For the week of December 1 – 1st Sunday of Advent
Morning Prayer: O God of all the prophets, You herald the coming of the Son of Man by wondrous signs in the heavens and on the earth. Guard our hearts from despair so that we, in the company of the faithful and by the power of Your Holy Spirit, may be found ready to raise our heads at the coming near of our redemption, the day of Jesus Christ. Amen. (Lectionary Prayers)
Morning Hymn: #196 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 forever, 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.
Psalm 25:1-5 (CEB)
25 I offer my life to You, Lord.
2 My God, I trust You.
Please don’t let me be put to shame!
Don’t let my enemies rejoice over me!
3 For that matter,
don’t let anyone who hopes in You
be put to shame;
instead, let those who are treacherous without excuse be put to shame.
4 Make Your ways known to me, Lord;
teach me Your paths.
5 Lead me in Your truth—teach it to me—
because You are the God who saves me.
I put my hope in You all day long.
Prayers of Intercession: Thank You, Lord, for hearing our prayers for those dear to our hearts. We now pray as You have taught us: 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 sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us, not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Offering spotlight: One of the recipients of Missions giving though LUMC is City of Joy International, serving children in Rwanda. The families are living in extreme poverty. Your designated giving through LUMC Missions provides access to clean water, nutrition, medical care and Christian education and development. The mission is to elevate this community out of poverty, so that one day they will find the long term solution to the poverty of their community and country.
Offering prayer: Gracious God, in this season of anticipation, we offer our gifts with hopeful hearts. As we prepare for the fullness of Your kingdom, may these offerings be a sign of our readiness and desire to live attentively. Use them to bring justice, righteousness, and joy to our world. Surprise us with Your presence and help us to look up, to pay attention, and to embrace the hope You bring. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen. (Discipleship Ministries)
Hymn of preparation: #384 Love Divine All Loves Excelling
- Love divine, all loves excelling, joy of heaven, to earth come down;
fix in us Thy humble dwelling; all Thy faithful mercies crown!
Jesus Thou art all compassion, pure, unbounded love Thou art;
visit us with Thy salvation; enter every trembling heart. - Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit into every troubled breast!
Let us all in Thee inherit; let us find that second rest.
Take away our bent to sinning; Alpha and Omega be;
end of faith, as its beginning, set our hearts at liberty. - Come, Almighty to deliver, let us all Thy life receive;
suddenly return and never, nevermore Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing, serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
pray and praise Thee without ceasing, glory in Thy perfect love. - Finish, then, Thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be.
Let us see Thy great salvation perfectly restored in Thee;
changed from glory into glory, till in heaven we take our place,
till we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise.
Scripture: Luke 21:25-36 CEB)
25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars. On the earth, there will be dismay among nations in their confusion over the roaring of the sea and surging waves. 26 The planets and other heavenly bodies will be shaken, causing people to faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world. 27 Then they will see the Human One[a] coming on a cloud with power and great splendor. 28 Now when these things begin to happen, stand up straight and raise your heads, because your redemption is near.”
29 Jesus told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. 31 In the same way, when you see these things happening, you know that God’s kingdom is near. 32 I assure you that this generation won’t pass away until everything has happened. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will certainly not pass away.
34 “Take care that your hearts aren’t dulled by drinking parties, drunkenness, and the anxieties of day-to-day life. Don’t let that day fall upon you unexpectedly, 35 like a trap. It will come upon everyone who lives on the face of the whole earth. 36 Stay alert at all times, praying that you are strong enough to escape everything that is about to happen and to stand before the Human One.”[b]
Message: Pastor Becky Cuddeback
December 1, the first Sunday of Advent. The Christmas season is upon us! Christmas is coming, we can see the signs all around us. There are lights on houses, stores are decorated, our radio stations have changed to 24 hour Christmas music just to name a few signs.
Yet, what are you anticipating, what are you most looking forward to? Is it the food? The time together with family?
Much of what we look forward to is what comforts us. We look for the reminders of Christmases of the past, we long to be reconnected with what makes us feel the most loved and most welcomed. It’s nostalgia, and it’s not all bad to be drawn to the past. Maybe it was a simpler time or a more magical time. Maybe we are drawn back to a time when our concerns aren’t our adult concerns of today. We couldn’t or hadn’t seen the signs around us that reveal the world differently than we had perceived it.
I guess innocence is the word I’m looking for to describe our earliest Advent seasons of our lives. The seasons that led up to the celebration of the birth of a baby.
As we have grown older, the signs of the coming season aren’t always welcome. The secular holiday of Christmas in our society puts us at odds with the significance of the birth of Jesus. And I can’t be the only one who has been surrounded by Christmas and not have it feel like Christmas. It is the paradox of life.
Jesus talks about two different kinds of folks as they see the Kingdom coming near. There are those who will faint with fear and those who will be upright and looking ahead, head held high.
Jesus is telling us to be the straight standing and raised headed ones. This is the message of hope we need in the midst of our lives. The signs around us don’t reveal the Kingdom – the unrest, wars, sickness, and famine. These are the signs of the brokenness of the world and of human beings. It isn’t an optimistic picture of life, yet the Kingdom is near. It is nearer than we can perceive. We can’t perceive the nearness because we aren’t looking for it. The signs that get marketed to us, reveal doom – not hope.
Yet, the truth is the Kingdom has broken through and continues to break through to us because the Son of Man has come. We celebrate that coming every Christmas as the infant Jesus. The Son of Man has come to each of us who have called upon Him as Savior and Jesus promised to come again.
Where we find the hope of the Kingdom of God is when one hungry person is fed. When shelter is made for the homeless, when the stranger is welcomed. The hope is alive and real when the widow is cared for and the orphaned child finds a family. Look for these signs. Look for these stories, the ones that fulfill the call of Jesus and prove the love of Christ is alive in the world.
The signs won’t be obvious. The signs may not make the newspaper or the network news stations. We have to be deliberate in seeking out these signs and sharing them with the fellowship, sharing those stories with your neighbor and with your family. It is a call to testify to Christ.
In our seeking, we may find we can’t find a sign of Christ’s love at work. When this is the case, we become the sign, we step out in faith and in service to those in need of connection and relationship. This can sound overwhelming and scary. Be encouraged, the goal is one, one life at a time. One hungry person fed. One sheltered person. One welcomed stranger. Each one connected by you. Because we all need the message of hope that Jesus brings.
Closing Hymn: #220 Angels from the Realms of Glory
- Angels from the realms of glory, wing your flight o'er all the earth;
ye who sang creation's story now proclaim Messiah's birth:
Refrain: Come and worship, come and worship, worship Christ, the newborn king.
- Shepherds, in the field abiding, watching o'er your flocks by night,
God with us is now residing; yonder shines the infant light: (Refrain) - Sages, leave your contemplations, brighter visions beam afar;
seek the great Desire of nations; ye have seen His natal star: (Refrain) - Saints, before the altar bending, watching long in hope and fear;
suddenly the Lord, descending, in His temple shall appear: (Refrain)
The blessing: May the Lord bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you this week.
