ST CLEMENT CHURCH
FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER SUNDAY COMMUNITY SERVICE
Good morning
As we continue in the Easter period that brought so many questions and doubts to the disciples, may we be assured by our Lord’s words … ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me.’
My love to you all
Liz
Dear Lord and Father, thank you that you promise us that where two or three are gathered you are there in their midst.
Lord, we welcome You amongst us today and celebrate the gift of life that you have lavished upon each of us.
We ask that You would open our ears so that we may hear Your voice.
Open our minds so that we may receive Your eternal wisdom.
Open our spirits so that we may know Your leading and guidance.
Open our hearts so that we may receive Your wonderful love.
We ask this in the glorious name of Jesus.
Amen
We say together:
As we gather here in the harbour of your safety, we thank you for fellowship and family.
We ask that you will strengthen us, restore us and inspire us with your love.
Lord, would you fill us with your peace so that we may journey onwards.
We would pour out your love and grace to others.
We ask that our souls would catch the wind of your Spirit so that we would take your promises to all the earth.
Amen
Hymn: 271 Alleluya, sing to Jesus
Prayer of Confession
God of healing,
God of wholeness,
We bring our brokenness,
Our sinfulness,
Our fears
And despair,
And lay them at your feet.
God of healing,
God of wholeness,
We hold our hearts and hands,
Minds and souls
To feel your touch,
And know the peace
That only you can bring.
God of healing,
God of wholeness,
this precious moment
in your presence and power
grant us faith and confidence
that here broken lives
are made whole.
Amen
The Collect
Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ have overcome death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: grant that, as by your grace going before us you put into our minds good desires, so by your continual help we may bring them to good effect; through Jesus Christ our risen Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen
Readings:
Acts 7. 55 - 60
1 Peter 2. 2 - 10
Hymn: 393 Lead us, Heavenly Father, lead us
Gospel: John 14. 1 - 14
(Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John. Response: ‘Glory to you O Lord.’)
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go and prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going.’
Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’
Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.’
Philip said to him, ’Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’
Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, “Show us the Father?”
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.
Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves.
Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.
I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.’
(This is the Gospel of our Lord. Praise to you, O Christ)
Reflection
“In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.”
I wonder what sort of picture that conjures up for you. I am someone who often needs to convert words into pictures particularly when the going gets tough.
The imagery of the Father’s house with many dwelling places is ‘mind blowing’ will there be enough for everyone? But the assurance that Jesus goes to prepare place for us so that where He is we may be also is comforting and hopeful.
Jesus’ admonition to not let our heart be troubled is a reminder we all need at times.
As you know, I have had a difficult few months, and in that time, I have struggled. I have found myself saying, ‘I should be …’ but I can’t. I lost my way and it felt like life and the world was collapsing in on me.
This is what Thomas and the others are experiencing.
In those heart troubling times we want to know that there is a place for us in the Father’s house, a shelter from the storms of life. We want to know that we belong, that we matter and are included in God’s care of the world. We want to know that there is a way forward even when we don’t know the way.
But, when we hear today’s gospel reading we often tend to focus on the many dwelling places in the Father’s house – focusing on the destination and ignoring the journey. This is about much more than a mansion in the sky or an end-of-life reward. I don’t think it’s about some future time and place apart from today’s troubled hearts. I think it’s through the heart troubling times of this life.
Ultimately, that journey is about making space and place. That’s what Jesus says He is doing. “I go to prepare a place for you.” Jesus is a place maker. He makes space and place for others to enter.
Jesus is our place maker and place making is a divine attribute. Jesus is always creating space and place for us to enter into a greater fullness of life. They’re places of life, love, healing, joy; places of mercy and forgiveness; places of beauty, generosity, and hope. These become for us places of reconciliation and resurrection, both in this life and in the next.
Think about the gospel stories you love most. I bet they are stories about opening spaces and places – The prodigal son, the blind man having his eyes opened, the raising and unbinding of Lazarus, the Easter story.
I think we love these stories because they’re our stories. Through them we see the times someone made space and place for us in which to find ourselves, ground ourselves, and become more fully our truer selves. We remember times when others opened to us a room in the mansion of their heart and made a difference. It offered healing, hope, and a way forward. It helped us recentre and recover ourselves.
I wonder who has been a place maker for you? How did he or she make a space for you? What difference has that made in your life? In whatever ways she or he made a place for you they were echoing Jesus’ words “I go to prepare a place for you.”
Making space and place for others is a divine quality. It’s what God started ‘in the beginning.’ It’s what Jesus reveals in today’s gospel. It’s what lives within us. We too can be place-makers for others. It’s one of the ways God shares God’s life with us.
Sadly, many of us have been told or come to believe that we must create a place for ourselves in this life and world. If we don’t no one will. We’ve been convinced that space is limited and so we work to create a space for ourselves more than for others. We strive to make our place through comparison and competition, struggles for power and control, agendas, reputations, and accomplishments. Place making for ourselves is often grounded in fear and defensiveness.
Today’s gospel calls all of that into question. There are two signs you will never see on the door of the Father’s house.
- Reservations required
- No vacancy
There is enough space and place for everyone. “… in my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.” If we really want to take that to heart we would be opening doors and making space and place wherever we go to whomever we see. Isn’t that what Jesus did?
How might each of us be a place maker today for someone today? Maybe it’s as simple as a smile or a word of encouragement. Maybe it’s coming to sit in prayer during the week or walking in nature. Maybe it’s offering or asking for forgiveness. Maybe it’s the warmth and presence of a touch. Maybe it’s seeing and responding to another’s needs. Maybe it’s the long slow work of social justice and change. We make space and place in a thousand different ways.
But, while you are making space and place for another, don’t forget to make space and place for yourself. You need it too and we can only offer what we have.
There are a lot of spaces and places to be opened. I often wonder if we can do this, if I can do this. Jesus however, seems to think we can. “Very truly, I tell you,” He says, “the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these.”
“Greater works than these.” Maybe “Can we do this?” isn’t the question to be asking. Maybe the question to be answered is, “Will we do this? Will we be place makers for others?”
Amen
Hymn: 296 Lord, enthroned in heavenly splendour
Our Intercessions
Lord as we bring to you our prayers of intercession, we ask you to open our ears to hear your voice, open our eyes to behold your glory, open our hearts to receive your grace, open our lips to show forth your praise.
We pray for your Church today, gathering all around the world in tiny churches and great cathedrals, in open spaces and within homes, to praise you and to hear your Holy Word.
Give us a sense of expectation as we come and inspiration as we go.
We ask you to bless all who preach and teach the message of your salvation and we especially pray for our own much loved Reverend Di as she seeks to do your will and guide and support us through our spiritual journeys.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Lord, we pray for our church here at St Clement. There are challenging times ahead in so many different ways. Lord, give us strength and purpose to do your will, enthusiasm to work together for the good of the community; determination to follow You wherever You may lead; and a sense of unity that we are doing Your will.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Lord, our troubled world grows more fractured day by day. Leaders and governments so often no longer work for the wellbeing and best interests of their people but for their own power.
We pray that: fighting may cease in all war-torn countries, tolerance may take the place of discrimination, friendship may take the place of hostility and that we may all be willing to create space and place for each other so that we may all live in a caring world.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Lord, as Spring moves into Summer and we see the changes in the scenery around us, we give you thanks for the wonder of creation. We are so fortunate to live in such a beautiful area with the contrasts of moorland, woodland, farmland, river and sea shore. We are but custodians of your creation … may we care for and nurture the flora and fauna, never taking more than we are willing to give back so ensuring that generations to come may also enjoy the wonders of your creation.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Lord, we bring before You all those in any kind of need.
We pray for all preparing for or recovering from surgery and for those in pain. You show yourself to those who are vulnerable and make your home with the poor and the weak of this world. We pray that you will protect the healthy, calm the frightened, give courage to those in pain, give calm assurance to those struggling with loneliness, homelessness and all kinds of uncertainty.
Jesus Christ is the Light of the world. May all hold that Light high so that they may know that they are never alone.
We especially pray for all those within our church family who need our prayers.
Reverend Diane, Ken, Sabie, Brian, May, Susan, Lauren, Lynda, Sandra, Roger and Helen, Daphne and David, Pam and David, Dot, Maureen, Mary, Allison and Rob, Kate, Catherine, Jan, Anita and Stephen, Michael and Patricia, Jeremy, Felicity, Callum and Elaine, Barbara, Laurie, Jeanette and Dave, all those we know and those who have no one to pray for them.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Lord, we bring before you all those whose life’s journey is coming to an end. May they know that You are with them and that they do not travel alone.
We remember before You all those who have died. Welcome them into your eternal kingdom and grant them everlasting peace.
We pray for those who are grieving the loss of their nearest and dearest… comfort them in their sorrow.
We remember those whose year’s mind occurs at this time.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Lord, as we delight in the rich variety of your creation, we offer you our lives and as we go out today, we pray that in our dealings with others we may always remember the words of your Son Jesus Christ …
‘A new command I give you “love one another.” So, you must love one another, by this all men will know that you are my disciples if you love one another as I have loved you.’
Rejoicing in the fellowship of St Allen, St Andrew and St Clement and all Christian people.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
We say together:
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
Let not your hearts be troubled by Malcolm Guite
Always there comes the parting of the ways
The best is wrested from us, borne away,
No one is with us always, nothing stays,
Night swallows even the most perfect day.
Time makes a tragedy of human love,
We cleave forever to the one we choose
Only to find ‘forever’ in the grave.
We have just time enough to love and lose.
You know too well this trouble in our hearts
Your heart is troubled for us, feels it too,
You share with us in time that shears and parts
To draw us out of time and into you.
I go that you might come to where I am
Your word comes home to us and brings us home.
The Peace
Jesus says: ‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled,
Neither let them be afraid.’
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
Hymn: 120 Thine be the glory
The Blessing
May the love of Jesus Christ bring us wholeness,
the grace of God the Father grant us peace,
the breath of the Holy Spirit instil passion,
and the unity between them, give us strength
for this and every day.
Amen