Worship | Grace Community Church

Advent: Christmas Eve

12/24/09

 

Wreath Directions:

Light all candles in the wreath.

           

Prayer:

God of love, Father of all,
the darkness that covered the earth
has given way to the bright dawn of your Word made flesh.
Make us a people of this light.
Make us faithful to your Word
that we may bring your life to the waiting world.
Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Scripture Reading: Luke 2:1-20

 

Song: Joy to the World

Joy to the world! the Lord is come;
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare him room,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing.

 

Joy to the Earth! the Saviour reigns;
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.

 

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.

Advent: Fourth Sunday

Fourth Sunday of Advent:

12/20/09

 

Wreath Directions:

Light the first and second purple candles, light the Rose candle, and the last purple candle.

           

Prayer:

Pour forth Your power, O Lord, and come:
Assist us by that mighty power,
so that by Your grace and merciful kindness
we may swiftly receive the salvation that our sins impede:
Who lives and reigns with Thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
ever one God, world without end. Amen.

 

Scripture Reading: Luke 1:67-79

“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come and has redeemed his people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace."

 

Song:  O Come, All Ye Faithful

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye, to Bethlehem.
Come and behold Him, born the King of angels;

 

O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

 

Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation;
O sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God, all glory in the highest;

 

O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

 

Advent: Third Sunday

Third Sunday of Advent:

12/13/09

 

Wreath Directions:

Light the first and second purple candles and light the Rose candle.

            This is the week of rejoicing as the time of Christ has almost come!

 

Prayer:

We ask You to listen to our prayers, O Lord,
and by the grace of Your coming enlighten our darkened minds:
You who lives and reigns with God the Father
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.

 

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 9:6-7

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.

 

Song: Shout to the Lord

My Jesus, my Savior, Lord, there is none like you.
All of my days, I want to praise, the wonders of your mighty love.

My comfort, my shelter, Tower of refuge and strength.
Let every breath, all that I am, never cease to worship you.

Shout to the lord, all the earth let us sing.
Power and majesty, praise to the King.
Mountains bow down, and the seas will roar,
At the sound of Your name.
I sing for joy at the work of Your hands,
Forever I'll love You; Forever I'll stand.
Nothing compares to the promise I have in You.

Advent: Second Sunday

Second Sunday of Advent:

12/6/09

 

Wreath Directions:

Light the first and second purple candles

 

Prayer:

Stir up our hearts, O Lord,
to prepare the paths of Your Only-begotten Son:
that we may worthily serve You
with hearts purified by His coming:
Who lives and reigns with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
ever one God, world without end. Amen.

 

Scripture Reading: Micah 5:2

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.  Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor gives birth and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites.

 

Song: O Come, O Come Emmanuel

Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!

 

Oh, come, our Wisdom from on high,
Who ordered all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
and teach us in her ways to go.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!

Advent: First Sunday

First Sunday of Advent:

11/29/09

 

Wreath Directions:

Light one purple candle

 

Prayer:

O Emmanuel, Jesus Christ,
desire of every nation,
Savior of all peoples,
come and dwell among us.

 

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 11:1-16

A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of power,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD -

and he will delight in the fear of the LORD.
He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
or decide by what he hears with his ears;

but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.

Righteousness will be his belt
and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
and a little child will lead them.

 

 

Song: Come Thou Long-Expected Jesus

Come thou long-expected Jesus,
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel's strength and consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

Born Thy people to deliver,
Born a Child and yet a King.
Born to reign in us for ever,
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By Thine all-sufficient merit
Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

The History of Advent

Historians cannot determine exactly when and where Advent was first celebrated in the Christian Church.  Studies show it was introduced as early as the 4^th century.  Advent has traditionally included the four Sundays leading up to Christmas Day ending just before the vigil on Christmas Eve.  It is not a surprise to find out that Advent was quite different in its inception compared to what it looks like to us today.  Originally, Advent was a 40 day season of fasting and prayer.  It was a time for Christ followers to prepare for Jesus in two ways.  First, the church was directed to remember and focus on Jesus as Savior—the incarnate God of love.  And second, to realize and prepare for the Second Coming of Christ when He will come as Judge (Adventus is the Latin word for "coming”).

 

Advent was a time of remembrance of a loving God who did something for His people.  He heard the cries of their oppression and delivered.  But it has traditionally also been a time of expectation and yearning for the coming of a God who would judge the world and deliver them from evil.  Originally, Advent was a reminder of the waiting done by the Israelites anticipating the coming of their Messiah as foretold in the scriptures.  The Israelites had been slaves in Egypt and Babylon and were desperately awaiting the Messiah to save them.  As the hymn cries, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel;   And ransom captive Israel.”  Christ followers today await the Second Coming of Christ in a similar manner—our just and fair God will come as Judge and relieve the world from evil and oppression.  

 

 

 

The Advent Wreath

We are encouraging you and your family to assemble your own Christmas wreath this year.  Here is what you will need:

• One evergreen wreath
• 3 purple candles
• 1 rose (or pink) candle
• 1 white candle

 

The circle of wreath represents God’s mercy…it has no beginning and no end.  The four colored candles should be placed in the wreath and the white candle is placed in the center.  Each colored candle represents one century symbolizing the 400 years from the prophet Malachi to the birth of Christ.   The rose candle is for the third Sunday, traditionally called “Gaudete Sunday.”  Gaudete is the Latin word for “rejoice”.  We light this candle rejoicing that our period of waiting is almost over; Christ has almost come! 

 

The Christ Candle is placed in the center because He is the focus of the season.  And it is Christ who is the light of the world.  Traditionally, this candle is lit on either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day…whatever works best for your family.

The Day of Trouble

Psalm 27:5-6 For in the day of trouble He will keep me safe in His dwelling; He will hide me in the shelter of His tabernacle And set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted Above the enemies who surround me; At His tabernacle will I sacrifice WITH SHOUTS OF JOY; I will sing and make music to the Lord.

So many of our songs, Lord, are about the “Day of trouble”--“You Never Let Go”, “Desert Song”, “Everlasting God”, “From the Inside Out”, “It Is Well”...this list is long. Psalm 27, verses 5 and 6 that it is right that we rely on You in our trouble. Because we are connected with You, we will be above the noise; we will be exalted above the destruction. And then the psalmist declares the appropriate sacrifice for such rescue: SHOUTS OF JOY.

Why is it so hard for us to shout with joy in corporate worship in Your church? Are we not aware of Your love? Perhaps this psalmist had just experienced the day of trouble. Perhaps it requires that we experience the day of trouble before we are able to shout for joy at church. Perhaps we need to be more desperate and experience the rescue.

Yet, it seems to me, Lord God, that the author is being prophetic about the fact that trouble WILL come, and when it comes he is going to depend completely on You. He is aware that You will save him; He is completely confident in Your willingness and ability as Lord to come through on his behalf. And then he is going to let the people know that YOU get the credit. He is going to sing, make music, and shout joyfully in front of the congregation saying You have saved him. How I pray for this kind of faith for our people; How I pray for us to encourage each other with this kind of sacrifice.

Perfectionism Redefined

I was reading some thoughts on spiritual virtues by Isaac Penington a while back. He was a Quaker from the 17th century and lived much of his life in London. He writes, "The Lord is able to uphold the one who feels his weakness and daily waits on Him for support, even under the heaviness of the cross." I think we busy ourselves to greatly that we are numb to our own weakness. At least, this is true in my life. And I instinctively avoid anything that reveals a personal weakness or flaw. But I will willingly look at someone else's flaws and dwell on them internally. (That is often the "Christian" way to handle judging others.)

Jesus says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Okay, this is just one more INCREDIBLE reason to praise Jesus Christ. This life...YOUR life...is about God. The life God has given to me is worship 101. And God's power is "made perfect" in our weakness. God gets GLORY when we are weak. So, all of those mistakes you have made...that you don't want anyone to know about? Ummm...yeah...God is ready to use those through you and make something perfect. Are you willing to be part of perfection?

Perfectionism=Be weak. Claim Christ. Walk by His Grace.

Counting on God

We say it all the time around here at GCC that the hope of the world is Jesus Christ being manifest through the local church.  I get quite caught up in what candidates are saying, what stances they take, are they of good character...etc.  As I looked at the names on the ballot today I was reminded these folks are human, and my hope is not found in their victory or defeat.  My hope is found in nothing less than Jesus Christ...and He is ever-present on His throne! 

At OJ and UB this weekend we are starting a new song by Jared Anderson.  And the lyrics have been streaming through my mind all morning.  Let's stand on this Truth together...

I'm in a fight not physical
And I'm in a war
But not with this world
You are the light that's beautiful
And I want more
I want all that's Yours

Joy unspeakable that won't go away
And just enough strength
To live for today
So I never have to worry
What tomorrow will bring
'Cause my faith is on solid rock
I am counting on God

 

Humility vs. Anxiety

"God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."
1 Peter 5:6,7

I have never thought that pride is related to anxiety, but this verse has helped me to see a deep truth. My anxiety is a result of being self-absorbed...and not allowing God to be God. As I get older and gain more responsibility (kids, house, work...etc.), the tendency to be my own "god" is strong. If something is wrong, try to fix it. If I cannot fix it, THEN I give it to God...and start worrying. C.S. Lewis said that pride is at the root of all sin. I am amazed how often this statement proves true. I believe Peter was inspired by the Holy Spirit in these verses. God will oppose the proud, but will give His grace to those who are humble. I long to be a person who believes God for MORE, not LESS. And God gives us physical triggers at times to let us know that something is awry spiritually. Anxiety is a trigger for me...saying, "Your trusting in yourself, not God."

God, I humble myself before you. Forgive my self-centered mind. For I am not god...YOU ARE. I give You my anxiety. I give You glory. In Your mercy, please hear my prayer and grace me with your presence this day.

Amen