Let’s begin our time together with a short prayer

Risen Lord,
present with us here,
feed us by Your Spirit,
that we may go from here to tend Your sheep
and to do so
in Your name and for Your sake. Amen

Confession

Lord Jesus Christ,
when we forget that You are alive…
when we act as though You cannot speak for Yourself:
forgive us, we pray.

When we’re slow to ask for Your advice and to look for Your guidance;
when we think we know best and forge ahead regardless,
because we are sure we know Your mind,
again, please forgive us.

Remind us in firm but gentle ways of how close and active You always are –
You who are the ever-living,
Lord of all creation.

Lord Jesus,
set God’s Spirit free to move among us here and now, we pray.
Give us the courage to let that Spirit renew and inspire us
as through Your Word, Your people and Your world,

You speak to us of hope and faith and love
and challenge us to live lives that are faithful to Your cause
of justice and peace.

Hear us now, as together with all Your people
we pray the words You taught Your friends, saying:
Our Father….

Psalm 30

Thanksgiving for Recovery from Grave Illness

A Psalm. A Song at the dedication of the temple. Of David.
¹ I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up,
   and did not let my foes rejoice over me.
² O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,
   and you have healed me.
³ O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol,
   restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.

⁴ Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones,
   and give thanks to his holy name.
⁵ For his anger is but for a moment;
   his favour is for a lifetime.
Weeping may linger for the night,
   but joy comes with the morning.

⁶ As for me, I said in my prosperity,
   ‘I shall never be moved.’
⁷ By your favour, O Lord,
   you had established me as a strong mountain;
you hid your face;
   I was dismayed.

⁸ To you, O Lord, I cried,
   and to the Lord I made supplication:
⁹ ‘What profit is there in my death,
   if I go down to the Pit?
Will the dust praise you?
   Will it tell of your faithfulness?
¹⁰ Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me!
   O Lord, be my helper!’

¹¹ You have turned my mourning into dancing;
   you have taken off my sackcloth
   and clothed me with joy,
¹² so that my soul may praise you and not be silent.
   O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you for ever.

A beautifully poetic psalm that through its words offers real life reassurance of the God who is with us in the depths as well as the heights.

In fact, this psalm goes further still and holds out the hope of a God, who not only meets us in our suffering, but who takes the sackcloth from us and clothes us instead with joy.

This is not to brush over the reality of the tough times and experiences that fall to the human lot. It is to talk of the God who accompanies us through them, sharing our tears, before bringing us to healing and wholeness. Very much in keeping with the new life theme of Easter and with the notion of God’s transforming, generous and saving kindness.

Prayers for others, the world, us

Lord Jesus Christ, risen to live forever,
Thank You for continuing to entrust us with Your good news.
Thank you for continuing to stand by us even when we let You down
and thank You for never faltering in Your care for us
and Your love for us,
even when we hurt and betray You.

May we in return, stand by You…
care for You….
love You…
and above all, may we work with You in feeding Your sheep.
Give us, we pray,
the courage as individuals and as communities of Your people,
the courage to listen for Your voice,
the courage to pick up the nets of old habits,
to follow You to different waters.

And when we fear where that might lead us,
when we hesitate, pulled by the safe and familiar,
reassure us of being held in Your arms
and embolden us simply to follow.

Ever with us Lord,
we bring to You a world You care for deeply.
Into those places where violence is rife,
bring Your peace, we pray.
Into those places where hatred and suspicion grow,
encourage understanding, we pray
and sow and nurture the seeds of love and respect.
Where poverty and disease make life miserable for people,
don’t let us turn away.
Instead,
Help us to be Your hands:
Your heart,
Your feet,
Your voice.

For the planet itself, we pray –
giving You heartfelt thanks, Lord God, for its beauty,
its life
and power…
and majesty…
A thing so great and yet so vulnerable.
We rejoice in seas, mountains, lakes, fields, beaches and gardens –
all of them gifts from You to be enjoyed and cared for.
Help us to make sure we do just that.

May we thank the Creator for all creation
and know and value our own part in it.
All these prayers we offer in Jesus’ name,
the Living God,
who sees so much more than we could ever think or know,
and who chooses to invite us to join in the divine mission
to bring love and life and light to this world.

Glory be to Creator, Son and Spirit –
One Living God,
forever. Amen

You may wish to light a candle, the Christ Candle – shining brightly out into a Dark and Sin filled world

Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed!

We celebrate Easter as a powerful, life-altering moment which changed the course of world history and set the disciples upon paths that they could never have imagined. We celebrate with the Sacrament of Holy Communion and lilies and joyous Alleluias. The world now celebrates with chocolate eggs and bunny rabbits, reflecting some of the traditions throughout the world, where this time of year has always been about new life. However, let’s remember that the first day was mired in the after-effects of death, of grief, of fear, of paralysis for what was and what might be. The disciples who would be the force to bring Christianity to the world, still had not fully processed the Message. They closed the doors and stopped, much like every family after a death.

The events of Easter slowly peel away the after-effects of grief and loss, until they find themselves in a new place, with a different dawn to look towards. The encounter in St John moves them from grief to hope and the singing of Alleluias. That is the place we want to place ourselves into today, just before the Alleluias fully begin.

John 20:19-31

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ ²⁰After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. ²¹Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ ²²When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’

Jesus and Thomas

24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’

26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ ²⁷Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ ²⁸Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ ²⁹Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’

The Purpose of This Book

30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. ³¹But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

Prayer of approach

As the candles flicker
and Your people gather,
behind locked doors,
drawn together through their grief
and worrying what comes next,
You come into our midst
Peace be with you

In our many seasons of life,
in hope and fear,
in joy and in despair,
You come into our midst
Peace be with you

As we gather today
sharing our alleluias
for death overcome
sharing our silence.
As we hold our imaginations in common,
come into our midst
Peace be with you

Assure us of Your presence surrounding us
and hold us with all that burdens us
and all that we have to be thankful for.
Come into our midst
Peace be with you

Help us to be with You
and Your risen Son
here and now
Amen

Prayer of confession and absolution

Love Incarnate,
Creator of the bluebells and larks
Sustainer of the stars and galaxies
Redeemer of everything that has life and breath,
we confess that we are far from perfect
and we lack the subtle word of encouragement,
the vision to be the solution to hurt.
We speak too much
and rarely listen as we ought.
We move when we should be still
and we come before You today without focus.

We lay our lives into the palm of Your hand,
You, who holds us, carries us and pushes us when we need it.

Forgive us through the hands
which reached out for His mother from the manger.
Forgive us through the hands
once stretched out on the cross.
Forgive us through the hands
held out for Thomas to touch.

Receive the confessions of our hearts
In this time of silence

(Silence is kept)

In Christ we are offered hands,
leading us into a future
surrounded by His love.
Receive His promise of forgiveness
and be released from the burdens which bind you,
so that you may open the doors of your hearts
and with confidence walk into the future
surrounded by Resurrection Hope.
In Jesus Name
Amen

Prayer of thanksgiving

We raise our prayers to the One
who shares our wounds
who shares our lives
who shares in our past and present and future.

We give You thanks for the simple things of life:
for nourishing food which is readily available,
for roofs over our heads, to keep us safe,
for easy access to healthcare,
for committed educators, widening horizons and encouraging imaginations,
for families and support, and a faith community, to share in our lives and support us in love.

Help us, Eternal Spirit of Love,
never to take for granted all that we have.

We thank You for the inspiration of the disciples,
who emerged from behind hidden doors
and walked and acted in faith, sharing in all the possibilities
which You, Jesus Christ, called them to engage in.

We thank You for the people of faith,
down through the centuries
who similarly have shared their faith
and showed it in practical ways
that so many could be touched and affected by faith.

We thank You for the people around us,
who share in worship and work:
that this place and people
will continue to walk and act in faith,
as Christ has called us to.

These prayers we make in the name of Jesus Christ,
The One who stood in the upper room and changed the lives
of Thomas and the disciples, and now, even us.
Amen

Prayer of intercession

Resurrection Love in action,
who is and was and will be,
let us raise our prayers
for the people who sit around us,
for the people who join us online,
for the people who have already worshipped long before we were even awake far to the East,
for the people who are yet to see the dawn and will continue these uplifting of prayers
as the world turns.

Father, Son and Holy Spirit
we pray for our children as they return to school
for their final term this year.
May they bless their teachers
by their lively laughter and thirst for knowledge.

We pray for our older students
with exams on the horizon in school, college and university.
May they have strength for this final task
before their summer break.

We pray for teachers
who dedicate their lives to their students.
May they know fulfilment and joy in their task.

We pray for the people we know whom we love
whose good we pray for this day.
For the people whose lives are straightforward
we give You thanks.
For the people who await results of medical investigations
we give You our worries.
For the people who are frail and whose lives are limited
we give You our concern.
For the people whom we have lost,
we entrust to Your care all those whom we love.

We pray for our Church
in the way She seeks to serve
and live in the light of Your Resurrection Power.
May we seek how we can live well,
serve our communities, and bless Your Name
in all that we do and say and are.

We pray for our communities, country and world.
We pray for peacekeepers,
who reach beyond the boundaries,
offering a hand of hope and understanding.
We pray for healers,
who tend to the wounds of ancient hurts.
We pray for justice bringers,
who uncover hidden abuse,
to enable justice and healing,
and a different way of living.

These prayers we make in the Name of the Creator, Redeemer and Perfecter of our Faith.
Amen.

“This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.”

Psalm 118 was a processional psalm, sung during the Passover festival on the ritual journey through the gates of Jerusalem and up to the temple. Words that Jesus most likely recited in the hours before His betrayal and death.

“I have seen the Lord”

It was Jewish custom to visit the grave of a loved one for three days after burial. Mary visited as soon as the Sabbath restrictions were over. This is a story that needs no elaboration. It speaks for itself. It truly is a story of transformation in the garden from grief, through encounter, to joy: “I have seen the Lord.”

PREPARING FOR PRAYER

May the joy of this day change our lives,
And may the transforming love
Which brought Jesus back from the dead
Be abroad in our world and in our lives
To the glory of your great and wonderful name. (Clifford Wilton)

Lord, draw us to Your Cross which brings forgiveness:
That we may be cleansed.

Lord, draw us to Your Cross which brings healing:
That we may be whole.

Lord, draw us to Your Cross which brings hope:
That we may have faith.

Lord, draw us to Your Cross which brings love:
That we may have compassion.

Lord, draw us to Your Cross which brings light:
That we may have vision.

Lord, draw us to Your Cross which brings life:
That we may live for You. Amen. (Source unknown)

Because You are a risen Lord
we dare to believe
in life beyond death,
life which is the fulfilment
of the deepest longings of the heart.

Because You are a risen Lord
we dare to believe
that past failures
need not weigh us down;
that You free us from their burden
just as You freed Your disciples
from the burden of their failures
at that first Easter.

Because You are a risen Lord
we dare to ask for renewed strength
to live our lives
with You
and for You
starting now!

Because You are a risen Lord
we dare to believe
that in You we may find
the only life that really matters;
the only life that endures.
Lord, live in us
and we shall truly live. (Edmund Banyard)

Prayer of thanksgiving and intercession

Prayer by Richard Hughes, Prayers for the People

Lord Jesus Christ, risen from death
We praise you for changed lives and new hopes at Easter.
You came to Mary in the garden
And turned her tears into joy.

For your love and your mercy:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

You came to the disciples in the upper room
And turned their fear into courage.
For your love and your mercy:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

You came to the disciples by the lakeside
And turned their failure into faith.
For your love and your mercy:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

You came to the travellers on the Emmaus Road
And turned their despair into hope.
For your love and your mercy:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

You come to us in our unworthiness and shame
And turn our weakness into triumph.
For your love and your mercy:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

Lord Jesus
Wherever there are tears
Or fear, or failure,
Or despair, or weakness:
Come, reveal to us
Your love, your mercy,
And your risen power;
For the glory of your name.
Alleluia. Amen