Preparation for Worship at Home. When worshipping at home, set aside a time and a place each week for worship. During the Advent season (today through Christmas Eve), set out four candles. One candle will be lit for each Sunday that passes as we approach Christmas Day.
May the following serve as a guide in your worship of God.
The Worship of God
Passing the Peace
Say to one another, “May the peace of Christ be with you.”
And reply, “And, also with you.”
Advent Candle Litany
O Holy One, we light this second candle,
a candle offering comfort to weary spirits
after a year of pain and loss.
Let its glow remind us of your tender care
and warm our lives in the Light of Peace.
Let it guide us to your presence in our midst,
leading us to your Justice and Joy in the service of Love.
God be with us in this Light of Peace.
Two candle are lit today.
Opening Prayer
O Holy One,
you are tender shepherd,
architect of the Way,
beguiling hope of all who go looking for you
deep in their lives.
Surprise us here with
Sweetness, challenge, vision—
Whatever we may need
In this moment to recognize you
and follow you into the future.
We pray in the name of Jesus, the Beloved.
Amen.
Hymn of Praise
Comfort, Comfort O My People
Author: Johannes G. Olearius; tr. Catherine Winkworth
Tune: GENEVA 42 (Louis Bourgeois)
Comfort, comfort O my people, tell of peace, thus says our God;
Comfort those whose hearts are shrouded, mourning under sorrow’s load.
Speak unto Jerusalem of the peace that waits for them!
Tell them that their sins I cover, and their warfare now is over!
For the herald’s voice is calling in the desert far and near,
Bidding us to make repentance since the realm of God is here.
Oh, that warning cry obey! Now prepare for God a way;
let the valleys rise in meeting, and the hills bow down in greeting.
Straight shall be what long was crooked & the rougher places plain!
Let your hearts be true and humble, for Messiah’s holy reign.
For God’s glory evermore shall be known o’er all the world;
and all flesh shall see the token that God’s word is never broken.
Isaiah 40:1-11
Common English Bible along with The Jewish Bible
Comfort, oh comfort My people! says your God.
Speak compassionately to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her that her compulsory service has ended,
that her penalty has been paid,
that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins!
A voice is crying out:
“Clear the Lord’s way in the desert!
Make a level highway in the wilderness for our God!
Let every valley be raised up, and every mountain and hill be flattened.
Let uneven ground become level, and rough terrain a valley plain.
The Lord’s glory will appear, and all humanity will see it together;
the Lord’s mouth has commanded it.”
A voice rings out: “Call out!”
And another asks, “What should I call out?”
“All flesh is grass; all its goodness is like the flowers of the field.
The grass dries up and the flower withers
when the Lord’s breath blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.
The grass dries up and the flower withers,
but our God’s word is always fulfilled.
Go up on a high mountain, messenger Zion!
Raise your voice and shout, messenger Jerusalem!
Raise it; don’t be afraid; say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
Here is the Lord God,
coming with strength, with a triumphant arm,
bringing his reward with him and his payment before him.
Like a shepherd, God will tend the flock;
he will gather lambs in his arms and lift them onto his lap.
He will gently guide the mother sheep.
Prayer for Others
Pause after each paragraph to give voice to prayers as prompted. Let us pray,
Merciful God, who shelters us and guides us,
we give you thanks for….
God who comforts,
receive those who are fearful and lonely….
God whose love is steadfast,
be refuge for the ill, the dying, and those who care about them.…
God of righteousness,
we ask for your wisdom and ways of justice to prevail
in our community, this nation, your world….
God who seeks our trust, grow us and guide us in your ways
that are life-giving in your world. Amen.
Choral Anthem
Comfort My People
Composer: Ian Callanan
Comfort, my people, and calm all your fear;
the day of salvation is quickly drawing near.
The One you long to see will soon set you free.
O come, Lord Jesus, come. O come, Lord Jesus, come.
Silence the thunder, silence sounds of war.
End all destruction and comfort those who mourn.
Your dream draws near; your vision is here.
O come, Lord Jesus, come. O come, Lord Jesus, come
Be light in the darkness; be truth for our lives.
Be strength for the helpless, the poor and lost who cry.
O saving voice, O living choice,
O come, Lord Jesus, come. O come, Lord Jesus, come
Reflection on Psalm 85
“Peace” / Rev. Tonya Vickery
I don’t know if you can remember what Advent and Christmas was like last year. This year’s pandemic, hurricanes, social unrest, and downright ugly political conversations have made the year seem like three or four years at least. However, it was just a little over 365 days ago that we celebrated Advent and Christmas all warm and cheery in our comfortable sanctuary closely surrounded by family and we were not afraid. But for some, Advent and Christmas was hard. I know it was for me. Alzheimer’s was changing my mom’s demeanor and erasing her abilities slowly but surely. I ached for her, my dad, and myself. If I could have given her anything last Christmas, I would have given her the ability to know peace.
Well here I am again this Advent/Christmas season, and if there was one gift I could give to all of you all, it would be the ability to know peace. We have all had a heck of a year and it isn’t over yet. We’ve been afraid. We’ve been sad. We’ve been angry. We’ve been flippant and short. We’ve been tired. We’ve been alone. We have been anxious. And after so many days and months of these restless feelings and emotions, we need peace. And I am grateful that the second Sunday of Advent aims to deliver.
Psalm 85:8-13
Let me hear what the Lord God says,
because he speaks peace to his people and to his faithful ones.
Don’t let them return to foolish ways.
God’s salvation is very close to those who honor him
so that his glory can live in our land.
Faithful love and truth have met;
righteousness and peace have kissed.
Truth springs up from the ground;
righteousness gazes down from heaven.
Yes, the Lord gives what is good,
and our land yields its produce.
Righteousness walks before God,
making a road for his steps.
Our Psalm reading begins today in the middle of the chapter with these words: “Let me hear what the Lord God has to say….” In other words, in response to all that has happened, what does God have to say about it? In this psalm, the writer’s life has been messed up. Life among God’s people had moved so far away from what God would have life to be. And God was angry.
This reminds me two winters ago when we were study the prophet Jeremiah on Wednesday nights. God used the common image of thirst and water to describe how God provides for us but how often we respond. God is like a fountain of living water, always running with water, always available. However, we people who are thirsty are also stubborn, arrogant, and stupid. We can see that fountain, but the way we respond to that water is by deciding to carve out our own cisterns out of stone so that we can catch the rain to drink. As we carve, and we work hard, day in and day out. It takes a long time to carve out rock. we crack our cistern, but we ignore the flaw, and when we finish we still set our leaky rock bowls out to catch the rain so we can have something to drink for ourselves. In Jeremiah, God says, when we finally realize our homemade cisterns are cracked, we don’t turn to the fountain of living water, we start looking for water in other places. We look for an alternative source, while the fountain of living water keeps on running, waiting, always ready for us to come and drink. God in Jeremiah says, please stop being so stubborn, arrogantly self-sufficient, and stupid. Please change the direction of your gaze and look this way, and come and drink.
Well, in Psalm 85, God’s steadfast patience is running out. And God is more than just a little mad with the people for doing the wrong things and acting the wrong way — ignoring the fountain of life in their midst. God is furious with them. You know, it’s bad enough when you disappoint yourself and others, but when you disappoint God, what is left to do? How can you ever make it right with God again? It is a horrible feeling when you realize you have turned your back on God out of arrogance, stubbornness, or plain stupidity, or carelessness. What does God have to say about all this? “Let me hear what the Lord God will speak.” And what is it God says? Peace.
I lean heavily today on one of my preferred theologians, Jurgen Moltmann. Moltmann says that peace is “an experience of the Spirit in our restless hearts.” I don’t know about you, but I know that my heart is restless these days. It is hard for me to be at ease. Each week something happens and it seems like we hold our breath that things will turn out okay. But man, the magnitude of loss surrounds us and it’s like it’s trying to smothers us. Jobs have been lost. Trust has been lost. Civility has been lost. But worst of all life has been lost and continues to be lost more and more each day. Leaving us little time to grieve. I used to think that maybe, just maybe our small little county might be sheltered from the storm of the pandemic, but it seems that as the world we let our guard down and now the virus taunts us. Our hearts are restless. When will this end? When will life be safe again? When will we be able to see smiling faces and hug one another? When will we be able to joyful gather as family and not be terrified that we have shed the virus where we have been?
The Spirit of God comes to our restless hearts and the voice of the Lord God says to us, peace. Hear the voice of the Lord God say to you, peace. God loves you. And God does not hold back love. Instead God through the Spirit pours love in our hearts, minds and inner souls. And as God’s love permeates your whole being, peace begins to bloom and thrive. All those tense muscles, all that anxiety, it lessens it grip on us, slows our heartbeat and racing minds.
Moltmann also writes, as Christians, as believes of God through Jesus Christ, “we are possessed by a hope which sees unlimited possibilities ahead because it looks into God’s future.” Jeffrey talked about this last week. God’s future for us is a wonderful thing, not a dreadful thing.
When that kind of hope takes root in your life, you begin to see and recognize the endless possibilities in store for all of us and all of creation. And that’s when your restless heart can stop struggling to control the day, the moment or the future, and instead your heart, mind and soul can be at peace, at rest because you know that God’s future is certain and God’s future is good. We who believe God, we have the possibility of seeing through the haze of this world and past the horizon of destruction and fear, and the ability to look into God’s new world. And we live our lives looking ahead, beyond the current fears and sufferings and disappointments in this life, and we see the beautiful coming world God and our restless hearts can sigh and be at peace. Think on the beautiful world of God to come. Breath the air of the Spirit and be at and in God’s peace.
Prayer of Thanksgiving
Thank you, God for constant love. Please help our church family grow deeper and deeper in your love. Amen.
Song of Faith
On Jordan’s Bank
Author: Charles Coffin; tr. John Chandler and others
Tune: WALTHAM
The Baptist shouts on Jordan’s shore,
the earth shakes with the mighty roar,
awake, let lazy sleep now flee:
behold, the voice of prophecy!
The earth and sky and sea now feel
that which their Author will reveal:
the Child now leaping in the womb
as God does human form assume.
Clean up your hearts, lay down the way,
for God approaches day by day;
prepare for such a worthy heir,
for such a guest your house prepare.
Through you, O Jesus, you alone
salvation, solace, strength are known;
without your love we fade like grass,
like wilted flowers our lives will pass.
O One who comes to set us free,
O Child, to you our song will be,
with Father, Spirit mothering,
to you shall praise for ever ring!
Sending Out
May the blessing and peace of God uphold you,
May the compassion and love of Christ enfold you,
and may the vitality and power of the Holy Spirit embolden you,
today and always.
Amen.
Closing Song
Blest Be the Tie
Tune: DENNIS (Nageli)
Author: John Fawcett
Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love.
The fellowship of kindred minds is like to that above.
When we are called to part, it gives us inward pain;
but we shall still be joined in heart, and hope to meet again.
This glorious hope revives our courage by the way;
while each in expectation lives and waits to see the day.
Acknowledgements: Artwork by Elizabeth. The Advent Candle Litany and Opening Prayer were provided by the United Church of Christ (www.ucc.org). The anthem was played by Tonya on the piano, Kat on the cello, and Michelle on the guitar with Mindy, Michelle, Tonya, Ally, and Elizabeth singing. Tracy played the organ and Mindy sang the hymns. Scripture readings are from the Common English Bible unless otherwise noted. Permission to podcast / stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license #A-724755. All rights reserved. All writings have been used by permission from the posting sites or authors.
Cullowhee Baptist Church 
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