Lay Preachers’
Service. Welcome to Rowena
and visitors given by Lyn.
Call to Worship
Lord God, we quietly
reflect that, like the aboriginal people before us, we are on sacred ground.
For us, it‘s not because of any special construction of the building, but
because we, and generations before us, have met you here. In our worship today,
inspire in us: Gratitude, Love and a Willingness to serve our neighbours, our
community, our world. In the name of
Christ, we pray. Amen
Hymn TIS 90: “I’ll Praise My Maker” (Number 5 from Top
10 list and a special hymn.)
Opening Prayer
Inspire us this day, O
God. With the power of your Holy Spirit, revive our courage. With Christ’s holy
calling in our lives, rekindle our sense of purpose. With your steadfast love
and faithfulness, renew our faith. In gratitude and trust, we pray. Amen.
A Prayer of
Confession
Merciful God, comfort
us when we wander into exile and find ourselves lost and alone.
Forgive us when we
wander from your gracious love and find ourselves falling into sin.
In Christ Jesus,
reconcile us to yourself, and bring us back into your loving embrace.
Revive our souls,
strengthen our faith, and bless us with your holy calling, that we may be
inspired to live your calling, and trust in your grace, all the days of our
lives. In Christ’s mercy and grace, we pray. Amen.
Declaration of
Forgiveness
God did not give us a
spirit that is timid, but one that is powerful, loving, and self-controlled.
Trust in the power of this good news: God’s grace is ours through Christ Jesus,
who has destroyed both death and sin. In the name of Christ, we are forgiven
and made anew.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Hymn TIS 474: “Here in this place - gather us in.”
The Service of Holy
Communion presided over by
John
The Great
Thanksgiving
The Lord be with
you. And also with you.
Lift up your hearts. We
lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to
the Lord our God. It is right to give our thanks and praise.
With all our hearts we
praise you, faithful God. In the beginning, you called light to shine in
darkness, you made living things to grow and flourish and you created human
beings in your image. You chose us in love, guided us by your presence and
blessed us with your holy law. Yet we chose our own sinful ways. We broke your
commandments, persecuted your prophets, forgot your wisdom and, time after
time, refused to answer your call. So you spoke an eternal word in a human
voice in Jesus of Nazareth, son of Mary, Son of God. He called and people
followed, leaving every other loyalty. He set us free to praise your holy name.
But hatred and violence shouted Jesus down. Betrayed and abandoned and nailed
to a cross, he laid down his life for the world he loved, and broke the chains
of evil and death. Then you turned our sorrow into joy. On the third day you
raised him up to lead your people into life. So we praise you, holy God, with
angels and archangels and all your faithful people:
Holy, holy, holy
Lord, God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna
in the highest!
Blessed is the one
who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!
John then told us again the story of that night
when Jesus blessed the bread and wine and shared it with his friends,
Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come
again!
And now, faithful God,
send us your Spirit to feed us with the body and the blood of our Saviour,
Jesus Christ. Make us one body in Christ...
As this broken bread
was once many grains, which have been gathered together and made one bread: so
may your Church be gathered from the ends of the earth into your kingdom.
Jesus,
Lamb of God, have mercy on
us.
Jesus, bearer of our
sins, have mercy on us.
Jesus, redeemer of the
world, grant us peace.
The gifts of God for
the people of God. Draw near with faith, to feed on Christ in your hearts with
thanksgiving.
The Distribution.
Prayer after
Communion
Holy God, we came to
this table scarred by regrets and broken dreams, anxious about many things,
knowing that we are not immune to evil's lure. And you met us at this table;
embracing us in our brokenness, naming us "beloved", claiming us for
eternity. We thank you, living, loving God. Amen.
Early History of MR
Church: Joan spoke to us
about the early history of the MRUC and the people who had devoted so much of
themselves to the establishment and the nurture of this church. As I sat there
listening, I wondered if we are prepared to give our all as they seemed to have
done, contributing so much time, money and energy to what was obviously their
first concern, the building of God's kingdom here at Marsden Road.
My Call to Lay
Preaching Rowena spoke to
us of her call to Lay Preaching and the steps in the path that led to that from
an early age. She also spoke of the difficulty of obtaining training, when she
could only attend classes at night and the hurdles which needed to be jumped to
become accredited. We are glad that she persisted because she has been a
blessing to the people at MRUC.
Choir: “Bless the Lord” The choir has brought us
a number of items during this time of celebrating the anniversary of MRUC, all
adding that extra dimension to our worship.
Bible Readings: Romans 10: 13-17; Luke 10: 25-37 Glen & Emma
Reflection Warwick spoke on the reading about the
Good Samaritan. He covered many relevant points but I think these are
especially worth keeping in our minds daily as we travel through life:
The four questions
the Good Samaritan didn’t ask, but could have:
1. Is this man one of
my group ? Lies at the
heart of the story, a story that happens time and time again: Sunni & Shiite;
Catholic & Protestant.
Does he share my beliefs or values? No! There is a fellow human in need. Why
didn’t the priest and Levite stop?
2. Do I like him ? It’s easy to be kind to people we like. People we warm
to, people we know and appreciate. But Jesus said, “If you love those who love
you....” No ! Liking had nothing to do with it; he didn’t even know him, let
alone like him.
3. Does he deserve
my help? There are a lot
of undeserving people. Warwick then passed on a story of a man in Germany who
gave his property as a shelter for asylum seekers...who trashed it. Were they deserving? The Samaritan
didn't consider that, he got in and helped.
4. What can I get
out of it for me? The
satisfaction of helping, but it actually cost him time and effort, and money to
pay the innkeeper.
These are the 4
questions the Samaritan didn’t ask, and we can’t afford to ask them either. Jesus asks us: “Of these three men, who do you think was a
neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” The lawyer said,
“The one who showed mercy to him.” Jesus
says to us as he did to the lawyer: “Go and do the same.”
Amen
Hymn TIS 629: “When I needed a neighbour”
Prayers of the
People: Laurel led us.
Praying for the concerns of the world and our church in particular, especially
the Lay Preachers who have served MRUC. She asked for help for those in
physical need in war-torn countries and for refugees who
Take the clay of our
lives and shape it to love,
Take the clay of the
Church and shape it to grace,
Take the clay of today
and shape it to hope,
And
then breathe your spirit into it all again.
Hymn TIS158: “God has spoken by his prophets”
Benediction
May the all embracing
love of God, our Father
The grace and example
of Jesus Christ, our Lord
The power and
conviction of the Holy Spirit
Be with us now, as we
go from here.
Sung Blessings:
“May the feet of God walk with you”
No comments:
Post a Comment