February 21, 2021

WELCOME TO ST ANDREW’S ON THE TERRACE

GATHERING

Come into this gathering place!

Come in and find peace and rest,

inspiration and aspiration,

fellowship and love.

Come in and find light for your darkness,

a friend’s touch for your loneliness,

and music for your soul.

Come in and let our hearts sing

for all the blessings that are ours this day.                                      (Rex Hunt)

 

PROCESSIONAL HYMN AA 72 ‘In this familiar place’
Words & Music by Colin Gibson
Words & Music: © 1994 Hope Publishing Co.
1. In this familiar place
I know the mystery of your grace.

Refrain:
For the love that I receive,
for the truth that I believe,
I praise and thank you;
for this here and now.

2. In halting song and word
the music of your voice is heard. Refrain

3. Among these friends of mine
I taste the company divine. Refrain

4. Within this narrow sphere
I learn that you are everywhere. Refrain

WELCOME
Kia ora tatou.
Kia ora.

181 years of St Andrews on the Terrace.
PRAYER
From the World around us:
“the Womb of stars By Joy Atkinson. Singing the Living Tradition/#445

The womb of stars embraces us;
remnants of their fiery furnaces
pulse through our veins.
We are of the stars,
the dust of the explosions
cast across space.

We are of the earth:
we breathe and live in the breath
of ancient plants and beasts.
Their cells nourish the soil;
we build our communities
on their harvest of gifts.
Our fingers trace the curves
carved in clay and stone
by forebears unknown to us.

We are a part
of the great circle of humanity
gathered around the fire, the
hearth, the altar.

We gather anew this day
to celebrate our common heritage.
May we recall in gratitude
all that has given us birth.

Amen

JESUS’ PRAYER Jim Cotter paraphrase

Eternal Spirit
Life-Giver, Pain-Bearer, Love-Maker,
source of all that is and that shall be,
Father and Mother of us all,
loving God, in whom is heaven:
the hallowing of your name
echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed
by the peoples of the world!
Your heavenly will be done
by all created beings!
Your commonwealth of peace and freedom
sustain our hope and come on earth.
With the bread we need for today, feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and test,
strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For you reign in the glory
of the power that is love, now and for ever.
Amen.
LIGHTING THE RAINBOW CANDLE
We light this candle as a reminder to our commitment as a congregation that in this place all are welcome. Young and older, those whose ancestors have been in Aotearoa for more than 800 years those who have been here only a few years.

All are welcome.
TIME WITH CHILDREN Rosemary Lawrence
BLESSING THE CHILDREN (All stand)
We send you to the Rainbow Room to hear stories, ask questions and have fun together.
We bless you. Amen.

PASSING THE PEACE
Traditionally we shake hands to pass the peace and say “peace be with you. Now that Covid is here
we ask that you pass the peace without shaking hands.
HYMN ‘In this place where now we gather’
Written for the 175th anniversary of St Andrews Words © 2014 Fiona McDougal
Music © 2013 Vivien Chiu, used by permission

1. In this place where now we gather,
we have lived our common life.
In this place we’ve learned together,
moving through both joy and strife.
In this place hope’s grown within us
as we shared the bread and wine.
In this place where all are welcome,
we have known a love that shines.

2. From a past that saw the old folks
travelling from lands afar;
from a past that brought mixed blessings
to tangata whenua.
From a past of change and challenge,
synthesising new ideas;
from a past that brought rich stories,
giving strength to face old fears.

3. In this time of fresh beginnings,
opening our hearts with hope.
In this time of great adventure,
seeking out God’s greater scope.
In this time we stand together,
reaching to our world anew.
In this time we make commitment
to this city’s greater good.

4. Let us join in celebration
making joyful harmony.
Let us join our hands and promise
to treat earth respectfully.
Let us join and share our vision
of a world that’s just and free.
Let us join in deep intention
to live gently, lovingly.
THE WORD IN TEXTS Marilyn Wallace
Hebrew Bible Genesis 9:1-11
Gospel Mark 1: 12-15
Contemporary reading Read by Patricia Booth
The shipboard diary of 24 year old Rev. George S Harper 1864

RESPONSE
For the Word in scripture,
for the Word among us,
for the Word within us,
we give thanks.

HYMN HIOS 147 ‘When Evenings Shorten’
Words © 2009 Shirley Smith, adapted (Admin. by the The New Zealand Hymnbook Trust)
Music Cavell Street © 2009 Colin Gibson 4 verses

1. When evenings shorten and grow cool,
as grapes turn purple on the vine,
as golden grain is safely stored,
we see again our Easter sign.

2. As daisies fade along the hill,
and bush birds come to us for food,
in rain, or mist or bitter chill
we see again our Easter sign.

3. As trees grow bare, we see the trace
of life’s new buds along the bough.
We do not need to wait for spring;
we see again our Easter sign.

4. So let the southern Church rejoice!
As colour flames from hill and plain
so let us sing with hearts of joy:
we see again our Easter sign
REFLECTION ‘Lent, forty day lockdowns and other things’ Rev. Ross Scott

The great realisation By TomFoolery
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw5KQMXDiM4&list=
PLZkHc1uEUlrIu5zo43egpa6GaefsuqsV-&index=1
OFFERING PRAYER (said together)
All that we are and all that we have is a gift from God, out of the bounty of this planet.

As we give this money and produce, may we be reminded of where it comes form and where it will go in mission.

We dedicate our selves for this mission as well!

Amen

We recognise and bless the gifts brought to the table, and those which wing their way electronically from our banks to the church’s account.
LIFE IN THE COMMUNITY OF ST ANDREW’S
People share notices and visitors are welcomed. If you have a notice not already in the order of service, please move to the front row, ready to speak briefly from the lectern.
For the benefit of newcomers, please introduce yourself before you begin.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE Patricia Booth
CIRCLE OF PRAYER
We think today of the people of Djibouti and Eritrea and the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church. We are thankful for progress which has been made for some of the detainees in Papua New Guinea and Nauru and continue to hope for a satisfactory resolution for those who remain. In New Zealand, we remember those in Parliament, and today we name Chris Bishop and Rachel Brooking, list MPs. Here in the Central Presbytery, we pray for the leaders and people of St James' Presbyterian Church, New Plymouth.
PRAYER FOR ST ANDREW’S

Renew your people, God,
and renew our life in this place.
Give us a new spirit of unity
with all who follow the Way of Jesus
and new bonds of love
with people of other faiths.

Bless the city in which we live
that it may be a place
where honest dealing,
good government,
the desire for beauty,
and the care for others flourish.

Bless this church
that what we know of your will
may become what we do,
and what we believe
the strong impulse
of our worship and work.

Amen

HYMN ‘And did those feet in former times’
A hymn about Jesus walking Aotearoa NZ
Words: © Susan Jones 2000: this version 2014 and 2018
Tune: CH 4 #106 Jerusalem
1. And did those feet in former times
walk upon scree and tussock brown
and did the man, Jesus the Christ
cross mountains high and rolling downs?
and did he know the morning mist?
and did he know the harbour’s sheen?
and did he love the cityscape
its terraced streets, the urban scene?

2. And does he still walk this our land,
talking and laughing with us yet?
And does he know that stab of need
when neighbours snub, and worse, neglect?
And is he there when wine is poured?
And is he there when bread’s prepared?
And does he smile when good is done?
And does he weep when it is not?

3. Be with us Christ, as we step out.
Come with us on our lifelong quest.
Be our true guide, on our right hand,
be with us, walking and at rest.
So we will know life to the full,
be there to see us through the night.
For we would be your followers,
pursue your Way with all our might.
BLESSING
SUNG AMEN
POSTLUDE