December 3,2023

WE GATHER IN AWE AND PRAISE 

PRELUDE                                                                                                  

WELCOME                                                                                                Rev. Trip Porch

  One: This is the day that the Lord has made

  All: Let us rejoice and be glad in it

 

CANDLE LIGHTING – Ryan Bieryla, Jackson Crane

One: How does a weary world hope?

All:    By telling stories of hope,

          by lighting candles in the night,

          and planting seeds in the winter that will bloom in the spring.

One: By praying for children as they grow, and picking up trash on the sidewalk.

All:   By insisting that small acts can make a difference.

One: There are a million ways to practice hope.

          So today we light the candle of hope as a reminder and a charge.

All:   With God’s help, may we bring hope into a weary world. Amen.

*RESPONSE NO. 91                      “Come,  Come, Emmanuel”                    COME, COME EMMANUEL                                                                                                  Sung many times               

*PRAYER OF CONFESSION                                                                           Michael Ayers

One:  Gracious God, we are weary.

            For weary bodies that ache and cry out, we pray:

All:     Forgive us for pushing ourselves too hard.

            Remind us that we deserve Sabbath rest.

One:  For weary minds that feel overwhelmed and saturated with news, we pray:

All:    Forgive us for creating so many distractions.

           Remind us that in the quiet, we can hear you.

One:  For weary hearts that long to feel the joy of this season, we pray:

All:     Forgive us for being impatient with ourselves.

            Remind us that healing takes time, and that joy and grief can coexist.

One:   For the weary edges of our faith that struggle to hold onto hope,

All:     Forgive us. Remind us of Zechariah and Elizabeth.

            Remind us that your good news knows no bounds. Amen.

*ASSURANCE OF PARDON

So say this with me:

We are loved. We are claimed. We are forgiven.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

*RESPONSE OF PRAISE                   “He Came Down”                                         HE CAME DOWN  

He came down that we may have hope;

He came down that we may have hope;

He came down that we may have hope;

Hallelujah forever more.                                                                                                                              Text: Cameroon song

*PASSING OF THE PEACE                                       

     One:   The peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all,

All:      And also with you.

WE LISTEN FOR GOD’S WORD

ANTHEM                                             “Veni Jesu”                                 Luigi Cherubini (1760-1842) 

          Solo quartet: Sophia Haws, Skye Johnson, Henry Byrne, Marlon Haughton

Veni Jesu, amor mi.

Come Lord Jesus, love divine.                       

CHILDREN’S MESSAGE                                                                                                       Dorothy Kyle

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

POEM                                           “Wade In”                                                 Rev. Sarah Speed

SCRIPTURE: Luke 1:5-23

        During the rule of King Herod of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah. His wife Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron. They were both righteous before God, blameless in their observance of all the Lord’s commandments and regulations. They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to become pregnant and they both were very old. One day Zechariah was serving as a priest before God because his priestly division was on duty. Following the customs of priestly service, he was chosen by lottery to go into the Lord’s sanctuary and burn incense. All the people who gathered to worship were praying outside during this hour of incense offering. An angel from the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw the angel, he was startled and overcome with fear. The angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah. Your prayers have been heard.

        Your wife Elizabeth will give birth to your son and you must name him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many people will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the Lord’s eyes. He must not drink wine and liquor. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before his birth. He will bring many Israelites back to the Lord their God. He will go forth before the Lord, equipped with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will turn the hearts of fathers  back to their children, and he will turn the disobedient to righteous patterns of thinking. He will make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”      

       Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? My wife and I are very old.”    

The angel replied, “I am Gabriel. I stand in God’s presence. I was sent to speak to you and to bring this good news to you.  Know this: What I have spoken will come true at the proper time. But because you didn’t believe, you will remain silent, unable to speak until the day when these things happen.”   Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered why he was in the sanctuary for such a long time. When he came out, he was unable to speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he gestured to them and couldn’t speak. When he completed the days of his priestly service, he returned home.

SERMON Rev. Trip Porch                 

WE RESPOND TO GOD’S WORD

*HYMN                                  “Weary World Rejoice”  words by Anna Strickland  STILLE NACHT

Weary world, God’s own vine

Tears our only bread and wine

Crying out to be restored

Desperate for a break from war

Weary world rejoice

Come and raise your voice

Weary world, broken and bruised

Name of God so misused

Can we see the light of Christ

Glowing in each person we spite

Weary world rejoice

Come and raise your voice

Weary world, out of hope

Disbelief is how we cope

We’ve left faith to rot and rust

Dreams are covered in layers of dust

Weary world rejoice

Come and raise your voice

Weary world, waiting still

Holding our breath until

Christ returns in truth and grace

Will we recognize his face?

Weary world rejoice

Come and raise your voice

TIME OF OFFERING 

OFFERTORY RESPONSE                                                                CRANHAM

  Praise the One Creator, praise the Living Christ

Praise the Holy Spirit, praise both day and night

Praise when you are weary, praise in times of joy

Praise, my soul, with all your strength and your heart and voice                                                                                                                       

COMMUNION

INVITATION TO THE TABLE

   GREAT PRAYER    

SHARING THE BREAD AND CUP               "Wait for the Lord." 

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

 Lord, when we gather around this Table, we remember the ways that you always make room for us. You are always pulling up chairs, welcoming the children, the tax collectors, and the outcast. At your dinner party, no one gets turned away. Help us to carry that inclusive spirit into the rest of our lives, for we know that love like that is what turns weariness into joy. With grateful hearts we pray, amen.

*HYMN NO. 88                             “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”  (see screen for lyrics)

TIME ONCOMMUNITY SHARING 

CHARGE AND BENEDICTION

One:  God of the watching ones, 

            the waiting ones,

            the slow and suffering ones, 

            the angels in heaven, the child in the womb,

All:    Give us your benediction, 

           your good word for our souls, 

           that we might rest and rise 

           in the kindness of your company.

          Amen.

CHORAL RESPONSE             “Light Dawns on a Weary World”                      TEMPLE OF PEACE

Hope blooms in a weary world

when creatures, once forlorn, find wilderness reborn.

Hope blooms in a weary world: 

the promised green of Eden comes.

 

(refrain) The trees shall clap their hands;

the dry lands gush with springs;

the hills and mountains shall break forth with singing!

We shall go out in joy,

and be led forth in peace,

as all the world in wonder echoes shalom.                                                 Text: Mary Louise Bringle, 2001; used by permission

POSTLUDE                                           

         

Acknowledgments: Unless otherwise indicated, all texts and music are printed and broadcast under OneLicense.net license #A-702452

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