This day brings unparalleled excitement to children, unusual stress to young parents, and waves of pleasant nostalgia to old people. The Christian world gathers to celebrate the birth of him who inspired Christianity to come into being. We join with countless millions of people all over the world who gather around, of all things, a manger. God continues to work His marvelous will through means even the most starry-eyed among us could never imagine. Therefore let us, with Christmas confidence, worship God.

For four weeks during Advent and Christmas we have been looking at some liturgical songs found in the first chapter of Luke’s Gospel. Today we shall consider the Magnificat , the song of the virgin Mary. We gather in amazement at the maturity and faith of a young girl who willingly agreed to be the mother of the Messiah, even if she did not and could not understand fully what a burden that would entail. Let is therefore, with confidence, worship the God who inspired Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.

An angel appeared to a teenage girl in a Galilean village two thousand years ago. Within two generations the New Testament Church was singing a song the angel first sang to the overwhelmed girl. Today we shall contemplate the second of the Songs of the Messiah that are found in the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke. God comes to all of us, and when He comes, sometimes He overshadows us, as he did to Mary. Let us therefore, with confidence worship the Overshadowing God.v

Once again Christians everywhere celebrate the season of Advent, when we prepare for the coming of Jesus Christ into the world. Advent and Christmas are a special time of the year, and they bring an excitement to young and old. This is a time to focus of the promises of God given to us through the birth of a baby who came among us as one of us. By the grace of Jesus we have been drawn into the family of God, and it is to God we now turn in adoration and praise for His greatest gift to the human race. Let us worship God.

Our nation and the entire world continue to observe the preparations of our President-Elect as he goes about the vital process of selecting people to serve in his administration. Meanwhile we as citizens have our own inevitably varied thoughts on Donald J. Trump and on how he is going about this process. Through it all, all of us look to God for His guidance, grace, and support. Therefore let us, with confidence, worship the God who stands above, beneath, and within everything ever faced by any of His countless children.

The world which God created is a beautiful place, intended by God’s loving purposes to provide an abundant life for all the people, animals, and plants living on the earth. Today as we gather in worship, we do so thanking God for his plan of creation, and for our place as stewards of the created order. We also bow before God, imploring Him to inspire us to be more consistent and dedicated stewards of the earth. Therefore let us with renewed commitment to do better and to try harder as we worship the God of all creation.

The long campaign is over, nearly all the caustic words have been spoken, and two days from now the nation votes. Democracy is a very demanding and unpredictable form of government. God wants Christians, like all other people, to be as committed and informed citizens as possible, but sometimes that seems like a heavy burden. In order to prepare for our vote, let us turn to God and His prophet Isaiah for guidance and encouragement. Let us, with confidence, worship God.

Four-hundred-ninety-nine years ago tomorrow night, an obscure Augustinian monk tacked a list of ninety-five issues for debate to the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany. Martin Luther was in a long line of prophets and reformers, including the prophet Isaiah, who sought to purify the worldwide religious community. May God speak to us as His prophets spoke of old, and may we listen for God’s chastening and redeeming word in the Sturm und Drang of human existence. Let us worship God.

A big one finally hit us, and what are we to deduce as a result of it? How is God involved in the enormity of Hurricane Matthew, if at all? Upon such questions shall we direct our hearts, minds, and thoughts today. In the midst of great devastation here and elsewhere, we pray to God for those whose lives have been uprooted and who find themselves victims of the implacable forces of nature. Let us therefore, with all the confidence we can muster, worship the Lord of the ever-expanding universe.

All of us have been wronged by others to varying degrees. When it happens, how do we handle it? Do we allow the hurt to fester within us, or do we forgive the offender, and thus move on with our lives? Today we shall contemplate the concept not merely of forgiveness, but of extravagant forgiveness. How do we forgive major intentional or even unintentional damage to our physical or spiritual well-being? Let us, in gratitude to our Creator, worship the God of extravagant forgiveness.

There are several major religions in the world. Are they complimentary or conflicting? Today we shall be thinking about how Christianity and Islam relate to one another, especially in light of Islamist terrorism. We seek the guidance and wisdom of the God in whom we all believe, so that, as the Psalmist says, “How good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity!” Let us therefore worship God with renewed confidence in His love for all of us.

We live in a community in which the so-called “hospitality industry” is by far the largest factor in our local economy. Because we live in such a special place, many of us through the years have played host to family and friends who have visited us here. Today we shall examine the biblical roots of the concept of hospitality. Therefore, let us with open hearts and minds, worship God.

Every Sunday we come to God, and God comes to us. But is He a formal God or a familiar God? Is He a “Thou” or a “You”? And is He a “He,” or might He be a “She”? Upon such questions shall we be focusing our attention this morning. In the meantime, we continue the divine-human encounter in our praise and thanksgiving. Worship is where God is regularly met by those who truly seek Him. Therefore let us, with confidence, worship God.

We are confronted by an overdose of politics, and if we are not careful, we find we can become severely depressed or lose our religion, or both. Therefore we turn to God, asking for Him to uphold us in the midst of torrents of words which may or may not bear resemblance to promises made, which may or may not be possible to keep. May the wisdom of Jesus permeate us so that we live wisely in an often-foolhardy world. Let us with trusting confidence worship God.

Another devastating terrorist attack, an attempted coup in a nation which is an important if also uncertain ally, an upcoming political convention whose very existence provokes widespread concerns for public safety: In the midst of all of it we hear the calming voice of the Psalmist, who declares on behalf of the Holy One of Israel, “Be still, and know that I am God.” We join together to give praise to our Creator, without whose presence in our lives we would feel abandoned and lost. Let us worship God.

The Fourth of July is always a time for taking stock of who we are as nation, and what we are trying to achieve. We seem to be living in very perilous times. But how truly perilous are they? As we celebrate the independence we gained in a war which lasted for six long and bloody years, let us today reflect on where our nation stands in relationship to the world and to our own people. Therefore let us, with confidence, worship God.

This past Thursday perhaps the most consequential vote of the past century was rendered by the British people. It is impossible to predict all the ramifications of Brexit. America and Americans shall certainly be affected. In the midst of what the Germans call Sturm und Drang, storm and stress, we are grateful to God we can gather together in worship, hearing His word, listening for His voice, and being granted the equanimity to live through whatever life hands us. Let us therefore, with confidence, worship God.

From its inception, the Church of Jesus Christ has consisted of many branches. Today we shall be thinking about that branch of Christianity known as Mainline Protestantism. Almost all of us have been associated with one or more Mainline denominations in our lifetime, and we need to understand what is happening to the Christian tradition in which we grew up and have spent most of our adult years. Therefore let us, with confidence, worship God.

The Church of Jesus Christ is one of God’s primary means of making Himself known throughout the world. It is not His only means, and no denomination or branch of Christianity represents the entire Church, nor is the Church God’s only means of reaching all His people dwelling on the earth. We are a congregation representing many denominations through our lifetimes, and to the God of all the denominations and churches we now turn in praise and thanks. Let us worship God.

Today presumably is our final service of worship in Congregation Beth Yam. We have been blessed by the Hilton Head Jewish community to have been so warmly welcomed into their temple for the last decade. By means of this ecumenical gesture, Jews and Christians of this island have been spatially and especially drawn closer together. Next week we begin a new phase of our own congregational pilgrimage. Thus we gather in worship of the God who leads us at all times and in all the places of our existence together.