Morning Service for Trinity 5
HYMN As the deer H&S 11
1. As the deer pants for the water,
so my soul longs after you.
You alone are my heart’s desire
and I long to worship you.
You alone are my strength, my shield,
To you alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart’s desire
And I long to worship you.
2. I want you more than gold or silver,
only you can satisfy.
You alone are the real joy-giver
and the apple of my eye.
Chorus
3. You’re my friend and you are my brother,
even though you are a king.
I love you more than any other,
so much more than anything.
Chorus
.
PRAYER OF PREPARATION
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord. Amen
PRAYERS OF PENITENCE
We recall our Lord’s command to love and in a moment of silence we confess
the many ways we fail to keep his command:
Most merciful God,
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
we confess that we have sinned
in thought, word and deed.
We have not loved you with our whole heart.
We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.
In your mercy forgive what we have been,
help us to amend what we are,
and direct what we shall be;
that we may do justly, love mercy,
and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen
May the God of love and power
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE COLLECT
Almighty and everlasting God,
by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church
is governed and sanctified:
hear our prayer which we offer for all your faithful people,
that in their vocation and ministry
they may serve you in holiness and truth
to the glory of your name;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.
FIRST READING – 2 Samuel 5.1-5,9-10
Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron, and said, “Look, we are your bone and flesh. For some time, while Saul was king over us, it was you who led out Israel and brought it in. The LORD said to you: It is you who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you who shall be ruler over Israel.” So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron; and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD, and they anointed David king over Israel. David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months; and at Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years.
The king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who said to David, “You will not come in here, even the blind and the lame will turn you back”—thinking, “David cannot come in here.” Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion, which is now the city of David. David had said on that day, “Whoever would strike down the Jebusites, let him get up the water shaft to attack the lame and the blind, those whom David hates.” Therefore it is said, “The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.” David occupied the stronghold, and named it the city of David. David built the city all around from the Millo inward. And David became greater and greater, for the LORD, the God of hosts, was with him.
HYMN Spirit of God unseen as the wind H&S 87 – Sky Boat Song
Spirit of God, unseen as the wind,
gentle as is the dove,
teach us the truth and help us believe,
show us the Saviour’s love!
1. You spoke to us, long, long ago,
gave us the written word;
we read it still, needing its truth,
through it God’s voice is heard.
Chorus
2. Without your help, we fail our Lord,
we cannot live his way;
we need your power, we need your strength,
following Christ each day.
Chorus
GOSPEL – Mark 6.1-13
He left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offence at him. Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honour, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.
Then he went about among the villages teaching. He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.
SERMON
When an accident deprived the village headman of the use of his legs, he took to walking on crutches. He gradually developed the ability to move with speed even to dance and execute little pirouettes for the entertainment of his neighbours.
Then he took it into his head to train his children in the use of crutches. It soon became a status symbol in the village to walk on crutches and before long everyone was doing so.
By the fourth generation no one in the village could walk without crutches. The village school included “Advanced Crutchery” in its curriculum and the village craftsmen became famous for the quality of the crutches they produced. There was even talk of developing an electronic, battery-operated set of crutches!
One day a young buck presented himself before the village elders and demanded to know why everyone had to walk on crutches since God had provided people with legs to walk on. The village elders were amused that this upstart should think himself wiser than them so they decided to teach him a lesson. “Why don’t you show us how?” they said.
“Agreed,” cried the young man.
A demonstration was fixed for ten o’clock on the following Sunday at the village square. Everyone was there when the young man hobbled on his crutches to the middle of the square and, when the village clock began to strike the hour, stood upright and dropped his crutches. A hush fell on the crowd as he took a bold step forward-and fell flat on his face.
With that everyone was confirmed in their belief that it was quite impossible to walk without the help of crutches.
When Jesus returned to his home town they just couldn’t see that he was anything but the home town boy gone mad – they couldn’t believe that he could be anything special. When the disciples set off to tell the world about Jesus they knew he was something special, they knew too that they were far from special – but they went anyway.
We make our minds about something and often we only change them with great reluctance. Our present opinions are shaped by our past opinions, what we think now, we so often thought then. Some constancy of thought is no doubt helpful, being blown about by the whims of fashion is far from being a good thing. However, it is important not to limit our thinking, new ideas and new experiences should change our outlook and understanding, or least we should be prepared to let them. Flexibility of thought and mind is surely the hallmark of a mature wisdom.
Jesus’ first disciples had to re-think much of what they knew in the light of this daring teacher and healer, they made the change only reluctantly and with difficulty – let us learn to be bold and understand that little of what Jesus taught or asked his disciples to do was in any way comfortable – to either their thinking or their doing.
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
Let us declare our faith in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures;
he was buried; he was raised to life on the third day
in accordance with the scriptures;
afterwards he appeared to his followers,
and to all the apostles: this we have received,
and this we believe. Amen. 1 Corinthians 15.3-7
HYMN Take my life and let it be H&S 88 – St Bees
1. Take my life, and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to thee;
take my moments and my days,
let them flow in ceaseless praise.
2. Take my hands, and let them move
at the impulse of thy love;
take my feet, and let them be
swift and beautiful for thee.
3. Take my voice, and let me sing
always, only, for my King;
take my lips, and let them be
filled with messages from thee.
4. Take my silver and my gold,
not a mite would I withhold;
take my intellect, and use
every power as thou shalt choose.
5. Take my will, and make it thine;
it shall be no longer mine;
take my heart: it is thine own;
it shall be thy royal throne.
6. Take my love; my Lord, I pour
at thy feet its treasure-store;
take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee.
PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION – Katherine Royle
Father, we thank you that we are able to worship you together this morning and that you are here with us.
Thank you for William and all who volunteer to help. Thank you for the prayer, time and effort that they give to serve you and support the parishioners of this benefice. We pray that William will know your leading and be given wisdom in all that he does.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
We thank you for the freedom of worship we enjoy in this country. We ask that our freedom is protected and that we do not take it for granted. For those Christians who live in countries where worship or professing their faith brings danger of persecution we pray for strength and a strong sense of your presence. Help us to give support with our prayers and finance where we are able . Thank you for the Christian charities such as Open Doors and CSW (Christian Solidarity Worldwide). Please be with them in their work as they support and bring to the attention of governments those who are denied religious freedom and suffer for their faith.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
As we begin to draw closer to the end of lockdown in this country help us to reflect on some of the things we have learned in the face of uncertainty. A clearer perspective of your values. The importance of relationships and the support from each other. We know that you are with us in all circumstances and we appreciate the power and comfort of prayer. Our experiences are different and we pray that each of us is able to give you our burdens. Please comfort those who are grieving. Please help people who have lost jobs, businesses and homes to rebuild their lives. We ask for healing and strength for those suffering from poor health, either physically or emotionally, as a result of the Covid virus. We also think of people who are now on even longer NHS waiting lists and the medical staff working hard to clear them.
Thank you that the vaccine program has been so successful. Please continue to give the government wisdom and guidance as they weave their way through new variants and spikes. We pray that people will have a sense of responsibility towards each other as the lockdown conditions are lifted.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Let us now take a few moments to remember and quietly pray for members of our benefice, friends and relations who are struggling with health or other difficulties. As we do so we can hold on to the wise counsel of the words in Philippians.
‘Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus’.
We thank you Father that you love us beyond our comprehension, that you always listen when we pray and we can trust you.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers, for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray:
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.
BLESSING
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make his face to shine upon and be gracious unto you.
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
The Lord God almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
the holy and undivided Trinity, guard you, save you,
and bring you to that heavenly city,
where he lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen
HYMN I the Lord of sea and sky H&S 47
1. I, the Lord of sea and sky,
I have heard my people cry.
All who dwell in dark and sin
my hand will save. (bar rest)
I who made the stars of night,
I will make their darkness bright.
Who will bear my light to them?
Whom shall I send?
Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.
2. I, the Lord of snow and rain,
I have borne my people’s pain.
I have wept for love of them.
They turn away. (bar rest)
I will break their hearts of stone,
give them hearts for love alone.
I will speak my word to them.
Whom shall I send?
Chorus
3. I, the Lord of wind and flame,
I will tend the poor and lame.
I will set a feast for them.
My hand will save. (bar rest)
Finest bread I will provide
till their hearts be satisfied.
I will give my life to them.
Whom shall I send?
Chorus