Prayer of Praise                                                                                                     

Gracious and Almighty God, we give you thanks for the men and women who first established this Church in this place;

and for all those who have continued to worship and serve here, those who lived out their faith in loving words and deeds and prayers.

We give you thanks for all the hopes, fears, joys and sorrows that have been brought into this house of prayer;

and for the times of renewal and profound decisions that have been made here.

We give you thanks for your blessing on those who have celebrated significant milestones in their lives through this Church;

for those who have been baptised, for those who have been confirmed in their faith, and for those who have been married.

We give you thanks for those who gladly expressed their faith through the playing of music and the singing in choirs;

and for those who used their gifts and talents in the caring for finances and administration.

We give you thanks for those who led Sunday School classes, Ray’s, OK’s, KUCA, BHUGS, P1, youth groups, fellowship groups, Bible studies, and prayer groups;

and for all who grew in their knowledge of you through their involvement in the life of this Church.

We give you thanks for those who worked lovingly in the kitchen;

and all who cared for the buildings and property.

We give you thanks for the people whose faith has been nurtured here;

for those who have stayed in the Bald Hills areas and for those who have moved away and have continued your work and witness elsewhere.

Loving God, Creator, Sustainer, Forgiver, and Inspirer;

we praise you for all that has passed.

May your work and witness continue as we move away from here, with our assurance of the presence of the risen Christ wherever we are,

to heal our hurts, dampen our frustrations, and lead us on as we move forward into the future.  To your glory and honour we pray, Amen.

(adapted from UCA Assembly Liturgy Resources for a Congregation) 

Prayer of Confession 

(in part from Psalm 19: 12 to 14)                              

Merciful Lord, you search our hearts and minds and find us wanting.  How often have we wandered from the path you have laid out, and have followed our cravings and desires?

Forgive us God for the pain and disappointment that we cause you.

We spend our time admiring others for their beauty or intelligence.  We spend our time acquiring material objects in the vain hope that they will satisfy us and give us comfort.

Forgive us God for putting others and things before you.

We feel that we can do better in managing our lives.  We stop listening to your voice because we are satisfied with our way of life.

Forgive us God for trying to earn our own salvation.

We avoid the poor and the hungry.  We avert our eyes when we see others in need because we don’t want to get involved or to share what we have.

Forgive us God for the neglect we show to others.

We are quick to become angry with those who hurt us or take away our time and energy.

Forgive us God for failing to show the limitless love that you lavish upon each of us.

No-one can see their own errors.  Deliver me, Lord, from hidden faults.

Keep me safe from wilful sins.  Don’t let them rule over me.

May my words and my thoughts be acceptable to you.

This is my plea O Lord, my refuge and my redeemer.  Amen.

Assurance of Forgiveness 

(based on Lamentations 3:22; 2 Timothy 1:9,10)

Through the steadfast love and endless mercy of God, our sins confessed are forgiven, not according to our works, not according to our own righteousness, but according to God’s purpose and grace – His grace revealed through our Saviour, Jesus Christ.  Let us rest assured then of God’s forgiveness upon us.

Thanks be to God.

Prayers for Others                                                                                                

Loving God, Lord of all times and all places, we bring before you our prayers for the World and for your Church.  We pray for those who groan under the weight of suffering.

May your love be made real to them in your comfort for them and in your relief from their burdens.

We pray for those whose lives are made difficult by the actions of others – by the tragedy of modern warfare, by the unfettered greed of big business, by the laws of uncaring Governments, by the prejudice of those twisted by hatred of race, or culture or religion.

May your love be made real to them in their experience of your loving care and protection.

We pray for those whose lives are made difficult by events or processes beyond their control – those who do not have enough to eat, those who do not have enough resources to live a meaningful and dignifying life, those who have experienced natural disaster.

May your love be made real to them in your provision for their needs.

We pray for those whose lives are difficult because of the ways of the modern world – those who are lonely in a world teeming with Humanity, those who are lost in a world where satellites can tell us exactly where we are, for those who are tempted by the glitter and the glitz, for those who must have the latest of everything.

May your love be made real to them in the understanding that it is in you that we find fulfillment and purpose.

We pray for those whose futures are uncertain – those facing an ongoing struggle with illness, those dealing with constant pain, those who have lost someone important from their lives, those who have life changing decisions to make.

May your love be made real to them in the provision of healing and wholeness, in the provision of guidance and wisdom so as to be positive about their lives and to move forward.

We pray for your Church in the World.  Where there is hunger may she bring food, where there is war may she bring peace, where there is hatred may she bring love, where there is hopelessness may she bring faith.

May your love be visible and real in this World through us.

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross so that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace.

Enliven us by your Spirit so that we might reach forth our hands in love, and bring those who do not know you to the knowledge of your love for them.  To your glory we pray.

  (adapted from UCA Assembly Liturgy Resources for a Congregation) 

The Lord’s Prayer

Today we will remain seated and sing the Lord’s Prayer.

“Our Father, God in Heaven above”  TiS550

Verse 1 of 4

Our Father, God in Heaven above,

we your family through your love,

your name be hallowed: help us, Lord,

to keep in purity your Word.

Your Kingdom come: yours let it be

in Time, and through eternity.

Verse 2 of 4

And may your will on Earth be done

as it is done before your throne.

Curb flesh and blood and every ill

that sets itself against your Will.

Give us this day our daily bread,

whatever for this life we need.

Verse 3 of 4

Forgive us all our sins, we pray;

take all their burdening guilt away,

as we the sins of those forgive

who us by their offences grieve.

When testing comes on every hand,

Lord, give us strength that we may stand.

Verse 4 of 4

Deliver us from evil days;

throughout our lives, protect our ways.

And when we die, grant calm release,

and take us home to you in peace.

Thus, in your name and at your Word

we say: Amen, O hear us, Lord.

Martin Luther

translated by Catherine Winkworth

condensed by David Schubert

Prayers of Remembrance                                                                                                                  

Loving God, you have sustained and guided your people through the generations.

Accept our gratitude for the faithful witness of the generations of people who have worshipped and served in Jesus’ name in the Bald Hills Uniting Church.

We seek to honour and remember with thanksgiving the many members and leaders of this Congregation who faithfully served God to the best of their abilities, through worship, teaching, pastoral care, and community service over many years.

By your grace continue to bless those who have, in recent years, called Bald Hills Uniting Church their spiritual home, and grant that the acts of love and care by which your people here have been blessed may continue in the communities of faith to which they will belong in future days.  In the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, we pray.

Amen.