Welcome to our online service - 2 July 23
This service sheet can be used individually or with households.
We would encourage you to say (or even sing) hymns and songs out loud.
Prayers, other liturgy or readings can be said out loud or silently, corporately or individually.
If you are able, we would also like invite you to join us for our main Sunday service, 10am, live on Zoom and in the church. Even if you have never been to St Gabriel’s before we would love you to join you. Please get in touch with the vicar Alistair (vicar@saintgs.co.uk) and he will send you the Zoom details.
Please join us for public worship in the church building this Sunday at 10am or 11:30am.
OPENING
OPENING
Jesus Christ is risen from the dead.
Alleluia.
He has defeated the powers of death.
Alleluia.
Jesus turns our sorrow into dancing.
Alleluia.
He has the words of eternal life.
Alleluia.
HYMN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPbD2G3i-7Y
Love divine, all loves excelling,
joy of heaven, to earth come down,
fix in us Thy humble dwelling,
all Thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, Thou art all compassion,
pure unbounded love Thou art;
visit us with Thy salvation,
enter every trembling heart.
2. Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit
into every troubled breast;
let us all in Thee inherit,
let us find Thy promised rest.
Take away the love of sinning,
Alpha and Omega be;
end of faith, as its beginning,
set our hearts at liberty.
3. Come, almighty to deliver,
let us all Thy grace receive;
suddenly return, and never,
never more Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
pray and praise Thee without ceasing,
glory in Thy perfect love.
4. Finish then Thy new creation:
pure and spotless let us be;
let us see Thy great salvation,
perfectly restored in Thee:
changed from glory into glory,
till in heaven we take our place,
till we cast our crowns before Thee,
lost in wonder, love and praise.
Words: Charles Wesley (1707-88)
Music: William P Rowlands (1860-1937)
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.
CONFESSION
Jesus Christ, risen Master and triumphant Lord, we come to you in sorrow for our sins, and confess to you our weakness and unbelief.
We have lived by our own strength,
and not by the power of you resurrection.
In your mercy, forgive us.
Lord, hear us and help us.
We have lived by the light
of our own eyes,
as faithless and not believing.
In your mercy, forgive us.
Lord, hear us and help us.
We have lived for this world alone,
and doubted our home in heaven.
In your mercy, forgive us.
Lord, hear us and help us.
ABSOLUTION
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.
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 our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
SING: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggSjE26Iivw
The King is among us,
His Spirit is here:
let's draw near and worship,
let songs fill the air!
2. He looks down upon us,
delight in his face,
enjoying his children's love,
enthralled by our praise.
3. For each child is special,
accepted and loved -
a love gift from Jesus
to His Father above.
4. And now He is giving
his gifts to us all;
for no one is worthless
and each one is called.
5. The Spirit's anointing
on all flesh comes down,
and we shall be channels
For works like His own:
6. We come now believing
Your promise of power,
for we are Your people
and this is Your hour.
Graham Kendrick
(c) 1981 Make Way Music/Thankyou Music
READINGS
James 5: 13 - 16 (p. 1413 )
Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.
Luke 9: 1 -6 (p. 1201)
One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases. Then he sent them out to tell everyone about the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick. “Take nothing for your journey,” he instructed them. “Don’t take a walking stick, a traveller’s bag, food, money, or even a change of clothes.
Wherever you go, stay in the same house until you leave town. And if a town refuses to welcome you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.”
So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the Good News and healing the sick.
TALK written by Rachel Crossley
We are continuing our series looking at gifts of the holy spirit today. We have spent some time thinking about what the Holy Spirit is and what it means to be filled by the Holy Spirit and then gone on to talk about some of the spiritual gifts. WE have talked about speaking in tongues, or other languages. Last week we spoke about the gift of prophecy and today we are looking at healing.
I have to admit that I struggled to find a way into this sermon today, struggled to work out the best path through what can be a difficult topic. I went back and forwards with a few ideas but realised that perhaps it was best to begin with complete openness and acknowledgment of these issues. I think that in the past this gift has been misused by people, and it can be really damaging when we do so. Whilst at secondary school one of my friends mum was very sick with cancer. She had been repeatedly told by her church that if she believed and had faith and prayed God would heal her mum. Her mum died during our GCSE exams and her relationship with God was understandably affected, she felt a lot of guilt about what happened and has struggled to go back to church ever since.
I also know that even when done with love sometimes when we pray for healing we don’t get the answers we might want. When this happens it is hard to get our heads around what is going on, we are often left asking why. I want to say at this point that it is ok if we are struggling with this! I think the Bible shows us lots of examples of people struggling to understand God and why some things happen or other things don’t. So, it is ok if even after this service you still feel a bit uncertain!
However, I also have complete faith that healing is real and absolutely happens today! The healing and wholeness team have been witnesses to moments of healing within people’s lives and on a weekly basis in our prayer meetings we hear of healings happening. When my mum went into relapse with leukemia there was one day where we received a call that she had been taken into ICU and we were to come to hospital quickly. The unspoken implication on the phone was that things looked bad and she was likely to die. When I got there, she was then sitting up and talking, she was clearly still very ill but it was not quite the situation I was expecting to walk into. My sister had gotten to the hospital before me and says just before I arrived, she had been in a much worse condition, and the hospital were about to put her onto breathing equipment and so on. My sister said she suddenly just came around. I know there were people praying for my mum at that moment! A few months later my mum died but I think there was a healing in that moment. A healing that gave my family time to prepare, and it was a healing that somehow continued even after mums’ death as it allowed me and my family to be comforted.
I’m not sure I know how or why things happen exactly the way they do but I pray that this morning that together we can work through some of these difficult issues and perhaps get a better understanding of how we can trust God and know God with us through the Holy Spirit.
I want to begin by establishing some values for healing, we need to have an attitude that is shaped by the cross, shaped by the Bible, led by the spirit and of treating everyone with dignity…
Let’s look at a few examples of healing in the gospels. If you can, I would encourage you to find these in your Bible and read the passage.
Now there are many other stories that we could have looked at which would be fascinating and give us even more insights into what is going on but a few things stand out to me in these passages.
John 9:
•Man born blind
•Jesus emphasises that his blindness has nothing to do with sin
•His faith at end is contrasted with pharisees faith
Luke 13:
•Bent over woman crippled by an evil spirit
•Happens on the sabbath in the synagogue
•She goes home praising God
•Pharisees go home shamed
Matthew 9:
•Friends bring a paralyzed man to Jesus
•Heals sins
•When Pharisees accuse Jesus, Jesus heals him
•Crowd see and praise God
Jesus does not heal these people based on how much faith they have. In fact, it would seem that their faith remains steady from the beginning of the passages to the end and is what allows them to correctly interpret what Jesus has done.
In the story of the man born blind his faith allows him to see what the Pharisees refuse to see – that the power of God is at work in Jesus, because if “this man were not from God, he could not have done it.” (John 9:33).
When Jesus heals the woman bent over, she is presumably in the synagogue listening to him teach, and when she is healed, she is able to recognise God’s at work.
The illness, pain or disability is not connected to sin. Jesus very clearly states this in the story of the man born blind in John 9. In the case of the paralyzed man in Matthew 9 Jesus forgives the man’s sins before any healing takes place. The man is brought to meet Jesus, and this is central to any of the spiritual gifts. When we pray for people, they should feel they have met with Jesus and are known and loved.
When we see amazing things happen, we should respond with praise. All of these encounters end in praise. In the case of the blind man, he continually tells the Pharisees that it is God at work then in another encounter with Jesus after all the drama he worships Jesus. The woman leaves the synagogue praising God and the crowd praise God after seeing the paralyzed man jump up and walk home.
Praising God seems obvious and easy in these situations, doesn’t it? After all a miracle happened. However, in John 5 there is an example of a person who doesn’t respond with praise but instead goes to the authorities to report Jesus.
And what about those time when nothing amazing seems to happen? Well, I want to argue that we should respond in praise in these situations too. But let’s think a little bit more about what is going on shall we?
All of the stories of healing we read here, and in the rest of the gospels and in Acts I believe point to a bigger picture.
Our passage from Luke earlier starts with these words: “Jesus called His twelve followers to Him. He gave them the right and the power over all demons and to heal diseases. He sent them to preach about the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” (Luke 9:1-2). There is a connection between healing and the Kingdom of God!
Jesus heals the sick because He is the good news! Jesus through his life, death and resurrection has begun to transform our world and bring about God’s Kingdom. So, when we pray for healing for people - we are recognising this. It is in the Kingdom that ultimately all of our questions will be answered, and we will find ultimate healing and restoration. How this looks, I do not know and I know it doesn’t take away the pain of some of what we experience now. But I do have faith that God is at work in it all.
So let’s recap. When we pray for healing, we do so knowing that it is God at work through the Spirit, it is not about our goodness or being a better Christian. We do so with love, respecting the dignity of people and in a way that ensures they feel that they have met with Jesus. We should praise God when miracles happen, but it is also possible to praise God when nothing appears to have happened. But most importantly, the ultimate healing comes with the Kingdom and somehow, sometimes we get glimpses of that here on earth! Amen
THE APOSTLES’ CREED
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth
I believe in Jesus Christ,
his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand
of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen
O LORD, HEAR MY PRAYER,
O Lord, hear my prayer:
When I call answer me.
O Lord, hear my prayer,
O Lord, hear my prayer:
Come and listen to me.
Jacques Berthier/Taizé.
Copyright © 1982 Ateliers et Presses de Taize (France).
PRAYERS
Dear Heavenly Father
This morning we remember in our prayers all those who are not with us at St Gabriel’s this morning because they are at the ordination service in the Cathedral. Especially we pray for Peter, our new curate, Katy, his wife, and Lily, his daughter. We pray for them as they settle into their new home, and find a new rhythm of family life, and become part of our church family. We pray for Peter as he seeks to serve you here at St Gabriel’s, that you will bless and guide his ministry. We pray for the building up of good working relationships between Peter and Alistair, with Rachel and with the members of our focal ministry team. And we pray for all these new beginnings being replicated all over the diocese and throughout the Church of England. Thank you for the new revs who you have called to serve and bless the work that you have called them to do.
Lord in your mercy
Hear our prayer
This morning we have been thinking about the gift of healing. Whether we have been given this gift or not, all of us can still pray for healing. Each of us has people who we are worried about, whether they are physically sick or injured, elderly or frail, dealing with chronic illness, anxious or struggling with mental ill-health, family, friends, colleagues and people in church. As you hold those people in your mind, we pray for their healing. We pray that you will draw near to them and hold them up in your love. We pray that you will give them strength to persevere and a deep sense of your presence with them. And we pray too that you might make them well.
Lord in your mercy
Hear our prayer
We pray for the children and young people in our church and in our parish. We give thanks for the end of exams, and pray you will sustain those now anxiously waiting for results. We pray for the children and staff at Greystones primary school in these last few weeks of term, for the fun stuff that happens at this time of year and the activities to prepare for new classes and new schools next year. We pray for the plans and preparations for our holiday club, that everything would come together and be organised in time, and that lots of children will come and have a brilliant time as they meet with each other and with Jesus. And we pray for the Rainbow and Brownie group meeting in church on a Tuesday. We pray that you bless the leaders and the time they give to the group – we pray too that you would bless them with new volunteers. And we pray for the big camp they are attending in two weeks time – for good weather, for lots of fun and for everyone to stay safe and well.
Lord in your mercy
Hear our prayer
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
SING: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08utbDFP9AE
Beauty for brokenness,
hope for despair,
Lord in Your suff'ring world
this is our prayer.
Bread for the children,
justice, joy, peace,
sunrise to sunset
Your Kingdom increase.
2. Shelter for fragile lives,
cures for their ills,
work for the craftsmen,
trade for their skills.
Land for the dispossessed,
rights for the weak,
voices to plead the cause
of those who can't speak.
God of the poor,
friend of the weak,
give us compassion we pray.
Melt our cold hearts,
let tears fall like rain.
Come change our love
from a spark to a flame.
3. Refuge from cruel wars,
havens from fear,
cities for sanctu'ry,
freedoms to share.
Peace to the killing fields,
scorched earth to green,
Christ for the bitterness,
His cross for the pain.
4. Rest for the ravaged earth,
oceans and streams,
plundered and poisoned,
our future, our dreams.
Lord end our madness,
carelessness, greed.
Make us content with
the things that we need.
God of the poor….
5. Lighten our darkness,
breathe on this flame,
until Your justice burns
brightly again;
until the nations
learn of Your ways,
seek Your salvation
and bring You their praise.
God of the poor………
Words and Music: Graham Kendrick
(Copyright © 1993 Make Way Music)
OFFERTORY - Take a moment to consider how you are going to continue to give to the life of the church and support other aid agencies and mission organisations.
SAY:
Yours, Lord, is the greatness, the power,
the glory, the splendour, and the majesty;
for everything in heaven and on earth is yours.
All things come from you,
and of your own do we give you.
SING: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Of4l5bTdZ8M
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 my self, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee.
Words: Frances Ridley Havergal, 1874
Music: Mozart, Hollingside, Festus, Consecration, Ives
BLESSING
God, who through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ has given us the victory, give you joy and peace in your faith; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit be among you and remain with you always. Amen