St Clement Church Community Last Sunday after Trinity Service
Good morning to you all
We look, but do we really see?
We listen, but do we really hear?
How often do we really see or hear the significance of things that happen or words that are said?
Too often we take things at face value.
May we not only look but really see and not just listen but really hear.
My love to you all
Liz
Faithful one, whose Word is life: come with saving power to free our praise, inspire our prayer and shape our lives for the kingdom of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
We say together:
Father God, we gather here today under your care and protection.
Thank you for your loving kindness that never fails us. We thank you for those with us, that you would guide our thoughts and actions to bring you glory. Strengthen us and fill us with your peace. May we love and serve each other as Jesus has shown us. Fill us with the Holy Spirit to do your good work on earth. Amen
Hymn:234 Christ whose glory fills the skies
We say together our Prayer of Penitence:
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word, and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God.
Amen
The Collect for the Last Sunday after Trinity
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning: help us so to hear them, to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them that, through patience, and the comfort of your holy word, we may embrace and for ever hold fast the hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen
Readings:
Jeremiah 31. 7 - 9
Hebrews 7. 23 - 28
Hymn: 374 How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
Gospel: Mark 10. 46b - 52
(Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Mark.
Response: ‘Glory to you O Lord.’)
As Jesus and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’
Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’
Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’
And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’
So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.
Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’
The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’
Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’
Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.
(This is the Gospel of our Lord. Praise to you, O Christ)
Reflection
Do you ever feel as if you’re in the dark?
I don’t mean that someone has turned off the lights around you, but that the light from inside you is no longer shining. I’m talking about those times when you feel lost and you can’t see a way forward. You’re confused. There’s no clear direction. Maybe the answers and beliefs that once lit your way no longer illuminate. You stumble and fumble your way through life not sure where you’re going. Or, maybe it’s the darkness of fear. Maybe grief, loss, and sorrow have darkened your life. Maybe shadows from your past – shadows of guilt, regret, failure, disappointment – mimic your every move and no matter how fast you run the shadow is still there. I wonder if that’s what it’s like for Bartimaeus.
Do you ever feel like you’re sitting on the roadside of life? Do you ever feel like everyone except you has it all figured out and is going somewhere? I’m talking about the times when it feels like life is passing us by and we aren’t getting anywhere. We feel stuck, more like a spectator of life than a participant. Maybe it’s about exhaustion or a lack of wholeheartedness. Maybe it’s despair, inertia, indifference. Maybe it feels like your life has been turned upside down and you’ve been displaced. Maybe it feels like you don’t have any place to be and no one to miss you if you’re not there. Maybe you’ve been sidelined by loneliness, being the outsider, or offering a voice others don’t want to hear. I wonder if that’s what it’s like for Bartimaeus.
Do you ever feel as if you’re begging for your life? I’m talking about those times when you feel depleted, the well has run dry, and you have nothing in reserve. It’s those times when life overwhelms us and we wonder how or if we’ll get by. We’re desperate and our prayer is begging and pleading to just get through another day. It’s not just that we don’t have enough, we start wondering if we are enough. I wonder if that’s how it is for Bartimaeus.
I remember times like this in my life and I’m sure you can too.
I remember when I started teaching - a very long time ago – and I’d just moved into a flat on my own … the loneliness of coming home to that empty flat every evening. Yes, I had purpose to my life but it seemed no real meaning so I’d end up sitting in darkness, begging.
I remember when I first came home with three small children – sitting in my own darkness and begging when they’d gone to bed.
I remember sitting in my darkness and begging the day Martin died – and there are days when I still do.
Oh, there have been so many days!
When have you sat in the darkness begging? When has blindness been your experience of life? When have you been sidelined? When have begging and pleading been the only prayer you have?
When have you been Bartimaeus? What happened? What have you done with that experience? Or better still, what has it done with you?
As much as I disliked and wanted to avoid those times of sitting in my darkness and begging, they would change my life in ways that I could not foresee at the time. They changed how I see God, the world, myself, and others. I can’t help but wonder if those times are a necessary part of our spiritual journey. Maybe they are ways in which we mature and come to ourselves. Maybe they are a gateway to the fullness of life. I am not suggesting that God intends or causes those times – I don’t believe that. Rather, I am suggesting that God doesn’t waste them; that God wastes nothing of our lives – not our blindness, not our roadside sitting, and not our begging.
When Jesus asks Bartimaeus, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ He replies, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ So, at one time Bartimaeus could see. We can divide Bartimaeus’ life into three stages. First, he can see; second, he is blind, sitting on the roadside and begging. Third, he regains his sight. He did not, however, regain the sight he originally had. It was a different way of seeing. It was a much fuller way of seeing. Yes, he could now see things visually again, but much more than that, he is enabled to see things in a way that he had not seen things before. He has a higher vision and a greater consciousness.
Isn’t this the pattern of spiritual growth we see in the scriptures? Things go along smoothly, then they don’t, then they re-order in a way totally unexpected.
Sitting in darkness and begging does unexpected things for me. It continues to open my eyes. It continues to show me new paths for my life. It continues to help me see things in a new light. But, what about you? What have you learned about yourself from sitting in the darkness and begging? What are you seeing anew or maybe for the first time? In what ways is your seeing changing? What if changing our lives and our world begins with changing how we see? Amen
We say together in faith
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.
We believe in God the Father, who created all things:
For by his will they were created and have their being.
We believe in God the Son, who was slain: for with his blood, he purchased us for God, from every tribe and language, from every people and nation.
We believe in God the Holy Spirit: the Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come!’ Even so come, Lord Jesus!
Amen.
Hymn: 271 Alleluia, sing to Jesus
Our Intercessions
Faithful God, as we quietly bow our heads and focus our thoughts, we acknowledge that sometimes our faith feels weak. The trials of life test our faith and we find it hard to give thanks and follow your way. Help our faith to grow and help us to know that it is the most important thing in our lives. Show us how to rise above our human weaknesses and to grow stronger in our Christian Faith.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
We pray for your Church across the world that it may grow not only in numbers but in its faith. We pray for the Church in this country and in this diocese. We pray for Archbishop Justin, Bishop Hugh, our own vicar, our dearly loved Reverend Di and Father David who is so much part of our little church. We give thanks for all that they do and ask that they may be given the strength and your blessing to continue their good work.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
Mighty God, help us to see that things which seem completely impossible become possible if they are approached with faith. Help us to see that if we face a thing saying, ‘It can’t be done,’ it will not. But, if we face it saying, ‘It must be done,’ the chances are that it will; always remembering that we approach no task alone, but that you and all your power are with us.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
Creator God, we pray for your world. Forgive us when we are ungrateful, when lack of faith and spiritual blindness prevent us from appreciating the wonder of your creation and the endless cycle of nature. Forgive us for taking without giving; reaping without sowing. We pray for the farmers of the world many of whom still use methods described by Jesus and we especially pray that they may be treated with fairness for their labours.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
Righteous God, as we worship you here, in the safety of our little church, our thoughts go to the suffering of those in the Middle East – in Israel and Gaza, in Lebanon – so many who just want to live, in peace. We also think of those in Ukraine suffering in the continuing war with Russia, and all innocent people caught up in situations where an individual’s or a group’s need and demand for power disregards the well-being and safety of so many. While we know and can see how destructive a demand for power can be, we pray that somehow reason and an appreciation of the safety of life of all may finally bring peace throughout our world.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
Creator God, we bring before you all those across the world who have, this year, suffered severe weather conditions and natural disasters – extreme heat, fires, flooding, hurricanes, earthquakes, erupting volcanoes – which have destroyed life, homes, and businesses.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
Father God, we pray for our loved ones; for those who lift our hearts and those who turn our hair grey. We pray for those we instinctively warm to and those with whom there are frequent misunderstandings. We thank you God for our opportunities of forgiveness.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
Living God, we pray for the hungry, the homeless and the broken; for all for whom this day brings sadness and little joy; for the sick, the lonely and the helpless; for those whose hope has been shattered and their faith destroyed. We pray for the sick in our community; for all those in care homes or in hospital and people in need of special care and we ask your blessing on them. Comfort and heal all who suffer in body, mind, or spirit. Give strength and skill to all doctors, nurses, care workers, volunteers and priests. We think of all those we know and those who have no one to pray for them - for: Ken and Reverend Diane, May, Susan, Lauren, Lynda, Terry and Dot, Margaret, Maureen, Pam and David, Barrie and Sandra, Michael and Patricia, Rob and Alison, Stella, Jeremy, William, Jane, Anita and Stephen, Callum and Elaine, Andy, Anne, Sue and Martin, Margaret and John, Dave and Jeanette and Jane.
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
Everlasting God, we pray for those whose earthly journey is coming to an end. May they, through our prayers, know that they are accompanied with love and are never alone. We pray for those who have died, remembering those who have lost their lives in the recent destructive weather conditions; in Israel, Gaza and Lebanon and in the continuing war in Ukraine; in accidents on the roads and in acts of violence, that they may all come to know the full joy of your eternal kingdom.
We remember those whose year’s mind occurs at this time:
Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us
May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that we may live deep within our hearts. May God bless us with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people so that we may work for justice for all people. May God bless us with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, hunger, homelessness, and rejection, so that we may reach out our hand to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy. May God bless us with enough foolishness to believe that we can make a difference in the world so that we can do what others claim cannot be done.
Merciful Father: Accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
Gathering our prayers and praises into one,
Let us pray with confidence as our risen Lord taught us;
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
Light and Darkness by Esther Leclerc
houses house bodies bodies house life
Life houses souls souls house light
Light shrinks from darkness darkness douses light…
Yet Light overcomes darkness with spiritual sight
… in the beginning was darkness darkness again at the end awaiting those who despise Light -- Light’s gift of love for all men
Yes, Light overcomes darkness with love’s perfect sight
The Peace
God has called us to live in peace.
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
Hymn: 415 O for a thousand tongues to sing
The Blessing
May the Father’s hand keep us from stumbling, the footprints of Jesus give us confidence to follow, and the fire of the Spirit keep us warm and safe in our walk with God this day and every day.
Amen