preparing the way...preparing the way decemeber 6, 2020 | 10:30 am 1128 pine street boulder co 80302...

Preparing the WayDecemeber 6, 2020 | 10:30 am

1128 Pine Street Boulder CO 80302 | 303.442.1787 | www.firstcong.net

For those of you who would like to participate in our offering using a credit card, you may donate by texting 73256with the message joy2givefcc. You will be prompted to click on a link to complete your donation information.

All music and words reprinted, recorded and livestreamed by permission under OneLicense.net, License #A-708196 and CCLI #11415391.

http://www.firstcong.net

ORDER OF WORSHIP

PRELUDE Lullaby J. Leavitt Kajsa Teitelbaum

WELCOME Rev. Christina Braudaway-Bauman

CALL TO WORSHIP I Believe Mark Miller Singers: Stewart Hoover, David Skaggs, Kevin Pettit, Sue McCullough, Kathy Minter, Judy Cardell, Kajsa Teitelbaum, Chris Braudaway-Bauman,

ADVENT PRAYERGod of light and love, of darkness and dawn, be with us in the shadows of our lives. We thank you for the glimpses we catch of daring love.Even in the midst of fear, of struggle –even when we cannot imagine how the human family can come together in compassion, come to us and ignite the �ame of love within us,so that we would glow with its radiance from the inside out and share that light with others.Holy One, help us face the night of the soul and embrace it as a womb of rebirth.Help us to kindle hope and to reach for love so that we will bring more of them into the world. Amen.

LIGHTING THE CANDLE OF HOPE Bob and Jill Von Trebra, Ginger Johnson and Deborah Voss, Katie, Maggie, Connor, and Andie Wilkerson Family, Mark and Margot Pickett

HYMN Comfort, Comfort O My People Singers: Stewart Hoover, Julie Griffitts, Patty Goward, David Skaggs

SCRIPTURE Mark 1:1- 8

SERMON Preparing the Way

CALL TO PRAYER Stillness L. Thompson Mark Miller

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE Rev. Pedro Silva

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

ANTHEM He Shall Feed His Flock Like a Shepherd Handel from Handel’s Messiah Jill Von Trebra

INVITATION TO COMMUNITY LIFE

INVITATION TO COMMUNION

COMMUNION PRAYER Linda Kowatch

SHARING THE BREAD AND CUP

COMMUNION MUSIC Put Peace into Each Other’s Hands

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING Eternal God, in gratitude for this moment, this meal, your love, and our kindred hearts,we give ourselves to you. Take us out to live as transformed people because we have sharedthe Living Bread and cannot remain the same. Ask much of us and encourage many through us. Prepare us to receive your good news of great joy as we place our hearts beside the manger once more. Amen.

CAROL INTRODUCTION Stewart Hoover

CAROL It Came Upon the Midnight Clear Singers: Stewart Hoover, Julie Griffitts, Patty Goward, David Skaggs

BENEDICTION

POSTLUDE Herr Christ, der ein’ge Gottessohn J. S. Bach

ORDER OF WORSHIP

BENEDICTION

ORDER OF WORSHIP

BENEDICTION

ORDER OF WORSHIP

BENEDICTION

YOUR GIVINGIn this time when we are physically apart, the ministry of the church continues. Thank you for the ways wesupport each other. To make a payment on your pledge or a contribution to the church, you may: Write a check to the church and mail it to First Congregational Church Boulder, 1128 Pine St. Boulder, CO 80302 To pay electronically, sign in to your account in Realm,the church’s database, where you may make an ACH payment from your bank account or contribute by credit card. Or contribute by Text-to-Give by texting to 73256 with the message joy2givefcc

The lovely large red poinsettia you see in the worship service is a gift from Linda Whitehead in memory of her husband,Stephen Whitehead who died on December 15, 2009.

VIRTUAL COFFEE HOUR | https://us02web.zoom.us/j/349641499?pwd=VHlINXR3S1l1S25nVjF5TitTbWJ6UT09Following worship, meet church members and friends at a Zoom Party for a time of fellowship. (Bring your own coffee).

THE MUSIC OF OUR LIVES | DECEMBER 6, NOON TO 1 PM In this time when many of missing our singing together, we’ll be exploring why it matters. We’ll begin with some small group sharing: What’s your first memory of making or hearing music that mattered to you? What are your favorite Christmas Carols or Hymns and why? What’s the music that always makes you cry or feel a thrill or gives you courage? Is there a story that goes with that? We’ll gather in small groups on Zoom to share our responses to these questions and then come back together to consider why music speak to us like nothing else. Facilitated by Tom Riis and Chris Braudaway-Bauman.

ADVENT PILGRIMAGE AT ONLY SUNSHINE FARM | DECEMBER 6 TO 24Mowed through a field at the home of David and Laura Skaggs, this labyrinth is a little longer than a half mile walk to a manger shed. Visit prayer stations and reflect on your life in relation to Mary and Joseph’s journey. No signing up in advance. Come and go any time from morning light to evening dusk, any day of the week starting Sunday, December 6, through Christmas Eve. Wear your mask and sturdy shoes. 7428 N 73rd Street, Niwot, near the intersection of Niwot Road and Route 119.

ALTERNATIVE GIFT MARKET 2020Our church has made the world brighter at Christmas through our Alternative Gift Market, raising over $200,000 for worthy causes around the world. In 2020, we will not be stopped by a pandemic! If you would like to honor your loved ones with a donation to one of 30 worthy causes, we invite you to request a catalog be mailed to you by calling 800-842-2243 or by shopping on-line at www.alternativegifts.org. It’s a life-enhancing“gift to the world” for so many who are less fortunate than us and you will be enriched by the giving.

NEWCOMERS COFFEE | DECEMBER 20, FOLLOWING WORSHIP ZOOMAre you new to the First Congregational Church community, looking to find out more and get better connected? Join us on Sunday, December 20 after 10:30 am worship to get to know some of ministers and leaders at FCC, ask any questions you may have, and learn more about the many ways you can get involved.

BLUE CHRISTMAS PRAYER SERVICE | SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20, 5:00 P.M. ON YOUTUBEOn this evening just before the Winter Solstice, the Longest Night, we will pause to hold in prayer our lossesand our grief – to remember the deaths of loved ones near and far, the millions sick and dying in the pandemic,the looming sense of uncertainty, and the loss of familiar rhythms and rituals. We will a Litany of Losses, and light candles as prayers of Longing for More Light.

VOCATIONAL JOURNEY INTERVIEW: HARRIET SIMONS | DECEMBER 13, NOON TO 1 PM - ZOOMhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/89393141937?pwd=YmcwdW9IL2lhTVZnOEloQVMxRDgzQT09Join the second of an ongoing occasional series of Vocational Journey Interviews with FCC members to heartheir stories and help us reflect on our life’s callings. We’re grateful to Harriet Simons for agreeing to beinterviewed about her vocation in music, choral directing and teaching voice, including her years as Professorof Music at SUNY Buffalo and Oberlin College Conservatory. Harriet and her husband Parker Calkin were married at First Congregational Church in 1979 while on sabbatical and moved to Boulder twenty years later when they joined the church. Thank you to Tom Riis for hosting the interview.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/349641499?pwd=VHlINXR3S1l1S25nVjF5TitTbWJ6UT09http://www.alternativegifts.orghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/89393141937?pwd=YmcwdW9IL2lhTVZnOEloQVMxRDgzQT09

preparing the way...preparing the way decemeber 6, 2020 | 10:30 am 1128 pine street boulder co 80302...

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