St Clement Church Community 4th Sunday of Lent Service

St Clement Church

Mothering Sunday Community Service

Good morning

Today is not only the Fourth Sunday of Lent but it is Mothering Sunday when we remember our mothers and all who have a special caring memory in our lives. But, for many, for a variety of reasons, today does not bring back happy memories.

In our thoughts and prayers may we remember those people today.

My love to you all

Liz

Heavenly Father

Thank you for the gift of mothers, those who gave us life, those who raised us, and those who nurtured us in faith and love.

Today, we honour their strength, sacrifice, and unwavering love.

Bless every mother with joy, peace, and encouragement.

Strengthen those who feel weary, comfort those who grieve, and uplift those who mother others in quiet, unseen ways.

Let every woman who nurtures with love feel your presence and know she is deeply valued.

May your grace surround them, and may they continue to shine with the beauty of Christ within them.

In your Son Jesus’ name. Amen

We say together:

Dear Lord, we pray for mothers, grandmothers, godmothers, and all who take a caring, mothering role with others every day. Guide them to be like Mary your mother, caring, gentle, faithful, brave, and nurturing. Help them all to know that they are loved and appreciated for all that they do for those for whom they care. Give them all the patience to deal with difficult times in their lives.

Amen

Hymn: 334 All people that on earth do dwell

Prayer of Confession

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

God of compassion, whose Son Jesus Christ, the child of Mary, shared the home of a life in Nazareth, and on the cross drew the whole humanity family to himself: strengthen us in our daily living that in joy and sorrow we may know the power of your presence to bind together and to heal; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

Amen

Readings:

1 Samuel 1. 20 – the end

Colossians 3. 12 - 17

Hymn: 161 For Mary, Mother of the Lord

Gospel: John 19. 25b - 27

(Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John. Response: ‘Glory to you O Lord.’)

Standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.

When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, here is your son.’

Then he said to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’

And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.

(This is the Gospel of our Lord. Praise to you, O Christ)

Reflection

Today is Mothering Sunday – not the easiest day to ‘reflect’ on – why? Well, while Mothering Sunday can be a very happy, joyous day for some, it can also be a very sad day, a day of great pain and grief for others and so not everyone looks forward to Mothering Sunday for various reasons.

We are here today to celebrate and give thanks for our mothers and grandmothers and maybe, someone who has had a key part of our life who wasn’t either of those.

Worship and motherhood are lifetime tasks, neither of which should be confined to a one-hour recognition within a Sunday service.

Mothering Sunday is a day for greetings, expressions of love and it is a day for remembering.

Motherhood is a special gift from God and I don’t know if other mothers will agree with me, but something miraculous happens when you give birth to your first child. In a way there are two births. The first, of course, is the birth of the child but then, there is the birth of a mother. I certainly became a very different person once Kenwyn was born.

Through the years we relate to our mothers differently.

At 4 … ‘My mummy … she can do everything.’

At 12 … ‘Well… Mum doesn’t know …everything.’

At 14 … ‘Mum doesn’t know … Anything!’

At 18 … ‘Mum is out of step … with the times.’

At 25 … ‘Well, Mum knows …a few things.’

At 35 … ‘Before we decide to do that … let’s get Mum’s… opinion.’

At 45 … ‘I wonder what M um would say … about this?’

At 65 … .I wish I could talk with … my mother.’

A mother can have an angelic voice as she gently sings a lullaby to the babe in her arms. Yet this same voice can dwarf the sound of a Sargeant Major when she calls her children in for tea or cheers them on at the school Sports Day.

When we remember Jesus as He hung on the cross, He even then honoured His mother. One of the last things He did on earth was to take care of His mother. Even in the dying moments of His life, He never stopped loving her. He never stopped caring for her.

Near the cross was Mary the mother of Jesus, his mother’s sister Mary, Mary Magdalene and one other person, the disciple whom Jesus loved and this disciple was the apostle John. Hanging on the cross, Jesus told John the disciple that Mary was now his mother and in turn that he was now her son.

In that moment, Jesus made an oral testament in front of witnesses that made the arrangement binding and so formally places his mother under John’s protection, requiring him to provide for Mary after his death.

Jesus was making the point that Mothers are important.

But, we also have to acknowledge that for whatever reason some women are not Mothers. Likewise, for whatever reason, some people are not able to have a relationship with their Mother. We remember all these people in our prayers today.

Grandmothers too are extra special. When a group of young children were asked what makes a grandmother … here are some of their responses …

Grandmothers are so old they shouldn’t play too hard and they should never run.
When they read to us they don’t skip parts of the story or mind if it’s the same story over again.

Maybe the most touching …

Everybody should try to have a grandmother because they are the only grown-ups who have time.

Most of us have fond memories of mothers and grandmothers and there are few things more powerful than the tears and prayers of a mother. Few things are more tender than a mother’s hug or a compassionate touch.

Jesus displayed love to His mother even as His time of death approached. He gave His example, that where individual circumstances allow, we should show our love and respect to our mothers as we indeed show to one another from the tiniest baby to the oldest adult, regardless of gender.

Today is a day for love and kindness as we celebrate Mothering Sunday and long may that love continue.

May the Grace of Christ Jesus bless our mothers and all those he places in our lives, as we remember that God is good, and all the time, God is good.

Amen

Hymn: 186 Tell out my soul, the greatness of the Lord

Our Intercessions

Dear Lord, we thank you for your love which shapes us and helps us to grow.

On this Mothering Sunday we give thanks for women who have been examples of self-giving love, who have given time, wisdom, and care to the nurture of children, their own and others. We pray for those who find this day difficult, who do not have happy memories of their own mothers, those who grieve for their mothers or for their children, and those who long to be mothers but cannot be.

We remember mothers in the Bible, giving thanks for the tenacity of Sarah, the generosity of Hannah and the courage of Mary.

Today, we especially remember our mothers and all they meant to us.

May your Spirit continue to shape us, heal us, and guide us today.

Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer,

Lord, we pray for all mothers world-wide: those in war-torn countries trying desperately to protect their children; those in countries where drought means there is little if any food to feed their children; those where there is no fresh water and where daily contaminated water threatens all their lives; those in all countries, including our own, who are living in extreme poverty, those where there is injustice, lack of safety in all its forms and there is a hopelessness from which they struggle to escape. May we all be aware of the inequality around us and in some small way help to alleviate it.