Living Faithfully in God’s Promise
“Joshua Renews the Covenant”
Sunday, October 18, 2026
*Please stand in body or in spirit. Congregational responses are in bold and preceded by "All"
GATHERING
Welcome and Announcements
Invitation and Sharing of Peace
Peace be with you. And also with you.
Prelude Gabriels’ Obo Ben Boellner, Guest Organist
Call to Worship (Clergy Stuff)
LEADER: Choose this day whom you will serve.
ALL: We will serve God, who made us.
LEADER: Choose this day whom you will serve.
ALL: We will serve God, who frees us.
LEADER: Choose this day whom you will serve.
ALL: We will serve God, who calls us to love.
Opening Prayer (Clergy Stuff)
ALL: God of promise, Renew in us each day your covenant with us—that you will be our God and we will be your people. Open our hearts to your call to be your hands and feet in the world, to love, serve, and do justice for the flourishing of all creation. Guide us in all we do and say this day and every day. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
*Opening Song O Jesus, I Have Promised UMH 396
- O Jesus, I have promised
to serve thee to the end;
be thou forever near me,
my Master and my friend.
I shall not fear the battle
if thou art by my side,
nor wander
from the pathway
if thou wilt be my guide.
- O let me feel thee near me!
The world is ever near;
I see the sights that dazzle,
the tempting sounds I hear;
my foes are ever near me,
around me and within;
but Jesus, draw thou nearer,
and shield my
soul from sin.
- O let me hear thee speaking
in accents clear and still,
above the storms of passion,
the murmurs of self-will.
O speak to reassure me,
to hasten or control;
O speak, and
make me listen,
thou guardian of my soul.
- O Jesus, thou
hast promised
to all who follow thee
that where thou art
in glory
there shall thy servant be.
And Jesus, I have promised
to serve thee to the end;
O give me grace to follow,
my Master and my friend.
LISTENING
Scripture Reading Joshua 24:1-26
[Narrator: Then the people answered,
People: Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed; and the Lord drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God.
Narrator: But Joshua said to the people,
Joshua: You cannot serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good.
Narrator: And the people said to Joshua,
People: No, we will serve the Lord!
Narrator: Then Joshua said to the people,
Joshua: You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord, to serve him.
Narrator: And they said,
People: We are witnesses.
Narrator: He said,
Joshua: Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.
Narrator: The people said to Joshua,
People: The Lord our God we will serve, and him we will obey.
Narrator: So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem. Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God; and he took a large stone, and set it up there under the oak in the sanctuary of the Lord.
LEADER: This is the word of God for the people of God.
ALL: Thanks be to God.
Message for All Ages
Sermon “Joshua Renews the Covenant” Rev. DV Yost
RESPONDING
*Sermon Song Love Divine, All Loves Excelling UMH 384
1. Love divine,
all loves excelling,
joy of heaven,
to earth come down;
fix in us thy
humble dwelling;
all thy faithful
mercies crown!
Jesus, thou art
all compassion,
pure, unbounded
love thou art;
visit us with
thy salvation;
enter every
trembling heart.
- Breathe, O breathe
thy loving Spirit
into every
troubled breast!
Let us all
in thee inherit;
let us find that
second rest.
Take away
our bent to sinning;
Alpha and
Omega be;
end of faith,
as its beginning,
set our hearts
at liberty.
- Come, Almighty
to deliver,
let us all
thy life receive;
suddenly return
and never,
nevermore thy
temples leave.
Thee we would be
always blessing,
serve thee as
thy hosts above,
pray and praise thee
without ceasing,
glory in thy
perfect love.
- Finish, then,
thy new creation;
pure and spotless
let us be.
Let us see thy
great salvation
perfectly restored
in thee;
changed from glory
into glory,
till in heaven
we take our place,
till we cast our
crowns before thee,
lost in wonder,
love, and praise.
Prayers of the People
Leader: God of mercy and grace,, ALL: we lift our prayers to you.
The Lord’s Prayer (Spoken)
All: 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 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.
Offertory As the Deer / All in All Ben Boellner, Guest Organist
*Offering Response Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow (UMH 94)
*Prayer of Dedication (Clergy Stuff)
ALL: Holy God, we have chosen this day to serve you, rather than worldly powers and material possessions. We offer now these gifts as a sign of our faithfulness, and ask that you would bless them and use them for the good of all that you have made. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
SENDING
*Closing Song Stand Up, stand Up for Jesus UMH 514
1. Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
ye soldiers of the cross;
lift high his royal banner,
it must not suffer loss
From victory unto victory
his army shall he lead,
till every foe is vanquished,
and Christ is Lord indeed.
2. Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the trumpet call obey;
forth to the mighty conflict,
in this his glorious day.
Ye that are brave now serve him
against unnumbered foes;
let courage rise with danger,
and strength to strength oppose.
3. Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
stand in his strength alone;
the arm of flesh will fail you,
ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armor,
each piece put on with prayer;
where duty calls or danger,
be never wanting there.
4. Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the strife will not be long,
this day the noise of battle,
the next the victor’s song.
To those who vanquish evil
a crown of life shall be;
they with the King of Glory
shall reign eternally.
*Benediction
Benediction Response
Postlude Trumpet Tune Ben Boellner, Guest Organist
Next Week
Living Faithfully in God’s Promise
“David and Bahshebat”
October 25, 2026 J2 Samuel 11:1-5, 26-27; 12:1-9; Psalm 51:1-9
This Week at Arnolia
- Monday, October 19: 7 PM Spiritual Care First Aid (virtual)
- Tuesday, October 20: Thrift Store accepting donations
- Tuesday, October 20: 12 Noon Pastors Study
- Tuesday, October 20: 6:30 PM Bible Study
- Thursday, October 22: 10 AM - 2PM Thrift Store OPEN
- Thursday, October 22: 6:30 PM Celebration Ringers
- Thursday, October 22: 7:30 PM Chancel Choir
- Friday, October 23: Pastor’s Sabbath – Church Office Closed
- Sunday, October 25 10 AM: Worship Service
- Sunday, October 25:: 6:30 PM Alpha for Young Adults (virtual)
Copywrite
O Jesus, I Have Promised, by Arthur Henry Mann, John Ernest Bode, Public Domain, CCLI#40454 - UMH 396
Used by Permission. CCLI Church Copyright License Number: 1684333 and Streaming License Number: 20155039
Love Divine, All Loves Excelling, UMH 384, Public Domain
Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus by George Duffield Jr. and George James Webb © 1982 The Jubilate Group - UMH 514 -CCLI #5422922 Used by Permission. CCLI Church Copyright License Number: 1684333 and Streaming License Number: 20155039.
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