Worship Ministry - January 2023
Christmas Night of Worship
Wow! If you missed our Christmas night of worship, you missed out on a blessing! I am so proud and thankful to all those that made the night so special. Those that sang in the choir worked hard and put in many hours on Sunday afternoons so that we could bring our best offering of praise. I am also incredibly thankful that I get to serve with such great musicians each week, and especially thankful for those that played for our night of worship. Last but not least, those that worked behind the scenes in our tech crew, we couldn’t have done it without you.
Hope
When I was a child, I would find myself awake on Christmas Eve wondering and hoping at what was inside those beautifully wrapped packages under the tree. Socks? Candy? The new, latest and greatest gaming system? I was hoping it was the latter! Those are the feelings of every child on Christmas Eve, hoping that time will move faster and the sun will rise sooner so they can see what “Santa” brought them, but feeling like it was never going to come.
Aren’t these the same feelings the Shepards, Wisemen, Joseph and Mary, and all those looking and waiting for the promised Messiah had? A hope that always seemed a little out of reach, that was never truly going to be fulfilled. Egerly waiting for a promised messiah from the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob, who hasn’t spoken to us in what feels like eternity! The same God guided us through the wilderness into the promised land and broke the bonds of oppression in Egypt. The same God that etched the law onto the stone tablets and communed with Moses on the mountain. They had hoped that one day that same God would send a messiah to save them, but where was He?
Then, on that silent night, Jesus was born!
We have hope and assurance that God is here with us! We can go with great confidence into this world knowing that we are not alone, but have the hope of Christ Jesus in our hearts if we belong to Him. God sent hope as a baby boy, who grew up a sinless man and bore the sins of all man-kind so that we are redeemed before the Father. God continues to send hope through His spirit as He encourages us and challenges us to live for Him in and through all things. May we return to that child-like hope as we head into a new year. May we remember that God is worthy and deserving of our praise, every day, every hour, in all things. May we not look to the world to fill us, but seek the Lord our God for our delight. May our hope be in the Living Hope, Jesus Christ!
Lyric of the Month
Hallelujah, praise the one who set me free
Hallelujah, death has lost its grip on me
You have broken every chain
There's salvation in your name
Jesus Christ, my living hope
Isaiah 25:1
Lord, you are my God;
I will exalt you and praise your name,
for in perfect faithfulness
you have done wonderful things,
things planned long ago.