The Council and the Caught in the Act Co. have news to share. Look for a message from us on Monday!
Today’s special music is a gift from Annette Hay. It is an arrangement of Come Thou Font for violin:
We continue to be so grateful for those who continue to financially support the ministry of TMUC, through your donations on PAR, through www.canadahelps.org and in cheques mailed to the church. You are making a difference. Thank you.
Even though we cannot be together in one place, let’s continue to be a community at prayer together. On Sunday at 10:00, let’s think about the gifts we have in our lives, and needs of our world, and then let’s all pray the Lord’s prayer (you can pray silently, or out loud).
And, sometime, when you want to have a longer worship time, we are including some words and videos for your use.
Once each week, the Prayer List will arrive in the ‘Inbox’ of those who want to read the names of those we know need and want our prayers. If you want to add a name to the weekly Prayer List, please do – ask for a person’s permission if you are adding their last name – and let us know by sending a note to tmuc@shaw.ca And, if you want to receive the list, please be in touch with that request as well.
We are gathered for worship and work in Treaty One territory, which is the traditional land of the Anishinaabe, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dené peoples and the homeland of the Metis Nation. For thousands of years Indigenous Peoples walked this land and knew it to be the centre of their lives and their spirituality. We respect the Treaties that were made on these territories, we acknowledge the harms and mistakes of the past, and we dedicate ourselves to move forward in partnership with Indigenous communities in a spirit of reconciliation and collaboration.
Worship for Sunday, August 30, 2020
We come to worship with ‘Spirit God, Be Our Breath’ (which is 150 in More Voices if you have a hymn book and want to sing along):
We gather together although we are apart.
We gather in community although we are alone.
We gather asking for God’s blessing on our lives, and on our world.
We gather knowing God is with us.
Our opening hymn is Take Up Your Cross. It is played by Lynne and sung by Crystal and Steve.
Story for All
Esther and Emmett talk about the puzzle of the Gospel – what does it mean to lose one’s life to find it?
Printable Version
Esther and Emmett_Aug 30
Matthew 16:21-28
From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?
“For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
Reflection
Printable Version
Reflection_Aug 30
Let us pray:
God,
Sacredness of all creation,
Presence within and beneath,
Essence of Life, Peace, Love,
Being grounding all being,
Heart at the heart of all creation,
Bring us back to the Sacredness, Presence, Essence, Being, Heart that we have lost.
Let the Christ spirit emerge from our deepest self.
Let us be Your creation, Your people of peace, love, compassion and joy.
God, we pray for this world and for this world’s people in a time when fear wants to dominate hope.
We give thanks for all who have rallied to the vision of just relations, and who challenge the prejudices and hatred that feed violence against others.
We pray for all people to see Your image in all people.
Free us from the sin of racism.
Free us from our apartheid attitudes and practices of divisive and dehumanizing fear.
We pray for all those who have suffered death and violence because of the colour of their skin, their gender identity or sexual orientation, their ancestry, their religious beliefs, their economic status, their demands for fair and equitable standards. God, recreate us as people of love.
God, we pray for those who live with cancer, with MS, with COVID-19, with heart disease, with diseases of body, of mind, of spirit …we pray for healing, we pray for courage, we pray for compassionate and supportive communities of care-givers and friends.
We pray for students and teachers preparing to return to classrooms and to online learning. Guide everyone to practice safe and respectful community.
We pray for all who are experiencing the power of weather storms. We pray for those who have experienced the destruction of Hurricane Laura. We pray for the people of Melbourne, Australia, in the wake of the devastation of this week’s storm.
We pray, God, for all who struggle with depression, with anxiety, with loneliness, with trauma.
God, bring healing to this world.
Bring peace to this world.
Bring hope to this world.
Bring compassion to this world.
Bring Your human family home to Your love, Your forgiveness, and Your reconciling spirit.
Let us lose our desire for domination and ‘success’, that we may find our true selves as bearers of Your loving blessing, as bearers of Your Christ-embodied love and as bearers of Your promise of a new creation.
We pray in the name and spirit of Jesus the Christ. AMEN.
Our closing hymn is “God Be With You till We Meet Again” It is played by Lynne and sung by Crystal and Steve. (With Marcel and Tina’s permission, William appears to be conducting!)
May God bless you and keep you.
May God’s face shine upon you.
May God grant you peace and joy.
Be in the peace of Christ, this day and always. Amen
We keep you in our prayers,
Carol and Jeff