A member of the Central Highlands Cluster Ministry

St Mary’s, Woodend 11.00am

6th November, 2016 – The Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Pentecost and Father’s Day

We acknowledge and honour the Jaara Jaara people, the traditional custodians of this land where we gather.

We pay our respects to their elders past and present and pray for reconciliation.

GATHERING IN GOD’S NAME Gathering Hymn – 154 Great is your faithfulness The Lord be with you. And also with you

‘I am the resurrection and the life,’ says the Lord. ‘Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.’ John 11.25-26

The Prayer of preparation (page 119 of the prayer book) Almighty God…

The Shema (page 120 of the prayer book) Hear, O Israel….

The Confession and absolution (page 120 of the prayer book) Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith, confident in God’s forgiveness. Merciful God…

The Gloria (page 121 of the prayer book) Glory to God in the highest… Let us pray

God of all the living, in the resurrection of Christ Jesus you have given us the promise of life which death itself cannot destroy: in the strength of this unshakeable promise, give us a new heart to live, even now, as your new creation.

We ask this through your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

MINISTRY OF THE WORD

A reading from Haggai chapter 1.15 – 2.9

In the second year of King Darius, in the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the prophet Haggai, saying: Speak now to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, and say, Who is left among you that saw this house in its former glory? How does it look to you now? Is it not in your sight as nothing? Yet now take courage, O Zerubbabel, says the LORD; take courage, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; take courage, all you people of the land, says the LORD; work, for I am with you, says the LORD of hosts, according to the promise that I made you when you came out of Egypt. My spirit abides among you; do not fear. For thus says the LORD of hosts: Once again, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land; and I will shake all the nations, so that the treasure of all nations shall come, and I will fill this house with splendor, says the LORD of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the LORD of hosts. The latter splendor of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts; and in this place I will give prosperity, says the LORD of hosts.

Psalm 145.1-5, 17-21

I will exalt you, O God my king:

I will bless your name for ever and ever.

Every day will I bless you:

and praise your name for ever and ever.

Great is the Lord, and wonderfully worthy to be praised:

his greatness is past searching out.

One generation shall praise your works to another:

and declare your mighty acts.

As for me, I will be talking

of the glorious splendour of your majesty:

I will tell the story of your marvellous works.

The Lord is just in all his ways:

and faithful in all his dealings.

The Lord is near to all who call upon him:

to all who call upon him in truth.

He will fulfil the desire of those that fear him:

he will hear their cry, and save them.

The Lord preserves all those that love him:

but the wicked he will utterly destroy.

My mouth shall speak the praises of the Lord:

and let all flesh bless his holy name, for ever and ever.

A reading from Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians chapter 2.1-5, 13-17

As to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we beg you, brothers and sisters, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as though from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one is revealed, the one destined for destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. Do you not remember that I told you these things when I was still with you?

But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters

beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth. For this purpose he called you through our proclamation of the good news, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by our letter.

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word.

For the word of the Lord thanks be to God Gospel Hymn - 89 O Lord you are my God and king

Alleluia Alleluia Your word, O God, shines as a light on my path and leads me to life eternal. Alleluia The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Luke, chapter 20 beginning at the 27th verse Glory to you Lord Jesus Christ

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.”

Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.” Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” For they no longer dared to ask him another question.

For the Gospel of the Lord praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

The Sermon

The affirmation of faith (page 123 of the prayer book)

The Prayers of the People

The Greeting of Peace We are the body of Christ His Spirit is with us. The peace of the Lord be always with you. And also with you. Offertory Hymn – 429 Break Now

*a collection to assist the mission of God in this parish will be taken up during this hymn – we thank you for responding to God’s generosity with your gift.

THE GREAT THANKSGIVING

Blessed are you…..Blessed be God forever Blessed are you…..Blessed be God forever

Please turn to page 128

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is 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.

THE BREAKING OF THE BREAD AND THE COMMUNION We break this bread to share in the body of Christ. We who are many are one body, For we all share in the one bread.

The Sending out of God’s people

Eternal God, giver of life, in the breaking of the bread we know the risen Lord. May we who celebrate this holy feast walk in his risen light and bring new life to all creation. Most loving God... you send us into the world you love. Give us grace to go thankfully and with courage in the power of your Spirit.

The Notices

Final Hymn – 531 Sent forth by God’s blessing The Blessing and Dismissal The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord: 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.

***some thoughts from Rev. Mel

Last week I preached about the importance of experiencing grief and allowing ourselves to vulnerable. I didn’t realise that I would have the opportunity to practice what I preach quite so soon after giving that sermon. On Wednesday, All Souls Day, a dear friend of mine died. We met as awkward 12 years olds in our first year of high school and became very close towards the later years of school. We shared stories of first kisses, attended each other’s weddings, I baby-sat her children, our children go to the same school so we’d talk about their plans for the future at school events. We’ve ranted about life’s frustrations and celebrated each other’s successes….and now at 42 she is gone. So, I am taking my own advice and treading a little gently at the moment, as I am a little heart broken that this lovely, fiery, tiny whirlwind of a woman is gone; that her children will grow up without her; that her lovely husband is shattered and exhausted after caring for her throughout her illness and now has to face the world without his high school sweetheart; that her parents know the pain of burying a child and that the world is a little quieter now that she has died. Our collect this week is very timely for me.

God of all the living, in the resurrection of Christ Jesus you have given us the promise of life which death itself cannot destroy: in the strength of this unshakeable promise, give us a new heart to live, even now, as your new creation. We ask this through your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

If it is your practice to use this prayer throughout the week please hold my friend Grace in your heart as you do. May Grace, through the mercy of God, rest in peace and rise in glory. Peace, Mel

************************** Pew Bulletin

Trivia Night - November 5 7:00pm Thanks to everyone who helped make last night’s Trivia Night such a great success! Many thanks to those who helped set up, serve and clean up. Special thanks to Sylvia and Mary for putting the questions and answer sheets together for us. Conversations – Tuesday evenings Join us for ‘Conversations’ about God, faith, church, mission or any other topic that we, as Christians, can share together, every Tuesday evening at the rectory from 7-8pm. *please see Rev. Mel for addresss Toilet rolls and paper towel rolls required! Can you please keep your toilet rolls and paper towel rolls for the next few weeks and bring them to church in preparation for Christmas activities? We will also be sending some to Malmsbury. (Rev. Neil will be disinfecting them before they’re used for craft) Trentham Flower Show – November 26th 1-5pm Last year’s flower show was a great success and everyone is encouraged to support the show this year. Woodenders are encouraged to car pool so everyone in the parish is able to attend. Macedon Ranges Toy Shop In the next few weeks we will begin collecting toys for the Macedon Ranges Toy Shop. The toys we collect will be distributed to young people in need on December 16th from Kyneton Baptist Church. The need is particularly high for teenagers who would be grateful for gift vouchers as well as gifts. A guide to the value of gifts is approximately $20.00

Christmas Services It is getting close to that time of year! Please keep these dates free so that you can come along to our celebration of the birth of our Lord. Woodend – December 10 Carols from 7pm Trentham – December 18 Carols at St Andrews (details to be confirmed) Woodend – December 24 Family Service at 6pm Woodend – December 24 Midnight Mass Trentham – December 25 Christmas Morning 9am Woodend – December 25 Christmas Morning 11am Intercessions – our prayers are asked for: Penny and Keith, John, Sam, Jim, Andrea, Alison, Ethan, Kirsten, Claire, Christine, Barbara, Bernice, Joyce, Les, Carole, Wendy, Judy, Dustin, Jonathan, Jeanette and Susie, Lynne, Jeanette, Trevor and Helen. Please let Rev’d Mel know if there is someone who is in need of prayer.

Birthdays! On Friday we celebrate Carol Barker and on Saturday Alan Officer. Years Mind and those who have died recently We give thanks for the life of Grace Rooth and pray for her family and friends as they mourn her

Readings and Clergy for next week Rev. Mel will be looking after Trentham - Woodend Isaiah 65.17-25 Psalm A song of Isaiah 2 Thessalonians 3.6-13 Luke 21.5-19

St Mary's Woodend (1864) - St George's Trentham (1927)* A member of The Central Highlands Cluster Ministry

*These dates refer to the current buildings on the sites. The founding years of the two centres are Trentham 1864 and

Woodend 1859

PO Box 699, Woodend, VIC 3442 | www.woodendanglican.org.au Rector: Rev’d. Ian Howarth 5422 2500/0437 655 702 Assistant Curate: Rev’d Melissa Clark 0411 722 718 Deacon: Rev’d Neil Fitzgerald 0439 337 252 Hon. Assoc. Priest: Rev’d Dr. Charles Sherlock 0423 020 699 Wardens: Derek 0417 252 222; John 5424 1127 Friday is Rev Mel’s day off. If you need a priest on Fridays please contact Rev. Ian.

www.facebook.com/woodendanglican/

WELCOME! It is good to have you here. Please join us for a “cuppa” and a chat after the service around the table near the font at St George’s or in the Norma Richardson Hall at St Mary’s. If you have children with you they are very welcome to use the children’s corner at St Mary’s.