May 20, 2007, 11:00 AM


WE ENTER INTO GOD’S PRESENCE
Preparation for Worship
* Call to Worship – Psalm 24:1-4
*Song of Praise – 237 “We Praise You, O God”
*God Greets Us
*We Greet Each Other
*Continuing Praise

Call to Confession
Our Lord Jesus said:  “’You shall love the Lord you God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’  This is the greatest and first commandment.  And a second is like it:  ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” 
As God has instructed us in these great commandments, and because we have not lived in full obedience, let us now confess our sins to God, trusting Christ as our Savior and Lord.
Prayer of Confession
There are many times we think we love you well, O God.  But upon hearing your call to love you with all our heart, mind and strength, we confess that our love for you is a diluted love, made insipid and flat by lesser loyalties and a divided heart.  Our love seems pure only for brief moments; soon our affections are drawn away.  How easily our devotion dies.  Forgive us; in deep mercy spare us, despite our lost first love for you; in grace rekindle our love for you in seeing anew Jesus’ love for us.  Amen.
*Song of Assurance – 32:1,2,5 “How Blest Are They Whose Trespass”
WE HEAR GOD’S WORD
Children’s Time
Scripture Reading – Luke 24:36-49
Message – “A Fishing Tip to Remember”
Prayer
WE RESPOND WITH THANKSGIVING
*Song –424 “Spirit of the Living God”
The Offering - General Fund
Sharing Joys and Concerns
Intercessory Prayer
WE ARE DISMISSED TO LOVE AND SERVE
Opportunities for Ministries and Fellowship
*God Blesses Us
*Parting Praise –483:1,3,4 “How Great Thou Art”
Postlude

THIS WEEK IN THE LIFE OF VALLEY CHURCH
This morning we welcome Mr. John Aukema back to Valley Church as he brings us a message from God’s Word.  The Gelders are on their way to Montana for a retreat with the other upstate New York pastors and spouses, enjoying the wisdom and pastoral insights of retreat leaders Eugene and Jan Peterson.  They plan to return on Friday.

The second offering next Sunday is for the Broome County Council of Churches and particularly for supporting the CHOW program.  Our local pantry was blessed with the food collected at the Chenango Forks Post Office during the recent postal food drive, but cash support is also needed so that a balanced supply of food can be given to families in need.

Tuesday, 7:00 PM Council meets
Wednesday, 11:30 AM Women’s luncheon at Cracker Barrel
Thursday, 7:00 PM The Valley prayer meeting will NOT be held this week so that you can attend the Prayer Rally for the Franklin Graham Festival that will be held at Calvary’s Love Church, 1315 Reynolds Rd. in Johnson City (up from Oakdale Mall.)

Did you know that you can now hear the Sunday morning sermon on the Valley Church web site?  Check it out at www.valleycrc.com and find the link to “Recorded Sermons”.  No, this isn’t meant to give you an excuse to skip church – fellowship is an important part of church life.  But if you need to be out of town or can’t get to the service, this does give you an opportunity to stay connected to what is happening at Valley.

We will be honoring our graduates on June 17.  To make sure we don’t miss anyone, there is a sign-up sheet on the door.  Please indicate the name of the graduates, along with the school they are graduating from and future plans.  Perhaps you can also note if the graduate will be able to be here for that service. Thank you.

Are you still praying for your Operation Andrew people?  Are you looking for ways to invite them to come with you to the Festival?  There will be a bus available from Valley Church for the Friday evening, Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon events.  For more information, talk with Bill Kutz (or Debbie Harmon concerning the KidzFest event.)

We need the help of everyone in the congregation to pass out invitations to the Franklin Graham Festival, along with information about Valley Church and the bus transportation available to the Festival.  We plan to do that on Tuesday, May 29.  Let’s plan to meet at church at 6:00 for a totally unplanned pot luck meal (you can bring soup, sandwiches, a salad, a casserole, or whatever.)  We’ll have a pot of decaf coffee and some punch.   Then we can hit the streets for an hour and cover as much of the neighborhood as we can with invitations.  Families can do this together; all ages can help out.  If you can’t walk, you can stay behind and pray.  


Next Sunday, May 27, 2007

SUNDAY SCHOOL:  9:45 AM  Sunday School classes do NOT meet this week.  There will be one more week of regular classes and the season will end with a breakfast on June 10

MORNING WORSHIP:     11:00 AM   Our worship will be led by Pastor Gelder.  We will begin a three week celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, with the theme “Grace through Every Generation”.  The focus the first Sunday will be on “Remembering” with the message based on Acts 21:17-19.  We will be using the time to also celebrate God’s grace through the generations in the 40 plus years that Valley Church has been in existence.  It is also Pentecost Sunday, so we will be recalling the gift of the Holy Spirit which really made possible the birth of the Christian church.