Ascension Eve

We celebrated The Ascension of Our Lord at my church last night. The Feast of the Ascension is actually today, but because we normally have a midweek liturgy every Wednesday, we had an Ascension Eve service instead, followed by a reception with lots of white, fluffy snacks (cream puffs, popcorn, and angel food cake, to name a few). It was a wonderful, festive service with brass, bells and choir, and the fellowship afterward was icing on the cake, with one side of the gym set up for the adults to visit and the other side equipped with beach balls and hula hoops for the children to play.

The video below is a ten-minute clip from the service, beginning with the Kyrie and ending with the Gospel. The sound quality is not the greatest, as the camera was set up right behind the piano and on top of the organ, but I share for those who may be interested. The musicians of Immanuel have made such wonderful progress this year and I can't wait to see what the future holds for them. This clip also features a young cantor named Evan singing several solos.

Here is a list of what is included in the clip with starting times for the musical selections:

"Alabaré" (LSB 799), 00:30
Psalm 47, setting by Thomas Tertius Noble, adult choir, 03:15
First reading, Acts 1:1-11
Alleluia & Verse (Matthew 28:20), 08:00
Holy Gospel, Luke 24:44-53

I love the service note my husband wrote for the bulletin. If you aren't sure what Ascension is all about, I hope the video and note, copied below, gives you a taste of this magnificent Feast. God has gone up with a shout!

 
Ascension Eve 2014 Immanuel Lutheran-Broken Arrow from Cheryl on Vimeo.

"The Church knows and confesses her Lord Jesus Christ. The Christ we confess is with us--even as He is now ascended and exalted over all things. We praise our Incarnate, Crucified, Risen, and Ascended Lord today, whose glorious Ascension assures us that we too have an eternal place in our Father's house. We long for the day when He will come to bring about the end of this age, and give thanks that He sends His Spirit to draw us to Him until the day of His return. We rejoice in His presence among us this day and pray that, with the Lord's help, we may be able to bring our friends and neighbors to come and share in our great and certain hope while there is still time."