Worshipping Together<\/p>\n
For all of you still not back with us in church here is a Kitchen Table Communion to say at home.<\/p>\n
With every blessing and our prayers<\/p>\n
Mary Tucker<\/p>\n
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\nA Service to say at home<\/u>
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\nCall to Worship<\/u>
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The Lord be with you<\/p>\n
And also with you<\/i><\/p>\n
God in Jesus has revealed his glory<\/p>\n
Come let us worship together<\/i><\/p>\n
From the rising of the sun to its setting<\/p>\n
The Lord\u2019s name is greatly to be praised<\/i><\/p>\n
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\nHymn<\/b>
\n<\/u> – Sing something you enjoy!!<\/p>\n
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\nPrayer of Confession<\/b>
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Holy God we bring you ourselves<\/p>\n
All that we are and all that we long to be<\/i><\/p>\n
Our weakness, our failures, our sinfulness and our brokenness<\/i><\/p>\n
Son of Mary Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
Carpenter of Nazareth Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
Healer of the sick Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
Bringer of light Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
Saviour of the poor Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
Bread of life Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
You who call us sister, brother, friend<\/p>\n
Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
Your body and Spirit with us<\/p>\n
Holy God we bring you ourselves<\/i><\/p>\n
All that we are and all that we long to be<\/i><\/p>\n
Our weakness, our failures, our sinfulness and our brokenness Have mercy on us<\/i><\/p>\n
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\nBible Readings<\/b>
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Mark 4:26-34<\/b><\/p>\n
The Parable of the Growing Seed<\/b><\/p>\n
26 <\/b>He also said, \u201cThe kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, 27 <\/b>and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. 28 <\/b>The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. 29 <\/b>But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Parable of the Mustard Seed<\/b><\/p>\n
30 <\/b>He also said, \u201cWith what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? 31 <\/b>It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32 <\/b>yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.\u201d 33 <\/b>With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; 34 <\/b>he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.<\/p>\n
Ezekiel 17:22-24<\/b><\/p>\n
22 <\/b>Thus says the Lord GOD:<\/p>\n
I myself will take a sprig
\n from the lofty top of a cedar;
\n I will set it out.
\nI will break off a tender one
\n from the topmost of its young twigs;
\nI myself will plant it
\n on a high and lofty mountain.<\/p>\n
23 <\/b>On the mountain height of Israel
\n I will plant it,
\nin order that it may produce boughs and bear fruit,
\n and become a noble cedar.
\nUnder it every kind of bird will live;
\n in the shade of its branches will nest
\n winged creatures of every kind.<\/p>\n
24 <\/b>All the trees of the field shall know
\n that I am the LORD.
\nI bring low the high tree,
\n I make high the low tree;
\nI dry up the green tree
\n and make the dry tree flourish.
\nI the LORD have spoken;
\n I will accomplish it.<\/p>\n
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\nSome Thoughts on the Reading<\/b>
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I received a present a few years ago and when I got it realised that it was very well timed. I was so chuffed with it I even wore it the next time I was at Sharpness church. I shared with the congregation with both pride and some shame. It was . . . . an Incredible Hulk arm band!!!<\/p>\n
The significance of it was and is that there are times when things happen that make me so cross I feel like bursting from my cassock into just such a monstrous form.<\/p>\n
For those of you unfamiliar with this Marvel Comic antihero – it\u2019s a bit like a modern American Jekyl and Hyde, where the apparently pleasant hero Bruce Banner, is transformed from time to time, bursting from his clothes and changing into a huge and terrifying green monster. Like Jekyl and Hyde the good side of the character, Bruce, is constantly trying to rid himself of his horrific alter ego and find a cure.<\/p>\n
Considering there was no mention of green monsters in either of our two readings today you may wonder where I\u2019m going with this, bear with me. I can think of two incidents which illustrate what I mean (and as always with things like this I change the names and locations to protect the innocent). They were both things that threatened to bring out my inner hulk.<\/p>\n
The first was a Baptism service where, having reassured the congregation that I had a big enough voice to talk over babies who wailed, I found myself instead talking over two adults who sat throughout the service, right in front of me, having a long and obviously very interesting conversation!<\/p>\n
Never mind my inner hulk, it was my inner teacher I had to restrain. I so nearly stopped, gave them my mark four glare and said, \u201cIf you can\u2019t listen now you\u2019ll listen at break-time when everyone else is out to play!\u201d<\/p>\n
The second, even worse, was when I was approached by a friend, obviously quite upset, who wanted to check out with me whether she was going to hell because a minister, taking a funeral, had that day said that if the congregation had not said a particular prayer of repentance at just the right moment then that was what was going to happen to them all!<\/p>\n
I allowed my inner hulk full rein and actually it helped for her to see how cross I was because it convinced her as I reassured her, with illustrations of what God is actually like, that this was a wrong vision of God, a seriously wrong idea of our loving Father waiting, longingly, lovingly to forgive each and every time we turn to him, never mind what words of sorrow we do or do not use.<\/p>\n
The trouble is, like poor Bruce Banner when he is de-hulked, I am left exhausted and depressed and you may feel the same sometimes as you look out on our largely non-Christian society.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy do<\/u> I bother?\u201d I start to ask, \u201cWhat\u2019s the point?\u201d you may find yourself wondering, \u201cif the world just seems to be going to hell in a handcart!\u201d Why do any of us bother as we pray and praise and plead with our God to do something, to intervene, to bring his kingdom in with all the joy and peace he has promised us?<\/p>\n
So today, God himself speaks from the pages of scripture and he does so in a way we can understand – he uses pictures we are familiar with, analogies if you like, parables.<\/p>\n
The first, in Ezekiel, is the illustration of a huge cedar tree. God takes a cutting, a single tiny sprig, it looks like nothing. It\u2019s so small when he plants it we wonder why he\u2019s bothered, what\u2019s the point?<\/p>\n
And yet, as those of you who are any kind of gardeners will know, against all the odds and after weeks, possibly months, of just sitting there looking weedy and useless, things happen. And the eventual outcome, says God, is a tree even bigger and better than the parent plant.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just like me and my kingdom,\u201d he tells us, \u201chowever hopeless it all looks I, the Lord, have spoken and I will accomplish it, the kingdom will come and it will be bigger and better and more perfect than you can ever imagine!\u201d<\/p>\n
Jesus, in Mark\u2019s Gospel, is using exactly the same illustration and as he and his audience were familiar with Isaiah\u2019s writings, as well as the incredible growth of large plants from small seeds it will have been a meaningful picture.<\/p>\n
Words written by Dr Alan Cole explain the metaphor so well:-<\/p>\n
\u201c<\/i>
\nThe sprouting seed reminds us of the quiet and continuous growth of God\u2019s kingdom in our hearts. We do not need to be anxious or struggle. The seed will bear fruit of its own accord. . . . so the kingdom will grow from insignificant beginnings to final triumph.<\/i><\/p>\n
This is a great encouragement to those of us living in lands where Christians are increasingly a tiny and often despised minority. We work with confidence, waiting patiently for God to fulfil his promise.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
So next time you, like me, feel your inner hulk emerging when the world around us, even sometimes within the church, appears to get things so wrong;<\/p>\n
when you, like me, find the green monster just as suddenly disappearing, leaving you overtaken by feelings of hopelessness; turn to the God who has already triumphed, turn to the God who is your loving Father, who is bringing in his Kingdom in his own good time and in the words of Paul be confident,<\/p>\n
for in Christ there is and will be a new creation into which all will be welcomed, even I guess the Incredible Hulks of this world.<\/p>\n
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\nPrayers<\/b>
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We pray to the Lord for courage and to give ourselves to him this Lent.<\/p>\n
In this continuing time of crisis, give your Church the courage to give up her preoccupation with herself and to give time to your mission in the world.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer.<\/p>\n
May the blood and water flowing from the side of Jesus bring forgiveness to your people and help us to face the cost of proclaiming salvation as we work together and apart in your damaged world.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer.<\/p>\n
Give your world the courage to give up war, bitterness and hatred, and to seek peace and healing for each other.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer.<\/p>\n
May the shoulders of the risen Jesus, once scourged by soldiers, bear the burden of our times.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer.<\/p>\n
Give us the courage to give up quarrels, strife and jealousy in our families, neighbourhoods and communities.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer.<\/p>\n
May the presence of the risen Jesus, his body once broken and now made whole, bring peace and direction as we live with one another. Give us the courage to give up our selfishness as we live for others, and to give time, care and comfort to the sick in ways that are safe for them and for us.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer.<\/p>\n
May the wounded hands of Jesus bring his healing touch to all who suffer, and the light of his presence fill their hearts and homes.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer.<\/p>\n
Give us the courage to give up our fear of death and to rejoice with those who have died in faith. May the feet of the risen Lord Jesus, once nailed to the cross, walk alongside the dying and bereaved in their agony, and walk with us and all your Church through death to the gate of glory.
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\nLord, meet us in the silence, <\/b>
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\n<\/b>give us strength and hear our prayer here and in eternity. Amen.<\/p>\n
We pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us<\/p>\n
Our Father, who art in heaven,
\nHallowed be thy Name.
\nThy Kingdom come.
\nThy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
\nGive us this day our daily bread.
\nAnd forgive us our trespasses,
\nAs we forgive those who trespass against us.
\nAnd lead us not into temptation,
\nBut deliver us from evil.
\nFor thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever.<\/p>\n
Amen<\/p>\n
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\nA Home Communion<\/b>
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Take bread and wine or juice and pray<\/p>\n
<\/font><\/p>\n Blessed are you O God<\/font><\/p>\n For you have brought forth bread from the earth<\/i><\/p>\n Blessed are you O God<\/p>\n For you have created the fruit of the vine<\/i><\/p>\n Here at your table<\/p>\n You offer us light, bread and wine for the journey<\/i><\/p>\n To nourish us as sons and daughters<\/i><\/p>\n Jesus took bread, and having blessed it<\/p>\n He broke it and gave it to his disciples saying<\/p>\n Take, eat, this is my body which is given for you<\/p>\n In the same way after supper, he took the cup of wine<\/p>\n And gave you thanks, he gave it to them saying<\/p>\n Drink this all of you, this is my blood of the new covenant<\/p>\n Which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins<\/p>\n So now, following Jesus\u2019 example<\/p>\n We take this bread and this wine and pray<\/p>\n Lord Jesus Christ, present with us now<\/i><\/p>\n Breathe your Spirit upon us and upon this bread and wine<\/i><\/p>\n That they may be heaven\u2019s food for us<\/i><\/p>\n Renewing, sustaining and making us whole<\/i><\/p>\n That we may be your body on earth<\/i><\/p>\n Loving and caring in the world<\/i><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Look \u2013 The bread of heaven – The light of the world<\/p>\n Here is Christ, coming to us in bread and wine<\/p>\n The gift of God for the people of the world<\/i><\/p>\n The table of bread and wine is now made ready<\/p>\n It is the table of company with Jesus<\/i><\/p>\n So, come to this table, you who have much faith<\/p>\n And you who would like to have more<\/p>\n You who have been to this sacrament often<\/p>\n And you who have not been for a long time<\/p>\n You who have tried to follow Jesus<\/p>\n And you who have failed<\/p>\n Come \u2013 it is Christ himself who invites us to meet him here<\/i><\/p>\n Eat your bread and sip you drink and take a moment of quiet before praying<\/p>\n Holy God, we have seen with our eyes<\/i><\/p>\n And touched with our hands the bread of life the light of the world<\/i><\/p>\n Strengthen our faith<\/i><\/p>\n That we may grow in love for you and for each other<\/i><\/p>\n Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen<\/i><\/p>\n And may the blessing of God Almighty the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit be with us all, those we love and those we pray for. Amen.<\/p>\n <\/font><\/font><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Worshipping Together For all of you still not back with us in church here is a Kitchen Table Communion to say at home. With every blessing and our prayers Mary Tucker A Service to say at home Call to Worship The Lord be with you And also with you God in Jesus has revealed his … <\/p>\n
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\nConcluding Prayer <\/b>
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