Intro. Follow-up from Lent 2011 = John 13 – 17, Jesus’ Last Meal …

1. Place of Peace … John 18:1-2  Immediately after the most celebrated
dinner in history, Jesus and His disciples head to their “go-to”
place.  Matthew 21:1; John 8:1; Acts 1:12; more … for meetings and
retreat, like ICC’s Grotonwood

We’re all Homesick on one level or another for that “place” of
retreat, of comfort, of rejuvenation … where is yours?

2. Place of Peace Becomes Place of Terror … John 18:3 and 10, 11, 12
This whole scene is framed in violence … From peace to violence :3,
then from violence to peace :11.
 600 soldiers, led by a traitor, a military “colonel”, and religious officials
 Violence quickly escalates w/Peter’s malicious, impulsive assault =
in all 4 gospels… John 18:10-12
 How quickly they forget;  how poorly they APPLY what Jesus said and
prayed just an hour or two earlier.
 In Matthew, Jesus says, “If you live by the sword, you’ll die by the
sword.”… in Burma, “then we will die by love”

3. Prince of Peace is the Constant One …
 He stands confidently/serenly in the middle of the violence
 “I am He.” 2x … why did they fall back?  John 18:6  WHAT DID THEY SEE?
 ? = transfigured Christ? Matt. 17?  The Holy One of God?  Mk. 1:24?
Man of sorrows?  Is. 53?  What do you think they saw?  What do YOU
see?
 The Constant One cared more for others than Himself.

Conclusion ICC’s lawsuit … a place of peace and fun, Killam Hall, has
become a place of fear / “violence” … but we will pray and love … and
look to the constancy of The Constant One = The Prince of Peace, Jesus
the lamb of God who takes away the sin of this world.

Keep your focus on the Constant One, the way He handled himself and
the situation, his betrayor, his enemies, even his
weak-kneed-well-intentioned friends … and let us emulate His inner
strength.  The verse, Romans 12:1, 2 = let God transform you by
changing the way you think.

JESUS LAST EVENING

February 12, 2012, 10:00
International Community Church
30 Gordon Street, Boston, MA 02134
Pastoral Team:  Rev. Lorraine Cleaves Anderson, Senior Pastor
Rev. Judy Kee, Rev. Shirley Thomas; David Rohr, BUSTh intern

A-Verse-A-Week:  Amos 5:24  “I want to see an endless river of
righteous living.”
♪  Hymns sung around the world
Upcoming Opportunities – participate as much as God leads you.
Pastoral Prayer
Offerings and Tithes
A Black History Moment – Shirley et.al.
Greetings
♪  Singing with the strings
Sermon and Scripture:  Jesus’ Last Evening: John 18:1-12 – Lorraine
♪ Closing Song and Blessing
Refreshments with the reading of Jairus Breaks His Silence

 Stay for the reading of Rod Cleaves’ new book, Jairus Breaks His Silence
 Home Prayer Visit Thursday, 7 PM at The Andersons
 Elders’ 2/25, 9:30 AM meeting needs to be re-scheduled.  Let’s huddle.
 Longevity in Marriage, Tuesday, 2/28, at The Mels
 TABCOM Day of Prayer, River of Life Church, 2/28, 10:00 – 12:00

Notes and Prayer Requests

1PM, December 18, 2011

Immanuel Deaf Church (IDC); Boston Church for Mission (BCM, Korean); International Community Church (ICC); Overseas Burmese Christian Fellowship (OBCF); Grace Russian Church (GRC);

City On A Hill (COAH)

Canon

Go tell it on the mountain

Welcome by Rev. Lorraine Anderson (ICC)

Special Song by Rev. Emmett Price, Community of Love Christian Fellowship

  Drama by IDC

First Reading & Reflection: Matthew 1:18-23

                Reading by OBCF (Burmese) & Reflection by ICC

What Child is This, by BCM & ICC Chamber Orchestra

Violin: Spencer Chung; Flute: Yumi Lee; Cello: Sally Chung; Trumpet : Yeayeon Kim; Alto Saxophone: Youngin Kang; French Horn: Rev. Lorraine Anderson; Trombone : Shirley Thomas; Conductor : Haeeun Shin

Second Reading & Reflection: Luke 2:1-7

                Reading by BCM (Korean) & Reflection by GRC (Russian)

O Little Town of Bethlehem

Traditional Ukraine Carol Song by Igor Danilyuk & Nellie (GRC)

Third Reading & Reflection: Luke 2:8-14

                Reading by ICC & Reflection by OBCF (Burmese)

Angels We Have Heart on High

Fourth Reading & Reflection: Luke 2:15-20

                Read by COAH & Reflection by IDC

Silent Night, Holy Night

Special song by Reignyah & her mother, Sho (IDC)

Here He Comes by Rev. Lorraine Anderson (ICC)

Joy to the world

Closing Prayer by Rev. Byongsung Lee (BCM, Korea)

International POT LUCK Feast

November 27, 2011, 10:00
International Community Church
30 Gordon Street, Boston, MA 02134
Rev. Lorraine Cleaves Anderson, Senior Pastor; Rev. Judy Kee, Rev.
Shirley Thomas

♪  Hymns, Upcoming Opportunities, Prayer- David, Greetings, ♪ A Hymn
♪  Welcoming Advent:  Chambre Brass Ensemble
Scripture Reading: Luke 1:39-45, NRSV

39 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in
the hill country, 40 where she entered the house of Zechariah and
greeted Elizabeth.  41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child
leaped in her womb.  And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42
and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and
blessed is the fruit of your womb.  43 And why has this happened to
me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?  44 For as soon as I heard
the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.  45
And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of
what was spoken to her by the Lord.”

Sermon:  Gratitude to God Changes Us
♪  Singing with the strings
Offerings – Bob
♪  Blessing
Critical Thinking Class and Refreshments – kids with Sho Grant

 1:00 today, Book I Urbacad Class, Life of Christ
 Advent Schedule on back table
 Four week adult class on Critical Thinking, led by Rev. Ralph Kee,
CUME Professor, 11:30ish, starts today and Dec. 4, Dec. 11, Dec. 18
 Home Prayer Visit, Thursday, 7 PM at Christa and Tim’s, 66 Whitten
St., Dorchester 02122 … 617-680-9977
 Friday, Dec. 9, 7 PM, ICC-sponsored Evangelistic Service, w/Rev.
Elboufi, a Messianic Muslim.  Perfect opportunity to introduce friends
to Christ.
 Now receiving gift-worthy items for our annual Free
Not-Your-Typical-Christmas Fayre
 Dec. 18, come at 11:00 for Critical Thinking Class; 12:00 Rehearsal;
1:00 Inter-Church Christmas Cantata Worship; 2:30 Pot Luck Feast!

Notes and Prayer Requests

Intro. One of my most favorite days of the year is Wednesday, the day
before Thanksgiving … cleaning, cooking, singing, anticipating …
thinking of the people who we’ll see, and who I wish we were going to
see, tomorrow … We work days in advance for Thanksgiving Dinner – and
it’s all over in a few hours!  Funny!!  But the point of Thanksgiving
is to give thanks … eucharistein = give thanks = the eucharist.

What are you most thankful for this year?  [share]

The first Christmas was filled with spontaneous expressions of
gratitude to God in gifts, prayers, journeys, and five songs bursting
forth from Elizabeth, Mary, Zechariah, angels, and Simeon …

One song today = Elizabeth’s in Luke 1:42-45 … let’s read Luke 1:39-45, NRSV

39 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in
the hill country, 40 where she entered the house of Zechariah and
greeted Elizabeth.  41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child
leaped in her womb.  And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42
and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and
blessed is the fruit of your womb.  43 And why has this happened to
me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?  44 For as soon as I heard
the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.  45
And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of
what was spoken to her by the Lord.”

In Elizabeth’s prophetic song, her heart-felt gratitude is powerful,
in at least five ways:

1. Elizabeth’s gratitude expressed and increased her love for God, for
her Messiah, for her cousin Mary!  Luke 1:41, 42
Gratitude is part of love!  It is an expression of love and gratitude
increases our love!
Illus. For example, the more I thank God for Bob, the more I love Bob.
 The more I love him the more I want to thank him … [he’s doing a lot
for us here … windows, mail, plumbing, cleaning, recycling … What
about BOB?!]
Appl. Be specific in your gratitude to God.  It is an expression of
your love, and being grateful will increase your love, both for God
and others.  Amazing!

2. Elizabeth’s gratitude helped her see things from God’s perspective
/ God’s “big picture”.   Luke 1:42
When John the Baptist, her unborn son, leaped inside her, she knew
that Mary’s unborn son was the Messiah!  It all made sense to her in
an instant!
Appl.   As we thank God for what’s going on around us, we begin to see
His purposes more clearly!  Gratitude opens our eyes to God’s work and
will!!
Illus.   For example, 13+ years ago, Wendy began hearing Judy’s
stories about Congo … she became grateful for Judy and her nursing
ministry over the years … and as Wendy’s gratitude to God grew, she
more clearly saw what God wanted of her own life!  Gratitude helped
her understand her own life from God’s perspective.

3. Elizabeth’s gratitude to God developed in her heart a healthy
self-love!  Luke 1:43
Appl. The more we love God, the healthier our own self-love becomes …
A healthy self-love is nothing more than seeing ourself as God sees
us.
Illus.  Have you ever asked God what He sees when He looks at you?
Ask Him.  At the advice of my Spiritual Director I prayed that one
time … and several months later God answered in a surprising way  …
but I can’t tell you what God said, it’s too embarrassing .

4. Elizabeth’s gratitude to God sparked both her baby’s joy and her
own!  Luke 1:44
Appl. Being grateful gives us joy!
Illus. For example, the more gratitude we express to God, the more we
notice His love everywhere around us! Sometimes when I ride the T, I
pray for people around me … I thank God for them, and then begin to
feel love and joy for them!  When I thank God for the people in my
life, the deeper joy I feel.  Their idiosyncrasies sink and their
strengths rise.
Appl. So be grateful for the people around you.  Be grateful for clean
water, heat, food, public transportation, health, a place to sleep,
our church, our Bible, singing, the person beside you … your joy will
explode like fireworks!

5. Lastly, Elizabeth’s gratitude to God ignited her trust in God.  Luke 1:45
When Elizabeth could appreciate Mary’s confident trust in God, her own
trust in God was pumped up too!

Conclusion Make a list of things you are grateful to God for … be
detailed … because gratitude will pull you like a magnet to The Giver,
The Savior …

Your gratitude to God will:
1. multiply your love for God,
2. clarify God’s will,
3. improve your self-love,
4. spark your joy,
5. and pump your courageous trust in God.

Your gratitude for another person will have a similar affect on your
relationship:
1. you’ll love that person a lot more
2. you’ll understand him better
3. you’ll be able to help her love herself more
4. you’ll enjoy him more
5. and you’ll trust God’s work in her life much more.

November 20, 2011, 10:00
International Community Church
30 Gordon Street, Boston, MA 02134
Rev. Lorraine Cleaves Anderson, Senior Pastor; Rev. Judy Kee, Rev.
Shirley Thomas

♪  Hymns, Greeting One Another, and ♪   Another Hymn
Upcoming Opportunities and Prayer together
♪  A Song
Sermon:   Humans Are Not For Sale – Sarah Durfey
♪  Singing with the strings
Offerings, with Tatianna Saidi’s story and Blessing

 11:30  Refreshments and Discussion with Sarah Durfey
 1:00 today, Book I Urbacad Class
 Pick up Advent Schedule … Christmas is coming!
 No place to go this Thanksgiving?  Speak to Lorraine and Bob.
 Four week adult class on Critical Thinking, led by Rev. Ralph Kee,
CUME Professor, 11:30ish, Nov. 27, Dec. 4, Dec. 11, Dec. 18
 Next Home Prayer Visit, Thursday, Dec. 1, 7 PM at Christa and Tim’s.

♪ Hymns with Boston Church for Mission in the sanctuary
Greeting One Another
♪ Shirley’s song: Woke Up This Morning with My Mind Stayed on Jesus
Returning to Killam Hall
Upcoming Opportunities
Prayer together
Sermon: Egalitarian Marriage, Bible-Style – Jon Hill
Ephesians 5:21-33
♪ Singing with the strings
Offerings – David Rohr
Blessing

* Noon today, Andersons et.al. leave for South End Neighborhood Church of Emmanuel’s 40th Anniversary, one of our “birth-mother-churches”.
* 1:00 today, Book I Urbacad Class
* Tuesday, 7:00, Longevity in Marriage at David and Courtney Rohr, 47 Brock St., #2, Brighton
* Saturday, 9:30 AM, Elders
* Four week adult class on Critical Thinking, led by Rev. Ralph Kee, CUME Professor, Nov. 27, Dec. 4, Dec. 11, Dec. 18

§       Another Ordination Ceremony today  4:30 – Claire Sullivan, Lion of Judah
§       Thurs. 7 PM Home Prayer Visit: Shirley Thomas, 75 St. Paul, Brookline.  Come!
§       Next Sunday, Fathers’ Day, Rev. Dr. Ira Frazier, an old friend from CUME
§       Kids for Christ – Saturday, June 25, 6:00 PM for kids age 2 – 11.  Bring your little ones!