Hampstead Congregational Church
June 21, 2026
No Matter Who You Are or Where You Are on Life’s Journey,
You are Welcome Here!
Order of Worship
Prelude Herb Tardiff
Greetings and Announcements
Call to Worship (responsive) Debra Sawyer
One: The Holy One is great and does marvelous things. Delight in God!
Many: The Holy One gladdens the soul. We lift them up!
One: In the day of trouble, we call on Comforter and Protector, Counselor and Provider, Companion and Peace.
Many: The Holy One soothes the soul. We call upon their name!
One: The Gracious and Eternal God gives ear to our prayers and listens to our cries.
Many: The Holy One hears the soul. We turn to our God in hope and faith!
Invocation (unison) Debra Sawyer
Merciful and Compassionate God, we come
into your presence. Be near to us as we draw closer to you. Be near to us even
when we have doubts, have given up hope, and have been overwhelmed by our
fears. Be near to us as we sing, pray, give, and receive. We praise you for
your goodness and worship you for who you are.
Amen.
Passing of the Peace of Christ
(Feel free to pass the peace by shaking hands, offering hugs or waves. Those who would like to share peace without physical contact are invited to place their hands over their hearts in greeting.)
*Opening Hymn:
Scripture Readings: Gen 21: 8-21, Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17 (NRSVUE) Debra Sawyer
Gen 21: 8-21
8 The child grew and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. 9 But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac. 10 So she said to Abraham, “Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac.” 11 The matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son. 12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed because of the boy and because of your slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be named for you. 13 As for the son of the slave woman, I will make a nation of him also, because he is your offspring.” 14 So Abraham rose early in the morning and took bread and a skin of water and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed and wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
15 When the water in the skin was gone, she cast the child under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot, for she said, “Do not let me look on the death of the child.” And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept. 17 And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Do not be afraid, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. 18 Come, lift up the boy and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make a great nation of him.” 19 Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
20 God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow. 21 He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
Psalm 86: 1-10, 16-17 - A Prayer of David
1 Incline your ear, O Lord, and
answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my life, for I am devoted to you;
save your servant who trusts in you.
You are my God; 3 be gracious to me, O Lord,
for to you do I cry all day long.
4 Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
5 For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
abounding in steadfast love to all who call on you.
6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
listen to my cry of supplication.
7 In the day of my trouble I call on you,
for you will answer me.
8 There is none like you among the
gods, O Lord,
nor are there any works like yours.
9 All the nations you have made shall come
and bow down before you, O Lord,
and shall glorify your name.
10 For you are great and do wondrous things;
you alone are God.
16 Turn to me and be gracious to me;
give your strength to your servant;
save the child of your maidservant.
17 Show me a sign of your favor,
so that those who hate me may see it and be put to
shame,
because you, Lord, have helped me and comforted
me.
Children’s Message
Sermon: "Finding Resilience" Rev. Paige Besse-Rankin
Special Music
Prayers for Father’s Days
Call for Concerns & Celebrations
(Please write joys and concerns on the papers in the baskets in the pews and pass them to an usher. The Congregational Response is: “Hear Our Prayers”)
Pastoral Prayer Rev. Paige Besse-Rankin
The Lord’s Prayer:
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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Call to Offering:
*Doxology: NC # 779
Praise God
from whom all blessings flow; Praise
Christ all creatures here below;
Praise
Holy Spirit, Comforter; One God, Triune,
whom we adore. Amen.
*Prayer of Dedication Rev. Paige Besse-Rankin
Listening God, you hear the cries we whisper and the cries we cannot speak. In a world still marked by fear, abandonment, and unfairness, you remain the one who listens and who hears the voices of the outcast, the wounded, the overlooked. As we bring our offerings today, open our ears as yours are open. Make our giving an act of solidarity with those whose voices rise in need. Use these gifts to reveal your presence, to bring water into desert places, and to remind all your children that they are not alone. Shape us into people who hear because we have been heard. Amen.
*Hymn of Going Forth: 
*Benediction Rev. Paige Besse-Rankin
May God, our Guide and Guardian, bless you and keep you, and may you rest in the assurance that God hears our cries, draws us together as a family, and points us down the path toward well-being and flourishing for all creation. Amen.
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