Today, we come together to sing the praises of God, to pray for guidance and to look to Jesus as our friend and shepherd, the one who cares for and protects us. We look at Mark 12 where Jesus denounces the Jewish leaders and then, the Lord sits with us in the Court of the Women. The Lord sits down to protect and support us, to be our friend. The Lord dwells with us, the Lord dances with us and sings with us when we care for one another. And the Lord rejoices when we trust and obey. Special thanks to Lindsay Mitchell who read the readings, Pastora Jeanie who wrote our Intercessions which were read by Pastora Krista, Uli Doerr our Guest organist, and Jose Cueto who recorded our service.
Sunday 15 October.In our Scriptures today, from Mark 10, Jesus tells the parable about sheep and goats - those who follow his teachings and those who do not. The goats are not those who are actively preventing his work, but those who don’t do what makes them uncomfortable - those who do not help to feed the hungry, those who do not welcome the stranger into their midst; those who do not visit the sick and imprisoned. Today the question is asked – if I am able to help, shouldn’t I? Many thanks to Pastora Krista Givens for leading our service today, to Dot Colling for reading the Scriptures to us, to Rick Boyle for the Intercessions, and to José Cueto for recording the service.
Sunday October 8 2023. We ask God to open our eyes to the wonder of creation all around us and show us how we need to care for this land for future generations. Harvest is a time to say thank you to all who have produced these gifts for us - not to glorify increasing consumption and hoarding or to acquire masses of things. Harvest is a time to think how these masses of things can be shared with those less fortunate - and not be like the rich man who had so much he built bigger barns to store all his harvest in, all for himself - but then his life ended before he could enjoy any of it. Many thanks to Pastora Jeanie Cooper for leading our service today and for the Intercessions, to Davy Young for reading our Scriptures, to Uli Doerr for playing the organ, and to José Cueto for recording the service.
Sunday 1 October 2023. Today, we bring our worries and concerns to God; we lift our hearts in praise for what God is doing in our lives and we sing out the joy we feel for God’s love. We ask for His wisdom to descend upon us, giving us the courage to not only hear His words but to act on them, to be obedient and to honour Him in thought, word, and deed. We pray that His spirit will provide assurance for those struggling with doubt, that His guiding hand will lead those struggling with decision-making, that our prayers will be answered in accordance with your divine will. Many thanks to Pastor Keith Brown for leading our service, to Dot Colling for reading our Scriptures, to Rick Boyle for our Intercessions, to Uli Doerr for playing the organ, and to José Cueto for recording the service.
Besides a great sermon and music, today was also special due to the Wedding Blessing for Mr. and Mrs. Gordon and Patti Newlands.
Today’s scripture lesson is about seeing things differently; about stepping outside of our comfort zone, taking a risk and placing ourselves in the position to experience the work of God. We look at Mark 10:46-52, and the healing of blind Bartimaeus, how he wasn’t satisfied to be on the sidelines, but instead placed himself right in the path of Jesus, and then had the faith to believe Jesus could and would heal him. Watch the video to see Pastora Krista’s practical take on the healing. A special thank You to Howard Cook for doing the Readings, Bob Wilson for the Intercessions, and Jose Cueto for the video of the Service.