The Fourth Sunday of Advent

 

¹ “Arise, shine, for your light has come,
        and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
² See, darkness covers the earth
        and thick darkness is over the peoples,
    but the Lord rises upon you
        and his glory appears over you.
³ Nations will come to your light,
        and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

—The words of the Prophet Isaiah from Isaiah 60:1-3

 

Today, I conclude the theme I began in three previous Sunday blog posts. Over the years, my wife, Shirley, has written hundreds of Calls to Worship for the various churches where she has served as organist. Here is the Call to Worship for the Fourth Sunday of Advent.

 

Advent deals with both the first chapter and the last chapter of the greatest story ever told.

And, like any story, we want to know the “who,” “what,” “where,” “when,” and “why” of the story.

On this fourth Sunday of Advent we ask: “When do these things take place?”

As we light this fourth candle, we are reminded that the “When” of Advent is now.

May the love of Advent come into our lives, as once again we remember the young maiden who said, “Let it be unto me according to Your will.”

O come let us adore him, Christ the Lord.

 :

I invite you to join me during these final hours of Advent to celebrate the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth as a baby in Bethlehem’s manger and also His coming to earth again at the time of His much-anticipated Second Coming.

Will you please pray with me?

Thank You, God, for loving us. Thank You for sending Jesus to be our Savior. Thank You for sending us Your Holy Spirit to dwell within us.

We celebrate the birth of Your Son. What a miracle! We simply cannot comprehend the depth of Your love for us that You would send Your only Son as the One to pay the penalty for our sin.

We also wait in humble anticipation, Dear Father, for the return of Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to earth. We long for Him to come quickly and receive us into the fullness of Your Kingdom.

Please help us during the season of Advent to fix our minds and hearts on the eager anticipation we feel for both of these most holy events. By the power of Your Holy Spirit, prepare our minds and hearts to receive Your joy, as we await the Day of Celebration.

Thank You for hearing our prayer in and through the precious Name of Your Son, our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

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