Advent 2: God Meets Us In Our Fear

Sunday, December 4, 2022
10:30 AM 11:30 AM 10:30 11:30

Union Presbyterian Church 200 E Main St Endicott, NY, 13760 United States (map)

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Have you ever noticed how angels are always telling humans, “Don’t be afraid!” Which leads me to believe that angels may well be pretty terrifying up close. Mary is greeted by an angel who tells her that God is with her, but she is still unsettled. She is afraid.

What are you afraid of? Public speaking? Falling on the ice? God asking more of you than you think you can give? God meets us in our fear; you are part of God’s big story! Together we will explore just how,, from generation to generation, God shows up in the midst of our fear and uncertainty and confusion.

Join us throughout Advent for worship in our sanctuary, or right here, if you are at home or on the road. You can also find the live-stream and worship videos on the Union Presbyterian Church of Endicott YouTube page! Worship videos are available Sunday after 1:00 PM.

Second Sunday in Advent

From Generation to Generation: God Meets Us in Our Fear

Luke 1:26-38; Isaiah 11:1-10

Union Presbyterian Church

December 4, 2022

Sharing the Light of Christ, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Liturgist: Ryan DeLap Preacher: Rev. Pat Raube

Prelude Colin DeLap

 “Breath of Heaven (Mary’s Song),” Lloyd Larson.

Used by permission, CCLI License #CSPL068847

Welcome Rev. Pat Raube

Call to Worship / Lighting of the Advent Candle of Peace

Ryan DeLap, Crosby Tunison, Barbara Ann Dailey, and Ben Mann

Over a hundred people, from the ages of two to eighty years old, were asked the question: “What are you afraid of?” From the voices of different generations, hear their answers:

Ben: Not being enough.

Ryan: Not making enough of a difference.

Crosby: Falling down.

Barbara Ann: That we will forget that we belong to each other.

Ben: Climate change.

Ryan: My child having to have active shooter drills at school.

Crosby: Not getting my homework done.

Barbara Ann: Not having someone to take care of me; not having someone who knows my stories.

Ben: My mental health slipping.

Ryan: Ending up alone.

Crosby: Nightmares.

Barbara Ann: Stopping short of following God all the way.

Ryan: Today we light the candle of peace, because we so desperately need God’s peace in the midst of all we fear.

(Liturgist lights the candle.)

May this light be a reminder that Christ is coming.

God was with generations before, God is with us today,

and God will be with us tomorrow.

Even now, God is on the way. Amen.

Hymn  #155 W & R “Comfort, Comfort Now My People” (Public Domain)

"Comfort, comfort now my people;
Tell of peace!" so says our God.
Comfort those who sit in darkness
Mourning under sorrow's load.
To God's people now proclaim
That God's pardon waits for them!
Tell them that their war is over;
God will reign in peace forever!

For the herald's voice is crying
In the desert far and near,
Calling us to true repentance
Since the Kingdom now is here.
Oh, that warning cry obey!
Now prepare for God a way!
Let the valleys rise to meet him,
And the hills bow down to greet him!

Straight shall be what long was crooked,
And the rougher places plain!
Let your hearts be true and humble,
As befits his holy reign!
For the glory of the Lord
Now on earth is shed abroad,
And all flesh shall see the token
That God's word is never broken.

Call to New Life

Prayer for Wholeness and Peace

Patient God, you know just how often we make decisions from a place of fear rather than love. You know just how often we allow fear to take the place of logic, fanning unhealthy fires in our lives. You know just how often we tuck your words, “Do not be afraid” on dusty shelves and in the back of closets, stubbornly holding onto our own point of view. Forgive us for giving fear the microphone. Silence the voices of scarcity, shame, and rejection, which spark and feed so much of our fear, to recent us in love. With hope we pray. Amen.

Words of Assurance

Family of faith, even when we forget God’s words,

God does not forget us.

Even when we lose our way,

God does not lose us.

Even when we fall short or make mistakes,

God forgives and holds onto us.

We are known, forgiven, and loved.

Thanks be to God! Amen.

Sharing of the Peace

May the peace of God be with you. 

And also with you.

Let us share a sign of God’s peace with one another.

Scripture Isaiah 11:1-10

A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,
    and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
    the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
    the spirit of counsel and might,
    the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

He shall not judge by what his eyes see
    or decide by what his ears hear,
but with righteousness he shall judge for the poor
    and decide with equity for the oppressed of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
    and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist
    and faithfulness the belt around his loins.

The wolf shall live with the lamb;
    the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
the calf and the lion will feed together,
    and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze;
    their young shall lie down together;
    and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
    and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.
They will not hurt or destroy
    on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.

On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious.

Children’s Message Rev. Pat Raube

Music: “The King of Glory Comes” (Public Domain)

Scripture Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Response  Holy Wisdom, Holy Word: 

Thanks be to God! 

Meditation

Affirmation of Faith

We believe in a God who knows our fears.

We believe in a God who says, “Be not afraid.”

We believe in a God who kicks off her shoes

and wades into the muck of our lives with us.

We believe in a God who hemmed stars into the night sky

so that we can find our way home,

and who sends us friends with open doors,

so we can find our way to love.

We believe in a God who finds us in our fear

and does not leave us alone.

Thanks be to God for a love like that.

Amen.

Anthem Choir

“The Yearning,” Susan Bentall Boersma, Craig Courtney

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.    

There is a yearning in hearts weighed down

By grief and centuries of sorrow.

There is a yearning in hearts

That in the darkness hide

And in the shades of death abide,

A yearning for tomorrow.

There is a yearning,

A yearning for the promised One,

The Firstborn of creation.

There is a yearning for the Lord

Who visited His own,

And by His death for sin atoned,

To bring to us salvation.

Emmanuel, Emmanuel,

Within our hearts, the yearning. (2x)

There is a yearning that fills the hearts

Of those who wait the day of His appearing.

There is a yearning when all our sorrows are erased

And we shall see the One who placed

Within our hearts the yearning.

Emmanuel, Emmanuel,

Within our hearts, the yearning. (4x)

Prayers of the People   

The 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 evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. 

Prayer Response  #475 W & R 

“Eternal Spirit of the Living Christ,” Frank von Christierson

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.    

Eternal Spirit of the living Christ,
We know not how to ask or what to say;
We only know our need, as deep as life,
And only you can teach us how to pray.

Call for Offering

Doxology  

"Advent Doxology”

Tune: “Once in Royal David’s City” (Public Domain)

Praise to God, the One who made us.

Praise to Christ, the newborn Son.

Praise the Spirit, ever with us.

Praise the Godhead, Three in One.

Clear a path! Prepare the Way!

Advent leads to Christmas Day!

Prayer of Dedication

Hymn  #185 W & R “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” (Public Domain)

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King:
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!"
Joyful, all ye nations, rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
With th'angelic host proclaim,
"Christ is born in Bethlehem!"
Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King."

Christ, by highest heaven adored,
Christ, the everlasting Lord,
Late in time behold him come,
Offspring of the Virgin's womb:
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th'incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King.”

Hail the heaven born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all he brings,
Risen with healing in his wings.
Mild he lays his glory by,
Born that we no more may die,
Born to raise us from the earth,
Born to give us second birth.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King."

Benediction (Responsive)

As you leave this place, may you go knowing that

from generation to generation,

we have been claimed and loved.

From generation to generation,

God has been by our side.

From generation to generation,

we are not alone.

The God of yesterday and the God of tomorrow

knows you by name, loves you, and calls you forth,

saying, “Go be the person you are called to be,

love wildly, do justice, and come back soon.”

May it be so. Amen.

Postlude  Colin DeLap

“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” Chris Rice

Used by permission, CCLI License #CSPL068847

Where an * is indicated, please rise in body and/or in spirit.

“W & R” ~ the red Worship and Rejoice hymnal.

“PH” ~ the blue Presbyterian Hymnal

Prayers by Rev. Sarah (Are) Speed | A Sanctified Art LLC | sanctifiedart.org