December 1, 2024
First Sunday of Advent
Hope
Hanging of the Greens
Prelude
Kathy Shrader
Bringing Forth the Flame of Hope
Welcome & Announcements
Felicia Thomas
Church Bells Ring
Call to Worship
Alexis Owens
(Bold text = All read)
How shall we prepare this house for the coming of the King?
With branches of cedar, the tree of royalty.
How shall we prepare this house for the coming of the eternal Christ?
With garlands of pine and fir, whose leaves are ever living, ever green.
How shall we prepare this house for the coming of our Savior?
With wreaths of holly and ivy, telling of his passion, death, and resurrection.
How shall we prepare our hearts for the coming of the Son of God?
By hearing again the words of the prophets, who foretold the saving work of God.
For God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.
Glory to God in the highest!
Hymn - UMH #240 (United Methodist Hymnal)
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Prayer
Alexis Owens
Liturgy
Carol Raymond & Imani Banks
In the days to come
the mountain of the LORD’s house
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be raised above the hill;
all the nations shall stream to it.
Many peoples shall come and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
that God may teach us God’s ways
and that we may walk in God’s paths”
With what shall we come to God’s house?
Bring branches of cedar and holly,
bring evergreens and a pine tree,
hang wreaths and garlands.
Make the church fragrant
with the smell of living things and our holy play.
In acts of hanging greens
and listening to the words of prophets and seers
let us make our hearts and this space
a place of inward and outward preparation
for the One
who comes to give us second birth.
Hymn - UMH #218
It Came Upon the Midnight Clear (v. 1 & 4)
A Light in the Darkness
Alexis Owens
Blessing of the Advent Wreath
Lighting of the Advent Candle
Scripture Reading Isaiah 9: 2, 6
Hymn - UMH #234
O Come, All Ye Faithful (v. 1 & 3)
Blessing of the Greens
Felicia Thomas
Justin, Olivia, Imani, and Xavier Banks
Evergreens and Wreaths
Hymn - UMH #219
What Child is This?
People of God, we stand at the entrance of the church
and at the doorway to the Christian year
on this first Sunday of Advent.
Let us mark the entrance to the church building
and our hearts and minds as portals for Christ to enter.
Come, Lord Jesus! Come, Lord Jesus!
Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors!
that the Ruler of glory may come in.
Who is the Ruler of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle!
Lift up your heads, O gates!
And be lifted up, O ancient doors!
That the Ruler of glory may come in.
Who is this Ruler of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
the Lord is the Ruler of glory!
Hymn - UMH #211
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (v. 1)
Hanging / Placing Garlands
How shall we make this place a reminder of our need of repentance and that faithfulness and integrity that comes from God our maker and redeemer?
Let us hang garlands as Hosea speaks the word of God:
A reading from Hosea, chapter 14:
I will heal my people’s disloyalty;
I will love them freely,
for my anger has turned from them.
O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?
It is I who answer and look after you.
I am like an evergreen cypress;
your faithfulness comes from me.
Those who are wise understand these things;
those who are discerning know them.
For the ways of the LORD are right,
and the upright walk in them,
but transgressors stumble in them.
Hymn - UMH #140
Great Is Thy Faithfulness
Poinsettias
Hymn - UMH #239
Silent Night (v. 1, 2, & 4)
The Nativity
Hymn - UMH #217
Away in a Manger
The Christmas Tree
God, the Holy One of Israel, is a God of comfort and compassion.
With the Christmas tree
we remember God’s everlasting promises to the poor and needy.
Isaiah spoke of God’s making of the wilderness
a place of blessing where water and plants,
even pine trees,
would manifest God’s loving action to save and provide.
Place the tree, strong friends, as we hear God’s word.
A reading from the prophet Isaiah, chapter 41:
When the poor and needy seek water,
and there is none,
and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the LORD will answer them,
I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
I will open rivers on the bare heights,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
and the dry land springs of water.
I will put in the wilderness the cedar,
the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive;
I will set in the desert the cypress,
the plane and the pine together,
so that all may see and know,
all may consider and understand,
that the hand of the LORD has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it.
Hymn - UMH #246
Joy to the World
Here in this place we prepare for the coming of the Lord.
Here we will remember his Advent,
his birth in Bethlehem,
weak and helpless as an infant.
And here we rekindle our prayer,
”Come, Lord Jesus”
as we await his coming as the bright and morning star.
Hang symbols and signs of Christ — ruler, prophet, priest.
Hang stars, crosses, triangles, the “alpha” and the “omega”
to remind us of his identity, his story, and of the holy Trinity.
“I am coming soon ... I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates.
“It is I, Jesus, who sent my angel to you with this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the
descendant of David, the bright morning star.”
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.”
And let everyone who hears say, “Come.”
And let everyone who is thirsty come.
Let anyone who wishes take the water of life as a gift.
The word of the Lord.
Hymn - UMH #251
Go Tell It On the Mountain
Benediction
Postlude
Taking the Light of Christ into the World
Offering and NOMOFOMO
One of our core values is, "God gives to us, so we give back." We're called to give as a joy-filled response to what we've been given. Your financial gifts make a tremendous difference in the lives of God's beloved in Harrisonburg and beyond. Whether it's helping to make sure children in our community have enough to eat, helping to respond to the mental health crisis in our community, or providing much needed backing for the operating costs of our spaces and staff — your gift is a part of God's dream and we are grateful for everyone who partners with us on this journey!
Cookies, Coffee, Cocoa, and Carols with New Friends!
Today after Worship!
Since today is our first week worshipping with our new friends from JWUMC, we thought it might be fun to have some time to share cookies, coffee, cocoa, and carols! And maybe some stories! Join us downstairs in the Fellowship Hall immediately after worship!
Advent study
7-8 pm Thursday Nights - 12/5, 12, & 19
Meeting at the Douglass Home (reach out for the address!)
We will be journeying through Simpson’s book Fully Human. Fully Divine. as a group. There is a SMALL amount of reading to be done throughout the week, but if you skip some that is ok too! This is an awesome read for anyone looking to stay rooted and grounded throughout this crazy holiday season and beyond.
We encourage everyone to take a peek at this read even if you cannot commit to attending the group function!
On Thursday’s we will debrief on the weekly readings and dive a little deeper on how it is impacting us in our daily lives, what we are learning, and generally support one another throughout the season.
Here is the link to buy the book:
https://amzn.to/3AL5URd
*If you cannot commit to paying for the book right now but would like to participate please reach out to Alexis.
Sheridan’s Senior Research Project
12/3/24 on campus at jmu
Sheridan has been hard at work on her senior capstone research project for her degree all semester, and On Tuesday December 3rd she will be presenting her research findings with her group! We are all invited to attend to hear about the exciting project she has been working on and to support her in her studies. If you are interested in attending please talk to me (Alexis) and we will get a group together, there ARE parking options for the event. We will plan to meet up together at JMU around 5:15ish
Deck the cookies with rise
December 5th 12-1pm
Finals are just around the weekend, the holiday spirit is in the air, and we would like to bid our JMU friends a Merry Christmas! We will be setting up a cookie decoration station on campus to spread a little joy on what is often a very stressful week on campus.
If you are interested in helping us bake the blank sugar cookies please reach out to Sheridan or Alexis!
Valley Treble Voices
December 8, 4 pm
Massanutten Presbyterian Church
Enjoy a concert of beautiful holiday music! Laura Douglass and Amanda Zepp are members of the ensemble. A free-will offering will be received.
December 15
Christmas Dinner with JWUMC
We have been invited by JWUMC to join them in one of their special holiday traditions - a Christmas Dinner following worship on December 15! More details will be forthcoming, but plan now to join us for this festive occasion!
joining forces this Advent Season
All this month, we will be a part of some new traditions and share some of our traditions with the JWUMC community! We will worship upstairs together these weeks and make some new friends!
We hope to offer a kidzone option downstairs for those who are interested, but we need 2 adult volunteers weekly to make this a safe viable option! Please reach out if you are willing to be a part of the rotation. If we have many folks willing no one has to fill every week!
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