PRELUDE
Holy, Holy, Holy
led by Cynthia and Dana

WELCOME, COMMUNITY LIFE & GREETING
Update from Leadership Team- Phil Hoden`

Take My Life
Dana, Cynthia, Hannah

Take my life and let it be
dedicated to your praise,
Lord I freely give to you
every moment of my days.

Take my hands to show your love
for the broken and the lost
guide my feet to follow Christ
in the shadow of the cross.

Take my voice and let me sing,
always only for my King.
Take my lips and may they always
bring you praise

I’m all yours,
I’m all yours, my Lord
all I am, every part.
I’m all yours,
I’m all yours, my Lord
take my life,
take my heart.

Take the things that I possess
I surrender all I own.
Lord, I give my every thought
to be ruled by Christ alone


CCL# 7034341
© Matt Osgood / Resound Worship, Administered by Jubilate Hymns Ltd – copyrightmanager@jubilatehymns.co.uk

OLD TESTAMENT READING
Reader- Aliyah
Psalm 26:1-7

Vindicate me, O Lord,
    for I have walked in my integrity,
    and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
    test my heart and mind.
For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
    and I walk in faithfulness to you.

I do not sit with the worthless,
    nor do I consort with hypocrites;
I hate the company of evildoers,
    and will not sit with the wicked.

I wash my hands in innocence,
    and go around your altar, O Lord,
singing aloud a song of thanksgiving,
    and telling all your wondrous deeds.

Response Song
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases
His mercies never come to an end,
They are new every morning, new every morning,
Great is thy faithfulness O Lord, Great is thy Faithfulness

GOSPEL LESSON
Matthew 16:21-28

21 From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?

27 “For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. 28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Leader: The Word of the Lord
People: Thanks be to God

GLORY BE TO THE FATHER
Glory be to the Father
And to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost
As it was in the beginning
Is now and ever shall be
World without end
Amen, Amen

REFLECTING ON THE WORD
Dying to Live
Gregory Sager

HYMN OF RESPONSE
“Take Up Your Cross,’ the Savior Said”

“Take up your cross,” the Savior said,
“If you would my disciple be;
Deny yourself, the world forsake,
And humbly follow after me.”

Take up your cross, let not its weight
Fill your weak spirit with alarm;
His strength shall bear your spirit up,
And nerve your heart, and brace your arm.

Take up your cross, heed not the shame,
Nor let your foolish pride rebel,
Your Lord for you the cross endured,
And fought the pow’rs of death and hell.

Take up your cross, and follow Christ,
Nor think till death to lay it down;
For only they who bear the cross
May hope to wear the glorious crown.

PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH & THE LORD’S PRAYER
Folks We Are Praying For:

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 sins as we forgive those who sin 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.  Amen.

Church family who work in and around hospitals & nursing homes:
Alex A, Kyra A, Hannah A, Sam A, Linda C, Carl G, Katie G, Eric H, Rachel H, Chona I, Abby H, Dana J, Bryan J, Kari J, Neal J, Eric S, Don T.

(If we missed any people’s names above please let us know.)

We continue to pray for: Nikolas Arden, Katie Collier, Dan Erickson, Art and Rosa Hamilton, Shirley Nicholas, the Morales/Randall family.

Ministries & Mission
Christopher & Diane Wiebe, serving in East Asia
Renee Nicholas, serving local graduate students and faculty with InterVarsity

GIVING OF OUR TITHES & OFFERINGS
& PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING

SPECIAL MUSIC
Led by Dana

DOXOLOGY & PRAYER
Praise God from whom all blessings flow 
Praise Him all creatures here below;
Praise Him above ye heav’nly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen. 

HYMN
Let the Words of the Lord

Let the words of the Lord Jesus Christ dwell in you. 2X
And whatever you say and whatever you do, 2X
Do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
Who rose from the dead to give you new life in him.

Let the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ rule your heart 2X
And whatever your gift and whatever your part, 2X
Do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
Who rose from the dead to give you new life in him.

Let the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ guide your way. 2X
Whether walking by night or walking by day, 2X
Walk in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
Who rose from the dead to give you new life in him.

BENEDICTION                             

L: Go in peace to love and serve the Lord
P: Thanks be to God

POSTLUDE
Fantasia in G by J.S. Bach
led by Cynthia

INVITATION
We’ll be back here next Sunday
We hope you can join us. Information on ravenscov.org.

A SONG FOR THIS WEEK
As we go out to love and serve the Lord:
Simple Gifts

led by our friends from AxiomBrass.
Trumpeter Dorival Puccini, Jr., Trumpeter and Bass-Baritone singer Michael Hawes, French Horn player Matthew Bronstein, Trombonist Corey Sansolo, Tuba player Kevin Harrison.

Music lessons
Cynthia Arden will offer piano and violin lessons to students of all ages on Wednesdays during farmers market hours. Thirty-minute lessons are available each week. Fees apply. Contact Cynthia at 847-912-0992 or email violincynthia@yahoo,com.

Book discussion
You are invited to join us for a book discussion on the book The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby. In his book, Tisby describes the history of the American Christian church in relation to race in the United States.  On Tuesday, Sept. 1 at 7:00 pm we will be discussing chapters 4-6 over Zoom. Please contact Pastor Denise for more information if you’d like to be part of the discussion or if you need help to get a copy of the book. 

Zoom Bible Study
Our Thursday night Bible study has resumed meeting. For the next few weeks we will be going through the book of Ruth. The Bible study meets every Thursday at 6:30 pm via Zoom, and if you are not conversant with Zoom, don’t let that stop you! We can teach you how to activate Zoom so that you can take part. There are also a limited number of spaces available for those who wish to attend the Bible study in person in the lounge using social-distancing protocols. If you’re interested, please contact Gregory Sager in the church office at office@ravenscov.org or at 773-784-7091.

Farmers market update
Our farmers market continues to meet every Wednesday afternoon in our church’s parking lot. Although the city’s social-distancing and food-handling restrictions during the pandemic are limiting what the market can offer in terms of crowd size, vendors, and programming, we nevertheless continue to welcome our community back into our space for what has become a tradition for many of our neighbors. Right now, our object is to continue re-establishing our presence as a farmers market and to welcome people back into the routine of frequenting our vendors every Wednesday afternoon and early evening. The turnout is improving from week to week, and we have re-introduced food trucks as part of our market for the first time this summer. It’s good to welcome our neighbors and vendors back for another summer, restrictions or not!

Thursday night dinners
While the coronavirus pandemic continues to prevent us from hosting our weekly community dinners on Thursday night, we are now offering those Thursday night meals on a pre-order, takeout-only basis. Chef Bobby will be back in mid-September to making his delicious meals, which are offered on an every-other-Thursday schedule. Contact the church office for more details.

Prayer requests
A group of women in our church are meeting every night at 7 pm via phone calls and texts in order to keep our various needs before God in prayer. They are asking the congregation to bring their needs to them to be lifted up in prayer as part of this evening prayer time. If you have any needs that you would like to have added to their prayer list, please contact the church office.

Free masks available
The church is offering free masks to anyone in the congregation who is in need of one. If you would like, you may make a donation to our benevolence fund when you come to the church building to pick yours up. Please contact the church office at office@ravenscov.org or 773-396-6175 for more information.

We need your (in worship) videos and pictures
As part of our ongoing efforts to stay connected with each other during this time of physical separation, we’re asking members and friends of the church to send us pictures of themselves as they take part in online worship. You can, if you choose, accompany the picture with a short (one or two sentences) greeting, or a brief video of no more than ten seconds, so that we can share them as a part of Sunday morning worship. Please be aware that they may have to be edited for space reasons. You can send them as downloadable files to office@ravenscov.org.

Our response to the current health crisis
As a community of faith we continue to pray for the health and welfare of our church and community as we resist the temptation to fall prey to fear. We do, however, want to continue to look out for the welfare of our friends and neighbors. We are doing our best to stay current with best practices for this unique time — please stay tuned as these may change. Our primary place for timely communication will be our website, ravenscov.org. We will also offer reminders and notes on our Facebook page and by email. We are livestreaming our Sunday morning worship on Facebook Live so that you may continue to be a part of our worship. Do not, however, become isolated. If you need any help, there are folks in our church who can minister to you or assist you. Call the office (773-784-7091) or email the office (office@ravenscov.org).

General fund giving:
August 16: $3,644

General fund giving:
August 23: $12,939

Scripture for Sunday,
September 2
Psalm 119:33-40
Matthew 18:15-20

Art Used in this Bulletin: Steve Erspamer, SM
Clip Art for Year A © 1992, Archdiocese of Chicago.

Our church exists to love and worship God, and love and care for others. By God’s grace, we commit to help people find and follow Jesus Christ through the guidance of his Spirit and his word.

"With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade." (Mark 4:30-32 NRS)