February 18, 2024 | Ravenswood Evangelical Covenant Church

February 18, 2024

Worship live on Sundays in person at 11:00 am,
or on YouTube at noon.

PRELUDE
led by Dana

WELCOME, GREETING, AND COMMUNITY LIFE

A WORD FROM LAUREN DIAZ OF THE FRIENDSHIP CENTER

CALL TO WORSHIP
from Psalm 19:7-10

Leader: The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the decrees of the Lord are sure, making wise the simple.
People: The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eyes.
Leader: The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever, the ordinances of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
People: More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.

UNISON PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Almighty God, Your law is perfect, but we are not. Lord Jesus, You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life, but still manage to get lost, confused, and broken. Holy Spirit, You fill us with the desire to do the right thing, but we struggle to follow Your lead. Forgive our wayward hearts, and lead us to repentance and new life. Amen.

* LET ALL THINGS NOW LIVING
Let all things now living a song of thanksgiving
To God the Creator triumphantly raise;
Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us,
Who guides us and leads to the end of our days.
God’s banners are o’er us,
And light goes before us,
A pillar of fire shining forth in the night,
‘Til shadows have vanished and darkness is banished,
As forward we travel from light into light.

God’s law He enforces; the stars in their courses
And sun in its orbit obediently shine;
The hills and the mountains, the rivers and fountains,
The deeps of the ocean proclaim Him divine,
We too should be voicing our love and rejoicing;
With glad adoration a song let us raise,
‘Til all things now living unite in thanksgiving:
To God in the highest, hosanna and praise!

Covenant Hymnal, #59

GOSPEL LESSON: Don Hodgkinson
Mark 9:30-37

They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it, ³¹for He was teaching His disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill Him, and three days after being killed, He will rise again.” ³²But they did not understand what He was saying and were afraid to ask him.

³³Then they came to Capernaum, and when He was in the house He asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” ³⁴But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. ³⁵He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶Then He took a little child and put it among them, and taking it in his arms He said to them, ³⁷“Whoever welcomes one such child in My name welcomes Me, and whoever welcomes Me welcomes not Me but the One who sent me.”

* HOLD IT ALL
God, we bring you the work of our hands now
Lay it down, lay it at your feet
What we’ve done, what we’ve built, what we’ve broken
Lay it down, lay it at your feet

God, we bring you the work of our hands now
Lay it down, lay it at your feet
What we’ve done, what we’ve built, what we’ve broken
Lay it down, lay it at your feet

chorus
You hold it all, Jesus
You hold it all

Worried hearts, wearied hands, weakened bodies
Lay it down, lay it at your feet
What we’ve used, what we’ve lost, what we’ve wasted
Lay it down lay it at your feet

chorus

All our plans, all our dreams, our ambitions
Lay them down, lay them at your feet
Even if nothing comes to fruition
Lay it down, lay it at your feet
Lay it down, lay it at your feet

CHILDREN’S MOMENT

Children 6 and under are dismissed to Children’s Church in the upstairs lounge. Parents can pick up their children in the lounge after the service.

REFLECTING ON THE WORD
Mark 10:17-31
The First and the Last
Pastor Ryan

TAKE MY LIFE, AND LET IT BE CONSECRATED
Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee;
Take my moments and my days;
Let them flow in ceaseless praise,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.

Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love;
Take my feet, and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee,
Swift and beautiful for Thee.

Take my wealth, all I possess;
Make me rich in faithfulness.
Take my mind, that I may use
Ev’ry power as Thou shalt choose,
Ev’ry power as Thou shalt choose.

Take my motives and my will,
All Thy purpose to fulfill.
Take my heart — it is Thine own;
It shall be Thy royal throne,
It shall be Thy royal throne.

Take my love; Lord, I will pour
At Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be
Thine for all eternity,
Thine for all eternity.

Covenant Hymnal, #375

PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH & THE LORD’S PRAYER
We continue to pray for: Nikolas Arden; Messian Burgos; Frank Coszach; Vira Coszach; Art & Rosa Hamilton; Trevor Hanks; Nancy Popovich’s family; Sara Rosado; Mary Smith; Phillip, son of Iris Velez; and Lauren Vilardo

Ministries & Mission
Adrienne Low Satterberg & Ken Satterberg, serving in France; Covenant Mountain Mission Bible Camp

THE LORD’S PRAYER:
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.

GIVING OF OUR TITHES & OFFERINGS
giving opportunities: ravenscov.org/giving/
Zelle^® to: giving@ravenscov.org

OFFERTORY
“All Praise to Christ”
F.B. Tucker / C.V. Stanford
Covenant Hymnal, #309
led by the choir
(the congregation is invited to join in singing verse 3)

* 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.

* HOSANNA (WILL YOU RISE)
verse 1
When the waters rise all around
When the rocks and trees they cry out

chorus
Your kingdom come, Your will be done
Here on earth as it is in heaven
Your kingdom come, Your will be done
Here on earth as it is in heaven

Hosanna, hosanna
Will You rise, will You rise

verse 2
Fill us with Your breath to renew
To care for what You’ve made as You do

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

POSTLUDE
Gravé in E minor
J.S. Bach
led by Cynthia
please remain seated during the postlude

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

Please wear a nametag
We’ve had a number of visitors and new attendees lately, and it’s very important that we not only welcome them warmly to our church but also allow them to attach a name to a face. We’re asking everyone to return to our old practice of wearing nametags on Sunday morning. Blank nametags and Sharpies will be available both in the narthex and in the sanctuary.

Choir is back!
It’s still cold outside, but the spring season of our church choir is almost upon us! The choir has begun rehearsing for the Lenten and Holy Week seasons. The choir rehearses every Sunday at 9:00 am during choir seasons, and choir membership remains open to anyone who loves to sing. Consider joining us this spring!

Thank-you card for Max Hollingshead
The Leadership Team is giving those in worship today the opportunity to sign a thank-you card for Max Hollingshead, who last month ended his tenure as our church treasurer. Max served as Ravenswood Covenant’s treasurer for ten years, half of which was served remotely after the Hollingsheads moved to Door County, Wisconsin. Please let Max know how much you appreciate his long and faithful service to our church!

Easter lily sign-up
Easter comes early this year (March 31), so we need to begin planning our order for the florist. If you would like to purchase a lily that will adorn the front of the church on Easter that you can take home after the service, please fill out an order form, indicating if you would like a bulletin listing in honor of or in memory of a loved one, and return the form to Gregory Sager in the church office.

Camp Booster Fund
Interested in sending your children to overnight camp at Covenant Harbor or Covenant Point next summer? We have a camp booster fund that will give $200 towards the fee of any Ravenswood Covenant child (or that child’s friend) who wishes to attend one of our two Central Conference summer camps. We feel that every child from our congregation who wants to attend camp should have the opportunity to go!

Sunday School and Faith Forum
Sunday School and Faith Forum meets at 10:00 am every week, unless otherwise noted. Come join us as we gather together to learn and grow in faith every Sunday morning.

Scripture reader sign-up
We are seeking people to read the scripture passages of the day as part of the worship services for the first quarter of 2024. If you are willing to be a scripture reader, please add your name to the sign-up sheet in the church office or contact Gregory Sager or Pastor Ryan.

Pastor Ryan’s office hours
Pastor Ryan’s office hours at church are typically Tuesday thru Friday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. If you would like to meet with Pastor Ryan please call the church office in advance to schedule an appointment.

Coffee hour changes
There is now a coffee hour bulletin board downstairs in the fellowship hall! (It’s right next to the kids’ serving window.) Please look there for updated serving instructions as well as to find out what team you’re on. We’ve had some turnover, so we encourage you to sign up to join a serving team if you haven’t done so already. A self-sign-up will now be available on the board so that you can pick which Sundays work best for you. As always, thanks for serving!

Thursday evening Bible study
The weekly Bible study meets Thursdays at 7:00 pm. We are studying the Gospel of Mark. The Bible study meets in the upstairs lounge. For more information, please contact Gregory Sager in the church office at (773) 784-7091 or office@ravenscov.org.

We now have Zoom available again for those who would like to take part in the Bible study but cannot be physically present. The Zoom link for the Bible study is:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83923376849?pwd=YUlYVXBmOVdwV0d5L20ySng3aHU3Zz09

Meeting ID: 839 2337 6849
Passcode: 318853

Join Us in Sponsoring a Student in the NPTS SRA Program
North Park’s School of Restorative Arts offers a MA in Christian Ministry and Restorative Arts, allowing free and incarcerated students to study together. This unique degree program is designed to prepare individuals for ministries of restoration in contexts susceptible to violence and includes courses in trauma, race relations, nonviolent communication, conflict transformation, restorative practices, and transformative justice, in addition to Bible, theology, and history. In partnership with the Illinois Department of Corrections, this four-year degree is currently offered at Stateville Correctional Center with 80 incarcerated men and a first cohort of 20 women at Logan Correctional Center.

We, Ravenswood Covenant Church, have partnered with North Park Theological Seminary by committing to sponsor a student in this program. To help us support an SRA student please send a check to church or give online and in the memo line write: “SRA Sponsorship.”

Scripture for next Sunday
Mark 10:45-52
Mark 10:32-45
Psalm 19:7-10

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.