This Sunday is the Third Sunday of Advent, and we hope you will join us for our Christmas Cantata, “Peace on Earth”.
Vipers
Matthew 3:1-12
“Vipers”
Rev. Benjamin J. Wines
This Sunday is the Second Sunday of Advent, and we will be lighting the Candle of Peace.
Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “Vipers”. Our Scripture passage comes from Matthew 3:1-12 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 72. We look forward to joining you in this time of Worship.
Call to Worship (from Psalm 72)
Leader: Give your king your justice, O God,
People: And your righteousness to a king’s son.
Leader: May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.
People: May the mountains yield prosperity for the people.
Leader: May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
People: Give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor.
Leader: May he live while the sun endures,
People: And as long as the moon, throughout all generations.
Leader: May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,
People: Like showers that water the earth.
Leader: In his days may righteousness flourish and peace abound,
People: Until the moon is no more.
Leader: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
People: Who alone does wondrous things.
Leader: Blessed be his glorious name forever;
People: May his glory fill the whole earth. Amen and amen.
Questions for Further Reflection:
Advent is a season of preparation.
What things does it prepare us for?
What does it take to prepare ourselves for Christmas?
And how might John the Baptist’s challenge help us prepare?
Hanging of the Greens
First Sunday of Advent
Hanging of the Greens
Rev. Benjamin J. Wines
This Sunday, we will have our Hanging of the Greens service starting at 11:00AM. We look forward to joining you in Worship!
Judgement
November 23, 2025
Colossians 1:11-20
“Judgement”
Rev. Benjamin J. Wines
This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday, and we look forward to joining you in Worship, starting at 11:00AM in the Sanctuary. Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “Judgement”. We will be reading from Colossians 1:11-20 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 46.
Call to Worship (from Psalm 46)
Leader: God is our refuge and strength; a very present help in trouble.
People: Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
Leader: Though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
People: Though its waters roar and foam, though mountains tremble.
Leader: The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter;
People: He utters his voice, the earth melts.
Leader: The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
People: Come, behold the works of the Lord;
Leader: See what desolations he has brought on the earth.
People: He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
Leader: He breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.
People: “Be still, and know that I am God!
Leader: “I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”
People: The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Question for Further Reflection:
In this passage, Paul writes about the qualities that make Jesus worthy of being king.
What experiences have you had that have led you to follow Christ and worship him?
Dance in a Garden
Nehemiah 8:8-12
“Dance in a Garden”
Rev. Benjamin J. Wines
We look forward to joining you in Worship, starting at 11:00AM in the Sanctuary. Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “Dance in a Garden”, part of the Sermon Series, “Faith and Art, Redux”. We will be reading from Nehemiah 8:8-12 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 118.
You can see Nicolas Lancret’s “Dance in a Garden” at the Ackland Museum in Chapel Hill, or by clicking this link: https://ackland.emuseum.com/
Call to Worship (from Psalm 118)
Leader: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
People: His steadfast love endures forever!
Leader: The Lord is my strength and my might;
People: He has become my salvation.
Leader: I shall not die, but I shall live,
People: And recount the deeds of the Lord.
Leader: Open to me the gates of righteousness,
People: That I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.
Leader: I thank you that you have answered me
People: And have become my salvation.
Leader: The stone that the builders rejected
People: Has become the chief cornerstone.
Leader: This is the Lord’s doing;
People: It is marvelous in our eyes.
Leader: The is the day that the Lord has made;
People: Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Question for Further Reflection:
This passage emphasizes the joy that comes from God’s word.
What are some things you do that bring you joy?
How can joy be as strength?
Old Woman Gathering Brush
We look forward to joining you in Worship, starting at 11:00AM in the Sanctuary. Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “Old Woman Gathering Brush”, part of the Sermon Series, “Faith and Art, Redux”. We will be reading from 1 Kings 17:7-16 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 68.
You can see Winslow Homer’s “Old Woman Gathering Brush” at the Ackland Museum in Chapel Hill, NC, or by clicking this link.
Call to Worship (from Psalm 68)
Leader: Let God rise up, let his enemies be scattered;
People: Let those who hate him flee before him.
Leader: But let the righteous be joyful; let them exult before God;
People: Let them be jubilant with joy.
Leader: Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
People: His name is the Lord—be exultant before him.
Leader: God gives the desolate a home to live in;
People: He leads out the prisoners to prosperity.
Leader: Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth;
People: Sing praises to the Lord,
Leader: O rider in the heavens, the ancient heavens;
People: Listen, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.
Leader: Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel;
People: And whose power is in the skies.
Leader: Awesome is God in his sanctuary, the God of Israel;
People: He gives power and strength to his people.
All: Blessed be God!
Questions for Further Reflection:
In this passage, Elijah asks the widow to entrust her life to God.
How can we daily place our complete trust in God?
How would that help us meet life’s challenges?
Slow Down Freight Train
“Slow Down Freight Train”
2 Corinthians 4:6-18
Rev. Benjamin J. Wines
We look forward to joining you in Worship, starting at 11:00AM in the Sanctuary. Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “Slow Down Freight Train”, part of the Sermon Series, “Faith and Art, Redux”. We will be reading from 2 Corinthians 4:6-18 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 34.
You can see Rose Piper’s “Slow Down Freight Train” at the Ackland Museum in Chapel Hill, or by clicking on this link.
Call to Worship (from Psalm 34)
Leader: I will bless the Lord at all times;
People: His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Leader: My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
People: Let the humble hear and be glad.
Leader: O magnify the Lord with me,
People: And let us exalt his name together.
Leader: I sought the Lord, and he answered me,
People: And delivered me from all my fears.
Leader: Look to him, and be radiant;
People: So your faces shall never be ashamed.
Leader: This poor soul cried, and was heard by the Lord,
People: And was saved from every trouble.
Leader: The angel of the Lord encamps
People: Around those who fear him, and delivers them.
Leader: O taste and see that the Lord is good;
People: Happy are those who take refuge in him.
Question for Further Reflection:
On All Saints Sunday, we Christians take time to commemorate and celebrate those who’ve come before us.
How can looking toward their past faith propel us into a hopeful, faithful future?
“The Puritan”
We look forward to joining you in Worship, starting at 11:00AM in the Sanctuary. Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “The Puritan”, part of the Sermon Series, “Faith and Art, Redux”. We will be reading from Mark 7 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 51.
You can a reduction patterned after Saint-Gaudens’s monument, “The Puritan” at the Met Fifth Avenue, or by clicking this link.
Call to Worship (from Psalm 51)
Leader: Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;
People: According to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.
Leader: Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
People: And cleanse me from my sin.
Leader: For I know my transgressions,
People: And my sin is ever before me.
Leader: Against you, you alone, have I sinned,
People: And done what is evil in your sight.
Leader: Create in me a clean heart, O God,
People: And put a new and right spirit within me.
Leader: Do not cast me away from your presence,
People: And do not take your holy spirit from me.
Leader: Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
People: And sustain in me a willing spirit.
Leader: Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
People: And sinners will return to you.
Leader: The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit;
People: A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
Questions for Further Reflection:
In this passage, Jesus pushes back on folks whose focus is misplaced.
How do we let our beliefs shape our actions?
And how do we make sure we don’t fall into just saying what we believe with no action?
Learning to Trust Again
Acts 15:36-40
“Learning to Trust Again”
Dr. Garry Crites, guest speaker
We look forward to joining you in Worship, starting at 11:00AM in the Sanctuary. Our guest, Dr. Garry Crites, will be bringing the message, “Learning to Trust Again”.
We will be reading from Acts 15:36-40 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 8.
Call to Worship (from Psalm 8)
Leader: O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
People: You have set your glory above the heavens.
Leader: Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark,
People: To silence the enemy and the avenger.
Leader: When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
People: The moon and the stars that you have established;
Leader: What are human beings that you are mindful of them,
People: Mortals that you care for them?
Leader: Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
People: And crowned them with glory and honor.
Leader: You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
People: You have put all things under their feet,
Leader: All sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field,
People: The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
Leader: Whatever passes along the paths of the seas.
People: O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
The Seine at Giverny, Morning Mists
Psalm 19:1-10
“The Seine at Giverny, Morning Mists”
Rev. Benjamin J. Wines
We look forward to joining you in Worship, starting at 11:00AM in the Sanctuary. Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “The Seine at Giverny, Morning Mists”, part of the Sermon Series, “Faith and Art, Redux”. We will be reading from Psalm 19:1-10 and our Call to Worship comes from Psalm 104.
Call to Worship (from Psalm 104)
Leader: O LORD, how manifold are your works!
People: The earth is full of your creatures.
Leader: These all look to you to give them their food in due season;
People: When you give to them, they gather it up;
Leader: When you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
People: When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
Leader: When you take away their breath,
People: They die and return to their dust.
Leader: When you send forth your spirit, they are created;
People: And you renew the face of the ground.
Leader: I will sing to the LORD as long as I live;
People: I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
Leader: May my meditation be pleasing to him,
People: For I rejoice in the LORD.
Questions for Further Reflection:
Think back to a moment in nature when you felt particularly close to God.
What was it about the Creation that made you think of God?
What did God reveal to you in that moment?
Please note: Our piece for this week’s sermon is The Seine at Giverny, Morning Mists by Claude Monet. It is located in the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, NC.