January 3, 2021 • 11 AM
All are welcome at Asbury First. Please join us in celebrating our 200th Anniversary!
FIRST TIME HERE We are so glad you are joining us! If you’re out there watching, check in through the website or take a picture and post it on social media using #asburyfirstathome. Our hope is to get to know you better and help you find your place within our community. Additionally, drop us an email at info@asburyfirst.org and we will answer any questions you may have. Need prayer? We invite you to share with us how we can be praying for you by emailing prayers@asburyfirst.org. All prayer requests are prayed over by our Ministers and Intercessory Prayer Group. Children We believe children are a sacred gift. You can join us at 10 am for the Sunday morning Zoom with Paula and Holly (us02web.zoom.us/j/86857108916?pwd=aHF4TEppZERJSXZoZm FxUHgrQ1hjdz09). We will have a segment during our live stream for Children’s Time. If there is a way our children’s ministry can be more welcoming to you and your child, please contact Paula Dugan at pdugan@asburyfirst.org. RECONCILING STATEMENT We are a reconciling congregation and seek to be a fully inclusive church, believing that all people are God’s children. We encourage full participation in our community for all, regardless of age, race, origin, gender, gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, marital status, family structure, education/economic background, and physical/mental ability. We recognize that we hold a variety of opinions. We do not seek to erase our differences, but to journey together in faith toward greater understanding and mutual respect. We believe that reconciliation to God and to one another is central to our mission and ministry. GIVE TO ASBURY FIRST There are three ways to make a gift to Asbury First. Each gift supports the everyday ministries and operations of this church, allowing us to live into our vision to Do More Good. Cash/Check—We welcome you to send a gift of cash/check in the mail. Text to Give—You may give a gift with a debit/credit card by texting the dollar amount to 206-222-1050. Online—Online giving is available on our website at www.asburyfirst.org/give. Watch and listen Tune into the live video stream of the 11 am service at www.asburyfirst.org/worship/live. To listen to the service tune into WRFZ 106.3 FM Rochester Free Radio, or call our toll-free number at 833-829-1050. A video archive of past services is also available at www.asburyfirst.org/worship/video-archive. You can also view all sermons on our YouTube channel.
Prelude
“What Star Is This?” — arr. Franklin Ritter "Brightest and Best" — arr. John Rasley "We Three Kings" — arr. Diane Bish
Welcome
Call to Worship
All are invited to read the bold-faced type; the lay reader will read the unbolded type. Praise God, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion! God blesses us within and without. God grants peace to our world. God sends out love, and we melt. God makes the winds blow and the waters flow. Praise God, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!
Epiphany of the Lord
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11 am • January 3, 2021
The community gathers As the community gathers, may the music of the prelude draw your hearts and minds to God.
Opening Hymn
#254 "We Three Kings", vv. 1-4 Words and Tune: John H. Hopkins, Jr., 1857; Kings of Orient Words: Charles Wesley, 1746; Tune: Darwall’s 148th, John Darwall, 1770
11 am
Scripture Matthew 2:1-12
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.
To hear the word
Prayer of Confession
God of our hearts, as we begin this new year we come to you for guidance. We want to leave all of 2020 behind us. And yet there are lessons we learned. Guide our hearts and minds to fully embrace all that you would have us know. Remind us of the ways you worked within us and with the world among the chaos and despair. Forgive us for the ways we have ignored you, ignored love, and forgotten who we are. Bring us to a place of peace and compassion, within and without.
Silent Confession
Word of Assurance
God watches over us and keeps us from care. God forgives us for all we have done and all we have left undone. In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Gloria Hymnal #102, Tune: “Now Thank We All Our God”
All glory be to God, all praise and thanks be given; Whose Son and Spirit reign as one in highest Heaven; Our one eternal God, whom earth and heaven adore; For thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.
Anthem
"A Welcome Song” — Gustav Holst; words from a 16th century English carol Proface*, welcome, well come, *“Good wishes”, from medieval French For now is born a child of grace who for us all our flesh doth take. This holy time of Christmas all woe and sin we should release and cast away all heaviness. Then hasten all and enter, we welcome all that now appear His loving grace shall ye find here. Well come be this new year and look ye all be of good cheer. The Lord our God be with us here.
Children’s Time
Children of all ages are invited to join us in this special moment.
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. Amen.
Hymn
#454 "Open My Eyes, That I May See" The hymn can be found on the following page
Sermon
Remain Curious
Call to Prayer
Silently now I wait for thee, ready, my God, thy will to see. Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit Divine.
Pastoral Prayer
#454 "Open My Eyes, That I May See" Words and Tune: Clara H. Scott, 1895; Open My Eyes ; Open My Eyes Words: Charles Wesley, 1746; Tune: Darwall’s 148th, John Darwall, 1770
Invitation to Discipleship, Membership, and Commitment
Our Creative God endows us with the gifts of time, talent, and treasure. Within this bulletin you will find invitations to enrich your faith journey and enhance your commitment. We invite you to prayerfully consider these opportunities. If you’re out there watching, check in through the website or take a picture and post it on social media using #asburyfirstathome. You may give a gift with a debit/credit card or by e-check by texting the dollar amount to 206-222-1050. Online giving is available on our website at www.asburyfirst.org/give.
Offertory
“The Lord Bless You and Keep You” — John Rutter; words from Numbers 6:24 The Lord bless you and keep you: The Lord make his face to shine upon you, And be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, And give you peace. Amen.
Doxology Hymnal #219, v.3
So bring him incense, gold, and myrrh, come, peasant, king, to own him; the King of kings salvation brings, let loving hearts enthrone him. This, this is Christ the King, whom shepherds guard and angels sing; haste, haste to bring him laud, the babe, the son of Mary.
Prayer of Dedication
God of our hearts, we give you all we have. Use our time and talent and treasure to spread your love to all of the people in this world. Bless each gift with your healing love. Amen.
To Disperse in Mission
Closing Hymn
#672 “God Be With You Till We Meet Again” (vv. 1-2) Words: Jeremiah Rankin, 1880; tune: God Be With You, William Tomer, 1880
Permissions: “A Welcome Song” © 2001 St. James Music Press; "The Lord Bless You and Keep You" © 1981 Oxford University Press; Hymns © 1989 The United Methodist Publishing House; OneLicense.net #A-721053. Some of the liturgical elements have been adapted from the 2020 Abingdon Worship Annual. Illustration Credits: Designed by Sarah Brubaker and Freepik, and Sarah Brubaker and Vecteezy.
Benediction
Postlude
"Festal Fanfare" from Concerto no. 4 — J.S. Bach
Participants In the Service
Preacher: Rev. Kathy Thiel Liturgists: Rev. Dr. Stephen Cady Director of Children's Ministry: Paula Dugan Organist: Duane Prill Soloists: Bess Phillips, Brenda Nitsch Dan McInerney, Jordan Bachmann Director of Music Ministry: Dr. Carl Johengen Audio Operator: Rick Church Video Operator: Kenny Bailey Graphics Operators: Jake Schwartz Technology Support Team: Deb Bullock-Smith, Carolyn Curran, Ted Skomsky Technical Consultant: Justin Ocello
Thank you, Jim Farrington, for the compiling the interesting trivia for our 200th anniversary! We hope you all learned about our history as a church and as part of the Rochester community!
Check out our online Zoom meetings! There are plenty of different groups and meetings to join during the stay-at-home restrictions. From Zoom with Miss Paula and Holly to Guided Meditations, or Bicentennial Bible Challenge meetings and Sunday morning lessons, there is plenty of variety. For a full list of events, and clickable links, visit www.asburyfirst.org/events. HOW TO JOIN A ZOOM MEETING Follow the link: zoom.us/j/8347173468 for the main meetings (password is "200"), and us02web.zoom.us/j/338565981 for “Changing Weighs," and us02web.zoom.us/j/868571089 16?pwd=aHF4TEppZERJSXZoZmFxUHgrQ1hjdz09 for the Sunday morning Zoom with Paula and Holly. When you open the link, you should get some pop-ups asking questions like: 1. Do you want to open and run the program Zoom? 2. Do you want to connect with your computer audio? 3. Do you want to connect with your computer video? Click yes to any and all of these prompts. Once you have clicked through these prompts, you should be able to see yourself on your computer screen, and you should be able to see the rest of the group that is also logged on. If any group would like to utilize our discipleship Zoom account to take their meetings online, please contact Mike Mullin at mmullin@asburyfirst.org.
Virtual meetings
Rochester had been incorporated as a town how many years prior to the establishment of the First Methodist Church of Rochester? Rochester had been incorporated as a town how many years prior to the establishment of the First Methodist Church of Rochester? A. The village of Rochesterville began in 1817, just three years prior to our church's beginning.
BICENTENNIAL TRIVIA
Open to All We believe we are all equal in God’s eyes and are all one in Christ. We extend hospitality and encourage full participation for all regardless of any perceived defining characteristic. Worship We believe we are at our best when we connect to God together through preaching, prayer, and song. We strive for excellence in all we do, especially in our worship experience. Community We believe we are better together; fellowship and care are keys to love and life. Outreach We believe everyone deserves hope and fullness of life. We endeavor to practice mercy and work for justice in our local and extended community. Discipleship We believe we—adults, youth, and children alike—are called to grow in our faith both as a community and as individuals through education, regular worship, meaningful fellowship, a commitment to service, and celebrating rites of passage together. Generosity We believe what we have is a gift from God. We share our gifts with an open heart to help meet needs at Asbury First, the Rochester community, and throughout the world. Stewardship We believe we must care for the human, physical, and financial resources with which we have been entrusted.
Our values represent a description of our guiding principles. These statements are standards of behavior, which are inherent in all we do.
Give Online at www.asburyfirst.org/GIVE, text to give at 206-222-1050, OR MAIL IN YOUR CHECKS TO 1050 EAST AVENUE, ROCHESTER, NY 14607
THE WISDOM JESUS
Join Rev. Kathy Thiel and Clauda Adair for an exploration that will focus on the book The Wisdom Jesus by Cynthia Bourgeault.
Sundays begining Jan. 3, 9:45-10:45 am, Zoom
Click here to sign up.
NEW YEAR, NEW YOU!
For more information, visit www.asburyfirst.org/about/news
In 2021, we are inviting everyone to join us in signing up for a Disciple class so that we can delve deeper into our faith and strive to become dynamic disciples. The Disciple Bible Study is a 34-week study with 17 weeks focused on the Old Testament and 17 weeks focused on the New Testament. Whether you have read the Bible or not, this is a great way to engage our scriptures in a community seeking to deepen their discipleship.
What does 2021 hold for you? Join Emily Cady for fellowship and self-discovery with the book Keep Moving by Maggie Smith.
Thursdays begining Jan. 14, 7 pm, Zoom
New classes for the New year!
Check back next week for an end-of-year look at our global reach!
#asburyfirstathome
If you’re watching at home, make sure to take a picture and post it with the tag #asburyfirstathome. Here are a few more posts and submitted pictures from last week.