Order of Worship

24 December 2023

Welcome to Shadow Rock UCC and to the season of

Advent! Joy is often a companion to many other

emotions. We can feel joy in addition to feeling many

other things at once: grief, anticipation, anxiety,

excitement, disappointment, exhaustion. Perhaps many of us live with the myth that joy is not something we deserve—or that it is wholly out of reach. But our joy is rooted in the truth that we belong to God. Can you tether yourself to that deep truth? You deserve to feel joy—fully. The world needs your joy, even if you are weary. Our joy is better when it is shared.

The Fourth Sunday of Advent

Prelude ~ Little Drummer Boy/Peace On Earth

Shared by Travis Meyers and The Band

Welcome and Announcements

Shared by Pastor Ken

Opening Words

Led by Pastor Ken

One: Who are we and what are we called to do?

All: We are the sensitive and responsive ones called

to create a world where every person is radically

affirmed and barriers between people become

bridges of inclusion, justice, and spirituality.

Singing Our Welcome For the Season

~ O Come All Ye Faithful

1. O come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,

O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem.

Come and behold him, born the King of angels,

O come, let us adore him, O come, let us adore him,

O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!

2. Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation,

O sing, all ye citizens of heaven above.

Glory to God in the highest,

O come, let us adore him, O come, let us adore him,

O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!

3. Yea, Lord, we greet thee, born this happy morning,

Jesus, to thee be all glory given.

Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing,

O come, let us adore him, O come, let us adore him,

O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!

Lighting Our Second Advent Candle for Joy

Led by Marilyn Rampley

One: Each night we sleep wearily under a large winter sky.

The nights are longer and the dawn comes later.

All: Come, Companion Jesus, Come.

One: Last Sunday we lit the candle of awe and wonder, the

second Advent candle was for joy. The first candle was for

the weary who need hope. This morning we light them

again.

First, second and third candles lit.

One: The fourth Advent candle is the candle of story. In the

stillness of our worship here, we light it, watching it burn

and glow.

Fourth is candle lit.

One: And we affirm that we are a people of God always seeking to break down the walls that divide and separate us, as a community and in the lives of people near and far.

All: As this season of sparkle and bright unfolds around us, the welcome beauty of story is found

woven into the simplicity of every moment.

One: May love stories flow from our hearts with abundance,

filling every moment with the season’s gifts of hope and

peace and joy.

All: May our stories be shared truly and deeply that all who hear them be charged with its message and become, themselves, life’s agents of love.

One: Our love stories teach us the truth of God’s most

precious gift: we are nothing without each other.

One: Let us pray. Spirit of Life and Love, help us to hear your

love story again so it may light the world this Christmas.

Silence

Quiet Place



In this quiet place

In this quiet place

Help me be still and know

How I can give, and how to   forgive

In this quiet place

In this quiet place

Help me be still and know You

Like Jesus in the manger

Let me be in this quiet place

Let me see your path for me

Let me trust in your grace

In this quiet place

In this quiet place

Help me be still and know

How to be true in all I do

In this quiet place

In this quiet place

Help me be still and know

You

Celebrations and Celebration Song

Led by Pastor Ken

At this time, we share moments from our lives: birthdays,

anniversaries, and words of peace and justice. We celebrate

sorrows and grief as part of our comprehensive view of life.

Give voice to goodness!

Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Fa la la la la, la la la la.

‘Tis the season to be jolly, Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Don we now our gay apparel, Fa la la la la, la la la la.Troll the ancient Yuletide carol, Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Offerings and Offertory ~ Powerless Love

Shared by Travis Meyers

Dedication of Our Offerings

Led by Marilyn Rampley

One: Because we can hope, we know that we can give, expecting what we offer to be multiplied many times over, knowing that it will create positive change.

All: In this Advent season, we dedicate our offerings to the building of a more hopeful and peaceful world.

One: May the Christmas story with all its power bring alive our individual hopes into one large outpouring that is significant, life-affirming and blessed for all people.

Singing Our Faith

The First Noel the Angels did say

Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay

In fields where they lay keeping their sheep

On a cold winter's night that was so deep

Noel Noel Noel Noel

Born is the King of Israel!

They looked up and saw a star

Shining in the East beyond them far

And to the earth it gave great light

And so it continued both day and night

Noel Noel Noel Noel

Born is the King of Israel!

And by the light of that same star

Three Wise men came from country far

To seek for a King was their intent

And to follow the star wherever it went

Noel Noel Noel Noel

Born is the King of Israel!

This star drew nigh to the northwest

O'er Bethlehem it took its rest

And there it did both Pause and stay

Right o'er the place where Jesus lay

Noel Noel Noel Noel

Born is the King of Israel!

Word About Life For Today

Shared by Rev. Gene Lefebrve and Pastor Ken             

Later, two women who were prostitutes came to the king and

stood before him. One woman said, ‘Please, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house; and I gave birth while she was in the house. Then on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. We were together; there was no one else with us in the house, only the two of us were in the house. Then this woman’s son died in the night because she lay on him. She got up in the middle of the night and took my son from beside me while your servant slept. She laid him at her breast and laid her dead son at my breast. When I rose in the morning to nurse my son, I saw that he was dead; but when I looked at him closely in

the morning, clearly it was not the son I had borne.’ But the

other woman said, ‘No, the living son is mine, and the dead son is yours.’ The first said, ‘No, the dead son is yours, and the living son is mine.’ So they argued before the king. Then the king said, ‘One says, “This is my son that is alive, and your son is dead”; while the other says, “Not so! Your son is dead, and my son is the living one.” ’ So the king said, ‘Bring me a sword’, and they brought a sword before the king. The king said, ‘Divide the living boy in two; then give half to one, and half to the other.’ But the woman whose son was alive said to the king—because compassion for her son burned within her—‘Please, my lord, give her the living boy; certainly do not kill him!’ The other said, ‘It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.’ Then the king responded: ‘Give the first woman the living boy; do not kill him. She is his mother.’ All of Israel heard of the judgment that the king

had rendered; and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him, to execute justice.

Words For Mission   

Led by Judy Schwiebert

One: Celebration need not cease.

All: It can echo in our lives, in our words, in our deeds,

in our moods, in our dreams.

One: These are the times!

All: We are the people.

One: All of Creation is blessed!

All: May we love all and serve all!

One: May God be with you.

All: And also with you.

One: Amen.

All: Amen.

Sending Forth Song ~ O Little Town of Bethlehem

by Phillips Brooks and Lewis H. Redner

1. 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.

2. For Christ is born of Mary, and gathered all above,

While mortals sleep, the angels keep their watch of

wondering love.

O morning stars, together proclaim the holy birth,

And praises sing to God the King, and peace to us on earth!

3. How silently, how silently the wondrous gift is given!

So God imparts to human hearts the blessings

of God’s heaven.

No ear may hear God’s coming, but in this world of sin,

Where meek souls will receive Him, still the dear Christ enters in.

4. O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray;

Cast out our sin, and enter in, be born in us today.

We hear the Christmas angels the great glad tidings tell;

O come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel!

Looking Ahead for CHRISTMAS!

Dec. 24 Christmas Eve / We Make Room

This is our candlelight service at 5 p.m. Invite friends and family and share the joy and beauty.

Dec. 31 First Sunday of Christmas / We Root Ourselves in Ritual. Is Ritual a Bad Word?

Sermon Reboot is OFF for today.

This is a time to talk about the message and explore together using the ORID Art Form Conversation methodology. What is ORID? It stands for Observation, Reflection, Interpretation, and Decision. You will get the hang of it.