Thursday, December 21, 2023
Spirit of Hope Lutheran Church, Lincoln, NE
Longest Night service
watch this service online
Longest Night service
This is meant to be a quiet, meditative service. There will be spaces of silence for contemplation all throughout, especially following readings and songs. Let yourself rest and sink into the peace of God’s presence; let your heart be open to hear God’s words of comfort and love for you.
Gathering
The season of Advent is a season of hope that leads us into a season of Christmas joy. During these four weeks, we gather to prepare for the coming of Christ, to celebrate the light that shines in the darkness. But tonight, we pause to acknowledge the darkness. We pause to meditate on the places in our world, in our lives, and within our own selves that are in need of a word of hope.
The holidays can be a challenging time. Grief, illness, aging, depression, loneliness, unemployment, fractured relationships, so many kinds of loss are all magnified around this time of year. Even those who are not directly struggling with losses probably feel the stress of preparations and expectations around Christmas time. It can be hard to find a place to name and release these struggles, amid all the pressure to be merry and bright.
But this is the place. Come as you are, with whatever you may be carrying. Tonight we come together to lay our burdens down at God’s feet, and to be reminded that God is not absent in the darkness; rather, it is in darkness that the hope of God is born anew.
In the Northern Hemisphere, December 21 is the longest night, the winter solstice. It marks the shortest day of the year, the official start of winter. Tradition says that nature and all her creatures stop and hold their breath to see if the sun will turn back from its wanderings, if the days will lengthen and the earth will once again feel the sun’s warmth. On this darkest day of the year, we come before God with our honest yearnings, seeking the return of light and hope.
Hymn #715: Christ Be Our Light
Longing for light, we wait in darkness.
Longing for truth, we turn to you.
Make us your own, your holy people,
light for the world to see.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in our hearts. Shine through the darkness.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in your church gathered today.
Longing for peace, our world is troubled.
Longing for hope, many despair.
Your word alone has pow’r to save us.
Make us your living voice.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in our hearts. Shine through the darkness.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in your church gathered today.
Longing for food, many are hungry.
Longing for water, many still thirst.
Make us your bread, broken for others,
shared until all are fed.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in our hearts. Shine through the darkness.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in your church gathered today.
Longing for shelter, many are homeless.
Longing for warmth, many are cold.
Make us your building, sheltering others,
walls made of living stone.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in our hearts. Shine through the darkness.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in your church gathered today.
Many the gifts, many the people,
many the hearts that yearn to belong.
Let us be servants to one another,
signs of your kingdom come.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in our hearts. Shine through the darkness.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in your church gathered today.
Greeting and Prayer
P: From the one who was, who is, and who is to come: Grace and peace be with you all.
C: And also with you.
P: Let us pray. Holy God, our light and our hope, the night is long and our hearts are weary. We trust in your presence; help us to find you as we reach for you in the darkness. We cry out for your dawn to illumine our lives, to lift the shadows of our sin and struggle and sorrow – those long shadows cast by sickness, division, loss, loneliness, and death. May the light of your love shine on this community, our nation, our world, and your whole creation. Hear our prayers, O God, and heal our hearts, through the one for whom we wait, Jesus Christ.
C: Amen.
Reading: Psalm 61:1-4
1 Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth I call to you, when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I,
3 for you are my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy.
4 Let me abide in your tent forever, find refuge under the shelter of your wings.
Reading: Psalm 27:7-14
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!
8 “Come,” my heart says, “seek his face!” Your face, Lord, do I seek.
9 Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger, you who have been my help. Do not cast me off; do not forsake me, O God of my salvation!
10 If my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will take me up.
11 Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
12 Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries, for false witnesses have risen against me, and they are breathing out violence.
13 I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!
Hymn #243: Lost in the Night
Lost in the night do the people yet languish,
longing for morning the darkness to vanquish,
plaintively sighing with hearts full of anguish.
Will not day come soon? Will not day come soon?
Must we be vainly awaiting the morrow?
Shall those who have lights no light let us borrow,
giving no heed to our burden of sorrow?
Will you help us soon? Will you help us soon?
Sorrowing wand’rers in darkness yet dwelling,
dawned has the day of a radiance excelling,
death’s deepest shadows forever dispelling.
Christ is coming soon! Christ is coming soon!
Light o’er the land of the needy is beaming;
rivers of life through its deserts are streaming,
bringing all peoples a Savior redeeming.
Come and save us soon! Come and save us soon!
Reading: “Wild Geese” – a poem by Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting –
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
Reading: Matthew 11:28-30
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Hymn #780: Shepherd Me, O God
Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.
God is my shepherd, so nothing shall I want,
I rest in the meadows of faithfulness and love,
I walk by the quiet waters of peace.
Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.
Gently you raise me and heal my weary soul,
you lead me by pathways of righteousness and truth,
my spirit shall sing the music of your name.
Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.
Though I should wander the valley of death,
I fear no evil, for you are at my side,
your rod and your staff, my comfort and my hope.
Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.
You have set me a banquet of love in the face of hatred,
crowning me with love beyond my power to hold.
Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.
Surely your kindness and mercy follow me
all the days of my life;
I will dwell in the house of my God forevermore.
Shepherd me, O God, beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.
Confession / Grief offering
Whatever you come here tonight carrying on your heart, you are invited to offer it up to God at this time. On the slip of paper provided, write down whatever griefs, struggles, guilt, loss, etc. you would like to let go into God’s care. And when you are ready, please bring your slip forward (or ask someone to bring it forward for you) and place it in the bowl of water at the front of the sanctuary. Feel God’s healing love enfold you, and let the waters of baptism wash once more over your heart, as you watch your burdens be washed away in this water.
Reading: Isaiah 9:2-7
2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness — on them light has shined.
3 You have multiplied exultation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder.
4 For the yoke of their burden and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.
5 For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire.
6 For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders, and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Great will be his authority, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Hymn #292: Love Has Come
Love has come – a light in the darkness!
Love shines forth in the Bethlehem skies.
See, all heaven has come to proclaim it;
hear how their song of joy arises:
Love! Love!
Born unto you a Savior!
Love! Love!
Glory to God on high.
Love is born! Come, share in the wonder.
Love is God now asleep in the hay.
See the glow in the eyes of his mother;
what is the name her heart is saying?
Love! Love!
Love is the name she whispers;
Love! Love!
Jesus, Immanuel.
Love has come and never will leave us!
Love is life everlasting and free.
Love is Jesus within and among us.
Love is the peace our hearts are seeking.
Love! Love!
Love is the gift of Christmas.
Love! Love!
Praise to you, God on high!
Blessing
P: May God bless you with comfort, hope, and even joy this season. And may the peace of Christ, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
C: Amen.
Dismissal and Peace
P: Go in peace. Christ the Savior is with you. Merry Christmas.
C: Thanks be to God.
All are invited to share signs of peace with one another.
Please stick around for snacks in the lobby. Thank you for joining us this evening!
Christmas Eve at Spirit of Hope: December 24, 2023 – All are welcome!
- 4:00pm – In person service
- 5:30pm – In person and online
- 7:00pm – In person service
This is the Day 
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