Prelude The Lone Wild Bird
The lone, wild bird in lofty flight, is still with thee, nor leaves thy sight, And I am thine, I rest in thee, Great Spirit, come and rest in me. The ends of the earth are in thy hand, the sea’s dark deep, and far-off land, And I am thine, I rest in thee, Great Spirit come and rest in me.
The lone, wild bird in lofty flight, is still with thee, nor leaves thy sight, And I am thine, I rest in thee, Great Spirit, come and rest in me.
Each secret thought is known to you, the path I walk my whole life through.
My days my deeds my hopes my fears my deepest joys my silent tears.
Acknowledgement
Welcome
Gathering Song Be Not Afraid by, St. Louis Jesuits
You shall cross the barren desert, but you shall not die of thirst.
You shall wander far in safety though you do not know the way.
You shall speak your words in foreign lands and all will understand.
You shall see the face of God and live.
Chorus
Be not afraid.
I go before you always.
Come, follow me,
and I will you rest.
If you pass the through raging waters in the sea, you shall not drown.
If you walk amid the burning flames, you shall not be harmed.
If you stand before the pow’r of hell and death is at your side,
know that I am with you through it all. Chorus
Blessed are your poor, for the kingdom shall be theirs.
Blest are you that weep and mourn, for one day you shall laugh.
And if wicked tongues insult and hate you all because of me,
blessed, blessed are you! Chorus
The Gathering (Website: www.rexaehuntprogressive.com/liturgy_collection) We are called to worship, not just by words spoken, but also by miracles recalled: a baby's first cry, the petals of a rose, snow-covered fields, the restless tides of the seas, human love, human hope.
We respond: with gratitude, with joy, with wonder, at life's boundless possibilities. Prayer of the day together: As we gather in this place of worship, challenge us, O God, with your truth and inspire us with your love. Then as we return to our worlds of work and learning and living, enlighten us with your wisdom, and empower us with your strength. Amen.
Collect of the Day together: Eternal Father, who at the baptism of Jesus revealed him to be your Son, anointing him with the Holy Spirit, keep your children, born of water and the Spirit, faithful to their calling; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Proclamation of the Word
A Reading from the prophet Isaiah (43:1-7)
But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour. I give Egypt as your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in exchange for you. Because you are precious in my sight, and honoured, and I love you, I give people in return for you, nations in exchange for your life. Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and from the west I will gather you; I will say to the north, ‘Give them up’, and to the south, ‘Do not withhold; bring my sons from far away and my daughters from the end of the earth— everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.’
Listen for the Leading of the Spirit R: Thanks be to God
Psalm 29 The God of Heaven
The God of heaven thunders, his voice in cadent echoes, resounds above the waters, and all the world sings, “Glory, glory, glory!”
The desert writhes in tempest, wind whips the trees to fury, the lightning splits the forest, and flame diffuses “Glory, glory, glory!”
The mighty God eternal is to the throne ascended, as we who are God's people, within these walls cry, “Glory, glory, glory!”
A Reading from the Acts of the Apostles 8:14-17
Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. The two went down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit (for as yet the Spirit had not come upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus). Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Listen for the Leading of the Spirit R: Thanks be to God Gradual Hymn Down Galilee's Slow Roadways CP45
Down Galilee's slow roadways, a stranger traveled on from Nazareth to Jordan to be baptized by John. He went down to the waters like soldier, scribe, and slave, but there within the river the sign was birth and grave.
Arising from the river, he saw the heavens torn; it seemed the sky was open to show the Spirit's form. The holy dove descended; he heard a glorious voice: "You are my own beloved- my child, my heart, my choice."
We too have found a roadway; it led us to this place. We all have had to travel in search of hope and grace. But now beside this water again a voice is heard: "You are my own, my chosen, beloved of your Lord."
The Lord be with you And also with you The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke 3:15-17, 21-22 Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, ‘I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing-floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’
Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’ The Gospel of Christ R: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ The Homily The Renewal of Baptismal Vows (New Zealand Prayer Book and BAS) God is love; God gives us life. We love because God first loves us. In baptism God declares that love; in Christ God calls us to respond. Welcome as you come to reaffirm your faith. At your baptism you were made a disciple of Christ, and we signed you with the cross. Come now for prayer, to strengthen you for the work of God’s kingdom. The Affirmation Praise to God who has given us life. Blessed be God for the gift of love. Praise to God who forgives our sin. Blessed be God who sets us free.
Praise to God who kindles our faith. Blessed be God, our strength, our hope. Let us, the baptised, affirm that we renounce evil and commit our lives to Christ. Blessed be God, JESUS IS LORD! What is your faith? I believe and trust in God the Creator, maker and sustainer of all things; and in God the Son, my Saviour Jesus Christ; and in God the Holy Spirit, giver of life and truth. This is my faith. Those who are baptised are called to worship and serve God. From the beginning, believers have continued in the apostles teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers. Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers? I will, with God’s help. Will you persevere in resisting evil and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord? I will, with God’s help. Will you proclaim by word and example the good news of God in Christ? I will, with God’s help. Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbour as yourself? I will, with God’s help. Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being? I will, with God’s help. Will you strive to safeguard the integrity of God’s creation, and respect, sustain and renew the life of the Earth? I will, with God’s help. Let us rejoice, commit ourselves to Christ, and celebrate the faith of our baptism. Do you believe in God the Father? I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God? I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the woman Mary. He 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, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit? 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. Creator Spirit, rekindle in us your gifts of grace, renew our lives in Christ and bring to completion all that your calling has begun. Amen. Living God, empower your disciples to bring life to the world Amen! May we and they together be found in Christ and Christ in us.
Reception of person to the Anglican Church
Let us now pray for these persons who have renewed their commitment to Christ.
Almighty God, we thank you that by the death and resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ you have overcome sin and brought us to yourself, and that by the sealing of your Holy Spirit you have bound us to your service. Renew in these your servants the covenant you made with them at their baptism. Send them forth in the power of that Spirit to perform the service you set before them; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Uzoamaka Clementina, Taiwo Browne, we recognize you as a member of the one holy catholic and apostolic Church, and we receive you into the fellowship of this Communion. God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless, preserve, and keep you. Amen.
Offertory Hymn I Have Called You by Your Name MV161
I have called you by your name, you are mine;
I have gifted you and ask you now to shine.
I will not abandon you;
all my promises are true.
You are gifted, called, and chosen; you are mine.
I will help you learn my name as you go;
read it written in my people, help them grow.
Pour the water in my name,
speak the word your soul can claim,
offer Jesus' body, given long ago.
I know you will need my touch as you go;
feel it pulsing in creation's ebb and flow.
Like the woman reaching out,
choosing faith in spite of doubt,
hold the hem of Jesus' robe, then let it go.
I have given you a name, it is mine;
I have given you my Spirit as a sign.
With my wonder in your soul,
make my wounded children whole;
go and tell my precious people they are mine.
Prayer over the Gifts God of life and freedom, we celebrate the revelation of Jesus as the Christ who makes all creation new. Accept all we offer you this day and make us new in him, who is Lord for ever and ever. Amen The Great Thanksgiving (A Wee Worship Book (Wild Goose Worship Group) The Invitation
He was always the guest. In the homes of Peter and Jarius, Martha and Mary, Joanna and Susanna, he was always the guest. At the meal tables of the wealthy where he pled the case of the poor, he was always the guest. Upsetting polite company, befriending isolated people, welcoming the stranger, he was always the guest. But here, at our tables, he is the host. Those who wish to serve him must first be served by him, those who want to follow him must first be fed by him, those who would wash his feet must first let him make them clean. For this is the table where God intends us to be nourished; this is the time when Christ can make us new. So come, you who hunger and thirst for a deeper faith, for a better life, for a fairer world. Jesus Christ sits at our tables Song/Chorus as the gifts of bread and wine are prepared
Take Our Bread
Take our bread, we ask you;
Take our hearts, we love you.
Take our lives creator.
We are yours, we are yours.
Yours as we stand at the table you set;
Yours as we eat the bread our hearts can’t forget.
We are the sign of your life with us yet.
We are yours, we are yours.
Take our bread, we ask you;
Take our hearts, we love you.
Take our lives creator.
We are yours, we are yours.
The Story What we do here, we do in imitation of what Christ did. To his followers in every age Jesus gave us an example and command rooted in the experience he shared with his disciples in an upstairs room in Jerusalem. Reader: On the night on which we he was betrayed, and as they were sitting at a meal, Jesus took a piece of bread and broke it. He gave it to his disciples saying, “This is my body. It is broken for you. Do this to remember me.” Later, after they had eaten, he took a cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new relationship with God made possible because of my death. Drink this all of you, to remember me.” So, now we do as Jesus did. We take this bread and this wine, the produce of the earth and fruit of human labour. In these, Jesus has promised to be present; through these, Christ can make us whole. Eucharistic Prayer Let us Pray The Lord be with you And also with you Lift up your hearts. We lift them to the Lord Let us give thanks to the Lord our God It is right to give our thanks and praise It is indeed right, for you made us, and before us, you made the world we inhabit, and before the world, you made the eternal home in which, through Christ, we have a place. All that is spectacular, all that is plain have their origin in you; all that is lovely, all who are loving point to you as their fulfillment. And grateful as we are for the world we know and the universe beyond our ken, we particularly praise you, whom eternity cannot contain, for coming to earth and entering time in Jesus. For his life which informs our living, for his compassion which changes our hearts, for his clear speaking which contradicts our harmless generalities, for his disturbing presence, his innocent suffering, his fearless dying, his rising to life breathing forgiveness. We praise you and we worship him. Here too our gratitude rises for the promise of the Holy Spirit, who even yet, even now, confronts us with your claims and attracts us to your goodness. Therefore we gladly join our voices to the son of the church on earth and in heaven: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth of your glory are full.
Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is one, who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is one who comes in the name of the Lord.
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth of your glory are full. Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest. And now, lest we believe that our praise alone fulfils your purpose we fall silent and remember him who came because words weren’t enough. Setting our wisdom, our will, our words aside, emptying our hearts, and bringing nothing in our hands, we yearn for the healing, the holding, the accepting, the forgiving which Christ alone can offer Silence Merciful God, send now, in kindness, your Holy Spirit to settle on this bread and wine and fill them with the fullness of Jesus. And let that same Spirit rest on us, converting us from the patterns of this passing world, until we conform to the shape of him whose food we now share. Amen Among friends gathered around a table, Jesus took bread, and broke it, and said, “This is my body – broken for you.” Later he took a cup of wine and said “This is the new relationship with God made possible because of my death. Take it, all of you, to remember me.” Jesus , firstborn of Mary Have mercy on us Jesus Saviour of the world Have mercy on us Jesus, monarch of heaven Have mercy on us He who has suffered for our injustices is now present in this bread. He whose body was hung on a cross is now offered to us in this cup. So take this bread and this wine. In them God comes to us so that we may come to God. The sharing of the bread and the wine
Communion Song : Bright Morning Star
Bright morning stars are rising,
Bright morning stars are rising,
Bright morning stars are rising,
Day is a-breaking in my soul.
Oh, where are our dear mothers,
Oh, where are our dear mothers,
Oh, where are our dear mothers,
Day is a-breaking in my soul.
They are down in the valley praying,
They are down in the valley praying,
They are down in the valley praying,
Day is a-breaking in my soul.
Oh where are our dear fathers,
Oh where are our dear fathers,
Oh where are our dear fathers,
Day is a-breaking in my soul.
They have gone to heaven shouting,
They have gone to heaven shouting,
They have gone to heaven shouting,
Day is a-breaking in my soul.
Bright morning stars are rising,
Bright morning stars are rising,
Bright morning stars are rising,
Day is a-breaking in my soul.
The Peace Christ who has nourished us, is our peace. Strangers and friends, male and female, old and young, he has broken down the barriers to bind us to him and to each other. Having tasted his goodness, let us share his peace. The peace of the Lord be always with you. And Also with you Concluding Prayer Let us pray In gratitude, in deep gratitude for this moment, this meal, these people, we give ourselves to you. Take us out to live as changed people because we have shared the Living Bread and cannot remain the same. Ask much of us, expect much from us, enable much by us, encourage many through us. So, Lord, may we live to your glory, both as inhabitants of earth and citizens of the commonwealth of heaven. Amen
The Blessing May God’s wisdom guide you wherever you walk in this world. May God’s wisdom encourage you in your daily work. May God’s wisdom work in you like yeast, and rise in you like hope! May you taste and see God’s goodness and may God’s wisdom be your delight now, this day, and for evermore. Amen.
Announcements
Closing Hymn Alive in Me (Tune In Song Book pg.6)
Spirit of the Father,
spirit of my brother,
Spirit of the living one
alive in me.
Spirit of the Mother,
tender hearted lover,
Wisdom to discover
alive in me.
You are the breath that breathes through all,
the pulse of life and the sacred call,
deep seed of Good that grows divine,
clear light of Truth that yearns to shine.
You stir a song every soul can sing,
spread words of love on the angels’ wings,
bring hope to birth at dark of night,
give us the strength to stand for right.
Quieten our minds so that we may hear
the voice of love that will heal our fears.
Nurture within, your work begun
transforming power to make us one.
Words of Mission Time has now come for us to leave this sacred place. As we do, may we embrace the challenges of our lives and our world... As we prepare to leave this sacred place of celebration, may we live lives of hope, be nurturers of a vision of wholeness, and serve as healers in a wounded world. Grant us wisdom. Grant us courage. Grant us peace. (Adapt. Leland-Mayer UUA worship web)
Postlude: Glory (Let there be peace) by, Chris Stevens, Matt Maher and Rachel Popadic
One star burns in the darkness, shines with the promise, Emmanuel. One child born in the stillness, living within us, Emmanuel.
We're singing, “Glory! Glory! Let there be peace! Let there be peace!” We're singing, “Glory! Glory! Let there be peace! Let it start in me.”
One voice speaks for the voiceless. Hope for the hopeless, Emmanuel One love brings us together, now and forever, Emmanuel.
We're singing, “Glory! Glory! Let there be peace! Let there be peace!” We're singing, “Glory! Glory! Let there be peace! Let it start in me.”
Do not be afraid! His love is strong enough to save us. Nothing stands in the way, His love is strong enough to lead us.
Do not be afraid! His love is strong enough to save us. Nothing stands in the way, His love is strong enough to lead us.
Let there be peace! Let it start in me We're singing, “Glory! Glory! Let there be peace! Let there be peace!” We're singing, “Glory! Glory! Let there be peace! Let it start in me.”
Let there be peace!
Let it start in me.”
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