All-Age Worship Resources for January

5^th January- A Light Shines in the Darkness

It is all too easy to dismiss the Christmas season once the 25^th December has passed and we’ve put away the carols and festive spirit for another year. But today our readings remind us again of the mystery of the incarnation… the wonder and the joy of this incredible occurrence. God made flesh in the form of a tiny, vulnerable baby, born not in a palace with the riches of kings but in a stable to ordinary people, placed in an animal’s feeding trough and visited by those often found on the fringes of society- the shepherds. A reason to celebrate, not just one day in the year but throughout the whole season.

Some ideas for worship on this day:

i.e. Sing verse 1- Joy to the World

 Read Psalm 147:1-6:

 Praise the Lord!

How good it is to sing praises to our God;

 for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.

The Lord builds up Jerusalem;

 he gathers the outcasts of Israel.

He heals the broken-hearted,

 and binds up their wounds.

He determines the number of the stars;

 he gives to all of them their names.

Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;

 his understanding is beyond measure.

The Lord lifts up the downtrodden;

 he casts the wicked to the ground.

Sing Verse 2 of Joy to the World

Read Psalm 147:7-12

Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;

 make melody to our God on the lyre.

He covers the heavens with clouds,

 prepares rain for the earth,

 makes grass grow on the hills.

He gives to the animals their food,

 and to the young ravens when they cry.

His delight is not in the strength of the horse,

 nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;

but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,

 in those who hope in his steadfast love.

   Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!

   Praise your God, O Zion!

Sing verse 3 of Joy to the World

Read Psalm 147:13-20

For he strengthens the bars of your gates;

 he blesses your children within you.

He grants peace within your borders;

 he fills you with the finest of wheat.

He sends out his command to the earth;

 his word runs swiftly.

He gives snow like wool;

 he scatters frost like ashes.

He hurls down hail like crumbs—

 who can stand before his cold?

He sends out his word, and melts them;

 he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.

He declares his word to Jacob,

 his statutes and ordinances to Israel.

He has not dealt thus with any other nation;

 they do not know his ordinances.

Praise the Lord!

I’ve always understood that light is illumination: the opposite of darkness. If there is no light, I can’t see… I can stumble, lose my way. But light does more than illuminate. For example, a green plant goes yellow and sickly in a dark room… light is necessary for health. Light can change chemistry…like with photography…light goes through a lens and so changes the chemicals on a piece of film that an image can be created and kept.

Light is also a source of energy and power… eg. solar power… the light and heat from the sun can create enough electrical energy to heat our houses…run refrigerators and other machines… even cars.

A tiny baby, born in a stable to poor parents… the witnesses; unkempt shepherds on the fringes of society. This is not so much a story of a bright, strong sun warming the earth and creating massive amounts of energy… it is more that of a small candle with a flame that dances in the breeze…. the wind at any moment threatening to blow it out… So where is the power and the glory in that?

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.

Such is the power of one tiny flame. The light both illuminates and saves life in the darkest of times.

Flickering and vulnerable the light may be, but it holds a power that is almost unfathomable.