Preacher: Krou Assoua, Licensed Lay Minister
Celebrant: Revd Ernesto Lozada-Uzuriaga

Gathering Music

Welcome

Lord of all, you know our hearts, our hopes, and our fears.
Please give us your wisdom to know what is best and to serve you and those around us as best we can.

Amen

[Silence]

Welcome to the house of God.
We have come from all the corners of the earth.

Welcome to the hospitality of God.
We come as we are; we bring our life, our stories, our journey.

Welcome, brothers and sisters.
We are the rainbow people of God.

Welcome, chosen people.
May God our companion bind us in his love.

Amen

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;
humankimd 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!
Sing aloud, loud, loud!
God is good!
God is truth! God is beauty!
Praise him!

Percy Dearmer(1867–1936), altered
CCL31580

Confession

Lord, we confess that our priorities are wrong.
We want wealth, to surround ourselves with material things;
we want health, to have long life to enjoy them.
But what are wealth and health without the wisdom to use them well?

We confess that we think first of the benefits to us,
and not of the ways we might use these gifts for others.
Father, we repent of this selfish lack of judgement.
Grant us wisdom above all things, we pray.
Give us discernment to know your will and to walk in your ways,
so that our lives, long or short, filled with riches or the lack of them,
may be filled with loving intent for the well-being of others.

Amen

[Silence]

Father, we are foolish creatures fumbling our way through life.
We mostly mean well, but fail to do it; our actions fall far short of our intentions.
Yet you forgive our frailty; you, who are perfect, forgive our flawed human characters.
Thank you for the assurance of your forgiveness!

Amen

Prayer of the Week

We thank you, Almighty God, for your Word;
the wisdom within your Scriptures is comfort and counsel to our mortal minds.
And we praise you, Lord, for the gift of your Son, who walked among us in wisdom;
we are blessed if we follow in his footsteps.
Thank you, Father, that there is wisdom to be found when we seek it,
earnestly desiring to be of one mind with you.

Amen

Ministry of the Word

1 Kings 2: 10–12 & 3: 3–14

Read by Nerys Steeds

¹⁰Then David rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. ¹¹He had reigned forty years over Israel – seven years in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem. ¹² So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David, and his rule was firmly established.

…

³ Solomon showed his love for the Lord by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David, except that he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.

⁴ The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. ⁵ At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, ‘Ask for whatever you want me to give you.’

⁶ Solomon answered, ‘You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.

⁷ ‘Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. ⁸Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. ⁹ So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?’

¹⁰ The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. ¹¹ So God said to him, ‘Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, ¹² I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. ¹³ Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for – both wealth and honour – so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. ¹⁴ And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life.’

NIV®

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

John 6: 51–58

Read by Peter Steeds

⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live for ever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.’

⁵² Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’

⁵³ Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. ⁵⁶ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. ⁵⁷ Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live for ever.’

NIV®

This is the Gospel of Christ.
Praise to Christ our light.

Meditation

By Krou Assoua, Licensed LayMinister

[Silence]

Affirmation of Faith

We believe in the Creator:
the maker of all things

We believe in the Son:
the redeemer of our broken world

We believe in the Spirit:
The sacred wind that binds all things together in the family of God.

Creator Father, beloved Son and living Spirit.

Amen

Prayers and Intercessions

Led by Rosemary Kearsey

The Peace

The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said,
‘Peace be with you.’
Then were they glad when they saw the Lord.

The peace of the Lord be always with you.
and also with you.

Let us offer one another a sign of peace.

Hymn: God forgave my sin in Jesus’ name

God forgave my sin in Jesus’ name;
I’ve been born again in Jesus’ name;
and in Jesus’ name I come to you
to share his love as he told me to.

He said:
‘Freely, freely you have received;
freely, freely give.
Go, in my name,
and because you believe.
others will know that I live.’

All power is given in Jesus’ name.
in earth and heaven in Jesus’ name;
and in Jesus’ name I come to you
to share his power as he told me to.

He said:
‘Freely, freely you have received; …

God gives us life in Jesus’ name.
he lives in us in Jesus’ name;
and in Jesus’ name I come to you
to share his peace as he told me to.

He said:
‘Freely, freely you have received;
freely, freely give.
Go, in my name,
and because you believe.
others will know that I live.’

Carol Owens
CCL31580

Holy Communion

The Thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation.
Through your goodness we have this bread to offer,
which earth has given and human hands have made.
It will become for us the bread of life.

Blessed be God for ever.

Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation.
Through your goodness we have this wine to offer,
fruit of the vine and work of human hands.
It will become our spiritual drink.

Blessed be God for ever.

The Lord 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 give thanks and praise.

Almighty God, good Father to us all, your face is turned towards your world.
In love you gave us Jesus your Son to rescue us from sin and death.
Your Word goes out to call us home to the city where angels sing your praise.

We join with them in heaven’s song:

Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

We bless the name of Jesus, bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh,
whose brokenness and suffering makes love real,
who on the night in which he was betrayed took bread,
gave thanks, broke it and gave it to his disciples saying,

Take, eat. This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.

After supper he took the cup saying,

Drink from this, all of you, this is my blood given for you.
Do this whenever you drink it in remembrance of me.

This is the mystery of our faith.

Christ has died:
Christ is risen:
Christ will come again.

Therefore, as we eat this bread and drink this cup,
we acknowledge brokenness as a path to truth.
We long for the bread of tomorrow: eternally broken and so able to nourish.
We long for the new wine of the kingdom: continuously poured out that thirst may be quenched.

Send your Spirit on us now,
that by these gifts we may feed on Christ with opened eyes and hearts on fire.
May we and all who share this food offer ourselves to live for you
and be welcomed at your feast in heaven, where all creation worships you,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit:

Blessing and honour and glory and power
be yours forever 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.

Amen

Invitation

Come to this table, not because you must but because you may,
not because you are strong, but because you are weak.

Come, not because any goodness of your own gives you a right to come,
but because you need mercy and help.

Come, because you love the Lord a little and would like to love him more.

Come, because he loved you and gave himself for you.

Come and meet the risen Christ, because you are his Body.

Post Communion Prayer

Eternal Father, we thank you for nourishing us with these heavenly gifts
may our communion strengthen us in faith, build us up in hope, and make us grow in love;
for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

Notices

Church bank accounts

Our new church bank accounts are now open. As mentioned at the recent Congregational Meeting, our main bank account is now with Unity Trust Bank. Please note that the old NatWest account is closing this week.

Our new Metro Bank account is also now open. The account details are:

Account name: Christ the Cornerstone Ecumenical Partnership
Account number: 54451865
Sort code: 23 05 80

A special ‘thank you’ to everyone who donates to us by standing order or electronic payment for changing your payments to the new bank accounts. Your help has been very much appreciated.

If you are new to the church and need information about the different ways you can make regular offerings, please pick up one of the leaflets in the Reception area.

Peter Cope

Wednesday Bible Study by Zoom

Our next Wednesday Bible study will be on the Book of Revelation, beginning on Wednesday, 25 September 2024 at 7.00 pm. More information will be available in September. If you have not yet joined these stimulating sessions and would like to join us, please send a request to robin_kyd@yahoo.co.uk to add your email address to the list of folk receiving the Zoom link.

Cornerstone Choir

This weekend (17–18 August 2024), the Cornerstone Choir is singing services in Gloucester Cathedral.

Adrian Boynton

Thursday Morning Coffee

For the rest of the holiday period we shall not be holding Thursday Morning Coffee sessions by Zoom. We shall return to our normal arrangements in September.

Robin Kyd

Offering

Final Prayer

Holy Lord, you are just and true. We receive your forgiveness and carry it with us this week.
Give us courage to confront those in power who have forgotten to act with your love and care.
Inspire us to speak in a way that will help them to hear your voice and live according to your love

Amen

Hymn: Give me joy in my heart

Give me joy in my heart, keep me praising,
give me joy in my heart, I pray.
Give me joy in my heart, keep me praising.
Keep me praising till the end of day.

Sing hosanna! Sing hosanna!
Sing hosanna to the King of kings!
Sing hosanna! Sing hosanna!
Sing hosanna to the King!

Give me peace in my heart, keep me resting,
give me peace in my heart, I pray.
Give me peace in my heart, keep me resting.
Keep me resting till the end of day.

Sing hosanna! …

Give me love in my heart, keep me serving,
give me love in my heart, I pray.
Give me love in my heart, keep me serving.
Keep me serving till the end of day.

Sing hosanna! …

Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning,
give me oil in my lamp, I pray.
Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning.
Keep me burning to the end of day.

Sing hosanna! …

Traditional
CCL31580

Blessing

God be in your head, and in your understanding;
God be in your eyes, and in your looking;
God be in your mouth, and in your speaking;
God be in your heart, and in your thinking;
God be at your end, and at your departing.
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