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What does it mean to say, "Worship does God's story?" It is this: Worship proclaims, enacts, and sings God's story. Worship is not a program. Nor is worship about me. Worship is a narrative. God's narrative of the world from its beginning
to its end. How will the world know its own story unless we do that story in public worship?
Robert E. Webber, Ancient-Future Worship: Proclaiming and Enacting God's Narrative. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2008), 39-40.
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out:
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to listen to the latest sermon.
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CD Release!!
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Join us at The Search on October 18th as we release a Search original CD by our very own 5 Smooth Stones!!
CDs will be $12 and will be available through CD Baby, Amazon and ITunes! |
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Hospitality Team Greeter:
Assures all worshipers are warmly welcomed.
Sacred Space: Develops & implements the installation of worship decor for prayer stations & communion table.
Media Assistant: Assists in the visual worship elements.
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Re-Imagining... |
 It's kinda funny. I'm writing this as I'm also trying to finish up MY LAST CLASS (drum-roll would be nice here)
for my doctorate in liturgical and worship studies! WHOO HOO! These past few Sundays at The Search we have found ourselves celebrating communion with joy and thanksgiving, rather than a kind of silent, memorial and quiet reflection. Each week as we gathered
I tried so hard to write liturgy that was out of your stories, out of your experiences, out of you. And it was marvelous to watch how it all unfolded! From the musical underpinnings, to the detailed multimedia, to the various foods that were served, to each
and every one of your smiles...it was truly a time of celebration!
It is also a celebration that is coming quickly that I'm most awed by, saddened by and rendered truly speechless by. THE CD RELEASE. The Gospel Seed. Seems like only yesterday that Brad mentioned "hey wouldn't it be cool if..." and from there it grew. Many
of you donated money. Many of you prayed. Many of you were there on February 15th when we recorded it live. Your stories and your lives are reflected in the songs that were written by our band, 5 Smooth Stones. And on October 18th we will celebrate as a community
when we release the CD.
But I'm sad. It's as if a Search-like era isn't beginning, but passing away. For our fearless music leader, my worship design companion and spiritual partner in all things Search is also saying goodbye. After almost 4 years of selfless service, musical composition,
songwriting, praying and being as surprised as I was that you would show up for the chaos each and every week, Brad is leaving. So while we celebrate this fine achievement that reflects us as a community in song, it is also a mark of leadership. 5 Smooth Stones
will continue under great leadership. The Search will reimagine itself and be what God is birthing. So come alongside, won't you?
Are you just as thrilled as I am to see what's on the next horizon for us that make up the Search? Another artist, Makoto Fujimura, has written: "An artist's journey to believe in heaven can lead that artist to produce works mirroring that hope and can give
others the permission to speak of that redemptive possibility. Art has the capacity to challenge preset presumptions about what we believe, to operate in the gap between the church and the world, and to address deeply spiritual issues." (In his book REFRACTIONS)
This project, this seed for many years to come, does exactly that. Thanks be to our Creator who calls us to create art and sing together. Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
- Suzanne Castle - Minister
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Pet Blessing... |
ANIMAL MISSION OUTreach:
A cold cement floor in a cage in a noisy shelter can be a frightening experience for an animal. In conjunction with the Pet Blessing service held on Sunday, October 11 at 5:00 p.m., the Animal Mission Outreach will have a container on the first floor of UCC
(near reception desk) to collect used blankets, towels, toys, dry food, newspapers, and cleaning supplies or a Walmart gift card for pet food or cleaning supplies. These donations as well as the offering that day will be split between 3 needy local animal
shelters. An overwhelming number of pets have been given up during this unsteady economy. You can make a BIG difference in the lives of homeless animals. This ministry initiative was a great success last fall and much appreciated. Animals are God's creatures
too!
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Loving Creation... |
 With the upcoming Pet Blessing this Sunday, not only is my nagging annoyance that my apartment won't let me have
a dog rekindled but it also makes me think a lot about God's blessings in the world through creation. Too often it seems we focus so much on humanity that we rarely acknowledge the beauty and glory of ALL of God's creation and the love that God has for it
ALL.
This special service is definitely a reminder for me and I think for many of you who have attended before. Not only do we get to worship God in the midst of laughing and singing but also barking and meowing (and sometimes whatever sound a turtle makes) and
even with the sound of a gentle breeze blowing through the trees out on our wonderful green lawn. So much creation, so much beauty, it just makes sense that it surrounds us within the context of worship. Why not constantly live in a state of worship with creation
around us?
We don't have to look far in Scripture to find God's love of all animals and all plants, so why do we seem to discard such things onto the rung beneath us? As you take a walk or bike ride around this week, I encourage you to slow down, take a look around, and
just experience the wonder of creation. Open your ears that you may hear the sounds of the creatures around you, close your eyes and feel the breeze on your face, take a deep breath of fresh air, walk barefoot through the cold, soft grass, but most of all
just experience creation in worship and ponder the love that God has for it and for ALL.
Alec Ylitalo - Assistant Minister
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Mission Highlight... |
Weekends can mean hunger for children who depend on school meals for their primary nutrition. Backpacks for Kids, a program of the Tarrant Area Food Bank (TAFB), supplies backpacks filled with child-friendly, nonperishable and nutritious food. The backpacks
are handed out discretely at school each Friday to those students most at risk of being hungry on the weekend.
UCC participates in filling the backpacks from 6-7:30 p.m. on the fourth Wednesday of each month during the school year-beginning September 23. This is a great activity for the whole family. TAFB is located at 2600 Cullen Street.
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Sunday, October 11, 2009 at 01:48AM 
