- And which we offer, God will transform our lives, and give them back to us infused with the life of Christ, and with this gift of grace, will come the grace of faith to see God's presence and reign among us, in the mystery of a baby born to die. The grace of hope and the fulfillment of God's promises, and the grace of love to sustain us in our suffering. Come and pray for the grace of renewed faith and refreshed lives. Come and receive the gift of new sight and new life. Come and receive the courage and strength to witness to the birth of possibilities. Come, and through bread and wine, that your lives be infused with Christ's life. Come and become the birth of possibility, a sign of salvation for all to see that the world might yet believed and God's promises fulfilled. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit Amen. (organ music) (muffled singing) 

- The Lord be with you. 

- And also with you. _ Let us pray. Almighty and ever loving God, you have poured upon us the new light of the incarnate word which we celebrate this Christmas tide. As we behold the wonderful exchange you have made with us. We truly adore you with our praise. We offer now these prayers for others. Beseeching you gracious God to look with compassion on the entire human family. Look with pity, oh God upon the people in this land and abroad who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. And grant that every one of us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this earth. We remember before you, most merciful God, all poor and neglected persons. The homeless, the destitute, the old and the sick. The hungry, all who have none to care for them. Empower us to heal those who are broken in body or spirit, and to somehow turn their sorrow into joy. Remember all prisoners and give them hope for their future. Grant us all the conviction to improve their lot. Remember those who work in such institutions. Keep them humane and compassionate and sustain them through the most trying times. We pray for all nations, eternal God. That you might take away the arrogance and the hatred which infect our hearts. Break down the walls that separate us. Unite us in the bonds of love. That in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne. These things we pray, in the name of Jesus Christ, the prince of peace in whose perfect kingdom, no sword is drawn, but the sword of righteousness. Amen. Let us humbly confess our sins to God. Oh God, you have shown us the way of life through your son Jesus Christ. We confess with shame our slowness to learn of Him. Our failure to follow Him. And our reluctance to bear the cross. 

- Have mercy on us Lord and forgive us. 

- We confess the poverty of our worship. Our neglective fellowship and of the means of grace, our hesitating witness for Christ, our evasion of responsibilities in our service, our imperfect stewardship of your gifts. 

- Have mercy on us Lord and forgive us. 

- Let each of us, in silence, make confession to God. Have mercy on us Lord and forgive us. Have mercy on me, oh God, according to your steadfast love in your abundant mercy, blot out my transgressions, thoroughly wash my iniquity from me and cleanse me from my sin. Create in me a clean heart, oh God. And put a new and right spirit within me. Now the message we have heard from God's son, and that we announce is this: God is light and there is no darkness in Him. When we live in the light and He is the light, then we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus, His son, purifies us from every sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves. There is no truth in us. But if we confess our sins to God, He will keep His promise. He will forgive us all our wrongdoing. Amen. Thanks be to God. Let us pray. Father, you have appointed our Lord Jesus Christ as mediator of a new covenant. Give us grace to draw near with fullness of faith and join ourselves in a perpetual covenant with you, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. In the old covenant, God chose Israel to be a special people and to obey the law. Our Lord Jesus Christ by His death and resurrection has made a new covenant with all who trust in Him. We stand within this covenant and we bear His name. On the one side, God promises to give us new life in Christ. On the other side, we are pledged to live not for ourselves, but for God. Today, therefore, we meet to renew this covenant that binds us to God. Would the congregation please rise? Friends, let us claim the covenant God has made with His people and accept the yoke of Christ. When we accept the yoke of Christ we allow Him to guide all that we do and all that we are and Christ Himself is our only reward. Christ has many ways for us to serve Him. Some are easy. Others are difficult. Some receive applause. Others bring only reproach. Some we desire to do because of our own interest. Others seem unnatural. Sometimes we please Christ and meet our own needs. And other times, we cannot please Christ unless we deny ourselves. Yet Christ strengthens us and gives us the power to do all these things. Therefore, let us make this covenant with God our own. Let us give ourselves completely to God. Trusting in His promises and relying on His grace. I give myself completely to you God. Assign me to my place in your creation. Let me suffer for you. Give me the work you would have me do. Give me many tasks or have me step aside while you call others. Put me forward or humble me. Give me riches or let me live in poverty. I freely give all that I am and all that I have to you. And now Holy God, creator, redeemer, Holy Spirit, you are mine and I am yours. So be it. May this covenant made on earth, continue for all eternity. Amen. Christ invites to His table all who love Him and who desire to live in peace with one another. Let us offer each other signs of God's peace and love. (muffled speaking) and ourselves to God. (soothing music plays) (vocalizing) ("Doxology") ♪ Praise God from whom all blessings flow ♪ ♪ Praise Him all creatures here below ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Praise Him above ye heavenly host ♪ ♪ Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Hallelujah ♪ ♪ Amen ♪ 

- The peace of the Lord be always with you. 

- And also with you. 

- Lift up your hearts. 

- We lift them up to the Lord. 

- Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. 

- It is right to give Him thanks and praise. 

- Eternal God, you have made covenants with your people through all generations. You have been faithful from the beginning of time, therefore we join with all your people everywhere as we give you thanks and praise. Holy, holy, holy Lord God of power and might. Heaven and earth are full of your glory Hosannah in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosannah in the highest. We remember with thanksgiving, Holy God that you sent your son Jesus a babe in a manger to establish a new covenant with us, through the shedding of blood on the cross. Before His death, He gathered a fellowship. They ate at the same table with Him, and He taught them. You asked your son to give up His life for them and for us and He did. He called us also to take up our cross and to wear His yoke. He promised to comfort this fellowship in suffering and to be with it for eternity. On the night His followers deserted Him, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to His disciples and said, "Take. Eat. This is my body, which is given for you." When supper was over, He took the cup. Gave thanks, gave it to His disciples and said, "Drink from this all of you. This is my blood of the new covenant poured our for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins." By dying, He freed us from unending death. By rising from the dead, He gave us everlasting life. When we eat this bread and drink from this cup, we experience anew the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we look forward to His coming in final victory. Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. Holy Father, we have freely entered into a covenant with you and now we again commit ourselves to live in complete union with your son. Send your Holy Spirit on our fellowship. And on these gifts of bread and wine that as we join in this covenant, we will truly be the body of Christ. By the gift of your son, oh God you have established a new covenant. Through Him, with Him, in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours almighty father, now and forever. Amen. 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, the power, and the glory forever. Amen. The gifts of God for the people of God. (soothing music plays) (singing in foreign language) (soothing organ music) (muffled singing) Let us give thanks to the Lord. Lord we give thanks for the gifts of this holy meal. We praise you for sending your son, that through Him we might be reconciled completely to you. Christ sacrificed Himself. We offer the sacrifice of our lives that all that we do be a response to the sacrifice Christ made for us. Amen. ("Joy to the World") ♪ Joy to the world, the Lord is come ♪ ♪ Let earth receive her King ♪ ♪ Let every heart ♪ ♪ prepare Him room ♪ ♪ And Heaven and nature sing ♪ ♪ And Heaven and nature sing ♪ ♪ And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing ♪ ♪ Joy to the World, the Savior reigns! ♪ ♪ Let men their songs employ ♪ ♪ While fields and floods, ♪ ♪ rocks, hills and plains ♪ ♪ Repeat the sounding joy ♪ ♪ Repeat the sounding joy ♪ ♪ Repeat, repeat, ♪ ♪ the sounding joy ♪ ♪ No more let sins and sorrows grow ♪ ♪ Nor thorns infest the ground ♪ ♪ He comes to make ♪ ♪ His blessings flow ♪ ♪ Far as the curse is found, ♪ ♪ far as the curse is found ♪ ♪ Far as, far as the curse is found ♪ ♪ He rules the world with truth and grace ♪ ♪ And makes the nations prove ♪ ♪ The glories of ♪ ♪ His righteousness ♪ ♪ And wonders of His love, ♪ ♪ and wonders of His love ♪ ♪ And wonders, wonders of His love ♪ 

- May the God who established a covenant with those who seek to enter the kingdom, be always present with you. 

- Amen. May Jesus Christ who sealed the new covenant with His sacrifice on the cross bring you peace. 

- Amen. 

- May God's Holy Spirit guide your life. 

- Amen. 

- Go in peace to serve God and your neighbor in all that you do. 

- Amen. 

- Thanks be to God. (upbeat music)