Comfort, O Comfort Ye My People

We held virtual worship on Sunday, December 20, 2020 at 10:00am! You watch a recording on Facebook by clicking here, or you may watch below.

WELCOME TO ADVENT 4 The Evans Family

CALL TO WORSHIP Joanna Harader

O come, O come, Emmanu-El: God with us.
   Come into our brokenness; come into our joy.
Come into our captivity; come into our freedom.
   Come into our fear; come into our compassion.
Our souls have had their fill; have mercy upon us, O God,
   And come, O come, Emmanuel

LIGHTING THE ADVENT CANDLE Maren Tirabassi
In our homes we gather around wreaths
to pray our lost hopes, broken peace, limited joys,
and love that is so hard to find and share
in this season of coronavirus.
We affirm that our candles mean
we claim the power to call this season Advent,
when God’s light comes into the world
and nothing can overcome it.

Last week we lit the candles of Hope, Peace, and Joy.

We now light the candle of Love
even when many things dim our sparkling:______________
(share in comments: sickness, injury, loneliness, racism, environmental destruction, job loss, etc.)

God’s love illuminates hatred and a compassionate heart
and brightens the path to the birth of Christ.

Emmanuel, God be with us in the week to come
lighting hope, peace, joy and love on the wick of our lives,
so that we may shine on our world
your unconditional welcome to all. Amen.

YOUNG PEOPLE’S MESSAGE Danielle Sturgeon & Family

OPENING TO GOD janrichardson.com

If, in this life, I cannot do away with grief,
then I pray that I will at least enter into it
with a heart open to this comfort,
this solace that is one of the greatest treasures
God offers us in the landscape of this season.

This comfort is no mere pablum, no saccharine wish.
And though it is deeply personal, it is not merely that;
solace does not leave us to our own solitude.

True comfort opens our broken heart
toward the broken heart of the world
and, in that opening, illuminates a doorway,
a threshold, a connection.

It reveals to us a place where,
in the company of heaven and earth, we can begin anew,
bearing forth the solace we have found.

HEBREW SCRIPTURE LESSON 1 Isaiah 40:1-2, 6-11
“Console my people, give them comfort,” says your God.
“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem’s heart,
and tell it that its time of service is ended,
that its iniquity is atoned for,
that it has received from YHWH’s hand
double punishment for all its sins.”

A voice commands, “Cry out!” And I answer, “What will I say?”
– “All flesh is grass and its beauty is like the wildflowers:
the grass withers and the flower wilts
when the breath of YHWH blows on them.
How the people are like grass!
Grass withers, and flowers wilt,
but the promise of our God will stand forever.”

Go up on a high mountain, you who bring good news to Zion!
Shout with a loud voice, you who bring good news to Jerusalem!
Shout without fear, and say to the towns of Judah “Here is your God!”
YHWH, O Sovereign One, you come with power, and rule with a strong arm!
You bring your reward with you, and your reparation comes before you.
Like a shepherd you feed your flock, gathering the lambs and holding them close,
and leading mother ewes with gentleness.

HEBREW SCRIPTURE LESSON 2 Isaiah 61:1-3, 10-11

“The Spirit of the Exalted YHWH is upon me,
for YHWH has anointed me:
God has sent me to bring good news to those who are poor;
to heal broken hearts;
to proclaim release to those held captive and liberation to those in prison;
to announce a year of favor from YHWH, and the day of God’s vindication;
to comfort all who mourn, to provide for those who grieve in Zion
-to give them a wreath of flowers instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of tears,
a cloak of praise instead of despair.
They will be know as trees of integrity
planted by YHWH to display God’s glory.

I will joyfully exult in YHWH, who is the joy of my soul!
My God clothed me with a robe of deliverance
and wrapped me in a mantle of justice,
the way a brides groom puts on a turban
and a bride bedecks herself with jewels.

For as the earth brings forth its shoots
and a garden brings its seeds to blossom,
so Exalted YHWH makes justice sprout,
and praise springs up before all nations.

REFLECTION Comfort, O Comfort Ye My People Mitchell & Barb

MUSIC Huron Carol music & photos
by Kathryn Parker

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK Steve Garnaas-Holmes

If Christ is to be born
it will not be in a manger:
that was long ago.
Now it will be in you.
You yourself: be Christ;
bear love into this world.
Dare to believe
that what is holy
may be conceived in you;
that the eternal Word
may be made flesh
in your flesh.
All God intends
is that love be embodied,
and you, child—you
are called to bear this love
into the world.
With Mary, say Yes
to the divine in you.