Koonung Heights Uniting Church
Service of Worship at Home
Pentecost 14 – 25 August 2024 – 10am or whenever possible
You may like to light a candle during your time of worship.
Feel free to text the Peace to other members of the congregation.
Introit: “Bless the Lord, my soul” – (TiS 706)
Bless the Lord, my soul, and bless God’s holy name.
Bless the Lord, my soul, who leads me into life.
Candle Lighting:
We light this candle today
as a sign of God’s Spirit at work in the world.
May its light brighten our spirits,
and may the light of God shining through us
brighten the world.
Acknowledgement of Country:
As we worship today,
I acknowledge the Wurundjeri WoiWurrung People
of the Kulin Nations, Traditional Custodians
of these unceded lands and waters.
I pay my respects to Elders, past and present,
and to all future generations.
As First and Second Peoples walking together,
we commit ourselves
to be people of the covenant,
listening, truth-telling and seeking justice for all.
Call to Worship:
Beloved,
we have come this day from different places,
filled with a variety of hopes and dreams,
and shouldering distinct concerns and regrets.
Loving God, come into our hearts this day –
heal us from all our pain.
Loving God, come into our lives today –
bring us hope and peace.
Come, let us worship God who brings hope and peace.
We Sing: “Praise to the Lord” – (TiS 111)
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation;
O my soul, praising, for God is your health and salvation.
Come all who hear, brothers and sisters draw near,
praise him in glad adoration.
Praise to the Lord
who in all things is wondrously reigning,
and, as on wings of an eagle,
uplifting, sustaining:
have you not seen all that is needed has been
sent by his gracious ordaining?
Praise to the Lord!
O let all that is in me adore him!
All that has life and breath,
come now with praise and adoring.
Let the Amen sound from God’s people again:
gladly for ever adore him.
Prayer of Adoration and Confession:
God of grace,
You have given us minds; help us to know You.
You have given us hearts; help us to love You.
You have given us voices; help us to sing Your praise.
You have given us souls; fill us with Your Holy Spirit,
so that together we may celebrate Your glory
and worship You in spirit and in truth.
We thank You for all Your blessings,
for forgiving our sins and healing our sicknesses,
for saving us from danger,
and surrounding us with love and compassion.
You fill our lives with good things,
and renew our strength like an eagle’s.
Merciful God,
We come before You, asking for mercy.
We admit that we have sinned and fallen short of Your glory.
We have not been faithful to You,
even though You are always faithful to us.
We have been slow to forgive and quick to judge.
We have ignored Your call to love and serve others,
focusing too much on ourselves.
Please forgive us, Lord.
You know how we are made,
and You remember that we are only human.
Renew us with Your grace,
wash us with Your mercy,
and guide us in the work of justice, peace, and love.
Through Jesus Christ, our Redeemer.
Amen.
Words of Assurance:
Hear these words of assurance
and feel the touch of Christ on your heart!
You are loved, healed and forgiven!
Rejoice! God is with you now and always!
Amen.
The Peace:
Christ is our peace,
and he has reconciled us to God.
We meet in his name and share his peace.
The peace of the Lord be always with you …
and also with you.
A Time for All:
In a little while we will have ‘Community News’, and as I do every week, I will invite you to say who you are before you share with the group. That’s because there is something about using names that promotes welcome and inclusiveness as we invite one another in.
When Elizabeth was little, sometimes Tony would joke with her and call her George. She used to get annoyed with this, and would respond with a loud, insistent voice, ‘I’m not George, I’m Elizabeth!’ She knew who she was, and even at that young age, she knew that her name was important and that what she was called mattered. Our names are an incredibly important part of our identity, and they can carry deep personal, cultural, familial, and historical connections. They give us a sense of who we are, the communities to which we belong, and even our place in the world.
On 17 December 1838, Duncan and Mary Brown were on route from Scotland to Australia, when Mary gave birth to twins at Latitude 39.18 South, Longitude 112.40 East, 14 days out from Sydney. They named the boy Glenbervie (after the ship they were on) and the girl Maria (after the Captain’s wife). I am descended from Glenbervie, and six generations later, in each branch of the family, there is still at least one person per generation who carries on this name – Glenbervie if they are a boy and the abbreviated Glen if they are a girl. My aunt was Glen, my middle name is Glen, and Elizabeth also has Glen as one of her middle names.
When I was young I didn’t like ‘Glen’ as a middle name, but as I have grown older I have learned to love it, the story behind it and how it connects me to my forebears.
The gospel passage we will read today tells the story of a woman and her encounter with Jesus. We don’t hear her name, but we do hear Jesus as he speaks to her and calls her ‘daughter’. Before meeting Jesus this woman had been isolated and vulnerable, but I sense that as she hears Jesus call her ‘daughter’, she starts to discover an important part of her story and begins to know where she belongs.
Let us pray:
Loving God,
We thank you that you name us as your own, as your beloved children.
Help us to love one another in the way that you love us,
and to see others the way that you see them.
In Jesus’ name we pray,
Amen.
We Sing: “Love is his word” – (TiS 534)
Love is his word, love is his way, feasting with friends, fasting alone,
living and dying, rising again, love, only love, is his way.
Richer than gold is the love of my Lord: better than splendour and wealth.
Love is his news, love is his name, we are his own, chosen and called,
sisters and brothers, cousins and kin. Love, only love, is his way.
Richer than gold …
Love is his name, love is his law. Hear his command, all who are his:
‘Love one another, I have loved you.’ Love, only love, is his law.
Richer than gold …
Bible Reading: Psalm 103:1-14
– Thanksgiving for God’s Goodness
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and do not forget all his benefits –
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the Pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good as long as you live
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6 The Lord works vindication
and justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his acts to the people of Israel.
8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always accuse,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far he removes our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion for his children,
so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him.
14 For he knows how we were made;
he remembers that we are dust.
Bible Reading: Mark 5:21-34
– A Girl Restored to Life and a Woman Healed
21 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered around him, and he was by the sea. 22 Then one of the leaders of the synagogue, named Jairus, came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet 23 and pleaded with him repeatedly, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” 24 So he went with him.
And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. 25 Now there was a woman who had been suffering from a flow of blood for twelve years. 26 She had endured much under many physicians and had spent all that she had, and she was no better but rather grew worse.
27 She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak,
28 for she said, “If I but touch his cloak, I will be made well.” 29 Immediately her flow of blood stopped, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my cloak?” 31 And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?’ ” 32 He looked all around to see who had done it.
33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
Reflection:
In today’s Gospel reading, we encounter a woman who suffered from bleeding for twelve years. Her story is familiar to many of us. When we think about faith and healing, we remember how she was healed simply because she believed that even touching Jesus’ clothes would make her well. I would like to share this woman’s story with you today because it holds great meaning for me.
Last summer, I took a Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) course at Austin Hospital. There, I met a woman in a similar situation. She had been in a serious accident and was in the hospital for a long time. She had no family and no one to visit her. Her health did not improve quickly, and her condition worsened. She was very sad because she didn’t know when she could go back home. She also worried about her three cats at home.
When I met her, I felt compassion by her desperate situation. After learning that she was a Baptist, I visited her as much as I could, reading the Bible to her, and praying with her. Today’s text is one of the passages I read to her many times. I liked the story of how Jesus healed the woman and she had a happy ending. I hoped that this story would bring her comfort, healing, and hope from Jesus.
As I read this story again and again, I became more curious about this woman in the bible. I wanted to know more about her. She received healing from Jesus, and he also praised her great faith. But what was her faith like? Last semester, while studying the Gospel of Mark in the college, I had the opportunity to deeply explore the story of this woman. Today, I would like to share with you what I have learned.
To better understand, let’s first look at what the Bible tells us about this woman.
First, she had been bleeding for 12 years. Second, she had seen many doctors and spent all her money on treatments, but instead of getting better, she got worse. This shows us that her physical and financial condition was very poor.
Also, she was in a difficult situation socially and spiritually because of her bleeding. In Jewish society at that time, bleeding made someone ceremonially unclean. According to the purity laws, anything she touched became unclean. So, she had to avoid contact with others. This would affect her daily life and relationships. She had to live away from her family and community, leading to social isolation. She also couldn’t participate in religious activities at the temple.
As a result, we can see that she was in a very desperate situation—physically, socially, and spiritually. This woman had tried everything to cure her illness, but all her efforts were in vain. In these moments, she may have felt overwhelmed with despair, powerless and hopeless. However, we know that she touched the edge of Jesus’ clothes, believing she would be healed. And she was. We wonder how she found the strength to go to Jesus in such difficult in such a difficult situation?
In Mark 5:27, it says, “She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his robe.” After all human efforts had failed and there was no more hope, she heard about Jesus – who he was and what he had done. She heard the good news. I believe that this news must have given her hope.
We don’t know exactly what she heard about Jesus. But we can assume based on what the Bible tells us about Jesus’ ministry.
For example, in Mark 1, Jesus healed a man with leprosy by touching him. In ancient times, leprosy was incurable and known as a contagious disease. According to Jewish law, lepers were considered ceremonially unclean. People avoided touching them because they believed they would also become unclean if they touched a leper. But Jesus, in His love and compassion, did not hesitate to touch and heal the leper. When the woman heard about what Jesus had done, she must have been amazed and filled with joy. She believed that if Jesus could heal a leper, he could also heal and cleanse her. This good news about Jesus gave her hope when all other hope seemed lost.
So, when she heard that Jesus had come to her village, she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be made well.” Hearing about Jesus strengthened her faith, giving her the courage to approach Jesus.
However, it was not easy for her to get through the crowd with her weak body. The streets were filled with many people trying to touch Jesus to be healed.
It was also a dangerous journey for her. If someone had seen her walking down a crowded street, she could have been stoned to death according to the Jewish law of the time. But she decided to walk towards Jesus. She believed that Jesus was the one who could calm the storms with a word. She believed that Jesus could cast out demons with authority.
This faith gave her the courage and strength to overcome many obstacles. She walked through the crowd with hope. And she secretly approached Jesus and touched his clothes.
Then, she experienced a dramatic healing. Immediately her bleeding stopped, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease.
The power of Jesus had healed and cleansed her. She must have been overjoyed but also shocked by what had happened. Maybe she wanted to quietly leave before anyone noticed. But Jesus knew! He asked, “Who touched my clothes?” and looked around to see who had done it.
When the woman realized that Jesus was looking for her, she was frightened. She may have felt embarrassed about revealing her illness in public. She may have worried about being rebuked for intentionally touching Jesus in her unclean condition.
Mark describes her as trembling with fear. Commentators say that this fear and trembling are similar to the awe that the disciples felt when Jesus calmed the storm. She likely felt a deep awe of God’s miraculous power.
She was aware that she had just encountered the holy and miraculous.
In the end, she fell before Jesus. Perhaps Jesus wanted her story to be heard by many people. Perhaps He was giving her the opportunity to declare that she was completely healed and cleansed of her illness. She boldly spoke the truth before Jesus and the crowd. We can imagine that after meeting Jesus, this woman overcame her fear and boldly expressed her faith.
Besides being healed, Jesus tenderly called her “daughter.” For 12 long years, she had no health and no money. We don’t even know her name. But now, she is called a daughter by Jesus. She is now healthy. No longer does she have to live in isolation.
Jesus said, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
Here, we see that it was her faith that healed her. I want to ask you this question. What was the faith that led her to experience Jesus’ healing? I think it might be her willingness to keep approaching Jesus with trust.
And where did her strong hope and persistence come from? What gave her the courage to endure to the end and walk that dangerous path? What gave her the confidence that she would be healed just by touching Jesus’ clothes?
We learned that her journey began when she heard about Jesus. I believe her faith came from Jesus. Hearing the good news gave her hope and the courage to endure and walk the dangerous path. The good news gave her confidence that Jesus would heal her.
This realization deepened my understanding of Jesus’ grace. I imagined Jesus waiting for her with open arms on the path she walked. I felt certain that Jesus was always with her, walking that path alongside her, and that He will continue to walk with her—and with me and all of you as well.
As Paul says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
The psalmist also reminds us,
Praise the Lord, my soul!
Don’t forget all the blessings he has given you.
He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.
He keeps me from the grave and blesses me with love and mercy.
He fills my life with good things, so that I stay young and strong like an eagle.”
I pray that today, each of you remembers Jesus’ grace and gives thanks to God.
Amen.
We Sing: “In the garden” – (Alexander’s 432)
I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses;
and the voice I hear, falling on my ear, the Son of God discloses.
And He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own,
and the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.
He speaks, and the sound of His voice is so sweet the birds hush their singing;
and the melody, that He gave to me, within my heart is ringing.
And He walks with me …
I’d stay in the garden with Him, though the night around me be falling;
but He bids me go: through the voice of woe, His voice to me is calling.
And he walks with me …
Prayer for Others
Let us pray,
We read the news,
hear the stories, watch the images,
see the footage and feel helpless
in the face of so much struggle and suffering.
So we offer these prayers to you, God of all,
because we cannot carry them alone,
because you listen,
and because you love the world we inhabit.
We bring to you now
those people and places most on our hearts today:
our friends and family;
for the hungry and the homeless;
for the lost and the forgotten;
for the grieving and the suffering;
for the abused and the imprisoned;
and for the broken and the rejected,
Let your light shine into the darkest places:
shine with justice where there is none,
shine with hope where it is lost,
shine with healing and connection.
Help us to be bearers of that light,
in the small corners where we are.
In the name of Jesus, who taught us to pray:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name;
Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and 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 forever. Amen.
We Sing: “Here I Am, Lord” – (TiS 658)
I, the Lord of sea and sky, I have heard my people cry.
All who dwell in dark and sin my hand will save.
I who made the stars of night, I will make their darkness bright.
Who will bear my light to them? Whom shall I send?
Here I am, Lord; is it I, Lord? I have heard you calling in the night;
I will go, Lord, if you lead me. I will hold your people in my heart.
I, the Lord of snow and rain, I have borne my people’s pain;
I have wept for love of them. They turn away.
I will break their hearts of stone, give them hearts for love alone.
I will speak my word to them. Whom shall I send?
Here I am, Lord …
I, the Lord of wind and flame, I will tend the poor and lame,
I will set a feast for them. My hand will save.
Finest bread I will provide till their hearts are satisfied.
I will give my life to them. Whom shall I send?
Here I am, Lord …
Blessing:
Beloved of God,
healed and forgiven,
blessed and strengthened:
go forth to be a blessing to others,
proclaiming the love and mercy of God
in all that you do and say!
And the blessing of God the Father,
God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
the One who Mother’s us all,
be with you always.
Amen.
Thanks to all those who have assisted in preparation for this liturgy with encouragement, prayers and conversation. I have also utilised the following resources: Ministry Matters and The Fig Tree Worship Resource.