July 23, 2017
WELCOME TO ST ANDREW’S ON THE TERRACE
Wherever you are on your faith’s journey,
wherever you have come from and wherever you are going to,
whatever you believe, whatever you do not believe, you are welcome here.
Please join in the congregational responses printed in bold italics.
Please stand if you are able, for the hymns and the offering prayer.
We usually sing the hymns without announcement.
To use the loop system in the church, turn your hearing aids on to the appropriate setting.
Printed copies of the reflection are available at the back of the church for people with extreme
hearing loss. For others, they can be picked up at the end of the Gathering.
Please note your nearest fire exit.
The church and hall have been earthquake strengthened. In an earthquake: drop, cover and hold
GATHERING
We ponder what God is like
How we have captured this mystery in colour and line and shape
How have we drawn God over the centuries?
Can the essence of the divine be captured on canvas…
…or ceiling or wall or framed within a finite area?
Let us, this day, revel in the mystery of the sacred
‘For the beauty of the earth’
Text: Folliott S. Pierpoint, 1835–1917 (alt)
Tune: Lucerna Laudoniae. Conrad Kocher. TIS137
For the beauty of the earth,
For the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies,
Through all the world we simply raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.
For the beauty of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flow’r,
Sun and moon, and stars of light,
Through all the world we simply raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth, and friends above,
For all gentle thoughts and mild,
Through all the world we simply raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.
WELCOME
Kia ora tatou. Kia ora.
‘ Let us reach down deep’
Words Susan Jones © 2016
Music: FFS 10(i) Gaelic Trad Melody arr John Bell
HYMN as PRAYER
Let us reach down deep inside us
to the place where quiet reigns;
Find the Self who lives inside us
knows our joy and knows our pains:
Let our ego stand aside there,
shadow sharing space with light.
Let our inner selves rejoice at
how Love shines in darkest night. (Silence)
Wind and fire and earthquake pass
but Spirit is not found in them;
Still, small voice is hardly heard, but
brings Love which does not condemn.
In lives buffeted by windstorms,
rocked by quakes and scorched by fire,
stillness brings surprising solace
as we find there, hearts’ desire. (Silence)
Sacred calm means minds can settle,
hearts grow quiet, souls grow still;
Busy thinking slows its rhythm,
gives compassion chance to fill.
Even long-forgotten scars heal
as new balm brings a new way;
Every space and every crevice
warms as Love arrives to stay. (Silence)
JESUS PRAYER Jim Cotter paraphrase on card
LIGHTING THE RAINBOW ROOM CANDLE
TIME WITH CHILDREN Colma Froggatt
NEW RAINBOW ROOM COORDINATOR Jess McKnight
BLESSING THE CHILDREN (All stand)
We send you to the Rainbow Room programme to hear stories, ask questions
and have fun together. We bless you. Amen.
PASSING THE PEACE
Feel free to pass the peace with those nearby or move to greet others further away. Passing the peace
consists of shaking hands and saying “Peace be with you.” The response is “Peace be with you” or just
“And with you.” Or, simply saying “Hello” is a good idea. Also, feel free to simply observe if you wish!
THE WORD IN TEXTS Lois Robertson
Hebrew Bible Exodus 20: 1-4
Gospel Matthew 6: 28-30
Contemporary reading ‘The Relationship Between Spirituality and Artistic
Expression: Cultivating the Capacity for Imagining’
by Christine Valters Paintner
Dr Christine Paintner is speaking to educators in the university system
Ultimately, our greatest creative act is the living of our daily lives.
Creativity is about making space and listening deeply to our lives and the
world around us; seeing beneath the surface of things to the depth
dimension of the world; opening ourselves to the newness that stirs there;
developing a relationship to mystery; cultivating a sense of spontaneity
and playfulness; and giving form in a loving and intentional way to our
commitments. All of these processes contribute in significant ways to the
creation of meaning in our lives.
RESPONSE
For the Word in scripture, for the Word among us,
for the Word within us, we give thanks
REFLECTION ‘Can we image God in Art?’ Susan Jones
OFFERING PRAYER (said together)
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.
AFFIRMATION
An artist’s pencil draws the outline and defines the shape
An artist’s brush colours in space and indicates form,
And light and shade, temperature and mood
We ponder the outline and shape of God,
We wonder at light and shade cast into our lives
by what we have named divine,
in the sacred dimension of our lives.
Can we paint an accurate picture of God?
Can we paint adequate images of ourselves?
Capture each nuance, every part of the essence which is life?
We marvel at the mysteries of life human and divine
We persist in our search to know both better
With or without canvas, brush and paint and pen.
LIFE IN THE COMMUNITY OF ST ANDREW’S
People share notices and visitors are welcomed. If you have a notice, 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 Sue McRae
CIRCLE OF PRAYER
We think today of the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina and we pray for
understanding between people of different religious traditions in the
world today. In New Zealand, we remember those in Parliament, and
today we name Sarah Dowie and Peter Dunne and the members of their
electorates of Invercargill and Ohariu. Here in the Central Presbytery, we
pray for the leaders and people of St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church,
Marton.
PRAYER FOR ST ANDREW’S on card
HYMN WOV 530 ‘Eternal Spirit of all things that be’
Words © Ernest Edward Dugmore (alt) Music Chilton Foliat George Clement Martin
Eternal Spirit of all things that be,
our life, our work we give back lovingly
whose heavens declare your glory from above,
whose earth below is witness to your love.
We praise the changeful beauty of the hills,
the purple valleys flecked with silver rills,
the ocean glistening 'neath the golden rays:
they all, with us, are ceaseless in their praise.
We’re thankful for strength workers’ arms impart;
and grateful for the skilled musician's art,
the grace of poet's pen or painter's hand,
which teach the loveliness of sea and land.
Then grant us, Spirit, ever present dove,
to dwell within the shadow of your love,
to speak and work, to think and move and live
reflecting your own self, to always give.
That so, by Christ, brought home to freedom’s realm,
and hallowed by the Spirit's cleansing flame,
ourselves, our work, and all our powers may be
a sacrifice acceptable and free.
BLESSING
SUNG AMEN
THANK YOU
Vivien Chiu
Our Musician today