June 30, 2024

Worship live on Sundays in person at 10:00 am,
or on YouTube at noon.

PRELUDE
led by Dana

WELCOME, GREETING, AND COMMUNITY LIFE

CALL TO WORSHIP
from Psalm 17:6-8
Leader: I call upon You, for You will answer me, O God.
People: Incline Your ear to me; hear my words.
Leader: Wondrously show Your steadfast love.
People: Guard me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings.

UNISON PRAYER
Almighty Father, we are here to glorify Your name! Lord Jesus, we are here to celebrate Your love! Holy Spirit, we are here to experience Your presence! Faithfully and persistently we keep coming back to worship to be blessed by Your grace and to become a blessing to our neighbors. Amen. 

* LORD, I NEED YOU
Lord, I come, I confess
Bowing here I find my rest
And without You I fall apart
You’re the one that guides my heart

chorus 1
Lord, I need You, O, I need You
Ev’ry hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
O God, how I need You

Where sin runs deep, Your grace is more
Where grace is found is where You are
And where You are, Lord, I am free
Holiness is Christ in me

bridge
So teach my song to rise to You
When temptation comes my way
And when I cannot stand, I’ll fall on You
Jesus, You’re my hope and stay

chorus 2
Lord, I need You, O, I need You
Ev’ry hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
O God, how I need You

CCLI Song # 5925687 CCLI License # 349090
Christy Nockels | Daniel Carson | Jesse Reeves

Kristian Stanfill | Matt Maher © 2011 sixsteps Music

NEW TESTAMENT LESSON: Peter Eikenbary-Barber
Romans 5:1-11

Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person — though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves His love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Much more surely, therefore, since we have now been justified by His blood, will we be saved through Him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by His life. 11 But more than that, we even boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom we have now received reconciliation.

* HIDE NOT YOUR FACE
Hide not your face, O my Savior —
Be near me;
Comfort and bless — while I pray,
Will you hear me?

refrain
Blessed Redeemer,
My Savior and Comforter,
Are You coming soon?
Are You coming soon?

Still far removed from my homeland,
I wander;
Here but a pilgrim and stranger,
I ponder:

refrain

While You now tarry, my path
Would You brighten;
Sorrows and cares of my heart
Would You lighten?

refrain

Grant then, O Lord, that I fear
And adore You;
Humbly in spirit I bow down
Before you.

refrain

Help me the burden to bear
You have given;
Give me at last, Lord, a crown
In Your heaven.

refrain

Covenant Hymnal, #769

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
Nevertheless, She Persisted
Luke 18:1-8
Mark Safstrom

I WANT TO WALK AS A CHILD OF THE LIGHT
I want to walk as a child of the light;
I want to follow Jesus.
God sent the stars to give light to the world;
The star of my life is Jesus.

refrain
In Him there is no darkness at all;
The night and the day are both alike.
The Lamb is the light of the city of God:
Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus.

I want to see the brightness of God;
I want to look at Jesus.
Clear Sun of righteousness, shine on my path,
And show me the way to the Father.

refrain

I’m looking for the coming of Christ;
I want to be with Jesus.
When we have run with patience the race,
We shall know the joy of Jesus.

refrain

Covenant Hymnal, #367

PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH
We continue to pray for: Nikolas Arden; Messian Burgos; Frank Coszach; Vira Coszach; Art & Rosa Hamilton; Trevor Hanks; Mary McKirchy; Sara Rosado; Kathy Sager; Mary Smith; Iris Velez; and Lauren Vilardo

Ministries & Mission
Serve Globally Team of the Evangelical Covenant Church; 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
“For the Beauty of the Earth”
Conrad Kocher
led by Leah, Cynthia, and 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.

* WE ARE CALLED
Come! Live in the light! Shine with the joy and the love of the Lord!
We are called to be light for the kingdom,
To live in the freedom of the city of God.

refrain
We are called to act with justice,
We are called to love tenderly;
We are called to serve one another,
Walk humbly with God.

Come! Open your heart! Show your mercy to all those in fear!
We are called to be hope for the hopeless,
So hatred and blindness will be no more.

Sing! Sing a new song! Sing of that great day when all will be one!
God will reign, and we will walk with each other,
As sisters and brothers united in love.

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

POSTLUDE
Trumpet Tune
Henry Purcell
led by Cynthia

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.

New Covenant Home Altar available
The new issue of the Covenant Home Altar, the daily devotional magazine of the Evangelical Covenant Church, is now available for free in the narthex. Pick one up and let it help you with your own devotional life!

Farmers market
We had our most successful farmers market in years on Wednesday! Well over a thousand adults visited our market and supported our vendors, with many, many children present as well and having fun in our children’s area.

We have openings for RECC greeting tent staff, children’s art tent staff, bounce house monitors, as well as people who can help to set up and/or take down the market.

This is not necessarily a commitment to the full span of the market; whenever you can help out would be great! For more information, please contact Bekah Carlson or leave your name and contact info at the church office.

New lighting in fellowship hall
This past week, new LED ceiling lighting was installed in the fellowship hall by Tim Olsen and Roger Olsen. In conjunction with this spring’s fresh coat of paint, the fellowship hall is now a much brighter and more inviting space for our congregation to enjoy. Thanks to Tim and Roger for their work!

Cooler Sundays in 2024
The fourth Sunday of each month of summer — June 23, July 28, and August 25 — will be a Cooler Sunday, which will again feature grilled hot dogs and hamburgers and a potluck meal. Please plan to join us after the service on July 28 for fun, food, and fellowship!

Church garden plots available
Are you a gardener, or would you like to become one? Ravenswood Covenant has free garden plots available along the north boundary of the church parking lot. if you would like to claim a plot, please contact the church office at 773-784-7091 or at office@ravenscov.org.

Scripture reader sign-up
We are seeking people to read the scripture passages of the day as part of the worship services this summer. If you are willing to be a scripture reader in June, July, or August, please add your name to the sign-up sheet in the church office or in the narthex on Sundays, 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. This week we began studying the book of Ecclesiastes. 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.

Please note that the Bible study will not meet next Thursday, due to the Fourth of July holiday.

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
Luke 10:25-37
Romans 6:1-14

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)