Worship Bulletin – November 16, 2025

FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, UCC

WELCOME TO OLDTOWN

North Attleborough, MA   •   November 16, 2025

Ministers: ALL of our Members and Friends
Pastor & Teacher: The Rev. Kelly Thibeault

Welcome to the Oldtown Church!

We are so glad that you have chosen to worship with us today. We invite you to join in on the bold print in the bulletin and to stand as you are able any time you see a ⇑. The restrooms are out the back door of the sanctuary to the right, as is a little space in case your little one needs a walkabout. Here in Oldtown, we are all about being curious, so don’t be afraid to ask questions, and please join us for fellowship with coffee and snacks after worship!
Finally, as a way of honoring our time together and truly loving our neighbor, we ask that you please silence your phone or, better yet, turn it off, allowing yourself to be truly present in worship.

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PRELUDE

GATHERING MUSIC

WELCOME / WORSHIP WAYS

HOW’S YOUR HEART?

A TIME FOR LETTING GO

OPENING PRAYER

CALL TO WORSHIP
We come today to celebrate.
We celebrate this church and its community.
We come today to give thanks.
We give thanks for our history, those who came before us, and for the light that shines as we journey forward.
We come today to worship.
Let us sing and praise God who blesses us and gives us courage to be Holy Troublemakers in our own unique way.

⇑ HYMN C#608–”I Would Be True”

TIME OF SHARING (C#323, v.1)
Sing them over again to me, wonderful words of life;
Let me more of their beauty see, wonderful words of life.
Words of life and beauty, teach me faith and duty;
Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life,
Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life.

THE SHARING OF WONDERFUL WORDS

WONDERFUL WORDS FROM THE WORLD
from “Holy Troublemakers & Unconventional Saints” by Daneen Ackers
We are made of stories and stardust. We imitate the values and examples of people whose stories we know and admire. They’re humans just like you and me. So, they are imperfect, and yet they help us to see and honor the holy in each and every person.

WONDERFUL WORDS FROM THE PSALMS
Micah 6:8 (OT 1060)
He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

WONDERFUL WORDS FROM THE EPISTLES
Romans 12:2 (NT 196)
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

SERMON: “Is Oldtown the Home of Holy Troublemakers?”

PREPARING OURSELVES FOR PRAYER (C#306)
Hear our prayer, O Lord, hear our prayer, O Lord,
Incline Thine ear to us, and grant us thy peace.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE and 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, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
CHORAL RESPONSE

OFFERING OF OUR GIFTS
GIFT OF MUSIC
⇑ DOXOLOGY (C#47)
Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise God, all creatures here below.
Praise God above, Ye heavenly host.
Creator, Christ, and Holy Ghost! Amen.
⇑ PRAYER OF DEDICATION

LOVE OF THE CHURCH

⇑ SENDING HYMN C#611–”Rise Up, O Saints of God”

HOW’S YOUR HEART?

⇑ BENEDICTION

⇑ BENEDICTION RESPONSE
Please be seated for a special gift of song.

POSTLUDE

*** Our worship has ended; let our service begin! ***

OLDTOWN CALENDAR
Sun November 16: Household Huddle 9am
 ~ Worship 10am
 ~ Church Committee 11:30am-1pm
Wed November 19: Second Serving Thrift Shop 9am-noon
 ~ Coffee Connection 10am-noon
Sat November 22: Second Serving Thrift Shop 9am-noon
Sun November 23: Household Huddle 9am
 ~ Worship 10am
Check our Online Calendar for even more Oldtown, denominational, and local events, free webinars, and other resources!! Have something you’d like added to the calendar? Email calendar@oldtownucc.org with all the information, and we’ll get it posted.

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OLDTOWN PRAYER LIST

Edi, Lynn, Tim, Mark, Cyndy, Joan, Justine & Nolan, Dana, Miranda & K family, Jan & Kylie, Steven, Tegan, Ken, Lynne, Kaye, Karen, Samantha, Robin, Donna, Winnie, Carl, Michael, Sue C., Laura, Jim, Paul, Daniel, Nancy, Paul L, Jake, Muriel, Michelle, Joe, Bob, Gloria, Barry, Magda, Erik, Hailey & Bryce, Al, Denise, Rhonda, Jake, Cindi, Henry, Roxanne, Paul Garvey & family, Val, Myrtle, Deane, Rusty, Gianna, Kelsey & Nick, Jayne, Bill, Autumn, Judy, Kayla, Edie, Renee, Perilene, Newell Family, Paul, Diane, Carol, John, Liesel, Robert, Matthew.
To add a name to the list, email Pastor Kelly at PastorKelly@Oldtownucc.org, text 508-695-1713, or drop a note in the offering plate.

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OLDTOWN UPDATE EMAIL

Do you get our Friday Email, aka “The Oldtown Update”? Our Oldtown Update is like a weekly newsletter that lets everyone know what is going on in Oldtown. If you do not receive it and would like to, drop a note in the offering with your email address or let Pastor Kelly know. Subscribe to our Friday Email Updates online, or let Pastor Kelly know your email address.

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STEWARDSHIP CORNER

Weekly Giving

• Last week, we welcomed 52 people to worship with us. Our total giving to the church last week was $1,334.94, which is $88.14 less than expected.
• So far, this year’s congregational giving has been $6,450 more than expected. Keep up the great work!!

Monthly Finances for September and October

• Our fundraising was $1,650 less than expected in September and October, $7,350 less than expected by the end of September.
• In September and October, our budgeted income was $1,300 less than expected, while our budgeted expenses were $1,100 less than expected.
• So far this year, our total income is $500 less than our total expenses.

“Good trouble” is a phrase popularized recently by the late Congressman John Lewis, suggesting that the complacent, the satisfied, and the settled should be stirred up for the better. For the last 313 years, we Oldtowners have caused our share of “good trouble” in our community and in our world, through it all following the teaching and example of Jesus, the holiest of Holy Troublemakers. Jesus calls us to speak truth to power, oppose injustice everywhere, and take action to improve our world, even when some might consider that “causing trouble.” Let’s stay committed to our values, not be swayed by the voices of this world, and continue to be Jesus’ hands and feet for another 300+ years!

And [Jesus] said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation. […] And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.
   ~ Mark 16:15, 20 (NRSVUE)

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First Congregational Church, UCC of North Attleborough
(Oldtown Church)
675 Old Post Road, North Attleborough, MA 02760
508-695-1713
Pastor Kelly’s email: PastorKelly@oldtownucc.org
Church Email: church@oldtownucc.org
Website: www.oldtownucc.org
YouTube: www.youtube.com/oldtownucc
Facebook: www.facebook.com/oldtownucc
Subscribe to our Friday Email Updates
Learn more about our denomination: www.ucc.org