Anna Chaplain in Kendal, Beverley Moore, has been heading for the outdoors to make the most of the spring sunshine for her care home residents she is still supporting, even if from a distance.
'I decided to do something a little different this time and instead of recording the service in church I decided to bring a little of the outside in to the residents of the four care homes who would normally attend. I live in such a beautiful part of the country so I went out and about in Bowness on Windermere and filmed from the shores of the lake. As it is the first time I have done this it is not perfect, a little wobbly in places, but we can rectify that next time. It can be viewed via our Kendal Parish Church website.'
Beverley has also been generating hundreds of knitted holding crosses. Her care homes project, she says, involves six different churches across Kendal, 'and we have just short of 800 crosses, enough to deliver to all our care homes and many sheltered housing schemes. Thirty have gone to families via our children and youth worker who has been providing Messy Church at home packs too.
'God is truly inspiring us throughout Cumbria to promote Anna Chaplaincy and I long for the days I can get away from the computer and out of shielding and into our care homes.'
Here's the service sheet for her latest Tea Service:
Kendal Tea Service
March 2021
Via YouTube
&
Kendal Parish Church Website
Bringing People Together
Welcome everyone, we are the family of God and together we are here today to worship God with hymns of praise, and to pray together for all people, most especially everyone who is affected by dementia.
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, we come with joy to worship you, for you are great and you are Holy. May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.
Hymn
My song is love unknown,
My saviour’s love to me,
Love to the loveless shown,
That they might lovely be.
O, who am I, that for my sake,
My Lord should take frail flesh,
And die.
He came from his blest throne,
Salvation to bestow.
But men made strange, and none.
The longed-for Christ would know.
But O, my friend, my friend indeed,
Who at my need his life did spend!
Sometimes they strew his way,
And his sweet praises sing.
Resounding all the day
Hosannas to their King.
Then, “Crucify!”
Is all their breath, and for his death?
They thirst and cry.
Why, what hath my Lord done?
What makes this rage and spite?
He made the lame to run,
He gave the blind their sight.
Sweet injuries! Yet they at these
Themselves displease,
And ‘gainst him rise.
They rise, and needs will have
My dear Lord made away;
A murderer they save,
The Prince of Life they slay.
Yet cheerful he to suffering goes,
That he his foes from thence might free.
Here might I stay and sing:
No story so divine.
Never was love, dear King,
Never was grief like thine!
This is my Friend, in who’s sweet praise.
I all my days would gladly spend.
Bible Reading: John 12:20–33
Now among those who went to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serve me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour. “Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say – “Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Now is the judgement of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
This is the word of the Lord.
Please respond with: Thanks be to God.
Hymn
There is a green hill far away,
Outside a city wall,
Where the dear Lord was crucified,
Who died to save us all.
We may not know, we cannot tell,
What pains he had to bear,
But we believe it was for us.
He hung and suffered there.
He died that we might be forgiven,
He died to make us good,
That we might go at last to heaven,
Saved by his precious blood.
There was no other good enough.
To pay the price of sin.
He only could unlock the gate.
Of heaven and let us in
O dearly, dearly has he loved,
And we must love him, too,
And trust in his redeeming blood,
And try his works to do.
Poem
Prayers
Dear Lord, we come together today holding on to all our cares and worries. We say we want to be forgiven for so much but are loath to let go of bad habits. We lay them down now at your feet for your forgiveness.
Father God, we thank you for all the Doctors, nurses’ and scientists who have worked together to find vaccines to find a way out of this coronavirus pandemic. For the carers who are often away from their own families and yet have come in to work to care for us. We pray today for the poorer countries who have no access to vaccinations, show us how to share, let our politicians and those in power address this imbalance between countries.
We pray for families torn apart by the grief of losing a much-loved family member often whilst still young with their lives ahead of them.
Thank you, Lord, for inspiring us. The warming up, and the bulbs which are bursting into springtime, what an amazing time of year this is, how much we look forward to the longer days and the warmth of the sun.
We think of this world and all that is in it. For all the plastic, the rubbish, and the fish which get caught up in nets. For all the waste and so much more we could recycle if we wanted to, for the torn down forests and the wasted energy.
We spoil so much, and yet, we are brought in, at the moment of creation, to share it with you. May we always take our responsibilities seriously and demonstrate what love is, as you did when Jesus died on the cross for our sins.
God of glory, thank you for showing us the way to you in Jesus, your son. Give us courage to walk in his footsteps feeding those who hunger and welcoming those in need. May we find you in those footsteps and may others join us on that path towards you. Amen
We say together
The Lord’s Prayer.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Hymn
Praise to the Holiest in the height,
And in the depths be praise:
In all His words most wonderful,
Most sure in all his ways.
O loving wisdom of our God!
When all was sin and shame,
A second Adam to the fight
And to the rescue came.
O wisest love! that flesh and blood,
Which did in Adam fail,
Should strive afresh against the foe,
Should strive and should prevail.
And that a higher gift than grace
Should flesh and blood refine,
God’s presence and his very self,
And essence all divine.
O generous love! That he, who smote.
In Man for man the foe,
The double agony in man
For man should undergo.
And in the garden secretly,
And on the cross on high,
Should teach his brethren and inspire.
To suffer and to die.
Praise to the Holiest in the height,
And in the depth be praise:
In all his words most wonderful,
Most sure in all his ways.
The Blessing
To know Jesus is a greater gift than anything else that we possess.
As we go from here, may we do all we can to know Him better and to love Him more.
And may the Blessing of God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit
Be upon you and remain with you always.
Amen.
Follow us on you tube and at www.kendalparishchurch.co.uk
Email: bevmoore.annachaplaincy@gmail.com