Sunday Bulletin – Knox Presbyterian Church

Sunday, June 29, 2025
Guest Minister of Word and Sacrament – The Rev. Kathy Fraser

Prelude Rhosymedre
(All rights reserved. Used with permission. From Three Preludes for Organ on Welsh Hymn Tunes. Ralph Vaughan Williams.)

Gathering Song Spirit, Open My Heart
(All rights reserved. Used with permission. Wild Mountain Thyme. Words: Ruth Duck.)

Welcome and Announcements

Call to Worship
(Adapted from a resource found in Playing Hopscotch in Heaven by Thom Shuman.)
Called to be in awe of the wonders of creation, we come to worship;
To sing to the One who has created all that is good, beautiful, and true, and who has shared it all with us.
Called to be disciples of Jesus, we come to learn;
To follow the One who meets us in every moment of our lives, in every place and situation in which we find ourselves.
Called to live in the reality of resurrection and hope, we come to be inspired;
To have the life-giving breath of the Spirit blow upon us and within us once again, stirring us to new ways of living and loving.

*Hymn # 448 O God Beyond All Praising
1. O God beyond all praising,
we worship you today
and sing the love amazing
that songs cannot repay,
for we can only wonder
at every gift you send,
at blessings without number
and mercies without end.
We lift up our hearts before you
and wait upon your word;
we honor and adore you,
our great and mighty Lord.

2. Then hear, O gracious Saviour;
accept the love we bring,
that we who know your favour
may serve you as our king,
and whether our tomorrows
be filled with good or ill,
we’ll triumph though our sorrows
and rise to bless you still:
to marvel at your beauty
and glory in your ways,
and make a joyful duty
our sacrifice of praise.

Prayer of Adoration and Confession

The Lord’s Prayer
Oh Thou, from whom the breath of life comes,
who fills all realms of sound, light and vibration.
May Your light be experienced in my utmost holiest.
Your Heavenly Domain approaches.
Let Your will come true – in the universe just as on earth.
Give us wisdom, understanding, and assistance for our daily need,
Detach the fetters of faults that bind us, as we let go the guilt of others.
Let us not be lost in the superficial things of common temptations,
but let us be freed from that what keeps us off from our true purpose.
From You comes the all-working will, the lively strength to act, the song that beautifies all and renews itself from age to age.
Sealed in trust, faith and truth, I confirm with my entire being.
Amen.

Words of Assurance and Grace
Can it be any clearer? God has given the wonders of all creation to be an inheritance of abundance for all creatures.
When we forget to notice, God sends a rainbow, opens a budding flower, inspires a bird to sing, wafts the fragrance of lilacs on the breeze, and we remember.
God patiently and consistently calls us back to our best selves, understanding and forgiving our human frailties.
Thanks be to God for such forgiveness and grace.

*Hymn # 466 Praise the Lord with The Sound of Trumpet
1. Praise the Lord with the sound of trumpet,
praise the Lord with the harp and lute,
praise the Lord with the gentle-sounding flute.
Praise the Lord in the field and forest,
praise the Lord in the city square,
praise the Lord anytime and anywhere.
Praise the Lord in the wind and sunshine,
praise the Lord in the dark of night,
praise the Lord in the rain or snow or in the morning light.
Praise the Lord in the deepest valley,
praise the Lord on the highest hill,
praise the Lord; never let your voice be still.

2. Praise the Lord with the crashing cymbal,
praise the Lord with the pipe and string,
praise the Lord with the joyful songs you sing.
Praise the Lord on a weekday morning,
praise the Lord on a Sunday noon,
praise the Lord by the light of sun or moon.
Praise the Lord in the time of sorrow,
praise the Lord in the time of joy,
praise the Lord every moment;
nothing let your praise destroy.
Praise the Lord in the peace and quiet,
praise the Lord in your work or play,
praise the Lord everywhere in every way.

Children’s Time

Anthem Sound Over All Waters
Soloist – Rev. Kathy Fraser
Piano – John Low
(All rights reserved. Used with permission. from Missa Gaia. Paul Halley.)

Scripture Readings

Responsive Psalm 98
Refrain # 1
New songs of celebration render
to God who has great wonders done.
1 O sing to the LORD a new song,
for the Lord has done marvelous things.
God’s right hand and holy arm
have won the victory.
2 The LORD has made known the victory;
and has revealed vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 The Lord has remembered steadfast love and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the sovereign LORD.
Refrain # 1
New songs of celebration render
to God who has great wonders done.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands;
let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD,
who is coming to judge the earth.
The Lord will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
Refrain # 1
New songs of celebration render
to God who has great wonders done.

Old Testament
Job 12:7-10 RSV
7 “But ask the beasts, and they will teach you;
the birds of the air, and they will tell you;
8 or the plants of the earth, and they will teach you;
and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
9 Who among all these does not know
that the hand of the LORD has done this?
10 In his hand is the life of every living thing
and the breath of all mankind.

Gospel Reading
Matthew 6:25-29 RSV
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.

34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day’s own trouble be sufficient for the day.

Response to the Word of God
Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church.
Thanks be to God for this word to us today.

Sermon The Music Of The Spheres

*Hymn # MV 30 It’s A Song of Praise to The Maker
1. It’s a song of praise to the Maker,
the thrush sings high in the tree.
It’s a song of praise to the Maker,
the gray whale sings in the sea,
Refrain
And by the Spirit you and I can
join our voice to the holy cry and
Sing, sing, sing to the Maker too.

2. It’s a call of life to the Giver,
when waves and waterfalls roar.
It’s a call of life to the Giver
when high tides break on the shore,
Refrain
And by the Spirit you and I can
join our voice to the holy cry and
Sing, sing, sing to the Maker too.

3. It’s a hymn of love to the Lover,
the bumblebees hum along.
It’s a hymn of love to the Lover;
the summer breeze joins the song,
Refrain
And by the Spirit you and I can
join our voice to the holy cry and
Sing, sing, sing to the Maker too.

4. It’s the chorus of all creation;
it’s sung by all living things.
It’s the chorus of all creation;
the song the universe sings,
Refrain
And by the Spirit you and I can
join our voice to the holy cry and
Sing, sing, sing to the Maker too.

Offering

*Doxology All Things Are Yours
All things are yours,
we make that true
when we return our gifts to you.
And so we give, and so we share.
In Christ’s strong name expressing care.
(All rights reserved. Used with permission. Worship & Rejoice # 687.)

Offertory Prayer

Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession

*Hymn All The Music Sung And Played Here
All the music sung and played here is a gift, O God, from you.
For as long as we have prayed here, we’ve been blessed by music, too.
By your Spirit, each musician finds new depths of faith to share.
Music is a gift you’ve given and becomes our thankful prayer.

All creation sings your glory; in the Psalms are pain and praise.
Mary sang your saving story in her long, expectant days.
Through the years, with great emotion, some have
reached to you in song.
May we sing with such devotion; music helps your church grow strong!

You give hymns and songs for singing, toes for tapping your good news,
Organ sounding, handbells ringing, faithful hearers in the pews.
With the trumpet and the cymbal, with guitar and violin,
Faith is found here and rekindled; hearts are lifted, once again.

Bless the talents we are bringing, for we offer you our best.
If our gifts are not in singing, may our joyful noise be blest.
If our world is ever silent, may we sing to you above.
Touched by grace, may each one present offer back your song of love.
(All rights reserved. Used with permission. “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”. Carolyn Winfrey Gillette.)

*Benediction

*Response May the Lord Bless You
May the Lord bless you; may the Lord keep you
may the Lord lift up his face to shine on you.
May the Lord bless you; may the Lord keep you;
may the Lord lift up his face to shine on you.
(All rights reserved. Used with permission. Book of Praise #553)