Always Traveling, Seldom Arriving

WESTPORT PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH WORSHIP SERVICE
SEASON OF EPIPHANY – CELEBRATION OF HOLY COMMUNION
February 1, 2026

PRELUDE: He Leadeth Me, O Blessed Thought arr. L. Harmon
CALL TO WORSHIP: (Sunday Poem, by Joanne Sunshower)

One: I am moved grassy soil cools
to prostrate myself as earthworm slowly moving
full body and face as seed slowly sprouting
resting on as blood softly surging
warm earth nourishes
in suspension. while cleansing
like a dragonfly so still in this way
no leaf quivers I pause, honor
the gentle air breathes life, energy
inside and around this gift
caressing the profound
soothing expansive
body mind spirit feelings responsibility.
sun radiance warms

OPENING HYMN:   Fairest Lord Jesus   GTG#630
UNISON CONFESSION OF OUR NEED OF GOD:

All: Merciful God, You have showered us with blessings, but we hoard those gifts, refusing to share with our neighbors in need. You have given us freedom to live justly, but we choose to oppress and judge others. You have called us to live in peaceful community, but we gossip, point figures, call others names, and act like know-it-alls. Forgive us. Soften our hearts and open our minds to hear your call. Inspire us to act justly, love fiercely, and walk in your way. Amen.

ASSURANCE OF GOD’S GRACE:

One: The mercy of the Lord is deeper than the depths of the sea and wider than the whole of the earth. Friends, hear and believe the good news: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven, healed and made whole.
All: Alleluia. Thanks be to God!

SUNG RESPONSE:  In My Life (verses 1-2)   GTG#468
[Kids’ Time Front of Sanctuary]
SHARING THE PEACE OF CHRIST:

One: The peace of Christ be with you.
All: And also with you.
One: Let’s share the peace of Christ with one another.

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION:

One: What does God want from you?
All: Just this – to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God.
One: What does God want for you?
All: Only this – to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God.
One: With open hearts, ready minds, and willing bodies,
let us give our best to God and to one another.
All: Amen.

SCRIPTURE READING: Micah 6:1-8     I Corinthians 1:18-31
CHORAL ANTHEM: Blessed Assurance arr. R. Waters
MESSAGE: Always Traveling, Seldom Arriving                    Rev. Jared Witt
SUNG PREPARATION FOR PRAYER:   Kum ba Yah (verses 1, 4)   GTG#472
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE AND THE LORD’S PRAYER:

Our Mother and 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 and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

CELEBRATION OF HOLY COMMUNION:
THE OFFERING OF OURSELVES/INVITATION TO GIVE:

One: Recognizing God’s gracious blessings poured upon us, we respond with gratitude, giving of our time, talents and treasure for the building up of God’s new realm here and now. Let us consider our gifts given in grateful praise.

OFFERTORY SOLO: Wayfaring Stranger arr. J. Niles  Nico Caruso, tenor
PRAYER OF DEDICATION:

One: Gracious God, thank you for the many blessings of our lives. Bless these gifts we give today. May they be used to bring about justice and joy for those who need them most.
All: Amen.

INVITATION TO THE TABLE
GREAT THANKSGIVING
BREAKING OF THE BREAD
COMMUNION
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION:

One: God incarnate, in these ordinary elements you have fed us with the body of the living Christ, that we might become the body of the living Christ. Increase in us faith, hope, and love, that we might be your friends, co-creators of a new world.
All: Amen.

WELCOME: News In, Around, and Beyond the Community
CLOSING HYMN: Come! Live in the Light!  GTG#749
CHARGE AND BLESSING
POSTLUDE: Have Faith in God arr. T. Billingsley

 

A WESTPORT WARM WELCOMING!

• WELCOME! MEMBERS! NEWCOMERS! FRIENDS! We are so glad you could join us for worship today! VISITORS, please take a moment to let us know you were here by picking up an attendance card (in the pews) and filling out whatever information you would like to share with us.
• WELCOME FAMILIES! NURSERY care is available in the upstairs children’s space. Parents are asked to fill out a brief registration form before church begins. (This form only needs to be filled out once). Children’s Sunday School usually meets during the second half of worship in the in the 2nd floor Children’s Space, but is on break. Children are invited to remain in the service until the “Time for Young Disciples” and then they can go play in the upstairs children’s room.
• HEARING ASSISTANCE DEVICES available upon request. Talk to Deanna up in the front of the sanctuary at the livestream table if you would like to use one.
• 2026 PER CAPITA is $45.91 per church member. This money helps support our denomination on the regional and national levels. The breakdown is: $11.26 to General Assembly, $3.15 to Synod of Mid-America, and $31.50 to Heartland Presbytery. If you would like to help out the church by paying your own Per Capita, make your check out to Westport Presbyterian Church or place money in a pew envelope and include “per Capita” on the memo line. Thank You!
• CHILDREN’S CHOIR PRACTICE: Any kids that want to sing the anthem with the choir on Feb. 22 please join Renee at the front of the sanctuary 10:00-10:15 starting January 25.

CONNECTION HOUR SMALL GROUPS:
Sunday Mornings

• 9:40 a.m. “Overcoming Dumpster Fire Overwhelm” lead by Jennifer White. Does it feel like everywhere you look the world is on fire? This weekly workshop will give you 1-5 minute tools to help deal with the stresses of our modern way of living.
  10:00 a.m. Book Discussion Group readings related to various topics including faith, art, culture, politics, earth care. Currently reading Breathing Under Water: The Spirituality of the 12 Steps, by Richard Rohr.
• The OVERCOMING OVERWHELM group (meets Sunday mornings at 9:40 a.m.) has decided to take a break from our regular class activities to do some small projects that would help benefit the church. Some possibilities include: helping with mailings, folding brochures, cleaning out or organizing areas of the church that need attention, and anything else we can come up with. Anyone is welcome to join us in that week’s activities, and if we have time we may do a meditation as well. 😊

MISSION & OUTREACH OPPORTUNITIES:

• WESTPORT SHOWERS happens on Sunday mornings & Thursday nights. Items Needed for our CLOTHING CLOSET include: Sneakers, T-shirts, Underwear (Men’s Boxer Briefs), Socks, Women’s pants/shorts size 0-8, Men’s pants/shorts size 28-40, Bandaids, Sweatpants, Leggings, Belts, Backpacks, Body wash, Sports bras, & Washcloths.
• WESTPORT SHOWERS is looking for additional volunteers to help with Sunday mornings. With the increase in guests, we would like to have teams of 2 volunteers upstairs working together at the door and 2 downstairs working in the shower/laundry room each Sunday. You would be working with experienced volunteers who can train you in what is needed. If you would like to help, and are willing to volunteer 1 Sunday morning a month, reach out to Drew Irwin or Allison Rozga for more information.
• We are giving out lunches on Fridays in the RESOURCE CENTER and Sundays as part of WESTPORT SHOWERS. Food donations of fruit cups, meat, cheese, peanut butter are always needed.
• WINTER WEATHER CLOTHING DRIVE: Through the cold weather months Westport Showers will be collecting coats, hats, gloves, warm socks, shoes and boots. Look through your closets and see if you have any extra items you can donate.
• BOARD MEMBERS NEEDED & PAID PART-TIME POSTITIONS AVAILABLE: Westport Center for the Arts, an non-profit organization founded by our church that has dedicated itself to bringing free art exhibits, concerts, dance performances, etc. to the neighborhood, has several positions that need filling. They need a board president to set a meeting agenda and keep track of who is doing what, and they are looking to fill several paid positions: Photographer, Grant Writer, Visual Arts Program Director. If interested, email [email protected] or speak with Josh Stark or Deanna Capps.

INREACH & OUTREACH IN THE COMING WEEK:  (All Events are at the Church, 201 Westport Rd – unless noted)

• Today, Feb. 1  5:00 p.m. Chili/Soup Dinner (Fellowship Room)
  6:00 p.m. Taizé Service (Sanctuary)
• Monday, Feb. 2 GROUNDHOG DAY
  6:30 p.m. Men’s AA Meeting (Storefront)
  7:30 p.m. Boy Scout Troop 60 (Westport Rising Room)
• Tuesday, Feb. 3 4:30 p.m. Centering Prayer and Silence – 20 min (Chapel)
• Thursday, Feb. 5 5:30 p.m. Westport Showers – For Women, Trans, & Gender Non- conforming people (Basement)
• Friday, Feb. 6 11:00-3:00 p.m. Resource Center Open & Sack Lunches Distributed (Storefront)
  11:30 a.m. Children’s Mercy Healthy Families Group (Fellowship Room)
• Saturday, Feb. 7 8:30 a.m. Private Rental – Meeting (Storefront)
  10:00 a.m. Cub Scouts (Westport Rising Room)
  2:30 p.m. PNC Meeting (Fellowship Room)
• Sunday, Feb. 8 8-9:30 a.m. Westport Showers (Fellowship Room & Basement)
  • Connection Hour Small Groups:
    9:40 a.m. “Overcoming Dumpster Fire Overwhelm”
    10:00 a.m. Book Discussion Group
    • 10:00 a.m. Children’s Choir Rehearsal (Sanctuary)
      11:00 a.m. Service of the Lord’s Day (Sanctuary)
      Nursery Care (Upstairs Children’s Room)
      12:15 p.m. Choir Rehearsal (Sanctuary)

LOOKING AHEAD:

• Tuesday, Feb. 10 5:30 p.m. Session Meeting (Fellowship Room)
  Sunday, Feb. 15 After Church Community Potluck – Bring an Entrée, Side, Salad, or Dessert  to Share (Fellowship Room)
  12:30 p.m. Valentine’s Sing Along
• Wednesday, Feb. 18 6:00 p.m. Ash Wednesday Service (Sanctuary)
• Friday, Feb. 20 12:00 p.m. Westport Center for the Arts – Brown Bag Concert Series: La Gioia Winds, Quintet (Sanctuary)

MISSOURI LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: from Riva and the League of Women Voters
Bills that are starting to move through the legislative process:

• Bill #: HB 1871: This bill increases the no excuse absentee (early) voting period from two weeks to four weeks and also reinstates the presidential primary.
• Bill #: SB 858: Prohibits police and sheriffs from enforcing federal firearms laws against law-abiding citizens of Missouri, imposes civil penalties for violations, but provides some exceptions. (This same bill was deemed unconstitutional in the past as Federal law trumps state law. The penalties for violations would be against police officers who cooperate with Federal firearm laws)
• Bill #HJR173/174: Authorizes state, local sales and use taxes to be expanded to impose taxes on transactions involving any goods or services for the purpose of reducing and eliminating the state resident individual income tax; could trigger a sales tax on gasoline and diesel, a result the bill’s sponsor says was accidental. (House Speaker J. Paterson said this was not intentional). Would need to be approved by voters.

BUDGET UPDATE
Governor Mike Kehoe delivered his second State of the State Address January 13.

•  wants voters to approve full elimination of individual income tax within five years
•  elimination of the $9 billion in individual income tax will not be offset by any sales tax increases meeting this description and will result in a collapse of state support for vital public services, such as education, healthcare, and social services. “States that have successfully eliminated the individual income tax typically rely on alternative revenue streams to balance their budgets, such as oil and gas production, massive tourism economies or both. Missouri has none of those advantages on a scale large enough to matter.”*
• proposed K-12 budget keeps the funding formula lines level with the current year, except for a $15 million reduction to pupil transportation (clearly a reduction)
• includes a $10 million general revenue increase to fund the state’s voucher program. (basically taxpayer monies used to support private schools)
• budget for higher education keeps institutional aid flat while reducing a total of $22 million for student aid programs.

*The Weekender: Missouri Independent January 18 issue.

Village Presbyterian Church is delighted to welcome the Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III as the 2026 Meneilly Visiting Scholar. Dr. Moss is an engaging, compelling, and passionate advocate of the Gospel, an impactful author, and the Senior Pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago—a church that identifies itself as “Unashamedly Black and Unapologetically Christian.” He was recognized by Baylor University as one of the 12 most effective preachers in the English language and by Root 100 in its inaugural list of extraordinary African-American leaders. The event is free of charge, but registration is required. You may register for one or both sessions. We hope to see you there!
Session 1: Punching Holes in the Darkness 7-8:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27
Session 2: Dancing in the Darkness 9-11:45 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 28