ST. JOHN'S
ANGLICAN CHURCH
Worship at Home Service for Deliverance from the Coronavirus
Second Sunday after Pentecost
June 11, 2023
Welcome
"For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there in the midst of them"
MATTHEW 18: 31-46
We continue to be in extraordinary times, but St. John’s is committed to acting with care for each other. Our online worship provides music and prayers which are up-dated weekly. We hope our online worship inspires you and helps you to feel united in spirit as we seek God.
Opening Sentence
The Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor and release to the captives.
Luke 4:18
Gathering the Community
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
St. Francis of Assisi
Opening Hymn
'Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty'
Collect for the Second Sunday after Pentecost
O God, you have assured the human family of eternal life through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Deliver us from the death of sin and raise us to new life in him, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Hymn
'Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee'
The Word of God
Homily
Silence for Reflections
Prayers of the People
Inspired by the Spirit, let us pray for the church, the world, and all in need, saying, “God of love, hear our prayer.”
We pray for peace in our broken world; we pray for leaders of all nations that they may replace hatred, greed and violence with co-operation, kindness, and generosity. We pray especially for the people living in Ukraine, and Afghanistan and Sudan. We pray for aid workers and peacekeepers working selflessly and bravely in war-torn areas and areas needing emergency relief.
R- God of love, hear our prayer.
We pray for churches in our community and around the world as they seek to follow Christ and serve.
We pray for this church of St. John’s as we seek to follow our new Mission Action plan. May we listen to each other and listen to the leading of God’s Holy Spirit as we plan a path forward.
We pray for our Bishop, Susan Bell, for Fr. Audrius and for all clergy leaders working in these challenging times.
R- God of love, hear our prayer.
We pray for all who are facing trials- we pray for the homeless and the hungry, for refugees, for all who are victims of injustice. We pray for all who are mourning the loss of loved ones. We pray for the people of Alberta and Nova Scotia as they continue to battle devastating and frightening wildfires. We pray for all who have lost their homes, for all who have been displaced and for all who live in fear.
R- God of love, hear our prayer.
We pray for the sick, the lonely and the lost. We pray for all who are going through treatments and tests and for all who are in hospital. We pray for our friends and for our families especially remembering, Gerry, Laurie Reid, Dave, Tom, Mary, Kay, Ruth, Miriam, Larry Dodds, Sandy, Mattagan and Carol.
R- God of love, hear our prayer.
Closing Prayer: Gracious God, accept our prayers this day. By the inner workings of your Spirit, deepen our communion with you, the source and goal of our life, and make us more and more signs of your enduring love. This we pray through Christ, who lives and works with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us –
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.
Diocese of Niagara Prayer (Corona Virus)
Loving God, whose peace passes all our understanding; as we face this present pandemic, and experience fear and anxiety, may we hear your voice, bringing calm to the storms of our time.
Strengthen those who work to limit the spread of infection, and those who seek to care for the sick, and keep us mindful of those most vulnerable.
May we shape our living to protect one another, and may our changing habits, practices and sacrifices, be for the greater love of our community and all your people. Amen
Doxology
Glory to God, whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. Glory to God from generation to generation, in the Church, and in Christ Jesus, for ever and ever. Amen
Blessing
May Eternal God and Father, by whose power we are created and by whose love we redeemed: guide us and strengthen us by his Spirit, that we may give ourselves to your service, and live this day in love to one another and to you.
Go in peace as a sign of hope for all people by showing forth the living presence of God in this world and may the blessing of God almighty the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit be among you and remain with you always. Amen.