Live okay live right now say good that be good morning everybody I’m hoping that you can hear me well um on this glorious Sunday morning for Happ e e e e Okay All For Merry Christmas everyone merry Christmas all right half of you set it back and half of you are looking at me like um Pastor that was Monday it is the Christmas season Jan thank you very much Christmas begins with the birth celebration of the Incarnation and we go for 12 days until
Epiphany lucky you guys I don’t like that 12 Days of Christmas song so no birds no birds We are continuing in our series pondering how does a weary World rejoice and today we will follow Mary and Joseph as they take the Infant Jesus to fulfill one of the critical rituals of the
Jewish faith the naming and blessing at the temple and as we do we will consider how rooting ourselves in ritual helps us to rejoice when all around us feels Oho weary so I invite you to take a nice deep breath in let it out rest assured that we will cover
Quite a few rituals today and I invite you to rise in body and spirit as we worship God together Ang the of Glory all the Earth Story and Christ By wor worship Christ every year we celebrate Christmas we break bread every week we gather for worship every day we count our blessings every minute God is near yes every minute God is near these are the rituals of our faith let us worship holy God iser will come from heav the of is is Christ the King the Down tast and S and S what of TR iser from heaven all ever Christ the King the down Fromen see and he see the God Is gracious God when our World Turns Upside down or when the road ahead is unclear we return to Ritual we come to the sanctuary we break bread at table we pour water we greet one another as family we listen to your word today we pray meet us in this moment meet us in
These rituals that anchor us and speak a word of hope we are listening we are drawing near we are seeking you amen please be seated our scripture lesson comes from Luke 2 verses 21 through 38 after eight days had passed it was time to circumcised the child and he was called
Jesus the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb when the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord as it is written in the law of the Lord every firstborn
Male shall be designated as holy to the Lord and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord a pair of turtle does or two young pigeons now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon this man was righteous and devout
Looking forward to the consolation of Israel and the Holy Spirit rested on him it had been revealed to him by the holy spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah Guided by the spirit Simeon came into the temple and when the parents
Brought in the Child Jesus to do for him what was customary under the law Simeon took him in his arms and praise God saying Master now you are dismissing your servant in peace according to your word for my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the
Presence of All Peoples a light for Revelation to the Gentiles and for Glory to your People Israel and the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary this child is destined for the falling and the rising of many
In Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed and a sword will pierce your own soul too there was also a prophet Anna the daughter of fuel of the tribe of Asher she was of a great age having
Lived with her husband seven years after her marriage then as a widow to the age of 84 she never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day at that moment she came and began to praise God and to speak about the child
To all who were looking for the Redemption of Jerusalem thanks be to God for the receiving understanding and doing of the word Amen your I love Valentine good morning make sure our mic is On they can allar your answers Merry Christmas my friends Merry Christmas did you all have a good bless you I don’t know where it came from but it was over there anyway did yall have a nice celebration yeah yeah yes what was your favorite part of your Christmas
Celebration getting a paper cut getting a paper cut sorry for for your troubles first which was uh the paper cut this hoodie and Disney pants and Disney pants very nice what was yours Elizabeth um um I got what present I got um I got a
Lego set what kind of Lego set um it was a vet set where there was dogs oh church is over we’re gonna go build what did you what did you like that you got for Christmas Barbies Barbies I got roll you did get roller skates you’re welcome I
Went skating yesterday and she went skating yesterday and her new roller skates got SK they light up too she didn’t even tell you that oh yeah so I got I got another question do you all know what what today is New Year’s Eve it’s New Year’s Eve and Sunday close
Though it is New Year’s Eve and what happens on New Year’s Eve ball the ball what ball the New Year’s Eve ball oh the Moon the Moon better not fall that’d be a whole different celebration so the doesn’t the moon go down when it’s daytime we’ll have the astronomical conversations later tell me
About this New Year’s Eve ball it’s round it’s round you’ve never watched that makes sense that makes sense how many grown-ups stay up for the ball dropping I was going to say they’re like five of them but more hands are going up so every you try well it hasn’t happened yet so what
Happens is every year in New York York City there’s a giant ball made of tens of thousands of crystals and they put it up up up and when they when we count down to midnight to New Year’s Day the ball drops and when we get to midnight it
Lights up the New Year yes didot no honey they don’t take the ball from Epcot we will ALS discuss the shared properties of spheres later um Epcot is one of the Disney parks okay so every year people around the world gather together to celebrate the New Year happening there are fireworks in
Australia in Paris the the confetti Falls when the ball drops in New York there’s fireworks in Orlando there’s fireworks in California and I know know this because I watch New Year’s rocking eve every year New Year’s Rock and Eve it’s we we’ll talk about that later it’s the
Point I want to get to here I’m trying is that that is a ritual it’s something that people do again and again at this point on New Year’s Eve they do it to celebrate that we’ve made it through another year and that a new year is beginning 2024 can you believe
It I do thank you for pointing that out and so a lot of what we’re doing today has to do with ritual I think they did sneak up behind me do you see the baskets up there on the altar what do you think those are for ohun they’re for communion well what’s
Communion you come dip your bread that’s right communion is a ritual it’s a practice that we do together that helps us remember what Jesus did for us to remember that we are a part of the same family the body of Christ and we talk about it being nourishment or feeding us for our
Journey of faith and there’s one more we’re going to do the bread thing don’t worry there’s one more ritual that we’re going to do today too and that is called the Wesley Covenant prayer now quiz for the grown-ups who knows what the Wesley Covenant prayer is Aaron with the gold star
Today wait wait where’s where’s Rodney and did he raise his hand you didn’t raise your hand Rodney you’re singing [Laughter] it so John Wesley is the person who founded what became methodism you know we are a United Methodist Church and it’s thanks to John Wesley and so he wrote a prayer that
Methodists say as wait for it a ritual at the end of the year and the beginning of the new year and it’s a covenant which means it’s a promise between us and God and so later in the service the words are going to come up on the screen
And you’re going to hear Mr Rodney sing it beautifully and we’re all going to pray it together in our hearts as he does what are some things that you do over and over that help you feel connected to God to each other to your family pray
Yeah roll roller skating yeah yeah I I’m not kidding that can be a ritual they’ve certainly gone often enough in the last month ice skating if it’s a thing you do eating pop Poss possibly popcorn and a movie can be a ritual that you do with your family when
I was a kid ours was every Saturday night pizza and a movie mhm wait any popcorn no listen no body’s childhood is perfect Zara we’ll keep that between us single day do you think that there are rituals you can do by yourself yeah what do you think no you said it
Before you can pray that can be a ritual you do by yourself uh one thing that I Do by myself that helps me feel connected is that I write in my journal for some people that is a ritual actually I have a friend who your godfather is actually quite the
Runner yeah we’ll get into that later too my [Laughter] Lord so doing stuff with your family no we’re almost done I do want to a time I’d get too confused otherwise so as you go into the new week and the new year I want you to think about those things that you do
Over and over that help you feel connected and I want you to keep your eyes and ears open for the ways that those things might surprise you sound good okay all right let’s pray God we are sitting here in a moment that is both beginning and ending we celebrate the newness that
Will come Among Us the new things that you are doing in our midst and we give thanks for the year that has gone for the good things and the bad things and the lessons that we have learned help us to seek you in the things we do over and
Over that they may have special meaning for us and draw us closer to being the people that you have created us to be in Jesus name amen amen all right you can head back to your families so go sit Down it’s time for the next ritual as I said to the children the words for the Covenant prayer will be on the screen as Rodney sings I pray that you will not just read them but feel them in your heart and Ponder on how we each might make this promise to God for
Ourselves and as a community as we close one year and enter Another Lord I am not mine but yours alone let your will be done and not my own put me where you will and let me serve in everything I do let me Ure this is my prayer Lord to you my promise and My Vow strong and true and the
Covenant I make on Earth let it be fulfilled in heaven amen a Aen father son and spirit him My Cry forever I am yours and you are mine father son and spirit he My Cry forever I am yours and you are mine this is my pray to you my promise and My Vow strong and True and theant I make on Earth let it be fulfilled in heaven Amen aen let me be employed for you laid aside for you lifted high for you brought low let me be fall let me be empty let me have all things for nothing Lord I am not mine but yours alone let your will be done and not my
Own put me where you will and let me serve in everything I do let me Endure this is my prayer Lord to you my promise and My Vow strong and true and the Covenant I make on Earth let it be fulfilled in Heaven amen amen a [Applause] amen indeed as we move into our time of prayer I invite you to join us in our prayer hymn into my heart I also invite you as you feel led to approach the chancel rail for personal Prayer my heart my heart my heart Lord Jes Jus to stay My Heart Lord Jesus Into My Heart Lord Jus God of yesterday today and tomorrow eight days after Jesus was born Mary and Joseph took him to the temple they brought him into the heart of community they brought him into your Sanctuary I imagine they were exhausted and blur eyed those new parents but I also Imagine they were excited and
Overwhelmed with gratitude so today just as Mary and Joseph brought Jesus into the temple we bring our prayers into this Sanctuary we bring exhausted prayers blur eyed laments prayers of deep joy and prayers open overflowing with gratitude and we give them all to you thank you God for the joys of this
Season thank you for the candle lighting and the carol singing thank you for the bells ringing and the community Gathering thank you for turning ordinary moments into holy reminders of your gospel promise we are surrounded by so many gifts and we do not want to miss the opportunity to Express
Gratitude however despite the Abundant Gifts of this season we also acknowledge the heartache of this season and we bring those prayers to you as well so holy God for individuals who long to be parents like Mary and Joseph but find themselves facing infertility or loss be with them for those who feel like
They’re going through the motions of Faith but still feel feel far from you be with them for those who see the joy of this season but cannot ignore the weariness in their hearts be with them God we could go on and on with our prayers of both gratitude and Lament The
World Is joyful and weary and on either side of that coin we long to tether ourselves to you so meet us once again in the ordinary ritual of our faith rituals like praying singing studying scripture and gathering with Community meet us at the table and the font meet
Us in the pews and in the Sunday School classrooms meet us when we pray before meals and when we pray before bed holy God we don’t care where you find us we just ask that you would over and over and over again again and as you
Do we promise that like Mary and Joseph we will do our best to bring our weary and hopeful Spirits back to your temple back to you and in those comings and goings we will continue to pray Amen we are a people of ritual and I mean all of humanity and that not simply Christians not simply people of faith we live and die by our rituals what are some of yours you have to have a cup of coffee before you talk to anybody in the morning that’s a
Ritual do you have a very particular order of how you wash your face and you put the things on your face there’s a whole skincare company called ritual because of this not because of this but because they acknowledge that even something as simple as caring for your skin
Is a an opportunity for connection connection to yourself to your full embodied self an acknowledgement that you you you you you you every single one of you are worthy of that time and that attention ritual requires mindfulness we don’t simply say hey here’s communion here’s some bread here’s some juice enjoy
Yourselves there’s a whole ritual around around it right we’re going to go through the great Thanksgiving you’re going to come up and you’re going to receive today and we’re going to do prepackage today so it’s nice and easy but you’re going to receive and you’re going to hear bread of life given for
You cup of Love poured out for you because the words anchor you in the moment the words remember us into the body of Christ Mary and Joseph practiced ritual they took Jesus to the temple as they were instructed to do by centuries of Jewish law they had him circumcised they named
Him Jesus as they were instructed to do and there is a certain joy in being able to take part in those rituals and there’s also the space created for surprise now being tired new parents Mary and Joseph undoubtedly expected that they were going to go with their two small pigeons make their sacrifice
Have Jesus circumcised name him receive the blessing and be done but what they received was so much more than that prophecy blessing from two unexpected sources an an upsell of Joy from these two elderly witnesses to God’s movement in the world and it wasn’t all happiness and sunshine
Simeon’s prophecy in fact was probably quite disturbing but Mary had already been visited by an Angel so I expect she was at least a little bit prepared there’s an icon actually um and I I have a copy of the icon in my office it’s Mary of the Seven
Sorrows and she’s depicted as being pierced or or in imminent danger of being pierced at least by seven different swords representing the Sorrows that she would experience as theotokos the mother of God but even though the news she received wasn’t necessarily happy I imagine there was some
Joy joy in continuing to have this experience that she has gone through be affirmed and validated to know that she is rooted in her community as they have rooted themselves in the ritual of introducing Jesus to this community and so we have our rituals how many of you are planning to have some
Kind of pork and sauerkraut for dinner tomorrow okay that’s about the average I was expecting I’ve also not received any invitations but you’ve got about 24 hours to fix that you’re fine I can make my own pork and sourer crap I got a great recipe from a former parishioner
Now who really thinks that if they don’t have their pork and sourkraut that their year is going to be absolute garbage you’re probably right Mimi have a have a second helping just to be safe on some level we factually get that whether we have tacos for dinner
Tomorrow or pork and sourkraut or maybe pork tacos with some cabbage there you go happy medium then it’s not going to change the way the year is going to un unravel for hopefully not unravel but unfurl there we go ritual doesn’t necessarily change those things factually but they anchor us to the
Truths that we hold about our lives again we can connect I assume you’re not all having pork and sourkraut together in the same household and yet you can feel a sense of connection to everybody else who raised their hand and said yep that’s me that’s our New Year’s Day
Meal when we partake of the Holy meal together we remember that we are called into community and sometimes in our meaning seeking we create or we seek out rituals for those other moments of Our Lives as well I have a dear friend um who uh at
First I went hey hey I can I have permission to share your story and then I realized that she had written a letter to the Christian Century so anybody who’s read the Christian Century in the last couple of years already knows her story um she is divorced and she is deeply deeply rooted
In ritual in the in the sacraments of our faith and she lacked closure when it came to this ending of a relationship we we have rituals for weddings rituals for joining people in relationship we have rituals for saying goodbye to our loved ones through funerals but we don’t have a ritual for
The the breaking of a relationship in that way and so she particularly was keenly feeling this loss and so she gathered with a few friends in her Church’s Sanctuary it was 23 and a half years after she first said I do and she stepped up to the Altar and she put her rings
There it was a simple moment but it was a ritual that offered meaning and closure to this big important chapter of her life and allowed her to create the space to begin something new what are the rituals that we can ground ourselves in what are the rituals that we can create
To come back to over and over again to remind ourselves of who we are as a people as a community as a family to remind ourselves that God is with us in the worst of the circumstances and then when the world starts moving again my prayer for each of us is that
As the wheel turns and we move into a new calendar year just after we’ve started a new lurgical year thank goodness the fiscal year doesn’t end until June all these endings and Beginnings my prayer as we move through this coming and going is that we can remain rooted in
Those things that bind us together that remind us of who and of whose we are and that when we do that when we let ourselves into the ritual that we too like Mary and Joseph will be Sur surprised by what the spirit has to offer us
Amen I invite you to join me in this week’s affirmation of faith we believe that faith is a journey marked by rituals and rhythms we come to worship we confess our sins we pass the peace we offer Grace we hear the word we baptize children
We break the bread and we tell the story of a loving God and through these sacred rituals we are reminded we are not alone God is near and we have work to do may this belief shape the rhythm of Our Lives amen now it’s your turn to say the
Wesley Covenant prayer this this is the original language so get ready for all those these and th and I am no longer my own but thine put me to what thou Wilt rank me with whom thou Wilt put me to doing put me to suffering let me be employed by thee or
Laid aside for thee exalted for thee or brought low for thee let me be full let me be empty let me have all things let me have nothing I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and Disposal and now oh glorious and blessed God Parents child and holy spirit Thou
Art mine and I am thine so be it and the Covenant which I have made on Earth let it be ratified in heaven amen Elizabeth would you like to come up here and help me serve today come on up you’re both going too no not
Yet excuse us for a moment you want to chill with Zara until it’s time okay Jesus was born into a world that loves to turn people away a world with shut doors and closed hearts a world that loves to say there’s no room for you friends that will not happen to you
Here because Jesus spent his life making room he made room for tax collectors and children he made room for 5,000 people to sit down and eat together he made room for Samaritan women Jews and Gentiles he made made room for the sick for the outcast for the
Unclean Jesus was always pulling up a seat saving space making room for people and he has made room for you so come to this table come with your faith and your doubt come with your questions and your hopes come with your grief and your love just come because there is room for you
Here this is Christ’s table all are welcome not yet the Holy One be with you and also with you open your hearts to the one who is love we open our hearts to you oh God let us give thanks to God with us to the
One who took on flesh we give thanks and praise holy God we have been waiting a long time for this day for the joy and quiet of Christmas Eve for the sound of the Angel Chorus for the old familiar songs we’ve carried weary Hearts through the weeks of Advent longing for the
Peace and hope of this moment and now we are finally here so as we bow our heads we offer you our most Earnest and honest prayers trusting that once again you meet us where we are so tonight today and every day God we say thank you for the things in our
Lives that spark Joy thank you for the gift of family recipes and crowded tables thank you for a slower schedule as many approach vacation thank you for infusing this season with practices of generosity thank you for the bells and the songs and the candles in the windows thank you
For the children who squeal with joy and the neighbors who drop off cookies thank you for every ounce of beauty that marks this season it has made it possible for us to join our voices with the angel chorus however God even in the face of remarkable joy we still bring weary and
Worried Hearts to you this day because we know that many have an empty seat at the table T this year we know that many celebrated Christmas from a hospital room we know that many crunched numbers over and over again to see if they could afford a gift we know that for far too
Many the holidays are a reminder that the world is still not as it should be so in between our joy and our weariness God we ask that you would make room pour yourself into the cracks of our hearts bind yourself to our good days days and
Our bad days carve out space for Your Love in the center of our beings so that no matter where we go we might trust the Angel’s song when they say Be not Afraid and Joy to the World until then until the day when Joy overpowers weakness
Until the day when there is room for all at every table until your promised day we will continue to pray as your son taught us to pray saying 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 trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation but Deliver Us from Evil for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever amen the table is set the table is ready uh
For those of you who need gluten-free elements I do have gluten-free Wafers and a chalice for you to dip for the rest of you I have prepackaged elements so it’ll be a nice little crinkly sound in here in a few minutes um feel free to come and take as you are LED ladies
Patience patience she says oh Hello This Let us give thanks to God for this holy meal God of Angel chorus and teenage mothers there are a million other places we could be but today we wanted to be here today we needed to be here online and in person worshiping together in this joy-filled Christmas season for
When we gather around this table we remember the ways that you always make room for us you were always pulling up chairs welcoming the children the tax collectors and the outcast at your dinner party no one gets turned away help us to carry that inclusive
Spirit into the rest of our lives for we know that love like that is what turns weariness into Joy with grateful Hearts we pray amen our special guest Ministry moments announcer today is Reverend Suzanne Hill I have one announcement that she doesn’t have and so I’m going to run my while
She makes her way up here um we are having a shortterm uh Bible study beginning on Tuesday January 8th um we are going to offer a noon session and we’re gonna go with six you guys yeah on a 6 PM session did we say four weeks or five weeks I
Don’t have the whole announcement apparently four it’s a four- week study um the materials are being provided to us by the conference off uh Commission on race and religion and they receive the materials from the general Commission on race and religion um so there’s no need to purchase materials
Beforehand just come as you are um I will be sending an email out this week specifically about that study with more specifics um but I wanted you to get it on your Radars now take it away Reverend Suzanne good morning everyone um Sharon is traveling today so
I get the pleasure of bringing you these Ministry moments and I was thinking Sharon’s not here so maybe this would be an opportunity to encourage all of you many of you work very diligently in this church and Sharon works so hard she does so many things she’s just come through
The Christmas adoption program she has food pantry coming up this week and I thought it might be a nice opportunity during these final days of the Christmas season for you to send her a card or a text or an email or in person just to express your thanks to her for all that
She does for our church and for our community uh speaking of that one of the things she does the January Pantry food pantry will be this Friday January 5th and that will be a drivethru only uh she has all of her volunteers set up uh she believes that the setup will be Thursday
Morning at 9:30 a.m. she’ll get information on that from Second Harvest on Tuesday so if anything changes in that delivery time she’ll contact the scheduled volunteers some of our Ministries will be resuming this week choir practice will be on Wednesday evening at 7:30 and Rodney I am your
Neighbor so I’d be glad to pick you up if you’d like to join the choir um also Bible study will resume 10:30 a.m. uh this week on Thursday morning there was a delay in getting the newsletter out not anyone’s fault here the man that brings us the toner decided to go on
Vacation so um there are some printed copies uh in the rack in the lobby and the copies uh other copies will be mailed out this week if you were not able to join us for the Christmas Eve service or even if you’d like to experience that again uh you can view
That on YouTube uh and that link for that is at the website our website is Churchill umc.com there is such a lovely music by the warm brass quintet and our uh chancel choir also presented a lovely Anthem Pastor Shannon’s sermon series how does a weary World Rejoice I think
Was such an inspiration for us and let us continue to focus on bringing hope hope love peace and joy to all that we encounter in the coming year next Sunday is one of our kid King’s kids will be baptized and I am sure that Terry West
Had a lot to do with this young man wanting to be baptized I hope you’ll be here to support Daniel Paul he’s so excited about receiving the sacrament of holy baptism so maybe we could all be here to join him and Surround him with our love I’d
Like to take a few moments now to tell you about one of our Outreach Ministries here at the church it’s the lay communion Ministry program and what we do as Lake Community ministers we go out and serve communion to folks that just can’t be here they want to be here but
They can’t be here in the sanctuary they may be homebound for health reasons they may be in nursing homes and it means so much to them to feel connected to the church if you think you might have an interest in this it the first step is to
Uh talk to me you can let the church office know I’ll get in contact with you there’s a class that I give it it’s two sessions it lasts about an hour and a half each session then after that class you’ll learn more about the sacrament of holy communion and also you’ll learn how
To to go and make a a visit a home visit in Surf communion if you’re still interested in becoming a minister you’ll come to one of our meetings and we meet four times a year quarterly and then I’ll send you out with one of our Late Community ministers or myself and you
Can see how it’s done and see if you might be interested and if that is the case then you’ll be commissioned and you’ll become a Lake Community minister so I hope you think about that and pray about that and and now um I’d like to tell you as you most of
You know we don’t really pass an offering plate for our offering but we’re so grateful for the ways in which you give each week envelopes perhaps are placed in the they’re placed in the baskets and there’s a basket outside each door or if you wish to put your
Offering uh in a box that’s also in the lobby you may access our online giving through a website or May uh the gift to the office and as you respond to God’s call to support the ministries of Church Hill United Methodist Church know that God blesses
Your gifts and and these gifts help us to continue to serve the church and the Outreach reach ministries of this church at this time i’ invite you to stand as we sing the doxology and Jan fery will bring bring the first fruit offering plate to our altar Area My Soul Please remain standing as I lead you in the responsive prayer of dedication in this moment of worship we embrace your presence again oh God and we offer you our love in this moment of prayer we Proclaim again your purpose for our world o Savior and we offer you our
Resources in this moment of giving we hear your call again O Lord and we offer you ourselves use us all that we have and all that we are to touch the world with the Christmas message God is love God is with us God will never leave us so May the grace of
The Lord Jesus Christ the love of God and The Fellowship of the holy spirit with us now and forever amen and now family of Faith as you leave this place you go into a weary world so speak tenderly do the good that is yours to do choose connection hold on to hope
And remember that Christ took on flesh for you you are God’s beloved so go rejoicing the world needs needs it amen amen and now joyfully let us sing together Go Tell It on the Mountain that Jesus Christ is while the watching for silent by night he through the heavens Shly on the hills and everywhere Christ the Christ Bor Andas on the over the hills and everywhere Tell It On Theus Christ for
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