August 8, 2021

WELCOME TO ST ANDREW’S ON THE TERRACE

PRELUDE

 

CALL TO WORSHIP

God of each moment of our lives,

in whose presence

our experience deepens and clarifies

until we are grounded in you:

we pause now,

opening our hearts and minds,

ready to receive

what insights and intuitions

you may offer.

SILENCE- preparing to worship

 

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Let us share joyfully in the Spirit of life and love.

 

PROCESSIONAL HYMN                                                             AA 49 ‘God of all time’

Words: © 1992 Shirley Murray Hope Publishing Co.

Tune: HIGHWOOD WOV553 vs1-2

 

1. God of all time, all seasons of our living,

source of our spark, protector of our flame,
blazing before our birth, beyond our dying,
God of all time, we come to sing your name.

 

 

2. Here in this place, where others have been building,

we come to claim the legacy of faith,
take in our turn the telling of your story,
and, though we tremble, speak your hope, your truth.

WELCOME 

 

E te whānau a Te Karaiti

ngā mihi aroha ki a tātou katoa.

Kia ora tātou.

 

PRAYER
A prayer to the God of our days.

God of the morning,
waken us to the glory of life and love
the joy and delight of a new day.

God of the noontide,
restore us with sustenance for our day
from the bounty of your goodness.

God of our work,
open us to the needs of those around us,
make us more aware of them
as we pray for all who struggle to make it through.

God of our evenings,
let us lay down the burdens
of a day well lived.

God of our rest,
restore us in body, mind and spirit
and give peace to all who are weary.
Iona Community.
JESUS PRAYER IN TE REO MĀORI
E tō mātou Matua i te rangi
Our Parent in heaven
Kia tapu tōu ingoa.
Your name is holy
Kia tae mai tōu rangatiratanga.
May your leadership arrive here
Kia meatia tāu e pai ai
Your will be done
ki runga ki te whenua,
On Earth
kia rite anō ki to te rangi.
As in heaven
Homai ki a mātou āianei
Give us today
he taro mā mātou mō tēnei rā.
Food for this day
Murua o mātou hara
Forgive our sins
me mātou hoki e muru nei
As we also forgive
i o te hunga e hara ana ki a mātou.
Those who sin against us
Aua hoki mātou e kawea kia whakawaia;
Carry us away from all that seduces us
Engari whakaorangia mātou i te kino:
Save us from evil
Nou hoki te rangatiratanga, te kaha, me te korōria,
Yours is the leadership, the power and the glory
Ake, ake, ake. Amine
Forever. Amen
LIGHTING THE RAINBOW CANDLE
TIME WITH CHILDREN Cameron Smart
BLESSING THE CHILDREN (All stand)
We send you to the Rainbow Room to explore, learn and play.
We bless you. Amen.
PASSING THE PEACE
Traditionally we shake hands to pass the peace and say “peace be with you.” Now that COVID-19 is here we ask that you pass the peace without shaking hands.

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THE WORD IN TEXTS Marilyn Wallace
Hebrew Bible 2 Samuel 18:1, 5-15, 31-33, 19: 1-8 GNB
RESPONSE
For the Word in scripture,
for the Word among us,
for the Word within us,
we give thanks.
REFLECTION Choosing how to be Fiona McDougal
HYMN CH4 720 vs 1-3 ‘There is a longing’
Music and words: Anne Quigley ©1992 OCP Publications
Reprinted with permission under One License A-623996. All rights reserved

Refrain: There is a longing in our hearts, O God,
for you to reveal yourself to us.
There is a longing in our hearts
for love we only find in you, our God.

1. For justice, for freedom,
for mercy, hear our prayer.
In sorrow, in grief,
be near, hear our prayer, O God.
Refrain: There is a longing in our hearts, O God,
for you to reveal yourself to us.
There is a longing in our hearts
for love we only find in you, our God.

2. For wisdom, for courage,
for comfort, hear our prayer.
In weakness, in fear,
be near, hear our prayer, O God.
Refrain: There is a longing in our hearts, O God,
for you to reveal yourself to us.
There is a longing in our hearts
for love we only find in you, our God.

3. For healing, for wholeness,
for new life, hear our prayer.
In sickness, in death,
be near, hear our prayer, O God
Refrain: There is a longing in our hearts, O God,
for you to reveal yourself to us.
There is a longing in our hearts
for love we only find in you, our God.

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YOUR REFLECTION……
“Creativity: Seeing opportunity”
When we have an outlook of gratitude and trust, we assume that we are blessed and live in a world that is, at its core, amazing and lovely. Thus we look for hints of blessing and loveliness in everything we experience. When our experience is harsh, we look for the opportunity to soften it. When it is cruel, we explore means of introducing mercy and kindness.
In other words, this attitude affords us the flexibility to see a situation in more than one way.
Think of a situation you face, or have faced recently, that did not seem so blessed or beautiful. Try to remember the scene in detail.
If you could revisit that situation, for what could you give thanks? Can you, looking back at it, shift your view to see things differently? In what way might you introduce peace, patience or another healing quality?
From “Small simple ways: an Ignatian daybook for healthy spiritual living” by Venita Hampton Wright (slightly adapted)

HYMN HIOS 53 ‘God within our deepest thought’
Words ©2004 Shirley Erena Murray Hope Publishing
Music DiX CH4 326
1. God within our deepest thought,
come where human words fall short,
come when human eye and ear
cannot get the message clear,
when the signals we receive
tell no truths we can believe.

2. From the earth, our voices rise:
battle cries and lullabies,
blessings met with blasphemies,
pictures that distort and tease,
human triumph, human joy,
human play, inhuman ploy.

3. Give us honesty and grace
each within our listening place,
each with eye to what is true,
finding treasures old and new,
widening our view to see
where another's truth might be.

4. Yours the truth that Christ has brought,
yours the love his life has taught;
give us insight to discern,
make us passionate to learn
language of the loving Way
new-translated for our day.

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OFFERING HYMN AA 127 ‘Take my gifts’
OFFERING PRAYER
Loving God through your generosity you have given us so much.
Accept our offering as an expression of our deep thanks
and as a pledge of care and concern for those we encounter.
AMEN

We recognise and bless the gifts brought to the table, and those which wing their way electronically from our banks to the church’s account.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE Pat Booth

CIRCLE OF PRAYER
We think today of the people of Indonesia and the Christian Protestant Church in Indonesia. We hold all refugees in our hearts. We pray in particular for those detained for many years in Papua New Guinea & Nauru. We give thanks for progress that has been made and pray that their calls for justice might yet find a compassionate response. In New Zealand, we remember those in Parliament, and today we name Ricardo Menéndez March and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, list MPs. Here in the Central Presbytery, we pray for the leaders and people of Waikohu Co operating Church.

PRAYER FOR ST ANDREW’S
Renew your people, God,
And renew our life in this place.
Give us a new spirit of unity
with all who follow the Way of Jesus
and new bonds of love
with people of other faiths.

Bless the city in which we live
that it may be a place
where honest dealing,
good government,
the desire for beauty,
and the care for others flourish.

Bless this church
that what we know of your will
may become what we do,
and what we believe
the strong impulse
of our worship and work.
Amen

LIFE IN THE COMMUNITY OF ST ANDREW’S
People share notices and visitors are welcomed. If you have a notice, please move to the front row, ready to speak briefly from the lectern.
For the benefit of newcomers, please introduce yourself before you begin.

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FAREWELL FOR LAETITIA

SENDING OUT

As you leave this place to re-engage with your lives,
be alert for signs of hope in darkness,
seek justice and peace in places of conflict,
be a source of stability and love
where fear and confusion rule.
We go to love and to learn,
to heal and to help.
AMEN
SUNG BLESSING FFS29 ‘God speed you on your way’
Words: © 1999 Shirley Murray
Music © 2000 Shona Murray Hope Publishing Co. 3vs
1. God speed you on your way,
safe keep you ev'ry day,
give you wing, cause to sing--
all this we wish and pray.

2. God give you space to thrive,
all senses kept alive,
health and hope, means to cope,
joyfully to arrive.

3. God lead you to the new,
places and points of view,
paths to take, friends to make,
more life to travel through!
SUNG AMEN
POSTLUDE
“Gavotte”
by Samuel Wesley (1766 – 1837)