Holy Communion – Live Streamed – Sunday, 21 July 2024
Led by: Revd Dr Margaret Goodall
Call to Worship
May you, in company with all God’s people, be strong to grasp what is the breadth and length and height and depth of Christ’s love.
Ephesians 3:18–19
Come, from your busy lives to a quiet time and place.
Our souls thirst for some peace and quiet.
Come, rest in the Lord who restores your soul.
Our lives need moments of rest.
Come and find the quiet centre. Be at peace.
Praise God who offers to us a shelter and a resting place.
Amen
Let’s join together in worship.
Hymn:God is love: his the care
God is love: his the care,
tending each, everywhere.
God is love, all is there!
Jesus came to show him,
that we all might know him!
Sing aloud, loud, loud!
Sing aloud, loud, loud!
God is good!
God is truth! God is beauty!
Praise him!
None can see God above;
humankind we can love;
thus may we Godward move,
finding God in others,
sisters all, and brothers.
Sing aloud, loud, loud! …
Jesus lived here for all;
strove and died, rose once more,
rules our hearts evermore;
for he came to save us
by the truth he gave us.
Sing aloud, loud, loud! …
To our Lord praise we sing,
light and life, friend and king,
coming down love to bring,
pattern for our duty,
showing God in beauty.
Sing aloud, loud, loud! …
Percy Dearmer (1867–1936, altered)
CCL31580
Opening Prayer
Lord, we gather here this morning with lives that are filled with activity and movement.
We rush from one thing to another as though we are going to run out of time to accomplish everything.
Help us to let go of the hectic times and the stresses and find our rest in you.
Relax our spirits and refresh our souls. Remind us that there will always be things to do and places to go,
but that we need the rest of spirit that you provide.
Amen
Prayer of Confession
Patient God, we wait all year for the summer months when we can rest and relax.
But we have redefined leisure to mean a flurry of activities.
We need some time to rest, to be still and listen to the beautiful sounds of the world.
Forgive us when we are determined to crowd every moment of our lives with activity.
Help us to find a quiet centre with you, where we can just relax
and not try to get everything done as though life was some sort of a contest.
Refresh our souls so that we can truly serve you, not out of exhaustion but out of enthusiasm.
Amen
Kyrie
[We make our own confession during the Kyrie.]Words of Assurance
God’s forgiving love awaits you.
It has been lavished upon you as a gentle summer rain,
refreshing your souls, opening your hearts, healing your wounds.
Rest in God’s eternal love.
Amen
Prayer of the Week
God of healing and peace,
as new creations in Christ may we go;
to witness to your power to renew us,
to overcome barriers that divide us,
and to show in our lives your reconciling love.
Amen
Ministry of the Word
Psalm 89: 20–37
Read by David Chapman
20 I have found David my servant;
with my sacred oil I have anointed him.
21 My hand will sustain him;
surely my arm will strengthen him.
22 The enemy will not get the better of him;
the wicked will not oppress him.
23 I will crush his foes before him
and strike down his adversaries.
24 My faithful love will be with him,
and through my name his horn will be exalted.
25 I will set his hand over the sea,
his right hand over the rivers.
26 He will call out to me, “You are my Father,
my God, the Rock my Saviour.”
27 And I will appoint him to be my firstborn,
the most exalted of the kings of the earth.
28 I will maintain my love to him for ever,
and my covenant with him will never fail.
29 I will establish his line for ever,
his throne as long as the heavens endure.
30 ‘If his sons forsake my law
and do not follow my statutes,
31 if they violate my decrees
and fail to keep my commands,
32 I will punish their sin with the rod,
their iniquity with flogging;
33 but I will not take my love from him,
nor will I ever betray my faithfulness.
34I will not violate my covenant
or alter what my lips have uttered.
35 Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness –
and I will not lie to David –
36 that his line will continue for ever
and his throne endure before me like the sun;
37 it will be established for ever like the moon,
the faithful witness in the sky.”
NIV®
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Mark 6: 30–34 & 53–56
Read by Joy Chapman
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. 31 Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”
32So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. 33But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.
[…]
53 When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and anchored there. 54 As soon as they got out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. 55 They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. 56 And wherever he went – into villages, towns or countryside –they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.
NIV®
This is the Gospel of Christ.
Praise to Christ our light.
Hymn: Like a mighty river flowing
Like a mighty river flowing,
like a flower in beauty growing,
far beyond all human knowing
is the perfect peace of God.
Like the hills serene and even,
like the coursing clouds of heaven,
like the heart that’s been forgiven
is the perfect peace of God.
Like the summer breezes playing,
like the tall trees softly swaying,
like the lips of silent praying
is the perfect peace of God.
Like the morning sun ascended,
like the scents of evening blended,
like a friendship never ended
is the perfect peace of God.
Like the azure ocean swelling,
like the jewel all-excelling,
far beyond all human telling
is the perfect peace of God.
Michael Perry (1942–1996)
CCL31580
Sermon
Musical Response
Creed
We are not alone, we live in God’s world.
We believe in God:
who created and is creating;
who has come in Jesus, the word made flesh,
to reconcile and make new;
who works in us and others by the Spirit.
We trust in God.
We are called to be the Church:
to celebrate God’s presence;
to love and serve others;
to seek justice and resist evil;
to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen, our judge and our hope.
In life, in death, in life beyond death,
God is with us.
We are not alone.
Thanks be to God.
Intercession
Led by Glynne Gordon-Carter
Hymn: Come, my table is a meeting place
Come, my table is a meeting place,
here I’m waiting ready for you,
come and share, you are invited,
come beloved, I chose you.
Come, my table is a feeding place,
bread, my body broken for you,
wine, my blood poured out to save you,
given eternally for you.
Come, my table is a touching place,
hands to greet you span time and space,
see my arms stretched out in welcome,
this for you a holy place.
Come and meet me in this moment,
taste and see this gift of my grace,
here, the feast spread out before you,
come, my child, and take your place.
Claire Stainsby (b. 1959))
CCL31580
Offertory
Lord and giver of every good thing, we bring to you bread and wine for our Communion,
and gifts and lives for your kingdom.
Transform them through your grace and love, made known to us in Christ Jesus our Saviour.
Amen
The Peace
The Thanksgiving
God is here.
His Spirit is with us.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to offer our thanks and praise.
Loving God, you made this wonderful world for us to enjoy.
You made people to live for you and for one another.
You gave us Jesus to be our friend and bring us closer to you.
He died on a cross, but you raised him to life, to live with us for ever.
You send us your Spirit, and you bring us to this table so that we can share your love.
For all your goodness we give you thanks; and together we give you praise, saying:
Holy, holy, holy,
God of power and might !
Heaven and earth are full of your glory!
Praise be to you, O Lord!
We gather at this table to remember that on the night before he died, Jesus had a meal with his friends.
He took a loaf of bread. After blessing it, he broke it and gave it to them, saying:
‘Take, eat. This is my body, given for you.
Each time you do this, remember me.’
Then, Jesus also took a cup.After giving thanks, he passed it to his friends, saying:
‘Drink. This cup, poured out for you,
is the promise of God’s love.
Whenever you drink it, remember me.’
So, remembering Jesus’ death and celebrating his resurrection, we pray:
Lord of all life,
help us to be your true disciples, and work together for the day when your kingdom comes
and justice, peace and mercy are seen in all the world.
Now send, O God, your Holy Spirit upon us and what we do here, that we and these gifts, touched by your Spirit, may be signs of life and love to one another, and to the world.
Blessing and honour and glory and power be yours, O Lord, for ever and ever.
Amen
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen
The Communion
We break this bread to share in the body of Christ.
Though we are many, we are one body,
because we all share in one bread.
Jesus said, ‘I am the bread of life.
Those who come to me shall not hunger,
and those who believe in me shall never thirst.’
Draw near with faith.
After Communion
We thank you Lord, that you have fed us in this sacrament, united us with Christ,
and given us a foretaste of the heavenly banquet prepared for all people.
Amen
Notices
Wednesday Bible Study: St John’s Gospel: Week 6
‘The Good Shepherd, and the Blind Man’ (John 9 & 10)
Theme: ‘Blindness and Sight: Spiritual Truths Revealed’
Focus: Jesus healing a blind man and his teachings on true spiritual leadership
Key verses: John 9 25; 9: 35–38; 10: 11 & 30
Study questions
What does the blind man’s healing signify?
How does Jesus contrast himself with false shepherds?
What does it mean for Jesus to be ‘one’ with the Father?
Hymn: Lord of the Dance
I danced in the morning when the world was begun,
and I danced in the moon and the stars and the sun,
and I came down from heaven and I danced on the earth;
at Bethlehem I had my birth.
Dance, then, wherever you may be;
I am the Lord of the Dance, said he,
and I’ll lead you all wherever you may be,
and I’ll lead you all in the Dance, said he.
I danced for the scribe and the Pharisee,
but they would not dance, and they wouldn’t follow me.
I danced for the fishermen, for James and John;
they came with me and the Dance went on:
Dance, then, wherever you may be …
I danced on the Sabbath and I cured the lame;
the holy people said it was a shame.
They whipped and they stripped and they hung me on high,
and they left me there on a cross to die.
Dance, then, wherever you may be …
I danced on a Friday when the sky turned black;
it’s hard to dance with the devil on your back.
They buried my body and they thought I’d gone;
but I am the dance and I still go on.
Dance, then, wherever you may be …
They cut me down and I leapt up high;
I am the life that’ll never, never die;
I’ll live in you if you’ll live in me:
I am the Lord of the Dance, said he.
Dance, then, wherever you may be …
Sydney Carter (1915–2004)
CCL31580
Closing Prayers
You are God’s beloved people, refreshed, restored, forgiven and healed.
Go now into this world confident in the gifts God has given you.
Go to serve God’s people, bringing words of peace and hope to all whom you meet.
Amen
Blessing
And the blessing of God Almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you today and always.
Amen
Dismissal
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ,
Amen
