Ogston, David
Lord, hae mercie.
Christ, hae mercie
Lord, hae mercie.
Saviour Lord, Licht near at haun
The leal herts wyte for You.
The Lord is close by,
Aye, He is close by.
"Child of all glory"
Coming among us:
Enter our story
Life giving Son.
Days of Your making
Call us to praise You:
New roads for taking
Summon us on.
Praise be, the Lord is near haun!
R Glorie an micht an pooer, warld withoot end!
Blissit is He that comes i the Name o the Lord!
R Lord, sain us an save us.
Haud up yer heids, ye yetts,
Be liftit hich
So that the King may come
The King o glorie
Caa lowss yer snecks, ye yetts
Yetts fae lang seen:
Gang wide an wyte
For the King o glorie.
Yetts fae lang back
Be lowsed an onsteekit
Mak for the King o glorie
Throwegang an forrit-gate!
Faa is this King o glorie
The Lord douchty an maisterfu?
The Lord puissant?
SOUND OF CHIILD CRYING
Wee Lord, appearin for's
At the deid o nicht
We wyte for You.
Wee Lord appearin for's
Tae be the Bricht an Glentin Starn
We wyte for You.
Wee Lord, Lord o a canny licht
The leal herts wyte for You.
Wee Lord, Licht risin fae the howe
O nicht, we wyte for You.
TAIZE CHANT: 'within our darkest night'
O key o Dauvit, keeper o the yetts,
Come an lowse the prisoner.
O mornin Star, come an shine
Braid licht on them that dwine
In the howe-dumb-deid o daith
O Christ Emmanuel, King abeen
An King aneth, howp o aa the nations
Saviour an Prince o Peace
Come an redeem
Redeem an claim
Claim an keep,
You keeper
O the yetts!
The Halie Gospel o the Lord, in Luke 12 verse thirty-fower-
'Whaur your treisur is, thair will your Hairt be an aa.
Hae your lunyies ey girt up.
An your lamps lichtit, like servans
Wytin their maister's hamecome
Efter a mairrage, sae at
They mayna haud him staunin ootbye,
Faan he chaps at the door.
Happie thae servans at their maister
At his hamecomin
Finnds waukent an watchin!'
I hear thae dunts, the dunts on a lockit door, the door o my steekit hairt. He comes tae tryst wie me, wie you, wie onybody. Some day He will come in glorie. Bit for noo, we mark the days tull He comes in Bethlehem. We wyte. We redd up the boorach o oor days an lives.
Advent means comin. For the Wise Men it meant waur nor that- it meant leavin. Leavin hame. Juist like Mary an Joseph, traivellin tae the census. Only, for the Wise Men, it wisna sae aefauld. They left hame for a ferlie they wisna sure o.
By a new star wonder finds us
Comes a light that heals and blinds us
Comes the One the ages prayed for
Comes the One all things were made for
By a new star and a new way
Comes the One who is the true way
King of Heaven, born of woman
Hope and promise crown His coming.
Staun forrit, Melchior, Caspar, Balthasar. We dinna credit you wie Advent faith, nae like we heise up John the Baptist, Mary the chosen quine, Isaiah an his like. An yet, for aa that, your leavin is an act o faith. You wis aul men, I jaloose, bit ye wis young eneuch tae stert stravaigin: ye were tell't, aiblins, at the affset, faan ye were getting roadit, "Ach, ye're nae wyss!" "Aul men should keep the ingle-neuk"
That's nae the wye the Bible tells it.Bi Luke's wye o't there is nae Advent withoot a wheen o auld fowk : aul Zechariah an his wife Elspeth, a gudelie, weill-daein pair, but bairns they hed nane, sin Elspeth wis barren an baith the twa o them wis weill up in years. Bit ae day, in the verra sanctuarie o the Temple, an angel flegs the aul man wie a byordnar promise-
"Elspeth your wife will beir ye a son; ye are tae caa him John. He will gang afore the Lord God, sowtherin the hairts o faithers an bairns an lairnin the wanrulie gudelie gates, at the Lord may finnd a fowk aa redd an prepared for him."
An sae it comes aboot: John the Baptist is born fae an apparently barren wame an syne, faan he growes up, appears in front o's in a really barren desert. Bit Luke his mair aul fowk, wytin fur their lives tae be crooned an the mangin o their hairts tae be answered. Aul Simeon, gey faur ben, kens that he winna dee tull he his seen the Lord's Anointit- an sae he daes, for on the day the wee Lord comes tae the Temple tae be dedicate, Simeon taks the bairn intil his oxter an praises God an says-
"My een hes seen thy salvation."
An Luke tells, tae o the aul wumman Anna- a gey an eildit carlin, nae less nor echty- fower year aul - she sees the bairn an she gies thanks.
So; ride on Melchior wie yer gowd. Ride on, Caspar, wie yer incense. Haud forrit, Balthasar, wie yer myrrh. You are amang the first: ye'll nae be the last tae sik for Him. The aul fowk i the Temple are hard tee tae the Wee Lord bi reason o their femmly,or their wark i the sanctuarie, or their devout an sair guidwill: you traivellers win throwe tull Him fae a far place, fae aa far places, an we the ootlins jyne in the gledness o yer sang:
PSALM 100 THE AULD HUNDER
(Version bi the late Rev. Alex Borrowman)
Aa fowk wha dwell upon the yirth
Sing tae the Lord wi blythesome sang;
Heeze up yer voice an syne wi mirth
And blytheheid lat the stave outgang.
Ye ken the Lord is God: Himlane
Oot o the mools he did us mak;
For flock o fe he has us taen
An for his hirsel us will tak.
O ben then til his yetts wi laud,
Intil his fauld wi cheerie sang;
O sing a sang in praise o God,
Ye men o guidwill steive and strang.
Forby the Lord our God is guid,
His guidwill isna for ae day;
His sooth at aa times sterklie stauns
An sall gae on for aye and aye.
Advent comes in winter. Throwe winter - the winter o aul age- comes John the Baptist. Smaa winner is't, that een sae born, born oot o due time an conter tae the wye o things, sud be a man tae lay an undue wecht on time, an chynge, upset an upheaval. John saa a warld cowpit tapsalteerie, an the Wee Lord wis tae be the een that cowpit it!
"Redd ye the gate o the Lord
Mak ye straucht his pads!
Ilkie gill an cleuch
Sal be made queem,
An ilkie knock an knowe
Become a laich;
The wimpelt gates sal be strauchtit
An the roch roads made sound:
An aa livin will see
The saufin wark o God!"
That's John in his barren desert, bit the echoes o his voice rax back tae the Temple, faar ae day an aul man said
"my een hes seen thy salvation"
Time disnae maitter here: the twa voices are een. The echoes o John's voice rax back still farrer, tae the sang o the quine chosen tae be Jesus's mither: Mary's sang is the same as John's tapsalteerie rant-
"He hes wrocht michtie deeds
He hes sperpelt the heilie an heich,
at thocht prood thochts i their hairts;
He hes dung hie princes doon frae their thrones
an heized up the hummle an laich;
He hes gien the hungersome their full o guid fairin
An driven the gearie an gethert tuim-haundit awa."
MAGNIFICAT:
Nummer 48: Words (based on the Magnificat): Unknown.
Music: Scottish Folk Melody
Chynge an upheaval is in the air.
Advent is a new start, the new year in the kirk's calendar
John the Baptist an Mary spik aboot a warld birlin on tae new values, new priorities.
Paul's wirds aboot the day dawin are richt an weel suited for the three livvels that Advent moves on: first, the history, the fact that winna ding, Bethlehem an a stable an a lantren tellin herds an hillmen faar the Licht o the warld is: Christ the Wee Lord comin tull's, Christ the Lamb. The time is near at haun, the Lord is close by. Paul says
"It is time at ye waukent outen your sleep, for salvation is nearerhaun nor whaun we becam believers. The nicht is maist by; aareddies it is grayin."
His first Advent is ahin's bit the kirk niver tines the thocht o His third Advent, faan He will come in glorie. Paul thocht it maun be gey near. We wadna be sae siccar- we hae forgotten foo tae live as though the hinmaist day wis on's. An yet, ilka day is oor hinmaist day, is it nae?
That leaves the second Advent, faan Christ comes tae the dozent, sleepy pairt o's in order tae wauken us. He comes, like that, a dizzen times a day it may be: tae the blauded pairt o's, tae heal us; tae the doonherted, forfochen pairt o's, tae gie us new virr an blytheness; tae the waesome pairt o's, tae get us roadit again; tae the deid pairt o's, tae resurrect us oot o the pooer o Shaddas; tae the feart pairt o's, tae gaur as squaur oor shooders; tae the tint pairt o's, tae pint us hame again; tae the prood pairt o's, tae mak us human; tae the thrawn pairt o's, tae shak oor granite wills; tae the self-centred pairt o's, tae gie us braid horizons.
"It is time," says Paul.
"Lat us be dune wie deeds at ee mayna see, an reik us oot I the graith o licht."
That bonnie wird " graith" means harness. Paul micht be a fairm grieve o the Scotland that wis foo o horses, in the aul days o the big touns wie their bothies an chaumers an a hale team o men turnin oot o a mornin, juist as Paul says, faan the nicht wis maist by an it wis nearly dawn. Yokin time. As Dauvit Kerr Cameron his it-
"before 5 o'clock the bailie or stockman lifted his head from the cold pillow and made, blear-eyed, for the byre. In the summer he was up by 4...if he was a dairy cattleman. The horseman had an hour of sleep left, a half hour at least...Then it was time to rise, to feed and groom their Clydesdales.'
"It is time," says Paul.
Time tae brak new grun.
"It is time," says John.
Time tae redd the gate o the Lord.
"It is time," says Mary.
Time to chynge; things, oorsels.
"It is time," says Simeon.
Time tae see wie oor ain een.
"And our eyes," says the aul hymn, "at last shall see Him.
Through His own redeeming love;
For the Child so dear and gentle
Is our Lord in Heaven above."
For noo, we wyte for Hivven tae come close by, tae be near by. We wyte, ready tae see, ready tae hear. Een as we wyte, the wird is on it's wye tull's.
Lown is the wird gaen tae the yird.
Bairn in a troch, smaa-boukit Lord.
Nane bit a fyowe jaloose wha is come
Herds on the brae-face, fleggit an dumb
Scan a lift lood wie God's Praises
Scan a lift bricht wi God's praise.'
You Royal Three, creep in an see
Raise up the sneck an the door is ajee
Kings o far places, wabbit an lame
Kneel by the ootlin, far frae His hame,
Wee Lord appearin for aa een
Wee Lord come doon fae abeen.
Rise bonnie star, shine near an far,
Still there is want, still there is war,
Blythe be the Lowe that promises peace
Welcome the Licht that nivver will cease
Hansel the nicht He wis born in,
Hansel ilkie new mornin.