Author: Wesley

Print version

Print version

CALL TO PRAYER: SUNDAY 5^th July 2020
Prayer @ 7pm

‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.’ Matthew 11: 28 (NRSV)

These are words of Jesus that we all need to hear. We need to hear these words because they speak into the depths of the experience of so many of us at this time. The words create a picture in the mind’s eye. The picture is of ourselves in the times when we are indeed weary and burdened by the particular loads that we have to bear. Alongside this, the picture is of the One who offers to us rest. The picture is of human need met by divine promise and finds its context in the affirmation that Jesus is the One who knows the Father and holds in God’s trust all that has been committed to him. He holds our lives in his keeping and offers renewal to those who seek his presence. (Matthew 11: 25-30) Wherever we are and whatever our load, the promise of Jesus is that we will find his renewing presence. We pray:

Lord, we come to you as we are
For we can come no other way.
We come acknowledging the burdens we carry
And trusting in your promise of rest.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we come to you
In the sure knowledge that we are not alone.
We come in the company
Of all who know the challenge of these days.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we come to you
Acknowledging that you have already come to us.
We journey to the place where you are to be found
And rediscover that you have always been with us.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we come to you
As the One who knows our past and sees our present.
Set us free from that which binds us to our past
And liberate us to serve you in the present.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we come to you
Through the One who is the same, yesterday, today and forever.
May he hold our lives safe
As we embrace the future and the promise of his rest.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Signed by:

• Rev. Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
• Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
• Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
• John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
• Dr David Pickering, Moderator, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
• Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
• Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
• May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
• Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
• Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
• Jim Ritchie, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
• Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
• Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)
• Rev Fred Drummond, Director, Evangelical Alliance (Scotland)

Print version

The experience of these last three months is one that will remain with us for the rest of our days. We will look back and reflect on the significance of it and undoubtedly we shall ask many questions. Integral to that experience for many has been the physical separation between ourselves and our family and those whom we care for. This physical distancing has been necessary in the face of the risks posed by Covid 19. As we see the easing of the restrictions on Lockdown, we begin to reconnect and rediscover what it is to welcome one another and to give and receive in a social context.

Welcoming, giving and receiving are integral to human experience and reflect something of what it is to be made in the image of God. In Matthew’s Gospel (10: 40-42), Jesus reflects upon this and points to the truth that in welcoming one another we potentially welcome the presence of God. In our welcoming of one another, let us renew the relationships that shape our social community and our communion with the living presence of God. We pray:

Living God, the God who creates,
You have made us in your image
That, in our giving and receiving,
We might better reflect your image.
For this gift we praise and thank you.

Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

Living God, the God who gives,
Your gift to the world
Is revealed in your Son,
The image of the invisible God.
For the renewing presence of your Son, we praise and thank you.

Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

Living God, the God who renews,
You call us to renew our relationships with one another
That, in so doing,
We might renew our relationship with you.
For the welcome you offer in renewal, we praise and thank you.

Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

Living God, the God who welcomes,
You welcome us when we return to you
Weary and heavy laden.
Receive us as we are and forgive us when we stumble.
For the love we experience as we are welcomed, we praise and thank you.

Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

Living God, the God who loves,
You offer us good gifts
And invite us to receive them.
In response, we offer our lives and all that we are.
For the sure promise of your love, we praise and thank you.

Lord, hear us,
Lord, graciously hear us.

Signed by:

• Rt. Rev. Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
• Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
• Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
• Rev. John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
• Rev. Dr David Pickering, Moderator, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
• Rev. Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
• Rev. Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
• Rev. May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
• Lt. Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
• Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
• Rev. Jim Ritchie, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
• Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
• Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)
• Rev Fred Drummond, Director, Evangelical Alliance (Scotland)

Prayer @ 7pm – Version for printing

We live in challenging times. In truth, the challenge of these times is one that continues. However, the nature of that challenge has changed. In this present moment, we reflect on where we are now and this allows us to begin to try to understand the past months. Equally, we have the opportunity to anticipate what is to come.

In the Letter to the Romans (6: 1-11), the Apostle Paul reflects on the foundation of the Christian life which is our sharing in the life, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. As a consequence, the life we live now is one shaped by the present reality of sharing in the life of Christ. As we journey together in the gradual exit from Lockdown, we do so in the sure knowledge that we share in the life of the Risen Christ.

We pray:

Faithful God, we thank you
That you are present with us now
As we share in the life of the Risen Christ.
Continue to be present with us we ask.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

God who inspires faith, we thank you
That you have been with us
In times of anxiety and uncertainty.
Keep watch over our memories of the past.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Faithful God, we thank you
That you will be with us
In the days that are to come.
Journey with us in the days that lie before us.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

God who inspires faith, we thank you
For the life of your Son
Who for our sakes embraced human form.
May his life shape our lives in these present times.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Faithful God, we thank you
For the reassurance that you are merciful and gracious
And that your love abounds.
In your compassion, remember us and those whom we love.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

God who inspires faith, we thank you
For the knowledge that you will be with us
In all that we now face.
Go before us and provide for us we ask.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Signed by:

• Rt. Rev. Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
• Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
• Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
• Rev. John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
• Rev. Dr David Pickering, Moderator, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
• Rev. Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
• Rev. Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
• Rev. May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
• Lt. Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
• Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
• Rev. Jim Ritchie, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
• Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
• Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)
• Rev Fred Drummond, Director, Evangelical Alliance (Scotland)

Print version

The experience of being powerless is one that will resonate with many of us. There are times throughout our experience when we sense that we are not in control of what is happening in our own world. Indeed, there will be occasions when we sense that the wider world is afflicted by the seeming absence of a guiding hand.

The Apostle Paul expresses the reality that God acts through Jesus Christ, for us and our salvation, at the very moment in time when we are unable to act on our own behalf and we are powerless. The action of God in Jesus Christ is a demonstration of the love of God. (Romans 5: 1-8, NIV) As we know ourselves to be powerless and, at the same time, to be those who have received the renewing and empowering love of God poured ‘into our hearts by the Holy Spirit’, we turn to God, we pray:

Living God, you demonstrate your love for us
Though our Lord Jesus Christ.
When we are powerless,
Stand with us in our weakness.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Living God, you demonstrate your love for the world
Through the self-giving of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We remember those who are powerless in our world
And stand with them in their weakness.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Living God, as we stand with others
May we understand more fully the life we share in common.
In understanding more fully
May we embrace the richness of the life you gift us.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Living God, your Holy Spirit
Is the Lord and Giver of Life.
May your love be poured into our hearts
And our lives renewed.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Living God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit;
Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer,
Embrace us, and all Creation,
In the love you demonstrate through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Signed by:

• Rt. Rev. Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
• Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
• Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
• Rev. John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
• Rev. Dr David Pickering, Moderator, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
• Rev. Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
• Rev. Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
• Rev. May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
• Lt. Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
• Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
• Rev. Jim Ritchie, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
• Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
• Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)
• Rev Fred Drummond, Director, Evangelical Alliance (Scotland)

Print version

Though we are moving into the first stages of the easing of lockdown, we continue to be painfully aware that there’s a long way to go and that what lies at the end of it all remains unclear.

And so we proceed in faith, believing that God always goes before us and knows the end from the beginning.

On this Day of Pentecost we give thanks for the gift of the Holy Spirit, believing that it is by the Spirit that God guides us.

We pray:

Almighty God, by your Spirit, you brought order from chaos. By your brooding Spirit, hovering over the void, you spoke and there was … something rather than nothing.
Create and recreate in and through us, we pray.

Almighty God, by your Spirit, you equipped and gifted and led our ancestors to know you and to serve you and to glorify you.
Continue to equip and enable us, we pray.

And then, Almighty God, as promised by the prophets and as never before, you poured out your Spirit on these first believers – on men and women, on the old and the young; and they were transformed and made alive, as dry bones brought to life.
Pour out your Spirit on us, we pray.

Almighty God, in these turbulent and uncertain times, send us the Comforter, that we might know you to be near. Grant us your healing touch and help us to know the rest that comes from resting in you.
For the loving touch of your Spirit, we pray.

Almighty God, by what seemed as a rushing wind and as tongues of fire you brought your Church to life. Come to your Church now, we pray, that by the same Spirit we might be renewed and refreshed and remade and revived.
Yes, Lord, grant us a fresh outpouring of your Spirit, we pray.

And all our prayers we offer in the name of our Lord and Saviour, none other than Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Signed by:

• Rt. Rev. Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
• Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
• Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
• Rev. John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
• Rev. Dr David Pickering, Moderator, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
• Rev. Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
• Rev. Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
• Rev. May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
• Lt. Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
• Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
• Rev. Jim Ritchie, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
• Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
• Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)
• Fred Drummond, Director, Evangelical Alliance (Scotland)