November 29, 2020 – 1st Sunday of Advent

You can follow the order of the service here or Download a PDF copy that you can print ahead of time.

Feel free to also check out the following:

First Advent Candle

Gathering, Greeting, and Announcements

Prayer of the Day

Stir up our hearts, Lord God, to prepare the way of your only Son. By his coming strengthen us to serve you with purified lives; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

First Lesson: A Reading from the Book of Isaiah

Isaiah 40:1–11

1Comfort, O comfort my people,
says your God.
2Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that she has served her term,
that her penalty is paid,
that she has received from the Lord's hand
double for all her sins.
3A voice cries out:
In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
5Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
6A voice says, Cry out!
And I said, What shall I cry?
All people are grass,
their constancy is like the flower of the field.
7The grass withers, the flower fades,
when the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
surely the people are grass.
8The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand forever.
9Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good tidings;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
lift it up, do not fear;
say to the cities of Judah,
Here is your God!
10See, the Lord God comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms,
and carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead the mother sheep.

Gospel: A Reading from the Gospel of St. Mark

Mark 1:1–8

1The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

2As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,

See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way;
3the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight, 

4John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 6Now John was clothed with camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7He proclaimed, The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. 8I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

P: The Gospel of the Lord.
C: Praise to you, O Christ.

Sermon

Hymn

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (v. 1 & 2)

ELW #257

Our own Lisa Alvis plays the hymn O Come, O Come, Emmanuel on the piano. You can find more performances like this if you check out Lisa's YouTube channel.

1O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.
2O come, O Wisdom from on high,
embracing all things far and nigh;
in strength and beauty come and stay;
teach us your will and guide our way.
Refrain
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.

Apostles' Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

Prayers of the Church

P: Lord, in your mercy,
C: hear our 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 trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. Amen.

Blessing

Weekly Announcements

We remember in our prayers

Thanksgiving Offering Designation

The offerings received in Thanksgiving envelopes will be donated to the Midwest Food Bank and Home Sweet Home Ministries for Thanksgiving meals.

Poinsettias for Shut-Ins

This year you can buy a poinsettia not to decorate the church, but to brighten the home of one of our own community shut-ins. You can also designate your gift to recognize someone important in your own life. Those gifts and commemorations will be listed in the church bulletin posted online for our Christmas Eve services. Poinsettias are $11 each. Simply include that amount with your offering mailed to the church with a notation "Poinsettia" and the name(s) of any you want to recognize with your gift. Poinsettia requests must be received by December 17.

Change in Office Hours

Effective tomorrow, November 30, the church office hours will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday (closed on Friday). Megan will take an hour lunch break, usually from 1:00 to 2:00, and may not be in the building at that time. Call ahead if you need someone to be there when you stop by.

Angel Tree

The Mission committee is once again asking for help filling Fairview Elementary children's Christmas requests with their Angel Tree program. We have 25 children that have been assigned to our church. Fairview asks that you buy a minimum of 3 gifts per child. Please have your gifts wrapped, placed in a large bag marked with your Angel's number, and bring it to church by Sunday, December 6. If you are interested, please email Kay DeFrees. Kay will forward you the listing of children in need with instructions.

Charitable Trust Donations

Did you know that memorials do not automatically go to the Charitable Trust? Only by designating the "Charitable Trust" as the recipient is the donation added to the fund for future OSLC needs.

Food Drive

The Mission committee is continuing to collect food that will be shared between Safe Harbor and the Midwest Food Bank. We are collecting the following items:

There is a box just inside the church entrance where you can deposit items. Please do not take items to Megan or Pastor Henrick's office.

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