Call to Worship
Church, today we light the first candle of the
Advent season which is the candle of hope.
John 1:14 declares “The Word became flesh and
made His dwelling among us” which assures us
that God has entered into human history
through the incarnation of the Son.
The season of Advent, a season of waiting,
is designed to cultivate our awareness of God’s actions—
past, present, and future.
In Advent we heighten our anticipation
for the ultimate fulfillment of all Old Testament promises,
when the wolf will lie down with the lamb,
death will be swallowed up,
and every tear will be wiped away.
In this way Advent highlights for us the larger story
of God’s redemptive plan.
Though Christ has come,
not all things have reached completion.
While we remember Israel’s waiting and
hoping and we give thanks for Christ’s birth,
we also eagerly anticipate His second coming at the end of time.

Call to Confession
The great preacher, Charles Spurgeon, once said….“Hope itself is like a star- not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity.”
Jesus our true light and true hope shines in the darkest of times. He is all we need, but yet, because we are sinful people, we choose, time after time to look for hope in temporary, everyday idols. Then we become frustrated because those creations cannot bring the hope we so desire.
Today, during our time of confession, we bring those idols to cross of Jesus, and we confess our need of him. He is our true source of hope. Our savior.

Confession
Merciful God,
always with us, always coming:
We confess that we do not know
how to prepare for your Advent.
We have forgotten how to hope in miracles;
we have ignored the promise of your kingdom;
we get distracted by all the busyness of this season.
Forgive us, God.
Grant us the simple wonder of the shepherds,
the intelligent courage of the Magi,
and the patient faith of Mary and Joseph,
that we may journey with them to Bethlehem
and find the good news of a child born for us.
Now, in the quiet of our hearts,
we ask you to make us ready for his coming.
Amen.