Welcome to Church!
We are delighted to have you with us today during this Advent season—a time of anticipation, reflection, and preparation as we celebrate the coming of Christ. Whether this is your first visit or you’ve been with us for years, we are excited to share this sacred season together in worship.
Corporate worship is a cornerstone of our discipleship and our identity as members of the Global Methodist Church. We express this identity in our church through three essential practices:
Gathering: Our faith is a shared faith so we gather for worship and fellowship in both large and small groups.
Growing: Jesus invites his disciples to mature faith. We are all in process. We grow through practicing spiritual disciplines and inviting others into the faith..
Serving: Our faith isn’t just about us. We are called to love our neighbor as ourselves, so we serve one another and the community - as the church.
These practices are central to our lives as Christ followers.
As we begin this year's Advent sermon series, The Wonder of it All, by reflecting on the journey that Joseph experienced in Matthew 1:18–25. His story reminds us that the wonder of the journey is our faith experienced in trusting God’s plan, taking steps of obedience, and persevering even when the road is unclear.
Thank you for being a part of our family today. My prayer is that our time together will draw us all closer to Jesus and inspire us to reflect deeply on His presence in our lives. If you have any questions or wish to discuss your faith, please feel free to reach out. You can contact me directly at 410-639-2144 or email me at the link below.
All for Him!
Pastor Gary
Order of Worship
Welcome |
|
Advent Reading and Opening Prayer | |
Opening Worship | |
Prayers of the People | |
Message | |
Next Steps | |
What you can do for a “next step” of faith. | |
Benediction | Life is much more than an accident. Wherever I go, I believe God needs me there. Wherever I am, I trust God has put me there. He has a purpose for me being there - Christ, alive in me, wants to do something through me, no matter where I am. I believe this and go in His grace and His love and His power. |
If you would like someone to pray with you, please come and meet one of our ministry leaders at the end of the service.
Songs for Worship
Wesley Chapel
162 O Come o Come Emmanuel
163 Come Thou Long Expected Jesus
93 How Deep the Father’s Love
Rock Hall Church
Holy Is His Name
O Come O Come Emmanuel
God Really Loves Us
Message Notes
The Wonder in the Journey: Joseph’s Story
Matthew 1:18–25; Isaiah 9:2–6; Romans 15:13
Pastor Gary Priddy
Wonder - the quality of exciting amazed admiratio
Discipleship Deepens on the Journey
Journeys of hope and wonder often intensify the demands of discipleship
Faith Moves Both our Heart and Feet
Journeys of hope and wonder are both spiritual and physical.
The wonder of faith is revealed in the journey
Journeys of hope and wonder are often protracted.
Bottom Line:
The wonder of faith is revealed in the journey.
Consider this:
On this first Sunday of Advent, what are you hopeful for? Truly?
In what ways is God’s world or his story inspiring wonder in your life?
How does Joseph’s invitation to trust God inspire you?
How can you be an over-flower of wonder and hope?
Reading Plan:
Perhaps it’s time to recapture the wonder found in the Christmas story. What I am learning is this: it’s not just a wonderful story, it’s a wonder-FILLED story. In this Advent daily devotional, we’ll dig into the Christmas story found in Matthew and Luke’s gospel and look at those in the nativity story. Where did this story meet them, and where does it meet us, today? Let’s recapture some wonder this holiday season.
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This Week's Announcements:
Prayer Request Policy Change In order to maintain a more current prayer list, we provide a copy of this past week’s prayer requests. Submit prayer requests using the prayer request cards in the pews or the digital prayer request form on our website: pray.yourrhc.com Please make sure you have permission to share other’s information.
Current Prayer Requests
Our children and youth ministries
Caregivers and first responders
Our nation’s leaders
Healing of our nation
People battling addictions
Single parents and their kids
Pastor Gary and family
Pastor Kenny Hickman
Rosalie and Eddie Kuechler
Dickie & Bettie Porter
Frank & Mariann Dulin
Elmer & Marsha Gustafson
Grant Stoops
Hubbard Kendall
Joan Melvin
Joanne Carson
Jack Johnson
Rick Reedy
Jean Spence
Diane McIntyre
Joe Holliday
Pam Glenn
Dean Wood
Eric Legg
Marion Gagnon
Wayne & Breanna Baker
Stacey Angel
Audra Ashley
Nicole Pressley
John and Jennifer Ellick & Family
Lynn Standridge
Active Military & their families including:
Trevion Hopkins
Kyle Schauber
Brock Willey
Makenzie Williams
Steve McCarthy
Dakota Collison
Geoffrey Andersen
Jonathan Conner
Dante Spagnolo
This week's prayer focus:
Join us in focused and specific prayer for our church, our community, and our world. Be prepared to see God do great things as we collectively turn to Him in prayer.
Sunday - Our Mission: God, grant boldness and opportunities for us to share the Gospel with others. Ephesians 6:19
Monday - Our Church: God, help us be financially responsible and good stewards of the blessings You’ve provided. Malachi 3:10
Tuesday - Our Leadership: God, allow nothing to hinder our ministers and volunteers from Your calling on their lives. Nehemiah 6:3
Wednesday - Families: God, help us recognize the importance of first making disciples of Christ in our homes. Proverbs 22:6
Thursday - Our Community: God, we ask for your healing of the broken structures and systems in our community. 2 Chronicles 7:14
Friday - Children/Youth: God, help our young people humbly submit to and honor those in authority over them. Ephesians 6:1-3
Saturday - Adults: God, cause our adults to humble themselves and seek Your face. 2 Chronicles 7:14
This week’s events:
Sunday:
9:30 am - Worship Celebration @WCMC
11:00 am - Worship Celebration @RHMC
Monday:
6:30 pm - Women’s Bible Study @Robbins
7:00 pm - Men’s Bible Study @Charge Office
Tuesday:
7:00 pm - Bible Study @RHMC Hall
Wednesday:
1-3 pm - Ageless Wonders @RHMC Hall
3:30 -6:30 pm - RSK @RHMC Hall
6:30 pm - Youth @RHMC Hall
Thursday:
7:00 pm - RHMC Praise Band Practice
Saturday:
9:00 am - Noon - WC Indoor Yard and Bake Sale
Sunday:
9:30 am - Worship Celebration @WCMC
11:00 am - Worship Celebration @RHMC
WCMC - Wesley Chapel Methodist Church
RHMC - Rock Hall Methodist Church
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