Bulletin – Sunday, May 24

Sunday, May 24, 2026
Pentecost / Communion

We Gather as a People of Faith

Welcome

Lighting the Christ Candle

Holy Spirit, as we light the Christ Candle dance your light into the corners of our lives: when we are cold, bring us warmth; when we are afraid, bring us comfort; when we are lost, brighten the path; when we are unsure, mark the way; when we are in need, come into our presence. Come, Holy Spirit, come.

Minute Person

Announcements

Call to Worship

One:   To a world dry and thirsty God has poured out Living Water;
All:      To a world fainting and breathless God has stirred a mighty wind;

One:   To a world cold and dark God has ignited the flame of the Spirit;
All:      Let us worship for the Spirit has come. The Spirit has come—hallelujah!

Please join in the singing of the hymn “She Comes Sailing on the Wind“ (Voices United #380)

She comes sailing on the wind,
Her wings flashing in the sun;
On a journey just begun, she flies on.
And in the passage of her flight,
Her song rings out through the night,
Full of laughter, full of light, she flies on.

Silent waters rocking on the morning of our birth,
Like an empty cradle waiting to be filled.
And from the heart of God the Spirit moved up on the earth,
Like a mother breathing life into her child.
Many were the dreamers whose eyes were given sight
When the Spirit filled their dreams with life and form.
Deserts turned to gardens, broken hearts found new delight,
And then down the ages still she flew on.

She comes sailing on the wind,
Her wings flashing in the sun;
On a journey just begun, she flies on.
And in the passage of her flight,
Her song rings out through the night,
Full of laughter, full of light, she flies on.

To a gentle girl in Galilee, a gentle breeze she came,
A whisper softly calling in the dark,
The promise of a child of peace whose reign would never end,
Mary sang the Spirit song within her heart.
Flying to the river, she waited circling high
Above the child now grown so full of grace.
As he rose up from the water, she swept down from the sky,
And she carried him away in her embrace.

She comes sailing on the wind,
Her wings flashing in the sun;
On a journey just begun,
She flies on.
And in the passage of her flight,
Her song rings out through the night,
Full of laughter, full of light, she flies on.

Prayer of Approach and Confession:

One:   Spirit of God, you are the breath of creation, the wind of change that blows through our lives, opening us up to new dreams and new hopes, new life in Jesus Christ.
All:      You send us the Spirit of courage, but we have been afraid. You send us the Spirit of truth, but we cling to our illusions. You send us the Spirit of healing, but we cannot let go of our hurts.

One:   Forgive us our closed minds which barricade themselves against new ideas, preferring the past to what you might want to do through us tomorrow. Forgive our closed eyes which fail to see the needs of your world, blind to opportunities of service and love. Forgive our closed hands which clutch our gifts and our wealth for our own use alone. Forgive us our closed hearts which limit our affections to ourselves and our own.
All:      Spirit of new life, forgive us and break down the prison walls of our selfishness, that we might be open to your love and open for service in your world, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Words of Assurance:

God’s unfailing love sustains and upholds us; God will never let us go. Where the Spirit is, there is freedom. Receive God’s love and mercy, Come alive in Christ!

Sung Response – “Spirit of the Living God” (Voices United #50)

Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me;
Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.
Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me.
Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.

Time for All Ages:

Please join in the singing of the hymn – “Spirit, Open My Heart” (More Voices #79)

Spirit, open my heart to the joy and pain of living.
As you love may I love, in receiving and in giving,
Spirit, open my heart.

God, replace my stony heart
With a heart that’s kind and tender.
All my coldness and fear
To your grace I now surrender.

Spirit, open my heart to the joy and pain of living.
As you love may I love, in receiving and in giving,
Spirit, open my heart.

Write your love upon my heart
As my law, my goal, my story.
In each thought, word, and deed,
May my living bring you glory.

Spirit, open my heart to the joy and pain of living.
As you love may I love, in receiving and in giving,
Spirit, open my heart.

May I weep with those who weep,
Share the joy of sister, brother.
In the welcome of Christ,
May we welcome one another.

Spirit, open my heart to the joy and pain of living.
As you love may I love, in receiving and in giving,
Spirit, open my heart.

We Hear God’s Word

Scripture Readings:

The first scripture reading is from the Book of Psalms 104:24-34, 35b

²⁴ O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. ²⁵ Yonder is the sea, great and wide, creeping things innumerable are there, living things both small and great. ²⁶ There go the ships, and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it.

²⁷ These all look to you to give them their food in due season; ²⁸ when you give to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things. ²⁹ When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. ³⁰ When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.

³¹ May the glory of the Lord endure for ever; may the Lord rejoice in his works—³² who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke. ³³ I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. ³⁴ May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord. ³⁵ Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord!

The second reading is from the Book of Acts 2:1-21

¹ When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. ² And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. ³ Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

⁵ Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. ⁶ And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. ⁷ Amazed and astonished, they asked, ‘Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? ⁹ Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, ¹¹ Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.’ ¹² All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’ ¹³ But others sneered and said, ‘They are filled with new wine.’

¹⁴ But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. ¹⁵ Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. ¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

¹⁷ “In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. ¹⁸ Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy. ¹⁹ And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist.

²⁰ The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day. ²¹ Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

May God speak to us through these readings of scripture.
Thanks be to God!

Sermon – God Revealed in Diversity

Anthem – “There’s a Wild Hope in the Wind”

There’s a wild hope in the wind:
Her whisper is heard on the breeze.
The gale is her shout that is calling us out.
There’s a wild hope in the wind.

O God in the wind, come gather us in,
Be our courage and promise.
The future is dim, but we want to live into
A wild, wild hope.

There’s a wild hope in the skies:
Her gown is the blue of forever.
The purple of night is her heart’s pure delight.
There’s a wild hope in the skies.

O God in the skies, come open our eyes,
Be our courage and promise.
The future is dim, but we want to live into
A wild, wild hope.

There’s a wild hope in the earth:
Her body provides us with nurture.
The dark underground is where life can abound.
There’s a wild hope in the earth.

O God in the earth, come aid our rebirth,
Be our courage and promise.
The future is dim, but we want to live into
A wild, wild hope.

We Respond to God’s Word

Communion Liturgy

One:   The Lord be with you.
All:      And also with you.

One:   Lift up your hearts.
All:      We lift our hearts in prayer.

One:   Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
All:      It is right to give God thanks and praise.

One:   We praise you loving God, maker of all things, you created us in your image You seek us out when we are lost and alone

We thank you for being embodied in Jesus the Christ who followed your spirit, faithful even to death on a cross. The risen one who lives among us always

Holy God of wind and fire your Spirit renews the face of the earth and warms the hearts of your people. We give you thanks for your gifts of Pentecostal power. Tongues that utter prophetic words of truth and justice; flames that kindle new visions and grounds us in compassion and peace. Fresh breezes that blow down the walls which separate us from you and one another.

And so it is that we join with every voice and tongue on earth and in the heavens to give you praise:

All:      Creator of all things, Nature gives thanks, Your creatures give thanks. Your praise rises in us like a great flowing river. God of all things, Creator, Provider, we thank you in the name of Jesus Christ

One:   Let us remember together that vision of God’s reign shown to us in Jesus at table: he shared food with followers and friends, with saints and sinners, with crowds of thousands on the hillside, and a few friends in an upper room.

On the night before he died, he had supper with his companions. He took a loaf of bread, and after giving thanks, he broke it, and gave it to them, saying: “Take, eat. Do this in remembrance of me.”

Then, he took a cup, and after giving thanks, he passed it among them, saying: “Drink this. Do this in remembrance of me.” Through this loaf and cup, Jesus lives within us. In word and deed, Jesus lives among us.

One:   O God, Redeemer of all things, With grateful thanks we offer this bread and this wine. Fruits of your earth and of your labour, signs of your redemptive purpose for our lives and for all your creation.

One:   Therefore, we proclaim our hope and faith:
All:      Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restored our life. Christ is with us always and will come again in Glory.

One:   By these signs of bread and wine, we recognize the longings of our hearts for a time when all humanity will be one family – when justice and compassion will be the way we live. Holy Spirit, hover over our lives and embolden our hearts. Unite us in these signs. Strengthen us to live the resurrected life of Christ in the world.

One:   Praise be to God, the Source of Love! Praise be to Christ, love incarnate! Praise be to the Spirit, Love’s power! Praise be to God! Amen.

One:   The bread which we break
All:      Is our communion in the body of Christ

One:   The cup of blessing which we bless
All:      Is our communion in the blood of Christ.

One:    The gifts of God for the people of God. I invite you to share now, the food of life, the juice of spiritual nourishment.

Sung Response: “Eat This Bread”

Eat this bread, drink this cup,
Come to me and never be hungry.
Eat this bread, drink this cup,
Trust in me and you will not thirst.

Closing Communion Prayer

Eternal God, we thank you. You have called your people from east and west, and north and south, to feast at the table of Jesus Christ. Keep us faithful to your will. Go with us to the streets, to our homes, and to our places of labour and leisure—whether we are gathered or scattered, help us be the servant church of the servant Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen.

An Invitation to Share

I invite you to bring forward the gifts of the people.

Offering Sung Response – “Spirit of the Living God” (Voices United #376 verse 2)

Spirit of the living God,
Move among us all;
Make us one in heart and mind,
Make us one in love;
Humble, caring, selfless, sharing.
Spirit of the living God,
Fill our lives with love.

Offering Prayer

Life-giving Spirit, bring to the bones of these gifts, the flesh of our actions, and the breath of our caring, that our church and our service to others may come to life in your name. Amen.

Prayers of the People

Please join me now in offering up these prayers to God.

Invitation to Passing of the Peace

Please offer one another the peace of Christ in a way that you feel comfortable and respects others’ space.

The Prayer that Jesus Taught

One:   Please join me in praying the prayer Jesus taught us to pray: Our Creator who is like…
All:      Our Mother and 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 them that 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 and ever. Amen.

We Go Into God’s World

Please join in the singing of the hymn – “Over My Head” (More Voices #88)

Over my head I hear music in the air.
Over my head I hear music in the air.
Over my head I hear music in the air;
There must be a God somewhere!

Over my head I hear singing in the air.
Over my head I hear singing in the air.
Over my head I hear singing in the air;
There must be a God somewhere!

Over my head I see glory in the air.
Over my head I see glory in the air.
Over my head I see glory in the air;
There must be a God
There must be a God
There must be a God somewhere!

Commissioning

One:   Holy Love, Beginning and End, beyond all Names: giver of food and drink, clothing and warmth, love and hope, life in all its goodness—
All:      Help us walk in your ways

One:   Jesus Christ, Wisdom and Word: lover of outcasts, friend of the poor, one of us, yet one with God, crucified and risen, life in the midst of death—
All:      Help us to walk in your ways

One:   Holy Spirit, Storm and Breath: building bridges, breaking chains, waking the oppressed, making us one, unseen and unexpected, untameable energy of life—
All:      Help us to walk in your ways

One:   Holy Trinity, forever One, whose nature is community; sun bounded dance of love: in whom we love, and grow, and know our neighbour, life in all its fullness, making all things new—
All:      Help us to walk in your ways

Benediction

The blessing of the most Holy Trinity—God eternal, God incarnate, God among us, Keep us now and evermore, Amen.

The Christ Candle is extinguished.

Sung Response – “Amen! Amen! Hallelujah, Amen”  (VU #974)

Amen! Amen! Hallelujah, amen!
Amen! Amen! Hallelujah, amen!