We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the 2nd Sunday of Lent. We celebrate communion.
Call to Worship How shall we come before our God? We come to celebrate God’s goodness As we worship, what does the Lord require of us? God calls us to do justice and to love kindness. As we serve, what does the Lord require of us? God calls us to walk and worship in humility Hymn 160 – Praise my soul, the King of heaven Prayer of Adoration and Confession Loving God, you speak words of life to us. In you we find our hearts’ desire; by your grace we are saved. When the way forward is unclear, you shed light. When times are difficult, you stir courage and hope. Our deepest longing is to know you, and to be known by you. Draw near to us in our time of worship, O God, and open the way before us, so that we may follow Jesus without wavering, putting our trust in him. Although following you brings joy, O God, we confess the way is sometimes hard for us. We get tired and would prefer an easier road. Some days the task of loving others seems hard, and we ignore the needs of our neighbours. Forgive us when our commitment to you wavers, and we take that easier path. Strengthen our determination to follow where you lead and renew our energy to serve in Jesus’ name. Amen Readings – Genesis 17: 1–7, 15-16 (Pg 16) Mark 8: 31-8 (pg 1012) Hymn 392 – When I survey the wondrous cross Weekly Prayer Gracious God, during this period of Lent, give us a new awareness of your presence here in our Cheviot Churches and teach us the humility to accept that everything we have comes from you. Help us never to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ and let us be useful in His service to your people. Amen Sermon The Galilee Employment Agency had been given a challenge – to identify someone to fill the number 2 spot in a new organisation headed by one, Jesus of Nazareth. There were twelve candidates, but some were quickly discounted because they lacked profile. The report highlighted the various strengths and weaknesses before making their conclusion. James and John, for example, had their strengths but were seen as overly ambitious and with a dominating, interfering mother. Andrew, despite being one of the first members of the organisation and good at teamwork, was deemed to be too content to be in the background and lacked the leadership skills necessary. Simon was too impulsive and outspoken, lacking the diplomacy needed for the role. But the report concluded that the person most suited to the post, with financial acumen and contacts in high places, was Judas Iscariot. Sometimes we do choose the wrong people for particular jobs, and that is why the interviewing panel needs to have the right information and most crucially a job description where some attributes are deemed essential and others desirable, perhaps not essential, but they would be quite nice to have anyway. But what about a job description for being a Christian, what would be the essentials? What would be the desirable things that would go on that list? Perhaps in the essential list you might have things like a certain set of beliefs, perhaps a particular view of faith and trust in Christ, perhaps a life of prayer, of study of scripture, or perhaps it's more about being compassionate, kind and loving, having a real sense of integrity. These would all be essential. But what about the readiness to deny yourself and take up the cross? Would that be on your list? Some scholars when they examine Mark’s Gospel see that in the first half, Mark explores who Jesus is and what he was like. And the second half is about how we respond to Christ? And we see that through the lens of the disciples as they follow Christ. And here at the pivot point as we change from being in the first half to the second half of Mark's Gospel, as we change from concentrating on who Jesus is to how we might respond, we get this little passage in which Jesus seems to lay down for us the job description of what it means to be a disciple. To deny ourselves. As we mentioned last week, as we journey through Lent, we often give up something as a discipline, a self-sacrifice. We are somehow making space to focus more on God. In the Bible when people focused on God, they were sometimes so transformed they were given a new name. Jacob became Israel; Simon became Peter’ Saul became Paul. Sarai and Abram became Sarah and Abraham. When we focus on God we too can be transformed. But we are also called to take up the cross. We all have crosses to bear, be they small or large, be they illnesses or anxieties. For many in our world to bear the name of Christ can lead to persecution and suffering and even death. Today at Communion we focus on the extent of Christ’s love for us that he would endure suffering and death on the cross for us, that we might be saved, know the fullness of God’s love. That gives us the strength and encouragement to carry the cross. Our response is to follow. To follow Christ means showing that integrity to the world, that in seeing us, people may know that we are Christians. Prayers of Dedication & Intercession Lord Jesus, you challenge your followers to give to God like you did, without counting the cost. Use these gifts to continue your ministry of healing in this hurting world. And grant us courage so that our lives speak to others of our love for you and for them’ Loving God, as descendants of Abraham we offer our prayers; for a world in turmoil, as we think of the many places in the world that are in the grip of war, oppression and tyranny. We pray for peace; in Gaza, Ukraine, Yemen and all countries where there is conflict. We pray too, for those whose lives are forfeit or endangered by hostile regimes: that kill or imprison those who dare oppose dangerous leaders. We remember the family of Alexi Navalny and all those who supported his views. Loving God, we pray for our own country and our particular communities; for peaceful relationships amongst diverse people. May we always seek for common ground and agreement rather than difference and argument. We pray for all affected by the increase in knife crime which has claimed too many young lives recently. Loving God, we pray for all who are sick in body or mind; for those who face the increasing challenges of an aging body; for those who have recently received a tough diagnosis; for those with life-limiting conditions. In a moment of silence, we name those most on our hearts this day. Loving God, we pray for ourselves, for our friends and our families; May we ever seek to be brave enough to answer the challenge to take up the cross and walk with you; to seek your ways, not our own and to remember that you have promised to be with us, always. Amen Invitation Lent is not simply a time for temporary self-discipline. It is time to refashion our relationship with God and to be refashioned by God’s strength and grace. This meal is the gift of that strength and grace and reminds us there will always be enough for everyone who seeks a place at this table. So come, you who have much faith and you who have a little, you who have been here often and you who have not been for a long time.Our Saviour invites all those who trust his grace to share this feast as a foretaste of his kingdom. Hymn 19 – Ye gates Communion Hymn 518 – Lift up your hearts Benediction
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We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the first Sunday of Lent. Please stay for refreshments after the Yetholm service.
Call to Worship We are beginning our journey through Lent. God is with us on the way. We come to find light in the shadows and strength in our weakness. We remember God’s faithfulness. We seek God’s mercy and truth step by step, day by day. We trust in God’s steadfast love, so we worship with grateful hearts! Hymn 93 – Let us with a gladsome mind Prayer of Adoration and Confession Good and gracious God, Creator of earth and sky, Maker of rainbows and raindrops, we praise you for the beauty of the world us, and for the hope of life with you now and always. We praise you for your faithfulness and loving kindness throughout all generations, for your promise of grace, for your compassion and redemption revealed to us in Christ Jesus. Receive our prayers and praises this day and teach us how to live by your love. Wise and Merciful God, you made a covenant with us in faithfulness, but we confess we are not always so faithful to you. We grow tired and restless when things don’t go our way. We lose patience with others. We lack compassion for our neighbours in need, and forget to express love for those closest to us. Forgive us. Make us prisms of your love, making rainbows of your light, creating beauty and deepening hope wherever we go. Jesus says, ‘Do not be afraid. I love you. You are forgiven. Go sin no more’ Lord’s Prayer Readings – Genesis 9:8–17 (Pg 10) Mark 1: 9-15 (pg 1002) Hymn 337 – Forty days and forty nights Weekly Prayer Heavenly Father, help us to see this time of Lent as an opportunity to develop our discipleship and discipline and as your Son Jesus showed us how to reject temptation, fill us with grace to be faithful to his example in this Lenten season and the years ahead. Amen Sermon Satan had a problem. The Good news of Jesus was just too popular, and people were being changed by the message and the truth it contained. They were paying less attention to Satan. Now I think there was something of the Presbyterian in Satan, for what did he do, but call a meeting. He called all his demons and presented the problem to them. ‘How do we stop people listening to the good news Jesus offers. What lie can we tell them to confuse them. I will give you 48 hours to come up with a plan’, he said. So 48 hours later they reconvened, and Satan asked them what they had come up with. One demon immediately said, We can tell the people that there is no such thing as right, then no-one will be inspired to do anything good or beautiful, for nothing is right. But Satan wasn’t convinced. But then a shy demon raised his hand and said, ‘Let us just tell humans that there is no hurry’. Satan clapped his hands and said, ‘Perfect. We will tell them that there is no hurry.’ And we humans have been listening to that lie ever since. There is plenty of time to change, to do what Jesus is asking of me. But there is no hurry. I will be more serious about prayer, I will volunteer, I will up my giving - but there is always tomorrow. We keep procrastinating, and we are all very good at it. But this is the 1st Sunday of Lent, and Mark’s Gospel tells us that there is a hurry. Whereas Matthew and Luke go into a lot of detail about the temptations, Mark is terse and leaves a lot to the imagination, but in these few verses Jesus goes from baptism to temptation to ministry. It leaves you out of breath. There is a Greek phrase he uses, kai euthys, which means ‘and immediately, and Mark uses this phrase 49 times. There is a real sense of urgency. There is no procrastination in Mark. We start at the Jordan River, where Jesus has come to be baptised by John. Like at the Transfiguration last week, there is a voice from heaven, affirming ‘You are my beloved son. With you I am well pleased’. What special words. It is what every child longs to hear – that they are loved, that they are special, that they are valued, that they belong. Sometimes we can be shy of telling our children or the people around us that they are special. Valentine’s day last week maybe saw an increase in people sending cards or flowers to loved ones, but we should be doing it all the time. As children of God, we need to know that we are loved by God and by our brothers and sisters in the faith. Dripping wet still from being immersed in the Jordan, Jesus is ‘immediately’ driven by the Spirit to the wilderness. No time to revel in the words spoken at baptism, but Jesus rather finds himself in the wilderness for 40 days, biblical shorthand for a very long time. The season of Lent lasts 40 days to represent this time in the desert. We remember how the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years; it was a place of trial and danger. They were tempted to complain about the boring manna from heaven; to worship the Golden calf; to ignore Moses’ leadership, and they fell straight into these temptations. The desert is a dangerous place, but Jesus spent time struggling no doubt with who he was and the way he had to go, but although the temptation to go back to the carpenter shop in Nazareth and a normal life must have been strong, he resisted it. Mark’s story about the temptations is so short, but it ends with a lovely phrase that wild animals were with him, and angels ministered to him. There is a picture by Stanley Spencer of Jesus in the wilderness playing with a scorpion. Did the dangerous animals become tame like the lions in Daniel’s den? Our Old Testament reading was the culmination of the Flood story, when the animals went two by two into the ark and seemed not to fight. But the reading was of the gift of the rainbow, God’s love letter in the sky. It was a sign that God would not destroy the earth again – though we do a jolly good job ourselves. Jesus’ time in the wilderness gave him the strength to go ‘immediately’ to Galilee to offer a new start for all humanity. Satan’s lie was to say that there was no hurry, but Jesus gives the message of God’s love, and we are called to respond, not to shove it into a safe place called ‘tomorrow’. As we begin this season of Lent, let us know ourselves beloved children of God, but let us show it by acting out the Gospel here and now. Hymn 557 – O love that wilt not let me go Prayers of Dedication God of courage and compassion, we bring our gifts to you in Jesus’ name. This year the world badly needs both his courage and compassion. Bless our gifts so that they bring hope to others in these challenging times. Amen. Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession As we enter this holy season, Lord God, we give you thanks for your promise of new life that sustains us, encouraging us when in the trials and tribulations of life. We come with our thanks for all the good things; for the beauty of the natural world, glimpsed in mountains and sunsets, and in the abundance of snowdrops and the stirring of spring bulbs; for the warmth of human love, whenever we find it and whoever we are stirred to love; for the thrill of discovery and curiosity, of new things learned and gifts we can share; for the pleasures of life, known in laughter and company, in good food and the tiredness of a fulfilling day. For all that merits our heartfelt thanks, we express now our gratitude and joy. In sorrow, we recognise that life is not always joy, and that many; human beings, creatures and all things, may suffer injury, hurt, and pain. We pray for all those who do not ever see much beauty; those in prison, or working in buildings with little light, people deep in depression or those abused by others. We pray for those who live in the pain of grief, or who have suffered such a trauma that they are afraid, for all whose days feel beyond their control. We pray for those for whom hunger is physical and painful, those made poor by ruthless economies or cruel wars, all enslaved to hard and relentless labour. God of the garden and the desert, of all pain and every joy, be with each of us in the wild places and send your angels to bless us. Give us grace and courage too, to accompany those in any kind of wilderness and to offer blessings where we can. We offer these prayers, in the name of Jesus Christ, your beloved Son, Amen. Hymn 519 – Love divine Benediction As we begin our journey through the season of Lent, May God’s loving kindness comfort you, God’s justice inspire you, And Jesus walk beside you in humility and hope. We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Morebattle (11.15) on the last Sunday of Epiphany. Please stay for refreshments after the Yetholm service.
Call to Worship God said, “Let light shine in the darkness!” Lord, shine your light into our lives. We see God’s glory in the face of Christ. The light of Christ is with us day by day. Let us follow the light of Christ together. Let us worship God with thanks and praise. Hymn 132 – Immortal invisible Prayer of Adoration and Confession God of grace and glory, you reveal your presence to this worried world in radiant glory and gentle whispers, on mountain tops and in shadowed valleys, in homes and churches, in the quiet of nature and on busy streets. Yours is the presence that pushes past our fear to calm us; yours is the love that transforms our doubt with reassurance. We have come to dwell in your goodness this day and to offer the praise you deserve, grateful for all the ways we meet you. God of patience and purpose, we confess we don’t expect you to surprise us. We think we know what you expect of us and so we’re reluctant to consider a new challenge or a new opportunity to serve you. Forgive us when we are set in our ways. Work in us by your Spirit to keep us open to new encounters with you in the world as it changes so you will always find us faithful. On this Transfiguration Sunday, help us to see you in all your glory, the Word made flesh and may this glory, through the Holy Spirit, transform our lives. In a world filled with hate, and injustice, inspire us to build the tabernacles of justice, peace and love, until the earth is full of your glory, as the waters cover the seas. Lord’s Prayer Readings – 2 Kings 2: 1-12 (Pg 369) Mark 9: 2 - 9 (pg 1012) Hymn 34/35 – O send thy light forth Weekly Prayer Almighty God, at the Transfiguration you showed Jesus in a new state of glory and gave His disciples a glimpse of what they would see in his risen life. As we worship together week by week help us to see Jesus only, giving us a foretaste of your heavenly kingdom. Amen Reflection The road zigzagged up the mountain. It was really quite scary, but at the top the views were breathtaking and inside the church there was a real sense of peace. It was the church of the transfiguration, and many scholars think it was the mountain that Jesus and the disciples climbed. It was once covered in oak trees, but these were cut down by the Ottomans to build the railway to Mecca, the one that Lawrence of Arabia and his friends kept trying to sabotage. Th pilgrims who came in droves before the Gaza conflict would get off their buses at the bottom and be driven up by Kamikaze Bedouins negotiating all the bends, but some would hike up as Jesus and the disciples had done. It was quite a climb for Jesus and the three disciples, and a lot had been happening. Jesus had been ministering to the villages in the North and had asked who people said he was. Now, what he was interested in was who the disciples said he was, and Peter had said that he was the Messiah, and had gone straight to the top of the class. But then when Jesus explained how the Messiah had to suffer and even die, it was so outside their picture of the messiah that Peter objected, and Jesus had rebuked him saying, ‘Get thee behind me Satan’. That rebuke must have still been ringing in Peter’s mind as they climbed up the mountain. But it would have been a relief to get away from the constant demands of the villagers, even from the other disciples, to go somewhere quiet just to clear his head. Little did the disciples realise what was in store for them. When they reached the top of the mountain, Jesus seemed to be transformed. Light radiated from him and his robe became a dazzling white. What’s more, there were two figures appearing beside him, two powerhouses – Moses and Elijah. Moses who had led the Israelites out of oppression in Egypt, had given them the Law and formed them into a community. Elijah who was a faithful prophet battling against the worship of Baal, who, as we read earlier, was taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire, having passed on his mantle to his apprentice Elisha. What was happening here? It was God’s affirmation of Jesus. There is even a voice from heaven saying’ this is my Son. Listen to him’. And it was a blessing on Jesus and the way he had chosen to go, for from this mountain he would turn his face towards Jerusalem and, yes, to the cross of Calvary. Jesus needed the affirmation, and the disciples needed to have this experience. Of course, it was too overwhelming, and Peter blabbers on about building shelters. Often commentators condemn him for wanting to prolong the experience, stay up the mountain forever. But the Jewish festival of Tabernacles was a time when they remembered how they stayed in shelters during their time in the wilderness – nothing was permanent. But it was also a festival when people anticipated the end times, and maybe seeing Moses and Elijah with Jesus made Peter think that a new age was being ushered in. But then the experience passes, and Moses and Elijah disappear, and Jesus beckons the disciples to start to descend the mountain. It is all so strange and other-worldly. But what can it mean for us today. I think there is the openness of Jesus to reveal his divinity, that he was the son of God, to the disciples. He had told them in words, but this experience hammered home the point. This week King Charles revealed that he had cancer, and we wish him a full recovery. We can often try to keep things hidden, we bottle things up, but maybe it is healthier to be open. Though I am also conscious that Jesus told the disciples on the way back down to keep what they had seen to themselves. It also tells us the importance of our encounters with God, the times when we feel a closeness to God. It can be on the mountaintop; it can be at thin places like a beautiful old church Linton or a place like Holy Island, in can be in worship here in Yetholm/ Morebattle; it can be a piece of music or picture that can uplift us or a beautiful scene; family gathered around us; it can also be that we encounter God in the valley, in the pain, and indeed Jesus and the disciples did go down the mountain to heal, to affirm, to transform. Down to the mundane nature of everyday life, down to the nitty-gritty, down to the squabbling, disbelieving disciples, down to the jealousies and rivalries that colour our relationships, down to the pain which is part and parcel of our world, down to the Valley, for that is where we find God as well, almost more so than on the mountaintops. That is where we as followers of Jesus must find ourselves too. I pray that we can have our mountaintop experiences, for we need them to sustain us in our journey, especially as during Lent we walk with Jesus the Way of the Cross. Hymn 448 – Lord the light of your love Prayers of Dedication Generous God, bless all that is given in this church: the time, the love, the talents, the laughter, the ability to share with friend and stranger, the welcome to the lost and lonely, the light of love shining here, the treasures given and found, that, at the end, we may be transformed. Amen. Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession God of all life and each life: You created us to live in relationship with each other - with friends and families, in communities and cultures, in neighborhoods and nations. We give you thanks for all the supportive relationships which bring meaning and encouragement to our lives, and help in times of trouble. Help us contribute what we can to sustain the wellbeing of our community for all who call it home. God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer. God of our faith and our future, there are so many pressures on homes and families today. Draw near to those who are in economic difficulty, anxious about bills, and those burdened by the challenges to health and happiness this winter. Work with parents and children and neighbours who face conflict their relationships; offer them solutions that express mutual respect and resolve tension. God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer. God of mercy and forgiveness, You call us to live together in peace and unity. We pray for our neighbourhoods and our nation. Where people are divided and bitterness turns into resentment, show us how to work for reconciliation. Wherever there is conflict and daily danger in the world, raise up peacemakers and negotiators to bring violence to an end. And give courage and protection to all who fear what tomorrow could bring. God, in your mercy, Hear our prayer. Today we give thanks for our church family and the years of worship and witness offered here. Bless our leaders and our volunteers and renew their creativity and commitment to enliven our congregation in its mission. We remember those of our number in need of your special attention today. We think of those who are sick. We remember King Charles and the Royal family at this time and also everyone with cancer or with other medical issues. For those waiting for operations and for those recovering. Silence Open our eyes to opportunities to reach out beyond our own fellowship as agents of your healing and hope. Hymn 458 – At the name of Jesus Benediction As we journey between the mountaintops and the plains of life, may the transforming power of God inspire you. May the challenging and comforting grace of Jesus guide you and may the companionship of the Holy Spirit walk with you. Go knowing the love of God within you, today and every day We welcome everyone to our services at Yetholm (10am) and Linton (11.15) on the fifth Sunday of Epiphany.
Call to Worship Come to this time of worship We bring our hearts and our minds. Come with your joys and your wounds. We bring them all before God. Come, trust that God will raise you up. We sing praise to the Lord of Creation. Hymn 184 – Sing to the Lord a joyful song Prayer of Adoration and Confession O Lord our God, Creator and Ruler of the universe, you are great beyond all things. You are clothed in honour and majesty, wrapped in light as a garment. You stretch out the heavens like a tent, you set the beams of your chambers on the waters, you make the clouds your chariot, you ride on the wings of the wind, you make the winds your messengers, fire and flame your ministers. You gave us your son Jesus Christ as Saviour and Messiah and the Holy Spirit as our Helper and Comforter. We give you glory, honour and praise now and forever. Draw us into a moment of quiet now as we remember our frailty. We acknowledge what has been difficult in our lives. The things that we have done, the significant things that we have left undone. The wrong paths taken, or the opportunities missed. Help us to bring it all to you in a moment of quiet…… Forgive us our wrongs and create in us new hearts and new minds. Grant us enlarged visions to see your image in everyone we encounter regardless of their background, race and ethnicity. God’s love is there new every morning. Let us know ourselves a forgiven, accepted and loved. Lord’s Prayer Readings – Isaiah 40:21-31 (Pg 724) Mark 1: 29-39 (pg 1003) Hymn 162 – The God of Abraham praise Weekly Prayer Ever Living God, our Creator and Redeemer, you love us and know us better than we know ourselves. With a word you created all things and so we ask you to renew our strength as we trust in you. We pray for all those who need your touch today, remembering that your touch has still its ancient power to heal. Amen Reflection It brings in all back. The Covid Inquiry, that is. It brings back all the uncertainty, the anxiety, the fear. Except a few years on, we see the crisis from a different angle, as the various politicians and scientists and medics tell it from their point of view. It seems another world to when we were clapping every Thursday and glued to television or radio when the First Minister spoke. And if some were winging it, weren’t we all. Trying to make sense amidst the uncertainty. The Israelites in Babylon were winging it, as they tried to make sense of their own chaotic situation. Jerusalem had fallen to Nebuchadnezzar’s armies; the Temple ransacked and destroyed, the city walls torn down, the great and the good taken into exile to Babylon. They had to adjust to a new culture, a new set of values, as their own religion didn’t fit any more. And they sat by the rivers of Babylon, and they wept remembering Zion. Where was God now? Why wasn’t God doing something? Fortunately, they had Isaiah the prophet to keep them grounded. ‘Do you not know, haven’t you seen?’ Isaiah asks them. God is the eternal one, who sees the wider picture. ‘Do you not know, haven’t you seen?’ Just because we are impatient, it doesn’t mean that God has stopped working. God is in it for the long haul. For the Israelites, they had to learn to wait on the Lord and trust in the Lord. So must we too. Like the Israelites we can be impatient and want God to keep to our timeline and grow discouraged when he doesn’t. But Isaiah gives a wonderful picture of even when the youth growing weary, those who wait on the Lord, those who put their trust in God, will renew their strength and rise up with eagles’ wings. They will walk and not faint, not grow weary. They are being held by God. Sometimes I see birds of prey, which I call hawks or eagles, but probably are something else, and they don’t get from place to place by continually flapping their wings, but rather seem to catch the breeze and are lifted up in it. So wait for the Lord and can be lifted by the Spirit and held in the palm of God’s hand. The disciples had to learn this as well. Jesus had become a sensation in Capernaum. He had cast out evil spirits, which we looked at last week, and this week we read what happened next. There were several little scenes. Firstly, Jesus goes to the house of Simon Peter and finds his wife’s mother sick. Jesus heals her, and immediately she gets up and starts to make dinner. The word used is related to diakonia, service, and Simon’s mother-in-law is seen to embody service. But then the scene changes to the threshold of the house. The sabbath is finishing, and people are beginning to gather looking for Jesus. He has become the talk of the town, he has become a sensation. People have brought loved ones for healing; they have brought themselves for healing. Eventually they go home and Jesus must have caught some sleep, but the scene changes again, and he has risen early and gone to a private place to pray, to fill the batteries, but also reflect on what had happened. Matt Perry, the actor who died last year, was a star in Friends. At one time he was writing another show with a friend. They needed a break. I’ll go for a walk, the friend said, to clear my head. Do you want to come?’ Matt Perry said, That’s precisely what I can’t do’. If he went for a walk, immediately people would recognise him and want to talk or watch. It was getting like that for Jesus. The disciples didn’t know where he was; they were hunting for him, and when they found him, they said. ‘Come back to Capernaum. Everyone is talking about you. They are queuing up to see you’. He could have spent his whole life in Capernaum, healing people. Set up a clinic and capitalise on his success, and people would have travelled from far and wide. But that wasn’t why he had come. It is like the temptation to turn rocks into bread. So good, but there was more to do. There was the message of wholeness and salvation to preach. And so they moved on to preach in other places. The disciples had to learn to see the wider picture. With the Covid Inquiry we need to see the wider picture. With the state of our world we need to see the wider picture and work for a world where the kingdom values of peace and hope and justice and God’s shalom flourish. We have to learn to wait on the Lord. Hymn 705 – It is God who holds the nations Prayers of Dedication Jesus touched so many lives in so many different ways. We ask that these gifts will touch many lives, too, with your healing and hope in these difficult days. Amen Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession Holy and loving God, we thank you for the story of Christ’s life among us, a pattern for the way we live. We give you thanks for moments of quiet and contemplation that restore us. Teach us to trust in your strength, so that we can live with confidence and courage even in the midst of stress and anxiety. God of love, you give power to the faint and strength to the powerless. Many of us can feel exhausted, caring for children and grandchildren, responding to demands of work or family life or dealing with a sense of isolation or anxiety. Renew us, we pray. We pray for all church leaders. Encourage and strengthen them in their work, and give us all fresh vision for the future of church and renew our Imagination, creativity and wisdom. God of love, you restore what is broken and you bring together what has been split apart. Today we continue to pray for the Middle East and Ukraine and Yemen. We ask for peace in a dangerous and fragile situation. We pray for Northern Ireland as we hope the power-sharing agreement begins to operate again. God of all creation, you restore the face of the earth : stir us up to action to protect our planet. May our feet tread lightly on the earth and our actions and priorities bring healing to our battered world. God of love, you heal the broken hearted and you gather in all who are lost. We pray for all who are mourning the loss of family members or friends. We place before you all who are suffering in mind or body… asking for peace, and for your healing presence in their need. Send your blessing on all who are afraid or alone or hungry, on those whose lives are being destroyed by abuse or violence and on all for whom home is not a safe place. Amen Hymn 517 – Fight the good fight Benediction May your strength be renewed this day, so that you may run into the world to live the gospel and never be weary. And the blessing of God Almighty, Our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, be with you and those you love, this day and always. Amen. |