The Lord’s Day | January 24th, 2021 | |||||||||||
The Sanctuary and Facebook Live | 9:00 and 10:15 A.M. | |||||||||||
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2021 WINTER BIBLE STUDY | ||||||||||||
THE BOOK OF ESTHER | ||||||||||||
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| Prelude |
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| Welcome to Worshipers | |||||||||||
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| Responsive Litany | |||||||||||
| Leader: In our worship today we remind ourselves to be always “redeeming the time, for the days are evil.” | |||||||||||
| People: God calls us to be alert to the times of opportunity. | |||||||||||
| Leader: It takes courage to be the persons God calls us to be. | |||||||||||
| People: God leads us away from safe, settled living to embrace the risks of discipleship. | |||||||||||
| Leader: We have the capacity to make certain things happen, to prevent other things from happening; we can say “yes” and we can say “no”. | |||||||||||
| People: May we refrain from being too rushed to care, too tired to bother, | |||||||||||
| Leader: Too preoccupied to listen, too quick to act from motives other than compassion. | |||||||||||
| People: Let us be ready to serve God when opportunity arises, no matter what the cost. | |||||||||||
| Leader: God made you for these moments. | |||||||||||
| People: Let us live for those moments when we know we were called for “such a time as this.” | |||||||||||
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| Hymn of Praise – “We Are Called to Be God’s People” | Jackson-Haydn | ||||||||||
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| We are called to be God’s people, showing by our lives His grace; | |||||||||||
| One in heart and one in spirit, sign of hope for all the race. | |||||||||||
| Let us show how He has changed us and remade us as His own; | |||||||||||
| Let us share our life together as we shall around His throne. | |||||||||||
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| We are called to be God’s servants, working in the world today; | |||||||||||
| Taking His own task upon us, all His scared words obey. | |||||||||||
| Let us rise, then, to His summons, dedicate to Him our all, | |||||||||||
| That we may be faithful servants, quick to answer now His call. | |||||||||||
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| We are called to be God’s prophets, speaking for the truth and right, | |||||||||||
| Standing firm for godly justice, bringing evil into light. | |||||||||||
| Let us seek the courage needed, our high calling to fulfill. | |||||||||||
| That we all may know the blessing of the doing of God’s will. | |||||||||||
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| The Exchange of Christ’s Peace | |||||||||||
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| Chorus – “Ancient Words” |
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| Holy words, long preserved for our walk in this world, | |||||||||||
| They resound with God’s own heart; O let the ancient words impart. | |||||||||||
| Words of life, words of hope, give us strength, help us cope; | |||||||||||
| Came to us through sacrifice; O heed the faithful words of Christ. | |||||||||||
| Ancient words ever true, changing me and changing you; | |||||||||||
| We have come with open hearts, O let the ancient words impart. | |||||||||||
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| The Morning Prayer |
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| “If I perish, I perish.” We can hear the resignation in Esther’s words. She has committed to the fate that awaits her. She has no control over how the king will react. Possibly, she has found some reason to trust that the king will give her a fair hearing. We can only imagine that. Overall, she has weighed the variables and decided that he people matter more to her now than even her own life. All she asks is that those very people support her. | |||||||||||
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| – Charles Qualls in Sessions with Esther | ||||||||||
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| Anthem |
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| The Sanctuary Choir | |||||||||||
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| Sermon – “For Such a Time As This” | |||||||||||
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| Commitment Hymn – “Wherever He Leads I’ll Go” | McKinney | ||||||||||
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| “Take up thy cross and follow Me,” I heard my Master say; | |||||||||||
| “I gave My life to ransom thee, surrender your all today. | |||||||||||
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| Chorus: Wherever He leads I’ll go. Wherever He leads I’ll go. | |||||||||||
| I’ll follow my Christ who loves me so. | |||||||||||
| Wherever He leads I’ll go. | |||||||||||
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| He drew me closer to His side, I sought His will to know, | |||||||||||
| And in that will I now abide, wherever He leads I’ll go. | |||||||||||
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| Chorus | |||||||||||
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| It may be through the shadows dim, or o’er the stormy sea, | |||||||||||
| I take my cross and follow Him, wherever He leadeth me. | |||||||||||
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| Chorus | |||||||||||
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| My heart, my life, my all I bring to Christ who loves me so; | |||||||||||
| He is my Master, Lord and King, wherever He leads I’ll go. | |||||||||||
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| Chorus | |||||||||||
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| Closing Words | |||||||||||
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| Benediction | |||||||||||
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| Choral Benediction |
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| To love our God, the reason we live; To love our God, the highest call; | |||||||||||
| Nothing satisfies our soul, gives life meaning, makes us whole, | |||||||||||
| For this purpose we were made, to love our God! | |||||||||||
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| Postlude |
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