We are live: In Church, In Person. On Demand: On your phone, your tablet, and your computer.
This week is Reformation Sunday, and the service is brought to you by our dynamic double act of Rev Mike and George Smith. George will host the service live in Church, while Rev Mike presents the video sermon (both in Church and on line). Through these uncertain times, we continue to operate in accordance with Scottish Government requirements and guidelines. In order to accommodate as many members and friends as possible, we are holding two services, at 10:00am and at 11:00am. Attending numbers have to be restricted, and it is essential to book in advance (see our section below titled Sundays re-started).
We are also presenting this weeks sermon and a home worship order of service, here for you to use if you are not able to make it to Wilson Memorial Church in person, or if you just want to listen to George again.
This weeks order of worship that you can use:
- Light a candle – to remember that Christ is the light of the world, and overcomes every darkness.
- Opening prayer – O Lord our God, You have been our guide through all the changing scenes of our lives. You have been with us in our
joy and in our times of trouble. You have been with us in our good days and in our bad. You have been with us in our
mountain-top experiences and in our darkest and deepest valleys. Through it all we have known the strength of Your
love for us, and we know that Your love will be ours forever. We are constantly reminded of Your faithfulness to us,
and for all of this we give You our adoration and praise.
Forgiving God, though You call us to be holy, all too often we are anything but, and so we seek Your forgiveness.
Forgive us for the ways in which we have cut ourselves off from You, and for the ways in which we have put the things
of this world ahead of You and others. Forgive us for the ways in which have failed to be the people You created us to
be. Forgive us when we have torn others down rather than build them up. Lord, in Your mercy, hear all our prayers,
for we ask them in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Saviour. Amen” - Opening praise – Read or sing “Shine, Jesus, Shine” – here is a you-tube video with music, that you can sing along to.
- Scripture reading – Mark 10:46-52
- Video Sermon – Ah, now I see! – This weeks video sermon was presented live at Wilson Memorial Church on Sunday 25th October 2020.
- Praise – Read or sing “Open our eyes Lord” – here is a you-tube video with music, that you can sing along to.
- Prayer – “Reforming God, on this Reformation Sunday, we thank You for those, who through Your Spirit set about reforming
Your church. We thank You that you are still at work in the life of the Church reforming us, reshaping us, and remaking
us into your image.
Father, one of the ways we reflect Your image and light is in how we care for one another with love. We pray for those
who are in the hospital. We pray for those at home with illnesses, pains and recovering from treatments and
surgeries. We pray for those in nursing and care homes. We pray for their doctors, nurses, health care workers, and
family members who are caring for loved ones at home. We pray for their families during these times. We pray for
those who are facing death and for those who are grieving. Lord may we reflect Your image in our love, care and
prayer that we provide for these Your children.
Father, we strive also to reflect Your image and light in how we love, care and pray for the world. We pray for those
around the world who face imprisonment for their faith. We pray for those who live in countries torn apart by war. We
pray for those living in poverty. We pray for those who live in starvation. We pray for those who are being exploited.
Lord, may we put into action our love, care and prayers for the world.
Lord, we pray for Your church that we may become a beacon of hope, grace, love and light in this world. May our
open doors reflect Your open arms to all. May our arms and hands reaching out to those in need reflect Your love for
all. May our forgiveness of one another reflect Your forgiveness for all. May Your work of reformation continue in us,
and may we never become complacent or stuck in our ways. Help us to be ready to change under the guidance of
Your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.” - Closing praise – Read or sing “Thou whose almighty word”– here is a you-tube video with music, that you can sing along to.
- Benediction – “Lord of welcome, you who knows us and loves us, no matter where we are sitting right now, sit beside us. No matter where we walk in the week ahead, walk with us. No matter what we face as the days roll by, let us face it together. To God the Father, God, the Son, and God the Spirit be honour and glory forever. Amen.”
- Extinguish the candle
What else is happening at Wilson Memorial this week?
We have created a program of on-line events that you can join in from the comfort of your favourite armchair. Details of these events can be found on our “What’s on – Lockdown special” web page. Go and check it out, NOW!
In addition to video sermons, we also now have podcast sermons available to download and listen to on your mobile device wherever you are. We also have a “dial a sermon” service available, where you can listen to sermons by telephone. To phone a service, simply call us on 0131 297 6174, you will hear an automated greeting, and then after a short pause the latest sermon will play.
Sundays re-started– As permitted by the Scottish Government, we are now open for Sunday worship services. Unfortunately, we do have to introduce some restrictions in order that we can manage the required social distancing rules, and keep everyone as safe as possible. This means we have had to significantly reduce our seating capacity, and introduce a booking system to ensure we do not exceed the allowed number of worshipers in our church building. In order that as many people as possible can join us, we will be holding two Sunday worship services: At 10:00am and 11:00am. Details of the booking process can be found in the August Issue 5 Newsletter. Social distancing measures and hygiene precautions are in place.
Our Basics Bank, Food Bank, continues to operate as normal every Tuesday providing a critical service to individuals and families suffering hardship in our local community.
Read more about the United Free Church of Scotland
The August/September 2020 edition of STEDFAST, our denominations magazine, is now available from Wilson Memorial Church.
We have hard copy coffee-table editions and soft copy tablet/PC editions available.
