Gathering Music

“Emmanuel/O Little Town of Bethlehem”
Michael W. Smith/Amy Grant

Emmanuel, Emmanuel
Wonderful Counselor!
Lord of life, Lord of all
You are the Prince of Peace
Mighty God, Holy One
Emmanuel, Emmanuel! 2x

O Little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by

Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.

How silently, how silently
The wondrous gift is given
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of God’s heaven

We hear the Christmas angels
Their great glad tidings tell
O come to us, abide with us
O Lord, Emmanuel!

Call to Worship

Yajenlemla Change

The mystery begins

Where the winter finds its feet
the rush of frost and chill
competes with the old hope of incarnation

Darker nights unfold
and with the fading of the light
the sun weakens

held by this frozen earth
wrapped in winters frost
the mystery of the ancient hope is alight once more

for from the stump of Jesse
the dry old tree of David’s line
comes a new branch

a new shoot
cracking through the season
with a promise yet unfulfilled

this is the hoping
the waiting
the advent

Let us gather round the words
the prophets spoke long ago
and believe:

Emmanuel is on the way

(Roddy Hamilton, Listening to the Stones, http://newkilpatrickblog.typepad.com/nk-blogging/mucky-paws/)

Song

“Comfort, Comfort O My People”

Responsive Prayer

Beth Quick

Leader: Let us pray for the Spirit of Wisdom to rest upon us
A spirit of understanding and knowledge
Grant us to live in harmony
All: God’s mercy prevail

Leader: Let us pray for God’s steadfastness to gird our spirit
May peace prevail like lamb and wolf
Grant us to live in harmony
All: God’s mercy prevail

Leader: Let us pray, for voices crying out in the wilderness
Ones who are living in fear and hiding
Grant all a place of harmony
All: God’s mercy prevail

Leader: Let us pray, repent of harm done to the innocent
Clear the chaff of abuse and hurt
Bear the Spirit of harmony
All: God’s mercy prevail

Leader: Let us pray for the God of hope, joy and peace to fill
All hearts, one voice glorify
God, prepare the way
All: God’s mercy prevail

Scripture Reading – Isaiah 11:1-10

Jinna Lee

11 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. 2 The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. 3 His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; 4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. 6 The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. 7 The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den. 9 They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious.

Anthem

Seminary Choir

“Creation of Peace”
Words: Barbara Hope & Mark Miller
Music: Mark Miller

Come, build a land
Come gather together
Anointed by God, then create peace
Where justice shall flow
Down like the waters
And peace, peace, like
And everflowing stream.

Sermon

“Wishing and Hoping”

Dean Edwin Aponte

Musical Response

Sacrament of Holy Communion

Dean Aponte

God be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to God.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is right, and a good and joyful thing,
always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Almighty God, creator of heaven and earth.
You formed us in your image
and breathed into us the breath of life.
When we turned away, and our love failed, your love remained steadfast.
You spoke to us through your prophets, who looked for that day
when justice shall roll down like waters
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream,
when nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war anymore.

And so,
with your people on earth
and all the company of heaven
we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

(Singing)
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest.

Holy are you, and blessed is your child, Jesus Christ,
whom you sent in the fullness of time to be a light to the world.
You scatter the proud in the imagination of their hearts
and have mercy on those who seek you from generation to generation.
You put down the mighty from their thrones and exalt those of low degree.
You fill the hungry with good things, and the rich you send empty away.
Your own child came among us as a servant
to be Emmanuel, your presence with us.

On the night in which Jesus gave himself up for us,
he took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread,
gave it to his disciples, and said:
“Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.”

When the supper was over, Jesus took the cup,
gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said:
“Drink from this, all of you;
this is my cup of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it,
in remembrance of me.”

And so,
in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving
as a holy and living sacrifice,
in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of faith.

(Singing)
Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again.
Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest.

Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here,
and on these gifts of bread and wine.
Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ,
that we may be for the world the body of Christ,
redeemed by his love.

By your Spirit make us one with Christ,
one with each other,
and one in ministry to all the world.

Through your Son Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit in your holy Church,
all honor and glory is yours, almighty God,
now and forever.

(Singing)
Amen, Amen, Amen.
Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest, Hosanna in the highest.

Blessing

Dean Edwin Aponte

Sending Song

“Walk In the Light!”
Words: Charles Wesley & George Elderkin
Music: George Elderkin

Joyful all ye nations rise
Jesus the light of the world!
Join the triumph of the skies
Jesus the light of the world!

We’ll walk in the light!
Beautiful light!
Come where the dewdrops
Of mercy shine bright
Shine all around us
By day and by night
Jesus, the light of the world!

Christ, by highest heaven adored
Jesus the light of the world!
Christ, the everlasting Lord
Jesus the light of the world!

We’ll walk in the light!
Beautiful light!
Come where the dewdrops
Of mercy shine bright
Shine all around us
By day and by night
Jesus, the light of the world!