Welcome Mae welcomed Norman
McDonald, one of MRUC's past ministers as part of our Anniversary celebrations.
Call
to Worship
- (Safiyah Fosua. Kindle Edition., Abingdon 2016)
Friends!
Co-workers! Brothers! Sisters! Followers of Christ! Saints of the church!
Welcome, one and all! Welcome home! Welcome to this place of worship which it
has been for nearly 150 years and will continue to be a place to be refreshed
and encouraged. This is a place of acceptance and love! Blessings of grace and
peace to you all!
Amen!
Amen! Amen!
Grace
to you, and peace from God our maker and from the Lord Jesus Christ! Welcome,
friends and co-workers in Christ! Greetings, brothers and sisters!
We
come to rejoice in the love and encouragement of our family in Christ. We come
for the joyful reminder that God accepts and loves us.
Opening
prayer
God
of love, we are your family, brothers and sisters all, sharing in your vision
and work. We give you thanks for the many ways you have loved and blessed us,
encouraged and renewed us over the last 150 years and we pray will continue to
do. We thank you for the times we have experienced joy, and for the knowledge
that you love and accept us. We bring our joy and gratitude to you today as we
sing our thanksgiving and praise. Amen.
A
Prayer of Confession
Jesus
Christ, giver of love and peace, we are grateful for your vision of humankind—
a vision that embraces all, leaving none behind.
You
call us your brothers and sisters, even when we do not recognize this truth.
Forgive us when we look down on others, failing to see them as our sisters and
brothers.
Forgive
us when kinship is not a priority in our lives. Open our hearts to everyone in
your family, that they may become our family, too. In your name, brother of us
all, we pray. Amen.
Declaration
of Forgiveness
The
blessings of grace and peace are ours, through God our maker, and Jesus Christ
our saviour. Forgiven and peace are ours.
Thanks
be to God. Amen.
The
Peace
Friends,
co-workers, sisters, brothers, followers of Christ, saints of the Church, let
us greet one another with the peace and love of our brother, the Lord Jesus
Christ.
Hymn
TIS 390:
“Alleluia, Alleluia, give thanks to the risen Lord” The gospel in a thumbnail
sketch.
Memories
of Marsden Road:Rev. Norman
Norman
spoke of his ministry at Marsden Road which was less than half a year. He said
that he had arrived feeling cranky. It had been 20 years since he had been
involved in a congregation and he was tired and frayed from the job he had been
in during the intervening time. He said that he realised later, that his time
at Marsden Road gave him new enthusiasm and energy for his new placement.
Offering
Prayer
Pour
out your Holy Spirit, and bless the gifts we return to you now. May they be as
a soothing ointment for a hurting and broken world. Amen.
Hymn
TIS 590:
“What a Friend we have in Jesus” A hymn that has brought assurance to many of
us from our earliest years. This is no. 4 of our favourite hymns and no. 1 for
Joan Davis.
Anniversary
Banner:
Kaye spoke about our anniversary banner and the significance of its elements
and the memories of people in the congregation, some of whom have been here
between 40 and 60 years.
Bible
Readings Were
brought to us by Susan.
James
2: 1-10, 14-17 Speaks about how we treat each other. Do we discriminate between
people in the basis of their worldly attractiveness? Whether we are acting in
the church or out in the world, we need to remember the Golden Rule.
Mark
7: 24-37 An account which gives us quite a different perspective of Jesus and
his mission. The Syrophoenician woman, a gentile, pleaded with Jesus for
healing for her daughter. Jesus pointed out that his message was for the Jews
but she wasn't to be dissuaded and reminded Jesus that the dogs ate the crumbs
that fell from the table. This woman was ahead of others in her understanding
and her plea was fulfilled.
Men’s
Singing Group: “The
Old Rugged Cross” Hymns often say what we can't say for ourselves and when they
are sung with such skill and feeling, we are helped in understanding the
message as it is in each of our lives.
Reflection: "Saints Alive - even the outsider” Norman
spoke about the woman in the Mark reading: how she would have looked a little
different; had an accent; had a Greek education; a sharp intellect living
within a closed Jewish community - an outsider. Jesus has been criticized for
his racist and rude behaviour in this story but perhaps he was laying the
groundwork for the woman to write the rest of the scene, She saw in Jesus what she needed: compassion
and healing. And she received it.
God's
care and compassion is not just for the in-group. Ethnicity, culture, language
are of no account. God's grace is for all.
Are we
going to be like the Pharisees who walked to the other side and left the beaten
man by the road?
Today
it's time to raise our voices for asylum seekers. The woman in today's story
challenges us.
Hymn
TIS 693:
“Come as you are” - That's how I want you. I remember saying to a minister that
I didn't think I should keep coming to church because I'm not good enough. She
pointed out that God called me as I am. Oh!
Jack
brought us the Prayers of the People and we said the Lord's Prayer together.
Hymn
TIS 220: “This, this is the God we
adore” A declaration about the God upon
whom we depend for everything.
Benediction Rev Norman
Sung
Blessing:
“May the Feet of God Walk with You”
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