Longest Night Service
“Hope For The Hopeless”
21 December, 2006 7:00pm
Prelude Music: CD recording – various Christmas songs.
Song: Cry Out To Jesus DVD / Music Video
Welcome – Why are we here?
Welcome to our first “Longest Night Service.” Tonight is the winter solstice – the date on our calendar when we experience the fewest hours of daylight, and the longest night of the year. For many in pagan societies, the winter solstice has long been associated with death and evil, with many cultures going to great lengths to placate evil and bring a return of the sun – including human sacrifice.
This longest night service is not meant to be a bowing to the New Age influences that surround us – rather, we have gathered here tonight to recognize that for some or us the lights of Christmas seem dim, and the colors are little more than shades of gray. While Christmas is often a time of happy family gatherings, it is sometimes a painful reminder of dysfunction. For many this is a time of celebrating a wonderful birth, but for some it is a time of sad separation from lost loved ones. While some families spend thousands of dollars on sparkling decorations and elaborate gifts, others barely have enough money to put a meal on the table, and their children have little hope for even a simple gift.
For most of us the days leading to and following Christmas are some of the most difficult days of the year. And it should not be surprising. We spend the days leading up to Christmas involved in a hectic pace of shopping, parties and travel. We spend money we don’t have on gifts that are increasingly disposable, and the debt out-lasts the joy of giving or receiving. We eat too much and exercise too little. It should come as no surprise that the days following Christmas are often described as the “post holiday hangover,” and we suffer from the “post Christmas blues.”
The church fails at her mission when we fail to recognize this reality. When the church gets caught up in the hype of the holidays we in fact perpetuate the pressure to wear “masks” – to deny or hide our pain, fear and frustration. But if the church is going to be a place of honesty, integrity and reality, we need to be able to recognize the pain, acknowledge the loss and comfort the struggling. I believe that is exactly what Jesus would have us do. In Isaiah 53:3, we read that the Messiah was “A man of sorrows, and acquainted with Grief.” In the Garden of Gethsemane we read of the great struggle of His soul. He was often described as being “moved with compassion,” or “grieving” over the hardness of the hearts of his people. We even read of Him shedding tears at the funeral of His friend, Lazarus. Jesus recognized, experienced and brought comfort to the grief and struggles of this world. We are called to do the same.
Tonight we begin our service with the lighting of four candles. These candles are meant to represent the reality of the pain some of us face. There are certainly other forms of loss, but these represent four primary sources of pain:
Four Candles, acknowledging loss (LeRoy Klinger)
Loss of family and friends
Loss of health
Loss of security, safety
Loss of peace
As these candles are lit, we will hear a song entitled “God weeps, too.”
Song: (CD: God Weeps, Too)
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was filled with sorrow after the tragic death of his wife in a fire in 1861. In addition, the United States had fallen into Civil War that same year, which added another level of gloom to the holiday. The first Christmas after his wife's death, Longfellow wrote, "How inexpressibly sad are all holidays." A year after the incident, he wrote, "I can make no record of these days. Better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace." Longfellow's journal entry for December 25th 1862 reads: "'A merry Christmas' say the children, but that is no more for me." Almost a year later, Longfellow received word that his oldest son Charles, a lieutenant in the Army of the Potomac, had been severely wounded with a bullet passing under his shoulder blades and taking off one of the spinal processes. The Christmas of 1863 was silent in Longfellow's journal – He wrote nothing at all, seemingly denying its existence.
Then, on Christmas Day of 1864, he wrote the words of a poem entitled, "Christmas Bells." The reelection of Abraham Lincoln or the possible end of the terrible war may have been the occasion for the poem. The poem speaks poignantly of the pain and darkness that had enveloped Longfellow’s soul for more than three years – but ends with recognition of God’s sovereignty.
Longfellow's Christmas bells loudly proclaim, in the final stanzas, "God is not dead." Even more, the bells announced, "Nor doth He sleep." God's Truth, Power, and Justice are affirmed, when Longfellow wrote: "The wrong shall fail, the right prevail." The message that the Living God is a God of Peace is proclaimed in the close of the carol: "Of peace on Earth, good will to men."
Song: I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (Roy / Praise Team Lead?)
Scripture Reading: Psalm 121
Silence & Meditation (Preparation for Communion – confession, examination, remembrance)
It is appropriate for us to recognize the deep wounds and dark pain many experience at this time of year, but it would be tragic if we failed to recognize the light of hope that Jesus’ birth represents. John wrote,
Scripture Reading: John 1:1-6 & 10-14
In the midst of these candles lit earlier to acknowledge the reality of our pain, we now light a candle to represent the light that shines in the darkness, that the darkness cannot overcome. Jesus brings light, hope and peace to a dark, desperate and conflicted world. As we light this candle, and hear a special song, I invite you to come and light a candle to proclaim your faith in Christ, and the hope He gives you…
Light Candle of Hope (CD: Breath of Heaven Amy Grant Recording)
Allow others to come and light votives, recognizing their loss, but proclaiming their hope.
Our faith does not call us to deny pain or reality – but it summons us to trust in God through those pains and difficulties. The story of Job stands as a primary example:
Scripture Reading:
Job 1:13-22 (NKV)
Our final song tonight is a song that is inspired by Job’s words. Please join us in singing.
Closing Song: Blessed Be Your Name Praise Team
Closing Scripture Reading: Psalm 91
Closing Prayer “Show us Your salvation!”