PROVIDENCE CHURCH

January 10, 2021

 

Welcome

Passing of the Peace: Though we are separated by distance our hearts are one in Christ. The peace of Christ be with you!  And also with you!

 

Call to worship:   Isaiah 40:1-8
Leader: 
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.

People: 3 A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Leader: 4 Every 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.

People:  5 And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together,    for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

Leader:  6 A voice says, “Cry!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.

People:  7 The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it;    surely the people are grass.

ALL:       8 The grass withers, the flower fades,  but the word of our God will stand forever.

Songs of Praise  

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty (Joachim Neander, 1680; transl. Catherine Winkworth, 1863)                                        Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!                                                                                                                          O my soul, praise him, for he is thy health and salvation!                                                                                                                  All ye who hear, now to his temple draw near;                                                                                                                                    Join me in glad adoration!

Praise to the Lord, who o’er all things so wondrously reigneth,

Shelters thee under his wings, yea, so gently sustaineth!

Hast thou not seen how thy desires e’er have been

Granted in what he ordaineth?

 

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee!

Surely his goodness and mercy here daily attend thee;

Ponder anew what the Almighty will do,

If with his love he befriend thee.

 

Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore him!

All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before him!

Let the amen sound from his people again;

Gladly, fore’er we adore him.

 

 

Good to Me (Craig Musseau, 1990 CCLI #313480)

I cry out for your hand of mercy to heal me,

I am weak, I need your love to free me.

Oh Lord, my Rock,

My strength in weakness,

Come rescue me, oh Lord.

 

You are my hope, your promise never fails me,

And my desire is to follow you forever.

 

Chorus:

For you are good, for you are good, for you are good to me.

For you are good, for you are good, for you are good to me. (Repeat all)

 

Days Without Number (Renee Allsbrook, CCLI #7156215)

We have forgotten you days without number,

Shrunk down the sky so blue onto a screen.

We’ve forgotten You, day after day,

We’ve forsaken You, blindly stumbled away,

We’ve forgotten You, turning insane,

We’ve forgotten You…

 

Lord, have mercy on my soul; Lord, have mercy on my children;

Lord, have mercy on the broken; Lord, have mercy on me.

 

Christ, have mercy on my soul; Christ, have mercy on my children;

Christ, have mercy on the broken; Christ, have mercy, mercy, mercy, Lord on me.

 

Weary of vanities, parched from indulgence,

I lift my hands to thee, crying for rain!

You are goodness, Lord: mercy defines You,

You’re kindness, Lord: You lift up the humble,

You’re holiness, righteousness, You are faithfulness, faithfulness!

Have mercy on my soul, Lord, have mercy on my children;

Lord, have mercy on the broken; Lord, have mercy on me.

 

Christ, have mercy on my soul; Christ, have mercy on my children;

Christ, have mercy on the broken; Christ, have mercy, mercy, mercy, Lord on me.

 

Confession/Assurance   

 

Respond in Praise

This is My Father’s World (Maltbie Babcock, 1901; tune Franklin Sheppard, 1915)

This is my Father’s world, and to my list’ning ears,

All nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres.

This is my Father’s world: I rest me in the thought

Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; his hand the wonders wrought.

 

This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise,

The morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker’s praise.

This is my Father’s world: he shines in all that’s fair;

In the rustling grass I hear him pass, he speaks to me everywhere.

 

This is my Father’s world, O let me ne’er forget

That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the Ruler yet.

This is my Father’s world: the battle is not done;

Jesus who died shall be satisfied, and earth and heav’n be one.

 

Scripture Reading:    Matthew 3

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

3 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”[a] 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

 

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare[b] the way of the Lord;

make his paths straight.’”

 

4 Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

 

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

 

11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

 

The Baptism of Jesus

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him,[c] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son,[d] with whom I am well pleased.

 

This is the Word of the Lord.   Thanks be to God!

Sermon: Prepare Ye the Way

 

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.

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil:

for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory.  Amen

 

Hymn of Thanksgiving:   

Be Still, My Soul (Katharina von Schlegel, 1752; tune, Jean Sibelius, 1899)

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on your side;

Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain;

Leave to your God to order and provide;

In ev’ry change he faithful will remain.

Be still, my soul: your best, your heav’nly Friend

Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

 

Be still, my soul: your God will undertake

to guide the future as he has the past.

Your hope, your confidence let nothing shake;

All now mysterious shall be bright at last.

Be still, my soul: the waves and winds sill know

His voice who ruled them while he dwelt below.

 

Be still my soul: the hour is hast’ning on

When we shall be forever with the Lord,

When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,

Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.

Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past,

All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

 

Benediction

 

KNOW

Welcome to Providence Church! We are glad that you are here, joining us in person or via Zoom! We invite you to stop by our Welcome Center where you can receive more information about our church.

 

Children of all ages are invited to participate in the entire service of worship.  We will have

childcare for children up to 6 years of age, upstairs in our new room.

 

Tithes and Gifts: An offering plate is not passed during the service.  Plates for your tithes and

offerings are located at the back of the sanctuary. If you are joining us via Zoom, your tithes and gifts can be mailed to P.O. Box 65, Clyde.  We thank you for your prayerful financial support for our church.

 

Congregational Meeting:  The annual congregational meeting of Providence Church will take place on January 24th following Sunday worship.  The purpose of the meeting is to elect two elders for the class of 2023 and to hear the budget for 2021.  Those attending by Zoom will be counted for the quorum and will be able to vote.

 

 

GROW

Would you like to grow in the joy and work of prayer? Join our women on Wednesday mornings or our men on Thursday mornings. These seasons of weekly prayer are rich in fellowship and in prayers. Want to know more about the time and place for Women’s Prayer? Contact Linda Roberts. Would you like to join our ZOOM prayer times at 7:30 am Thursday’s call Sam Mitchell and he will send you the link to the meeting.  NOTE:  All these groups will resume in January.

 

Are you longing to grow in your connection with God through Scripture reading? Pastor Edward recommends Bible In One Year (by Alpha International), a 20 minute reading of Scripture and commentary written by Nicky Gumble leader of Alpha (an international evangelism ministry).  Just look it up under your apps on your phone/computer.

 

 

GO

 

Open Door Soup Kitchen: This is an ongoing commitment of Providence Church to the least, the last, the lost and the lonely of our community.  While Open Door is no longer able to serve meals, we are still volunteering to cook the meals on the first Friday of each month, If you can serve in this way, please let Phil and Pat know at 828- 476-5130. Thanks for your faithfulness.

 

Prayer Requests: Healing: Wally, Eleonore, Sarah, Barb, Bob’s parents (recovering in rehab); Robbie Hargrove; Chuck & Carole Torpy; Glenn & Laura Glad; Thom Morgan’s mother; Caroline (Bev’s Mom); Sarah’s brother in law Dan – cancer; Lisa Rhodarmer’s brother Michael – cancer; Glenda’s sister, Necy-surgery.