Worship Service for May 10, 2020
peace dove
No matter who you are
or where you are on life's journey,
you are welcome here!
Faith Formation
We're beginning an adult Faith Formation series this week on 1 Corinthians. All are welcome to participate. You'll find a guided document here and an accompanying YouTube video here. Please feel free to discuss this lesson on our Facebook page! You'll also find our Spirituality Thursday videos there.

PRAYER OF HOPE AND GRATITUDE DURING TIME OF PANDEMIC
Opening Meditation and Prelude

There is something so tender about this to me, about being willing to have your makeup wash off, your eyes tear up, your nose start to run. It's tender partly because it harkens back to infancy, to your mother washing your face with love and lots or water, tending to you, making you clean all over again. ~Anne Lamott


Prelude "Mother" by Sugarland
Welcome and Announcements
Remember to check your email frequently for updates and news about our closure. Please reach out if you need help - you can always call the church office phone (602)993-0050 for instructions on how to connect with Pastor Ken, Lois, or preschool Director Liz Curry.

Shadow Rock’s Pastor’s Charitable Fund has seen a lot of action since our Christmas Eve offering. We anticipate additional needs and want to have the capacity to respond with compassion and action. Also, please consider supporting Daniel Nantz by contributing to his GoFundMe page.
We continue to learn new techniques and attempt different ways to keep connected during this time. We appreciate your support and patience and always welcome your suggestions!
Call to Worship and Opening Prayers
Call to Worship
Shared by Rev. Ken Heintzelman
Hello and Welcome to Virtual Shadow Rock. Grace to you and peace to you! Blessings to you on this Mother’s Day! I am Rev. Ken Heintzelman and I ask you to join me in this Call to Worship. 

We are held by an awesome beauty. Above, below, surrounding us is the constant presence of Love and Life. So let us celebrate the richness of love and the diversity of life



Opening Prayer   
Click here to see video of the Opening Prayer, shared by Forrest.
https://youtu.be/4IpLavhh_Z8

To be a Mother is to suffer;
To travail in the dark,
stretched and torn,
exposed in half-naked humiliation,
subjected to indignities
for the sake of new life.
 
To be a Mother is to say,
“This is my body, broken for you,”
And, in the next instant, in response to the
created’s primal hunger,
“This is my body, take and eat.”
 
To be a Mother is to self-empty,
To neither slumber nor sleep,
so attuned You are to cries in the night—
Offering the comfort of Yourself,
and assurances of “I’m here.” 
 
To be a Mother is to weep
over the fighting and exclusions and wounds
your children inflict on one another;
To long for reconciliation and brotherly love
and—when all is said and done—
To gather all parties, the offender and the offended,
into the folds of your embrace
and to whisper in their ears
that they are Beloved.
 
To be a mother is to be vulnerable—
To be misunderstood,
Railed against,
Blamed
For the heartaches of the bewildered children
who don’t know where else to cast
the angst they feel
over their own existence
in this perplexing universe
 
To be a mother is to hoist onto your hips those on whom your image is imprinted,
bearing the burden of their weight,
rejoicing in their returned affection,
delighting in their wonder,
bleeding in the presence of their pain.
 
To be a mother is to be accused of sentimentality one moment,
And injustice the next.
To be the Receiver of endless demands,
Absorber of perpetual complaints,
Reckoner of bottomless needs. 
 
To be a mother is to be an artist;
A keeper of memories past,
Weaver of stories untold,
Visionary of lives looming ahead.
 
To be a mother is to be the first voice listened to,
And the first disregarded;
To be a Mender of broken creations,
And Comforter of the distraught children
whose hands wrought them. 
 
To be a mother is to be a Touchstone
and the Source,
Bestower of names,
Influencer of identities;
Life giver,
Life shaper,
Empath,
Healer,
and
Original Love.


Singing Our Faith: 'Faith of Our Mothers'



The Prayer of Jesus
Need a meditative experience? Here’s music to accompany your prayer time:
Our Loving God 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 trespasses
As we forgive those who trespass 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.

Celebrations and Offering
Celebrations
Friends, we are staying connected by sharing each other’s thoughts and celebrations. Please do a selfie video of your celebration and send it to Pastor Ken at ken@shadowrockucc.org. If you need some tech help with this, please let us know. Do not let a little thing like tech “know how” keep you separated from the people who love you.

FROM ROY ZABOROWSKI: I'm celebrating the beginning of a year-long celebration of Barbara's and my 50th year of marriage! We met at the University of Illinois' student radio station, WPGU, in 1967. We married while I was in the Army on May 1, 1971, and moved to Phoenix in 1974. Of course it's a mystery, but we enjoy each other's company and look forward to another great year together and with our children, Abeth and Chris, Barbara's dad (who's going to be a 100 in July), her brothers and sisters who are all here in Arizona, all of Shadow Rock, and, of course, the charming and beautiful (which is which at any given time is also a mystery), Charlotte and Eleanor.
 
CELEBRATING MOM:  
We celebrate our mothers and the virtues of nurturance, care and strength in tenderness. Read the “Momma sayings” below and recall the words of your own mother.
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE. 
"If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning!" 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME PRAYER. 
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet." 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT TIME TRAVEL. 
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!" 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME LOGIC. 
"Because I said so, that's why." 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME FORESIGHT. 
"Make sure you wear clean underwear in case you're in an accident." 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME IRONY. 
"Keep laughing and I'll give you something to cry about." 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT THE SCIENCE OF OSMOSIS. 
"Shut your mouth and eat your supper!" 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT CONTORTIONISM. 
"Will you look at the dirt on the back of your neck." 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT STAMINA. 
"You'll sit there until all that spinach is finished."
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT WEATHER. 
"It looks as if a tornado swept through your room." 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME HOW TO SOLVE PHYSICS PROBLEMS. 
"If I yelled because I saw a meteor coming towards you, would you listen then?" 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT HYPOCRISY. 
"If I've told you once, I've told you a million times - don't exaggerate!" 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME THE CIRCLE OF LIFE. 
"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out." 
 
MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME ABOUT ENVY. 
"There are millions of less fortunate children in the world who don't have wonderful parents like you do." 
 
THANKS, MOM!!


Celebration Song 'Mom ' by Meghan Trainor
Offering
The Spirit blesses all gifts; the Spirit blesses all givers. When we give, we find ourselves in a space of gratitude for the gifts of healing, peace, and life itself.

Thank you everyone for your love and support of Shadow Rock! Your financial support and donations are more important than ever as we go through this unprecedented time of uncertainty. Thank you if you are an E-giver, as this helps with a consistent cash flow and support of all our ministries.  Click here to read Heidi's Corner for current numbers. Please, consider trying E-giving for a season as we are not receiving mail at this time.  If you’d like to try E-giving or would like to donate to any of the special offerings please follow these links to Donate Now, or contact Heidi.

If you are in need of food, utility assistance, water, or medications, please contact any staff or board member.
Special Music
'Cool Change' by Little River Band
The Word About Life For Today

4 Spells to Keep Inside Your Mouth
I respect myself – the most powerful incantation that will change your whole life if you believe it when you say it.
My heart is too valuable for you – the spell that will set you free from any destructive soul.
I believe in you – the best gift you can ever give anyone else.
No – a single, commanding, two-letter spell with the ability to liberate you if only you learn to use it unapologetically and cast it without fear.
From Fierce Fairytales by Nikita Gill

Psalm 31: 1-5
In you, O Lord, I seek refuge; 
    do not let me ever be put to shame; 
    in your righteousness deliver me. 
Incline your ear to me; 
    rescue me speedily. 
Be a rock of refuge for me, 
    a strong fortress to save me.
You are indeed my rock and my fortress; 
    for your name’s sake lead me and guide me, 
take me out of the net that is hidden for me, 
    for you are my refuge. 
Into your hand I commit my spirit; 
    you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God.

Acts 7 The Message, edited for inclusion
At that point they went wild, a rioting mob of catcalls and whistles and invective. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, hardly noticed—he only had eyes for God, whom he saw in all glory with Jesus standing right at God’s side. He said, “Oh! I see heaven wide open and the Human Onen standing at God’s side!”
Yelling and hissing, the mob drowned him out. Now in full stampede, they dragged him out of town and pelted him with rocks. The ringleaders took off their coats and asked a young man named Saul to watch them. As the rocks rained down, Stephen prayed, “Master Jesus, take my life.” Then he knelt down, praying loud enough for everyone to hear, “Master, don’t blame them for this sin”—his last words. Then he died.
Message: No More Martyrs, Please!
Shared by Karen Richter, Spiritual Director

Words for Mission and Sending Forth
Words for Mission
https://youtu.be/yV2eijAvqec

May God, the heart of life, be deep within us.
May God the Christ, 
which is the word that disturbs our peace, 
and gives us peace that passes our understanding, 
be present in our history,
And may God the Spirit, which is the love that flows between us,
 empower us 
to sing and dance and celebrate.

These are the times!
We are the people.
All of Creation is blessed.
May we love all and serve all.
May God be with you.
Amen.

Sending Forth Music: https://youtu.be/91bw8sxdlFs
Fellowship and Coffee Chat
Virtual Communion and Fellowship
11:00 A.M. VIA ZOOM
Friends - to enhance our feelings of community on this first Sunday of the month, communion will be shared via Zoom videoconference.
To join, just click the link below. After clicking the Zoom link, if prompted, choose Join With Computer Audio. If you are using a device with a webcam, move your cursor to the lower left and click the button ‘Start Video.’

If you have trouble and need assistance, please reach out to a member of the staff for on-the-spot tech support.
Karen Richter karen@shadowrockucc.org ~ voice or text at 623-466-4472
Heidi Zinn heidi@shadowrockucc.org ~ voice or text at 480-510-4202
Not comfortable with the Zoom platform? No problem! To join by phone only (no camera or video - just voices), please email karen@shadowrockucc.org or heidi@shadowrockucc.org!

After Zoom, please join us on Facebook Live for continuing conversation and fellowship!