Order of Service
WELCOME
CALL TO WORSHIP
L: This morning can we listen to the song of Mary the mother of Jesus? Can we worship God like she worshipped God? With all her heart and soul in the midst overwhelming odds?
All: My soul magnifies the Lord
L: The song of Mary speaks to us today. God looks with favor on the lowly. Great things God has done for you. God’s mercy echoes through generation to generation.
All: My soul magnifies the Lord
L: Fill the hungry with good things. Bring down the powerful from their thrones. Come to the aid of God’s children. Let us sing the song of Mary.
P: My soul magnifies the Lord. Amen
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY
L: The Cammeraygal people are the original custodians of the land on which our church stands. The Cammeraygals were spiritual leaders amongst the Indigenous clans of Sydney.
All: We pay our respects to their Elders: past and present.
We commit to walking respectfully in this country, and to journeying with them in their quest for justice and reconciliation.
Second Sunday of Lent: Stopping Along The Way
On our Lenten journey, we are reminded that at times we need to stop focusing on ourselves and look to the needs of others. Sometimes its inconvenient; other times, it could be dangerous. We may ask ourselves who is worthy of our aid, or even our compassion. Our courage is tested when strangers ask for help, especially when their own struggles, with alcoholism or poverty, make us uncomfortable. What holds you back from stopping to help? As we light the second candle, reflect on what is holding you back.
(light the second candle)
Prayer:
Light of the World, show us our neighbors. Remind us that our neighbors are not always in houses, and may have needs we cannot imagine. In this season of Lent, may we ask ourselves the question “who is my neighbor” and struggle to answer with action. Light of the World, show us how to love our neighbor. Amen.
SONG –
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
God who called Mary to be the mother of Jesus and to be a great leader of faith. We confess.
We confess that we do not hear Mary’s song. We do not hear the voices of those who God has raised up.
We crowd out the voices of God with other voices.
Voices that disconnect us from humanity. Voices that numb our senses to God’s presence. Voices that rob us of the hope of Christ.
We ask forgiveness and we pray for peace. May the peace of Christ bring us back to your voice.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen
ASSURANCE OF FORGIVENESS
One: Hear the Good News: The voice of an unmarried, pregnant teenager changed the world. Through the salvation of Jesus all of us can find our voice.
All: Thanks be to God. Amen
SONG
SCRIPTURE READING
Luke 1:46-55
Mary’s Song of Praise
46 And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked with favor on the lowly state of his servant.
Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name;
50 indeed, his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He has brought down the powerful from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty.
54 He has come to the aid of his child Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55 according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
For the word of God in scripture
For the Word of God among us
For the Word of God within us
We say, Thanks be to God!
MESSAGE – Alex
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
Join with me in the prayers of the people. When I say Lord in Your mercy, you are invited to respond hear our prayer.
Let us pray
God of ages, we give thanks that those who have come before, have shown us the way to follow you.
We pray for all women of faith like Mary mother of Jesus. That their wisdom, experience and abilities will inspire the whole people of God to live the good news in spirit and truth.
Lord in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
We pray for the Uniting Church, all leaders and ministers of word and sacrament, that like Paul the apostle they will boldly proclaim the glorious mystery that is Jesus Christ.
Lord in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
We pray for all who profess faith in Christ, that they will be a shining beacon of hope in the darkness of the world’s distress.
Lord in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
We pray for all who eagerly look forward to God’s coming among us, that their eyes will be opened to see divine beauty and goodness in the whole of creation.
Lord in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
We pray for those who do not grasp the eternal truth of God. That we are made in God’s image and we are to love our neighbor as our self as we follow Jesus.
Lord in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
We pray for the innocent women, children and men enduring terror, starvation and disease in places of bloodshed, that their cries for pity will be heard by those who persist in waging war. We pray for our hard hearts that they would be swayed by the cries of the vulnerable.
Lord in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
We pray for our families. Both families of birth and choice. We pray for those who feel disconnected from family. We pray for all those who never received warm maternal love of someone like Mary.
Lord in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
We ask these things as we pray the prayer that Jesus taught us in the language of our hearts.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
OFFERING
BLESSING
L: Sing to God a new song. Know that the song of Mary lives in your heart. That you are sent into the world to fill the hungry with good things.
All: We go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ. Amen.
SONG
How To Do Worship 
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