What are the opening hours?

Monday 9am - 12pm Tuesday 9am - 12pm Wednesday 9am - 12pm Thursday 9am - 12pm Friday 9am - 12pm Sunday 9am - 12pm

First United Methodist Church of Western Springs, 4300 Howard Avenue, Western Springs, IL (2026)

Founded in 1888, our congregation remains a vibrant presence for spiritual fulfillment and social justice in Western Springs and beyond. We value education, inclusivity, broad-mindedness, hands-on service and outreach, engaging worship, and opportunities for fellowship for all ages.

05/20/2024

It was a great service today I spend 61 years in the western springs Methodist church thanks for all the fond memories

05/02/2024

Friends and Church Family,
Here is our liturgy this Sunday for your information, guide and use when you join in worship either in person or virtual. Thank you.

First United Methodist Church
4300 Howard Ave
Western Springs, IL 60558

LITURGY OF WORD AND TABLE
6th Sunday of Easter
May 5, 2024 – 12:00 PM
Everyone is WELCOME joining in WORSHIP in person,
on Zoom - Meeting ID 878 9769 6462, Passcode – 782 353,
or on FB Live .

Kathleen Bailey, Liturgist
Rev. Fr. Wayne Matulionis, Organist
Eros Mabalay, Tech Support
Kathleen Bailey, Childcare Support
Jan Caliendo, Healthcare Support
Erv Dvorak, Greeter
Rev. Dr. Juancho C. Campañano, Pastor

Prelude

Pastoral Greetings

Words of Welcome
Welcome and Good morning everyone! We're excited to have you join in worship today. Welcome to First UMC of Western Springs. We're glad you're here! Come with your gifts, your pain, your hope, your fears. Come with the traditions that have helped you and hurt you. Come with your experiences that have made you and broken you. Come with a mind, ready to engage, and a heart, open to discern. Come and listen for the Sacred Spirit that calls you to love your neighbor wholeheartedly, seek justice, create peace and practice compassion. You are welcome here!

++Call to Worship
As we gather, may we open our hearts to receive newness of life.

We come with hope for renewal.

In our time of worship, may we be inspired by God’s presence and wisdom.

We come seeking to learn and to draw closer to God.

Come, let us worship, as the beloved children of God.

++Opening Prayer
Cultivating God, we come as your children to grow and learn, because you are our divine vine grower. God, we desire for you to abide within us, and for your grace to be revealed anew daily. As your branches, we ask you to nourish us for continued growth. May you transform our hearts and minds as we hear your Word, sing your praises, and engage in holy dialogue through prayer. May you help us to bear good fruit through the vine of Jesus Christ. In Whose name we pray, Amen.

++Hymn “Great is Your Faithfulness” UMH 140
Great is your faithfulness, O God, Creator; With you no shadow of turning we see. You do not change, your compassions, they fail not; All of your goodness forever will be.

Refrain:
Great is your faithfulness! Great is your faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see: All I have needed your hand has provided— Great is your faithfulness, God, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest; Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above. Join with all nature in manifold witness
to your great faithfulness, mercy, and love. Refrain

Pardon for sin and a peace so enduring, Your own dear presence to cheer and to guide; Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow — Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside. Refrain

Prayer of Confession
O God, giver of life, we confess the times when we fail to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. God, forgive us when we ignore or we fail to see our neighbors in need. Abiding God, also forgive us when we reject love from others, and shut down completely. As we confess the times when we did not tend to our own needs, and denied ourselves of your forgiveness and grace. In our failures, we have refused your invitation to grow closer to you. In our confession, O God, we pray your abiding love be shown through the ways we love more fully. Amen.

Assurance of God’s Pardon
O God, hear your beloved community as we repent and pray for your forgiveness. Give to us your grace and restore to us your love that is forgiven and fearless. God, we desire for your loving Spirit to renew and strengthen us daily. Thank you, O God, for forgiving us and for restoring upon us the joy of your salvation. Amen.

Prayer for Illumination
Prepare our hearts, O God, to accept you Word. Silence in us any voices but your own, so that we may hear your Word and also do it; through Christ our Lord. Amen.

First Bible Lesson Psalm 98:1-9
1 O sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things. His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory. 2 The Lord has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.

3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God. 4 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.

5 Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody. 6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord.

7 Let the sea roar and all that fills it, the world and those who live in it. 8 Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy 9 at the presence of the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with equity

++ Gospel Alleluia FWS 2026
Hal-le, hal-le, hal-le-lu-ja! Hal-le, hal-le, hal-le-lu-ja! Hal-le, hal-le, hal-le-lu-ja! Hal-le-lu-ja! Hal-le-lu-ja!

++Gospel Lesson John 15:9-17
9 As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11 I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 I do not call you servants[a] any longer, because the servant[b] does not know what the master is doing, but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. 17 I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.

May God add blessing to the reading, listening and doing of God’s Word. Empower us, O God, to be doers of your Word. Amen.

Sharing Joys and Concerns
Praying for Peace in Hearts, Homes, and World
Pastoral Prayer

Homily “No Greater Love and Joy”
Rev. Juancho C. Campañano

The Ministry of Giving
God is the giver of all good things, the one who fashioned each of us with unique gifts that together make the Body of Christ whole. In gratitude for all we have received, we offer our lives back to God — we share our time, our skills, our money and in so doing, we say “yes” to God’s invitation to join in God’s building work here on earth.

Easter Doxology - Tune: Old
Hundredth (UMH 95)
Let trumpets sound and voices sing! Let all on earth their praises bring! For Christ has conquered sin and death and given life eternal breath. Amen.

Prayer Over Offering
Generous God, we offer you the fruits of our time, talents and resources in celebration of all that we have been given. Loving God, we give you thanks for all that we have and ask a special blessing on the fruits we have given back to help meet the needs of your beloved community. May the gifts nourish and strengthen the community to grow spiritually, emotionally, and physically. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.

Communion Hymn “One Bread, One Body” UMH 620
Refrain: One bread, one body, one Lord of all, one cup of blessing which we bless. And we, though many, throughout the earth, we are one body in this one Lord.

Gentile or Jew, servant or free, woman or man, no more. (Refrain)

Many the gifts, many the works, one in the Lord of all. (Refrain)

Grain for the fields, scattered and grown, gathered to one, for all. (Refrain)

Celebration of Holy Communion
Come to the table of peace.

Come to the table of love.

Come to the table of joy.

Come to the table of power.

Come to the table of Christ.

heaven and earth were formed.

Great Thanksgiving
You are worthy of all our praise, O God, for you are the source of all good power. By your power,
you created us and gave us life.

By your power,

we are guided and protected.

By your power,

Jesus Christ triumphed over the grave.

By your power,

the Holy Spirit comes to sustain and care for us.

And so, in praise and gratitude, we join the generations
of the faithful in singing your praise.

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

The Words of Institution
We give thanks to God our Father and Mother that our Savior, Jesus Christ, before he suffered, gave us this memorial of his sacrifice, until he comes again. At his last supper, the Lord Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said,

“This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way, he took the cup after supper and said,

“This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this in remembrance of me.”

For whenever we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). Therefore we proclaim our faith as signed and sealed in this sacrament:

Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.

The Prayer of Consecration
Gracious Creator, our God, send your Holy Spirit so that this bread and cup may be for us the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. May we and all your saints be united with Christ and remain faithful in hope and love. Gather your whole church, O Lord, into the glory of your kingdom. We pray in the name of Jesus, who taught us to pray, “Our Father in heaven . . . Amen.”

The Communion – Sharing and Partaking of Sacrament

Thanksgiving Prayer after Communion
Eternal God, Creator of Heaven and Earth, you have graciously accepted us as living members of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, and you have fed us with spiritual food in the sacrament of his body and blood. Send us now into the world in peace, and grant us strength and courage to love and serve you with gladness and singleness of heart. Through Christ, our Lord, Amen.

++Hymn Remember Me - words by Carolyn Gillette
(Tune: "Though I May Speak" – UMH 408)
Remember me — the God who saves — for back in Egypt you were slaves; Then by my hand I set you free. Now keep my law. Remember me.

Remember me in bread and wine, whene'er you share this meal of mine. I gave my life to set you free. With thanks and praise, remember me.

Remember me in all you do, for I'm alive! I walk with you. I was, I am, and I shall be. O church I love, remember me.

Our God, we hear! We're called and freed! Your Spirit gives us memory. Now send us out that we may share; Your love's great story everywhere.

++Benediction

Postlude

Announcements and Opportunities
Today
12:00 PM = Today is the 6th Sunday Resurrection/Easter In this season of Easter we celebrate Life, Renewal, Growth, Empowerment, the power and promise of Resurrection.

1:15 PM = Meet and greet over coffee and treats.

A BIG SHOUT OF THANK YOU to (1) Fr. Wayne for preaching and presiding over our worship last Sunday and to (2) Eros Mabalay for for his faithfulness in providing technical support during our worship services.

Last Thursday, April 18, 2024 a Special Church Conference was presided over by our District Superintendent, The Rev. Dr. Audrea Nanabray voted unanimously to merge with Hinsdale UMC. Thank you for your prayers and participation that made this mew chapter of our life as a church possible.

Please continue to pray for our denomination’s faithful and fruitful General Conference meeting in Charlotte, NC. It started last Tuesday, April 23, and culminates this Friday, May 3rd.

May 19, Pentecost Day/Sunday. Please mark your calendar on this day. Our Council has decided to hold our last and culminating worship service in this church and grounds. A potluck fellowship lunch will follow the service. Please do your best to attend.

04/26/2024

Hey Friends and Church Family, here is our liturgy for Sunday for your information, guide and use as you prepare, pray and eventually join worship. Hope to see you Sunday in worship and fellowship.

First United Methodist Church
4300 Howard Ave., Western Springs, IL 60558

5th Sunday of Easter
April 28, 2024 ~ 12:00 PM

Everyone is WELCOME joining in WORSHIP in person,
on Zoom - Meeting ID 878 9769 6462, Passcode – 782 353,
or on FB Live .

Kathleen Bailey, Liturgist
Rev. Fr. Wayne Matulionis, Organist
Eros Mabalay, Tech Support
Kathleen Bailey, Childcare Support
Jan Caliendo, Healthcare Support
Erv Dvorak, Greeter
Rev. Dr. Juancho C. Campañano, Pastor

++ At this SIGN, we invite each one to stand in body or in spirit.

Prelude

Pastoral Greetings

Words of Welcome
Today is the 5th Sunday in the great 50 days of Easter. The emphasis in this season is on the power and promise of resurrection, a new life, second chances and the assurance that life is greater than death. In this church everyone is welcome, everyone is important and mutually contribute to enrichment of our common life, worship and fellowship. Rest, relax, everyone is accepted and loved by God as you are. Open your heart to the filling, leading and empowerment of the Holy Spirit.

++Call to Worship
God is the True Vine,

And we are the branches.

Connected to God.

Connected to bear fruit!

Connected to God.

Or we wither away.

Connected to God.

Or useless!

We come to worship God, who is the True Vine.

God, teach us how to remain connected so that we might be faithful and bear good fruit! Let us worship God.

++Opening Prayer
God of love, plant us in the soil of your grace. Nurture us with the strength of Christ, the vine of everlasting life. Enlighten us with the wisdom of your Spirit, which flows through us today and all days. Abide in us, that we may abide in you and live in your love. In your holy name, we pray. Amen.

++Hymn “’They’ll Know We Are
Christians By Our Love” -
TFWS 2223
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord; We are one int he Spirit, we are one in the Lord; And we pray that all unity will one day be restored.

Chorus: And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love.

We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand; We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand; And together we'll spread the news that God is in our land. (Chorus)

We Will work with each other, we will work side by side; We will work with each other, we will work side by side; And we'll guard each one's dignity and save each one's pride. (Chorus)

All praise to the Father, from whom all things come; And all praise to Christ Jesus, His only Son. And all praise to the Spirit who makes us one. (Chorus)

Prayer of Confession (based on John 15:1-8)
Jesus said: “I am the vine, you are the branches.” Let us pray.

We thank you, gracious God, for Jesus Christ the true vine, with his roots eternally grounded in you. We rejoice that by grace we have been grafted into him, to be branches on a vine which bears the loveliest of all the fruits of earth. Yet we confess that all is not well with the way we live.

Please forgive us for the occasions when we have been the ones to introduce disease into the vine, preferring its contamination to the vigor of health. Forgive us for neglecting to draw deeply on the sap of Life, for our tendency to wander instead of growing on the framework you provide,
for being content, and sometimes even proud of, a few sparse or undersized fruits, for the apathy which lets us to go through some seasons without bearing any fruit.

Have mercy on us. Please do not lose patience or sever us completely from the true vine. Rather heal our diseases, discipline and train our wandering tendrils, prune our unfruitful branches and cut away our diseased ones. May we remain in Christ and he in us, through all the changing seasons of life. Let us delight in bearing the fruits of love which are our true purpose and joy. For your Name’s sake. Amen!

Words of Assurance
Jesus said: “If you reside in me, and my words reside in you, ask whatever you will and it shall be done for you.” Friends, we have asked for forgiveness and correction. It has been truly done for us. It is being done for us. And it will be done for us.
Thanks be to God. Amen.

Children’s Moment Sanha Kang, Director of Youth & Family
Soft music is played while children exit for Children’s church

Prayer for Illumination
Risen Christ, our Good Shepherd, the Good News of your Resurrection is so wondrous, so magnificent, that we struggle to wrap our heads around it. Give our hearts the wisdom to receive that which our heads cannot fully understand. Send your Spirit to fill our whole bodies with your resurrection promise. This we pray in your most holy and wondrous name. Amen.

First Bible Lesson
Psalm 22:25-31
25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will pay before those who fear him. 26 The poor[h] shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord. May your hearts live forever!

27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before him.[i] 28 For dominion belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations.

29 To him,[j] indeed, shall all who sleep in[k] the earth bow down; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, and I shall live for him.[l] 30 Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord 31and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn, saying that he has done it.

Second Bible Lesson
1 John 4:7-21
7 Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.

13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and do testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. 15 God abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in God. 16 So we have known and believe the love that God has for us.

God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. 17 Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. 19 We love[a] because he first loved us.

20 Those who say, “I love God,” and hate a brother or sister are liars, for those who do not love a brother or sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.

++Gospel Lesson John 15:1-8
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. 2 He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes[a] to make it bear more fruit. 3 You have already been cleansed[b] by the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become[c] my disciples.

May God bless the reading, listening and doing of God’s Word.
Thanks be to God.

Ministry of Giving
Our risen Lord, Jesus Christ, is the vine and we are the branches. Our life and the fruit of our lives are made possible by abiding with the Vine. The gifts we bring is a portion of the fruit of our lives in God. We offer our lives, labor, prayers, service, witness and money as expression of our thanksgiving to God who gives everything we need that we might live and have life abundantly. We give because we would like to be partners with Jesus in his work of redemption and reconciliation in the world.

++Easter Doxology - UMH 94
Praise the Creator for each day
Thanks for our Guide who leads the way
Preparation, Meditation
Bathe in discovery, Spirit led
And live anew in days ahead
In remembrance, Crucifixion,
Easter Promise, Resurrection! Alleluia!

++Prayer Over Offering
Gracious God, as we offer our gifts today, we reflect on the wisdom in the words from John’s gospel. In this imagery, we recognize our role as branches, connected to you, the source of our strength and vitality. Help us stay rooted in your love, producing fruit that brings glory to your name. May these gifts signify our commitment to abide in your teachings and work joyfully in response to your love. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Sharing Joys and Concerns
Prayer for Peace in Ukraine, Israel-Palestine-Iran, Sudan and the World
Pastoral Prayer
The Lord’s Prayer

Sermon “Faithfulness &
Fruitfulness”
Rev. Juancho C. Campañano

++Hymn “Christ Be With Us” - wprds by Carolyn Gillette
(Tune: What a Friend We Have in Jesus - UMH526)
Christ be with us, Christ behind us, Christ before us — all around! Christ in busy, noisy cities, Christ where hardly rings a sound. Jesus, you're our Lord and Savior; On your love we can depend. Help us see your presence clearly in each stranger and each friend.

Christ in lines of people fleeing, praying that a war will cease; Christ in battered women's shelters, looking for a place of peace. Christ with people sick or dying, loved ones trying hard to cope; In this world of so much suffering, Christ, you give your people hope.

Christ with children who must struggle, working hard for daily food; Christ in classrooms, learning, growing, asking questions, seeking good; Christ in diners, waiting tables; Christ in homes where children play; In this world of people working, Christ, you work through us today.

Christ with all who keep on struggling, helping others to be free; Christ with churches working, searching for a greater unity; Christ, in bread and wine, be with us, giving strength for each new day in this world of daily crosses, be our joyful, living Way.

Benediction

Postlude

Announcements and Opportunities
Today
12:00 PM = Today is the 5th Sunday Resurrection/Easter In this season of Easter we celebrate Life, Renewal, Growth, Empowerment, the power and promise of Resurrection.

1:15 PM = Meet and greet over coffee and treats.

A BIG SHOUT OF THANK YOU to (1) Fr. Wayne for preaching and presiding over our worship last Sunday and to (2) Eros Mabalay for for his faithfulness in providing technical support during our worship services.

Last Thursday a Special Church Conference was presided over by our District Superintendent, The Rev. Dr. Audrea Nanabray voted unanimously to merge with Hinsdale UMC. Thank you for your prayers and participation that made this mew chapter of our life as a church possible.

Please continue to pray for our denomination’s faithful and fruitful General Conference meeting in Charlotte, NC. It started last Tuesday, April 23, and culminates this Friday, May 3rd.

May 19, Pentecost Day/Sunday. Please mark your calendar on this day. Our Council has decided to hold our last and culminating worship service in this church and grounds. A potluck fellowship lunch will follow the service. Please do your best to attend.

04/20/2024

Friends and Church Family, here is our liturgy for Sunday for your information, guide and use when you join in worship either in person or online. Thank you.

First United Methodist Church
4300 Howard Ave., Western Springs, IL 60558

4th Sunday of Easter
The Good Shepherd Sunday
April 21, 2024 ~ 12:00 PM

Everyone is WELCOME joining in WORSHIP in person,
on Zoom - Meeting ID 878 9769 6462, Passcode – 782 353,
or on FB Live .

Kathleen Bailey, Liturgist
Rev. Fr. Wayne Matulionis, Organist
Eros Mabalay, Tech Support
Kathleen Bailey, Childcare Support
Jan Caliendo, Healthcare Support
Erv Dvorak, Greeter
Rev. Dr. Juancho C. Campañano, Pastor

++ At this SIGN, we invite each one to stand in body or in spirit.

Prelude

Pastoral Greetings

++Call to Worship
Jesus said: I AM the Good Shepherd.

The one who tends us, guides us into pastures, who recognizes the sounds of our names.

Jesus said: I AM the Good Shepherd.

The one who bends to heal us, travels through the deepest valleys with us, and who gives up everything for us all.

Jesus said: I AM the Good Shepherd.

The one whose rod and staff comfort us whose strength and love holds us whose cup of love runs over.

Jesus, our Risen Lord and Savior, our Good Shepherd and we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever…

Let us gather here God’s People in God’s love for God’s world.

++Opening Prayer
Loving Shepherd, you know our names; you care for us. When we face darkness and death, walk beside us. When we hunger for your love, fill us with your presence. When we are fearful, feed us at your table. May we dwell in the house of goodness and mercy all the days of our lives. Amen.

++Hymn “Lord, You Are My Shepherd” - Words by Carolyn Gillette
(Tune: To God Be The Glory with Refrain – UMH 98)
Lord, you are my shepherd and so I am blessed; You make me lie down in green pastures to rest. You lead me beside the still waters, O Lord; In you I find peace and my soul is restored.

Refrain: In this world, there is much that can tempt me away, yet in you, I'm content, as you guide me each day. O Lord, I don't need to feel lost or alone; for you are my Shepherd and I am your own.

You lead me to do what is just, in your name; You guide me through valleys of death and deep pain. I'll fear nothing evil with you by my side; Your rod and your staff, Lord, will comfort and guide. Refrain

You set me a table right here by my foes; You bless me with joy till my cup overflows. Your goodness and mercy will follow me through; I'll live in your presence, forever with you. Refrain

Prayer of Confession
Gentle Shepherd, You guide us in right paths, You lead us in the ways of righteousness, but we have allowed our anger, our rage, our greed, and at times even hate, to direct our paths. We have overreacted, we have taken more than our share, we have despised others that seem to have it all. Forgive us, God, for not following Your ways. Forgive us for not remembering that we are Your sheep, and You are our Shepherd. Forgive us when we have not listened for Your voice and instead have acted in the ways of the world. Guide us back to Your path, to loving You and loving our neighbors. Help us to unclench our fists and lend out our hands in hope and healing, forgiveness and love. In the name of Christ our Shepherd we pray. Amen.

Words of Assurance
The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The Good Shepherd knows the sheep, and the Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep so that the sheep may live. We are part of the flock; we are part of Christ’s body. In Christ we find wholeness and restoration, reconciliation and redemption.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Prayer for Illumination
Risen Christ, our Good Shepherd, the Good News of your Resurrection is so wondrous, so magnificent, that we struggle to wrap our heads around it. Give our hearts the wisdom to receive that which our heads cannot fully understand. Send your Spirit to fill our whole bodies with your resurrection promise. This we pray in your most holy and wondrous name. Amen.

First Bible Lesson Psalm 23
1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;[a] 3he restores my soul.[b]
He leads me in right paths[c] for his name’s sake.

People: 4Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[d] I fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Unison: 5You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6Surely[e] goodness and mercy[f] shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long

Second Bible Lesson
1 John 3:16-24
16 We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers and sisters. 17 How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?

18 Little children, let us love not in word or speech but in deed and truth. 19 And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him 20 whenever our hearts condemn us, for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. 21Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God, 22 and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.

23 And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24 All who obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us.

++Gospel Lesson
John 10:10b-18
I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep.

16 I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. 18 No one takes[a] it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”

May God bless the reading, listening and doing of God’s Word.

Thanks be to God.

Ministry of Giving
God is the giver of all good things, the one who raised our risen Good Shepherd and fashioned each of us with unique gifts that together make the Body of Christ whole. In gratitude for all we have received, we offer our lives back to God — we share our time, our skills, our money and in so doing, we say “yes” to God’s invitation
to join in God’s Kin-dom building work here on earth. Let us give our offerings of lives, labor and money.

Easter Doxology - Tune: LASST UNSFREUEN (UMH 94)
Praise the Creator for each day
Thanks for our Guide who leads the way
Preparation, Meditation
Bathe in discovery, Spirit led
And live anew in days ahead
In remembrance, Crucifixion,
Easter Promise, Resurrection! Alleluia!

Prayer Over Offering
Bountiful God, our Good Shepherd, all that we can offer you stems from your generosity. May the gifts that we return to you become a blessing for your whole community, enriching and empowering us for the work to which you call us. Amen.

Sharing Joys and Concerns

Pastoral Prayer
The Lord’s Prayer

Sermon Rev. Juancho C.
Campañano
"Shepherd and Sheep"

++Easter Hymn “Because He
Lives” UMH 364
God sent His son, they called Him Jesus; He came to love, heal, and forgive; He lived and died to buy my pardon, An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

Refrain: Because He lives, I can face tomorrow; Because He lives, all fear is gone; Because I know He holds the future, And life is worth the living, just because He lives.

And then one day, I'll cross the river; I'll fight life's final war with pain; And then, as death gives way to victory, I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know He reigns.

Benediction

Postlude

Announcements and Opportunities
Today
12:00 PM = Today is the 4th Sunday Resurrection/Easter also known as Good DShepherd Sunday. In this season of Easter we celebrate Life, Renewal, Growth and Empowerment.

1:15 PM = Meet and greet over coffee and treats.

A BIG SHOUT OF THANK YOU to (1) Fr. Wayne for preaching and presiding over our worship last Sunday and to (2) Eros Mabalay for for his faithfulness in providing technical support during our worship services.

Last Thursday a Special Church Conference was presided over by our District Superintendent, The Rev. Dr. Audrea Nanabray. Both First UMC-WS and Hinsdale UMC voted unanimously to merge as one church effective May 20, 2024. Thank you for your prayers and participation that made this mew chapter of our life as a church possible.

May 19, Pentecost Day/Sunday. Please mark your calendar on this day. Our Council has decided to hold our last and culminating worship service in this church and grounds. A potluck fellowship lunch will follow the service. Please do your best to attend.

Address

4300 Howard Avenue
Western Springs, IL
60558

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 12pm
Tuesday	9am - 12pm
Wednesday	9am - 12pm
Thursday	9am - 12pm
Friday	9am - 12pm
Sunday	9am - 12pm

Telephone

+17082461785

Website

http://fumcws.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when First United Methodist Church of Western Springs posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Place Of Worship

Send a message to First United Methodist Church of Western Springs:

First United Methodist Church of Western Springs