Music for 2016.05.01

FirstLight
Gathering
More love, more power

Opening
Forever

Confession
Halle, halle, hallelujah (CARIBBEAN HALLELUJA)

Offertory
Hungry

Communion
Responses: Leon Roberts
Distribution: Jesus Messiah

Closing
Love the Lord

11AM
Hymns
401, Gather us in (GATHER US IN)
693, Though I may speak (O WALY WALY)

Confession/Praise Response
2026, Halle, halle, hallelujah (CARIBBEAN HALLELUJA)

Doxology LASS UNS ERFREUEN
Praise God from whom all blessings flow

Communion
Responses: Eslinger
Distribution: 769, For everyone born (FOR EVERYONE BORN)

Instrumental Music
Prelude:  Douglas Wagner, Arioso
Psalm 144.15: Happy are the people whose God is the Lord
Offertory: Douglas Wagner, Sanctus
Postlude: Douglas Wagner, Fanfare

Music for 4/24/16

FirstLight
Gathering
God is here today

Opening
Alabare

Confession
Halle, halle, hallelujah

Offertory
Resucito

Closing
Mighty to save

11AM
Hymns
15, All creatures of our God and King (LASST UNS ERFREUEN)
826, Life high the cross (CRUCIFER)

Confession/Praise Response
2026, Halle, halle, hallelujah (CARIBBEAN HALLELUJA)

Doxology LASS UNS ERFREUEN
Praise God from whom all blessings flow

Instrumental Music
Prelude:  John Herron, Voluntary in G
Offertory: Claude Bass, Jesus, thou joy of loving hearts
Postlude: John Stanley, Trumpet Voluntary

Floral arts at Lent and Easter 2016

This was the second year we did a slightly different take on floral arts during Lent. The concept was a progression for "poverty" to "abundance." The flowers in our two worship spaces began the season very starkly and evolved over the season to a glorious display for Easter Day. This year Ash Wednesday for us was a joint service with another congregation, so we didn't provide an arrangement. If we had, the plan would have been to drape the wooden urn in black fabric. We opted to use two separate arrangements for our two worship spaces, except on Easter Day. Fellowship hall had a brass urn and the sanctuary a wooden urn. Here is how the program developed:

The first Sunday of Lent was simply canes and twigs with moss, in unadorned urns.

For the second Sunday of Lent the floral arts team simply added eucalyptus branches, while retaining most of the material from the previous week.

We added alstroemeria to both arrangements for the 3rd Sunday.

Forsythia and other flowers added for the 4th week gave a hint at what was to come...This arrangement was striking simply for the height provided by some of the branches.

Palm-Passion Sunday saw the forsythia in full bloom, now with some white flowers and palm branches.

Sorry the light was bad for the Easter arrangement, but it was glorious. Lots of flowers in a trumpet-shaped glass vase.

We concluded the series on Easter Day with a reprise of our indoor Easter garden. It included a flowered cross. Individuals purchased plants in memory of or in honor persons, and were able to take their plants home after worship.

Good Friday Stations, part 1

In spring of 2015 the local paper ran an article about an artist with an exhibition taking place around Easter time. Without going back to re-read and get the details, what I recall was that the artist had a series of works that invited the viewer to consider the Easter story and the renewal of creation as individuals walked through the installation. I never even got around to see the exhibit, but something about the article struck me and stuck. A month later I was talking with our worship committee about an idea for an interactive Good Friday experience that relied on art to let/help persons recall and meditate on the Good Friday story. I wanted an experience that would be meaningful for adults, but 100% approachable by children. Our committee worked on the concept all year.

What evolved was an evening-long experience in which persons could drop-in, participate and leave on their own, much like those horrid drop-in communion services we've all heard of! We wanted a series of "stations" purposefully recalling the "stations of the cross" model of Good Friday worship. Each station would be an art project, based on a Bible verse which persons could complete quickly and either take home of leave for others to view. We wanted to provide food, as we anticipated that we would run the event throughout the dinner hour. We wanted older, traditionally-minded folks, to feel like they had experienced something substantive when they were done; and we wanted children to feel like they had encountered the Bible story in a mode they could comprehend. We knew we would need the help of committees apart from our own to bring it off.

The event was last night. Upcoming posts will deal with it in some detail. We feel it was a success, though we are waiting to hear more from those who participated. It's the nature of the event and how it was billed that we didn't do much debriefing as folks departed.

Music for 4/17/2016

FirstLight
Gathering
Give thanks with a grateful heart

Opening
Hallelujah, your love is amazing

Confession
Halle, halle, halleluja

Offertory
One thing remains

Closing
Canticle of the turning

11AM
Hymns
236, The strife is o’ver (VICTORY)
100, My soul cries out (CANTICLE OF THE TURNING)
546, Lord dismiss us with your blessing (SICILIAN MARINERS)

Confession/Praise Response
2026, Halle, halle, hallelujah (CARIBBEAN HALLELUJA)

Doxology LASS UNS ERFREUEN
Praise God from whom all blessings flow

Instrumental Music
Prelude:  Max Reger (1873-1916), God of heaven and God of earth
Offertory: Mark A. Miller, I believe
Postlude: Gordon Young, Prelude in Classic Style