Worship/ Sunday 28 June: Prayer of Intercession

Hi everyone - welcome to worship!
It's great that we can join in this time together, where we stop from all the busyness and quiet, and other bits and pieces of life, and take some time to praise the One who calls us His people and calls us to worship.
Hope you are all doing well and hanging on in there in these strange times.

Over this last month we've been thinking about prayer, particularly the prayer we find within public worship. Today brings us to the end of our series, and we finish by reflecting on the prayer of
intercession - also referred to as prayers of concern, or petition - where we prayer for the world, for
others... and also, ourselves.
You can find the WORSHIP LINK HERE that will take you across to our YouTube channel for the service, while below, there are several notices, including a link directing you to a site that gives examples of how to use the Psalms to help your personal prayer when praying for others and yourself. I hope you enjoy our time of worship and come away refreshed, and with something to take with you into the week ahead.

NOTICES/
A lovely piece of news first:
Our vestibule window, which had come out second-best with a football a wee while ago, has now been given a new lease of life! The big wooden board was taken down on Wednesday afternoon, and in its place, our brand new window was installed - simple, sympathetic, and elegant.. Huge thanks to our resident stained glass artist and church member, Fiona Foley for her generous gift of time and talent - it's so fab to see out into the daylight and an improvement not only on the old wooden board, but of the previous opaque window... now our welcome team will be able to see who's coming into the building. Job well done indeed. Will get a picture up by next Sunday...

Speaking of coming into the building:
TO OPEN OR NOT TO OPEN... for private prayer?
You may have heard discussion in the news about the easing of regulations around lockdown, including the possibility for church buildings to open - for private prayer only. This is very different
to opening the building for public worship, as we would normally do on Sunday mornings.
At the moment, the Kirk Session is considering what we might do.
While opening the church building for private and personal prayer is not really something we'd normally do, nor is it really a part of our Presbyterian tradition, nevertheless, given the strange circumstances we find ourselves in, perhaps people in the church and wider community might find it a helpful thing to offer.
So... we are discussing this.
And as we do, we're also discussing how this might be done to ensure all are safe, undertaking a risk assessment, filling out a safety checklist, and working out best practice for using the building - should we decide to open for private prayer, in the first instance... and then, later, when we are allowed to hold services of public worship once again.
Once we've considered all of this, filled out the paperwork, installed sanitiser stations, etc., our report goes to Presbytery - who either would give us permission to open, or not...
This will take several weeks to organise and put in place.
Do bear with us.

PRAYER HELPS:
Having reflected on prayer over this month, as we think about praying for others, we know that at times, we can get a little stuck on what and how to pray. There's a really useful wee site that gives some helpful examples for finding ways into prayers of intercession by way of making use of the psalms. For access just click on THIS LINK to take you there. When praying for the world, and for others outside our own immediate sphere, it's good to link into the news - USE THIS LINK to take you to a page that gives some tips in making use of the papers/ online media when praying more widely.

WAYS INTO PRAYER FOR YOUNG PEOPLE:
There's a great wee resource from BRF to help the younger members of the community think about prayer, and suggestions for ways into prayer - you can access it BY THIS LINK
It might also come in handy over the course of our time in worship.

DONATING ONLINE:
Thanks to those of you who've already made use of the donations online link over this last week.
We're delighted to have got a working solution for those of you who had been expressing a desire to make their offering in this way, due to lockdown.
For those of you who missed last week, there is now a dedicated 'online giving' page up in the tabs above the blog post... and also, the LINK HERE to save you scrolling back up.

Worship/ Sun 21 June - Thanksgiving

Welcome/
Hello, and welcome to our blog, and to online worship - the link for that is a little further below.
I hope you're all keeping safe and well, and have been able to catch up with family and friends
a little more, given the gentle easing of our COVID-19 lockdown.

Over June, we're exploring prayer - the types usually found within a service of worship.
So, we began with the prayer of adoration, moved on to confession, and today we'll be
reflecting on the prayer of thanksgiving... giving thanks to God... and thinking about gratitude.
We have two readings from the psalms, one of which is read by Ursula Baillie... the other is more
of a 'dramatic' reading via a YouTube clip...
The WORSHIP LINK IS HERE and below, you'll find a couple of church notices - so you might just want to have a quick read of them before going over to our YouTube channel for worship.

NOTICES/
A couple of notices before we move across to the service however.
First: church opening.
You may have heard in the news or via the First Minister, that churches may consider opening
for personal prayer - this is not at all to be confused with gathering together for corporate worship.
Now, given this is something we've not offered before, as it tends not to be part of Church of Scotland tradition (we gather together for community prayer in the building... we are at home, or on the hills, or anywhere for personal prayer) the Session will be discussing this matter to see if it might be
something that we can offer even while we can't yet gather together.
Our main objective is to make sure that whatever we may or may not do, that everyone's safety is
paramount. Before any decisions are taken, we need to put together an action plan, undertake suitable risk assessments and suchlike. So, bear with us, and we'll keep you up to date.
At the moment, however, we are not permitted to open the building... so, this is just flagging up
something that may happen as lockdown eases.
As to gathered worship and communal prayer, that will be a wee while off yet, and even when we can gather, worship will
feel quite different. Again, once the Session puts a plan together, and once we are permitted, we will keep you posted as to what we're able to offer.
So, it's slow-going yet, but we are looking ahead, and we aren't rushing in without making sure safety procedures are in place first.

Online donations made easy -
Thank you to those of you who give via direct debit, or who are gathering a collection of envelopes, or who have popped cheques in the mail - all for the ongoing work and upkeep of the church.
It's very much appreciated. For those of you who'd like to donate, and usually do so via the offering plate, did you know that you can now donate online?
If you go to the Church of Scotland website [THIS IS THE LINK] at 'step one' just click on 'donate to a congregation' and type in 'Upper Clyde' and you can give that way - and thanks in advance!
And a big thank you, too, for the many other ways you have been and continue to use your gifts and skills to help others.

Community support groups -
On the right hand side bar of our blog, you'll see a section of links to organisations that are there to
lend a hand in a variety of ways. If you are finding this time of lockdown a particular struggle, check out the links for help whether it's via a listening ear with the Samaritans, or you're needing help with food through the work of the food bank - and the minister is able to write referrals for the food bank, so do get in touch with her [01864 502139 or minister.upperclyde@gmail.com] and let her know. Nikki is also available for a chat, should you need a friendly listening ear

Mid-week reflection: 'What if...?'

Over the time we've been in lockdown due to COVID-19, and particularly as time has gone on,

there have been quite a few comments across social media along the lines of:

'can we get a do-over for this year?, and 'okay, let's just cancel 2020.'

It's been a strange kind of year, where it's been very easy to focus on 

what we can't do,

where we can't go,

who we can't see.

For some, 2020 has been a bit of  write-off.

But a couple of weeks ago, I found this short reflection that took an alternative view and asked:

'What if 2020 isn't cancelled?'

Personally, I like the more positive - albeit tough in places - way of approaching this year.

Let me know what you think.

Hope you've been having a good week so far.

Worship/ Sun 14 June: 'Confession is good for the soul'

Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.

Hello and welcome as we gather to worship the One whose loving kindness lasts forever,
and whose mercy is wider than all of creation.

I hope that your week has been a good one, as we continue on in our time of lockdown.
Given the slight easing of regulations, I also hope you've managed to catch up for a socially
distanced visit - whether in your garden or elsewhere.
As ever, if there's any way I can be of help, don't hesitate to get in touch, and I'll be happy to assist as I can.

We are still some way off, I suspect, to be in a position where we can gather safely together for
worship in the parish church. However, conversations within the Church of Scotland are happening
as we look ahead and make preparations for the time when we can, once again, open the doors
to the building. Lanark Presbytery will be meeting online on Tuesday night, and a further conversation will take place at an online meeting on Thursday regarding the way forward.
I'll keep you posted. In the meantime, I'll keep on with providing worship online via our blog and
YouTube site.

Over the course of June, we're exploring prayer - and in particular, the types of prayer we encounter within our time of worship. Last week, we began with the prayer of adoration. This week, we move on to the prayer of confession, and there's truth in the old saying that 'confession is good for the soul.'

So, let's worship God. Head across to our YouTube channel by clicking on...THIS LINK FOR WORSHIP

Worship/ Sun 7 June - Adoration

Hello and welcome to worship on this Trinity Sunday - a day in the church year where we ponder
the indescribable God. But why the picture of John Wayne dressed as a Centurion? Ahhh, you'll discover across on our YouTube channel when you head over for worship...!

As we continue in lockdown, although we're scattered, we are united in that we are God's people -
one of the hymns in our hymn book states that: 'the church is wherever God's people are praising'... so, whether gathered, or scattered, we remain the church, Christ's body here on earth.

Over the month of June, we'll be exploring the subject of prayer - and in particular, the types of prayer we find within the context of worship. Today, even as we're reminded of God as One, yet Three... and as Three and yet, One... we'll be reflecting on the first prayer we encounter within worship - the prayer of adoration. How do you praise an almost indescribable God? Well... click on the worship link below and let's see where our explorations in worship take us.

The usual pastoral note:
I hope you're doing well in the midst of lockdown and that by now, you've found a routine to keep you going, along with other ways of getting through this waiting time.
Don't forget that I can make referrals to the food bank, so if you, or someone you know, may need use of that service, do please get in touch and I will be happy to get the process rolling.
Also, if you, or someone you know, would like a listening ear or just a friendly chat, don't hesitate to call and I will be only to glad to help as I can.

Very few notices this week, so without any further ado, see you over at our YouTube channel for worship - CLICK THIS LINK to take you there.