Order of Worship
Let us be as open vessels that God’s spirit may enter.
The Community Gathers: We are a people waiting with expectant hearts and eager minds…ready to be whole again, to embrace the sacred gifts that await us…. ready to be productive and at peace. This Christmas, our angels wear masks, our churches are nearly empty, some families are apart…and yet the Spirit sings within us, we reach out in love to those in need, our candles of HOPE burn brightly.
The Prince of Peace will be born in us again. Alleluia!!
You are welcome here…come and worship!
Focus: The church is Advent. The unwrapping of God’s greatest gift is near. God will take away the tinsel and decorate our human hearts in hope so that Christians can sit laughing in the rain, knowing that the Lord is going to shine in upon their being. For no matter how long the darkness, God will send the Light. In spite of the cursing and violence and the massacring of human dignity, we will dance in the streets of Bethlehem for He will be born. …Ann Weems Anne Murray
Lighting of the Advent Candle of HOPE Anne and Ken Murray
Gathering Music:
Responsive Call to Worship:
Leader: God of then, now, and forever, help us to be grateful for what is, instead of grumbling about what is not.
Congregation: May we find good amid the unwanted aspects of life and focus on the beauty in the little things every day.
One: May we find something to laugh about every day….to search and see the good in others.
Congregation: Let us be thankful for every act of kindness and pass on this blessing to others.
Leader: Let us strive to live life to the fullest and not take a moment for granted…. to be a source of hope for the Universe.
Congregation: Let us respect and honor each other as children of God, and view our planet Earth as holy ground.
One: Oh God, we praise your Holy Name….and give thanks for your sacred Spirit among us….which makes all things possible! Amen.
Opening Hymn: Seek Ye First P 175
Invocation: Spirit of Love and Light, in the midst of the storm, may we feel your calming presence. As we contemplate choices and face challenges, may we seek your wisdom. As we move through our days, may we experience your guiding hand.
Help us to relate to each other with kindness and respect, with the love and peace of Jesus, the Christ. Amen.
Lord’s Prayer:
Awakening:
Scripture Reading: Romans 8: 18 – 25 ( Paraphrased) Anne Murray
– After the reading, you may respond, “Thanks be to God.”
Sermon: Standing on Tiptoe Rev. Jan Hryniewicz
Meditation Music: -Michelle Currie
Musical call to Prayer: (two times) Hush now in quiet peace, be still your mind at ease. The Spirit brings release, so wait upon the Lord.
Prayers of the People:
Silent Prayers Pastoral Prayer
Closing Hymn: They’ll Know we are Christians by our Love 300
Benediction:
Recessional: Go in Peace
Go in peace and the peace of God be with you this day.
Go in peace and the peace of God be with you always.
celebrate and share the joy. Celebrate new life.
Go in peace and the peace of God be with you always
Thank you to Music Director Michelle Currie
Thanks to our reader, Anne Murray and Zoom Host today.
Rev. Paula Norbert (207) 205-4951 or (pnorbert1217@gmail.com)
In our cities, often torn by violence and by poverty, the church has no other alternative than to be a living proof of the hope by which we live. ….The faithfulness of the church is the responsibility of each of its members….One of the marvels of the Christian faith is that we have brothers and sisters everywhere in the world. In the midst of a world that is constantly bleeding in senseless conflicts and wars, it is urgent for Christians to recover this vision of our close kinship with others throughout the world, thus to promote peace among ourselves and to give the world a message and an example of peace.
…Justo L. Gonzalez, Three Months with the Spirit
When I am Among the Trees
When I am among the trees,
especially the willows and the honey locust,
equally the beech, the oaks and the pines,
they give off such hints of gladness.
I would almost say that they save me, and daily.
I am so distant from the hope of myself,
in which I have goodness, and discernment,
and never hurry through the world
but walk slowly, and bow often.
Around me the trees stir in their leaves
and call out, “Stay awhile.”
The light flows from their branches.
And they call again, “It’s simple,” they say,
“and you too have come
into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled
with light, and to shine.”
….Mary Oliver