*GATHERING SONG

Come To The Feast

1 "All things are ready," come to the feast!

Come, for the table now is spread;

Ye famishing, ye weary, come,

And thou shalt be richly fed.

Refrain:

Hear the invitation,

Come, "whosoever will;"

Praise God for full salvation

For "whosoever will."

2 "All things are ready," come to the feast!

Come, for the door is open wide;

A place of honor is reserved

For you at the Master's side. [Refrain]

3 "All things are ready," come to the feast!

Come, while He waits to welcome thee;

Delay not while this day is thine,

Tomorrow may never be. [Refrain]

4 "All things are ready," come to the feast!

Leave ev'ry care and worldly strife;

Come, feast upon the love of God,

And drink everlasting live. [Refrain]

Welcome & Opening Prayer

Good morning church!

I am Russell Clark and I am the senior pastor here at Azle Christian Church. May everyone here in this room and those joining us online know they are invited to tell a new story with us!

May we take a moment before we get started to greet those next to us with a hug or high five.

We like for everyone to know a few things before we begin worship every week.

(1) First, if you are new to our church, we want you to see what we are doing and to be a part of our story! There is information in the bulletin about getting connected to our weekly eBlast newsletter or Realm, which is like our church social media. You may also fill out an information card so we can get to know you more and care for you.

(2) Second, we love our children here in worship and we always welcome them here. There is a kids corner in the back if your children need a space to move around. There is also a nursery available if you’d like.

(3) Finally, our liturgy is posted each week on the website if you would like to follow along with our service.

Now, may we take a moment to pray as we enter this time of worship.

Comforting God – May you meet us here in our mess this morning and teach us how to be there for those who need your healing and your grace. Amen.

OPENING SONG -

They’ll Know We Are Christians

We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord

And we pray that our unity will one day be restored

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love

Yeah they'll know we are Christians by our love

We will walk with each other, we will walk side by side

And we'll guard each man's dignity and save each man's pride

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love

Yeah, they'll know we are Christians by our love.

We will work with each other, we will work side by side

And we'll guard each man's dignity and save each man's pride

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love

Yeah, they'll know we are Christians by our love

All praise to the Father from Whom all things come

And all praise to Christ Jesus God’s only son

And all praise to the Spirit who makes us one

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love

Yeah, they'll know we are Christians by our love.

Litany of Faith – Chris Piercy

One: You must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don’t give it the time of day. Don’t even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life.

All: We have been raised from the dead! Sin can’t tell us how to live!

One: You’re not living under that old tyranny any longer. You’re living in the freedom of God!

All: We have a whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more life on the way!

One: Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.

All: We are dead to sin and alive to God. That’s what Jesus did.

(Romans 6:11, 12-14, 22-23 – The Message Bible)

Scripture Meditation

Our Scripture Meditation for today is Romans 6:11&14 :

“In the same way count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” “For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.”

One: This is the word of God for the people of God.

All: Thanks be to God.

We started talking last week about The Affirmessy Process. Affirmessy is a word I made up. I define The Affirmessy Process as:

“The thought that life is a journey – or process – which affirms the multiple realities of all people and allows for messy conversations, messy theology, messy questions, and messy understanding. The journey in this affirmessy process is not about having all the answers, but rather the “answer” is enjoying/allowing/affirming each other’s asking of the messy – sometimes unsolvable – questions.”

The Affirmessy Process is meeting each other in our mess and affirming each other’s mess without judgment.

Being a Christian isn’t about having a perfect life without suffering or sin or messy lives. Being a Christian means this sin and suffering and even death loses its POWER over our lives. We are ALIVE and living in grace country!

How do you need to die to sin and shame and suffering and become alive by the grace of God?

We’ll be talking about this more when we get to the sermon. For now let us reflect on this as we enter into our time of prayer.

Pastoral Prayer

The Lord be with you. And Also with you. Let us pray.

Lord, may we die to the thought that we have to be perfect and blameless to come into your presence. May we – who don’t wear the nice clothes or say the right things or do what we’re “supposed” to find this church who loves us exactly the way we are, as you, God, love us exactly the way we are.

Lord, may we die to the thought that we have to live with guilt and shame for the sins and wrongdoings we have committed in our lives. May we – who have screwed up day in and day out know that your grace is still for us. When we fall down, you pick us up. When we fall down again, you pick us up again.

May we return to you daily, Lord, because every day we’re a mess and sometimes all we can see is the mud in front of us.

Wipe our eyes clean, O Lord. Transform us by the power of your Holy Spirit to see ourselves the way you see us – as beloved children of God. Transform us to become alive in you living in the freedom of grace country. May we see heaven here on this earth through the affirmessy ways you move in our lives every day.

Thank you Lord for meeting us here. You are the giver of hope, the healer of our sin, and the beauty we see all around us.

Open our eyes and our hearts to see your glory all around us each day, even in the midst of the mess we’re in every day.

And Lord, hear us as we pray the prayer your son taught us:

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

Forgive us our debts

As we forgive our debtors

And lead us not into temptation

But Deliver us from evil

For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

RESPONSIVE HYMN

You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord

Who abide in His shadow for life

Say to the Lord, "My refuge, my rock in whom I trust!"

And I will raise you up on eagles' wings

Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of my hand

The snare of the fowler will never capture you

And famine will bring you no fear

Under His wings your refuge, His faithfulness your shield

And I will raise you up on eagles' wings

Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of my hand

You need not fear the terror of the night

Nor the arrow that flies by day

Though thousands fall about you, near you it shall not come

And I will raise you up on eagles' wings

Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of my hand

For to God’s angels is given a command

To guard you in all of your ways

Upon their hands they will bear you up

Lest you dash your foot against a stone

And I will raise you up on eagles' wings

Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of my hand

And hold you, hold you in the palm of my hand

CHILDREN’S MOMENT

*ANTHEM - “How Great is Our God” by Chris Tomlin

SERIES: The Affirmessy Process: Learning to Sit with Each Other in Our Mess

SERMON: Playing in the Mud

COMMUNION MEDITATION & PRAYER

*COMMUNION SONG

COMMUNION WORDS OF INSTITUTION

**Stewardship Moment – Sheila Foster

Sharing Our Resources

There are many ways to support the ministries of Azle Christian Church. You can give online on our website, on Venmo, use the QR code in your bulletin, or place it in the offering plate as the deacons come by during our final song. You can also put in a prayer request card or information card in the plate.

INVITATION

If you would like to dedicate your life to Christ or become a member of Azle Christian Church, you may come forward after the benediction or speak with me after worship.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

A few announcements for this week before our benediction:

You can find information about our weekly activities, such as Sunday School, our Ukulele Group, our Wednesday dinner and bible study, and our prayer group, on the back of your bulletin or on our website. Our calendar is found in the insert of your bulletin so you can transfer that to your personal calendars – or you can also add our calendar to your google calendar through our website.

This Saturday will be our last Food Hub of the year! We have a great time sharing food with the community. Join us at 8am on Saturday to help us prepare the bags to share.

Next Sunday, October 29, will be our Trunk or Treat for the community starting at 5pm. If you would like to donate candy you can bring it by the office this week and if you would like to decorate a trunk please let Beverly know ASAP. Please tell everyone you know and bring 1000 of your closest friends to trunk or treat next week.

If you or someone you know needs a visit OR has a prayer request OR would like home communion, you may contact the church office or contact me directly.

BENEDICTION:

Please rise in body and spirit for the benediction, the final song, and the doxology. Receive this blessing:

We’ll be concluding this series on The Affirmessy Process next week.

Until next week.

May you know it is okay to be angry and to cry out with God. God hears your cries and calms your fears. May we play in the mud this week knowing that this pain and hurt and sin and shame no longer have POWER over our lives. We are made alive and complete by the love and grace of God.

Amen.

BENEDICTION RESPONSE

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

We welcome Jeanie Sheppard as a new member of Azle Christian Church.

Jeanie has been an active member of our prayer group on Thursdays and she has a very caring heart like all the women in our prayer group. She started coming to our church because she is friends with Kathy and since then she has become friends with many of us now and we’re so glad to have you officially become a part of our church family.

In your hymnals page 341 is our congregation response or it is printed on our screen.

Reaffirming our own faith in Jesus the Christ,

We gladly welcome you into this community of faith,

Enfolding you with our love

And committing ourselves to your care.

In the power of God’s Spirit

Let us mutually encourage each other to trust God

and strengthen one another to serve others,

that Christ’s church may in all things stand faithful.

Welcome Jeanie to our church family!

Closing Song -

Well, everyone needs compassion

A love that's never failing

But let mercy fall on me

Well everyone needs forgiveness

The kindness of a Savior

The hope of nations

Savior

He can move the mountains

My God is Mighty to save

He is Mighty to save

Forever

Author of salvation

He rose and conquered the grave

Jesus conquered the grave

So take me as You find me

All my fears and failures

And fill my life again

I give my life to follow

Everything I believe in

And now I surrender

Savior

He can move the mountains

My God is Mighty to save

He is Mighty to save

Forever

Author of salvation

He rose and conquered the grave

Jesus conquered the grave

Shine your light and let the whole world see

We're singing for the glory of the risen King

Jesus

Shine your light and let the whole world see

We're singing for the glory of the risen King

Savior

He can move the mountains

My God is Mighty to save

He is Mighty to save

Forever

Author of salvation

He rose and conquered the grave

Jesus conquered the grave

DOXOLOGY

Praise God from whom all blessing flow; praise God, all creatures here below; Praise God above, ye heavenly host: Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.