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Phones: 253-7698 • Phone/Fax: 253-8668 Email: chccucc@myfairpoint.net • Website: www.chccucc.org | ||||
Pastor.................................................................................... Reverend Carol Asher Home Phone: 744-7864 E-mail: clsasher2@aol.com Ministers.............................................................................................. All Members Director of Music.......................................................................... Secretary......................................................................................... Nancy Lemieux Ukama/Partner................. |
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This Week in Our Church Family
Boldface = Church-sponsored events
Sunday (4) 8:30 am BOCE
10:00 am Worship and
11:00 am Fellowship and Refreshments in Gilpatric Hall
5-8:30 pm OWL
Village Preschool Mon, Wed, Fri 8:45-11:45 a.m.
Monday (5) 5:30 & 8:30 am Boot Camp (Mon.-Fri.)
9:00 am T’ai Chi
Tuesday (6) 5:30-6:30pm
Wed. (7)
Thursday (8) 12 noon Women’s Christmas Luncheon
6:00 pm T’ai Chi
Friday (9) 11:30 am Preschool Grand Luncheon
Saturday (10) 8:00am Al-Anon
Sunday (11) 10:00 am Worship and
11:10 am Fellowship and Refreshments in Gilpatric Hall
5:30 pm Second Sundays
Thank You to Today’s Volunteers
Ushers: | Mary Moore | Nursery Care: | Gabby Smith |
Liturgist: | Carrie Crosby | Greeter: | Dorrie & Palmer Smith |
Acolytes: | Fellowship Hosts: | Nancy Leighley |
December 4, 2011 10:00 a.m.
Morning Worship for the Second Sunday of Advent
Large print bulletins available—please ask an usher.
An asterisk (*) indicates “Please stand if you are able.”
Gathering for Worship
PRELUDE “O Lord, How Shall I Meet Thee” Manz
(the children will leave to go to their classes; they will return for Communion)
IN THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH (announcements)
LIGHTING OF THE CANDLE OF JOY
Sing together (hymn #128): Come, festively sing while awaiting the birth,
Join angels in dancing from heaven to earth.
Wave banners of good news, lift high thankful praise,
One candle is lit for the joy of these days.
As we continue our Advent preparations, we find delight in the high mountain.
Entering into Worship
CHORAL INTROIT
RESPONSIVE CALL TO WORSHIP
L: Advent calls us to joyful anticipation of the Messiah, but sometimes joy is lacking.
P: Restore us, O God, and touch us with your sense of delight.
L: When our delight is overshadowed by worry and fear,
P: Restore us, O God, and refresh us by your grace.
L: When problems loom large and solutions are elusive,
P: Restore us, O God, and bring us back to your purposes.
L: When relationships are painful and hurt results,
P: Restore us, O God, and reconnect us with others.
L: When busyness and activity crowd out what is meaningful and important,
P: Restore us, O God, and remind us of what is vital and vibrant.
L: When life feels tedious, and the waiting drags on,
P: Restore us, O God, and rekindle in us a sense of wonder.
L: When disappointments mount and disillusionment descends,
P: Restore us, O God, and .renew our spirits.
L: Joy to the world! The light of the world is coming!
P: Restore to us, O God, the joy of your salvation!
*OPENING HYMN “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee” (v. 1, 2, 4) Hymn #2
*GATHERING PRAYER (in unison)
Gracious God, the longings of our heart are profound, and the season of Advent, like no other, makes us acutely aware of our yearnings. While we are surrounded by glittery tinsel and pretty
packages, we are reminded that superficial things do not truly satisfy. Our calendars are
crammed with activities and events, exposing the lie that busyness offers meaning and purpose. The “to-do” list runs off the page, yet exhaustion, not joy, is too often the end result of it all. We are surrounded by crowds but feel the emptiness of our connections to others. What we genuinely desire is mystery, a sense of transcendence, a story that is bigger than life but enfolds our lives. We need the Son of God become flesh, the baby born in a manger who brought shepherds to their knees and angels to their feet. We long for a liberating truth that cannot be contained in words but must be sung by the heavenly hosts. In short, we hunger for you. Come to us anew, we pray, to satisfy our restless hearts. Thank you for teaching us to pray together, saying “Our Father...”
*LORD’S PRAYER (using “debts”)
“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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
*GLORIA PATRI (sung by the people) #35
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost,
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be,
World without end. Amen. Amen.
A Time of Sharing
ANTHEM “Living Bread” Martin
PRAYER JOYS AND CONCERNS
CALL TO PRAYER
“Lord, listen to your children praying; Lord, send your Spirit in this place.
Lord, listen to your children praying. Send us love, send us power, send us grace.”
PASTORAL PRAYER
CHORAL RESPONSE
MOMENT FOR
OFFERING
Organ Offertory “Christians All, Your Lord Is Coming” Miller
*Offering Response #173 (sung by the people)
As they offered gifts so rare at that manger rude and bare.
So may we with holy joy, pure and free from sin’s alloy,
All our costliest treasures bring, Christ to thee from whom they spring.
*Prayer of Dedication
Reflecting on God’s Word
SCRIPTURE Psalm 85: 1-13 p. 543 OT
“Restore us, O God of our salvation, and cause your anger toward us to cease.
… Will you revive us again, that your people will rejoice in you?”
SERMON “Restore Us, O God… to Your Joy”
Sharing God’s Gift to Us
PRESENTATION OF GOD’S GIFTS
INVITATION
SHARING OF THE BREAD AND CUP
All believers are invited to share in these Communion blessings
Sending
*CLOSING HYMN “Rejoice, Ye Pure in Heart” (v. 1-3) Hymn #15
*BENEDICTION
ORGAN POSTLUDE “Pastoral Air” Murschhauser
(in these few minutes during the postlude, sit quietly and soak up the
love and grace of God that will help you through this coming week.)
* * * * * * * * *
The Scandalous Truth of Joy
(Brian D. McLaren, Naked Spirituality: A Life With God in Twelve Simple Words)
But the scandalous truth — known by mystics throughout history and affirmed in the pages of our sacred texts is that when we connect with God, it is as if we are plugging our souls into a pure current of high-voltage joy. The joy that surprised me under the stars in my teens was exactly what the ancient Psalmist knew (16:11): that God is a joyful being and to enter or awaken to God’s presence is to enjoy a bracing jolt of invigorating delight followed by increasing levels of unending pleasure. Yes, there is indeed a place for quiet reverence, the dignity of robes and the noble tranquility of marble columns and pipe organs. But my suspicion is that among the barefoot poor, we learn something that the well-heeled seldom discover: God is joyful, and God’s joy is contagious. When we tap into the joy of the Lord, when we step into the pure joy that burns like a billion galaxies in the heart of God, we’ll soon find ourselves shouting, dancing, singing, leaping, clapping, swaying, laughing and otherwise jubilating and celebrating.
A Journey of Joy (Daniel Clendenin)
Joy is more elusive, more subtle and more nuanced than happiness, a predisposition to cheerfulness, persevering with emotional extra effort, or the luck of good fortune. In his autobiography, Surprised by Joy, C.S. Lewis describes joy as “an unsatisfied desire which is itself more desirable than any other satisfaction. . . I doubt whether anyone who has tasted it would ever, if both were in his power, exchange it for all the pleasures in the world.” Whereas we can manipulate circumstances to our own advantage to obtain what we think will bring happiness, or expend great efforts in pleasure-seeking, joy is entirely gratuitous. You cannot earn it, buy it or deserve it. It is a divine gift to receive rather than a selfish goal to pursue.
The opposite of joy is not sadness or sorrow but anxiety. Jesus encouraged his followers, “do not worry about your life. . . Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Consider the joy of the birds in their morning songs, or the flowers in their springtime glory, he said. If the Lord of the universe clothes creation with such extravagance, then we can rejoice in his love regardless of our circumstances. Jesus says that we rest in God’s love “so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:11).
Joy is Homemade
Happiness is something we create in our minds,
It’s not something we search for and so seldom find.
It’s just waking up and beginning each day,
By counting our blessings and kneeling to pray.
It’s giving up wishing for things we have not,
And making the best of whatever we’ve got.
For it’s in completing what God gives us to do
That we find real contentment and happiness too.
The REAL “Joy of the Lord” (Richard J. Foster in Celebration of Discipline)
There is something sad in anyone’s running from church to church trying to get an injection of “the joy of the Lord.” Joy is not found in singing a particular kind of music or getting with the right kind of group or even in exercising the charismatic gifts of the Spirit, good as all those may be. Joy is found in obedience. When the power that is in Jesus reaches into our work and play and redeems them, there will be joy where once there was mourning. To overlook that is to miss the meaning of the incarnation.
Announcements
A Warm Welcome to All!
On this Second Sunday of Advent, we remember that God keeps his promises. Rejoice with us in the covenant of God’s love. Relax and be restored by God’s grace—for such is God’s plan during this holy season. And do stay awhile after worship so that we may meet you.
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Memorial Poinsettias
Please use the order form enclosed in this morning’s bulletin for memorial poinsettias to beautify our sanctuary on Christmas Sunday and Christmas Eve. All orders MUST BE RECEIVED by TODAY.
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Angel Tree
The angels on the Christmas tree have the names and requests from a number of families in our area. If there is too much requested on each angel, please consider joining with someone else to purchase everything, or contribute some money so that all gifts might be bought. Return the angel gifts by NEXT SUNDAY in a bag with wrapping paper included (parents will get to see and wrap the gifts).
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Alternative Christmas
Are available for you to peruse and decide how you might honor someone with a gift to a worthy organization. There are separate order forms to “buy” your gifts; you will receive a small tag and an angel to give to the person honored by your alternative gift.
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Womens’ Christmas Luncheon
All women are invited to join the fellowship on Thursday, December 8th at noon in Gilpatric Hall. Bring your favorite casserole to share (and your place setting), a small gift to exchange, a precious Christmas memory, and your Christmas spirit! _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Christmas in Our Community
Christmas Nativity Display, over 80 crèches representing 30 nations.
December 9-11, Friday: 12-5; Saturday: 9-5; Sunday: 12-3 Free Admission.
Meredith Bay Colony Club,
The Pemigewasset Choral Society—To Hear The Angels Sing
Wed. Dec. 7th: 7:30pm—St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, Meredith
Fri. Dec. 9th: 7:30pm—
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CHCC T-shirt
A beautiful church t-shirt would make a perfect gift this Christmas. See Patte Morrow for yours.
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The Mountain – Our Advent Candle-Lighting Series
Together we will face the “mountains” of Advent through special arrangement with Contemporary Drama. Let us not be so overwhelmed by the obstacles of the season that we forget the real reason!
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Christmas Greetings Easel in Fellowship Hall
Available to post one greeting card for the entire Church Family. (Use the money saved on cards or postage for some special Christmas gift.)