New Year’s Day at All Hallows (January 1, 2026)
Welcome to New Year’s Day at All Hallows.
Every year Christians in the Methodist and other Christian traditions gather on New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, or the first Sunday of the New Year to reaffirm their commitment to Christ and to the Church. In the New Year’s message, we will examine the reasons for making such a recommitment. GATHER IN GOD’S NAME
Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new. 2 Corinthians 5:17
Open our lips, O Lord;
And we shall declare your praise.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Dave Fournier and Ryan Foglesong’s
“All Of Our Tomorrows.”
VERSE 1:
This spinning world by Your own hand
Hurls ever on around the sun
The seasons march at Your command
The old departs, the new year comes
And though celestial is Your gaze
You search and care for all our ways
We offer up to You this day
And all of our tomorrows
VERSE 2:
May zealous youth and cautious age
Determine not the steps we choose
Great Shepherd, guide us through each day
Oh, how we want to follow You
Come Living Way, our way make clear
Let perfect love drive out our fear
Be Thou our vision, now and here
And all of our tomorrows
VERSE 3:
When winter makes us reminisce
Of warmer days so distant now
Of cherished saints the sun once kissed
Whose beauty passed behind the clouds
Let all our fond and longing tears
Remind us we are pilgrims here
We trust You, Sovereign of our years
With all of our tomorrows
VERSE 4:
Hands to the plow, we’re pressing on
And running hard to win the prize
Empowered by the love of God
With grace before and grace behind
For lo, what hope before us stands
You finish all that You began
Eternal joy is in Your hands
And all of our tomorrows
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth
is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God is faithful and
just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:8-9
Let us now confess our sins to almighty God.
Silence
God of all mercy,
we humbly admit that we need your help.
We confess that we have wandered from your way.
We have sinned in thought, word and deed
and have failed to do what is right.
You alone can save us.
Have mercy on us,
wipe out our sins and teach us to forgive others.
Bring forth in us the fruit of the Spirit
that we may live the ew life to your glory...
This we ask in the name of Jesus our Saviour. Amen.
God desires that none should perish,
but that all should turn to Christ and live.
in response to his call we acknowledge our sins.
God pardons those who humbly repent, and truly believe the gospel. Therefore we have peace with God, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Laura Story and Jordan Kauflin’s
“The Lord Is My Light” (Psalm 27).
VERSE 1:
The Lord is my light and my salvation
Whom shall I fear, whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life
Of whom shall I be afraid?
CHORUS:
Lord, You are my shelter
God of my salvation, I am not forsaken
Lord, my shield and protector
Waiting on Your promise I will see Your goodness
O Lord
VERSE 2:
When troubles arise no foe can harm me
You are my peace, You are my peace
You lift me above the raging storm
You conquer my enemies
CHORUS:
Lord, You are my shelter
God of my salvation, I am not forsaken
Lord, my shield and protector
Waiting on Your promise I will see Your goodness
O Lord
VERSE 3:
One thing I have asked, to see Your beauty
This I will seek, this I will seek
To dwell in Your house, to walk in Your ways
Your presence is all I need
BRIDGE:
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
CHORUS:
Lord, You are my shelter
God of my salvation, I am not forsaken
Lord, my shield and protector
Waiting on Your promise I will see Your goodness
O Lord
Open this link in a new tab to hear Lacy Condy and Bob Kauflin’s “God Is Faithful” (Psalm 114)
VERSE 1:
God brought out His people with a strong and mighty hand
Took them out of slavery to behold the Promised Land
Mountains fled before them and the seas turned back and ran
And they saw that He was good
CHORUS 1:
God is faithful to His promise
He is with us, He is with us
God is faithful, God is faithful to His own
VERSE 2:
God has come to free us from the bondage of our sin
Tasting of His kindness we cannot go back again
Leads us through the desert to the rivers of His grace
Working all things for our good
CHORUS 1:
God is faithful to His promise
He is with us, He is with us
God is faithful, God is faithful to His own
VERSE 3:
We have known Your mercy and Your love as in the past
If days be few or many You will guide us to the last
You have said it, we believe it, every promise holding fast
For we know that You are good
CHORUS 2:
God is faithful to His promise
He is with us, He is with us
God is faithful, God is faithful to His own
You are faithful to Your promise, You are with us, You are with us
You are faithful, You are faithful to Your own
THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD
Heavenly Father,
give us faith to receive your word,
understanding to know what it means,
and the will to put it into practice,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
A reading from the Gospel according to John.
John 15:1-5
I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts away every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit. But he trims clean every branch that does produce fruit, so that it will produce even more fruit. You are already clean because of what I have said to you.
Stay joined to me, and I will stay joined to you. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit unless it stays joined to the vine, you cannot produce fruit unless you stay joined to me. I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me.
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory.
Silence
Have you ever gone to church and found your mind wandering in the middle of the sermon or some other part of the service? Zoned out during a meeting at work or a lecture at school or a conversation with a family member or a friend? Maybe even fallen asleep? Despite our best intentions we may struggle to keep our minds focused on the business at hand in a variety of situations.
Researchers have found that congregations retain very little of the sermons that their pastors give. Vision statement, even succinct ones are quickly forgot unless the congregation receives regular reminders of the statement.
While this may be attributable—at last in part--to our inclination to sin, to choose our own way over God’ way, which does not disappear even in those who have been born again, that is, experienced spiritual rebirth, it may also be attributable to the way that our brains function. The brain chooses to store only what it determines may prove useful. We may not even be aware of the judgment calls that our brain is making.
While God’s grace enables us to will and do what pleases God and the Holy Spirit guide us, we still need events like Covenant Renewal Services which, like reading the Bible, praying, going to church, and taking part in the Lord’ Supper, keep us focused on following Christ, Like them, such events are also means of grace, channels through which God supplies us with grace.
In a sense these events act too as rumble strips to warn us to steer back into our lane and as guardrails to prevent us from going into dangerous areas. They encourage us to think more seriously about what it means to be a disciple of Christ and to fashion and form our lives according to his teaching and example, to appraise how well we are doing, to identify what we might do better, and most importantly to deciding how we are going to go about it.
As John 15:1-5 remind us, we cannot do anything apart from Christ. Our relationship with Christ in vital to our spiritual growth--to our growth in Christlikeness, to our increase in love for God, our neighbors, and our fellow Christians. Events like Covenant Renewal Services help us keep that in mind. When we reaffirm our commitment to Christ and the Church, we reaffirm our faith in him as our Saviour and our Lord.
In this New Year’s service, there are two opportunities to make such a recommitment—in the song following this message, "I Am Your," a song based upon John Wesley’ Covenant Renewal Prayer, and the prayer of dedication, “Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to you…..” following the song “Revival” at the conclusion of the service. Those exploring Christianity may wish to take advantage of these opportunities to make a commitment to Christ if they feel so led. Wherever you are in your faith journey, may the Lord bring to completion the good work that he has begun in you.
Silence
Open this link in a new tab to hear Justin Huey, Cory Ryan, BJ Huffman, and Olivia Ash’s “I Am Yours” (The Wesley Covenant).
I am not mine, I am yours God
Put me to your will alone
Whether used or laid aside Lord
In joy or suffering Your grace be known
I give myself to you
To your pleasure and your use
I am not mine, I am yours God
Put me to your will alone
Whether used or laid aside Lord
In joy or suffering Your grace be known
Lifted high or made low for you
Emptied out or filled to overflow
Let have me all things, let me have nothing
Put me to Your will and Yours alone
I give myself to you
To your pleasure and your use
I give myself to you
To your pleasure and your use
Glorious God, Father, Son and Spirit
You are mine, And I am yours, so be it
let this covenant I make
Be bound in heaven in your grace
Let us now confess our sins to almighty God.
Silence
God of all mercy,
we humbly admit that we need your help.
We confess that we have wandered from your way.
We have sinned in thought, word and deed
and have failed to do what is right.
You alone can save us.
Have mercy on us,
wipe out our sins and teach us to forgive others.
Bring forth in us the fruit of the Spirit
that we may live the ew life to your glory...
This we ask in the name of Jesus our Saviour. Amen.
God desires that none should perish,
but that all should turn to Christ and live.
in response to his call we acknowledge our sins.
God pardons those who humbly repent, and truly believe the gospel. Therefore we have peace with God, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Laura Story and Jordan Kauflin’s
“The Lord Is My Light” (Psalm 27).
VERSE 1:
The Lord is my light and my salvation
Whom shall I fear, whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life
Of whom shall I be afraid?
CHORUS:
Lord, You are my shelter
God of my salvation, I am not forsaken
Lord, my shield and protector
Waiting on Your promise I will see Your goodness
O Lord
VERSE 2:
When troubles arise no foe can harm me
You are my peace, You are my peace
You lift me above the raging storm
You conquer my enemies
CHORUS:
Lord, You are my shelter
God of my salvation, I am not forsaken
Lord, my shield and protector
Waiting on Your promise I will see Your goodness
O Lord
VERSE 3:
One thing I have asked, to see Your beauty
This I will seek, this I will seek
To dwell in Your house, to walk in Your ways
Your presence is all I need
BRIDGE:
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
I wait, wait for the Lord
In faith, trusting Your Word
CHORUS:
Lord, You are my shelter
God of my salvation, I am not forsaken
Lord, my shield and protector
Waiting on Your promise I will see Your goodness
O Lord
Open this link in a new tab to hear Lacy Condy and Bob Kauflin’s “God Is Faithful” (Psalm 114)
VERSE 1:
God brought out His people with a strong and mighty hand
Took them out of slavery to behold the Promised Land
Mountains fled before them and the seas turned back and ran
And they saw that He was good
CHORUS 1:
God is faithful to His promise
He is with us, He is with us
God is faithful, God is faithful to His own
VERSE 2:
God has come to free us from the bondage of our sin
Tasting of His kindness we cannot go back again
Leads us through the desert to the rivers of His grace
Working all things for our good
CHORUS 1:
God is faithful to His promise
He is with us, He is with us
God is faithful, God is faithful to His own
VERSE 3:
We have known Your mercy and Your love as in the past
If days be few or many You will guide us to the last
You have said it, we believe it, every promise holding fast
For we know that You are good
CHORUS 2:
God is faithful to His promise
He is with us, He is with us
God is faithful, God is faithful to His own
You are faithful to Your promise, You are with us, You are with us
You are faithful, You are faithful to Your own
THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD
Heavenly Father,
give us faith to receive your word,
understanding to know what it means,
and the will to put it into practice,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
A reading from the Gospel according to John.
John 15:1-5
I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts away every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit. But he trims clean every branch that does produce fruit, so that it will produce even more fruit. You are already clean because of what I have said to you.
Stay joined to me, and I will stay joined to you. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit unless it stays joined to the vine, you cannot produce fruit unless you stay joined to me. I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me.
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory.
Silence
“I Am Not Mine, I Am Yours God”
Have you ever gone to church and found your mind wandering in the middle of the sermon or some other part of the service? Zoned out during a meeting at work or a lecture at school or a conversation with a family member or a friend? Maybe even fallen asleep? Despite our best intentions we may struggle to keep our minds focused on the business at hand in a variety of situations.
Researchers have found that congregations retain very little of the sermons that their pastors give. Vision statement, even succinct ones are quickly forgot unless the congregation receives regular reminders of the statement.
While this may be attributable—at last in part--to our inclination to sin, to choose our own way over God’ way, which does not disappear even in those who have been born again, that is, experienced spiritual rebirth, it may also be attributable to the way that our brains function. The brain chooses to store only what it determines may prove useful. We may not even be aware of the judgment calls that our brain is making.
While God’s grace enables us to will and do what pleases God and the Holy Spirit guide us, we still need events like Covenant Renewal Services which, like reading the Bible, praying, going to church, and taking part in the Lord’ Supper, keep us focused on following Christ, Like them, such events are also means of grace, channels through which God supplies us with grace.
In a sense these events act too as rumble strips to warn us to steer back into our lane and as guardrails to prevent us from going into dangerous areas. They encourage us to think more seriously about what it means to be a disciple of Christ and to fashion and form our lives according to his teaching and example, to appraise how well we are doing, to identify what we might do better, and most importantly to deciding how we are going to go about it.
As John 15:1-5 remind us, we cannot do anything apart from Christ. Our relationship with Christ in vital to our spiritual growth--to our growth in Christlikeness, to our increase in love for God, our neighbors, and our fellow Christians. Events like Covenant Renewal Services help us keep that in mind. When we reaffirm our commitment to Christ and the Church, we reaffirm our faith in him as our Saviour and our Lord.
In this New Year’s service, there are two opportunities to make such a recommitment—in the song following this message, "I Am Your," a song based upon John Wesley’ Covenant Renewal Prayer, and the prayer of dedication, “Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to you…..” following the song “Revival” at the conclusion of the service. Those exploring Christianity may wish to take advantage of these opportunities to make a commitment to Christ if they feel so led. Wherever you are in your faith journey, may the Lord bring to completion the good work that he has begun in you.
Silence
Open this link in a new tab to hear Justin Huey, Cory Ryan, BJ Huffman, and Olivia Ash’s “I Am Yours” (The Wesley Covenant).
I am not mine, I am yours God
Put me to your will alone
Whether used or laid aside Lord
In joy or suffering Your grace be known
I give myself to you
To your pleasure and your use
I am not mine, I am yours God
Put me to your will alone
Whether used or laid aside Lord
In joy or suffering Your grace be known
Lifted high or made low for you
Emptied out or filled to overflow
Let have me all things, let me have nothing
Put me to Your will and Yours alone
I give myself to you
To your pleasure and your use
I give myself to you
To your pleasure and your use
Glorious God, Father, Son and Spirit
You are mine, And I am yours, so be it
let this covenant I make
Be bound in heaven in your grace
Glorious God, Father, Son and Spirit
You are mine, And I am yours, so be it
Let this covenant I make
Be bound in heaven in your grace
Glorious God, Father, Son and Spirit
You are mine, And I am yours, so be it
Let this covenant I make
Be bound in heaven in your grace
Glorious God, Father, Son and Spirit
You are mine, And I am yours, so be it
Let this covenant I make
Be bound in heaven in your grace
Amen (Amen, Amen)
Amen (Amen)
Amen
Amen
[People of God, what do you believe?]
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father
almighty;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
THE MINISTRY OF PRAYER
[The Lord be with you.
And also with you.]
[Let us join together in the prayer which Jesus gave us.].
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 trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Be exalted, Lord, above the heavens,
let your glory cover the earth.
Keep our nation under your care,
and guide us in justice and truth.
Let your way be known on earth,
your saving power among all nations.
Send out your light and your truth
that we may tell of your saving works.
Have mercy upon the poor and the oppressed.
Hear the cry of those in need.
Hear our prayers, O Lord,
for we put our trust in you.
Most gracious and merciful God,
you have reconciled us to yourself
through Jesus Christ your Son,
and called us to new life in him:
Grant that we, who begin this year in his Name,
may complete it to his honor and glory;
who lives and reigns now and for ever. Amen.
Silence may be kept.
Those present may offer their own prayers and thanksgivings for the world, the community, the church, the spread of the gospel, and for the needs of individuals.
Faithful God,
you have promised to hear the prayers
of all who ask in Jesus’ name.
In your mercy, accept our prayers.
Give us what we have asked in faith,
according to your will;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE SENDING FORTH OF GOD’S PEOPLE
Open this link in a new tab to hear Matt Bisel’s “Revival.”
Lord send Your Spirit on tongues of fire
Ignite the wind with Your Holy Revival
Glory rises from ash and cinder
We fall to our knees and wholly surrender
Oh we hear it on the wind
An ancient wind, from a Holy Light
Oh You hear us, You hear our cries
You hear our pain and the wind come alive
Lord send Your Spirit on tongues of fire
Ignite the wind with Your Holy Revival
Glory rises from ash and cinder
We fall to our knees and wholly surrender
On our knees, we all confess
That You are God and we are not
And from Heaven Your glory rains
And we come alive, oh this place comes alive
Lord send Your Spirit on tongues of fire
Ignite the wind with Your Holy Revival
Glory rises from ash and cinder
We fall to our knees and wholly surrender
Sing glory, glory
A new day has come
Sing glory, glory
A Holy light has risen
Sing glory, glory
Our hope is present
We sing glory, glory
Sing glory, glory
A new day has come
Sing glory, glory
A Holy light has risen
Sing glory, glory
Our hope is present
We sing glory, glory
Lord send Your Spirit on tongues of fire
Ignite the wind with Your Holy Revival
Glory rises from ash and cinder
We fall to our knees and wholly surrender
Lord send Your Spirit on tongues of fire
Ignite the wind with Your Holy Revival
Glory rises from ash and cinder
We fall to our knees and wholly surrender
Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to you, so
guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our
wills, that we may be wholly yours, utterly dedicated to
you; and then use us, we pray, as you will, and always
to your glory and the welfare of your people; through our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear St. Aidan’s Community’s “The Grace (2 Corinthians 13:14).”
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God our Father,
and the fellowship, the fellowship
of the Holy Spirit be with us
for evermore and evermore and evermore. Amen.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God our Father,
and the fellowship, the fellowship
of the Holy Spirit be with us
for evermore and evermore and evermore. Amen.
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