Gathering God’s People
Call to Worship (Abingdon Worship Annual 2011)
The
Call to Worship said in part:
Make
a joyful noise to the Lord. Worship God with gladness.
But is it really like that? How
glad are we for all that God is? Or are we
looking too much at what we lack. And is what we lack of any importance
at all? How glad are we that God is and holds us close?
Hymn TIS 738: “My Jesus, my Saviour” (Shout to the Lord)
Opening Prayer
Tender,
comforting Shepherd, your steadfast love is present in this place and resides
within each of us. But sometimes it is hard, so very hard, to open ourselves to
your love. We feel like scattered sheep, frightened and alone. Help us know
your loving presence as we live as your gathered community. Enlighten our
hearts, that we may know the hope to which we have been called. Amen.
Help us;
enlighten us. Amen and Amen.
A Prayer of Confession
Holy One, we are like sheep
that stray from your fold. We are the perpetually hungry, ever in
spiritual need, and at times in physical want.
We are the naked, with wounds
exposed and bleeding. We are the sick, fevered, chilled, and in pain. We
are the strangers, separated from others and even from ourselves.
Hear us now as we confess our
brokenness and our need. Amen.
We should remember that
brokenness can be mended and accept the words that follow, otherwise we cannot
be God’s servants.
Declaration
of Forgiveness
Our creator God sees our hunger
and gives us food. Christ, the healer, touches our wounds, offering comfort and
blessed relief. The Spirit blows through us, cools our fever, and eases our
pain. God sees and touches and heals our wounds. Thanks, be to God!
The Peace
When we were strangers, Christ
welcomed us. Let us share the peace of Christ with friends and strangers with
words of welcome:
The peace of Christ be with
you.
And
also with you!
Offering
Prayer
Holy
One, you have given us all that we have and all that we are. Through these
gifts and in our lives, help us be the shepherds and healers and lovers that
you are calling us to be. Amen.
Hymn TIS 675: “Lord,
the light of your love is shining” And our offering is one way to allow that
to happen. Also, our congregation is older than some others and so many of us
are not so well. If would be easy to look around and see other people living
more comfortable lives. But if we look at how blessed we are, that will shine
through.
The Service of the Word
The Readings delivered by Elaine: Ezekiel
34:11-16, 20-24. Ephesians
1:15-23. Matthew 25:31-46.
For the Word of the Lord. Thanks be
to God.
The
Preaching of the Word
Rev. John’s message today was so clear, so I have copied
and then summarised the first main points:
Scattered. Dispersed. People, like boats, can be cast loose
from their moorings and drift away. Sheep, preoccupied with grazing, can move
from one patch of grass to another until they look up and find they are nowhere
near where they began. The same is sometimes true for people.
Calamity! Imagine being one of the Israelites of the
Babylonian exile - you would have wondered what would become of your people.
Like modern-day refugees from Iraq, Indian subcontinent, Palestine, Afghanistan,…
you would have felt lost.
Our part is to think about how we are lost but worse, how
we look to the wrong things to mend that lostness. (We are) the sinner whom
Jesus seeks to bring back into the fold of a loving and forgiving community.
“I myself will search for my sheep,” says God (34:11). It
might seem unlikely or impossible to gather up all the disconnected lives. But
God makes it clear that God will accomplish it. “I will seek . . . I will
rescue . . . I will bring them . . . I will feed them . . . I will bind up the
injured . . . I will strengthen the weak” (34:11- 16)
Hymn TIS 674: “Inspired
by love and anger”
Music to lead us to prayer
Intercessory Prayers -Ruth gave thanks for our many blessings, and asked God to
be with the leadership of Marsden Road Uniting Church. She prayed for the
ending of wars and unrest and especially for children who have never known
peace. She prayed that we will always remember that above all, we are God’s
children, regardless of our appearance. She asked for strength and courage for
all those who are faced with any obstacles of any kind and for comfort and
healing for the sick. She then prayed for our personal concerns after which we
joined in The Lord’s Prayer.
Come,
you who are blessed! Inherit all that is prepare for you!
We
leave this sacred space to claim the riches and glorious inheritance that are
ours through Christ.
Go
out into the world to share your blessings with all in need.
Go
forth in the name of the living Word, the One whose words bring forth the fruit
of the kingdom in your own lives! Amen.
Hymn
TIS 779: “ May
the feet of God walk with you”
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