Prelude
Call to Worship
O Come All Ye Faithful (vs 1,2, &4)
1 O come, all ye faithful,
joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;
come and behold him,
born the King of angels:
Refrain
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!
2 Sing, choirs of angels,
sing in exultation,
sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God, all
glory in the highest; [Refrain]
4 Yea, Lord, we greet thee,
born for our salvation,
Jesus, to thee be all glory given;
Word of the Father,
now in flesh appearing: [Refrain]
Lighting the Advent Candle
One Candle is Lit (vs. 3)
Come, festively sing while awaiting the birth,
join angels in dancing from heaven to earth.
Wave banners of good news, lift high thankful praise.
One candle is lit for the joy of these days.
Pastoral Prayer
The Lord be with you. And also with you.
We mourn with the families of Gloria Edwards and Tammy Hart Mooney, who died this past week. We hold in prayer Karen Jett as she recovers from surgery.
We continue to pray for those affected by COVID, whether they are sick with it, grieving those lost to the virus, caring for the sick in some capacity, or whose lives and livelihoods have been dramatically altered by this pandemic. Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.
We also celebrate our very own Pastor Katie, who was named Social Worker of the Year at JPS Hospital!
If you have concerns you would like shared with our prayer ministry, please reach out to us through Facebook or email.
Join me in prayer:
Most Holy One who speaks to this little town of Azle, who is tucked away in a manger and in war-torn areas and in detention camps and in closets, who holds vigil with us on our most silent night as we watch and wait alone, who wraps us up warmly in the bleakest midwinter of our souls, we ask with fragile hope for good tidings of comfort and joy this morning.
We pray that you come, O come, Emmanuel, God with us. Come to us gently, like a child, upon a midnight clear, so that our songs rise to the angels singing with them, “Glory to the newborn King.” May we be filled with such confidence and assurance that You are with us that we cannot help but to go tell it on the mountain and everywhere.
May our songs this morning be prayers for the world You love always being made new, may they be petitions for hope and courage as we wait, with expectation that there will be joy to this world again, that heaven and nature will sing again. May we be the ye faithful, a choir who sings in exultation, trusting again and again that Your love is the balm for a wounded world.
And so Holy One, we pray softly the prayer together that the long-expected Jesus, our brother and redeemer, gave us to hold onto:
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 evil
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever.
Amen.
Singalong
Away in a Manger
1 Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,
the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.
The stars in the sky looked down where he lay,
the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.
2 The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes,
but little Lord Jesus, no crying he makes.
I love thee, Lord Jesus! Look down from the sky,
and stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.
3 Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask thee to stay
close by me for ever, and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in thy tender care,
and fit us for heaven, to live with thee there.
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
1 O come, O come Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here,
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain:
Rejoice, rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, O Israel.
2 O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
our spirits by thine advent here;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
and death's dark shadows put to flight. (Refrain)
3 O come, thou Wisdom from on high,
and order all things, far and nigh;
to us the path of knowledge of show,
and cause us in her ways to go. (Refrain)
4 O come, Desire of nations, bind
all peoples in one heart and mind;
bid envy, strife and quarrels cease;
fill the whole world with heaven's peace. (Refrain)
Silent Night
1 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.
2 Silent night, holy night.
shepherds quake at the sight,
glories stream from heaven afar,
heavenly hosts sing alleluia;
Christ, the Savior is born,
Christ, the Savior is born!
3 Silent night, holy night.
Son of God, love's pure light,
radiant beams from thy holy face,
with the dawn of redeeming grace:
Jesus, Lord at thy birth,
Jesus, Lord at thy birth.
4 Silent night, holy night,
wondrous star, lend thy light;
with the angels let us sing,
alleluia to our King;
Christ, the Savior, is born,
Christ, the Savior, is born.
God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
God rest ye merry gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan's pow'r
When we were gone astray
Oh tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Oh tidings of comfort and joy
In Bethlehem, in Israel
This blessed Babe was born
And laid within a manger
Upon this blessed morn
To which His Mother Mary
Did nothing take in scorn
Oh tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Oh tidings of comfort and joy
O Holy Night
O Holy Night!
The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior's birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till he appear'd and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary soul rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!
Fall on your knees
Oh hear the angel voices
Oh night divine
Oh night when Christ was born
Oh night, O Holy Night
Oh night divine
Truly He taught us to love one another
His law is love and His gospel is peace
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His name all oppression shall cease
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy name
Christ is the Lord, oh praise his name forever
His pow'r and glory, evermore proclaim!
His pow'r and glory, evermore proclaim!
Jingle Bells
Dashing through the snow
On a one horse open sleigh
O'er the fields we go,
Laughing all the way
Bells on bob tail ring,
making spirits bright
What fun it is to laugh and sing
A sleighing song tonight
Jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh
Hey, jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh