CCL 125049 Charity No SC002937
Contents
- Welcome
- Hymn 124 Praise to the Lord the Almighty Tune Lobe den Herren (Church Hymnary 4th Edition)
- All age time
- Prayer
- Reading Matthew 13: 24-30 (Good News Bible)
- Hymn 502 Take my life Lord let it be Tune Nottingham (Church Hymnary 4th Edition)
- Reflection
- Prayer for others
- Hymn 456 Christ is the world’s true light Tune Nun Danket (Church Hymnary 4th Edition)
- Blessing
Welcome
Welcome and let us worship God
‘Be rooted in Christ, be built in him, grow strong in the faith; let your hearts overflow with thankfulness.’
Colossians 2: 7
Hymn 124
1 Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation;
praise God, my soul, for in him are your health and salvation;
come all who hear,
into his presence draw near,
joining in glad adoration.
2 Praise to the Lord, who in all things is wondrously reigning,
shields you from harm and is gently yet firmly sustaining.
Have you not seen
how your heart’s wishes have been
granted by God’s wise ordaining?
3 Praise to the Lord, who with blessing and power will defend you;
surely his goodness and mercy shall daily attend you;
ponder anew
what the Almighty can do:
God will for ever befriend you.
4 Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore him!
All that has life and breath, come now with praises before him!
Let the Amen
sound from God’s people again:
gladly for ever adore him.
All age time (for ages 0-100)
- Today’s Bible story
In today’s Bible story Jesus is telling a story to show that good and bad live alongside each other in life, but in the end good will have the last word
- Something to make
Make a picture of weeds (many can be attractive – they just choose what is to us the ‘wrong’ place to grow). Draw it; make a collage out of coloured paper, fabric, drinking straws, aluminium foil, sweet wrappers etc; or press weeds to make a picture later
- Something to think about
Do some research on weeds, and what we can do other than use weed-killer to curb them
Are there ways in which humanity could get rid of the ‘bad bits’ in life, without destroying ‘good bits’ at the same time?
Opening Prayer
Loving God
Long before the universe came into existence
you loved us
and planned to come in Jesus
to make us your own for ever
Despite knowing long before Jesus what people were like
despite knowing what people would be like since his time
you didn’t change your mind
or waver in your intention
but in him you came to show us how we can be
and in him you suffered, died and rose again
to achieve what you had always wanted
You love us and accept us as we are
but you see our potential to be so much more
You call all sorts, shapes and sizes to be your children
we have difficulty loving some of them
(maybe many of them, if we are honest)
but you don’t have difficulty
and you want us to love and accept them too
It’s hard, but how can we complain
when your love for us is so great
that it took Jesus to the cross
and you gave us your Spirit
to change us
to enable us to accept and love others as you do
to care for them as you do
Forgive us
Help us to be the people you want us to be
the people you expect us to be
Through Christ our Lord we pray
Amen
Bible reading
Matthew 13: 24-30
Jesus told them another parable. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like this. A man sowed good seed in his field. One night, when everyone was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. When the plants grew and the ears of corn began to form, then the weeds showed up. The man’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, it was good seed you sowed in your field; where did the weeds come from?’ ‘It was some enemy who did this,’ he answered. ‘Do you want us to go and pull up the weeds?’ they asked him. ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because as you gather the weeds you might pull up some of the wheat along with them. Let the wheat and the weeds both grow together until harvest. Then I will tell the harvest workers to pull up the weeds first, tie them in bundles and burn them, and then to gather in the wheat and put it in my barn.’”
Hymn 502
1 Take my life, Lord, let it be
consecrated, glad, and free;
take my moments and my days,
let them flow in ceaseless praise.
2 Take my hands, and let them move
at the impulse of your love;
take my feet, that I may run
bearing news of Christ your Son.
3 Take my voice, and let me sing
always, only, for my King;
take my intellect and use
every power as you shall choose.
4 Take my will — your will be done,
may my will and yours be one;
take my heart — it is your own,
it shall be your royal throne.
5 Take my love — my Lord, I pour
at your feet its treasure-store;
take myself, and I will be
all for you, eternally.
Reflection
A disciple reflects on the parable of the weeds
“He’s supposed to be here to liberate captive Israelites and put the world right, so he talks about weeds. Weeds! I don’t even have a garden, so what relevance to me is a story about weeds?
“I suppose, if you think about it, it is a very visual picture – wheat and weeds growing together in a field. You could transfer the image to something like salad leaves and dandelions growing side by side in your veg plot at home, but it’s not quite so poetic. It is certainly more poetic than talking about customers who pay their bills, and those who don’t, go bankrupt or do a moonlight. So I suppose, whatever your personal circumstances, you can see what he’s getting at, even if you can’t relate immediately to the image of a wheat-field.
“It’s true that in life good and bad are all mixed up together. The world we live in, the community we live in, maybe even the family we live in, has a mix of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ in it. Actually, if you think about it, you cannot simply divide people into the ‘good ones’ and the ‘bad ones’. They all have some good points and some bad points, and the mix isn’t always the same – sometimes they are better than at other times.
“It is easy always to talk about, and criticise, other people. But what about me? I am not perfect. There is a good and bad mix in me – and again the mix varies. Sometimes I really try hard to be good – but in the end I fail. At other times I don’t try hard, and sometimes I really want to be bad. That hurts other people, and it hurts God too.
“I wonder if Jesus is right – will God forgive me for the bad things I think and do? Will he help me to be better? Jesus seems to think so, and I’m willing to give it a try.”
Prayers for others
Heavenly Father
For many of us our gardens have been saviours
through the past few months
somewhere to sit
somewhere to exercise
somewhere to play
something to do
colour and scent have inspired and stimulated
for those without gardens life has been much harder
many have appreciated
being able to visit gardens like Levengrove Park
We pray for all who are looking after and tending gardens
for all who have benefitted from flowers, plants, shrubs and trees
grassy lawns on which to play
paths on which to walk
we pray for all – with or without gardens –
who have struggled in the past few months
with depression, cabin-fever or weariness
help us to be ready to offer support
We pray for all who are ill,
those who look after them
and those who worry about them
those waiting for or receiving treatment
and those for whom there is no treatment
those who are lonely, feeling down, or grieving a friend or loved one
those who are worried about home, work or money
a friend or a relative
those who are living with the after-effects of natural disasters
those who do not have enough to eat, or somewhere to call home
those who long to live in peace and safety
those who have fled from their homes seeking safety
We pray for the Queen, the Government
all in positions of leadership in this and every land
We pray for your church
our own congregation
the wider church in Dumbarton
the world-wide church
We bring to you our prayers for people and situations of special concern to us
And we sum up our prayers in the words of the prayer Jesus gave us
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen
Hymn 456
1 Christ is the world’s true light,
its captain of salvation,
the daystar clear and bright
of every race and nation;
new life, new hope awakes,
where people own his sway:
from bondage freedom breaks,
and night is turned to day.
2 In Christ all races meet,
their ancient feuds forgetting,
the whole round earth complete,
from sunrise to its setting:
when Christ is throned as Lord,
we shall forsake our fear,
to ploughshare beat the sword,
to pruning-hook the spear.
3 One Lord, in one great name
unite us all who own you;
cast out our pride and shame
that hinder to enthrone you;
the world has waited long,
has travailed long in pain:
come, heal its ancient wrong,
come, Prince of Peace, and reign.
Blessing
God the Father sends you out
to be his witnesses wherever you go
to work to bring healing and wholeness in all you do
and the blessing of God Almighty
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
rest and remain with you,
today, and every day, and for ever. Amen
Did not know the last hymn today. I should thank Ian on the organ and Cameron and / or whoever is the technical expert as well as you Ian as Minister. Has the Church as a whole thought about contacting the BBC about the stopping of the Sunday Service and Reflections at the Quay on T.V. They are a big miss.