Printed Service
26th February 2023
Prepared by
Rev Saul Tadzaushe
Call To Worship: PSALM 51:1- 4
Prayer of Adoration and Praise
Almighty and merciful god, the fountain of all goodness and mercy, who knows the thoughts of our hearts. We will praise and adore your holy name. Every day we will say, good morning Jesus, good afternoon, Jesus, good evening Jesus, good night Jesus. We will lift your name higher than any other name. You are worthy to be glorified.
Hymn STF465 Guide me, o thou great Jehovah
Watch on Youtube
Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but Thou art mighty;
Hold me with Thy powerful hand.
Bread of Heaven, Bread of Heaven,
Feed me till I want no more;
Feed me till I want no more.
Open now the crystal fountain,
Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through.
Strong deliverer, strong deliverer,
Be Thou still my strength and shield;
Be Thou still my strength and shield.
When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of deaths, and hell’s destruction,
Land me safe on Canaan’s side.
Songs of praises, songs of praises,
I will ever give to Thee;
I will ever give to Thee.
Prayer of Confession
our lord, our god we confess our sins of omission and commission. You lord you are gracious and compassionate on your people cleanse us from all unrighteousness help us to follow your teachings and live a life that is pleasing to you, so that we can enjoy your presence and your glory in the name of Jesus Christ our lord and saviour we pray. Amen.
Hymn STF434 Rock of ages ,cleft for me
Watch on Youtube
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee;
let the water and the blood,
from thy wounded side which flowed,
be of sin the double cure;
save from wrath and make me pure.
Not the labours of my hands
can fulfill thy law’s demands;
could my zeal no respite know,
could my tears forever flow,
all for sin could not atone;
thou must save, and thou alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring,
simply to the cross I cling;
naked, come to thee for dress;
helpless, look to thee for grace;
foul, I to the fountain fly;
wash me, Saviour, or I die.
While I draw this fleeting breath,
when mine eyes shall close in death,
when I soar to worlds unknown,
see thee on thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee.
Readings: Genesis 2:15 – 17, Matthew 4 : 1 – 11.
Hymn STF236 Forty days and forty nights
Watch on Youtube
Forty days and forty nights
You were fasting in the wild;
Forty days and forty nights
Tempted, and yet undefiled.
Shall not we your sorrow share
And from worldly joys abstain,
Fasting with unceasing prayer,
Strong with you to suffer pain?
Then if Satan on us press,
Flesh or spirit to assail,
Victor in the wilderness,
Grant we may not faint nor fail!
So shall we have peace divine;
Holier gladness ours shall be;
Round us, too, shall angels shine,
Such as served You faithfully.
Keep, O keep us, Saviour dear,
Ever constant by your side,
That with you we may appear
At the eternal Eastertide.
Sermon: Preparation for lent season
I would like to start my sermon by congratulating my neighbour in Zimbabwe for being a successful farmer. All because of PREPARATION, PREPARATION, PREPARATION
I was so happy to buy blackberries from Zimbabwe from our corner Coop shop here in Woodbridge. The farmer is a white commercial farmer. He is our neighbour in Marondera. He exports blackberries to the UK and other parts of the world. I was overwhelmed to see the label written Zimbabwe. The success or failure of every farmer is in the preparation of land. When a farmer prepares his land in good time, he will be well assured of a bumper harvest. Good land preparation is the foundation for successful crop production and contributes to long term soil fertility, soil moisture retention and weed management thus reducing pests and diseases. It also helps the infiltration of water into the soil to the roots of the crop.
Nhimbe Fresh farm manager Edwin over the years has acquired a strong international customer base in the UK, EU and South Africa markets. The farm is just 2,5km from our home. Nhimbe Fresh farms have a well-established infrastructure that includes big dams, underground pipelines and modern pivots as well as drip irrigation schemes in order to commercialise farming of blackberries and blueberries.
Like any farmer who takes his work seriously and he does a thorough preparation for his production.
Lent is a Christian season of preparation before Easter – the good news – Gospel. It is a time or an opportunity we prepare ourselves through fasting, prayer repentance and giving .
The devil is at work in the life of every Christian. The journey Jesus walked of temptation for 40 days and 40 nights is the journey we are all walking. In the wilderness Jesus was by himself – private life preparing himself for his public ministry. Adam and Eve disobeyed God-poor preparation for themselves and for the generations to come. We reap what we saw. God planned wonderful things for us but it is our preparedness in being and doing which determines the outcome. It is a tragedy to die with potential of greatness just because of disobedience. Disobedience is curse and obedience is a blessing.
40 days and 40 nights Jesus in wilderness tempted but remained faithful to his father.
Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent, one may have noticed people with a black cross on their foreheads. These are ashes from the Ash Wednesday service. This symbolises our grief for the things we have done wrong. We have to be sorry and repent for what we have done. We should remove masks of deception. Maundy Thursday is the day for a Passover meal—–with our Lord before Easter. We should always remember that LENT is a season for fasting and prayer as Jesus did. It is a season for spiritual preparation for our redemption. When we are preparing for his work, he will give us strength beyond our expectation. The sky becomes our limit.
Meditation.
We are facing choices, temptation is knocking at our doors of life , we are in our own wilderness of life. We are all human beings, offspring of Adam and Eve. We are imperfect and we need salvation.
Help us o Lord
We pray for our conflicting desires in the world of temptations, between our desires to do either good or evil.
Help us o Lord
We pray to be well equipped to face the future. In the wilderness of life today.
Help us o Lord
Give us the knowledge, wisdom and understanding of your will then courage to make the right decisions.
Help us o Lord
We pray for justice, mercy and humility as we endure against the temptations and sufferings of our wilderness life today.
Help us o God
We place our minds, our souls, our possessions, our strength and our world in your hands for your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
HYMN STF238 Lead us, heavenly father, lead us
Watch on Youtube
Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us
o’er the world’s tempestuous sea;
guard us, guide us, keep us, feed us,
for we have no help but thee;
yet possessing every blessing,
if our God our Father be.
Saviour, breathe forgiveness o’er us:
all our weakness thou dost know;
thou didst tread this earth before us,
thou didst feel its keenest woe;
lone and dreary, faint and weary,
through the desert thou didst go.
Spirit of our God, descending,
fill our hearts with heavenly joy,
love with every passion blending,
pleasure that can never cloy:
thus provided, pardoned, guided,
nothing can our peace destroy.
Benediction.