Christmas Eve - Moravian Lovefeast
December 15, 2024 | 10:00am
Rev. Jeremy Campbell, Temporary Pastor | Larry J. Carey, Director of Music
GATHERING
Prelude Let All Immortal Flesh Keep Silence | arr. Phillips
Call to Worship
An unmarried teenage girl was invited—
to carry Christ into this world.
An ordinary carpenter was invited—
to be a father to a child unlike any other.
The shepherds were invited—
outcast and isolated, included at the manger.
The Magi were invited—
foreigners and seekers, included at the manger.
And if she was invited, and he was invited, and they were invited—
then we can trust that we too are invited.
This story is for us.
This love is for us.
Family of faith, this is our invitation. Welcome home.
Amen.
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
Amen.
Salutation
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
Amen.
Candle Lighting Liturgy
A: In God’s house, there is hope—
For God loves us too much to leave us just as we are.
Light the candle of hope.
B: In God’s house, there is peace—
For all that separates us from God falls away.
Light the candle of peace.
A: In God’s house, there is joy—
Because God created music, and coffee, and dance floors, and laughter that is contagious, and endless rounds of peek-a-boos with babies; and if those things have God’s fingerprints, then God’s house surely exudes joy.
Light the candle of joy.
B: In God’s house, there is love—
Because God is love, from start to finish, and that love exists for us all.
Light the candle of love.
*Hymn of Praise O Come, All Ye Faithful
Welcome & Prayer
Holy God, We’ve heard this story a million times—
Mary and Joseph, the angels, the shepherds.
We’ve heard it a million times,
but we want to hear it like it’s the first.
So move among us.
Circle back.
Draw close.
Crack open our hearts and fill them with your goodness.
Help us to hear what it is you might be saying to us
with curiosity, joy, and hope.
This is an invitation.
Come be here with us.
Gratefully we pray, amen.
Gospel in Scripture & Song
Hymn Come Thou Long-Expected Jesus
Luke 2:1-5
Hymn O Little Town of Bethlehem
Luke 2:6-7
Hymn Away in a Manger
Luke 2:8-14
Hymn Angels from the Realms of Glory
Luke 2:15
Hymn Angels We Have Heard on High
Luke 2:16-19
Hymn Love Has Come
Gospel Reading Luke 2:20
The Gospel of the Lord
Thanks Be to God
Introduction to the Lovefeast
Hymn Joy to the World
Meditation
Moravian Blessing
Come, Lord Jesus, out Guest to be,
and bless these gifts bestowed by Thee.
Bless our loved ones everywhere,
and keep them in Thy loving care. Amen.
Partaking of the Lovefeast
Anthems Sleep, Holy Babe | Matthews
Sing to the Holy Child | arr. Liebergen
Offering Introduction
Offertory Hymn Morning Star, O Cheering Sight
Prayer of Dedication
Hymn Break Forth O Beauteous Heavenly Light
Candle Lighting
A: In the center of our hope,
B: In the center of our peace,
A: In the center of our joy,
B: In the center of our love, is God—who came to this earth to dwell
among us.
A: So tonight we light the Christ candle, for God’s love just could not stay away.
B: Welcome home. Amen.
Passing of the Light
Carol Silent Night
Prayers of the People
God of shepherds and angels,
God of starlight and seekers,
God of mangers and unwed teenage mothers:
It is almost Christmas. It’s almost here.
We are close to home.
It feels like we have been waiting so long for this night.
Amidst the hustle and bustle of this busy season, we have been waiting for a quiet, a calm, a stillness. We have been waiting for good news that changes us and for the undeniable sense that you are near.
So in this moment, surrounded by community, in the presence of candle light and hallelujahs, we bow our heads and give thanks:
Thank you, God, for the places and people that feel like home.
Thank you for the hope on the horizon which carries us through.
Thank you for moments of worship that break open our hearts.
Thank you for the joy of children on this night, which reminds us of love.
And thank you for the stars in the sky which remind us of you.
We have so much to be grateful for.
However, even amidst our prayers of gratitude and joy, we also bring you prayers of
concern. For when the music is quiet and the clouds clear, we can finally hear our own thoughts and see sky above us, and that is when there is enough space for hurt to float to the surface.
We know we are close to home, God, but we also know we are not home yet and that truth aches in us. So many of us are still seeking, still looking for a place to belong, still searching for a faith that feels like home.
We are closer to home, but we’re not there yet.
We are only truly home when we are with you.
So God of starlight and angel choruses, on this Christmas Eve, as you come dwell among us, we pray that you would bring us closer to home. Scoop us up. Draw us in. Build the world you have in mind for us. Hover here. Hear our prayers. Take this grief and pain off of our shoulders and hold our hands as we walk through the dark.
It is almost Christmas. It’s almost here.
We can feel it—we are close to home.
So together, with hope in our hearts, we pray the prayer your son taught us to pray, saying…
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, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory forever. Amen.
SENDING
Benediction and Merry Christmas!
Benediction
Benediction Response
Live into hope of captives freed,
Of sight regained, the end of greed.
The oppressed shall be the first to see
The year of God's own jubilee!
Live into hope the blind shall see
With insight and with clarity,
Removing shades of pride and fear--
A vision of our God brought near.
Live into hope of liberty,
The right to speak the right to be,
The right to have one's daily bread,
To hear God's word and thus be fed.
Live into hope of captives freed
From chains of fear or want or greed.
God now proclaims our full release
To faith and hope and joy and peace.
Postlude Christmas Celebration arr. Phillips
DEAR FRIENDS
Welcome to worship here at Peapack Reformed Church! If you are visiting with us, welcome! If you are a member, welcome back! Our mission is to be a congregation called by God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and committed to being the very presence of Jesus Christ in the world. This mission is the catalyst for all that we do, and is our aim for who we want to be.
If you are visiting with us via Facebook Live and would like more information about our church, send us a message on Facebook or email office@peapackreformed.org and we will be in touch with you. Even under these odd and anxious circumstances, we would love to be your church home. Our virtual doors are always open wide and our hearts are always ready to welcome new faces into our fellowship.
FOOD PANTRY NEWS
Many thanks for all those who have shared their abundance with neighbors in need.
Our church refrigerators have plenty of space to hold even more!
Please consider making a weekly donation of eggs or milk to the P-G Food Pantry.
Peapack Reformed Church is a congregation called by God, empowered by the Holy Spirit and committed to being the very presence of Jesus Christ in the world.
CALLED • EMPOWERED • COMMITTED