Thought for the Week

‘Now the vineyards which the Lord gives, are fruitful vineyards. ’

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go

and bear fruit, fruit that will last. John 15:16

The Weekly Service Sunday 141h June 2020

The First Sunday after Trinity

✠ In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

Amen

The Greeting

The Lord be with you

and also with you

Prayer of Preparation Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open,

all desires known,

and from whom no secrets are hidden:

cleanse the thoughts of our hearts

by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,

that we may perfectly love you,

and worthily magnify your holy name;

through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Invitation to Confession

Let us confess our sins and failings to God our merciful Father.

Kyrie Confession

We have done what was wrong in your sight

and chosen what has displeased you.

Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

As a mother comforts her child so shall you comfort us.

Christ, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Let us return to you, for you know our every deed and thought.

Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Absolution.

Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent,

have mercy upon you,

✠ pardon and deliver you from all your sins,

confirm and strengthen you in all goodness,

and keep you in life eternal;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Gloria in Excelsis

Glory to God in the highest,

and peace to his people on earth.

Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father,

we worship you, we give you thanks,

we praise you for your glory.

5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been

poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been

given to us. 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still

powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die

for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might

possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in

this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us Romans 5:1-8

Thanks be to God

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia, alleluia.

Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.

You have the words to eternal life.

Alleluia

✠ Hear the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to

St Matthew

Glory to you O Lord 35

Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their

synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing

every disease and illness. 36

When he saw the crowds, he had

compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless,

like sheep without a shepherd. 37

Then he said to his disciples,

‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38

Ask the Lord of

the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’

The Collect

God of truth,

Help us to keep your law of love

And to walk in ways of wisdom,

That we may find true life

In Jesus Christ your Son

Amen

Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,

Lord God, Lamb of God,

you take away the sin of the world:

have mercy on us;

you are seated at the right hand of the Father:

receive our prayer.

For you alone are the Holy One,

you alone are the Lord,

you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ,

with the Holy Spirit,

in the glory of God the Father.

Amen.

First Reading

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace

with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have

gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we

boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in

our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces

perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.

10 Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority

to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and illness. 2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is

called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his

brother John; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax

collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Zealot

and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: ‘Do not

go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.

7 As you go, proclaim this

message: “The kingdom of heaven has come near.” 8 Heal those who

are ill, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out

demons. Freely you have received; freely give. Matthew 9:35-10:8

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, O Christ.

In today ’s gospel reading Jesus says to his disciples that

“the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few ” Matt 9:37

I don ’t imagine he was encouraging them to go out and

pick ripe fruits but i t ’s a metaphor for his intent to send

them out on their f irst mission.

Matthew recounts how Jesus has been travell ing around

teaching in synagogues, healing the sick and proclaiming

the good news. This shows Jesus focussing on reaching

his fellow Jews, who would recognise the references to

the good news being about the Kingdom of Heaven. They

would understand this phrase as referring to the

expectation that God would intervene and free the people

of Israel from their oppressors. They looked forward to the

coming of the Messiah to herald the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus is focussing on teaching, healing and proclaiming

the good news but also sees the great need of the people

for something new. He has also been teaching and

preparing his 12 disciples because he will need them to

continue with the work he has started, after he has gone

back to the Father.

Matthew chooses to list the names of all the twelve

disciples and this would have resonated with the Jews of

the time because it paral leled the original twelve tribes of

Israel. Jesus was fulf i l l ing the promises of God to his

chosen people but not in the way they had been

expecting.

Jesus has gathered a varied band of ordinary men with a

cross section of personalit ies and ski l ls to train up as his

f irst ‘workers ’ in the harvest f ield.

He has very precise instruct ions for the twelve:

“Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the

Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel ” vv5-6

I real ly love home grown strawberries. It ’s great

to see the f lowers appear among the straggly

leaves that have survived the winter months.

Then to catch the f irst glimpse of red as the

fruits form but the disappointment when only

half has ripened. It ’s then a tr icky t ime, keeping

an eye out for the fruit to be fully ripe and

picking before the slugs beat me to it! I also like

to forage for blackberries in the hedgerow but it is so

disappoint ing when the f irst fruit I pop into my mouth is

hard and sour! It really does pay to wait for the right t ime

for those fruits to be ready for harvesting.

What might the reasoning be for these restrictions?

This was to be their f irst experience of proclaiming the

message, so it made sense to for them to go f irst to speak

to their fellow Jews. People l ike them who Jesus had

already identif ied as being in need:

“they were harassed and helpless, l ike sheep without a

shepherd” v36

And who were more likely to understand the message

perhaps in their own dialect or spoken by someone who ’d

had a similar background to them.

Not going to any Samaritan towns would also restrict the

distances they would be travelling. They were st il l in

training so would be staying fairly local.

They were to proclaim “the Kingdom of Heaven has come

near” v7

What is this Kingdom of Heaven that they were proclaiming?

Two other gospel writers, Mark and Luke, use a similar

phrase, the Kingdom of God, and both refer to the same

thing.

Matthew would have been sensit ive to his Jewish audience

who were careful not to speak the name of God, hence

Kingdom of Heaven.

Mark and Luke however used Kingdom of God so that their

broader audience would not be confused about what was

being referred to: the kingdom of heaven on earth, where

God ’s perfect will is done, on earth as in heaven.

The disciples were to proclaim that good news and then

demonstrate what this meant by pract ical examples:

“Heal those who are il l, raise the dead, cleanse those who

have leprosy, drive out demons. ” v8

What does this mean for us?

Every time we say the Lord ’s Prayer we are praying for

this to be a reality.

“Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is

in heaven”

As disciples of Jesus we should be will ing to join the

workers needed in the harvest f ields.

One issue that has arisen during the current pandemic

is the need for people to harvest ripe crops. We have

usually relied on a workforce from overseas, who are

not available in the current circumstances and farmers

are really concerned that crops wil l rot in the f ields due

to lack of helpers to harvest.

Many churches who are streaming services or posting

information online during the lockdown have noticed an

increase in the numbers of people who are tuning in and

showing interest. Premier Christian News reported on

Friday 5t h

June that a new Online Alpha Course has

seen thousands of people sign up in the UK since the

start of the lockdown. There are 1,500 Online Alpha

Courses running in the UK. Mark Elsdon -Dew (Director

of Communications for Alpha International) predicts that

online courses are here to stay. He said

“Some people say that it is just easier for them to be at

home, as it can be hard to get out. Other people say

they wouldn ’t have gone anywhere near a church, but

they are very happy to give it a go at home in a sl ightly

more remote sett ing. ”

So, “the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few ” v37

Just l ike the fruit and vegetable farmers, we cannot rely

on ‘others ’ to join the workforce.

Let us affirm our faith together.

The Nicene Creed

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father;

through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven,

was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary

and was made man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again

in accordance with the Scriptures;

he ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit,

the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son,who with the Fa-

ther and the Son

is worshipped and glorified,

who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the ✠ resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come.

Amen

The Peace:

Steadfast love and faithfulness have met;

righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

Psalm 85.10

The peace of the Lord be always with you

and also with you.

We are called to fol low, learn and proclaim to bring in the

harvest of “the harassed and helpless, l ike sheep without

a shepherd” v36

Our church buildings may be closed but the Church, the

people of God, is sti l l act ive in bringing the Kingdom of

Heaven near.

Michèle Smith

Let Us Pray

In the power of the Spirit and in union with Christ,

let us pray to the Father.

We pray for God’s grace.

Lord, receive our praise

and hear our prayer.

Lord God, through your grace we are your people:

through your Son you have redeemed us;

in your Spirit you have made us your own.

We pray for your Church throughout the world that She may be a

powerful witness to Christ’s love.

Make our hearts respond to your love.

Lord, receive our praise

and hear our prayer.

We pray for all those in distress from war and conflict, persecution

and racism, poverty and isolation.

Make our lives bear witness to your glory in the world.

Lord, receive our praise

and hear our prayer.

We pray for Sarah Bundocko, Michael Gray, Sue & John Thorne, Naveen Suri, Victoria Wilson-Whitford, Olwyn Allen, Harriet,

Vincent Nash, Michelle Hassard, Robert Martin, Mary Hodge,

George Carpenter, Diane Allsop, Mrs Usher, Stan Michalski

Make our wills eager to obey, and our hands ready to heal.

Lord, receive our praise

and hear our prayer.

We give you thanks for all those whom we have loved but who have

gone ahead of us. Make our voices one with all your people in

heaven and on earth

We pray for the repose of the soul of

Ernie, Alan Kirkham

From St Mary’s Book of Remembrance

Harry Phillip Gamble, Joan Ethel Pochin

From St Paul’s Book of Remembrance

Josephine Ada Leeson, Ada Newmarch, Edgar Richard Hipwell

Rest eternal grant to them and let light perpetual shine upon them.

May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God

rest in peace

and rise in glory.

"For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—

whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the

one Spirit to drink." 1 Corinthians 12:13 Father of all, we thank you that you are a God of justice. We pray for

all those who face grave injustice and discrimination across the globe

and ask that you would intervene and bring about change. We pray

you would heal the wounds of those who have been treated wrongly

and bring about peace and restoration. Amen.

Eternal God and Father,

by whose power we are created and by whose love we are

redeemed: guide and strengthen us by your Spirit,

that we may give ourselves to your service,

and live this day in love to one another and to you;

through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord.

Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name;

Thy kingdom come; thy will be done;

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation;

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory,

for ever and ever.

Amen.

The Blessing Christ the Son of God, born of Mary,

fill you with his grace to trust his promises and obey his will;

and the blessing of God almighty,

✠ the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,

be among you and remain with you always.

Amen

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord,

in the name of Christ.

Amen.

Join in the singing on YouTube or just raise the roof, praising God -

Jesus is Alive

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nnqOI4mVKc

God of Justice, Saviour to all

Came to rescue the weak and the poor

Chose to serve and not to be served

Jesus, You have called us

Freely we've received now freely we will give

We must go, live to feed the hungry

Stand beside the broken, we must go

Stepping forward keep us from just singing

Move us into action, we must go

To act justly everyday

Loving mercy in every way

Walking humbly before You God

You have shown us what You require

Freely we've received now freely we will give

We must go, live to feed the hungry

Stand beside the broken, we must go

Stepping forward keep us from just singing

Move us into action, we must go

Fill us up, send us out

Fill us up, send us out

Fill us up, send us out Lord

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nnqOI4mVKc

Notices & Updates

LATEST ABOUT RE-OPENING OF CHURCHES:

The Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, chair of the

Church of England’s Recovery Group said: “We

welcome the Government’s announcement that

church buildings can open up for supervised

individual prayer from June 15. This is the start of

the journey for church buildings to open up safely in

line with Government advice and we look forward to

their detailed guidance on enabling this first step to happen.”

We are currently considering if we will be able to facilitate a limited

opening of the churches, safely, for private prayer and hope to be

able to announce these arrangements as soon as possible.

I will continue to celebrate the mid- week Holy Eucharist every

Thursday at St Paul's and on Sundays at St Paul's and then St Marys

on behalf of the Parishes of Woodhouse and Woodhouse Eaves, in

each church building, not at the Rectory.

Let us continue to make a determined and committed effort to

worship and praise God together, following the worship sheet at

9.45am and 11.15am each Sunday. Together we are stronger and

through being in communion with one another, can support each

other in spirit and in fellowship and rest assured, I will be praying for

each and every one of you.

A very happy priest!

Blessings

Revd Lisa

We pray for Ben & Katy Ray and all the people they support through

Neema Crafts. Keep them safe and well as they continue to support

people with disabilities in Iringa, Tanzania. www.neemacrafts.com

UK based online shop goodthingsgifts.co.uk

Mission & Outreach

A huge thank you to all those who have left water, food donations

and baby provisions. John's Storehouse was very grateful for all of

your kind donations. Please keep continuing to support the

homeless, families living with poverty and unemployment and those

in need. So once again, a massive thank you.

Revd Lisa.

You can leave your donations at the Rectory front door.

https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.neemacrafts.com%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7C2058b684579c45a8987308d7edc48fde%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637239300782761906&sdata=azoh1RfK5JdZ5nk1UQ39yTDTNggUIN0dCQCJsWJh%2F%2FE%3Dhttps://www.goodthingsgifts.co.uk/collections/neema-crafts

If you need help with picking up shopping/medicines,

contact the Woodhouse Angels: Revd Lisa 890 972,

Sue Harris 07702567457, Di Rydings 890521

Revd Lisa - revdlisatemperley@gmail.com

Michèle - michdenn2@aol.com

A Church Near You

St Paul’s - www.achurchnearyou.com/church/5286

St Mary’s - www.achurchnearyou.com/church/5285

Have a look at the ‘Children’ page for weekly activity sheets

to download and print.

Follow us on Facebook

www.facebook.com/stpaulschurchwoodhouseeaves/

Please note that the change of email address for Michèle

You can contact me via michdenn2@aol.com from now on.

If you like a ‘hard’ copy of the Weekly Sheet rather than reading it

on the screen, please use the (print) version which has pages set

out in a different order.

You need to ‘Print both sides’ and ‘Flip on short edge’ to get a

printed booklet.

Hope that helps!

Michèle

Lockdown Project!

Your Church needs you!

Your mission should you choose to accept it …

is to crochet some squares which will be sewn

together afterwards to make a friendship

throw or “afghan”.

This will be later either donated to or used to raise money for

a local good cause.

Have some fun and learn a new skill if you don’t already

crochet. I have written some instructions in this month’s

magazine to help you.

Ladies and gentlemen it is time to use your little scraps of

wool up. So no excuses!

Please make your granny squares 6 inches by 6 inches

(15cm x 15cm) square, which will be easier to stitch

together later.

If you can help please let me know by email on

zankerclaire9@gmail.com telling me how many squares you

wish to pledge to our friendship throw.

Thank you Claire

Some material included in this service is copyright:

The Church of England © Archbishops' Council 2015