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Praising God
Psalm 147:1 says
Praise the Lord! How good is it to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him!
Our musicians will lead us in our first song of praise
Bible Reading
As we turn to this weeks Bible reading, letās pray together:
Heavenly Father, give us faith to receive your word, understanding to know what it means, and the will to put it into practice, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Our Bible reading this week is Psalm 6.
Psalm 6[a]
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. According to sheminith.[b] A psalm of David.
1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your wrath.
2 Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am faint;
heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.
3 My soul is in deep anguish.
How long, Lord, how long?
4 Turn, Lord, and deliver me;
save me because of your unfailing love.
5 Among the dead no one proclaims your name.
Who praises you from the grave?
6 I am worn out from my groaning.
All night long I flood my bed with weeping
and drench my couch with tears.
7 My eyes grow weak with sorrow;
they fail because of all my foes.
8 Away from me, all you who do evil,
for the Lord has heard my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my cry for mercy;
the Lord accepts my prayer
10 All my enemies will be overwhelmed with shame and anguish;
they will turn back and suddenly be put to shame.
Sermon
Our minister Martin Kemp will now preach a sermon on Psalm 6 titled Four Steps for Tough Times.
Confession of Sin
In telling the story of the Lost Son, Jesus describes how the son ācame to his senses, saying āI will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.ā So he got up and went to his fatherā (Luke 15:17-20).
We are called to be like this lost Son, returning to God our Father with repentance and faith. Let us confess our sins, praying together
Heavenly Father, You have loved us with an everlasting love, But we have often gone our own way, and rejected your will for our lives. We are sorry for our sins and turn away from them. For the sake of your son who died for us, forgive us, cleanse us, and change us. By your Holy Spirit, enable us to live for you, and to please you in every way, for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen
Jesus tells us of the Fatherās response, explaining that āwhile the son was still a far way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed himā (Luke 15:20). This is how our Heavenly Father will respond to each of us as we return to him in the same way.
And now two options for continuing in prayer:
a. Perhaps you might like to pray through our weekly prayer points:
- Continue to pray for those working in health: David Loke, Tamara Lam, Mina and Annemarie Nelson, Errol Edge, Emily Carpenter, Sandra Barrett, Maxine Andersson, Alicia Sloman, Kai Zhu, Akane Katsu (if weāve left out others, sorry! Please let us know, we want to keep them in our prayers). Aged care workers listed below.
- Continue to pray for government leaders all around the world as they make decisions in uncharted waters. Particularly pray for wisdom regarding when and how to lift restrictions.
- Give thanks for the falling rate of new infections here in Australia.
- Pray for churches around the world as they seek to respond to those in need of physical help and spiritual direction and comfort during these times. Pray that people will recognise their vulnerability and turn to Christ.
- Give thanks for our Wardens and Treasurer as they navigate our own church finances during the economic shock that the virus has brought about. Give thanks for government and diocesan help in this time.
- Pray for Karen Sowden, shifting to provideĀ online ministry to students on campus. Give thanks for the fruitful evangelistic work she was able to conduct earlier in the year before everything shut down.
- Please continue in regular prayer for our dear friends who are now in permanent aged-care facilities, particularly at this time of vulnerability because of the Coronavirus: Eion Miller (Regis Hornsby); Eric Lee (Bowden Brae); Marie Neal, Colleen Jeffries, Jane Putt, (Masonic Towers). Also for Veronica Chao, Katherina Bilko and Robin Edmundson who work in this sector.Ā
b. Allow Luke Bryant to lead you in prayer!
Letās finish our time of prayer with the Lordās Prayer together:
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, and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the Kingdom, the power and glory are yours, now and forever,
Amen
Announcements
Final Song
Our musicians will lead us again as we close our time together.
Benediction
Hear these words from Numbers 6:24-26.
The Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of Christ, Amen!
See you next week When Tim Young will be preaching on Psalm 7.
