the second sunday of advent

Transcription

1 the second sunday of advent december 10, 2017 faith presbyterian church presbyterian church in america Ministers: Robert S. Rayburn Richard H. DeMass Steven A. Nicoletti 620 South Shirley Tacoma, Washington

2 Second Sunday of Advent December 10, 2017 Upon entering the sanctuary please maintain silence for the sake of the congregation s preparation for worship, and please make sure electronic devices are off or using silent mode. Prelude From Heaven Above to Earth I Come... Johann Gottfried Walther ( ) Welcome and Announcements +Silent Prayer That glorious Form, that Light unsufferable, And that far-beaming blaze of Majesty, Wherewith he wont at Heav n s high Council-Table, To sit the midst of Trinal Unity, He laid aside; and here with us to be, Forsook the Courts of everlasting Day, And chose with us a darksome House of mortal Clay. --John Milton, On the Morning of Christ s Nativity Call to Worship Arise and shine for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. For behold the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people, But the Lord shall arise over you. Isaiah 60:1-2/Melissa McMillan *Hymn of Praise to God Hark! the Herald Angels Sing No Confession of Sin Silent Prayer Corporate Prayer O Lord, what evil have we not done? Or if there is evil that we have not done, what evil is there that we have not spoken? If there is any that we have not spoken, what evil is there that we have not thought to do? But you, O Lord, are good. You are merciful. You saw how deep we were sunk in death, and it was your power that drained dry the well of corruption in the depths of our hearts. All that you have asked of us was to deny our own wills and accept yours. Forgive us for every failure to do so and help us to follow you in every way and always, through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. [Adapted from Augustine s Confessions, IX, i]

3 Assurance of Pardon For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Mark 10:45 (ESV) *Confession of Faith Q. Why is he called God s only Son when we also are God s children? A. Because Christ alone is the eternal, natural Son of God. We, however, are adopted children of God - adopted by grace through Christ. Heidelberg Catechism No. 33 Worship Service The Baptism of Suzette Michelle Sheridan *Hymn Lord Jesus Christ, Our Lord Most Dear Worship Service *Hymn What Child Is This No. 213 Unison Reading of God s Law Isaiah 9:2-7 (ESV p. 573) Worship of God with Tithes and Offerings Come, Thou Redeemer of the Earth... Michael Praetorius ( ) Now blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel, For he alone does wondrous works in glory that excel. And blessed be his glorious name to all eternity: The whole earth let his glory fill. Amen, so let it be. Psalm 72:18-19 *Congregational Petitions Scripture Lesson Luke 1:26-35 (ESV p. 855) Sermon The (Holy) Spirit of Christmas *Hymn Come, O Come, Thou Quickening Spirit No. 331 *Benediction +Silent Prayer

4 O God, who makes us glad with the yearly remembrance of the birth of your only Son Jesus Christ: Help us joyfully to receive him for our Redeemer, so that we may with sure confidence behold him when he shall come to be our Judge, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Postlude *Congregation standing +The congregation is invited to kneel CCLI License # Child in a manger, Jesus our Saviour, Born of a virgin holy and mild; Sent from the highest, come down in glory; Tell the glad story, welcome the child. Shepherds, arise now, go to the manger; Find where the infant Jesus is laid. Offer your homage, kneel down before him; Praise and adore him, be not afraid. Wise men, come seek him--christ, our Redeemer; Journey to Bethlem, led by a star. Offer your treasures: gold, myrrh, and incense, Precious oblations brought from afar. Praise to the Christ child; blessed be his mother; Glory to God our Father above. Angels are singing songs of rejoicing, Greeting the infant born of God s love. John Rutter/Celtic traditional carol Second Sunday of Advent December 10 Morning Worship Sunday School Choir Rehearsal Evening Service Welcome & Announcement Elders Steve Jack Peter Chiou & 9:45 am 4:45 pm

5 Congregational Petitions Leaders Derek Whaley John Pappuleas Nursery Schedule Dolly & Ruth Larson Rachel Moore & Noel Sukhia Savannah Jackson & Sadie Hanks Jane Lewellen & Sandy Milton Coffee/Tea Hosts Doug & Janie Davey Kelly Family Jim & Janie Irwin 9:45 am Prep for 11:00 Service Church Library Brandon Welch Building Monitors Scott Bennett Nathan Sukhia 9:40 10:45 am Monday December 11 - Better English on Sixth 6:50 8:30 pm Tuesday December 12 - Ladies Bible Study, WIC Room 117 9:30 am 12:00 pm - Samson Society, Pastor Rayburn s Office 7:00 8:00 pm Wednesday December 13 - Prayer Meeting, 7:00 pm, Sanctuary, When we have put up a faithful prayer, God is made our debtor by promise, and we are to take notice of His payment, and give Him acknowledgment of the receipt of it... --Thomas Goodwin, The Return of Prayers - ESL Writing Class, Room 302 5:45 6:30 pm - Sr. High Youth Group, DeSoto Hall 7:00 8:30 pm - Jr. High Youth Group, Room 301 7:00 8:30 pm - Choristers, Choir Room 7:00 8:15 pm Thursday December 14 - Tea & Talk/Knitting Friendships, WIC Room 117 1:00 3:00 pm - Session Meeting, Conference Room 6:30 pm Saturday December 16 - Sunday School Christmas Program Practice 9:00 10:30 am Third Sunday of Advent December 17 Morning Worship Sunday School & 9:45 am

6 Choir Rehearsal Sunday School Christmas Program Welcome & Announcement Elders Mark Aown Jerry Savage Congregational Petitions Leaders Brien Downie Eric Knight Nursery Schedule Trish Papadopoulos & Katie Raines Kim, Maggie & Aubren Reis Marcia Brodersen & Shari Roland No Nursery Provided Coffee/Tea Hosts Thom & Becky Wilson Beth James Robert & Kathryn Schuster Church Library Patsi Arkin Building Monitors Dale Woodard Mike Lee 4:45 pm 9:45 am Prep for 11:00 Service 9:40 10:45 am Upcoming Events For details please see Information/Events on the web site. December 24 Regular Morning Worship, 4:00 & 11:00 pm Christmas Eve Services December 27 No Prayer Meeting January 21 Sanctity of Human Life Sunday January Pacific Northwest Presbytery Meeting, Green Lake Presbyterian Church, Seattle January 31 Annual Meeting This Evening We continue our series of sermons in First Peter. Eliyas Milton will be baptized. The Lord s Supper will be served. The Lord s Supper is observed every Lord s Day at Faith Presbyterian Church alternating between the morning and the evening services. The officers have wanted to retain evening communion not only because all the Lord s Suppers explicitly mentioned in the New Testament were in the evening, but as well to reinforce the importance of Sunday evening worship as a regular part of the observance of the Lord s Day. Evening Prelude Begins at 5:40 p.m. Beautiful music enlivens our spirits and adds to our Sabbath joy. Each Sunday evening prior to the worship service, musicians begin to play or sing at 5:40 p.m. This evening s prelude will include Christmas music presented by Abenego Sullivan, trumpet, and Abraham Sullivan, piano.

7 Progress House Present Drive Thank you to all who took name tags from our tree last week. We have 11 more names that came to us, so if you didn t pick up a tag already you have another chance to bless a child in need. The new tags are on the tree. We are asking that all presents be wrapped and returned to the church by Wednesday, December 13th. Also for those of you not inclined to search out the perfect toy, we also received a list of things we could buy for the residents of Progress House. Options for the residents both male and female of various sizes include: warm socks, hats, gloves, Nap sack or back-pack (only two pockets allowed), various hygiene products, undergarments, or wallets. We will have a box next to the tree to collect any of these items. If you have questions please contact Evangeline DeGraaf or Emily Downie. Sunday school Christmas Program The annual Christmas Program is next Sunday, December 17th during the evening service. Please invite grandparents, relatives and friends to celebrate Christ s birth with us! The dress rehearsal for the program is Saturday, December 16th from 9:00-10:30 a.m. The 2-5 year old classes will rehearse for the first 20 minutes and do not need to stay after that. There will also be a pageant rehearsal during the Sunday School hour on December 17th. Please contact Heidi Bone for details. Church Budget Plan for 2018 The Budget Committee will be meeting to discuss the financial plan for If you have any comments please contact Doug Lawty or Derek Whaley by Friday, January 12 th. The elders and deacons will meet on Tuesday, January 23 rd to approve the budget. The annual meeting will be held Wednesday, January 31 st with dinner beginning at in DeSoto Hall followed by the meeting at 7:00 pm in the sanctuary. Thank you for the Sacred Road Donations A big thank you to the congregation for your generous support of Sacred Road Ministries. You donated over 14 large boxes full of toys, gifts, and clothing as well as nearly $2500 in cash donations. Your gifts will be used to fill Christmas shoe boxes for the children on the Yakama Indian Reservation in White Swan. In 2016 Hope Fellowship Church distributed over 240 shoe boxes to children in their church and in the surrounding community. The cash donations will be used for additional gifts or for food baskets that are distributed to particularly needy families connected with Hope Fellowship. Thank you again for your part in helping Sacred Road share and show the love of Jesus at Christmas time. Young Adult Christmas Extravaganza Calling all young adults over the age of 18! The College & Career Christmas party will take place this Saturday, December 16th at 6:30 PM at the St. John home (address in the church directory). We will warm up with wassail, carol in the neighborhood for about an hour and then return to the St. John domicile for Christmas treats, a white elephant exchange, and games. If caroling isn t your thing, feel free to come around 8 PM. Bring warm clothes, a baked treat, and a wrapped gift (<$10). If you have questions, contact either Nate and Rachael Shelden, or Emma and Abby St. John. Please RSVP on the C&C Facebook page.

8 Faith Presbyterian Church Advent Devotional The Faith Presbyterian Church Advent Family Devotions Booklet is available in the Narthex. You may also access the devotional online at our church website. Click on the Information tab, then Bible Reading and Advent Family Devotions. Lost and Found Please check the lost & found at the bottom of the stairs in the old narthex. Anything left after Christmas Eve on Sunday, December 24 th will be given away. Thank you. Adult Sunday School The Women of Faith Class I (WIC Room 117) We are reading and discussing Dick Hannula s book, Heralds of the Reformation: Thirty Biographies of Sheer Grace. In the Fall of 2017 we celebrated the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, so what better subject to cover than the story of the struggle between the theological authorities and the men and women who refused to keep quiet about the sheer grace of the Gospel. Please join us. You don t need a copy of the book. The Women of Faith Class II (Covenant High School Office) We are studying together the book Alive in the Spirit by A.W. Tozer. The Word of Faith Class (Room 301) Esther is not Yester - Politics Matters - A Sunday School class on a new phrase by phrase commentary on the book of Esther by Robert Case. Seminar: State of the (Dis)Union (Conference Room) This class led by Daniel Murphree is an orientation around issues of race, racism, and reconciliation in society, evangelicalism, and the PCA. High School Sunday School (North Half of DeSoto Hall) Pastor Nicoletti and the high school class continue their year-long study of Dante s Divine Comedy. Better English on Sixth ESL Sunday School (Room 304) This class led by Kathy Lewis is reading aloud The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. Study guides and copies of the book are provided free for class attendees. Choristers Rehearsals Underway Choristers meet each Wednesday evening, 7:00 to 8:15, under Melissa McMillan s direction. To register your treble-voiced child (ages 7 +), contact Melissa. An Experiment in Streaming Our Services Through the end of this year the and services will be live-streamed. In other words, one can go to the church s website (faithtacoma.org), hit the Live! button and view the service as it takes place. Obviously, this is an advantage to those who might not otherwise be able to be present with us. We have already had individuals both out of state and out of the country take advantage of this opportunity. Questions remain, however, and the service is not free; so, we will re-evaluate at the end of the year. Questions or comments may be addressed to the church office, Mr. Lawty or one of the elders. On the Cover Albrecht Durer Woodcut, The Visitation (The Life of the Virgin), c. 1503

9 Men of Faith, Morning Prayer Meetings & Devotions There are opportunities to meet with fellow Men of Faith for prayer and devotions each week: Wednesday mornings with Phil Perkins: We meet at Old Town Anthem coffee shop at 2312 N. 30th St., Tacoma. This group meets at 6 am for Bible reading and prayer. After several years we continue to focus solely on the Psalms which serve as a life guide. One of the ancient church fathers, Athanasius wrote, Whatever your particular need or trouble, from this same book (the Psalms) you can select a form of words to fit it, so that you...learn the way to remedy your ill. Thursday mornings with Thom Wilson, 6:30 am at the church. Join us in studying through the books of Ezra and Nehemiah as we pray for our concerns and the world around us. Please note that we are on a break and will resume meeting on December 21. College & Career Community Groups College & Career is a young adult ministry of Faith Presbyterian Church. The goal is to provide opportunities for young adults 18 and older, whether single or married, to do life together throughout the week and form deep Christian friendships. C&C Community Groups are weekly small groups that meet in a home for dinner and fellowship. We currently have two established groups: one that meets on Tuesday at Caleb and Tamala Bestvater s home at 7 pm and one that meets on Thursday at Nate and Rachael Shelden s home at 6:30 pm. For more details, or if you re interested in joining a C&C Community Group, please contact one of us and we ll help you get connected! Meals on Wheels The purpose of Meals on Wheels is to provide meals for those families needing extra help due to illness, death in the family, adoption or childbirth. If you know of a need, please contact Kathy Haass, Alisha Bennett or the church office. Meal needs will be requested via TNT (This n That), the church s announcement system. To receive TNT s, please contact the church office. Thank you! Nursing Mothers In addition to the nursery rooms, Room #117 the Women in the Church room, is open and available for your convenience during all Worship Services. The service can be seen and heard in the WIC room. Hearing Assistance If you would like a device to help with hearing the worship service, please see a Deacon.

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