The video above includes the full service, except for the time for sharing. For sermon video only: https://vimeo.com/512227518

Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained through One License with license A-727859

Prelude

Welcome 

Land Acknowledgement 

    We acknowledge we are gathering on land where Miami, Osage, Shawnee, and other Indigenous peoples have lived and labored, fought, and loved.     We continue to work and pray for justice and conciliation.     

Call to Worship

Lighting of the Peace Candle

VT 43 | God, Be the Love to Search and Keep Me | Maya Plessinger, Natalie, Grant Metcalf, Ames Metcalf, Ila Miller, Reuben Wyse, and Leo Wyse, vocals: Phil Hart, guitar

Adult’s Time

Offering/Dedication Prayer  https://www.columbusmennonite.org/donateget-involved/donate

VT 808 | Between Darkness and Light | Mira Bixler, cello; Stella Bixler, flute

Scripture | Mark 9:2-9 

Sermon | Imagination is a Hill We Climb | For sermon video only: https://vimeo.com/512227518

Silent Reflection

Hymn | Lord of the Dance | Jenny Campagna, voice; Steve Rolfe, bass; Phil Hart, guitar and voice

Sharing of Creativity

Pastoral Prayer 

Extinguishing the Peace Candle 

Benediction 

Announcements 

Christian Education | 11:00 am

Thanks to everyone who helped lead today’s service

Sermon: Children/Youth

Worship Leader: Phil Yoder

Music coordination: Phil Hart

Adult’s Time: Nina Graber-Nofziger

Peace Candle: Troyer Family

Scripture Reading: Melissa, Tristan, and Katrina Cortes

Zoom Host, video production of sermon: Elisa Leahy

…

The video above includes the full service, except for the time for sharing.

Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained through One License with license A-727859

Order of Worship | Jonah series

Prelude

Welcome 

Land Acknowledgement 

Call to Worship

Peace Candle 

VT 838 | La paz de la tierra (The Peace of the Earth Be With You) | Eastern Mennonite University Chamber Singers, directed by Benjamin Bergey

Children’s Time 

Mission Moment | Anabaptist Disabilities Network (ADN)

Offering/Dedication Prayer  https://www.columbusmennonite.org/donateget-involved/donate

VT 703 | Rain Down | Ken Nafziger and the Journey Musicians

Scripture | Jonah 4

Sermon | Ending with a quest(ion)     manuscript below

Silent Reflection

VT 440 | Ask the Complicated Questions | Katie Graber, piano & vocal

Sharing of Joys and Concerns

Pastoral Prayer 

Extinguishing the Peace Candle 

Benediction 

Announcements 

Cookie Sunday | 11:00 am

Thanks to everyone who helped lead today’s service

Sermon: Joel Miller

Worship Leader: Carolyn May

Music coordination: Katie Graber

Children’s Time: Martha Ruggles

Mission Moment: Tracey Lehman

Peace Candle:  Chris and Tim McCarthy

Scripture Reading: Chris and Tim McCarthy

Zoom Host: Sarah Werner

—————————————–

Sermon Manuscript

Ending with a quest(ion) | Joel Miller

This morning we’re going to go for a little hike.  No worries, you can do this from the comfort of your home, but you still might want to limber up the muscles of your imagination as we prepare.  We can’t take a whole lot with us on this hike, just what we can carry.  The usual water and some food will be fine.  No need to wear snow boots or even dress in layers.  It’s summer, and it’s hot.  And since we’re imagining, let’s give ourselves the freedom to even leave our masks behind.

This hike is at the outskirts of a large city.  We’re walking away from the outer suburbs.  And as we begin, we’ll notice that the terrain has an incline.  We’re going up.  Get used to it.  Getting to higher ground is actually the whole…

The video above includes the full service, except for the time for sharing.

Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained through One License with license A-727859

Order of Worship | Jonah series

Prelude

Welcome

Land Acknowledgement

Call to Worship

Peace Candle

STS 39 | Will you come and follow me | Quinn Blosser, violin; Tom Blosser, piano and vocal

Children’s Time

Offering/Dedication Prayer  https://www.columbusmennonite.org/donateget-involved/donate

Simple Gifts | Tom Blosser, piano

Scripture | Jonah 3

Sermon | Sincerely Yours (text below)

Silent Reflection

VT 636 | Spirit, Open My Heart | Martin family, vocals; Tom Blosser, piano; Quinn Blosser, violin

Communion*

                HWB 471 | Eat this bread | Phil and Julie Hart, Fred and Marlene Suter, vocals

Extinguishing the Peace Candle

Benediction

Announcements

Christian Education | 11:00 am

*We practice an open Communion table and all who hunger for God are welcome to participate.

Thanks to everyone who helped lead today’s service

Sermon: Mark Rupp

Worship Leader: Kelsey Ryan-Simkins

Music coordination: Tom Blosser

Children’s Time: Joel Call, Phil Yoder

Peace Candle: Alyssa Graber, Austin McCabe Juhnke, and Marlow Juhnke

Scripture Reading: Ruth Leonard and Lily Miller

Zoom Host: Brent Miller

Sermon Text

Doing a series on the book of Jonah means that my brain has been especially attuned these last few weeks to paying attention to ways that the natural world can have surprising lessons to teach us.  Sometimes these lessons simply require us to learn to pay attention a little more closely to the world around us and invite the wisdom of Creation to slowly reveal itself to us, and other times these lessons show up and demand attention by knocking us on our rears or even swallowing us whole.  Often it’s a little of both.

Even though the whale–or large fish as is probably more accurate–barely shows up in the story of Jonah, the chapter where Jonah spends three days and nights in its belly acts as a sort…

The video above includes the full service, except for the time for sharing.

Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained through One License with license A-727859

Order of Worship | Jonah series

Prelude

Welcome 

Land Acknowledgement

We acknowledge we are gathering on land where Miami, Osage, Shawnee, and other Indigenous peoples have lived and labored, fought, and loved. We continue to work and pray for justice and conciliation.      

Call to Worship

Peace Candle

HWB 1 | What is this place | Martin Family

Children’s Time 

World Fellowship Sunday – Greetings from the Netherlands: Pastors Jannie Nijwening and Kok Klever; Greetings from Aremenai, Colombia 

Offering/Dedication Prayer  https://www.columbusmennonite.org/donateget-involved/donate

VT 685 | O Lord, hear my prayer | Martin Family

Scripture | Jonah 2

Sermon | Prayers from lockdown    *Manuscript below*

    HWB 353 | Lord, listen to your children praying | Jenny Campagna, Jacqui and Ryan Hoke, Phil Hart

Silent Reflection

HWB 367 | For the healing of the nations | Martin Family

Sharing of Joys and Concerns 

Pastoral Prayer 

Extinguishing the Peace Candle

Benediction 

Announcements 

Christian Education | 11:00 am

Thanks to everyone who helped lead today’s service

Sermon: Joel Miller         

Worship Leader: Chaska Yoder

Music coordination: Debra and Galen Martin

Children’s Time: Mark Rupp

Peace Candle: Meaghan Torres

Scripture Reading: Laura Steiner

Zoom Host: Elisa Leahy

———————————-

Sermon Manuscript

The book of Jonah has four chapters.  One of those chapters, chapter 2, a quarter of the book, takes place inside the belly of the big fish.  The entire chapter is a prayer.

The fish had made a sudden appearance in the story.  Jonah was intentionally sailing away from the city of Nineveh, where he had been called by the Lord to go and preach.  But a great storm came over the sea and threatened to break the ship apart.  When Jonah tells his ship mates to throw him overboard to calm to sea, there are no indications Jonah plans on surviving.  For his part, it’s some…

CMC Worship Service 1-17-21 from Gwen Reiser on Vimeo.

The video above includes the full service, except for the time for sharing.

Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained through One License with license A-727859

Order of Worship

Prelude

Welcome 

Call to Worship

Peace Candle 

VT 6 | Let’s walk together

Children’s Time 

Mission Moment | Piecemakers

Offering/Dedication Prayer  https://www.columbusmennonite.org/donateget-involved/donate

HWB 580 | My life flows on

Scripture | Jonah 1: A dramatic reading

Sermon | When the ship is breaking apart    Manuscript below

Silent Reflection

VT 442 | From the waters I will rise

Sharing of Joys and Concerns

Pastoral Prayer 

Extinguishing the Peace Candle 

Benediction 

Announcements 

Christian Education | 11:00 am

Thanks to everyone who helped lead today’s service

Sermon: Joel Miller

Worship Leader: Kerry Strayer

Music coordination: Phil Yoder

Mission Moment: Judy Hartzler 

Children’s Time: Tim Stried

Peace Candle: TBA

Scripture Reading: Wyse Family

Zoom Host: Sarah Werner

—————————

Sermon: When the ship is breaking apart

“But Yahweh hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up”  Jonah 1:4

“Sail on, sail on
O mighty Ship of State!
To the Shores of Need
Past the Reefs of Greed
Through the Squalls of Hate”   Leonard Cohen in his song “Democracy”

Early in the Christian movement, leaders began using the ship as a metaphor for the church.  The imagery goes back to Scripture.  The letter of 1 Peter makes a connection between the death and resurrection one experiences through the waters of baptism, and the ark of Noah and his family and the animals that brought them through the flood waters.    Before Genesis tells that story, it portrays the world as a watery chaos, similar to other Near Eastern creation myths.  “Now the earth was formless and void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from Elohim, the god, swept over the face of…