Church of the Messiah invites you to celebrate the entire holiday season with us as we wrap up 2021! Sunday, November 28th, begins the season of Advent that is the four Sundays immediately before Christmas. Advent is a time of special prayer and preparation as we anticipate Our Lord’s ultimate return as well as remember when He was born in Bethlehem almost two thousand years ago! As we finish the season of Advent, we begin to celebrate the season of Christmas! Our Christmas celebrations begin on Friday evening, December 24th, with our Christmas Eve Family Service. We will have special presentations from our children and youth, an exciting children’s sermon, as well as Christmas Carols by candlelight that evening. Our Christmas worship continues on Saturday, morning, December 25th, when we celebrate our Christmas Day Mass. Join us for this special service celebrating the birth of Christ on the morning of His birth. This is a brief, said Mass and is the perfect was to “keep Christ is Christmas.” At Church of the Messiah, the celebration of Christmas does not end the day after Christmas; we celebrate Christmas for the entire Twelve Days of Christmas! We will be having Christmas services on Sunday morning, December 26th and January 2nd! We would love for you to join us any time throughout the Advent or Christmas seasons. If you are unable to join us in person, we invite to worship with us virtually via our live stream Church of the Messiah’s Facebook page. We are so excited to celebrate the coming of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and we hope the you will join us!
Now that we have celebrated Thanksgiving, we begin to anticipate the celebration of Christmas! For four weeks prior to Christmas, the Church celebrates the Holy Season of Advent. Advent is a time of prayer and preparation in anticipation of the Coming of Our Lord on Christmas as well as the Second Coming of Our Lord when He returns at the Last Judgement. This year Church of the Messiah will observe the four Sundays of Advent on November 29th, December 6th, 13th, and 20th. All of our Sunday morning services begin at 10 o’clock.
On Thursday night, December 24th, we will celebrate Christmas Eve with our traditional Family Service. This service includes a special presentation from the children and youth of the church, a reading of the Nativity Gospel, the singing of traditional Christmas Carols, and other special surprises. Please note that this year our Christmas Eve Family Service will begin at the special time of 7:30 pm.
On Christmas Day, we will celebrate the Incarnation of Our Lord with our Christmas Day Service. This service is a brief Said Mass and usually lasts about forty-five minutes. Our Christmas Day Service will begin at 10 o’clock and is our only service of the holiday season that will be held in Church of the Messiah’s sanctuary (where we met before COVID).
All of our services (except Christmas Day) will be held in the sanctuary of Ft. Caroline Presbyterian Church which allows us to be seated with adequate social distancing. For more information on our COVID19 precautions, visit our COVID Precautions Page. For those who cannot join us in person, all of our services will be live streamed via Facebook Live on the church’s Facebook page. Childcare is provided during each of our services (except Christmas Day).
During this season of holidays, we invite everyone to join us, whether in person or virtually, for any or all of our Advent and Christmas service. “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13
Sunday, December 3rd, begins the Season of Advent, the first season in the new Church year. The word “Advent” comes from Latin and means “to come.” Advent is a time when the Church focuses on preparing our hearts and minds to receive the Messiah-King who not only came two thousand years ago in Bethlehem, but also is to come again. It is a season where we focus on the Messiah-King who is going to come at an hour no one know and calls us to watch and be prepared. Advent is the four weeks which precede Christmas, so this year the four Sundays of Advent are December 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th. On each Sunday of Advent, we will have a special service focusing on our King who is to return and what we must do to make ready for His return. We would love for you to join us every Sunday morning throughout the month of December starting at ten o’clock for our special Advent Services.
Church of the Messiah will celebrate the Second Sunday of Advent this Sunday morning, December 6th, beginning at 10 o’clock. The season of Advent is the four Sundays which precede Christmas and comes from an ancient Latin word meaning “to come”. Advent is a time of preparation when Christians throughout the world and throughout the ages have focused not only on Our Lord’s first coming in Bethlehem all those years ago, but on His impending Second Coming as well. As part of our celebration of Advent this year, we will be looking at what it means to truly prepare for the return of Christ. In order to really get ready, we must reach out to others and reflect in on changes we need to make in our own personal lives. This Sunday’s celebration will include something extra-special for our children, so come early and come expecting. We encourage you to take time out of the ever-increasingly busy holiday season this year and make time to prepare this Advent. Services are every Sunday morning beginning at 10 o’clock.
December is jam packed with lots to do at Church of the Messiah. Be sure to mark everything on your calendar so you don’t miss any of the special events.
Saturday, December 5th, is the Men’s Fellowship Breakfast at Church of the Messiah. Join with all of the men of the church as we gather at 8 o’clock in the morning for a manly breakfast and time of sharing. This month we will also help stuff Christmas cards for our Christmas Caroling outreach event later on this month. Join us for great food and great fellowship with great men of God.
Sunday, December 6th, is the Second Sunday of Advent and a special day for our kids. The Advent theme of Reaching Out and Reflecting In will continue but there will be an extra surprise in store for the kids this Sunday.
Monday, December 8th, Women Alive has is monthly meeting at Church of the Messiah. Women Alive is a monthly gathering of women from all over the city of Jacksonville and surrounding areas. These meetings are a safe place to encounter Jesus through extended worship, teaching, and prophetic ministry. Every woman is invited to attend as we pursue more of Jesus and discover more of who He is in us!
Tuesday, December 9th, is the December Ultreya for Northeast Florida. These are monthly reunion meetings for those who have attended a Tres Arroyos weekend or similar three-day retreat (Cursillo, Walk to Emmaus, etc…). The night begins at 6:30 with a potluck meal, includes grouping, and concludes with the Holy Eucharist.
Saturday, December 12th, is our monthly Fusion Service. Fusion is our Young Adults Ministry which reaches out to those between 18 and 35(-ish) who are un-churched or whose home churches have no young adults ministry of their own. This month we will be addressing self-condemnation and seeing ourselves as God truly sees us, having been created in His image and likeness. We will begin at 6:30 with light appetizers and the service begins at 7 o’clock. Everyone is welcome and childcare is provided. A Facebook event has been created HERE. Click to join and invite those you know who would be blessed to attend.
Sunday, December 13th, following our service for the Third Sunday of Advent, our ladies will head our to their Christmas Progressive Luncheon and Ugly Sweater Contest. The ladies will be preparing Christmas Cards for our Christmas Caroling outreach event as well. By the way, they will be wearing those ugly sweaters to church on Sunday morning!
Sunday, December 20th, is the Fourth (and last) Sunday of Advent. After our service we will have lunch together and then head out into the ice and snow to bring merriment to the local neighborhood with Christmas Carols! We will sing Christmas songs and invite people from the local neighborhood to join us at our upcoming services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Be sure to join us for this incredibly fun outreach event.
Thursday, December 24, is Christmas Eve! We will celebrate the night beginning at 7 o’clock with our family service. There will be special music and offerings from our Kids’ Church and a special Children’s Sermon. Join with us as we celebrate the Incarnation of Our Lord Jesus Christ!
Friday, December 25, is our Christmas Day service. We gather bright and early at 10 o’clock on Christmas Day to observe the Feast and celebrate the Birth of Christ. This special service is holy and unique throughout the year and helps to keep the focus on the “Reason for the Season.”
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