Seekonk Congregational Church
United
~Worship
Celebration for Women’s Sunday~
February 10, 2008 9:00 and 10:30 a.m.
~~ ~~
For your silent meditation before the service
begins:
The woman met Jesus at the well and found her
life forever changed by the gift of “Living Water”.
She was confronted with the realities of her
own life and it was the love of Christ who gave her
the chance to see her possibilities,
her values,
her worth as a person.
~GATHERING
IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD ~
THE GONG: A CALL TO PRAYER
REFLECTION
Consider what gives you life…who or what
is YOUR well-spring of living water?
LIGHTING OF THE ALTAR
CANDLES & CHRIST CANDLE
WORDS
OF GATHERING
INTROIT “Let the River
Run”
Women’s Choir
PROCESSION OF THE LIVING
WATER
THE CALL TO CELEBRATION
One: In the
name of our God, fountain of blessing,
In the name of the Christ,
Living Water,
In the name of the Holy Spirit,
deep within the wellsprings of each heart,
Grace and
peace to all who gather in this sacred place.
ALL:
From our many lives and our many concerns,
we
come to celebrate God’s gifts of Living Water…
That we might
draw deeply from the wellsprings of faith and be filled.
One:
Let us come now to give thanks and praise to our God,
source
of life and love! Amen
*
HYMN “Revive
Us Again”
We praise you, O God! Who
have brought us to birth;
You rain down extravagant love
o’er the earth!
CHORUS: Glory! Glory! Living Water;
Glory! Glory, Amen!
Glory! Glory!
Living Water; Revive us again.
We praise you, O God! Who have
brought us new life;
You overcome sinfulness,
terror, and strife. (Chorus)
*
CALL TO CONFESSION .
Leader:
God calls us to seek forgiveness and reconciliation
in order to be
made whole.
Let us offer together our prayers
before the Holy Source of Life.
* PRAYER OF CONFESSION (unison)
O God,
Living Water,
in whom we live and move and have our being, who quenches
our thirst,
refreshes our weariness, bathes and washes and cleanses our
wounds,
be for us always a fountain of love, and for all the world a
river of new life,
springing up in the deserts of despair.
Forgive us,
we pray, all of our sins and separations from you and
one another and all creation
and fill us with Your
Life-giving Spirit. Amen.
WORDS OF ASSURANCE
Leader: We have the amazing assurance that God
forgives and sets us free to
begin
anew..
Unison: Thanks be to God who loves us and
strengthens us
And continues
to call us by name to serve in the way of Christ. Amen
*
RESPONSE OF PRAISE
O Living
Water, Source of Life! River of Mercy, Heal our strife!
Sing
our praises! Glory! Glory!
Cleanse
all our wounds and make us whole!
Fountain of life for every soul!
Sing
our praises, Sing our praises! Glory, Glory, Glory, Glory, Glory, Glory!
~~LISTENING FOR THE WORD OF GOD~~
A PSALM OF LIVING WATER
Leader: You are like a mountain spring ~O fountain of
Living Water
People: I sip from the deep down freshness of your
never failing love.
Leader: You are like a summer rain, O Sudden
Benediction
People: Drench my soul and quench my thirsting
spirit with your peace
Leader: You are like a raging sea, O Storm upon My
Ocean:
People: Breaking to bits my fragile boat as I learn
to lean on you.
Leader: You are like a waterfall, Oasis in My Desert:
People: Source of my heart’s survival in the press
and stress of life.
Leader: You are
like a cleansing flood,
People: Washing away the selfish self-serving signs
of my sinfulness
Leader: You are like a bottomless well, O Cup of
Life-giving Water:
People: Full up to overflowing! Praise be to You, O
God of Life!
CHORAL RESPONSE “Come to the Springs of Living Water” Women’s Choir
HEBREW TESTAMENT LESSON FROM ISAIAH 55
Leader: All who thirst, Come! Come to the water
People: We are coming to the water
Leader: All who are not satisfied, who are fearful…
come! Come to the water…
People: We are coming to the water! Life-giving, Love’s living water!
ALL SING
“Come to the Springs of Living Water” Congregation
“ Come to the springs of living water… flowing from the
heart of God” (repeat)
GOSPEL LESSON
“The Woman at the Well”
John 4:1-30
ALL SING “Come to the Springs
of Living Water” Congregation
“Come to the springs of living water… flowing from the heart of God” (repeat)
STORIES OF LIVING WATER
CHORAL RESPONSE “When Like the Woman at the
Well” Women’s Choir
REFLECTING ON THE STORIES
HYMN “Living Water, Never
Ending” Tune: Won’t You Let Me Be
Your Servant
Living water, never ending, quench the
thirst and flood the soul.
Well-spring, Source of life eternal, drench our dryness, make us whole.
~~RESPONDING AS SERVANTS OF CHRIST ~~
OUR CONCERN WITH
COMMISSIONING OF
JOYS AND CONCERNS FOR
PRAYER
CHURCH FAMILY ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRESENTATION OF OUR GIFTS TO
GOD
THE OFFERING OF OUR GIFTS
ANTHEM “Fill My Cup, Lord” Women’s Choir
* DOXOLOGY
Praise God from whom all
blessings flow,
Praise God all creatures here
below,
Praise God above ye heavenly
host, Creator, Christ and Holy Ghost.
PRAYER OF DEDICATION
~SHARING THE GIFTS OF SACRED BREAD AND LIVING
WATER
INVITATION AND PRAYER
WORDS OF
INSTITUTION
THE SHARING OF BREAD AND CUP
(Please come forward to be served. Take bread, dip it into cup and partake at that time as you continue to your seat, please touch the ‘living water’
~anointing yourself with the power of Christ’s love~
COMMUNION
MUSIC “There
is a Balm in Gilead ” Women’s Choir
PRAYER OF
THANKSGIVING (unison)
*HYMN “Refreshed by Living
Waters” Tune: Lancastershire
Refreshed by living waters,
renewed by living bread,
May we, your sons and daughters, by your own
hand be led
Accept the gifts we
offer! Receive the lives we owe!
United in your service, may love and justice
flow!
* WORDS OF PARTING (responsively)
Leader: And
Jesus said… ”You who drink of the Living Water that I give will
never
be thirsty!”
People:
So it is that we go now into the world to be
the Healing Power
of Christ’s love …
…a
river of hope … a flood of mercy…
…an
ever-flowing stream of
blessing for the world.
Amen.
* SONG OF PARTING Tune: Alleluia
Living Water…flowing
through us… (sing 4 times)
* BENEDICTION
* POSTLUDE “Let the River Run”
**********
Living Water… Women’s Sunday
~ 2008
The WORD of God from the Gospel of
John
shared in the first person by Betty Graham
I have to tell you… all of you… I have to tell you my story … I can hardly
contain myself… because the most amazing thing just happened to me… a life changing experience… right here
at Jacob’s well! I came at
---and there was this man who was
sitting there … he seemed very tired…so weary… and he needed to rest while his
friends went for supplies… But… he didn’t have rope or a bucket so – can you
believe it – he asks me… a Samaritan and a woman … for a drink!!
Now I have to tell you… that kind of thing just isn’t done – I mean…no
self respecting man would even speak to a woman in a public place if he didn’t know you … and this man was a
rabbi… a teacher… and that makes it even more astounding … and add to that my
being Samaritan and considered unclean… well!
It was really unconventional.
And then what happened was even MORE strange! I said to him… ‘How is it that you, a
Jew, would ask a drink of me… a woman of Samaria …and this man… whose
name he said was Jesus… he gave me this
answer talking about Living Water…
And then he says… Everyone who drinks of this water from the well will
be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will
never be thirsty. The water that I will
give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.”
So… I
said to this Jesus… Sir…give me this water…so that I
may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”
Well.. then he
said something that really shocked me completely… he began to tell me everything I had done in
my life… he knew all about the husbands who left me and I could see that he was
a true prophet…
Then he told me that God is spirit…and those who worship God must
worship in spirit and truth….
And I said… I know that the one who is called Christ is coming and will
proclaim all things to us…
Do you know what this Jesus said then???
He said… Yes… I am He, the one who is
speaking to you!
And so I am excited to be here in this place to share with you about
this LIVING WATER … coming to us
through the amazing grace of God’s ever present… ever-flowing acceptance and
support and love… and I have discovered
that I too can be like a spring of living water for others – accepting and
reaching out to others with the healing power of Jesus as my strength.
Prologue: Rev. Joy Utter
This gospel story of the Woman at the Well who met Jesus in that place is
a story about Living Water. The
following five stories shared by these women of the Seekonk Congregational
Church ~ United Church of Christ ~ speak to us of LIFE … of Living Water… and
their stories touch all of our stories - because most of us have experienced some
parts of life that hold ~ the pain, the grief, the unexpected events , the tears , the anger, the trials, the losses…and
being outside of our ‘comfort zone’.
Yet they are calling us to remember that
the Living Water that Jesus speaks about comes to us in the LOVE that we
share and receive… in the hospitality and welcome that we give and receive …in
the sacrifice and commitment that we give and receive.
We have been blessed with their messages and give grateful thanks! May we journey forth into each new day
remembering that God calls each of us to be overflowing living water to all who
are hurting and seek healing.
So it is that
we follow in the way of Jesus Christ… Living water… flooding our soul… and
making us whole… !!
Living Water
Reflections
Tammy Ramos: #1
I truly believe
that we are all given an opportunity to take a sip of the living water from the
well and whether or not you take the opportunity is really up to you. I know
that I have been given a drink of water by the woman at the well. Years ago, as
my family and I traveled on 95 N in Mystic Connecticut on a Sunday afternoon,
our lives were forever changed as our car was struck head on in the high speed
lane by a drunk driver. In an instant,
we went from singing nursery rhymes with my three year old daughter, to my
husband being killed on impact and my unborn son being delivered prematurely
and dying 30 minutes after his birth. I was critically injured, but luckily my
daughter was physically unharmed in the accident. In the midst of all the
tragedy however, I felt incredibly blessed to have so many people care about my
daughter and me. Drinking water from the
woman at the well to me means that from that tragedy, people appeared in my
life from unexpected places and opportunities to transform my life were
presented to me. I just had to be strong
enough to take that first sip of the living water and let my life be in God’s
hands.
I did not
faithfully attend church at that time and quite frankly, after the accident, I
was more than a little angry at God. I would bring my daughter to her
Pre-school at Teddy Bear everyday…not even thinking about the church that Teddy
Bear was located in. Her teachers, Linda, Jodi, Ruthie, Leslie and Terri were
so comforting and helpful to Kelly and to me that I continued to bring her to
the place she felt most at home.
Everyday, I would drive my teal green station wagon up to drop my
daughter off and every day this little man with an interesting accent would
come out to talk to me. His name was David Gregory. Our conversations were not
about anything in particular, the weather, his ministry, his ballet dancing,
how he met his wife whom he adored, and at times, we pondered some of life’s
unanswerable and important questions such as “how did you find a car the exact
color of your coat?” One morning he
asked me if I would consider coming to church. He said “I promise you, if you
come once, you won’t leave. This is a very special community of people”.
It took a few months, but I decided to attend
on Easter Sunday. I invited another young widow, that I had met the year
before, and her four year old son. Keep in mind as I tell you this, that my
friend who was raised in a very Irish Catholic family was very used to the
rituals of a Catholic church service. During the service we attended, there were
sacred dancers dancing down the aisle, David Gregory was on the alter
delivering the children’s message throwing plastic Easter eggs filled with
candy to the children surrounding him and then two people dressed in a donkey
suit (I still wonder who the poor soul was that ended up being the rear of that
donkey suit) came up the aisle and the children followed the donkey to the hall
where they were then entertained by a magician. I can’t quite describe the look
of confusion on my friend’s face during the service…but I know I was smiling
because I absolutely loved the service. David did keep his promise…once I came
to church on that Easter Sunday, I never left. I believe David’s kindness and
persistence in checking in with me was one sip I took from that well. This
faith community has become like a family to me.
Another sip I took allowed me to meet many young widows with children
and I was able to pull together a group that met twice a month at a time when
we really needed each other. These widows (no longer so young) are still my
good friends today. We shared something difficult, but special.
I was then given
an opportunity to earn a Master’s degree in social work so that I could work
with grieving children and their families. However, upon completion of the
program I was offered a position as a middle school social worker. After six
years in that position (and with budget cuts) I then found myself being
transferred into a middle school science teaching position. Again, I feel so
lucky. I love my current position. I
believe that the living water in that well represents hope and opportunity for
change. You just have to take a sip and trust that your life will only be
enhanced by the water in the well. My
life looks nothing like it did the day before that accident. I drank from that
well and it gave my life meaning and purpose. I thank all of those who touched
my hand and my heart and encouraged me to drink from the well.
Linda Mace: #2
I thank God for the opportunity to
drink of the Living Water!…
In February of 2006 this
church was making plans for the confirmation group and other members to go to
More difficult than that
was the fact that this whole mission I was about to embark on was WAY out of my
comfort zone. Where would I sleep? Would there be bugs or rats? What about
diseases from mold and bacteria? Would my life be in danger? How comfortable
would I be living and working all day with 25 or more other people that I
didn’t know very well? What could I
possibly do to help these people? My
comfort zone was being threatened!!!
Yet I knew in my heart
that God wanted me to go. Maybe for ME, more than for the people of
THAT WAS THE BEST DECISION OF MY
LIFE!!!
From that point on
I realized God’s grace was with me in so many different ways. As I sat on the bus surrounded by such a
diverse group, I realized this would be a trip I would never forget. Being a tad claustrophobic, the bus trip was
just a little too long. However, we had many interesting experiences along the
way. I had already grown more
comfortable with my new family. When we
arrived at Little Farms Church in
Each evening we returned
to the church exhausted and hungry, sharing one shower with 16 or so other
females.
Even though, I was
so grateful to have a shower unlike the many who lost their homes and had no
showers at all. (God’s
grace!)
We worked cleaning out what was left of
one man’s personal treasures, as well as putting a new roof on and spraying and
scrubbing bleach solution on all the wood of one home that had already been
cleaned out. I personally met the owners
of that home (Chuck and Dani)
They were so touched that
we would come from so far away to help them it was very difficult for them to
speak. I knew then that I was a part of
something much more than cleaning up or rebuilding. I was there to give them hope and renew their
faith. It didn’t matter that they may sell their home later or that it may have
to be knocked down at some point. What
mattered was that I had stepped out of my comfort zone to be God’s servant and
I knew how very grateful these people were.
(God’s grace!)
Towards the end of the
week many of us became sick. I would be
taking a mini jet home instead of the bus so I could be home in time for my
son’s wedding. (did
I tell you I have issues with claustrophobia?) Also I would be traveling alone! (comfort zone
issue)… my jet was delayed taking off and I messed my connector flight in
When my very small jet
landed in
I drank from the Living
Water!! I found comfort, friendship, hope, unconditional love, confidence, and
I know now, that I CAN go out of my comfort zone to be a servant. God’s grace
will always be with me!
Cindy Parker: #3
On Women’s Sunday,
I would like to share a story about the profound impact one Christian woman can
have on the life of another woman. It’s also the story of how I got here,
standing in front of you as a member of the Seekonk Congregational Church.
Both my husband
and I were employed by
Literally on the
day we arrived in
Needless to say,
this was a tremendously stressful and difficult time for me. I really didn’t
know many people here in
I, however,
received a much deeper, longer lasting blessing when one woman, Gloria Jean
Hill, who works at Johnson & Wales and is a member of this congregation,
stepped out of the background of my work life, where we had worked on a few
projects together, and literally became the angel that shepherded me through
the most difficult time in my life.
Amazingly, Jean
had that difficult conversation with Steve – the one that I just couldn’t start
– and she knew that he wished to be cremated. She reached out to me weeks
before his death, introducing me to Joy and this church. She and Joy spent time
with us in Steve’s last days, and together we planned every aspect of the
beautiful memorial service held here in this chapel on
That was the first
date that I sat in these pews, but I knew that it wouldn’t be the last. While I
was raised as a Presbyterian, I had not attended church regularly since leaving
for college when I was 18 years old. I now make the effort to come here and be
a part of this warm and welcoming faith community as often as I can.
Today, I am proud
to say that I am a member of this church and Jean is one of my closest friends.
She sets a standard for friendship and Christian outreach that all women and
men should aspire to follow. While this
all started with a devastating personal loss, today I feel blessed to have Jean
and all of you in my life, and to be surrounded by the living waters of love,
peace and acceptance that exist so profoundly within the walls of this
sanctuary. Thanks to the outreach of one woman and the welcoming nature of this
special church, I look forward to many more years of worship and friendship
with all of you.
Linda
Sable: #4
Having just returned
on Wednesday night from my 3rd trip from
Upon arriving at
the airport there was complete chaos and confusion with hundreds of Haitian men
vying to carry our suitcases to make a few dollars. However once that was sorted out and we were
outside, I met eight of the most amazing young men that I would later grow to
know, love and respect.
These were to be
our “interpreters”, little did I know that they, along with so many other
people in
The next day our work
began and we went to a building in Fontemera which
there was a school, clinic, pharmacy and a church that was being finished from
money raised by our Conference.
It was here that I first
began my work as a “pharmacist”, whereby the doctor would see a patient, then
prescribe a medication and I would then fill it from the medication that we had
brought down with us.
My interpreter, Fred,
explained to the patient in Creole how to take the medication as prescribed
along with writing it down for them for their reference.
After we were finished in
the clinic, I met with a roomful of women who I encouraged to speak about their
concerns in which a dialogue ensued…again with Fred’s help in translating.
The next day we did the
same out in the countryside in a town called Ti
We saw one of the wells
that we previously had built, used by the school and all the people in the town
of
At night when we returned to
the house of Jeanette Dorisca we all ate together,
talked about our day, reflecting on different moments and got to know more
about the young men that were so helpful.
We learned that they
studied computers, were hoping to go to med school, were artists and several
including Fred and Carter were teaching English to the children at school.
I will pause here to tell you that
Garbage is piled up
everywhere and people end up burning the garbage…that along with constant
exhaust fumes often causes numerous upper respiratory problems. We often have to wear masks to filter out the
fumes that we are breathing as we travel.
So, you can imagine how
grateful and thankful the people are when we are there to help, that
is the living water.
When I work in the
clinics, assist in raising money to buy medicines and food; refurbish laptops
that are donated, or help an individual with their tuition, I am overwhelmed
with what I get back, so much more than
what I can begin to give.
I know that all that I have
just shared with you is the essence of what Jesus meant about the living water…
I drank of this living water and in turn… I offered it to others.
Kristin Putney: #5
A life ever changed by the
gift of living water... and from the love of Christ, was given Hope in the
moments of sadness and darkness.....I like the sound of that...I like it a
lot....because this has happened in my life.
I have been fed by the
living waters of my faith and I will tell you about one particular time 12 and
1/2 years ago. Some of you already know this story...and that is because you
were part of my story. For those of you who do not know, I will tell you this
story...it is a bittersweet one.
Mitchell Putney was a
beautiful baby boy born in October of 1994.
He was our 2nd child for Bobby and me, with big sister Brynne at 3 ½ years old.
Life was great! We had our little
girl & little boy....and we had our church family.
Life was about to change
drastically for all of us though.
Mitchell became very ill around 5 months old. By 6 months, he had
"failure to thrive" symptoms and was only 12 lbs. Then, on April 16th, after many tests, we
were off to Boston Children's Hospital for a bone marrow transplant. He had a rare disease called SCIDS. Some people
know it as "the boy in the bubble disease". Mitchell was born
without an immune system and we now were up against great odds for him to
survive.
I spent 7 months living at
the Ronald McDonald house in
…how could you live with
those frightening statistics?...how could you drop
everything and live in this tiny room day after day? ... how could you leave
your 3 1/2 year old daughter and husband back at home?...how could you leave
your very ill Mother that was relying on your daily visits?...How could you deal with all the treatments and doctors and
info and decision making moments?....how could you not say WHY US? WHY
THIS? WHY GOD? WHY? ....well, I will
tell you it was because of the gift of living water. This amazing living water was filled inside
of me and around me and I never dwelled on any of these thoughts. Really!
I never thought he was
going to die, I never thought we were going to make the wrong decision, I never thought that Brynne
and Bobby were not going to be ok...
I just knew that each day
was going to be o.k. And it was... Now it will make more sense to you, when I
tell you it was because of my friends and family and church family that
continually visited me, sent me tons of cards, cooked me meals and most of
all...prayed.
They prayed for Mitchie, they prayed for our family, they prayed for
me! How could I not feel the love and
concern of so many? I will tell you I felt truly carried through it all. And then there were the strangers who prayed
for us...
Friends of friends would send
me bulletins with Mitchie's name on the prayer list
of far away churches. Many of his nurses
bonded with us.
One special nurse gave me
a present I will never forget. She handed me a gift wrapped in tissue
paper.
As I opened this
gift, she began to tell me that her fiance was a
minister at an interracial church and the congregation was praying for little Mitchie. As I held the gift in my hand, I soon realized
that she was giving me a prayer stole made by the church members and on either
end of this blue cloth was a hand...one white and one brown....and the most
touching part of this story was that the entire congregation held this piece of
cloth, thought of Mitchie, and prayed for all of
us...we were complete strangers to them.
So you see... Even though it could have been a very cold
and dark time for me...I want to tell you how warm my heart felt from
everyone's care. I certainly could go on
and on and I don't mind talking about this...it really reminds me of the true
meaning of the word Hope.
Are you ready for
the ending...remember I said it was bittersweet. Bobby and Brynne
eventually came and joined me at the Ronald McDonald house in July. Mitchie was finally growing and we actually celebrated his
1st Birthday on October 12th with laughter.
He was still in his germ free environment but the doctors were hopeful
he would be coming home soon. We
prepared the house with new furniture and rugs and family were waiting to get
the go ahead to do a final cleaning for Mitchie's
return.
On
Nov 1st, Mitchie's health suddenly changed and we
were soon up against some more battles.
I do remember one very difficult day at this point when there was no
rope left to hang on to...I was really distraught.
I had been up with Mitchie for two days with no sleep and barely eating and
drinking...
…I was about to
collapse and then my living water flowed by me and held my hand...I was in a
quiet room with the lights out...trying to hold on and be there for my Mitchie..
And somehow when
her warm hand and calm voice said very little ...it said so very much.... and I
knew it was going to be o.k. Rev Joy was
my living water. She was with us from
the beginning...when Mitchie was born in the
hospital, she was there at our bedside to admire him...she blessed him on his
baptism day and when Mitchie took his last breath of
life ...
Rev Joy spoke to him softly
in prayer and then held us all ...and I knew I was going to be o.k.
Mitchie
died on
I wanted another child so
much...but it was very risky for me to have another boy baby.
Here's the part that's
about Hope. I can remember just focusing
on that word...and knowing I had to have hope in order to move on...And so with
the living waters within me, I gave birth to that beautiful word Hope ...but we
call him Braden....He is a gift from God...his name means spirited one, and he
is bittersweet to me because had Mitchell lived...I think that maybe we would
have not had another child.
And so...a life forever changed KNOWING that the gift of living
water is all around me. It is my family, my friends, my church family
and my faith in God's love that keeps me warm and tells me...everything is
going to be o.k.
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