Having confessed, been assured of our forgiveness, and brought before God the concerns we hold for others, we prepare to go out into Lent on a voyage seeking the path to Jerusalem.
In a moment, there will be one final prayer and then some music to conclude our service. You may wish to spend some time in silence, listening, reflecting, opening yourself to God, and God’s Spirit while the music plays. Sit as long as you wish.
Prayer: One true stature
All-penetrating Spirit,
you are closer to us than our breath
and you know us through and through,
Strip away all evasion and self-delusion,
that we may see ourselves as we
You know how So much Of What we do
is driven by anxiety
CT the desire for comfort cr attention.
Help us to 150k to you
and seek only what is pleasing in your eyes.
We pray for those Who think too little Of themselves.
Who have no sense Of their awn worth.
especially Women When demeaned and humiliated.
May the self-important learn humility
and may the humbled learn their true stature_
Come deep into the wells Of our being,
that we may be healed and made holy.
Richard Harries
taken from the URC Prayer Handbook 2012
© The United Reformed Church
Used with permission
Play: – Allegri – Miserere mei, Deus (you can use this version from YouTube or your own preferred version)
As members of the congregation left, they were invited to to collect a bookmark from a table in the church. These had the Ash Wednesday readings on them, and on the reverse, the other dates of our Lenten Journey. Next to the bookmarks was a small bowl of ash. There was a space on the top of the bookmark so that, if they wished, members could dip their thumb gently into the ash and put a small mark on the bookmark as a sign of the journey that we have begun into Lent. If you wish to do the same, please print a copy of the attached PDF double sided onto thin card, cut out one or more bookmarks and place your own mark using ash from a suitable source, or soot from a candle.