Today’s service will be held indoors in the sanctuary as an in-person service and also live streamed at this link.  Click on “live” for the live stream.  Join us!   

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 Gathering Music                                   Polly Dunford

 Welcome and Announcements       Cierra Donnelly                  

                                                                                                                                                                                                           Call to Worship

Leader:  We gather as clay upon the wheel, shaped by struggle, joy, and hope.

People:  We come open to change, ready to be formed anew.

Leader:  Life is not finished with us—our stories are still being written.

People:  We trust in the power of community to reshape what is broken.

Leader:  In a world hardened by fear and division, we choose the soft strength of compassion.

People:  We come to be molded into vessels of justice, peace, and love.

Leader:  Come, let us turn together toward the Spirit of renewal.

People:  We come to be reshaped by Divine Love  into something beautiful for the world.

Opening Hymn         Potluck Hymn                                                                                             

Scripture Lesson              Jeremiah 18:1-18               

Sermon                       “Willing to Change”                                 Dr. Keith Ray

Thoughts to ponder:  Jeremiah’s image of the potter at the wheel reminds us that our lives, our communities, and even our world are never beyond reshaping.  Where we see cracks and failures, the Spirit sees possibility.  Where we imagine endings, God’s creative persistence offers new beginnings. This week’s sermon invites us to consider how we might remain open—soft enough clay for justice, compassion, and hope to take new form in us.

Joys and Concerns 

Sung Response      “We Weep for Gaza’s Children”       Handout

Words by Carolyn Winfrey Gillette.  Music by Hans Leo Hassler.

Words - 2025.  Music - 1601.  Carolyn Winfrey Gillette.  All rights reserved.

1)  We weep for Gaza’s children, for in the midst of strife,

they’re suffering starvation; they barely cling to life.

We grieve that as a nation, when children cry for bread,

We don’t give food to bless them; we give them death instead.

2)  O God, we can’t imagine a parent’s pain and grief

When hungry, bone-thin children cry out for some relief.

Yet violence halts the sharing of food that people need.

This weapon of starvation — we’re seeing it succeed.

3)   We hear the children’s questions — their trauma and their pain:

“When will this war be ending?”  “Can we go home again?”

“Will we die fast or slowly when bombs fall from above?”

“Will there be bread here for me and for the ones I love?”

4)  We grieve the awful violence — the awful hunger, too.

But then we sit in silence — we don’t know what to do.

God, give us great persistence to speak and advocate.

For you’re the God of justice, and justice cannot wait.

Prayers of the People 

Closing Hymn           Potluck Hymn      

Benediction        

Discussion 

Congregational Meeting

Shalom  (meaning - “May you be well and whole and in communion with all creation.”)

Shalom, my friends, Shalom, my friends, Shalom, Shalom.

Till we meet again, Till we meet again, Shalom, Shalom.                       *************************************************************************************

Reprinted with permission under One License #A-625711.  All rights reserved.

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Join us for 1st Sunday Potluck meal following worship service.

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Session Meeting following Worship Service

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Calendar of Service -  

September 14 - Keith Ray  (Outdoor service)

September 21 - Remembrance Sunday

September 28 - Keith Ray  (Outdoor service)

October 5 - Keith Ray; World Communion Sunday; Potluck meal; Undie Sunday begins

October 12 - TBD (Outdoor service)

October 19 - Keith Ray; Blessing of the Animals  (Outdoor service)

October 26 - Worship and lunch at South Main Chapel and Mercy Center

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The Sept. 7 Congregational meeting will be to elect our Session nominating committee. Their responsibility will be to find 4 members to serve on Session beginning in January 2026.

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PFLAG meeting on Thursday, September 11, 2025, at 7:00 pm at church.  Everyone is welcome.

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A special GAMAC fundraising event is Ray McGee’s Jazz Club featuring Willmatic & Friends at The Bleckley Station on September 25, 2025, at 7:00 PM. Table seating with food and drinks is $75/person or $600/table of 8.

For tickets and information about the 2025/2026 GAMAC concert season visit www.gamac.org or call (864) 231-6147.

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Bible Study meets on Mondays at 6:30 pm through Zoom.  If you’d like to be added to the Zoom invite list, contact Cynthia at cynthiakwarner@mac.com.

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Please remember to donate non-perishable food items to AIM (Anderson Interfaith Ministries).  An extra item when you shop is a great help to others in our community.

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Are you interested in becoming a member of NACCP?  Would you like to make this community your spiritual home?  Please contact Keith at keithdray@gmail.com or at 864-508-1530.

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