We keep a few moments of silence as we prepare ourselves to stand before Almighty God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.‘It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night,’ (Psalm 92:1-2)Hymn: Lead us, Heavenly Father, lead us...Romans 10:8b-13Let us come to the Lord, who is full of compassion, and acknowledge our transgressions in penitence and faith: Father eternal, giver of light and grace, we have sinned against you and against our neighbour, in what we have thought, in what we have said and done: through ignorance, through weakness, through our own deliberate fault. We have wounded your love, and marred your image in us. We are sorry and ashamed, and repent of all our sins. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, who died for us, forgive us all that is past and lead us out from darkness to walk as children of light. Amen. May Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and keep us in life eternal: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Prayer for the day: Almighty God, whose Son Jesus Christ fasted forty days in the wilderness, and was tempted as we are, yet without sin: give us grace to discipline ourselves in obedience to your Spirit; and, as you know our weakness, so may we know your power to save; 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.Luke 4:1-13Let us kneel before God in prayer, asking for his cleansing love to be known to all people. We pray for St Peter’s Church, that your will be done, and for our work to be blessed; We pray for our world, that all of its creatures will thrive, and for peace in Ukraine; We pray for our friends, families and community, that we may share in the love of Christ; We pray for people who are sick or suffering, that they will know healing and strength; We remember the departed, and pray for all who mourn.Let us join in the words of the Lord’s prayer, whoever and wherever we are: 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. Hymn: All who would valiant be...May Christ give us grace to grow in holiness, to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow him. And may the blessing of God Almighty who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit rest upon us and remain with us always. Let us go in peace to love and serve the Lord, in the name of Christ. Amen.
Who are you?And so, we find ourselves in the season of Lent - a penitential time for prayer, reflection and self-examination. It is a time for getting our spiritual and earthly lives in order and a time for creating personal space to begin to truly understand ourselves. Do you know who you really are?In today’s Gospel reading from Luke (Chapter 4 verses 1-13) we hear the story of the temptation of Jesus. The Devil is shown tempting Jesus to worship him. Effectively, Jesus is asked to show that the Devil is worth more to him than his Father, because the Devil can give him earthly power and authority. It was a real temptation, because Jesus really wanted the power to bring peace to this troubled world. However, Jesus realised that you can’t bring about God’s ends using the Devil’s means. Peace can’t be brought about by powerful force alone.During his time in the wilderness, Jesus began to fully understand who he was, his mission and his purpose. Jesus did not engage with the Devil’s temptations. He simply quoted the Word of God in scripture. God’s Word has power, even over our demons. Each temptation involved a seizure of power. Firstly, power over the elements of creation by turning stones into bread. Secondly, political and military power by gaining authority over the kingdoms of the world. Thirdly, power to force God’s protection in an inappropriate manner. That Jesus was tested throughout his ministry was widely held in early Christianity. The Letter to the Hebrews clearly reminds us that Jesus was tested in every respect, ‘yet without sin’. Ultimately, Jesus’ experience teaches us that there is nothing wrong with being tempted. It’s how we react to the temptation that matters. ‘Know yourself!’ Is an ancient piece of Greek wisdom. The question is, ‘Do we know ourselves and our temptations?’ Am I a perfectionist, or lazy? Do I desire to be noticed or praised? Am I holding on to the gifts and talents that God has given me, instead of putting them at the service of others? Do I focus on the best in people, or get myself angry at their flaws? Do I love only those who love me? Do I have a closed mind so that I miss out on the surprises and graces of every new situation? Do I judge others or try, as Ignatius suggests, to put a good interpretation on what they say or do? Where am I ignoring the grace of God?We need to remember that God knows us better than we know ourselves, but he loves us as we are. God also works, often through others, to help us recognise how we spoil ourselves. God wants to help us be more compassionate and easy to get on with. All we have to do is ask God to help us grow in LOVE and challenge ourselves to see the temptations of the world as the backdrop to the vocations to which we have been called.This Lent, take time in prayer and reflection to ask that most difficult of questions - ‘Who am I?’ Only by seeking to understand ourselves can we truly grow in faith, the service of God and our neighbours.With every blessing,Christian‘We stand with Ukraine - Pray for Ukraine!’
When we say the Lord’s prayer, we ask that our sins, or trespasses, be forgiven as we forgive those who sin against us. Forgiveness is a gift from God which is encompassed by unconditional love.A meme was posted online last week which said in effect: ‘When someone makes you cry, don’t forget all of the times they made you smile.’The thing is - we all get it wrong at times. I wince when I recall how many times I’ve put my foot in it. I often forget names, and faces, and I say the wrong thing. I’ve said and done things I regret in my lifetime, and I still do, although I make every effort not to. My brother says the devil stands on one shoulder and an angel on the other, and sometimes we allow the tune of temptation to be heard over the rift of right.To be able to love and trust in God, to admit to our wrongs and resolve once again to do better, gives us peace in our hearts. But if we won’t forgive others, our peace will be shattered. We’ll brood on their wrongs, and allow one event to hurt us over and over again in our minds. Forgiveness doesn’t mean making excuses, or allowing repeat behaviour. It means mustering the strength, with God’s help, to let go and move on, whether or not the relationship with those who hurt us will continue.One of things we all do is to grade sins, seeing some as far worse than others. Those who harm people physically as well as mentally or spiritually, especially if they are young or vulnerable, seem far worse than those who only hurt someone’s feelings. Sometimes it’s necessary to hurt or even kill other people, however, if they attack us first, as in a war. I won’t go into the ‘just war’ arguments today, but we all have the terrible events in Ukraine fresh in our minds. Are we supposed to forgive Putin? If we love and trust in God, and believe that we will all stand face to face with Jesus with the open book of our lives revealing every secret, then perhaps we will pity him.We can only look to ourselves and our own failings, those we are accountable for, and do our best to listen to the voice of the angels, to the teaching and example of Jesus. This is our task during the 40 days of the Lenten wilderness. To spend time in prayer and self reflection. To admit to our failings, our temptations, and resolve to do better, in word and in action. To make our confession. To be cleansed. To replace bad habits with good ones.And when we say the Lord’s prayer, we can remember that forgiveness is a gift from God which is encompassed by unconditional love. Amen.Julie Rubidge, Lay Minister
We keep a few moments of silence as we prepare ourselves to stand before Almighty God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.‘O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.’ (Psalm 51:15)Hymn: Be still, for the presence of the Lord, the Holy One, is here...Psalm 51:1-17Let us come to the Lord, who is full of compassion, and acknowledge our transgressions in penitence and faith: Father eternal, giver of light and grace, we have sinned against you and against our neighbour, in what we have thought, in what we have said and done: through ignorance, through weakness, through our own deliberate fault. We have wounded your love, and marred your image in us. We are sorry and ashamed, and repent of all our sins. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, who died for us, forgive us all that is past and lead us out from darkness to walk as children of light. Amen. May Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and keep us in life eternal: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Prayer for the day: Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing that you have made and forgive the sins of all those who are penitent: create and make in us new and contrite hearts that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may receive from you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; 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.Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21Please see the message from the minister. Let us kneel before God in prayer, asking for his cleansing love to be known to all people. We pray for St Peter’s Church, that your will be done, and for our work to be blessed; We pray for our world, that all of its creatures will thrive, and for peace in Ukraine; We pray for our friends, families and community, that we may share in the love of Christ; We pray for people who are sick or suffering, that they will know healing and strength; We remember the departed, and pray for all who mourn.Let us join in the words of the Lord’s prayer, whoever and wherever we are: 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. Hymn: Father, hear the prayer we offer...May Christ give us grace to grow in holiness, to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow him. And may the blessing of God Almighty who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit rest upon us and remain with us always. Let us go in peace to love and serve the Lord, in the name of Christ. Amen.
