Sitting in different chairs, joining in at different times throughout the day, God’s people still gather for worship on this, the Lord’s day. Welcome, to Sunday worship.
Call to Worship – say aloud the parts in bold
Some of us are hurting,
some of us are suffering.
All are welcome in this place.
Some of us are very young,
some of us are getting old.
All are welcome in this place.
Some of us have hearts of gladness,
some of us are filled with grief.
All are welcome in this place.
The strong and the weak, the faithful and doubter,
the saint and sinner, the regular and visitor.
All are welcome in this place.
HYMN – All are Welcome
All-Age Prayer
Jesus says: “Welcome,
all are welcome.”
That includes me
and you
and everyone.
Really God?
Me?
And everyone?
Even them?
Thank you, God,
that you welcome us all.
Thank you
that you love each of us,
every one of us.
You are truly awesome.
Your love is awesome,
making me awesome.
Thank you, God.
Amen.
Reading: Matthew 10 v 40 – 42 read by Jean Davidson
Dramatised Reading:
Reflection:
HYMN – You’ve Always Been
Sunday school activities for all ages:
Welcome Poster
You will need: The letters W-E-L-C-O-M-E approximately 12 cm tall and 10 cm wide cut out of coloured card, decorating materials such as scraps of material, felt, wool, shiny coloured paper, sequins, glitter, felt-tip pens, PVA glue, glue spreaders, frieze paper, slips of coloured paper approximately 9 cm x 13 cm, pattern edged scissors.
Give each person one or more of the letters of the word WELCOME and let them decorate their letter. When complete place the letters along the top of the frieze paper and secure in place.
Now give each child a piece of coloured paper and ask them to write their own name and/or names of family and friends decoratively on the paper and then trim around the edge using the patterned scissors. Get the children to place their names on the frieze paper at unusual angles under the word WELCOME as a sign of them all being welcome.
Talk with the children about the importance of being welcoming. Discuss the different ways we can welcome people. Talk about all of them being welcome in the church and how they might make new people feel welcome to join them.
Cups of Cold Water Discussion
Pour water into a jug and perhaps add some ice. Add some fruit for flavour.
Look out a single glass to stand to the side of the jug or a number of glasses if you are part of a group/family.
Pause for a moment and just consider the water.
Reflect on:
• its simple composition (just Hydrogen and Oxygen)—a miracle in itself;
• its uses—a drink, for plant growth, for bathing, for cooking, for putting out fires and so on;
• its value as a commodity—especially in times/ places of drought;
• its importance in the Bible—Red Sea, water from the stone, River Jordan, Sea of Galilee, wedding at Cana, and
many other examples,
• consider, water is God’s gift to us—to use, to share, and to make available.
Pour the water into the glass (glasses) and listen to the noise of water hitting the bottom and sides of the glass.
Share with others, and drink from the glass (glasses) and savour the water that comes from God and all that the water represents that comes from God, the Life-Giving Creator.
HYMN – Welcome Everybody to listen to or sing along if you know the chorus
Prayers for Others and Ourselves
God of welcome,
we thank you that
you are always ready, waiting to welcome us,
always waiting to spend time with us
and hear what we want to bring to you in prayer.
This prayer could be an endless list
and there will be situations missed
and people escaping our attention,
but we know that you are able to
see beyond our limited memories
and hold all that pains creation
with us and for us.
We are so consumed by the effects of a virus
that many situations have gone unnoticed.
We pray now for those in our world
who feel forgotten:
for refugees in camps
not only worried about when their lives
might take a better turn but now
also fearful of this invisible danger;
for men, women and children
behind closed doors
living with danger and torment
at the hands of people who profess to love them;
for people living with life-limiting conditions,
relying on reduced levels of care,
fearful of catching this virus
as they fear their treatment will be limited;
for those in the background
within care-giving services,
the cleaners and janitorial staff,
the administrators and managers,
doing what is needed to ensure
hospitals and care homes
run smoothly and safely;
for places of conflict where,
with attention elsewhere,
dangers are increased and tensions raised,
and where deaths continue
unheeded.
And hold those we know by name and situation before you now in silence…….
So many places,
so many concerns, Lord;
thank you that we can bring them to you.
Amen.
HYMN – Beauty for Brokenness
Prayer of Dedication
Knowing we are welcomed
and yet knowing that we
have not always been deserving of that welcome,
your wide arms of grace, O God,
are too much to take in.
When we come with our heads dipped in shame
you gently lift our chins,
gaze into our eyes,
and say: welcome child,
so good to see you.
Lord, may we never take this for granted,
try harder to live up to your gracious welcome,
accept your love and, in turn,
offer that same love and welcome
to all whom we meet.
And so Lord,
we bring to you our offerings:
our money, our time and ourselves,
not as payment for something given
but out of adoration and thanksgiving
for all we have received.
Take what we offer and who we are,
bless them to the work of this church
and your kingdom.
Amen.
HYMN – Here in this Place
Sending
God of design and creation’s manufacture,
Jesus, purifier and water of life,
Spirit, sustainer and the world’s preservation agent,
before you we gathered,
from you we take,
away with you we go,
taking up the cause as you demand:
we go to serve your world. Amen