Services for the coming week
Sunday, 26th March The Fifth Sunday of Lent
8.00 am Holy Communion (BCP)
9.30 am Holy Communion at Levisham
10.00 am Parish Communion
12.30 pm Baptism
6.00 pm Evensong
Wednesday, 29th March
10.00 am Holy Communion
1.00 pm Funeral
Friday, 31st March
2.30 pm Funeral
6.00 pm Stations of the Cross
Sunday, 2nd April Palm Sunday
8.00 am Holy Communion (BCP)
10.00 am Parish Communion – Meet at the Parish Hall
6.00 pm Evensong
Welcome to our worship for
Sunday 26th March
Bidding Prayers
Jesus died that we might live forgiven and free. Let us respond to his call and come to him to be cleansed and renewed.
For when we have allowed the world’s opinions to shape our thinking.
Lord, have mercy.
For when we have allowed others’ criticisms to silence our speaking.
Christ, have mercy.
For when we have allowed our own desires to limit our loving.
Lord, have mercy.
Amen.
For when we have allowed the world’s opinions to shape our thinking.
Lord, have mercy.
For when we have allowed others’ criticisms to silence our speaking.
Christ, have mercy.
For when we have allowed our own desires to limit our loving.
Lord, have mercy.
Amen.
Collect
Most merciful God, who by the death and resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ delivered and saved the world:
grant that by faith in him who suffered on the cross we may triumph in the power of his victory;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen
grant that by faith in him who suffered on the cross we may triumph in the power of his victory;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen
Readings for Today
First Reading: Ezekiel 37. 1-14
The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all round them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. He said to me, ‘Mortal, can these bones live?’ I answered, ‘O Lord God, you know.’ Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.’ So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.’ I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.
Then he said to me, ‘Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.” Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.’
Psalm 130 Response: Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord
Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice; let your ears consider well the voice of my supplication. R
If you, Lord, were to mark what is done amiss, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with you, so that you shall be feared. R
I wait for the Lord; my soul waits for him; in his word is my hope. My soul waits for the Lord, more than the night watch for the morning, more than the night watch for the morning. R
O Israel, wait for the Lord, for with the Lord there is mercy; With him is plenteous redemption and he shall redeem Israel from all their sins. R
Second Reading: Romans 8. 6-11
To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.
Gospel Reading: John 11 .1-45
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ‘Lord, he whom you love is ill.’ But when Jesus heard it, he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’ Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judea again.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?’ Jesus answered, ‘Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.’ After saying this, he told them, ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.’ Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.’ Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow-disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him.’
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’ She said to him, ‘Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.’ When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, ‘The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’ And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him.
Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!’ But some of them said, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?’ Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ‘Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’ So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upwards and said, ‘Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.’ When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’ Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.
The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all round them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. He said to me, ‘Mortal, can these bones live?’ I answered, ‘O Lord God, you know.’ Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.’ So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.’ I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.
Then he said to me, ‘Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.” Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.’
Psalm 130 Response: Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord
Out of the depths have I cried to you, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice; let your ears consider well the voice of my supplication. R
If you, Lord, were to mark what is done amiss, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with you, so that you shall be feared. R
I wait for the Lord; my soul waits for him; in his word is my hope. My soul waits for the Lord, more than the night watch for the morning, more than the night watch for the morning. R
O Israel, wait for the Lord, for with the Lord there is mercy; With him is plenteous redemption and he shall redeem Israel from all their sins. R
Second Reading: Romans 8. 6-11
To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.
Gospel Reading: John 11 .1-45
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ‘Lord, he whom you love is ill.’ But when Jesus heard it, he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’ Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judea again.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?’ Jesus answered, ‘Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.’ After saying this, he told them, ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.’ Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.’ Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow-disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him.’
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’ She said to him, ‘Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.’ When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, ‘The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’ And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him.
Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!’ But some of them said, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?’ Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ‘Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’ So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upwards and said, ‘Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.’ When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’ Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.
Thoughts on the readings for this week.
From Common Worship - Living Word
Have you ever been in a situation where you’ve had to call for help? You might have become lost or separated from someone and had to call them so you could be reunited. Or it may have been something more serious – a situation when you had to call the emergency services.
Whether you made contact by text, by phone, or even by social media, you may have experienced a time of waiting. Time flies when we are busy, but passes agonisingly slowly when we’re waiting. In those minutes, doubts can arise. Was our message received? Has it been relayed to the right person or department? Has there been a delay? Can we trust that help is on the way?
It’s sometimes said that a week is a long time in politics. But even four days can seem like an eternity for anyone grieving a loved one. Our Gospel passage recounts Jesus’ raising of his dead friend Lazarus, but the actual miracle occupies only a few final verses. Disappointment, distress and disorientation form much of Mary and Martha’s experience before the event that changes everything. Indeed, Jesus does not even arrive until after Lazarus has died, despite having heard about his illness days before. By this stage, the situation is apparently beyond remedy. Lazarus has died and human hope has evaporated. But this emptiness is not an ending – it is a preparation for heavenly hope in the person of Jesus, who reveals himself clearly to his friends and the wider, gathered community.
As Jesus talks with Martha, he reveals that he is so much more than the ordinary human he may appear to be. He is the resurrection. And as he weeps with Mary, he shows that he is not only God, above and separate from creation, but intimately present within the world, with deep compassion for all within it. When the sisters lead him to the tomb, he reveals his mission to open a window into God’s glory. This is the God who acts beyond the scope of human possibility, to bring life to the dead. By his Father’s power, Jesus bids Lazarus walk out of the tomb, to be cut free from the grave-cloths that bind him.
Through witnessing this most public of miracles, many come to believe in Jesus. John presents this as a turning point in Jesus’ ministry. The faith it engenders in some provokes hostility in others. From this time on, the religious establishment seeks more actively to have Jesus put to death. Their attempts to crush all hope in Jesus as Messiah will, of course, spectacularly backfire, merely paving the way for Jesus’ own resurrection as victorious redeemer.
Raising Lazarus is part of a far bigger picture than restoring a dead man to his grieving sisters, important though that is. Their story is enfolded in God’s plans. Jesus was never unmindful of their suffering. Even when they could not see him, he was at work, for his Father’s glory and their good.
Perhaps, like Martha and Mary, we experience situations where we struggle to hold on to hope. We pray and wait, but Jesus never seems to arrive. It may be that our situation goes from bad to worse. A possible avenue of hope turns out to be a no-through road and we can see no way forward.
God does not specialise in human solutions, but in resurrection hope. When all our ideas about what God could do to make things better are exhausted, all we can do is draw close to Christ. He has been with us all along, as the resurrection and life, and also as one who weeps with us. The one who walked the way of the cross, giving his life for us, knows what it costs and the courage it takes to put total trust in the Father’s hands.
As we stop trying to resuscitate dying dreams, and look to him for the next step, Jesus opens up a way ahead. It may not be what we could have imagined, but that is the nature of resurrection. We do not see what can be until we have buried and mourned what might have been.
Whether you made contact by text, by phone, or even by social media, you may have experienced a time of waiting. Time flies when we are busy, but passes agonisingly slowly when we’re waiting. In those minutes, doubts can arise. Was our message received? Has it been relayed to the right person or department? Has there been a delay? Can we trust that help is on the way?
It’s sometimes said that a week is a long time in politics. But even four days can seem like an eternity for anyone grieving a loved one. Our Gospel passage recounts Jesus’ raising of his dead friend Lazarus, but the actual miracle occupies only a few final verses. Disappointment, distress and disorientation form much of Mary and Martha’s experience before the event that changes everything. Indeed, Jesus does not even arrive until after Lazarus has died, despite having heard about his illness days before. By this stage, the situation is apparently beyond remedy. Lazarus has died and human hope has evaporated. But this emptiness is not an ending – it is a preparation for heavenly hope in the person of Jesus, who reveals himself clearly to his friends and the wider, gathered community.
As Jesus talks with Martha, he reveals that he is so much more than the ordinary human he may appear to be. He is the resurrection. And as he weeps with Mary, he shows that he is not only God, above and separate from creation, but intimately present within the world, with deep compassion for all within it. When the sisters lead him to the tomb, he reveals his mission to open a window into God’s glory. This is the God who acts beyond the scope of human possibility, to bring life to the dead. By his Father’s power, Jesus bids Lazarus walk out of the tomb, to be cut free from the grave-cloths that bind him.
Through witnessing this most public of miracles, many come to believe in Jesus. John presents this as a turning point in Jesus’ ministry. The faith it engenders in some provokes hostility in others. From this time on, the religious establishment seeks more actively to have Jesus put to death. Their attempts to crush all hope in Jesus as Messiah will, of course, spectacularly backfire, merely paving the way for Jesus’ own resurrection as victorious redeemer.
Raising Lazarus is part of a far bigger picture than restoring a dead man to his grieving sisters, important though that is. Their story is enfolded in God’s plans. Jesus was never unmindful of their suffering. Even when they could not see him, he was at work, for his Father’s glory and their good.
Perhaps, like Martha and Mary, we experience situations where we struggle to hold on to hope. We pray and wait, but Jesus never seems to arrive. It may be that our situation goes from bad to worse. A possible avenue of hope turns out to be a no-through road and we can see no way forward.
God does not specialise in human solutions, but in resurrection hope. When all our ideas about what God could do to make things better are exhausted, all we can do is draw close to Christ. He has been with us all along, as the resurrection and life, and also as one who weeps with us. The one who walked the way of the cross, giving his life for us, knows what it costs and the courage it takes to put total trust in the Father’s hands.
As we stop trying to resuscitate dying dreams, and look to him for the next step, Jesus opens up a way ahead. It may not be what we could have imagined, but that is the nature of resurrection. We do not see what can be until we have buried and mourned what might have been.
Prayers for this week.
Today’s powerful Epistle and Gospel readings shine a light on God’s love for us. He shows to all those watching Lazarus that a life in Jesus is true life indeed. He is showing that there is life and resurrection for all who believe. We pray today for the light to shine upon all the things for which we have concern as we pray for our church, the world, for ourselves and those we love.
Our church is a place of refuge for those who feel lost. Help us to be truly welcoming, providing nourishment to the seeker in food and spirit, giving warmth to those living in a lost cold world and friendship to the lonely. We are the church, the body of Jesus in this place, placed by God for that purpose. He asks that we give of ourselves to the task that is appointed for us. We pause in silent prayer and listen for God’s call.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
We give thanks for those who preach the Gospel. We lift those who lead our worship, our Wardens and the PCC, the music makers, the food providers, the greeters and cleaners and flower arrangers. We pray for all who do the small jobs serving God without recognition.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
The world is ever changing becoming an unfamiliar place to many. Events seem beyond our comprehension with so many loud opinions but with little resolution. We seem helpless in the face of war, politics and financial crisis. The world and the environment, Father, which is your gift to mankind seem in a state of near collapse. Oh Lord, how you must look on in despair. It is the weak and vulnerable who will pay the ultimate price. We pray for those struggling with debt and increased prices and pray for those who cannot afford basic necessities. We give thanks for our food bank and all those who provide for it.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
We pray for those we love, for our friends and family, for the sick and the helpless and especially for friends and family who may feel desperate and alone. For those who are in hospital and those who face the anxiety of tests to determine a feared diagnosis. For all who are housebound and who long for a visitor; for those who just need a friendly ear to find their comfort. For the homeless and the victimized, for those who are addicted and for the protection of children living in the debris of these people’s lives. We pray for us all and for the Holy Spirit to fill us all.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
Finally, Lord, we know we are weak and when things get tough, we can fall away. We pray for those times of doubt and the times of failure when we have walked alone. May we be reminded it is in your footsteps we should be walking and not trusting in our own strength and step. May we continue to feed on the bread of life you offer to us and pray that it is in you we should always place our trust.
Merciful father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Amen
Our church is a place of refuge for those who feel lost. Help us to be truly welcoming, providing nourishment to the seeker in food and spirit, giving warmth to those living in a lost cold world and friendship to the lonely. We are the church, the body of Jesus in this place, placed by God for that purpose. He asks that we give of ourselves to the task that is appointed for us. We pause in silent prayer and listen for God’s call.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
We give thanks for those who preach the Gospel. We lift those who lead our worship, our Wardens and the PCC, the music makers, the food providers, the greeters and cleaners and flower arrangers. We pray for all who do the small jobs serving God without recognition.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
The world is ever changing becoming an unfamiliar place to many. Events seem beyond our comprehension with so many loud opinions but with little resolution. We seem helpless in the face of war, politics and financial crisis. The world and the environment, Father, which is your gift to mankind seem in a state of near collapse. Oh Lord, how you must look on in despair. It is the weak and vulnerable who will pay the ultimate price. We pray for those struggling with debt and increased prices and pray for those who cannot afford basic necessities. We give thanks for our food bank and all those who provide for it.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
We pray for those we love, for our friends and family, for the sick and the helpless and especially for friends and family who may feel desperate and alone. For those who are in hospital and those who face the anxiety of tests to determine a feared diagnosis. For all who are housebound and who long for a visitor; for those who just need a friendly ear to find their comfort. For the homeless and the victimized, for those who are addicted and for the protection of children living in the debris of these people’s lives. We pray for us all and for the Holy Spirit to fill us all.
Lord, we come to the cross. In your mercy, hear us.
Finally, Lord, we know we are weak and when things get tough, we can fall away. We pray for those times of doubt and the times of failure when we have walked alone. May we be reminded it is in your footsteps we should be walking and not trusting in our own strength and step. May we continue to feed on the bread of life you offer to us and pray that it is in you we should always place our trust.
Merciful father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Amen
Please pray for:-
the sick, and those who care for them, including Robert Heal, Kathleen Pape, Nigel, Brian Westgate Tony Lindsay
those who have lit candles and those for whom candles have been lit
those who have recently died, including John Jennison, Fleur Archer and Mary Elizabeth Brown
and those whose anniversary of death falls at this time, including Jonathan Bennison
the sick, and those who care for them, including Robert Heal, Kathleen Pape, Nigel, Brian Westgate Tony Lindsay
those who have lit candles and those for whom candles have been lit
those who have recently died, including John Jennison, Fleur Archer and Mary Elizabeth Brown
and those whose anniversary of death falls at this time, including Jonathan Bennison
Post Communion Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us that what we do for the least of our brothers and sisters we do also for you:
give us the will to be the servant of others as you were the servant of all,
and gave up your life and died for us, but are alive and reign, now and for ever.
Amen
give us the will to be the servant of others as you were the servant of all,
and gave up your life and died for us, but are alive and reign, now and for ever.
Amen
From The Church of England
You are invited to our Live service on Sunday from 9am on our website, Facebook or YouTube . It will be available for playback immediately after as well.
All of our weekly service content is manually subtitled and contains British Sign Language (BSL) interpretation throughout.
CHURCH GIVING
A few people have asked how they can support the church financially if they can't do their normal weekly giving. Please continue to use Pam’s letterbox to drop off church donations – either envelopes, cheques (made payable to PCC of Pickering Parish Church) or other loose cash (In a sealed envelope marked for the Church). If you are unable to go outside, please ring, and we will see if there is an alternative way to collect.
Pam Robb at 16 Garden Way, Pickering, YO18 8BG. 07769 801708
WITH VERY MANY THANKS.
