A Light on the Hill

Order of Service – 16th March 2025

The Order of Service follows below.

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Brougham Place Uniting Church
A Light on the Hill
Kardlayirdi Karnungga

Date. 16th March, 2025
Preacher: Trevor Phillips
Liturgical week and colour: Lent 2, Purple.

We acknowledge the Kaurna people as the traditional carers of the land on which our church is built.

As you wait for worship to begin, please turn your phone to silent.

Prelude

Welcome and Acknowledgment of Country

Naa marni?
(Are you all good?)
Marni Ai!
(Good I am)

We acknowledge the sovereign custodians of this place where we gather, the Kaurna peoples. We offer their elders our respect, those past and those present. We commit to working for a more just settlement for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in these lands.

Lighting of the Candles

We sing: Refresh my Heart

  1. Refresh my heart, Lord,
    renew my love;
    pour your Spirit into my soul
    refresh my heart.

  2. You set me apart, Lord, to make me new;
    by your Spirit lift me up, Lord;
    refresh my heart,
    and I will worship you, Lord,
    with all my heart;
    and I will follow you, Lord,
    refresh my heart; refresh my heart

Together in song 744. Geoffrey William Bullock 1955- Words by permission Nightlight Music Group (Aust). Words used with permission under copyright CCLI Licence No 137219. Copyright cleared music for churches.

Call to Worship

Opening Prayer

Loving God,
When our anxiety hovers close,
when fear clings to our bones,
when our stress rises like the tide,
see us.
Speak to us.
Call us by name.
See us in the kitchen, in the classroom, in the hospital waiting room.
Speak to us in the quiet, in the crowd, in the inky black of night.
Call us beloved. Call us by name. Call us your child.
Whatever you do, speak to us,
for we cannot live on bread alone.
Amen.

Prayer of Confession

God of Grace,
We long to do the “right” thing.
We long to make the “right” choice.
We long to stand on the “right” side of the dividing line.
In our earnestness, we sometimes miss the sacred right in front of us.
In our earnestness, we sometimes miss opportunities to show love.
Show us how to hold our heart’s desire for perfection loosely.
Show us how to lead with grace and love, over anything else.
For even more than our desire to be right, we desire to be close to you.
Show us the way.
Amen.

Words of Assurance/Grace

Faithful friends, God knows your heart.
When you mean well and lose your way, God knows.
When you try to do the right thing and miss the point, God knows.
When you long to be close to God and doubt your worth, God knows.
You are seen. You are loved. You are forgiven. You have been sent to serve.
This is the good news of the gospel!
Nothing can separate you from God’s love.
Thanks be to God!
Amen.

Passing of the Peace

The peace of our God be with you.
And also with you.

Community News and Notices

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Children’s Time

Children may go downstairs for Sunday School. Parents, you are welcome to join your child in Sunday School if you feel your child may need your assistance. Alternatively, you may wish for your child to remain with you for the duration of worship. Activity packs are available at the entrances.

We sing: Great is your faithfulness

  1. Great is your faithfulness, O God my Father,
    in you no shadow of turning we see;
    you never fail and your love is unchanging:
    as you have been you for ever will be.

Great is your faithfulness
great is your faithfulness,
morning by morning new mercies we see;
all we have needed your hand has provided:
great is your faithfulness, Lord God, to me.

  1. Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
    sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
    join with all nature in unspoken witness
    to your great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Great is your faithfulness
great is your faithfulness,
morning by morning new mercies we see;
all we have needed your hand has provided:
great is your faithfulness, Lord God, to me.

  1. Pardon for sin and a peace that’s enduring,
    your living presence to cheer and to guide,
    strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow
    these are the blessings your love will provide.

Great is your faithfulness
great is your faithfulness,
morning by morning new mercies we see;
all we have needed your hand has provided:
great is your faithfulness, Lord God, to me.

Together in Song 154. Thomas Obadiah Chisholm 1866-1960 alt Words & Music © 1923, renewal 1951 by Hope Publishing Co. Words used with permission under copyright CCLI Licence No 137219.Copyright cleared music for churches. All rights reserved

Scripture Reading: Luke 10:38-42

Jesus Visits Martha and Mary

Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at Jesus’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks, so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her, then, to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things, but few things are needed—indeed only one. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”

The Gospel of Christ, Light of the world.
Thanks be to God.

Message

We sing: Create in Us a Clean Heart, O God

Create in us a clean heart, O God.
Renew within us a right spirit.
Cast us not away from your presence, O Lord,
and take not your Holy Spirit from us.
Restore to us fullness of joy,
the joy that springs from your salvation.
Lighten our minds, shelter our lives
with your Spirit free.

Together in Song 712. Digby Hanna 1949. Words © Digby Hannah. ONE LICENSE, License #A-604444. All rights reserved.

Affirmation of faith

We believe in a Christ who
teaches, sees, affirms, and celebrates all of who we are.
We believe in a Christ who
invites us to use our gifts for good
and celebrates every step we take in that direction.
We believe in a Christ who
understands our anxieties
and is gentle with our concerns.
And we believe in a Christ who
looks at us with undiluted love.
The world will try to rank, rate, and declare winners,
but we know love has no limit.
So with God’s help,
may we nurture our faith
and do good work. Amen.

Prayers of the People

Compassionate God,
in a world where fear seems to trump love,
we bring our concerns and needs for the world to you now.

Where greed and power seem always to win
and people live with hunger and despair:
as fear grips us, bring us back to your loving presence.

Where violence and destruction seem to reign
and people’s lives are torn apart in grief and pain:
as fear grips us, bring us back to your loving presence.

Where marginalisation and oppression seem to be the norm
and people are cast aside unjustly, unheard and unseen:
as fear grips us, bring us back to your loving presence.

Where selfishness and comfort seem to take priority
and our world suffers and moans under the weight of neglect:
as fear grips us, bring us back to your loving presence.

Compassionate God,
in a world where fear seems to trump love,
bring us back to you and lead us on in faith.
Amen.

Offering

To give electronically please go to bpuc.org/give

Alternatively, there is an offering bowl near the lectern on the left-hand side as you exit the church.

Offering Prayer

We sing: Be Thou My Vision

  1. Be thou my vision, O lord of my heart,
    naught be all else to me, save that thou art
    thou my best thought, by day or by night,
    waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

  2. Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true word;
    I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord;
    thou my great Father, thy child let me be;
    thou in me dwelling, and I one with thee.

  3. Riches I scorn and the world’s empty praise,
    thou my inheritance, now and always:
    Thou and thou only the first in my heart;
    high King of heaven, my treasure thou art.

  4. High King of heaven, after victory won,
    may I reach heaven’s joys, O bright heaven’s Sun!
    Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
    still be my vision, O ruler of all.

Together in Song 547. Gaelic c.8th cent. Tr. Mary Elizabeth Byrne 1880-1931. Verified by Eleanor Henrietta Hull 1860-1935 alt. Public Domain.

Sending Forth and Benediction

Extroit

The people may leave as the Extroit is played

Come and share morning tea together, in the basement. There are stairs behind the organ and a ramp between the church and the car park. All are welcome!

This service has been prepared with assistance from

SANCTIFIED ART EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN WORDS FOR WORSHIP
@sanctifiedart | sanctifiedart.org |

“Mary & Martha” by Lauren Wright Pittman Inspired by Luke 10:38-42, Digital painting.

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE). Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

www.bpuc.org