Second Sunday of Advent - Year A

Texts:  Isaiah 11:1-10; psalm 72:1-7, 18-19; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12

Lighting of Advent Candles
If we would walk the streets of the kingdom, we need light to guide us.
We light the candle of faith, so we might travel with trust in our hearts.
If we would walk the streets of our world, we need a light to guide us.
We light the candle of hope, so we could carry it with us as we serve.
As we continue our Advent journey, may God lead us into the future which awaits us.
A future filled with trust, a future full of hope.

 Call to Worship
We gather in this comfortable place, to prepare for a new day:
a day when the wolf and the lamb will get an apartment together.
So prepare your hearts for the day when peace will rule the earth:
when the leopard and the kid will share a mat at naptime.
Prepare the way, the way where old notions are overturned:
when the cow and bear will have coffee, their children playing in the backyard.
Get ready!  Prepare the way!

Prayer of the Day
God of wonders,
you continually stun us
with your gifts of Advent:
your welcoming heart
with room for every single person;
your ancient words of hope
which remain as fresh
as the breeze through the trees;
your passion for justice,
so all might be set free.

Root of Jesse,
Branch of righteousness:
you do not judge
by what your eyes see
or your ears might hear.
You look at the poor,
and see your mother and sisters,
you open your heart to the lost,
and welcome your brothers and father.

Wisdom from on high:
as we stand in silence,
pour the transforming waters
of grace and peace over us.
Whisper your Word to us,
lest we rely on ours too much.
Place the shawl of compassion
around our shoulders
that we might be your servants.

God in Community, Holy in One,
listen to our words and to our hearts,
as we pray as Jesus has taught us,
Our Father . . .
 
 Call to Reconciliation
We, who have stood in the refreshing waters of baptism, often forget our need to be cleansed.  We, who have heard the voice of love, often speak with anger and meanness to others.  God calls us to be wise enough to change our ways, so let us answer with our confessions, as we pray together saying,

Unison Prayer of Confession
  We long for you to come to us, Creator of Goodness.  But too often, we do not seem to share your vision of how the world should be, or we are to live.   You dream of resentful enemies sitting down together, but we feast on bitterness.  You would have us sing with one voice, but we prefer to be soloists.  You would have us serve others, but we sit quietly, expecting you to come and fill our every need.
  Forgive us, Approaching God, and help us to turn to welcome you with open arms.  May we prepare for your coming by opening our hearts to that healing hope and surprising mercy which is ours in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

 Silence is kept

Assurance of Pardon
This is God's word of acceptance and affirmation: we are forgiven, we are loved, we are called to be servants to all creation.
Forgiveness falls like a gentle shower upon us, sinking deep into our hearts and souls, so we might be nourished and nurtured as God's children.  Thanks be to God.  Amen.

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
May the God of Advent wonder be with you.
And also with you.
People of God, lift up your hopeful hearts.
We lift them to the One who fills us with all joy and peace.
Blessed be the One who comes to speak for the poor, to set free those imprisoned by despair.
May the glory of the One who welcomes all to this Table fill our sisters and brothers throughout creation.

 God of Wonder:
your Spirit did not rest,
but transformed chaos into creation,
the mountains crying 'Glory!' with one voice,
the hills echoing the glad refrain.
You welcomed us into
your garden of peace and hope,
but we flocked to sin and death,
those entertainers who seduce us
with their temptations and tricks.
The prophets were sent
to help us understand our brokenness,
but we turned our backs
when they sang of your hopes for us.
And so, you prepared Jesus
to come to us, so we might know
the very nearness of your kingdom.
Therefore, we would join our voices
with those of every time and place,
who sing of your glory:

Blessed be the God of Advent,
who alone showers us with grace!
 O come, people of God, let us walk in the Hope
which paves the paths to the kingdom!

Holy are you, God of all creation,
and blessed is Jesus Christ, your Child,
who became our servant to save us.
He came,
so that those who could only speak
in anger to one another,
might sing songs of peace
at your Table.
He came,
to shower the living waters of grace
upon our hope-parched souls.
He came,
to sweep death from
the bottoms of our hearts,
so we might dance
in your life forever.

Even now, as we prepare to celebrate
his birth, and ache for his return,
we sing of that mystery we call faith:

In rejection's stable, Hope was born;
on death's cruel tree, Hope cried out;
in our hearts, we long for Hope to return.

 Come to us in these moments,
God of Advent,
pouring your Spirit
upon the bread and the cup
that we might be drenched
by your grace and peace.
Then, when we are filled
with your justice and righteousness,
send us forth into the wilderness
of despair and loneliness,
to bring joy and hope;
to be servants to the poor;
to be voices for those silenced by oppression;
to become a bumper crop of reconciliation
in a world strewn with the stumps
from the violence of war and fear.


Then, when all time has ended,
all pain and hurt is gone,
you will welcome everyone to your Table,
where we can sing 'Glory!' with one voice
to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
God in Community, Holy in One.  Amen.
(c) 2010  Thom M. Shuman