 Fruitland United Methodist Church
May 31, 2026 *(Please stand if you are comfortably able.) Prelude: “All Things Bright and Beautiful” a traditional English folk melody arrang. Welcoming the Light of Christ and inviting the neighborhood to worship. Welcome and Announcements Pastor Jorge & Reece Call to Worship (based on Psalm 8 & Mathew 28) Liturgist O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! The heavens declare your glory, and creation sings your praise. From the beginning, God created the world in love. The Spirit moved over the waters, bringing life and hope. Christ calls us to go into all the world and make disciples. We come to worship the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Let us worship the Triune God together. Amen. *Opening Hymn: “Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty” UMH 64 *Opening Prayer: Triune God, Creator, Christ, and Holy Spirit, we gather today in wonder and gratitude. You formed us in love, you redeem us through grace, and you sustain us by your Spirit. Teach us again how to live in community, how to love one another, and how to reflect your image in the world. Move among us today. Renew your church. And send us forth with hope and compassion. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. *Sharing the Peace of Christ Scripture Reading: Psalm 108 Pew Bible pg. 949 Liturgist Time With Young Christians: Pastor Jorge (Please write prayer concerns and celebrations on yellow notepads, to be collected.) Community Expressions Pastor Jorge & Reece Hymn: “Holy, Holy, Holy” TFWS 2007 Thanksgiving and Celebration. Prayers for healing and wholeness. Prayers for our community and the world. “...and now, we pray in the way that Jesus taught us to pray:” The Lord’s Prayer: “Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven . . .” Scripture Reading: Genesis 1:1–2:4a Liturgist Hymn: “Morning Has Broken” UMH 145 Invitation to Generosity Pastor Jorge Offertory: “May you Run and not be Weary” by Paul Murakami *Doxology: Praise God, from whom all blessings flow . . . UMH 95 Scripture Reading: Matthew 28:16–20 Liturgist Hymn: “ Awesome God” TFWS 2040 Sermon: The God Who Creates in Community Rev. Jorge Rodriguez Trinity Sunday Genesis 1:1–2:4a · Matthew 28:16–20 There are Sundays when we wish we could explain everything clearly. And then there is Trinity Sunday. Because we speak about a God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And honestly, sometimes even theologians struggle to explain it well. The Trinity is not a mathematical formula. It is not a religious puzzle. It is not a doctrinal exam. It is, rather, an experience. The experience of a God who always acts in relationship, in community, in movement toward others. And perhaps that is why the Bible never says, “Let me explain the Trinity to you.” The Bible simply shows God at work. Creating. Loving. Sustaining. Sending. Restoring. Go back to the beginning. “The earth was formless and empty...” and the Spirit of God was moving over the waters. I love that image. The Spirit moving, trembling, stirring creation, like a mother who senses that something is about to be born. Because creating life always requires effort. It always requires love. It always requires surrender. And then God speaks: “Let there be light.” And light appears. God creates. The Spirit moves. And the Word gives life. From the very beginning, God works in community. Perhaps that is why loneliness damages the human soul so deeply. Because we were created by a relational God. We were made to live connected — with God, with one another, and with creation. And yet our world lives divided. Nations divided. Families divided. Churches divided. People profoundly alone. We live in a culture where many know people, but few truly know community. That is why Jesus, before ascending, does not simply leave a doctrine. He leaves a mission: “Go and make disciples.” He does not say, “Go and build empires.” He does not say, “Go and dominate.” He does not say, “Go and make everyone copies of yourselves.” He says, “Make disciples.” And making disciples takes time. It takes patience. It takes walking alongside others. It takes listening, accompanying, forgiving, and beginning again. Because the Gospel always happens within human relationships. And then Jesus speaks those words: “Baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Not “in the names.” In the name. Unity. Diversity and unity at the same time. Like a family gathered around a table. Like a community learning to care for one another. Like a church where nobody has all the answers, but everyone needs grace. The problem is that many times we have tried to understand God without learning how to live in community. We want spirituality without commitment. We want faith without difficult relationships. We want church without carrying the burdens of others. But the Trinity reminds us of something important: we cannot follow a communal God while living isolated lives. And perhaps that is what the world most needs to hear today: that God is not indifferent. That God still moves over chaos. That the Spirit is still creating life in the middle of our ruins. That the Word is still saying, “Let there be light.” And perhaps some today arrived tired — with questions, with wounds, with uncertainty. Maybe they feel that their lives have once again become “formless and empty.” But the Spirit of God is still moving over the waters. Creation is still happening. There is still hope. And the Trinity also reminds us of this: faith is never only “me and God.” There is always a “we.” We pray together. We sing together. We cry together. We serve together. We carry one another’s burdens. Because we were created by a God who lives in communion. And perhaps the call of the Gospel today is to learn that again — to learn how to live together, to learn how to listen, to learn how to heal, and to learn how to love again. Because when the church lives this way, the world catches a glimpse of the face of God. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Prayer of Confession: God of life and communion, forgive us when we try to live only for ourselves... when fear closes our hearts, when pride divides us from one another, and when we forget that You created us for community. Renew us through Your Spirit. Teach us again to love, to listen, and to walk together as Your people. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. *Closing Hymn: “God of Grace and God of Glory” UMH 577 *Benediction: Pastor Jorge Go now in the love of the Father, walk in the grace of the Son, and live in the power of the Holy Spirit. May the Triune God strengthen you, guide you, and send you into the world to love and serve in Christ’s name. Amen. *Song of Blessing: “Bind Us Together” TFWS 2226 Postlude: “We Shall Overcome” Spiritual Pastor Jorge Rodriguez [email protected] 
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