Welcome to Worship!
We are delighted to have you with us today as we gather to worship, reflect, and grow in our faith together. Whether this is your first visit or you’ve been with us for years, we are excited to share this time with you and pray that it will encourage and inspire you in your walk with Christ.
Today, we’ll explore the theme “Growing in Grace” through the stories of Samuel and Jesus, reflecting on how faith begins, grows, and matures over time. As we dive into Luke 2:41–52 and 1 Samuel 2:18–20, 26, we’ll be reminded of this powerful truth: It takes time to build faith.
Our mission is to live out our faith through three essential practices:
Gathering: Our faith is shared, so we gather in worship, fellowship, and small groups to grow together.
Growing: Jesus calls us to mature faith. We grow by practicing spiritual disciplines, exploring God’s Word, and inviting others into the journey of faith.
Serving: Faith moves us beyond ourselves to love our neighbors as Christ taught us. We serve one another and our community in tangible ways that reflect God’s love.
After the service, we invite you to join us for a fellowship lunch. It’s a wonderful opportunity to connect, share stories of how God has worked in our lives this past year, and pray together for where we long to see Him move.
Thank you for being here today. If you have any questions or want to learn more about how to grow in your faith, I’d love to connect with you. You can reach 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 | Growing in Grace Luke 2:41-52 Rev Gary Priddy |
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
201 Joy to the World
203 Go Tell it on the Mountain
208 We Three Kings
8 Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee
Message Notes
Growing in Grace
Luke 2:41-52, 1 Samuel 2:18-20,26
Where did the time go?
Faith begins in God's PRESENCE
1 Samuel 2:18–20, Luke 2:41–43
Faith grows through CURIOSITY and COMMITMENT
Luke 2:46–47, 1 Samuel 2:26
Faith matures with TIME and TRUST
Luke 2:49–52, 1 Samuel 2:18–20
Bottom Line:
“It takes time to build faith.”
Consider this:
Reflect on the year past: How have you seen God at work?
Prayer for the future: Where do you long to see God move?
Call to Action: Start practicing Lectio Divina as a way to grow in grace and allow God to shape your faith over time.
Daily Devotional Reading:
Wake-Up Call provides a daily encouragement to shake off the slumber of our busy lives and turn our eyes toward Jesus. Each morning our community gathers around a Scripture, a reflection, a prayer, and a few short questions, inviting us to reorient our lives around the love of Jesus who transforms our hearts, homes, churches, and cities.
SIGN UP HERE: https://seedbed.com/wakeupcall
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
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
John and Jennifer Ellick
Stacey Angel
Galen Hake
Jeffrey Sanders
Baby Nixon Henry
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:
10:30 am - Combined Worship Celebration @WCMC
11:30 am - Fellowship Lunch
Wednesday: New Year’s Day!
Thursday:
7:30 pm - Praise Team Practice @RHGMC
Sunday:
9:30 am - Worship Celebration @WCMC
11:00 am - Worship Celebration @RHMC
WCMC - Wesley Chapel Methodist Church
RHMC - Rock Hall Methodist Church
Comments