December 2, 2007, 11:00 AM
First Sunday of Advent
WE ENTER INTO GOD’S PRESENCE
Preparation for Worship
Welcoming Advent – a PowerPoint presentation
Lighting the First Advent Candle
*Song of Hope – 329 “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus”
*God Greets Us
*We Greet Each Other
*Continuing Praise – “Shine, Jesus, Shine”
“Jesus, Name above All Names”“O Come, Let Us Adore Him”Call to Confession
Prepare the way of the Lord! Let us make our confession to God.Prayer of Confession
Merciful God, always with us, always coming:We confess that we do not know how to prepare for your Advent. We have forgotten how to hope in miracles; we have ignored the promise of your kingdom; we get distracted by all the busyness of this season. Forgive us, God. Grant us the simple wonder of the shepherds, the intelligent courage of the Magi, and the patient faith of Mary and Joseph, that we may journey with them to Bethlehem and find the good news of a child born for us. Now, in the quiet of our hearts, we ask you to make us ready for his coming. Amen.
Assurance of Pardon
The good news of this Advent season is forgiveness and new life. Let us commit our lives to Christ’s way of hope and peace.
Thanks be to the Advent God, who comes among us, setting us free to love and serve.
*Song – “O Little Town of Bethlehem” (vs. 1,4)
WE HEAR GOD’S WORD
Children’s Time
Scripture Reading – Isaiah 40:1-11
Message – “Comforting Voices”
Prayer
WE RESPOND WITH THANKSGIVING
*Song – 23:1,2,5 “The Lord, My Shepherd, Rules My Life”
The Offering – General Fund
Sharing Joys and Concerns
Intercessory Prayer
WE ARE SENT TO LOVE AND SERVE
Opportunities for Ministry and Fellowship
*God Blesses Us
*Closing Praise – 627 “Bless His Holy Name”
Postlude
ANNOUNCEMENTSToday is the first Sunday of the Advent season. For the next four Sundays we will be both anticipating our celebration of Jesus’ birth and remembering his promise to return again some day. This year we will be hearing parts of the prophetic section of Handel’s Messiah each Sunday. We will also be lighting the Advent candles at each service, offering a visible reminder of the coming of the Light of the World into our world.
Wednesday, 9:30 AM Women’s Bible Study at . Read Hebrews .
Wednesday, 7:30 PM Winter Congregational Meeting
Thursday, 7:00 PM Prayer meeting
Just a reminder from council - as we near the end of the fiscal year, we are running about $14,000 behind what we need to meet our annual budget. Please remember this as you plan your year-end giving. We usually find December to be an excellent month for giving – we are counting on this again so we can meet all our obligations.
The “giving tree” announcement from the deacons. Add that items will be distributed to the Chenango Forks community on Saturday, Dec. 15.
The annual winter congregational meeting will be held this Wednesday, December 5 at 7:30 PM. Items on the agenda include presentation and adoption of the 2008 budget. Copies are in your mail slot today. Also there will be several ministry reports and a discussion on a possible redesign of the church sign. While only members can vote on the budget, we encourage each family to be represented, whether you are members or just interested in the future of Valley Church.
Thank you to all who helped decorate the church yesterday. It is always so special when the Advent and Christmas decorations are in place.
We are delighted with Beth Cunningham that her medical report last Monday was very encouraging. She will need further treatments, but they can be done locally and will likely be less strong than first thought.
Repeat Nativity information from last week. Please note that the practice will be on Friday, Dec 14, 5:00 PM.
Next Sunday, December 9, 2007
SUNDAY SCHOOL: 9:45 AM Sunday School classes for all ages meet. The adult class continues a brief series of Advent studies.
MORNING WORSHIP: 11:00 AM Pastor Gelder will lead our worship. He continues a series of messages that will tie in with music from The Messiah as we hear the words of the prophets calling us to prepare for the arrival of Immanuel, “God with us”. The focus this week is on “God’s Great Shakedown”, based on Haggai 2:6-7.
