Freelton and Strabane Pastoral Charge
Horseshoe Falls Regional Council.
19th Sunday after Pentecost
Sunday, October 16
Minister: Rev. Will Wheeler, B.A. M. Div.
905-659-3380 E Mail wwwheeler@sympatico.ca
Administrative Assistance: Linda Young : ljyoung45@gmail.com
Announcements
Worship next week October 23rd will be at Freelton 10:30. See announcement below.
Tech Tuesday for Seniors Tuesday October 18 at 1pm at Strabane Church.
Implementation committee October 20 at 7pm at the Strabane Church
Announcement
Church Member Terri Shewfelt and hubby Neal will be going to the Centre of Hope in Guatemala for an outreach program in November. Terri is collecting various items to take with her including: Children’s Tylenol, adult Tylenol, ibuprofen (Advil), Benadryl liquid (children’s), Benadryl tablets (adult), baby formula powders, women’s prenatal vitamins, children’s vitamins (iron free) as well as children’s colouring books, pencil crayons and stickers. Terri will have a box to collect donations in the Freelton Church until the end of October. Your generosity is greatly appreciated!
As we live into the Amalgamation we would like to let you know about the up and coming services.
The final worship service for Freelton United Church will be on October 23 at 10:30. The Rev. Dr. Jamie Robertson will be our guest preacher and we have invited the congregations of Mountsberg and Westover to join us. We will be serving Sandwiches and goodies following the service and so we are asking people to bring donations of sandwiches and goodies. Also Anyone wishing to bring flowers to place in memory of those that have gone on before us are more to welcome and leave the names on the pulpit.
The final worship service for Strabane United Church will be on October 30 at 10:30 We will be serving Sandwiches and goodies following the service and so we are asking people to bring donations of sandwiches and goodies. Also Anyone wishing to bring flowers to place in memory of those that have gone on before us are more to welcome and leave the names on the pulpit.
The Inaugural Service for the new Freelton Strabane United Church will be on November 6th at 10:30 with the Rev Jane Wyllie as our guest preacher. There will be a pot luck lunch to follow.
Mark the date and hang out the holly it’s a
Celebration:
Seasonal Lunch Craft and Bake sale
at the new Freelton Strabane United Church event
November 26 8 – 1pm
Vender Tables available call Rev Will 905 659 3380 Anyone willing to make donations of crafted items to the Church table or baked goods to the Bake table are invited them to bring them to the Church on Friday November 28th between 1 and 5p.
Rev Will is always Available for calls. If you find you need to talk or need something please don’t hesitate to call the Manse.
Consider PAR as a means to support the Church
Gathering Blessed is the one who comes in the Name of Lord.
One Every creature every plant every rock and grain of sand
All proclaims the glory of its Creator with every colour shape and scent and form.
One In all of our being let songs of praise be sung
All Creature God may we join with the whole of your creation in praising you through all our living and lives.
Prayer of Approach
Heavenly Creator we meet together as your people as one people your family bound together with the woven chord that binds all of creation together fashioned from your love. May this be a time of joy a time of growing a time for strengthening, a time of know your love in Jesus Christ Amen
All: (sung) In God we live and move and have our story.
In love God lives in us and makes us whole
O Jesus may we hear the Word that calls us near;
Your story makes a home within our soul.
Your story makes a home within our soul
One: Our lesson is taken Timothy 3:14-4:3

Gospel is from Luke 18:1-8
One: The Word of God for the People of God
All Thanks be to God
There is a high percentage of these people that will start being faithful for two or three months and then start becoming discouraged and come less and less until they don’t come any more and just let their membership sit there.
Why because they thought what they when they purchased the membership that in a couple of months they would be all nice and lean and beach ready bod. Forgetting that every bod is a beach bod.
This is just not the way that it works. There is no instant fix. Well there is put it leaves scares. Even that does not work if you haven’t made the other changes in lifestyle.
It is true you have to break into a sweat, you have to work hard, both physically and mentally to get the goals that you want.
We live in an Instant oat meal world. The three minute boiled egg. One hour dry cleaning. Twenty minute pizza delivery Uber Eats. An oil change in less than an hour. A meal in a microwave in four minutes. Excellent health in just twenty minutes a day, only three days a week. A sense of well being after only a weekend in a seminar to gain enlightenment. One self help book and all your emotional baggage is swept away.
A relationship with Christ in only an hour a week? Why not?
Why not?
Because it takes more than that.
In watching a great break a way and goal in hockey in the last minute of the game, or a long pass in football, we don’t realize that what we are watching are the fruits of hours of practice, days of disciplined work physical pain intense focus and persistence. That is why the crowd goes wild.
How much more does it take to be in relationship with God.
We know that faith is not something you have to have enough of it is just a matter of having it. Faith is something that does not get quantified.
It is something that grows with work. Faith is exercised in our trust and believe in God’s action in our lives. That God is there actively participating in our lives.
In an unguarded moment John Wesley said something to the effect that “ even though prayer does not always change God, it can often change us” It can put us in the right frame of mind or give us a new determination. Wesley’s suggestion is dangerous. Even though Wesley surely did not mean it this way, such a suggestion can reduce prayer to mere auto suggestion merely talking to ourselves pumping ourselves up, rather than truly speaking to God.
But Jesus told us this parable in order that we should pray always and not lose heart
How does this story keep us praying with persistence?
Maybe in this story, Jesus wants us to understand that, even though the world may look broken, unjust and corrupt, if we keep working at it, if we persistently believe the world to be basically good place, things will work out We can make a difference. The hard thing to understand is sometimes we never get to see what that difference.
I would harken back to our recent history when we went to Mexico to build a house.
Our Host greeted us and explained that this woman had been persistent in asking for a house for her and her daughter. The women was considered well maybe not so reputable she was a single mother and did not go to the right Christian church. Finally the organization we had come to work with gave her a house to so she would not bother them anymore.
Despite prejudice, arrogance and Christian uncharity a house was built. We may never know the difference we made in that women’s life.
The founders of Freelton Methodist Church and Nairn Presbyterian congregation hoped and prayed that the community of faith that they created would last. That the work of God would be carried on in these communities but they ultimately don’t get to see the difference that they made in the grander scheme. You as a people of faith have secured that legacy.
Yes at times we are able to sit back and say our perseverance in this or that project paid off. But not always.
Perhaps we are supposed to understand this parable as saying, prayer really does work. If you keep at it. Sometimes prayer works slowly, but never lose heart it works. It may not be the outcome you expect but God is there. It works because God is there.
This parable reminds of that. If the unjust Judge will do the least for a petitioner how much more will a loving present God.
God is present in this this community of faith.
You may say “Will…how can you stand there and say that with such confidence?”
I say this not because of my faith although my faith is what in you is undoubting. I say this for I see what you have accomplish.
I see it in every cup of coffee or tea which is served, I see it in every hymn or anthem that is song. I see it in every name named in prayer, in every stich of a knitting needle. In every lone hand laid down in every exercise band pulled, in every ounce of food given away. But most of all, I hear it in your laughter, I see it in the caring of your eyes, In the ever growing secular world, I see it in your devotion to be a place of worship, of welcome of comfort. A a place to live out your discipleship with integrity and grace. I see faith lived. I see faith Lived out in this community.
We will be persistent in our prayer, we will be persistent in our faith will be persistent in being a community that works to proclaim and live the goodness, the good news of the Gospel in this place. We will be persistent in opening ourselves to the movement of the Holy Spirit in leading us even when it might scare us to our core. But we will persist for Christ walks with us and God is ever present for we are not alone. Thanks be to God.
Prayers of the people
Hear our prayer we humbly offer
Grant to us your peace O God
Hear our prayer we humbly offer
Grant to us your peace O God.
Prayers
One God of the journey you have been here
All in Good times
One you have been here
All In the times of disagreement
One you have been here
All in our laughter
One you have been here
All In our sorrow
One you have been here
All God of the journey you are here
One In all our travelling
ALL: May your footsteps guide us
In our journeying to work and returning
One : May your footsteps guide us
Within our homes and families
ALL: May your footsteps guide us
In our leisure time together
One : May your footsteps guide us
In difficult situations and conflict
ALL: May your footsteps guide us
As we stumble on the way
One : May your footsteps guide us In the travelling of our faith May your footsteps guide us As we place our trust in you
ALL: May your footsteps guide us In all our travelling. Lord, may it be your footsteps in which we place our feet. In your name, in the name of Christ , in the name of the Spirit, in the name of all the heavenly saints of Freelton We will travel on. We are called to be the church, a community of faith and we offer you the names of those in our hearts and personal prayers trusting that in your time and way they shall be answered.
Personal prayer
One Within our hearts we know that you hear our prayers and in your time and way they shall be answered we speak with one voice that prayer which binds us as one saying…
Lord’s Prayer.
Offering
We give thee but thy own. The work of the Church continues and there are three ways you can continue to support that work. Consider using PAR, use the donate button on our Web Site or drop your gift at the Manse. Let us make our offering and give thanks.
One: Praise God who from all Blessing flow
Prayer . God of presence We bring our simple gifts we have to you. We offer them with thankful hearts in honour of all the gifts you have given us, and in thanksgiving for your promise that you will provide. May these gifts we bring help to sustain your church and enable us to continue to proclaim the good news of your gospel in this place in chirst we pray amen.
Yesterdaywe honour our heritage.
Todaywe know that we are not alone,that we live in God's world.
Tomorrowwith God,we will discoverthe undiscovered country.
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