ENTER SILENTLY. WAIT PRAYERFULLY. WORSHIP REVERENTLY AND EXPECTANTLY. Let all the earth keep silent before him

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2 ENTER SILENTLY. WAIT PRAYERFULLY. WORSHIP REVERENTLY AND EXPECTANTLY. Let all the earth keep silent before him O R D E R O F W O R S H I-P December 20, th Sunday of Advent GATHERING Prelude Improvisation Ken Friese Welcome & Announcements Lighting of the Advent Candles The Mandrakos Family Introit Every Valley Shall Be Exalted - Messiah G. F. Handel Ken Duncan, Tenor Call to Worship Based on Isaiah 7: 14 Minister: The Lord be with you. People: And also with you. Minister: Look, the young woman is with child, People: and shall bear a son, All: and shall name him Immanuel. Prayer of the Day Prayer of Illumination WORD Advent and Christmas Lessons Proclaimed in Song The congregation will remain seated to sing the Christmas Story in song Hymn No. 48, Verse 2 Lo, How a Rose E er Blooming ES IS EIN ROS Isaiah twas foretold it, The rose I have in mind, With Mary we behold it, The virgin mother kind. To show God s love aright, She bore for us a Savior, When half spent was the night. Hymn No. 24, Verse 3 Away in a Manger MUELLER Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay, Close by me forever and love me, I pray. Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care, And fit us for heaven to live with Thee there.

3 Hymn No. 23, Verse 1 Angels We Have Heard On High GLORIA Angels we have heard on high, Sweetly singing o er the plains, And the mountains in reply, Echoing their joyous strains, (Refrain) Gloria in excelsis Deo;; Gloria in excelsis Deo. Hymn No. 60, Verse 1 Silent Night, Holy Night STILLE NACHT Silent night, holy night! All is calm, all is bright, Round yon virgin mother and child! Holy infant, so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace The 2015 Children s Christmas Pageant The congregation is invited to sing Verse 1 of " Joy to the World" at the conclusion of the Pageant Hymn No. 40, Verse 1 Joy to the World! Joy to the world, the Lord is come;; Let earth receive her king, Let every heart prepare Him room, And heaven and nature sing, And heaven and nature sing, And heaven and heaven and nature sing. *Hymn No. 38 It Came Upon the Midnight Clear CAROL *Affirmation of Faith Apostles Creed (Traditional) I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord;; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried, he descended into hell;; the third day he rose again from the dead;; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty, from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints;; the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body;; and the life everlasting. Amen. Pastoral Prayers and Lord s Prayer 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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from e- vil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

4 Offertory Prayer Receiving of Our Tithes and Offerings Offertory Candles of Advent D. Besig Faith Youngquist, Flute/Sanctuary Choir *Doxology No. 592 *Offertory Prayer & Choral Response *Hymn No. 56 The First Nowell THE FIRST NOWELL *Benediction *Choral Response *Choral Response No. 586 Please join our Sanctuary Choir in singing our way out into the world Organ Postlude Pavilioned in Splendor R. Lloyd *Please stand, as you are able. Julie Feltman is the worship assistant today. The flowers this morning are given to the glory of God by the congregation.

5 Worship Notes for Sunday, December 20 This morning s worship service will be a little different than most Sundays, without some of the regular worship elements, plus the addition of several new ones, such as the singing of our Scripture lessons. Our Book of Order specifies that every worship service must have (among other things) the reading and proclamation of scripture. Today we will raise our voices in song to hear our scripture lessons read, (The Annunciation [ Lo, How a Rose E er Blooming ], The Birth in Bethlehem [ Away in a Manger and Silent Night ] and Shepherds in the Fields [ Angels We Have Heard on High ]). This morning s scripture lessons will be proclaimed that is preached by the children and youth of our congregation during the Christmas Pageant. - I was curious this week about the history of Christmas Pageants is it a fairly recent phenomenon? No! I learned that a form of the Christmas Pageant as we know them, Nativity Dramas, were presented as early as the 7th century in the Byzantine Rite churches. Later, Saint Francis of Assisi performed Midnight Mass in Italy on Christmas Eve in 1223 in front of a life-size nativity with live animals. More formal Nativity plays have been featured in Christian worship since the days of medieval mystery plays. They continued to be presented in Europe from the 12th century on as both Mystery plays and Christmas Eve children s masses, which in Germany, features a Krippenspiel ( crib play ). In Belgium, puppet theaters often put on variations of the Nativity play in the weeks before Christmas with parents and their children in the audience. And in the New World, Latin American pastorelas ( shepherd s plays ) continue to be performed in many communities after they were imported during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. They recount the story of the shepherds travelling to worship the newborn Christ, augmenting the Biblical text with apocryphal events, native beliefs, regional features and satire. Wikipedia Apparently, Old First s Christmas Pageant will be in good company this morning along with many sister churches all over our country!

6 In Our Prayers Pray at every opportunity in the Spirit (Ephesians 6:18) This list is prepared each Wednesday. Please notify the office of names to be included. NEW ADDITIONS: (none) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Continue to pray for those who remain on our prayer list: Ashley Andresen (Katie s daughter), Kevin Behrens (Brian s son), Paul Burgess (member), Paige Burkeholder and family (Melissa Terc s sister and family), Regina Conzelmann (member), Ellen Correll and Family (OFC Financial Secretary), Kerry Degnan (member), Joy Eipel (Mark Mandrakos mom), Lee & Gail Forker (Melissa Terc s parents), Patricia and Ed Gunthner (Mark s parents), Dave and Else Haddock (members), Betty Hasteadt (member), Janet and Bill Higby (former OFC members), Abigail & Gene Hong (Charla Bolton s niece and family), Pat Horner (member), Clarissa Jost (member), Wendy Kennedy (Peter Storey s sister), Kristin Keydel (Pam Fosella s sister), Priscilla McGuire (member), Kim Myers (member), Randal Petrick (Asenath s son-in-law) Robert and Cindy Raynor (Brett s parents), Rebecca Raynor (Brett s sister), Dan Rooker (Laure McKenna s brother), Carol Saenger (member), Winifred Slater (member), Tom Stewart (friend of the congregation), Daphne Storey (member), Ruth Terc (John Terc s mother), Brad Thayer (former member), Grace Youngquist (member). ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Removed from our prayer list this week: (none) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Please call the church office to remove names from the prayer list. Thank you. For those wishing to send a card or note to someone on the prayer list, please contact the Church Office for a mailing address Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. (Romans 12:12 - New International Version NIV)

7 The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will renew you in his love; He will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival. (Zephaniah 3:17-18) Old First Presbyterian Church 125 Main St., Huntington, NY Phone Fax I/We would like further information about: Prayer Requests Membership Christian Education and Youth Programs Music Programs Community Outreach and Support Please have the Pastor contact me Name: Address: Phone: Please submit all information and announcements for the Sunday Bulletin by Wednesday of each week at the latest. Either - (MS Word preferred ) at cheriecornell@oldfirstchurchhuntington.org or drop off at church office. Thank you. Please fill out, tear off, and leave in offering plate.

8 Old First Presbyterian Church 125 Main Street Huntington, NY Phone: Fax: Rev. Anne Stewart Miller, Interim Pastor Mrs. Kathleen Andresen, Youth Director Mr. Kenneth Friese, Director of Music Mrs. Diane Starost, Director of Youth Choir

9 weekly events calendar Sunday, December th Sunday of Advent 9:30a Prayers 10a Worship & Pageant 6:15p AA (AA Room Downstairs) 6:30p TUXIS (Youth Room) Monday, December a-6p The Learning Center (Downstairs) 9:15-10:15a Gentle Bends (102) 7:30-9p NA (AA Room Downstairs) Tuesday, December a-6p The Learning Center (Downstairs) 11a-4p Thrift Store 1-2p AA (AA Room Downstairs) Wednesday, December a-6p The Learning Center (Downstairs) 9:15-10:15a Gentle Bends (102) 5-5:30p Kids Choir 5-7p Youth Club (Youth Room) 5:30-6p Youth Choir 7-9:15p AA (AA Room Downstairs) 7:30-9p BS Troop 32 (Gym) Thursday, December Christmas Eve 5-5:30p Music by Kids and Youth Choirs 5:30p Family Worship Service 10:30-11p Music by Sr. Sanctuary Choir 11p-12a Candlelight Service Friday, December Christmas Day Sunday, December st Sunday after Christmas Day Family Sunday 9:30a Prayers 10a Worship 6:15p AA (AA Room-downstairs) May the Peace of God be with you and Have a Blessed Week. We warmly welcome and greet all who have joined us for worship this morning. Please join us for Hospitality Hour, sponsored by our Board of Deacons, in the Parish Hall after worship. To get to the Parish Hall, please leave the sanctuary by the door in the front of the church, turn right and go down the hall. If you are currently seeking a church home and would like more information about Old First, please fill out the tear off form in the bulletin and place in offering plate or see the pastor. If you have any special needs, please alert an usher. Our sanctuary is handicapped accessible. Large print hymnals are available as well as personal PA receivers for those with hearing disabilities. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sanctuary Flowers The staff of OFC wishes everyone a very Merry and Blessed Christmas filled with an abundance of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love. The flowers that grace our Sanctuary during Sunday worship are donated by church members or friends of Old First. Often these flowers are delivered to our homebound members to brighten their day. If you would like to give flowers in honor or memory of someone special, or to celebrate a special occasion, please sign up on the sheet in the front hallway, or contact the church office.

10 ANNOUNCEMENTS Sunday, December 20, 2015 PHONE NUMBERS IN THE DIRECTORY: We are making a major update to our church directory. Many people have changed phone numbers or use their cell phone numbers to the exclusion of their land lines. In order to facilitate better communications within the congregation we would like to enter the phone number which you prefer to use in the directory. Please call the church office or cheriecornell@oldfirstchurchhuntington.org and give your preferred number to Cherie. YOUTH GROUP NEWS - from Katie: YOUTH CLUB-This Wednesday evening, December 23rd, activities including a lesson on Advent. TUXIS meets TODAY from 6:30-8:00 pm in the Youth Room. TOY DRIVE: We are a Toys For Tots drop off site for Family Service League. Please remember to bring in an unwrapped toy or wrapping paper by TODAY. THE CHRISTMAS MITTEN TREE sponsored by our Church School children, is once again set up in Parish Hall. Please remember to bring mittens, gloves, hats and scarves to add to the Mitten Tree by Sunday, December 27th and help the needy families of Huntington have a warmer Christmas. All items will be given to the Family Service League for distribution. Thanks for your help! MOUSE HOUSE: A Christmas shopping mall for children is scheduled for today in room 101 after worship and the Pageant activities. All items priced at $1.00 to $3.00 are new. Bring your children, grandchildren, and dollars! GREETINGS FROM THE WORSHIP COMMITTEE: Please visit the Fiske Room and see the new Nativity Set that has been purchased for the Christmas Season. Also, a smaller Nativity Set sits between our two blue chairs as you enter the church from the side Parking Lot. May they minister to all of us as we celebrate this joyous season. Merry Christmas! Please feel free to join us any Sunday morning at 9:30am for open prayer for our church, community, and personal concerns. Worship Assistants Needed: See Anne Gunthner. Volunteers needed for the Children's Moments in Worship. Please contact Carole Witkowski: carjjoywit@optonline.net. Any questions or helpful suggestions regarding worship services and weekly worship bulletins, please contact Anne Gunthner (Worship & Music Chairperson) either by phone or . COMMUNITY FOOD COUNCIL: Items in particular need this month are: Canned tuna or chicken and soup. Thank you for your generous donations. TO POST YOUR NOTICE ON THE WEEKLY UPDATES: please get them to Rev. Anne Stewart Miller or the church office by Wednesday at noon. Rev. Anne may be reached at church or by , annestewartmiller@comcast.net. For pastoral emergencies, please call her on her cell phone, ~~~~~~ LOST AND FOUND: Did you or anyone you know lose or misplace a red hooded life guard sweatshirt with a white red cross from Robert Moses, NY or a pair of black reading glasses in a black speckled case? These items appeared in the Church office a couple of weeks ago. Items can be claimed anytime M-F from 9am to 2pm or Sunday morning when the church office is open. THE CLOTHES LINE MISSION THRIFT STORE: The next meeting will be Sunday, January 3rd at 11:15am in the Fiske Room. The Thrift Store is always looking for members from our congregation to volunteer either for the am shift (11:00am-1:30pm) or pm shift (1:30pm-4pm). Please see Cynthia Stewart if interested. We are open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 11:00am to 4:00pm and accept all clothing donations when open.