Sunday Services – 9:00 and 10:30 AM
December 16th—7 PM,
A Service of Lessons and Carols [Read More]
December 19th—7 PM,
A Service of Hope and Remembrance [Read More]
Christmas Eve Services
5 PM — Family and Children Celebration [Read More]
7 PM — Candlelight Service [Read More]
with guest soloist, Abby Cates
10 PM — Candlelight Communion Service [Read More]
Sunday, December 30th—10:30AM
A Moravian Lovefeast [Read More]
Details at ChristmasinBigCanoe.org ● 470-273-6768
A Service of Lessons and Carols
“My Lord Has Come”
Sunday Evening, December 16, 7:00 PM
The Big Canoe Chapel Choir, under the leadership of Rev. V. Lamar Helms, James Garner, and Sam Holmes, will present a service of Lessons and Carols. A reception in the Broyles Center will follow. The performance and reception are free and open to all.
This service is a progression of lessons and carols based on the traditional English Advent lessons and carols service. That traditional service allows us a time to sit, listen and reflect on the music and the message of Scripture as we allow the Christ Child’s advent to happen afresh in our hearts and minds. The Choir’s presentation, and the reception afterward, should make the evening a sensory event using sounds, sights, smells and tastes of the Advent and Christmas Seasons to bring about renewal and rebirth.
Our anthems, hymns, and scripture passages move from the need for restoration by a Savior Messiah, to prophesy, to annunciation, to the waiting Bethlehem, and finally to the celebration of the Christ child’s birth. Through our music we hope to announce the lesson that in the first Adam, there is death, and in Jesus, the second Adam, all are come alive. We announce again, “My Lord has come.”
A Service of Hope and Remembrance
Wednesday, December 19, 7:00 PM
The Service of Hope and Remembrance provides a time to cherish and celebrate memories of the past and to focus on hope for the future. Rather than being a service of sorrow, it is a service of love and encouragement.
For many, the Advent Season is, as the song says, “the most wonderful
time of the year”- a time of joy and festivity. However, for some, maybe
those who have lost loved ones or experienced some other tragedy, it can
be a time of sadness and loneliness. Some people feel isolated during
this time because the person with whom they have shared holidays in the
past is no longer present.
The Service of Hope and Remembrance provides a time to cherish and
celebrate memories of the past and to focus on hope for the future.
Rather than being a service of sorrow, it is a service of love and
encouragement.
The Service of Hope and Remembrance is new at the Big Canoe Chapel
this year but this type of service has proved to be a positive experience
for persons in many other churches. Join us December 19 at 7:00 pm for
the Service of Hope and Remembrance.
Family and Children Celebration
Monday, December 24, 5:00 PM
A celebration of the birth of our Savior designed especially for children and families, including symbolic passing of the light. This is an opportunity for families to celebrate the birth of Jesus and the unconditional love God has shown to us.
Christmas Eve Candlelight Worship
Monday, December 24, 7:00 PM
A worship celebration featuring lighting of the Christmas candle, symbolic sharing of the light, special Christmas music, and Christmas meditation.
Also participating in this service … guest soloist, Abby Cates, from NBC’s “The Voice.”
Christmas Eve Communion
Monday, December 24, 10:00 PM
A worship celebration including prayer, meditation, and Communion
Moravian Lovefeast
Monday, December 30, 10:00 PM
The Moravian Lovefeast has become a tradition at Big Canoe Chapel. Here is some background information that may clarify why this is such a meaningful service.
The Moravian Lovefeast evolved from the practices of the early Christian churches described in the New Testament. Separate from Communion, these early believers routinely shared food and drink as a time to express Jesus’s commandment: “Love one another as I have loved you”.
The Moravian Church (Moravia is now part of the Czech Republic) is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in the world, with its heritage dating back to the 15th century. Its emblem is the Lamb of God (Agnus Dei) with the flag of victory, surrounded by the Latin inscription: Vicit agnus noster, eum sequamur (English: “Our Lamb has conquered, let us follow Him”). The Moravians began celebrating the Lovefeast in 1727 as a special time of fellowship and spiritual renewal. Later, Methodists also practiced Lovefeasts. Today the traditional Moravian Lovefeast consists of a Moravian bun and sweetened, creamed coffee. This year at Big Canoe Chapel we will be having our own form of simple treats, but the meaning of the Lovefeast remains.
The Lovefeast is a time to recognize and express thanks for the gifts that each member brings to the spiritual community. Hymns describing love and harmony are sung and, as noted above, simple food and drink are served. The service concludes with each participant lighting a white candle adorned with red ribbons. The light of the candle represents the Light that came into the world when Jesus was born while the red shows the coming Passion of Christ as he sacrifices himself for our sins. Through this combined symbolism, we acknowledge that we cannot celebrate Christ’s birth without knowing that his crucifixion will be required for God’s glorification to take place.
Please join us at 10:30 am on Sunday, December 30 in Cousins Hall for our Moravian Lovefeast. NOTE: There will be no 9:00 worship service, no Stand-around, and no Sunday school classes on December 30.