News and service details for Sunday 12th September 2021
This Sunday is Stephen’s last Sunday with us as associate pastor, and I want to say how deeply grateful I am to him for all of his hard work, especially over the last year. Without Stephen there would have been no weekly worship service, and without Stephen’s help and support I wouldn’t have felt confident enough to come back to work. Knowing that he has had my back has made all the difference. His generosity of Spirit, loving care, and hard work, has brought many of us through the worst of the pandemic, and I know that there are many besides myself who are deeply grateful to him for his help and support.
Of course, this doesn’t mean that he’s leaving the church! Stephen is an essential member of the church leadership and will continue to offer input and help when he’s able. So don’t worry, you’ll still see him around and he’ll still be a part of our worship.
However, there will be changes.
Our in-person worship will be the first Sunday of the month at Dorset Gardens Methodist Church. (The lift is still out of order but I will let you know as soon as it is operational again). As things get back to ‘normal’ there will also be a monthly in-person healing service at Dorset Gardens which will be co-hosted by TVMCC and DGMC. I don’t have dates for those yet but will let you know as soon as I do. On the Sundays that we are not meeting in person there will be an online gathering presented in a tv( read about the top 5 best full motion tv wall mount for your home or business). It will be a great deal shorter than our present offering and include a brief introduction, a 5-10 minute thought-provoking address, a little music for reflection, then prayers and a blessing for the week. It will run for 20 minutes on Facebook every Sunday at 6pm.
If you would like to join me on Zoom then we’ll gather at 5:50 to settle in, and then take whatever time you’d like afterwards to chat and fellowship together. If you would like to offer a hand at any point then I’d be thrilled – just let me know.
We live in unprecedented times, and we’re making this up as we go along. Right now I don’t have what’s needed for a weekly in-person service, but with some help can manage a monthly in-person service, and a weekly ‘connection’. If you have any suggestions for any other events then please do let me know.
Until we get this together please bear with me. Streaming Facebook from an in-person service has turned out to be a great deal more challenging than we imagined; and I think it’s going to take a while until we work out how best to hold our in-person service and what else we can offer by way of an affirming Christian connection.
Lastly, I do want to thank Stephen again for all of his help. It takes a lot of work to put together a full service every Sunday – and I do mean a lot of work – and I know that his weekly service will be very much missed by many.
I hope you have a blessed week.
Much love
Rev. Michael
You can email me at pastor@thevillagemcc.org.
Community Prayers.
Lord, we continue to lift all those in Afghanistan who are living in fear. We lift all those who fear for loved ones still trapped there, and for all the organisations and groups working so hard to help refugees escape. Most of all Lord, we pray for the kind of peace that affirms every person as one of your unique children, and praises you for the extraordinary rainbow diversity in which you have created us all .
Lord, we ask for healing for Robert, Tony P, and Simon as they continue to receive treatment; Wendy and Sarah for their ongoing health; Charlie, as he recovers at home. We lift all those we may not have mentioned, but who you know need your touch. Lord, please continue to be with us all. Amen.
If you would like to add a prayer to the newsletter then please email me at pastor@thevillagemcc.org. – Michael x
Sunday Service
This evening Stephen takes us back to 9/11 to remember, and to remember those who continue to be affected.
READING: 9/11 – where was God?
A month after the collapse of the Twin Towers, recovery workers on the site discovered a few green leaves showing through the grey concrete and ash. Clearing the debris, they found a badly injured Callery Pear Tree. It was the last living thing to come out of the rubble — a charred stump that, to an untrained eye, looked dead. She was taken to a nursery outside the city, and put in the care of Richie Cabo, a City Parks Worker, who cared for her and helped her grow back to remarkable health.
No one was sure if she would live. But the following spring, a dove built a nest in her branches and new green buds appeared.
After its recovery and rehabilitation, the tree became known as the “Survivor Tree” and was finally returned to the Memorial at Ground Zero in 2010. New, smooth limbs extended from the gnarled stumps, creating a visible demarcation between the tree’s past and its present.
Each year since 2013, seedlings grown from The Tree have been sent to communities throughout America that have experienced tragedies in recent times – and this has included 28 fire houses spread across Long Island. And seedlings have been donated internationally – to Madrid for example, to mark the bombings there in 2004.
And so, today, the Survivor Tree still stands as a living reminder of resilience, survival and rebirth.
These are the words to join in with during the service.
Community prayer
Holy One, whose home is heaven, we praise your sacred name. May your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us when we cause harm, just as we forgive those who have harmed us. Let us not fall into temptation, but save us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen.
Communion
One: God is with you –
ALL: AND ALSO WITH YOU
One: Let us open our hearts –
ALL: WE OPEN THEM TO GOD
One: Let us give God thanks and praise –
ALL: IT IS A GOOD AND JOYFUL THING TO DO.
One: Let us join together in the mystery of our faith.
ALL: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.
Blessing
Let us send one another into the week with a blessing as we proclaim together that………
………we are people of God, called to do justice and walk humbly with God. We are the body of Christ; of many sexualities and gender identities, diversity at work in love and action. We are Christ’s hands and feet in the world. We seek to be honest, transparent, and true to our call. Just as Jesus has claimed us, may the Holy Spirit lead us, and God bless us, one and all, forever more, Amen
Holy Spirit we welcome You
Holy Spirit we welcome You,
Holy Spirit we welcome You,
Move among us with Holy fire,
as we lay aside all earthly desires,
hands reach out and our hearts aspire,
Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit,
we welcome You
Holy Spirit we welcome You,
Holy Spirit we welcome You,
let the breeze of Your presence blow,
that Your children here might truly know,
How to move in the Spirit’s flow,
Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit,
we welcome You.
Holy Spirit we welcome You,
Holy Spirit we welcome You,
Please accomplish in us today,
some new work of loving grace I pray;
unreservedly have Your way,
Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit,
we welcome You.
Chris Bowater 1999 Higher Praise
Make me a channel of your peace.
Make me a channel of your peace
Where there is hatred, let me bring love.
Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord,
And where there’s doubt, true faith in you.
O Master, grant that I may never seek
So much to be consoled as to console,
To be understood, as to understand,
To be loved, as to love, with all my soul.
Make me a channel of your peace.
Where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope.
Where there is darkness, only light,
And where there’s sadness, ever joy.
O Master, grant that I may never seek
So much to be consoled as to console,
To be understood, as to understand,
To be loved, as to love, with all my soul.
Make me a channel of your peace.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
In giving of ourselves that we receive,
And in dying that we’re born to eternal life.
Prayer of St Francis & Sebastian Templei
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ral Care Team – 07476 667353
Pastoral care continues. Call or text the church mobile and leave a message, and someone will get back to you. When the pandemic first broke we tried to reach out to everybody at least once a month. As time has gone on we have reduced our pastoral care calls to those who have either requested them or are at high risk. Of course we don’t want to miss anybody out so if you would like to connect then please let us know
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Giving to The Village MCC.
‘The Village MCC’ is self-financing, we do not receive any central funding. If you would like to support the work we do, there are a number of ways to do so.
Regular giving:
If you would like to set up a regular monthly Payment to The “Village’ Church, which is the best way for us to budget for our work, Please email the treasurer at; thevillagemcc@outlook.com, you will then be sent the details of how to do this.
Single donation
If you wish to make a single donation You can send a direct payment from your bank account using the following details From the UK:
• Lloyds Bank
• sort code 77-91-29
• account number 40361660
• account name The Village MCC
• Please use the reference ‘Collection’
Please also email the Treasurer at thevillagemcc@outlook.com to let them know to expect a payment. • There is also a donate button on the Church Website at thevillagemcc.org if bank transfer is not possible. If you do not have access to the internet, you can still make a donation with your debit card. Please email the Treasurer at; thevillagemcc@outlook.com to arrange a phone call to make this payment.