Printed Service – Sunday 12th October
Prepared by Rev Vivienne Smith
Trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding.
Call to worship – Psalm 95
Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.
Hymn : To God be the glory STF94
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To God be the glory, great things He hath done,
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life our redemption to win,
And opened the life-gate that all may go in.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice;
Oh, come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory; great things He hath done.
Oh, perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport when Jesus we see.
Prayer
Almighty God, Ruler over heaven and earth, Lord of space and time, Creator of all that is and was and shall be
Alpha and Omega. We gather today in the name of Jesus, To worship you, the living God. We praise you for your great love. Your love, that sought us out And drew us into your loving embrace. Your love, that is higher than the heavens And deeper than the deepest sea. Your love, unconditional and eternal.
Almighty God, all praise and glory be given to you this day.
Jesus, we come acknowledging that you are the living word The Messiah, the Christ. You are the saviour of the world
The redeemer, the Son of the living God. And we know that one day every knee will bow And every tongue will confess that you are Lord of all. But we will not wait for that day! Today we bow the knee Today we acknowledge that you are Lord. Today we recommit our lives to serving you.
Lord Jesus Christ, all praise and glory be given to you this day.
Holy Spirit of God, Comforter divine, Counsellor and Advocate You are the Spirit of Truth and Life.
You guide our ever step. You never leave us or forsake us, You intercede on our behalf And you lead us through the storms. Because of you we can cry, ‘Abba Father”
Holy Spirit of God, all praise and glory be given to you this day.
Father Son and Holy Spirit, Have mercy on us, for we have failed you so often.
For our selfishness, We are truly sorry.
For our pride, We are truly sorry.
For all the times we have relied in our own strengths, gifts and talents. We are truly sorry.
For repeatedly leaning on our own understanding, rather than seeking your way, We are truly sorry.
For all the times we have failed to trust you, we are truly sorry.
For all the times we have accused you of abandoning us, we are truly sorry.
Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy. Silence.
Thank you, Lord, for the promises of scripture and for your mercy. To those who are Truly sorry you say…
“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
Thank you Lord….. Bless us Lord today. Touch our hearts afresh that we might live as true disciples of Christ. In Jesus name, Amen.
Reading 1 Sam – 17:32 – 50 – The Story of a boy who had more trust in His little finger than the whole army of men put together! His trust in God was unwavering even in the face of such an enemy!
David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.” Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock,I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.” Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armour on him and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.
“I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. He looked David over and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing with health and handsome, and he despised him. He said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!”
David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.”
As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground. So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
Hymn – When we walk with the Lord
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When we walk with the Lord
In the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way;
While we do His good will,
He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
Trust and obey,
For there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus,
But to trust and obey.
Not a shadow can rise,
Not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear,
Not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.
Not a burden we bear,
Not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss,
Not a frown or a cross,
But is blest if we trust and obey.
But we never can prove
The delights of His love,
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favour He shows,
And the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.
Then in fellowship sweet
We will sit at His feet,
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way;
What He says we will do;
Where He sends, we will go,
Never fear, only trust and obey.
Bible reading Proverbs 3:3- 8
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favour and a good name in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.
Reflection : Trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding.
Easy to say but not so easy to do!
In the past I’ve been a worrier. How about you? Finance…. Family…. Health….
Throughout scripture we are told to “Trust in the Lord”, and there have been many who did just that.
Noah – Trusting God he gathered the wood.
Abraham – as he led Issac up the mountain Hebrews 11:19 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead
David as he gathered stones
The woman who reached out to touch the hem of Jesus’s garment.
Peter and Silas singing while they’re chained to a wall!
——————–
The truth is we pray a heavy price for not trusting him.
I don’t know if you have ever heard of Ampleforth Abbey. It’s a Benedictine Monastery. I’ve been going for years. I just go for a few days to pray and to read and to spend time with the Lord. I love it. Over the past few years my sister has also joined me there, just for a night or two which is lovely. We were there in May, it was lovely.
Just as a bit of context, the accommodation at Ampleforth is up the hill, and the church and the dining room are at the bottom of the hill. And so every morning before setting on down the hill we turn as ask each other “have you got your pills?” More than once, we laughed together about the fact that we are getting old! It seems to happen; reach fifty and you’re going to be on pills of some sort or another.
In May on my way home I was listening to Joyce Meyer, an American Preacher. She’s good.
Anyway, she was saying she wished she could manufacture a little pill that she would give out free to all who wanted than. She called her little ill “The Trust Pill”. It’s a pill that helps us to trust in the Lord! And she went on to say, she would recommend that every Christin take one in a morning and then as needed during the day. “Don’t worry” she said, “you cannot overdose of them. You could take as many as you like.
She also went on to say, the pill would have serious side effects though. Peace, lightness of Spirit, joy, sleep!
Oh, that we might take our trust pill every day!
We may not understand why things are the way they are.
We may not be able to make sense of it all
But we can choose to trust the Lord even in the fiercest storm, for He will see us through.
A lesson learnt
Many years ago, when we didn’t have two pennies to rub together, I decided to invite wealthy friends over for a meal. We didn’t have anything to give them and we didn’t have the money to buy anything either.
I found a carboard box on top of the coal bunker, containing a fresh chicken, potatoes, vegetables, a carton of cream and everything to make an apple pie! No note. No card. Just a box of food! It was truly amazing and I’ve never forgotten it!
Prayer
Lord, the truth is you have never failed us nor forsaken us. You have provided of us every step of the way. And yet still we worry. May we be ever mindful of all that you have done for in the past as we trust you for all that is still to come. Every morning help us to remember to take our “trust pill”! And as we place our trust in you grant us your peace. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
Hymn : Will you anchor hold STF645
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Will your anchor hold in the storms of life,
when the clouds unfold their wings of strife?
When the strong tides lift, and the cables strain,
will your anchor drift, or firm remain?
Refrain:
We have an anchor that keeps the soul
steadfast and sure while the billows roll;
fastened to the Rock which cannot move,
grounded firm and deep in the Savior’s love.
It is safely moored; ’twill the storm withstand,
for ’tis well-secured by the Savior’s hand.
Though the tempest rage and the wild winds blow,
not an angry wave shall our boat o’erflow.
[Refrain]
When our eyes behold through the gath’ring night
the city of gold, our harbour bright,
we shall anchor fast by the heav’nly shore,
with the storms all past forevermore. [Refrain]
Prayers of intercession
A prayer for Gaza : Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world: In your mercy, provide for all those in Gaza and beyond who suffer from hunger and starvation, all that they need. By the power of your Spirit, bring a speedy end to this cruel war, the release of all captives, care for the sick and wounded, comfort for those who have lost loved ones, and the opening of a pathway for a just and lasting peace here in the Holy Land where your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, ministered during his earthly life; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
In Jesus’ Amen.
A Prayer for Ukraine : God of peace and justice, we pray for the people of Ukraine today. We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons. We pray for all those who fear for tomorrow, that your Spirit of comfort would draw near to them. We pray for those with power over war or peace, for wisdom, discernment and compassion to guide their decisions. Above all, we pray for all your precious children, at risk and in fear, that you would hold and protect them. We pray in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Amen
A prayer for persecuted Christians : All mighty God we pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters today. Protect them and keep them safe from those who seek to harm them. Give them wisdom and courage as they try to protect themselves, their families, and other Christians within their community. Protect each of them from violence, from arrest, and from all other kinds of persecution that they face. In Jesus’s Amen.
Hymn : In Christ alone STF351
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In Christ alone, my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand
In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
‘Til on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live, I live
There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life’s first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand
Blessing : As we commit this morning to trusting Him May we find peace within the storm and Love within the encircling of His arms. May we find rest within the night And refreshment in the dawn. May we find joy within, and A song just waiting to be sung. May we find the great peace of God, The Peace that passeth all understanding. And the blessing of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit Be with us now and forever. Amen