Welcome Message
HELLO! WELCOME TO WPC
from WPC on Communion Sunday, December 5th – Get Sermon
Westminster Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles invites you to experience Virtual Worship. Scroll the page to participate in Virtual Sunday Worship and join us on Sunday’s at noon for the Video Chat Coffee Hour on Zoom. See you soon.
Shhh, Virtual Worship is Starting
Opening Prayer:
Welcome and Call to Worship
Liturgist: Christ is coming!
Valleys will be filled and mountains will be made low!
Liturgist: Christ is coming!
The crooked shall be made straight and the rough ways will be made smooth!
Liturgist: Christ is coming!
All flesh shall see the salvation of God!
Liturgist: Siblings in Christ, we have work to do.
Let us prepare the way of the Lord
Come, let us worship God.
God of Peace, still our hearts this morning as we gather to prepare the way for your Child. Help us let go of what is weighing us down and open our arms to welcome Emmanuel.
Amen.
Opening Praise:
“Every Praise” by Hezekiah Walker
CHURCH NEWS & GIVING
Announcements:
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
Next FELLOWSHIP COFFEE HOUR via Zoom
on Sunday, December 12th at 12:00 p.m. / Noon
No Fellowship, Sunday, December 5th due to Sunday Drive-In Worship
Fellowship with your Westminster Family. Let’s join one another for a check in and fellowship following the morning virtual worship service via zoom. Join the Zoom Coffee Hour Meetings – Let’s Chat! – CLICK HERE
Attention Westminster Family
~ ANNOUNCEMENT HIGHLIGHTS ~
- Wednesday Bible Study online 1:00 pm
- Prayer Meeting via phone 5:30 pm
- Thursday Food Give Away in Parking Lot 11:00 am
- 1st Sunday worship 10:00 am in the Parking Lot
PRAYER MEETING:
Wednesdays at 5:30pm
Please join us for the via conference call.
Phone: (339) 209-4324 – (no code is needed)
BIBLE STUDY
Wednesday at 1:00 p.m.
As of Wednesday, September 9th, we will meet for our Bible Study at 1pm as to not conflict with the food giveaway ministry. Join Pastor Rhoden for our weekly zoom virtual Bible Study. – CLICK HERE
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BIBLE STUDY & PRAYER:
Wednesdays at 12 Noon
Interaction Based discussions/Scripture Translation will continue until the end of the summer. – GET DETAILS!
*** FOOD GIVE AWAY ***
Thursdays at 11:00 a.m.
We know that times are tough. Thanks to our partnership with Immanuel Presbyterian Church, we’re giving away FREE FOOD to the community. Come and get your free box of food in the parking lot of Westminster Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles on Thursdays.
LEARN MORE ~ Click Here
Prayers of the People:
Let us pray to God, saying: God of Harmony, guide our feet into the way of peace. Prince of Peace, when you first created the world, you intended us to live in peace with one another. But we have fallen terribly short of that intention. We have made idols out of warfare and weapons, and have profited from the conflicts of other nations. Help us turn our swords into plowshares.
God of Harmony, guide our feet into the way of peace.
Wonderful Counselor, we pray for our nation and long for the day when conflict will cease. We pray for communities that have been ravaged by gun violence, for families that have been torn apart by domestic violence, for those who suffer as a result from systemic racism, and for those who find themselves in patterns of unhealthy relationships. Counsel us, Gracious God, that we may live in the peace you intend.
God of Harmony, guide our feet into the way of peace.
Everlasting Parent, we pray for the children among us, the most vulnerable of society. We pray for children who do not have shelter and clothing, for children who do not have a meal when school is out, for children who are not given the resources they need to thrive, for children who are the victims of bullying and abuse, and for children whose desperate parents seek better opportunities elsewhere.
God of Harmony, guide our feet into the way of peace.
Mighty God, we cannot save ourselves, but through the life, death, and resurrection of your only child, we rejoice that we have not been left to our own devices. We praise you, Lord, for you are our sole redemption and we, your beloved and broken children, give thanks.
God of Harmony, guide our feet into the way of peace.
Emmanuel, God-With-Us, hear our prayer as we pray as you taught us to pray, saying: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever.
Amen.
Offering Song:
“My Tribute” sung by Wintley Phipps
Offering Prayer:
God of mercy and grace, we pray that the gifts we offer this morning might be used to bring some compassion to the chaos that is our world. We give these gifts in love, hoping they will heal some of the hurting; and as they do, make the crooked road straight for the coming of the Christ. May the hills that separate us from sisters and brothers be made flat and may the valleys of our isolation be raised up, so we will be ready to welcome the Christ as one. In that holy name, we pray. Amen.
Tithes and offerings:
SERMON MESSAGE
Sermonic Songs:
“The Battle Is Not Yours” by Yolanda Adams
Sermon:
“A mighty Savior“
~ Luke 1:68-79 ~
Sermon will take place at Drive-In Worship – Scripture Reading Available
HOLY COMMUNION
Call to Reconciliation:
We are good at rules: making them and then breaking them. Paul reminds us that, when we gain Christ Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we receive exactly what we need – forgiveness, grace, hope. Let us confess our sins to God, that we might know God’s healing love for us!
Prayer of Confession:
If we were to name all the gods we have before you, Rock of Redemption, we would be here a very long time. We elevate politicians into saviors, though they are as broken as we are. We misuse your name so much during the day, we have trouble speaking to you in prayer at night. We are so busy, we do not notice how creation witnesses to your goodness and grace.
Forgive us, God our Hope. Help us to let go of what we value most, so we may open our emptiness, our hearts, our lives to the healing and loving presence of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
Assurance of Pardon:
Persistently, patiently, lovingly, God pours out grace and joy into our lives,
healing our brokenness, forgiving our sin.
Loved, we are sent to love;
forgiven, we are freed to forgive;
graced, we can offer our gifts to everyone we meet.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Communion Song:
“Thank You Jesus for the Blood” – Charity Gayle
Communion:
Communion with Westminster Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles
CLOSING PRAYER
May the Lord make you increase in love for one another, nurturing one another in our community of faith, uplifting one another in times of struggle or sorrow, sharing with one another in all that you possess.
May the Lord make you abound in love for all, giving of yourselves the way Christ gives to you, witnessing to the ever-widening circles of God’s love, rejoicing in the power of the Spirit, who breathes life into all of God’s children.
May the Lord make love grow within you and extend to all around you, as together we await his coming.
Amen!
We hope you enjoyed Virtual Sunday Worship.
ADD YOUR COMMENTS BELOW, SHARE THE WORSHIP,
& JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT COFFEE HOUR on ZOOM at NOON on Sunday, December 12th.
MEET PASTOR RHODEN
Rev. Carlton A. Rhoden
Westminster Presbyterian Church / Los Angeles
Rev. Carlton A. Rhoden became the Pastor/Head of Staff of the Westminster Presbyterian Church in April, of 2014. Rev. Rhoden comes with a wealth of experience, having formerly served as Senior Minister of the First Baptist of Los Angeles from 2006 until 2013. Rev. Rhoden earned a Masters of Divinity from the American Baptist Seminary of the West in Berkeley California in 2005. Upon graduation Rev. Rhoden was awarded “The J. Alfred Smith Sr. Award for Outstanding Ministry in the Black Church”. He is also a graduate of the Harvard Divinity School Summer Leadership Program class of 2005. Rev. Rhoden received a Bachelor of Science in Social Work with a minor in African American Studies from the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey in 1999. While at Stockton, Rev. Rhoden was a member of the Men’s Basketball team, a member of Student Government, and pledged Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.
He is also active in community organization, most recently with Oakland Community Organizations. He is nationally recognized for his expertise in this field and has provided advice and consulting for community organization groups from coast to coast.
Carlton is married to Nikki Thomas-Rhoden. Nikki holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration. They have two children, CJ and Maya. Nikki is a Social Worker who has a great concern for children in need. She is a graduate of Richard Stockton College of N.J. (B.A.), and a Master’s of Public Administration from Cal State Hayward. She is currently employed at Penny Lane Centers as a Site Director of Wrap Around. She is devoted to her family and the ministry of Westminster Presbyterian Church Los Angeles. Most importantly she is the best wife and mother a man and his children (Maya and C.J.) can have.
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