First Presbyterian Church of Niles
Morning Worship
10:00 A.M. February 8, 2026
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(* = stand if you are able)
PRELUDE
REFLECTION TEXT Psalm 112: 1
Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments!
ANNOUNCEMENTS
PREPARATION FOR WORSHIP Pastorale Callahan
CALL TO WORSHIP (Responsive)
People of God, praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord! Happy are those who fear the Lord, those who greatly delight in his commandments.
Their descendants will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.
Wealth and riches are in their houses, and their righteousness endures forever.
We who gather are broken yet holy; sinners at heart, yet fully redeemed. We are God’s very own, called together here this day.
Let us sing. Let us pray. Let us join together in worship. Praise the Lord!
OPENING PRAYER
*HYMN 309 Come, Great God of All the Ages ABBOT’S LEIGH
Come, great God of all the ages; make your earthly mission known,
speak through every deed and person, let your way and will be shown.
Guide the church to true commitment; give direction now, we ask;
Fit us for the work of building; dedicate us to the task.
Come, Christ Jesus, flesh and spirit, sure foundation, cornerstone;
Help us form the church eternal; may your vision be our own.
Send a message to each follower; lead all people to your way;
urge us to strong faith and action as we build the church today.
Come, great Spirit, in and with us, tune our ears to hear your call;
Through the moving of your presence, let redeeming love recall
Ministry in dedication, love embodied in our deeds;
Challenge us to do your bidding, see your purpose, fill all needs.
Come, O come, in celebration, household of the one true God;
In commitment and rejoicing let us go where Christ has trod;
As we act in faith and reverence, let us, Lord, the future see;
Place us in the church triumphant, now and for eternity.
CALL TO CONFESSION
PRAYER OF CONFESSION (In Unison)
Gracious God, we confess that it is harder to do than we expected, this life of faith. You call us to be salt of the earth and to live lives of justice and righteousness and love. But our lives become busy. Following what others do is just easier. And sometimes the cost for doing what is right seems too high. One day, perhaps, we will commit more fully, but the status quo works better for us right now. Forgive us, we pray. Startle our senses and disrupt our routines. Renew in us the passion for doing what is right in your eyes, and inspire us to be sources of your light in the world. May we, like the prophets and the saints, act by faith no matter how high the cost.
MOMENT OF SILENT AND PERSONAL CONFESSION
ASSURANCE OF PARDON (Responsive)
In mercy God forgives us our sin and grants us genuine repentance through the grace and power of the Holy Spirit.
Thanks be to God!
PASSING THE PEACE
As God has forgiven us in Christ let us also forgive one another.
The peace of Christ be with you all.
And also with you.
Please share the sign of peace with one another.
The sharing of Christ’s peace.
RESPONSE Peace is Flowing Like a River TRADITIONAL
Peace is flowing like a river, flowing out to you and me.
Flowing out into the desert, setting all the captives free.
His love is flowing like a river, flowing out to you and me.
Flowing out into the desert, setting all the captives free.
PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION
FIRST SCRIPTURE READING 1 Corinthians 2: 1-16
SPECIAL MUSIC Seek the Lord Larson
Chancel Choir
Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Seek the Lord while He may be found; He will cleanse you of sin and fear. Ask and it shall be given unto you; seek and you shall find. If you knock the door shall be opened unto you; for everyone who seeks shall find. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and you’ll know true happiness.
SECOND SCRIPTURE READING Matthew 5: 13-20
MESSAGE Wisdom Through the Spirit, Christ Salt and Light Rev. Christopher Mergener
*HYMN 314 (Vs. 1, 2, 5) Longing for Light, We Wait in Darkness 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.
Refrain: 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 power to save us. Make us your living voice. Refrain
Many the gifts, many the people, many the hearts that yearn to belong.
Let us be servants to one another, making your kingdom come. Refrain
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH (In Unison) (from The Confession of 1967)
We believe: The life, death, resurrection, and promised coming of Jesus Christ has set the pattern for the church’s mission. His human life involves the church in the common life of all people. His service to men and women commits the church to work for every form of human well-being. His suffering makes the church sensitive to all human suffering so that it sees the face of Christ in the faces of persons in every kind of need. His crucifixion discloses to the church God’s judgment on the inhumanity that marks human relations, and the awful consequences of the church’s own complicity in injustice. In the power of the risen Christ and the hope of his coming, the church sees the promise of God’s renewal of human life in society and of God’s victory over all wrong. The church follows this pattern in the form of its life and in the method of its action. So to live and serve is to confess Christ as Lord. Amen.
CALL FOR THE OFFERING
Offertory Make Me a Channel of Your Peace Larson
*DOXOLOGY To God, all Glorious Heavenly Light OLD 100TH
To God, all glorious heavenly light; To Christ, revealed in earthly night; To God, the Spirit now we raise; Our joyful songs of thankful praise. Amen.
*PRAYER OF DEDICATION
PREPARATION FOR PRAYERS 472(Vs. 1, 4) Kum be Yah KUM BA YAH
Kum ba yah, my Lord, kum ba yah! Kum ba yah, my Lord, kum ba yah!
Kum ba yah, my Lord, kum ba yah! O Lord, kum ba yah!
Someone’s praying, Lord, kum ba yah! Someone’s praying, Lord, kum ba yah!
Someone’s praying, Lord, kum ba yah! O Lord, kum ba yah!
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE (Responsive)
Loving God,
hear our prayer.
THE LORD’S PRAYER (In Unison)
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.
*HYMN 767 Together We Serve SAN ANSELMO
Together we serve, united by love, inviting God’s world to the glorious feast.
We work and we pray through sorrow and joy, extending God’s love to the last and the least.
We seek to become a beacon of hope, a lamp for the heart and a light for the feet.
We learn, year by year, to let love shine through until we see Christ in each person we meet.
We welcome the scarred, the wealthy, the poor, the busy, the lonely, and all who need care.
We offer a home to those who will come, our hands quick to help, our hearts ready to dare.
Together, by grace, we witness and work, remembering Jesus, in whom we grow strong.
Together we serve in Spirit and truth, remembering love is the strength of our song.
*CHARGE AND BENEDICTION
POSTLUDE
All music is reproduced under permission from ccli.com License #11146543.
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