapy. Please be in prayers for Alysone, her husband Bob, and her family.

Barker Family – Please keep the Barker family in your prayers as they had a second death in the family.

Don Boucher- Pray for a quick recovery for Don as he heals from his second knee replacement surgery on the same knee.

Bill Pool – Please continue to be in prayer for the Pool family after Judy’s passing. Bill is now at Friendship Village. Please continue to pray for peace, comfort and healing for Bill and the entire family.

Bob & Betty Barker – Bob will be undergoing another 6-week round of treatment in Cincinnati. Continue to keep Bob and the doctors in your prayers.

Molly Moormeier – Pray for Molly as she continues treatment for ovarian cancer.

Remember & Uphold:

Betty Stewart - Greenbriar Ruby Bollenbacher – Vancrest (Linda Daily’s Mom) Marion Villeli - Home Care Betty Bourne – Vancrest (Vickie Volkerding’s Mom) Audrey Mann – Greenbriar

Church Members & Friends In The Service

Jeremy Barnes / Navy Brett Barnes / Navy Sarah Shoemaker/ U.S. Marines Addam Moore / U.S. Marines Doug Crouse / Air Force Allen Trogdon / Navy Grant Davis / Army Reserve Brandon Gorby Ryan Kiracofe / Air Force Cliff Garey / Navy Laura Soper / Air Force Reserve Alex Trogdon / Navy Cameron Rife / U.S. Navy Caleb Cosmi / Air Force Justin Foust / Army Ryan Hall / Army Brooklyn Montgomery / U.S. Marines Nicholas Rife / U.S. Navy Miguel Martinez/Army Reserve - Active now Tanner Crabtree / Army

Family and friends in our prayers:

Mildred Saylor – Prayers are needed for Mildred as she is currently in the hospital.

Joshua Saylor – Prayers are needed for Josh to make it through rehab and to

continue on a positive path forward.

Alli Hall – Please be in prayer for Alli (middle schooler at National Trail) who was

being raised by her grandfather after her mother was killed in a car accident. Her

grandfather was tragically killed in a car accident last week.

Travis Simmons – Travis is currently at Miami Valley Hospital after being in ICU.

Please be in prayer for him, his family, and comfort and strength through his

recovery. (Bert Kalil’s dad)

Devan Smith - Devan underwent shoulder surgery as a result of falling on ice

before Christmas. His healing is going well and he will be starting therapy at the

end of the month. (Pam Weaver’s son)

Edward Kelley – Please pray for Edward as doctors have found cancer in his

lungs. (Russ Kelley’s brother)

Don Traxler - Don had surgery to replace an aortic heart valve. Pray for his

recovery and healing (Nancy Bolender’s brother)

James Nelson – Please continue to pray for James and his family. He is caring for

his wife, who has lost her sight and is battling dementia which is causing her to

be self-destructive as well as combative. He also cares for their son who

requires around the clock care as a result of a brain injury. Pray for peace,

strength and answers on the best way to handle everything (Friend & colleague

of Kathy McCreary)

Rodney & Linda Wright - Rodney is now home & able to receive therapy and

support at home. He was diagnosed with Reversible Dementia and with therapy

and intervention, its progression can be slowed. Pray the treatments work & for

his wife Linda (Beth Pool & Brian Wright's dad)

Lindsey Rich & Family – Prayers for Lindsey’s rare genetic disease of P10

Cameron Bricker – Cameron, 18, was a classmate to many of our youth. Please

pray for Cameron and wisdom for her doctors

Bill Hildebolt – Bill has been diagnosed with lung cancer

Sarah Gregg – Continuing her cancer treatments (Cy Acheson's

granddaughter)

All persecuted Christians around the world

Our Nation and those who serve Please contact our prayer chain coordinator, Ann Murray, 937-336-0116, email: annmurray916@yahoo.com, Mel Wiggins in the church office, 937-456-3754, office@eatonfpc.org, or drop a note in the offering plate with updates.

KEEPING IN TOUCH…

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. (Psalm 23:1) I only quoted the first verse of this familiar Psalm, here, but as I was preparing for

streaming our worship service for the second week of our time away, it struck me just how appropriate and powerful this Psalm is right now. Our good shepherd is making people lie down in green pastures and leading some beside the still waters. I once read that the root sin in American culture is not pleasure-seeking or selfishness. It is an addiction to work. The reason we tend to overeat, play too hard, fail at relationships, and neglect our children is that we don’t allow the appropriate amount of space and time in our lives for those things.

Balance is so essential that God included a Sabbath law in the “top ten.” One of the aspects of keeping the Sabbath that we don’t get around to thinking about very often is the way that Sabbath-keeping tamps down pride. Taking a day off reminds us that the earth won’t stop turning because we didn’t get through our to-do list. It doesn’t all depend on me. Sabbath reminds us of our place in the world and enables us to appreciate all that God has provided for us.

While some are entering a season of isolation and constraint, many don’t have the luxury of a Sabbath. In the effort to keep the whole fabric of our world intact, they must focus on peoples’ essential needs for medical care, food, shelter, and emergency services. We have no choice but to rely on a selfless sacrifice from front-line people. The urgency of their work is also an assault on the pride of the rest of us. All they ask is that you and I stand aside and stay out of the way so that the professional helpers can do their work without interference. The rest of us are in supporting roles. Pray for the safety and the well being of medical professionals, for those who supply us with essential needs, and for those who keep us safe. Pray that they too will find moments of quiet and calm here and there. If you see a problem that you can address, use your skills and your compassion to arouse compassion and generosity in others.

Today is an anxious day, and the weeks ahead promise to be scary and challenging. Help when you can, and trust that goodness and mercy will settle on us once we navigate the shadowy valley, and follow us all the days of our lives

~ Ted pastorted60@eatonfpc.org

Happy Birthday

22nd Jack Stewart & Josh Haynes

23rd Phyllis Bennett

24th Jackie Wright

25th Doug Moore

26th Ashley Kiracofe & Tom Hypes

Welcome to First Presbyterian Eaton. We are glad you are here today to join us in worshiping God, offering

praise and prayer. Greet one another in fellowship and peace.

If you are looking for a church home, or feel you are being led to become a follower of Christ, we hope you will

speak to our pastor, Ted Dennis, after the service.

The flowers in the Sanctuary today are given by Emily Medearis in honor of grandson Jack

Stewart’s birthday.

If you notice a mistake or a birthday missing, please let the

office know!

Miriam Circle – Meetings are the second Wednesday of the month at 10:00 a.m. The study is following, The Girl’s Still Got It, a study of Ruth,

All ladies welcome!!! Call Arthella with questions at 456-1289

The annual meeting of the congregation has been postponed. The purpose of the meeting will be to

review the budget for 2020 and to vote on the terms of call for the pastor.

Lent in Plain Sight – Adult Sunday School Study for Lenten Season

“God is often at work through the ordinary: ordinary people, ordinary objects, ordinary grace. Through the ordinary, God communicates epiphanies, salvation, revelation, and reconciliation. It

is through the mundane that we hear God’s quiet voice.”

Each week encounter a new object to consider through Scripture, prayer, and reflection. From Ash Wednesday to Easter, Lent in Plain Sight reminds Christians to open ourselves to the kingdom of God.

Journey through the Lenten season as we prepare our hearts and minds for Easter and Christ's Resurrecting act of LOVE.

“Do you feel weighted down with worry? Does the uncertainty and chaos of life keep you up at night? Are

irrational fears your constant companion? Could you use some calm?"

Walk with author Max Lucado as he explores God’s

treatment plan for anxiety.

Anxious for Nothing by Max Lucado