Amity United Church of Christ
The Fourth Sunday of Advent
December 22, 2024
The Call to Worship - Psalm 80:1-7, NKJV
L: Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth!
P: Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh, Stir up Your strength, And come and save us!
L: Restore us, O God; Cause Your face to shine, And we shall be saved!
P: O LORD God of hosts, How long will You be angry Against the prayer of Your people?
L: You have fed them with the bread of tears, And given them tears to drink in great measure.
P: You have made us a strife to our neighbors, And our enemies laugh among themselves.
All: Restore us, O God of hosts; Cause Your face to shine, And we shall be saved!
The Prayer of Confession
Father, forgive us. We have failed to see the gift of Your Son in the light that we should. We have believed that we may continue in our sin, instead of recognizing that He came to not only give us grace, but to give us a fuller, more abundant life if we will only follow His teachings. Help us to give up our worldly ways and seek to be, through Him and the indwelling Holy Spirit, the light that this world so desperately needs. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
A New Creed (The United Church of Canada):
We are not alone, we live in God’s world. We believe in God: who has created and is creating, who has come in Jesus, the Word made flesh, to reconcile and make new, who works in us and others by the Spirit. We trust in God. We are called to be the Church: to celebrate God’s presence, to love and serve others, to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen, our judge and our hope. In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. We are not alone. Thanks be to God.