March 1st Worship Service

Posted on February 27, 2026 | Leave a comment

Claybanks United Methodist Church
Sunday, March 1, 2026
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.                                       
Second Sunday in Lent
* Indicates to stand as you are able

Welcome and Announcements
*Praise Song
”Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”…….UMH  103

Prelude
*Processional
In this place, among these people
God is worshipped, God is praised.
We have seen the signs and wonders;
The lost are found here, the dead are raised.
We are living the Gospel story;
lives are changed, and mountains moved.
Won’t you come and work among us?
You are welcomed, you are loved.

*Call to Worship
Leader: From where will our help come?
All: Our help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Leader: Who is our keeper?
All: The Lord is our keeper, by day and by night.
Leader: How long will God protect us?
All: God will keep our going out and our coming in from this time on and forevermore.

*Opening Prayer
God our helper, our shade, our protector, you are able to give life to the dead, to call into being things that do not exist.  We trust in your power to make all things new; to keep us in sunlight and moonlight, along rocky paths and pathways unknown; until all our going and coming brings us at last to your Kingdom promised in Christ, in whose name we pray.  Amen

*Gloria Patri…………………………….UMH 70
*Hymn
”Give to the Winds Thy Fears”………………UMH 129

Prayers of the People – Joys and Concerns
The Offering of our Gifts and Ourselves
*Doxology…………………………………….…UMH 95

*Prayer of Dedication
*Hymn
”Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling”………UMH 348

Sharing of the Word
Old Testament Reading
Psalm 121..…………………Page 498
*Gospel Reading
John 3:1-17…………………Pages 863-864

Message by Pastor Terri Cummins
“Looking for Love? Look for the Helper”          

Communion
Prayer
*Hymn
”How Like a Gentle Spirit”………………UMH 115

Benediction
Postlude – Please be seated

Pianist – Suzanne Bellrichard
Liturgist – Edie Bogart
Ministers – All People As We Live The Good News

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Pastor’s Ponderings

Posted on February 27, 2026 | Leave a comment

Reba and I are sitting in the early morning looking out our slider in Anna Marie Island watching the strong winds blow the palm trees for the second day in a row. It brought to mind for us the coming Sunday, March 29th “Palm Sunday.” The palms we use on that Sunday are a little different than the ones we see from our living room, yet they are very similar in their movement in the winds. On the tall trees, the winds are lifting the palm branches up to an almost upright standing position and they are swaying so mightily you would think that they would break and fall to the ground.

We marvel that since the hurricane that hit the Island just one year ago, most palm trees survived and show little or no signs of damage. So strong, yet how flexible they are. We can learn much about life from observing the palm trees. The palm trees sway when a strong force of wind blows against them. They bend yet they do not break. We at times are pushed by forces that would try to bring us down. We know that God stands with us and His strength keeps us upright. When we look at the lower parts of the palm trees, we can see where the lower palms have dried up and the trees allow them to fall to the earth to become part of the soil and nutrients that will continue to help them grow. At times we must shed those dried parts of ourselves and allow them to  fall away, allowing us to grow from the experience, when we get rid of what is no longer beneficial to our souls. The trunk surfaces of the palm trees are both rough and smooth. We at times must be rough on the outside to protect the inside. We must also be smooth so when others allow us to come along side of them, we can share Jesus’ Gospel with them.

As we went out from our lodging and walked through the trees, we saw small palm nuts in clusters in the trees and some that had fallen to the ground and we also saw large nuts, “coconuts,” on the ground and in clusters in the trees. These nuts reminded us how we grow in groups through  worship and Sunday School and then are able to go out on our own for Jesus.

As we walked through our neighborhood, we saw many varieties of palms: some fan shaped, others reeds, many large, and many small in size, all created by God. We are like the palms too, all different and yet the same. As God created us, God created the palms.

Palm Sunday will be a very special time for us as we honor Jesus’s entry into Jerusalem with palm branches and the marking of Holy Week.

Blessed are we this day.

Reba and Pastor Gary

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Announcements and Stuff

Posted on February 27, 2026 | Leave a comment

UMCOR SUNDAY
Sunday, March 15th is United Methodists Council on Relief Sunday. The Claybanks United Methodist Church has supported UMCOR for many of its eighty plus years providing relief for those in need. During 2025, 137 worldwide Humanitarian Crises were addressed by UMCOR. Records show 454,163 lives were directly touched through the aid provided by UMCOR. 153 grants for disaster response and recovery were given in 2025. Included in these grants were eighteen for global migration, six for environmental relief, and ten for agricultural initiatives.

On UMCOR Sunday, the donations we give go to support the administration of UMCOR. By supporting UMCOR Sunday giving, when special requests for disasters and crises relief happens, all 100% of the funds given go directly to relief. In 2025, special giving totaled $32.96 million. The total funds raised went directly to humanitarian crises.

There will be special giving envelopes in the pews for UMCOR Sunday. Please prayerfully consider supporting them March 15th.

Holy Week
Holy Week begins on Sunday, March 29th, when we will celebrate Palm Sunday during our worship service. Holy Thursday, April 2nd, we are invited to worship with the White Lake United Methodist Church in the evening. The Claybanks United  Methodist Church will have a Good Friday service at 2:00 in the afternoon. Easter celebration will begin with a visit to the empty tomb inside in the fellowship hall at 9:30 am. Following our visit, we will have an Easter breakfast provided for us by the Claybanks Women of Faith. At 10:30 am we will all enter the sanctuary together for our Easter worship celebration.

Adult Sunday School
Sunday, March 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th, we will gather and join other United Methodist churches in Michigan to learn from the  book “Knowing who we are: The Westland Way of Grace.” The program will include readings, video presentations, and discussion on what we believe, what we do, and why. The program will offer us a clear picture of our Wesleyan way of following Jesus, focusing on core values like God’s full grace for everyone, real life transformation, how your faith leads to positive, visual changes in your life, your community, and the world. The materials were developed by Lacey Warner, a professor at Duke University divinity school. Everyone is invited to participate. We will have the coffee ready each Sunday and occasionally doughnut holes! See you at 9:30 am beginning Sunday, March 8th. Reading handouts are available prior to the beginning of our classes located on the materials table in the fellowship hall.

Missions for March and April
In the fellowship hall, you will find a table for the Trinity Lutheran baby pantry. On the table are handouts that detail some of the needs that the pantry has identified for us as donations. We will continue to have updates through March and April and as the table becomes full, we will deliver our donations to the Trinity baby pantry.

We are looking for suggestions for mission work in our community that we can assist in beginning in May and running through the summer. If you have ideas, please pass them on to the missions and outreach team.

United Women of Faith
Ladies of the church, WOF, we will have our first meeting of the year on the third Thursday in March. Can spring be far behind? Yea!!

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Upcoming Worship Schedule

Posted on February 27, 2026 | Leave a comment

MARCH SCRIPTURE & MESSAGE

Sunday, March 1
Terri Cummins Leading Worship with Communion
Psalm 121
John 3:1-17
Looking For Love? Look For The Helper

Sunday, March 8
Exodus 17:1-7
John 4:5-42
Living Water

Sunday, March 15
UMCOR Sunday
1 Samuel 16:1-13
Ephesians 5:6-14
Do Not Become Blind

Sunday, March 22
Psalm 130
John 11:1-45
A Whole Family Close to Jesus

Sunday, March 29
Palm Sunday
Matthew 21:1-11
Philippians 2:5-11
Matthew 26:36-56
Further Into The Garden

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February 22nd Worship Service

Posted on February 20, 2026 | Leave a comment

Claybanks United Methodist Church
Sunday, February 22, 2026
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.                                       
First Sunday in Lent
* Indicates to stand as you are able

Welcome and Announcements
*Praise Song
”Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee”………..UMH  89

Prelude

*Processional
In this place, among these people
God is worshipped, God is praised.
We have seen the signs and wonders;
The lost are found here, the dead are raised.
We are living the Gospel story;
lives are changed, and mountains moved.
Won’t you come and work among us?
You are welcomed, you are loved.

*Call to Worship
Leader: Open the gates of righteousness, the gate of the Lord.
All: So that we may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.
Leader: This is the day that the Lord has made,
All: Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Leader: Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
All: The Lord is God and has given us his light.
Leader: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
All: And his steadfast love endures forever.

*Gloria Patri……………………………UMH 70
*Opening Prayer
God of wisdom and groundedness, you have encouraged us to live our lives grounded in faith, patience, and love. Help us to love others without judgment, but with a solid foundation of acceptance, for the sake of Jesus Christ. Amen

*Hymn
”Lord, Whose Love Through Humble Service”…..UMH 581

Prayers of the People – Joys and Concerns

Shalom Offering
The Offering of our Gifts and Ourselves
*Doxology…………………………………UMH 95

*Prayer of Dedication
*Hymn
”Here I Am, Lord”…………………….UMH 593

Sharing of the Word
Old Testament Reading
Isaiah 58:1-3..………………………………………………Page 600
Epistle Reading
1 Corinthians 2:13-16…………………………….……….Page 927
*Gospel Reading
Matthew 5:13-20, 7:12……………………………Pages 786 & 788

Message by Pastor Terri Cummins
“I Never Said That”           

Prayer
Imposition of Ashes

*Hymn
”I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light”…….UMH 206

Benediction
Postlude – Please be seated

Pianist – Suzanne Bellrichard
Liturgist – Kelly White
Ministers – All People As We Live The Good News

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February 15th Worship Service

Posted on February 13, 2026 | Leave a comment

Claybanks United Methodist Church
Sunday, February 15, 2026
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.                                       
Transfiguration Sunday
* Indicates to stand as you are able

Welcome and Announcements
*Praise Song
”Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies”…….UMH 173

Prelude
*Processional
In this place, among these people
God is worshipped, God is praised.
We have seen the signs and wonders;
The lost are found here, the dead are raised.
We are living the Gospel story;
lives are changed, and mountains moved.
Won’t you come and work among us?
You are welcomed, you are loved.

*Call to Worship
Leader: As God called to Moses from the mountain,
All: We are called to be God’s people.
Leader: As Jesus called the disciples to climb with him to the peak of another mountain,
All: We are called to follow wherever Jesus leads.
Leader: As the disciples stood in awe at the sound of God’s voice,
All: We are called to worship in wonder and praise.

*Gloria Patri………………………UMH 70
*A Statement of Faith of the United Church of Canada…..UMH 883

*Hymn
”We Have Come at Christ’s Own Bidding………TFWS 2103

Prayers of the People – Joys and Concerns
The Offering of our Gifts and Ourselves
*Doxology………………………………UMH 95

*Prayer of Dedication
*Hymn
”Take My Life, and Let It Be”……………UMH 399

Sharing of the Word
Old Testament Reading
Exodus 24:12-18..………………………….Page 62
*Gospel Reading
Matthew 17:1-19………………..….Pages 798-799

Message by Pastor Gary Peterson
“What Have You Experienced On A Mountain?”               

Prayer
*Hymn
”Blest Be the Tie that Binds”……………UMH 557

Benediction
Postlude – Please be seated

Pianist – Suzanne Bellrichard
Liturgist – Ellen Zimmerman
Ministers – All People As We Live The Good News

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February 8 Worship

Posted on February 6, 2026 | Leave a comment

Claybanks United Methodist Church
Sunday, February 8, 2026
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.                                       
Fifth Sunday After the Epiphany
* Indicates to stand as you are able

Welcome and Announcements
*Praise Song
”O God Who Shaped Creation”.………..UMH 443

Prelude

*Processional
In this place, among these people
God is worshipped, God is praised.
We have seen the signs and wonders;
The lost are found here, the dead are raised.
We are living the Gospel story;
lives are changed, and mountains moved.
Won’t you come and work among us?
You are welcomed, you are loved.

*Call to Worship
Leader: Praise the Lord! Happy are those who delight in the Lord!
All: We come to this place, where generations before us have gathered.
Leader: Here we remember the light of God that shines in our lives.
All: Here we allow God’s light to shine through us.
Leader: Let us worship our radiant God.
All: Praise the Lord! Happy are all who delight in the Lord!

*Gloria Patri………………………………UMH 70
*Opening Prayer

*Hymn
”Take Time to Be Holy”……………………UMH 395

Prayers of the People – Joys and Concerns
The Offering of our Gifts and Ourselves
*Doxology…………………………………..…UMH 95

*Prayer of Dedication
*Hymn
”Freely, Freely”……………………..UMH 389

Sharing of the Word
Old Testament Reading
Genesis 2:15-17 & 3:1-7…………….………..Page 2
*Gospel Reading
Matthew 4:1-11……………….….……Page 785

Message by Pastor Gary Peterson
“What Can We Learn From Temptations?”           

Prayer
*Hymn
”As a Fire Is Meant for Burning”……….TFWS 2237
Benediction
Postlude – Please be seated

Pianist – Suzanne Bellrichard
Liturgist – Art Grumm
Ministers – All People As We Live The Good News

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