Gathering

Welcome

Thanksgiving for Baptism

P:         Blessed be the Holy Trinity, + one God, the fountain of living water, the rock who gave us birth, our light and our salvation. Amen

Joined to Christ in the waters of baptism, we are clothed with God’s mercy and forgiveness.  Let us give thanks for the gift of baptism.

Water is poured into the baptismal font.

We give you thanks, O God,

for in the beginning your Spirit moved over the waters and by your Word you created the world, calling forth life in which you took delight.

P:         Through the waters of the flood, you delivered Noah and his family.  Through the sea you led your people Israel from slavery into freedom.  At the river, Jesus, your most holy child, was baptized by John and anointed with the Holy Spirit.  By water and your Word, you claim us as daughters and sons, making us heirs of your promise and servants of all.

We praise you for the gift of water that sustains life, and above all we praise you for the gift of new life in Jesus Christ.  Shower us with your Spirit, and renew our lives with your forgiveness, grace, and love.

P:         To you be given honour and praise through Jesus Christ our Lord in the unity of the Holy Spirit, now and forever.  Amen

Gathering Song                                          “Gather Us In”                                # 532

  1. Here in this place new light is streaming, now is the darkness vanished away
    See in this space our fears and our dreamings brought here to you in the light of this day
    Gather us in, the lost and forsaken, gather us in, the blind and the lame
    Call to us now and we shall awaken we shall arise at the sound of our name

  2. We are the young, our lives are a mystery, we are the old who yearn for your face
    We have been sung throughout all of history, called to be light to the whole human race
    Gather us in, the rich and the haughty; gather us in, the proud and the strong
    Give us a heart so meek and so lowly; give us the courage to enter the song

  3. Here we will take the wine and the water; here we will take the bread of new birth
    Here you shall call your sons and your daughters; call us anew to be salt for the earth
    Give us to drink the wine of compassion; give us to eat the bread that is you
    Nourish us well and teach us to fashion lives that are holy and hearts that are true

  4. Not in the dark of buildings confining; not in some heaven light years away
    But here in this place the new light is shining; now is the kingdom, now is the day
    Gather us in and hold us forever; gather us in and make us your own
    Gather us in, all peoples together fire of love in our flesh and our bones

Text: Marty Haugen © 1982, GIA Publications Inc.  Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-736296. All rights reserved.

Greeting

P:         The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

And also with you.

Prayer of the Day

Word

First Reading

The Judeans living in exile in Babylon have a good reason to be hopeful: the One who will bring them to freedom is the God who created the world, who subdues the rulers of the earth, and who gives strength to those who are weary.

A reading from the prophet Isaiah, the 40th chapter.

21 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
   Has it not been told you from the beginning?
   Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is the One who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to live in;
23 who brings princes to naught,
   and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.

24 Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
   scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
when God blows upon them, and they wither,
   and the tempest carries them off like stubble.

25 To whom then will you compare me,
   or who is my equal? says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high and see: Who created these?
The One who brings out their host and numbers them, calling them all by name;
because God is great in strength, mighty in power, not one is missing.

27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel,
‘My way is hidden from the Lord,
   and my right is disregarded by my God’?
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth,
who does not faint or grow weary, whose understanding is unsearchable.
29 God gives power to the faint,
   and strengthens the powerless.
30 Even youths will faint and be weary,
   and the young will fall exhausted;
31 but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
   they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

Word of God.  Word of Life.

Thanks be to God.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia, Lord to whom shall we go?

You have the words of eternal life.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

P:         The holy gospel according to Mark, the 1st chapter.

Glory to you, O Lord.

29 Immediately, going out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30Now Simon’s mother-in-law was lying down with a fever, and, immediately, they told him about her. 31Coming near, Jesus raised her up, took her hand, and the fever released her, and she began serving them.

32 That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. 33And the whole city was gathered around the door. 34And he cured many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

35 Early in the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. 36And Simon and his companions hunted for him. 37When they found him, they said to him, ‘Everyone is searching for you.’ 38He answered, ‘Let us go on to the neighbouring villages, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.’ 39And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

The gospel of the Lord.  Praise to you, O Christ.

Sermon

Hymn of the Day                          “We Come to You for Healing, Lord”                          # 617

  1. We come to you for healing, Lord, of body, mind, and soul,
    and pray that by your Spirit’s touch we may again be whole.
  • As once you walked through ancient streets

and reached toward those in pain,
we know you come among us still with power to heal again.

  • You touch us through physicians’ skills,

through nurses’ gifts of care,
and through the love of faithful friends who lift our lives in prayer.

  • Through nights of pain and wakefulness,

through days when strength runs low,
grant us your gift of patience, Lord,  your calming peace to know.

  • We come to you, O loving Lord, in our distress and pain,
    in trust that through our nights and days

your grace will heal, sustain.

Words: Herman G. Stuempfle Jr. b. 1923, © 2002 GIA Publications.  Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-736296. All rights reserved.

Apostles’ Creed

P:         We are made God’s people through our baptism into Christ.  Living together in trust and hope, we confess our faith:

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only son, our Lord,

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,

born of the virgin Mary,

suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died, and was buried;

he descended to the dead.

On the third day he rose again;

he ascended into heaven,

and is seated at the right hand of the Father;

he will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy catholic church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting.  Amen

Prayers

We pray: Have mercy, O God.

Sharing of the Peace

Meal

Offertory                             Let the Vineyards be Fruitful”  # 182

Let the vineyards be fruitful, Lord, and fill to the brim our cup of blessing.

Gather a harvest from the seeds that were sown,

that we may be fed with the bread of life.

Gather the hopes and the dreams of all;

unite them with the prayers we offer now.

Grace our table with your presence, and give us

a foretaste of the feast to come.

Offertory Prayer

The Great Thanksgiving

P:         The Lord be with you.  And also with you.

Lift up your hearts.  We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

It is right to give our thanks and praise.

Eucharistic Prayer

Blessed are you, O holy God: you are the Life and Light of all.

By your powerful word, you created all things.  Through the prophets, you called your people to be a light to the nations.

Blessed are you for Jesus.

He is your Light shining in our darkness and revealing to us your mercy and grace.

A plate of bread in each home may be lifted up.

In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, gave thanks, and broke it, and gave it to his disciples saying: This is my body given for you.  Do this for the remembrance of me.

A cup of wine in each home may be lifted up.

Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink saying: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.  Do this for the remembrance of me.

Remembering, therefore, his preaching and healing, his dying and rising, and his promise to come again, we await that day when all the universe will rejoice in your holy and life-giving light.

By your Spirit, bless us and this holy meal, that refreshed with this heavenly food, we may be light for the world revealing the brilliance of Christ;

Through whom all glory and honour are yours with the Holy Spirit in your holy Church, now and forever.  Amen

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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.  For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever.  Amen

Distribution

Blessing

Post-Communion Canticle         “Thankful Hearts and Voices Raise”

Thankful hearts and voices raise; tell everyone what God has done.

Let all who seek the Lord rejoice and bear Christ’s holy name.

Send us with your promises and lead your people forth in joy

with shouts of thanksgiving.  Alleluia.  Alleluia!

Post-Communion Prayer

Sending

Announcements may be made.

Benediction           

Sending Hymn                     “I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say”                               # 611        

  1. I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Come unto me and rest;
    lay down, O weary one, lay down your head upon my breast.”
    I came to Jesus as I was, so weary, worn, and sad;
    I found him in a resting-place, and he has made me glad.
  • I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Behold, I freely give
    the living water, thirsty one; stoop down and drink and live.”
    I came to Jesus, and I drank of that life-giving stream;
    my thirst was quenched, my soul revived, and now I live in him.
  •  I heard the voice of Jesus say, “I am this dark world’s light;
    look unto me, your morn shall rise, and all your day be bright.”
    I looked to Jesus, and I found in him my star, my sun;
    and in that light of life I’ll walk till trav’ling days are done.

Dismissal

            A:         Go in peace to be the light of Christ!

Thanks be to God!

Topic: Faith Lutheran Coffee Hour

Time: Feb 7, 2021 11:00 PM

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