Jesus tells his disciples in the gospel of Matthew that they are the light of the world. They are the light in the midst of darkness.

When we think about our world and all the injustices that exist it can be... disheartening. And our response can be to become despondent and numb. Because being a light to a dark world means being vulnerable... the willingness to take a risk and be frustrated. Behind every great pursuit of justice is a road paved with pain, loss, and frustrations and that is the journey Jesus is inviting us on.

SUNDAY COLLECT:

Set us free, O God, from the bondage of our sins, and give us the liberty of that abundant life which you have made known to us in your Son our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

WESLEY PRAYER:

“Do all the good you can,

By all the means you can,

In all the ways you can,

In all the places you can,

At all the times you can,

To all the people you can,

As long as ever you can.”

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What does Jesus do first in Matthew? Teach his disciples. And in his teachings, he reminds them that the way ahead is arduous and difficult but not without a blessing.

Sometimes it might feel when life is hard that we somehow deserved the difficulty. But we are reminded today... that life in general... is challenging. It is in the hard moments of life, and only in those moments that we discover the gift of resilience.

SUNDAY COLLECT:

Almighty and everlasting God, you govern all things both in heaven and on earth: Mercifully hear the supplications of your people, and in our time grant us your peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

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Cultivating community is what God has been doing from the beginning. We were created for community. The people in our lives enhance and bring beauty to we are as a people. The challenge is that we can often busy our lives... so cultivating community takes intentionality and work.

SUNDAY COLLECT:

Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive the glory of his marvelous works; who lives and reigns with

you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

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Every person you come into contact with has a small sliver of the divine in them. We need to see that more every day and the more we know the divine in others... the more we experience the presence of God.

SUNDAY COLLECT:

Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ's glory, that he may be known, worshiped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

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It is our hope that we might often hear that we are created in the image of God and are of great worth. But we will find as we walk this journey believing this voice can be challenging. Hopefully, we can take our next step in claiming our holy worth through our baptismal identity.

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This Sunday is Epiphany Sunday. We will talk about how our faith is evolving and growing.

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We will reflect on Mary's courage to embrace the unfamiliar at this Christmas Eve gathering.

For Christmas Eve 100% of our gifts will go towards Benevolence Farm here in Alamance County. They serve women who were formerly incarcerated. We hope you might be generous.

Find out more about them here: https://benevolencefarm.org

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This Sunday we continued our series "Long Expected".

In the struggle of everyday life, we can often ask ourselves, "why me?" Why do I have to go through this? Without realizing that our stories have the power to transform our lives and not just our lives but the lives of others.

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This Sunday we continued our series "Long Expected". There are moments in our lives when our burdens are too heavy to carry.

Maybe at one point in your life, someone said, "God would never give you more than you could bear..." But there are moments when it feels like just that.

We will talk about how the strength of God and community can hold us up in times when we can't hold ourselves up.

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It's the in-between moments of life that can be the most arduous. The moments that we have to be most awake and present.

Maybe you are in-between deconstructing and reconstructing your faith.

Grieving the loss of a loved one.

Getting back on your feet after a failure.

This Advent season we will be exploring what it means to live in the in-between. The tension of this moment and the beautiful and hard moments that got us here.

It is also a season that propels us to look at our future in a hopeful and redemptive light. One that engages our lives in bringing about our longings and hopes for our communities.

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Songs from Sunday Gatherings: https://soundcloud.com/storied-church-mebane

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdgmDHRPhzLFxD-Oc8tiA4g