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This Sunday: January 11, 2026
SERMON
This Sunday: The Rev. Dr. Mike Harbert
“How God Feels About Us”
Bible Passages:
Isaiah 42:1-9; Psalm 29; Matthew 3:13-17
Lector: Laura Robinson Harbert
Crucifer: Will Jansma
Ushers: Carol Williams and Carle Mowell
Fellowship: Carolyn Sanders
Flowers:Carolyn Sanders
“In rememberance of John Sanders. Beloved husband of 61 years of marriage to Carolyn and father of Marilee Ahalt, and Stephen and Drew Sanders.”
Jubal Joslyn, tenor
Cathryn Wilkinson, piano and organ
Prelude
Christ, unser Herr, zum Jordan kam, BWV 684……….J. S. Bach
(When Christ our Lord came to the River Jordan)
The Water Is Wide……….English ballad
Deep River……….African American, arr. Burleigh
Shall We Gather at the River……….Robert Lowry, arr. Copland
Down To The River To Pray ……….Spiritual, arr. Medema
Offertory
The Work of Christmas……….Dan Forrest
Organ Postlude
Carillon on “Ukrainian Bell Carol”……….arr. Gerald Near
Sometimes the question is put to me, “How do you select the music?” The answer to that question could be different every Sunday. Poetry with images of water and rivers is a great match for today’s focus on the Baptism of Christ. Rivers, and especially the River Jordan, symbolize many things, such as cleansing, the beginning of a new ministry for Jesus, renewal, and the gateway to eternal life, as expressed in “Deep River.”
I have also looked forward to one of my favorites, “The Work of Christmas,” based on a poem by Howard Thurman, an influential theologian and civil rights activist. The title refers to Christmas, but this song could be sung all year long, spurring us to live out Jesus’ mission to preach the gospel to the poor, heal the brokenhearted, and set the captives free.
The postlude is a consequence of our recent Christmas Eve power outage. We all grew in our appreciation of light in the darkness, but we were not able to enjoy the Carillon on a “Ukrainian Bell Carol” that I had intended for the Christmas postlude. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church traditionally celebrated Christmas according to the Julian calendar on January 7 until 2023, when Ukrainians moved officially moved Christmas to December 25, following the Gregorian calendar. Since some families in Ukraine still celebrate on January 7, it’s not altogether out of season to enjoy the Carillon today.
Last Sunday’s Service
Sunday Services Archive
The Rev. Dr. Michael Harbert
Pastor's Letter
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:16-17)
Dear CitF Family,
As we move from the season of Christmas into our New Year, seeking to live with open and responsive hearts to the leading of our loving God, we now approach the first Sunday after Epiphany.
This Sunday we will focus on one of the very most important things we need to understand and digest into our lives—that we are eternally and unconditionally loved by God. We see this played out in Jesus’ baptism, when Father God declared over Jesus at his baptism (BEFORE HE PREACHED ONE SERMON OR HEALED ONE PERSON) that he was loved and pleasing to the Father. This Jesus, who came to stand in our place and open God’s Kingdom to us, received this confirmation from the Father that declares how God feels about all of us.
On Saturday, January 3rd, Laura and I visited Grace Cathedral in San Francisco to walk the labyrinth and take in God’s Word for us as we began our New Year. I’ve shared a picture of what we found and experienced there. What came to us is, if we hope to experience the goodness God has for us in this New Year, we must see ourselves as God sees us and live lives of trusting obedience, walking the path one step at a time that God sets before us.
Laura and I look forward to sharing this journey of growing in our understanding and experience of our belovedness, and the wisdom of growing in our trust in God’s leading before all things, as we travel together through this New Year!
With great hope in God,
Pastor Mike
Small Groups & Bible Study
Growth Groups
These are gatherings where CitF members and friends can explore faith and deepen fellowship.
Sunday Bible Study
We meet every Sunday in the Multipurpose Room
from 9:00 – 9:40 a.m.
to discuss the scripture passages of the day.
Pastor Mike leads our weekly discussions.
Men’s Bible Study
Men’s Bible Study meets on Thursdays from
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
in the Multipurpose Room and/or on Zoom (as announced)
and is studying the Old Testament book of Daniel.
For more information contact Bob Axley at rjaxley@icloud.com