Services for this coming week
Welcome to our worship for Trinity 6,
Sunday 12th July
Collect
Merciful God, you have prepared for those who love you such good things as pass our understanding:
pour into our hearts such love toward you that we, loving you in all things and above all things, may obtain your promises, which exceed all that we can desire;
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
pour into our hearts such love toward you that we, loving you in all things and above all things, may obtain your promises, which exceed all that we can desire;
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
From the Dioscesan Cycle of Prayer
Praying for; Glastonbury Pilgrimage, Sea Sunday and Disability Awareness
Creator God, you made us all in your image: may we discern you in all that we see and serve you in all that we do; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
and especially today for The Province of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan
Creator God, you made us all in your image: may we discern you in all that we see and serve you in all that we do; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
and especially today for The Province of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan
Sponsored Hymns for Today
324 I the Lord of sea and Sky - chosen by John Sargeant
30 Amazing Grace – chosen by Mike and Diane Steele for their wedding anniversary
54 Beauty for brokenness – chosen by Bill Page because it was a hymn commissioned by Tear Fund and summarises what should motivate a Christian congregation
624 The day thou gavest Lord has ended – chosen by Valerie Batchelor because it’s a favourite hymn with some poignancy
505 The Old Rugged Cross – chosen by Barbara Aconley
30 Amazing Grace – chosen by Mike and Diane Steele for their wedding anniversary
54 Beauty for brokenness – chosen by Bill Page because it was a hymn commissioned by Tear Fund and summarises what should motivate a Christian congregation
624 The day thou gavest Lord has ended – chosen by Valerie Batchelor because it’s a favourite hymn with some poignancy
505 The Old Rugged Cross – chosen by Barbara Aconley
Readings for Today
First Reading: Isaiah 55. 10-13
Thus says the LORD: As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it. For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall be to the LORD for a memorial, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
Psalm 65
Response: ‘Happy are they whom you choose to dwell in your courts’
Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; to you that answer prayer shall vows be paid. To you shall all flesh come to confess their sins; when our misdeeds prevail against us, you will purge them away. R
Happy are they whom you choose and draw to your courts to dwell there. We shall be satisfied with the blessings of your house, even of your holy temple. R
With wonders you will answer us in your righteousness, O God of our salvation, O hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas. In your strength you set fast the mountains and are girded about with might. R
You still the raging of the seas, the roaring of their waves and the clamour of the peoples. Those who dwell at the ends of the earth tremble at your marvels; the gates of the morning and evening sing your praise. R
You visit the earth and water it; you make it very plenteous. The river of God is full of water; you prepare grain for your people, for so you provide for the earth. R
You drench the furrows and smooth out the ridges; you soften the ground with showers and bless its increase. You crown the year with your goodness, and your paths overflow with plenty. R
May the pastures of the wilderness flow with goodness and the hills be girded with joy. May the meadows be clothed with flocks of sheep and the valleys stand so thick with corn that they shall laugh and sing. R
Second Reading: Romans 8. 1-11
There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 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: Matthew 13. 1-9, 18-23
Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen! Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’
Thus says the LORD: As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it. For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall be to the LORD for a memorial, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
Psalm 65
Response: ‘Happy are they whom you choose to dwell in your courts’
Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; to you that answer prayer shall vows be paid. To you shall all flesh come to confess their sins; when our misdeeds prevail against us, you will purge them away. R
Happy are they whom you choose and draw to your courts to dwell there. We shall be satisfied with the blessings of your house, even of your holy temple. R
With wonders you will answer us in your righteousness, O God of our salvation, O hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas. In your strength you set fast the mountains and are girded about with might. R
You still the raging of the seas, the roaring of their waves and the clamour of the peoples. Those who dwell at the ends of the earth tremble at your marvels; the gates of the morning and evening sing your praise. R
You visit the earth and water it; you make it very plenteous. The river of God is full of water; you prepare grain for your people, for so you provide for the earth. R
You drench the furrows and smooth out the ridges; you soften the ground with showers and bless its increase. You crown the year with your goodness, and your paths overflow with plenty. R
May the pastures of the wilderness flow with goodness and the hills be girded with joy. May the meadows be clothed with flocks of sheep and the valleys stand so thick with corn that they shall laugh and sing. R
Second Reading: Romans 8. 1-11
There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 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: Matthew 13. 1-9, 18-23
Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen! Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’
Reflection on these Readings
from ‘Lost for Words?’
It is well known to those of us who grow things, whether in a window box, allotment, field or garden, that we need to nourish the soil in order for plants to flourish. We dose the small potted plant with liquid feed, we replenish the soil in our window box, we hump compost onto the allotment and fertilise the fields.
In ancient China, every vestige of household waste was carried up to those garden-sized fields that climbed up the hillside. What was taken out had to be replenished and the earth could not produce good crops unless it had sufficient depth and fertility. However good the quality of seed, a rich harvest cannot be achieved without good soil in which to sow it.
In Jesus day sowing seed was haphazard. Weeds, most commonly a kind of thorn, were not cleared first, but ploughed into the ground. The paths through the fields became hard like roads, and seeds were scattered everywhere, on paths and edges and headlands where the underlying, predominantly limestone, rock came near the surface and made the soil very thin.
To his listeners Christ's description would have been instantly recognisable. He was illustrating his teaching with everyday events, through the language of work, of weather, of nature. Jesus knew that if he spoke in the dry language of the priests, of the Temple or synagogue, the people would not hear what he had to say. Jesus was a country boy and much of his teaching involved the use of symbols taken from nature; he spoke the people's own kind of language, and so they listened to him.
It is easy to become distracted when people speak in a way which does not relate to us, to our needs and our lives; to listen but not to absorb what is said, to miss the crucial heart of a message, which is what happened to many of Jesus' listeners. Some listened but did not want to know. Some heard but did not understand. Some listened and heard but were too frightened of the challenge to respond. Jesus prepared the ground in the way in which a person of the earth would do, with symbols which spoke to the experience and hearts of his listeners. He valued each person in that crowd and when we value someone we take the trouble to approach them at their own level. The harvest of response we reap is worth every moment of effort.
And what of us? We frequently fail to listen to one another, let alone to Christ! We avert our eyes, use distracted sounds like, "Mmmm". Interrupting, not allowing others to finish. Do we really listen? How often do you telephone someone and know, by the noise in the background, that the television or radio is claiming half their attention? How often do we ask people how they are because of social convention rather than wanting the truth and the detail of their answer?
If someone listens to us attentively, we feel valued. When someone speaks to us in our own language it feeds and enhances the person that we are, making us grow in confidence and self-worth. This is how Christ listens to us and how we need to listen to him, not only in our prayers but as he speaks to us through others. By this caring we nurture the seed of his love which develops and grows into a part of his great harvest.
But if our soil is thin, what do we do? How do we compost it? By prayer, asking for enlightenment and wisdom; by a good deed, a kind word, sincere contrition for our weaknesses; not by heavy and self-congratulatory penances, but paying close attention to the ordinary events of our daily lives; by being fully present to each person, hearing his or her spoken and unspoken needs. Our compost involves facing and not avoiding life's unpalatable aspects for fear of them troubling us; it involves rising to the challenge of being fully human in the way which Jesus made transparently clear. This is the spiritual fertilisation given by God. When we accept it, it nourishes the life of God within us.
God is with us in the great and in the minute events of our lives. He speaks to us in gentle tones and in language we understand. Listen to him: he is the sower, the seed and the food tor growth. Relax: the harvest will take care of itself.
In ancient China, every vestige of household waste was carried up to those garden-sized fields that climbed up the hillside. What was taken out had to be replenished and the earth could not produce good crops unless it had sufficient depth and fertility. However good the quality of seed, a rich harvest cannot be achieved without good soil in which to sow it.
In Jesus day sowing seed was haphazard. Weeds, most commonly a kind of thorn, were not cleared first, but ploughed into the ground. The paths through the fields became hard like roads, and seeds were scattered everywhere, on paths and edges and headlands where the underlying, predominantly limestone, rock came near the surface and made the soil very thin.
To his listeners Christ's description would have been instantly recognisable. He was illustrating his teaching with everyday events, through the language of work, of weather, of nature. Jesus knew that if he spoke in the dry language of the priests, of the Temple or synagogue, the people would not hear what he had to say. Jesus was a country boy and much of his teaching involved the use of symbols taken from nature; he spoke the people's own kind of language, and so they listened to him.
It is easy to become distracted when people speak in a way which does not relate to us, to our needs and our lives; to listen but not to absorb what is said, to miss the crucial heart of a message, which is what happened to many of Jesus' listeners. Some listened but did not want to know. Some heard but did not understand. Some listened and heard but were too frightened of the challenge to respond. Jesus prepared the ground in the way in which a person of the earth would do, with symbols which spoke to the experience and hearts of his listeners. He valued each person in that crowd and when we value someone we take the trouble to approach them at their own level. The harvest of response we reap is worth every moment of effort.
And what of us? We frequently fail to listen to one another, let alone to Christ! We avert our eyes, use distracted sounds like, "Mmmm". Interrupting, not allowing others to finish. Do we really listen? How often do you telephone someone and know, by the noise in the background, that the television or radio is claiming half their attention? How often do we ask people how they are because of social convention rather than wanting the truth and the detail of their answer?
If someone listens to us attentively, we feel valued. When someone speaks to us in our own language it feeds and enhances the person that we are, making us grow in confidence and self-worth. This is how Christ listens to us and how we need to listen to him, not only in our prayers but as he speaks to us through others. By this caring we nurture the seed of his love which develops and grows into a part of his great harvest.
But if our soil is thin, what do we do? How do we compost it? By prayer, asking for enlightenment and wisdom; by a good deed, a kind word, sincere contrition for our weaknesses; not by heavy and self-congratulatory penances, but paying close attention to the ordinary events of our daily lives; by being fully present to each person, hearing his or her spoken and unspoken needs. Our compost involves facing and not avoiding life's unpalatable aspects for fear of them troubling us; it involves rising to the challenge of being fully human in the way which Jesus made transparently clear. This is the spiritual fertilisation given by God. When we accept it, it nourishes the life of God within us.
God is with us in the great and in the minute events of our lives. He speaks to us in gentle tones and in language we understand. Listen to him: he is the sower, the seed and the food tor growth. Relax: the harvest will take care of itself.
Prayers for this week
from David Billett
Gathered together as the people of God, and attentive to his will, let us pray.
Loving God, we pray for your Church throughout the world. For our bishops, clergy, and all who serve your people. Give us all a spirit of love and understanding, that we may put aside preconceived ideas and prejudices, working together in unity to bring light to our communities. May we take seriously our responsibility to encourage and nurture one another in faith at every age and at every stage.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
We pray for our nation and for the peace of the world, remembering the many regions of continuing conflict and unrest.
Guide the leaders of the nations and all in authority with your wisdom to act with justice, compassion, and a genuine desire for peace.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
We pray for our community.
We thank you merciful Father, for the people in our lives. We pray for our families, friends and neighbours. Strengthen our faith so that we may radiate your love and radiate hope in all our daily tasks and relationships.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Heavenly Father, we lay before you all who are travelling through a time of pain or anguish, tragedy or conflict. We remember especially at this time the people of Venezuela in the tragic experience of the earthquakes. May they know the comforting power of your companionship, and the healing power of your love.
We pray for those whose health or whose work is especially affected by challenging climatic conditions, remembering farmers.
We pray for those for whom candles have been lit and others known to ourselves. We pray for those who care for them.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Heavenly Father, we remember those who have died recently, and those whose anniversary of death falls at this time. Lead them into the light of eternity, and keep us all in the Way that leads us to share that everlasting life with you.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Heavenly Father, the rain and sunshine, the growing and harvesting, sing to us of your faithful love, and we offer you our thankful praise for all your gifts to us.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Please Pray for -
the sick, and those who care for them, including Philip Smith, Charlie Robertson, Carole Ellis, David Holmes, June Hodgson and Mike Spivey
those who have lit candles and those for whom candles have been lit
those who have recently died including Francis Mulderrig and Shirley Fountain
those whose anniversary of death falls at this time including Margaret Casson, Norman John Beavers and John Wilfrid Watson
those who have lit candles and those for whom candles have been lit
those who have recently died including Francis Mulderrig and Shirley Fountain
those whose anniversary of death falls at this time including Margaret Casson, Norman John Beavers and John Wilfrid Watson
Post Communion Prayer
God of our pilgrimage, you have led us to the living water:
refresh and sustain us as we go forward on our journey, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
refresh and sustain us as we go forward on our journey, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
You can watch the reflection from the Diocese of York here - click link below
vimeo.com/dioceseofyork
vimeo.com/dioceseofyork
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 these CofE online weekly service content are manually subtitled and contain British Sign Language (BSL) interpretation throughout.