It Came Upon the Midnight Clear Richard S. Willis, arr. Robert Schultz

Advent Jubilate! Larry Shackley and John Parker

What a day is coming, what a day is near,

when our burdens are lifted and our hearts fill with cheer.

For the time is approaching when our eyes see his face,

and with joy we will greet him in his beauty and grace!

Christ is coming, Jubilate! Christ is coming, Hallelujah!

Sing glory to God, Jubilate Deo!

What a grand celebration, what a day there will be,

when our merciful Savior in love sets us free.

Every girl, every woman, every boy, every man,

will be gathered together at his gracious command!

Now My Spirit Sings Lee Dengler and Susan Naus Dengler

Now my spirit sings, worshipping my Lord and King,

who has done great things through me now and evermore.

I will bear a Son, who will be the Chosen One.

Magnify the Lord with me. Worship and adore.

Glory, glory, glory be to God on high.

Let the earth rejoice in God our Savior,

Glory, glory, for the Lord has done great things.

Blessed is His holy name.

Unto us a Child is born. Unto us a Son is given,

and upon His shoulders rest all things in earth and heaven.

God has heard his people's plea, and has answered faithfully.

Soon his glory all the world will see.

Mary Had a Baby Traditional Spiritual, arr. Mark Hayes

* HYMN Gentle Mary

1. Gentle Mary laid her Child Lowly in a manger; There He lay, the undefiled, To the world a stranger. Such a Babe in such a place, Can He be the Savior? Ask the saved of all the race Who have found His favor.

2. Angels sang about His birth; Wise Men sought and found Him; Heaven's star shone brightly forth, Glory all around Him. Shepherds saw the wondrous sight, Heard the angels singing; All the plains were lit that night, All the hills were ringing.

Sleep, Holy Babe Lani Smith and Edward Caswall

Sleep, holy Babe! Upon your mother's breast;

Great Lord of earth and sea and sky,

How sweet it is to see you lie

In such a place of rest.

Sleep holy Babe! Your angels watch around,

All bending low with folded wings,

Before th'incarnate King of kings,

In reverent awe profound.

Sleep holy Babe! While I with Mary gaze

In joy upon that face awhile,

Upon the loving infant smile,

Which there divinely plays.

He Just Had to Come Down Bill Williams

When God looked down on earth,

saw it filled with sadness.

He could show them what to do,

but He'd have to come down.

He just had to come down;

He simply had to come down and show them.

He just had to come down

to little Bethlehem town to show them.

Jesus had to come down;

He simply had to come down and bless them.

Jesus had to come down from glory.

No other way could be found to show them.

He just had to come down.

When God was down on earth;

saw it filled with sadness.

He did show them what to do,

but He had to come down.

Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth Harry Simeone, Henry Onorati,

Katherine Davis, Larry Grossman, Ian Fraser and Alan Kohan; arr. Jay Althouse

Come, they told me, pa rum pum pum pum,

A newborn King to see.

Our finest gifts we bring,

To lay before the King.

So to honor him, when we come.

Peace on earth, can it be?

Years from now, perhaps we'll see,

see the day of glory, see the day when men of good will

live in peace, live in peace again.

Every child must be made aware.

Every child must be made to care,

care enough for his fellow man

to give all the love that he can.

Little Baby,

I stood beside Him there.

I played my drum for Him,

I played my best for Him.

Then he smiled at me, me and my drum.

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks Nahum Tate, arr. Gail Smith

I Give My Song Joseph M. Martin

What can I give to the babe in the manger?

What can I give to show my love?

What can I give to the One they call Jesus? What can I bring?

What can I give to the Lord of creation?

What do I have that's worthy of him?

What can I bring to the High Prince of Heaven? What can I bring?

I can sing alleluia, Lord, I adore you.

All my days I can sing your praise, I can give my song to you.

He fills my mouth with the joy of music,

he fills my heart with the sounds of his love.

He fills my life with the peace of his Spirit. Now I can sing.

The Holy Child of Mary Joseph Martin

(based on tunes The Holly and the Ivy and Sans Day Carol)

The holy Child of Mary, O Son of perfect grace,

You are peace and love sent from above. You are worthy of our praise.

The stars that shine in heaven, the snow upon the trees

are pure and bright and filled with light, but none compares with Thee.

Every valley is exalted, each mountain made low.

The crooked and the broken are now all made whole.

The wonder of heaven has come to our night.

The Son born of Mary is God's perfect light. Noel, noel.

O holy night of wonders, O night when Christ came down,

let the earth rejoice with tuneful noise and a jubilation sound.

Alleluia! Rejoice! Alleluia! Christ is born! Rejoice!

Baby Born a King Mark Hayes and John Parker

Baby born a king, lying in a stall,

tiny baby boy, yet ruler over all.

See the shepherds kneeling, hear his mother sing.

Baby in a manger, baby born a king.

Long ago in a tiny town,

a light from God to earth came down.

Shepherds living in a field nearby

saw that light glowing in the sky.

Angel voices in the night

filled the shepherds with great fright.

"Peace on earth," was their cry.

"Glory hallelujah to God on high!"

"Glory Hallelujah! Glory be to God!"

* * * *

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

*Please stand in body or in spirit.

PRELUDE Carol of the Bells Ukrainian Carol, arr. Melody Bober

WELCOME

CALL TO WORSHIP Psalm 126:1

Leader: Our mouths were filled with laughter,

People: our tongues with songs of joy.

Leader: Then it was said among the nations,

People: "The LORD has done great things for them."

Leader: The LORD has done great things for us,

People: and we are filled with joy!

*OPENING HYMN O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

1. 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. Rejoice, rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

2. O come to us like joy of heaven’s dawn, from Mary’s womb a faithful paragon, brought forth into this world by love’s power, Your Spirit through her labors in that hour. Rejoice, rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to us, and all things shall be well.

AT THE ADVENT WREATH The Lewis Family

Candlelighter: We light the candle of JOY in silence, as we take a moment to

ponder: Where in the world do we find joy these days?

Relight Hope & Peace candles, then Pink Candle of Joy.

Let us pray together:

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. Amen.

SCRIPTURE READING Luke 1:26-33

Leader: This is the Word of the Lord.

People: Thanks be to God.

OFFERTORY Silent Night in the setting of J.S. Bach's Prelude in C Franz Gruber, arr. Marilyn Reimer

*CONGREGATIONAL SONG OF PRAISE AND DEDICATION

All Creation join in praising God the Father, Spirit, Son.

Everyone your voices raising to the eternal three in one.

Come and worship, come and worship, worship Christ, the newborn King!

OFFERING PRAYER

O God of profound Joy, in this advent season, with hearts overflowing with gratitude, we offer these gifts, along with our time and talents. We dedicate them to the furthering of your Kingdom here on earth. Amen.

THE COMMUNITY AT PRAYER

Ave Maria Franz Schubert

Pastoral Prayer

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. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

A MUSICAL CELEBRATION OF CHRISTMAS

(see Libretto to the right)

* * * * * * * * * *

*BENEDICTION (Romans 15:13)

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

All: And now, may we bear fruit as we go forth in peace to love and serve the Lord. In the name of Christ. Amen

*CONGREGATIONAL RESPONSE

Go Tell It on the Mountain

(Refrain) Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills, and ev’rywhere;

Go, tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born.

While shepherds kept their watching o’er silent flocks by night, behold throughout the heavens there shone a holy light. (Refrain)

Down in a lowly manger the humble Christ was born, and God sent us salvation that blessed Christmas morn.

(Refrain)

+ +

A WORD OF THANKS --The choir thanks Reverend Gary Ritts for leading our worship services and for joining us in the choir. We thank Judy Ritts for recording our services and for adding Judy's Corner to the online program. We also thank the Ladies Sewing Circle for their ongoing support of our music program. As always, we thank the congregation for their support and appreciation throughout the year, and for their generous donations for the new piano.

Cantata Participants:

Ellen Everett, Music Director and Pianist

Cindy Bloomquist Jodi Mulcahy * +

Ami Dion Jackie Rafferty

Brian Dudley* Gary Ritts

Joanne Guilfoy* Eliza Schacht

Carol Lewis Nathaniel Sides *

Steve Lewis Colleen Thompson

Carol Miskinis

+ Ave Maria, solo

* Sleep, Holy Babe, quartet