ORDER FOR WORSHIP
GATHERING
Prelude – We Three Kings of Orient Are - arr. Craig Curry
Interpreted by our instrumental combo.

The Word of God – (Isaiah 60:1-16, NRSV), read by Caroline Grovac.

Lighting the Christ Candle: Rev. Greta Hietpas
May the light and the fire from this candle burn away everything that is preventing the God of hope and love and joy and peace from being born among us.
Siblings in faith, do not be afraid, even now, for even now the light of Christ is overwhelming the world, on earth as it is in heaven!

Call to Worship Rev. Greta Hietpas
Leader: We gather in the Light that was before, is now, and ever will be.
People: We seek the Light’s ancient wisdom.
Leader: We gather in the Light that is God’s continuing gift.
People: We live into the Light’s new wisdom.
Leader: We gather in the Light that is our own, emerging anew each day.
People: We seek to share this wisdom, nurtured in the Light from Bethlehem’s cradle.

Hymn – Green Book #3051, A Star Shone Bright (vv 1 & 2) COMBO & Reverend Susan, vocal solo.

Rite of Confession Rev. Greta Hietpas
Call to Reconciliation
The prophet speaks of the coming light of God which calls all people of the earth to come together in God’s realm of shalom. Let us confess the ways in which we have rejected God’s vision of wholeness.

Prayer of Confession:
God of light and darkness, we have seen the glimmer of your star-light beckoning to us, but we have turned away and followed other paths. We confess that we have not loved you with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind, and with all our strength. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. Forgive us, Holy One. Strengthen our faltering steps and guide us in your holy ways of peace. In the name of Christ, the Prince of Peace, the Light of the World, we pray. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon:
My friends, this is the Good News of Jesus Christ: God offers us grace when we fall short and calls us to reconcile with one another. In Christ, we have hope for true and just peace. Just as God forgives us, so we too shall forgive one another. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Hymn – Green Book #3051, A Star Shone Bright (v 3) COMBO & Reverend Susan, vocal solo..
THE WORD
Musical Setting for Scripture – “Thy Word”-
by Michael W. Smith

The Gospel of Jesus Christ, according to Matthew (Matthew 2:1-12, NRSV) – read by Veronica Radowicz.
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.’”

Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Contemporary Message Rev. Susan Bresser

Pipe organ transition John Sheaffer, pipe organ

Sacrament of Holy Communion Rev. Susan Bresser
As we prepare to celebrate the Lord’s Supper,
I invite you to look at the elements before you,
that which represents the bread and the beverage.
There is probably nothing all that special about them.
Maybe you have this morning’s left-over French toast,
Or a bite of bagel,
or a saltine cracker out of the cupboard.
Maybe you had to scrounge at the back of the refrigerator
for juice with questionable expiration date,
and you’re hoping no one notices you’re celebrating
with cranberry … or orange … or tomato juice.
Let us remember, there is beauty in the ordinary,
because in the work of the Spirit, the ordinary becomes holy.

As we break bread from a distance – not because anybody wants to
but because it’s the safest to do –
Christ invites our ordinary selves, with our ordinary elements,
into a life of blessing and grace.

As we break bread from a distance,
we bear witness to something we imagine from our sanctuary
but we cannot see —
the expansive, far-reaching table of God.
Siblings in Christ, your table may look like your kitchen table,
your coffee table,
your very own lap,
but it is an extension of the Lord’s great banquet,
and from east and west and north and south,
you are invited to bear witness to an extraordinary meal
in ordinary packaging —
a feast of grace, love, and hope
at the table in the kingdom of God.
Let us share in the feast that Christ has provided.

On this day of Epiphany, we have come asking for the child —
Wondering where that love might be born,
Seeking that joy that might satisfy our thirst,
Wandering through the darkness of the grief and weariness of a pandemic.

But here in this time – in this place – even if we’re separated from one another,
there is something here that will satisfy our hunger.
No matter how long we have wandered,
here in this time and place we can rest and breathe
and allow the Light of Christ to shine upon us

In this bread and in this cup,
we celebrate something we can’t quite understand.
Because God has made a home in our church and in our lives …
Because God satisfies our hunger even in the most unlikely places …
Because God comes to be with us ...
Now and always.

It is with this expectation that we come to this time and to this table
to taste and see that God is here.

We call to mind those who need our prayers and God’s comfort.
There are many we cannot name, whose names we do not know, but God knows.
God knows our needs before we ask.

Let us be in a manner and an attitude of prayer:

Holy and Loving God, we remember all with whom you would have us share your feast.
We pray for all who are in sorrow or in pain …
All who are ill or alone …
All who are close to our hearts …
All our sisters who live with fear, oppression or hunger …
All our brothers whose lives have been blighted by violence, racism or poverty …
All whom the world counts as last and least.

We pray for the Church and its many ministries, lifting not only our church before you, but also WAUKESHA CONGREGATION, her pastor and all her people.
Provide all faith communities the courage and stamina to serve with strength and love.

God of compassion, hear our prayers,
fill us with your grace, inspire us to be carriers of hope
and give us strength to share your Light in a world of darkness.

While we long to return to normal,
to just be together, tasting the same bread,
sharing the same cup,
we cannot deny that there is still and is always
reason to bring our thanks and praise to you, abiding God.

Just look at us, right here in this moment.
Even apart, we are together — your people,
a community of mutual support and love.
Even separated from our church home, we are never separated from you.
As you guided the Israelites through their wilderness and wandering,
never forgetting or failing them,
despite their fear and impatience at the long journey to “normal,”
we trust that you are with us, too, laying a pathway to a new day.

Thank you for today’s visible reminder that
no building can contain the promises
of your reliable presence with us and for us.

You sent a star to guide wise men to where the child was born;
and in your signs and witnesses, in every age and through all the world,
you have led your people from far places to his light.
And so, we give thanks that, in Christ,
we may see and experience the warmth of that light.

We give thanks, for the ways that Light has welcomed, healed, taught, revealed, blessed, challenged and consoled.

We give thanks that, in Christ, new beginnings are possible.

So whether we are gathered or whether we are scattered,
we are entrusted to the eternal promises,
of the one who lived, and died, and lived again,
to set us free from suffering and sin.

Remembering your constant faithfulness in the disorder of these days,
we give you thanks that you are with us.

Make these ordinary gifts of bread and beverage
Into the extraordinary presence of Christ with us.
May they become the communion of the body and blood of Christ.
By your Spirit, unite us at your table, across the miles —
with one another, with your children in every time and place,
with the living Christ.

On the night before Jesus died,
when some were plotting to extinguish the Holy Light,
warmth was shared between friends.
Jesus took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread,
gave it to his friends and said:
“Take, eat, this is my body which is given for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.”

Later that same evening, when the meal was over,
Jesus took the cup, gave thanks to you,
gave it to his friends and said:
“Drink from this, all of you, this is my blood of the new covenant
poured out for you and for many, for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

And so, in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving
as a holy and living sacrifice,
in union with Christ's offering for us.

Leader: Let us be a community of healer and hope givers,
as together we proclaim the mystery of faith:
People: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.

God, we pray for the Light of your Spirit.
While many, make us one.
Though broken, make us whole.
Despite death, make us alive.

May we experience the presence of the Word-made-flesh,
the Light of the World—Jesus Christ.
Breathe your Spirit in us that we may be one body with him—
living out his ministry in the world today and every day
until Christ comes in final victory
and we feast at his heavenly table.

Leader: Hear us as we pray from our hearts, our homes, and our place of worship,
the prayer Jesus taught us, praying:

People: 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. Amen.

Breaking of the Bread
This bread reminds us that any life, no matter how broken, or sick, or distorted it may become, can be made whole again. (break the bread)

Pouring of the Cup
This cup reminds us that any life, no matter how empty or lonely or isolated it may become, can be filled again. (lift the cup)

These are the gifts of God, for the people of God.
Thanks be to God.

Invitation
I invite you to prayerfully partake in Holy Communion by whatever means you have.

Prayer
We have been fed, Holy One, by your presence.
We have been led, Eternal One, by your light.
May we bask in this glow now and forevermore. Amen.

Musical Response – Red Book #206 - I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light – John Sheaffer, pipe organ.

Ministry Moment Rev. Greta Hietpas

Hymn – Red Book #254 - We Three Kings vv1 refrain, (2-3-4 refrain, 5 refrain) COMBO & Reverend Susan, vocal solo.

Benediction Reverend Susan Bresser

Postlude Kathy Johson, piano and John Sheaffer, pipe organ.

Prepare for worship next Sunday: Luke 3:15-17, 21-22.