Author: Reuben

10th Sunday after Trinity 5 August 2018 when you have finished with this sheet pass it on to someone unable to get to church today

COLLECT
Lord of heaven and earth,
as Jesus taught his disciples to be persistent in prayer,
give us patience and courage never to lose hope,
but always to bring our prayers before you;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. FIRST READING 2 Samuel 11.26-12.13a
A reading from the second book of Samuel
When the wife of Uriah heard that her husband was dead, she made lamentation for him. 27When the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord, 121and the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, ‘There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor. 2The rich man had very many flocks and herds; 3but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meagre fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. 4Now there came a traveller to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.’ 5Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, ‘As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die; 6he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.’ 7 Nathan said to David, ‘You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from the hand of Saul; 8I gave you your master’s house, and your master’s wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added as much more. 9Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, for you have despised me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. 11Thus says the Lord: I will raise up trouble against you from within your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes, and give them to your neighbour, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this very sun. 12For you did it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.’ 13David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’ Nathan said to David, ‘Now the Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die.
This is the word of the Lord. THANKS BE TO GOD Responsorial Psalm 78:23-29
R: O Lord, how glorious are your works.
So he commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of heaven. He rained down upon them manna to eat and gave them the grain of heaven. So mortals ate the bread of angels; he sent them food in plenty. R He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens and led out the south wind by his might. He rained flesh upon them as thick as dust and winged fowl like the sand of the sea. R He let it fall in the midst of their camp and round about their tents. So they ate and were well filled, for he gave them what they desired. R

SECOND READING Ephesians 4.1-16
A reading from the letter to the Ephesians
Therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. 7 But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8Therefore it is said,‘When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive; he gave gifts to his people.’ 9(When it says, ‘He ascended’, what does it mean but that he had also descended* into the lower parts of the earth? 10He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) 11The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and knitted together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.
This is the word of the Lord. THANKS BE TO GOD Gospel John 6.24-35
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John GLORY TO YOU O LORD
So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him, ‘Rabbi, when did you come here?’ 26Jesus answered them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.’ 28Then they said to him, ‘What must we do to perform the works of God?’ 29Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.’ 30So they said to him, ‘What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, “He gave them bread from heaven to eat.” ’ 32Then Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is that which* comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.’ 34They said to him, ‘Sir, give us this bread always.’ 35 Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
This is the Gospel of the Lord. PRAISE TO YOU O CHRIST POST COMMUNION
God of our pilgrimage,
you have willed that the gate of mercy
should stand open for those who trust in you:
look upon us with your favour that we who follow the path of your will may never wander from the way of life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
LyCiG Prayer God of Mission, who alone brings growth to your Church, send your Holy Spirit to give vision to our planning, wisdom to our actions, and power to our witness. Help our church to grow in numbers, in spiritual commitment to you, and in service to our local community, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The materials used in this sheet are from the Common Worship materials of the Church of England www.churchofengland.org all Bible verses are from NRSV translation this sheet created by Fr Reuben James Preston SCP OblOSB rectorofsharnbrook@rjpmedia.co.uk www.sharnbrookcofechurches.org

The United Benefice of Sharnbrook, Felmersham and Knotting with Souldrop
St Peter’s Church, Sharnbrook MK44 1HU, St Mary’s Church, Felmersham MK43 7JP All Saints Church, Souldrop MK44 1EX www.sharnbrookcofechurches.org Welcome—give this sheet to a neighbour when you go home!

Worship in the Benefice today… 10th after Trinity
0930 Sharnbrook Parish Communion & RnS 1100 Radwell Hall Farm Barn Parish Communion—St James 1500 Souldrop Parish Communion 1800 Sharnbrook Benefice Evensong – Rector
Monday-Festival– Transfirguration of Our Lord 1930 Sharnbrook Holy Communion followed by drinks and nibbles to keep the feast Tuesday—Commemoration-John Mason Neale, Priest, Hymn Writer, 1866 Wednesday-Lesser Festival-Dominic, Priest, Founder of the Order of Preachers, 1221
0930 Sharnbrook Holy Communion 2nd Wed CW 1900 Sharnbrook Wedding rehearsal Thursday—Lesser Festival-Mary Sumner, Founder of the Mothers' Union, 1921 0930 Felmersham Holy Communion CW
1100 Souldrop Coffee Morning in Village Hall
Friday—Lesser Festival-Lawrence, Deacon at Rome, Martyr, 258
Saturday—Lesser Festival-Clare of Assisi, Founder of the Order of Minoresses (Poor Clares), 1253
1200 Sharnbrook Wedding of Aimee Bowers & Henry Simkin
Next Sunday services—Benefice Communion to
Celebrate Mary patron saint of Felmersham
1100 Felmersham Benefice Sung Communion—Patronal Festival
followed by food and refreshments
(nothing in Sharnbrook or Souldrop in the morning)
1800 Sharnbrook Benefice Evensong – Lay Reader Garry
LYCIG day on Saturday 8 Sept
We have 9 places for the benefice—would you like to join the party going?
Have a word with Colin, JaneT, Stephen Hill, Garry Johnson or Fr Reuben
9.30am till 330pm at 69 Parkway, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire AL8 6JG (this is also Bike n Hike day in our churches)

Charley is having her hair cut off in aid of the Little Princess Trust who provides real hair wigs free of charge to children and young people up to the age of 24 that have sadly lost their own hair due to cancer treatment and other illnesses. Please sponsor Charley if you can. She is having 7-12inches cut off on Wed 8 August….

Christian Meditation Group meets on Mondays 2000 in SPR—all welcome!

SUMMER BBQ Sat 18 August 5pm in the Rectory garden
Tickets £10
to include Barbeque, pudding & wine from Alison 782149 & Judy 781057
In aid of St Peter’s

Church Contacts
The Rector: Reuben Preston, The Rectory, 81 High Street, Sharnbrook MK44 1PE 01234 782000 07971 895897 rectorofsharnbrook@rjpmedia.co.uk Reader: Garry Johnson 07855 762922 Lay Leaders of Worship: Rosemary Drewery 07792926004, Jane Templeman, Andrea Maffie 07881 046255 Churchwardens:- St Peter’s Church: Roland Carpenter 01234 781551 Janet Norman 01234 781997 St Mary’s Church: Sue Whitehouse 01234 781300 All Saints Church: Nick Wells 07841 759497 Safeguarding Co-Ord: Rosemary Drewery 07792 926004 Items for inclusion should be sent to sharnbrookbenefice@gmail.com by 0900 on Wednesdays.

Intercessions The sick and in need: Marjorie, Doreen, Isabela, Pam, David, Keri, Maureen, Matthew, Barbara, Sally, Conrad & Cynthia
The Departed: Dorothy White
Prayer requests for the week: Pray for our farming industry at this time of dryness Pray for our cleaners and refreshment makers Pray for a successful outcome to Brexit Pray for eyes to discern new LLWs in our Benefice

To make arrangements for Weddings, Funerals, Baptisms/Christenings, Confessions, House Blessings etc. please contact the Rector

Spnsorship: in prayer for Aimee Bowers & Henry Simkin getting married this week If you would like to sponsor this sheet please send you £5 donation to The Rectory along with details of the sponsorship (even if anonymous)

This Weekend and next…… Starting on Friday 1 Dec—CHRISTMAS TREE FESTIVAL all weekend ending with Christmas Tree Festival Concert at 1500hrs in St Peters with music for Advent & Christmas by Ouse Valley Singers & Sunday 10 Dec CHRISTINGLE service at 4pm at St Peters in aid of Children’s Society & bring Christmas Gifts for ‘The Salvation Army Christmas Gift Appeal’

Sanctuary Cleaning Rota Can you spare an hour on a regular basis and become a member of the Sanctuary Cleaning Rota? Several folk have retired, in particular I would like to thank Marion and John Tyler for many years of service. If you can help, speak to Kate Ritchie (ph 781155)

a collection is started to buy the traditional ordination gifts of an Ordination stole & Preaching Scarf, in your generosity give your donations to the Rector in cash, or cheques payable to “R. Preston” or Paypal to rjp@reubenjamespreston.co.uk or BACS 20-07-82 10181048 Ref ’Andrea’

Benefice Warden’s meeting Thursday 22 June 7:30pm in Souldrop

Please bring food to share for our Epiphany Pot Luck Bring ‘n Share lunch—no lists just bring something to add to the table

New App lets drivers report modern slavery at hand car washes
Drivers are being urged to report signs of modern slavery at cheap hand car washes using a new smartphone app. Safe Car Wash asks motorists about a series of indicators of forced labour including the use of children, fearful behaviour, a lack of protective clothing and prices lower than £6.70. It sends the anonymised data and a GPS position to the National Crime Agency (NCA) and the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) and directs users to the Modern Slavery Helpline. The app, which is available for download from 4 June, has been launched by The Clewer Initiative, the Church of England’s campaign against modern slavery, and the Santa Marta Group, the Catholic Church’s anti-slavery project.

Help with Maintenance at St Peter’s.
1. The Churchyard—On Fridays 10am=noon, we will be working to tidy up the churchyard, and tackle the damaging infestation of ivy. If you can spare a couple of hours - on any Friday morning, we would be very pleased to see you..
Leadership at St Peter’s through 2018 into 2019
The current situation at St Peter’s is inadequate to help the church to grow. We need people to take on leadership roles at St Peter’s. The most urgent need is one, preferably two people to join the PCC and be willing to assist and train for the duties of Church Warden. We have past wardens and people who would gladly help and give advice to achieve this. Please give this some serious thought as you might be somebody who could fulfil this role and relieve Roland who has been covering the roles of Treasurer and a single Church Warden in this past year, this ought not continue into the new year ahead.’ Pray for people to come forward and offer to take up the roles of Church Wardens and PCC members—we have very capable women and men at St Peter’s who have the skills and aptitude to take hold of these responsibilities.

Sharnbrook extra-ordinary Annual Parochial Meeting on Wed 31 May 2017 at 7:30pm for the election of churchwardens

LAUNDE Abbey retreat programmes available—let’s go to the ADVENT Retreat Tues 21 Nov—Fri 24 Nov 2017 £245 plus travel—Pick up a leaflet in Church for details.
Book your own place & Please Add you name to the list in church so we know who has decided to sign up.

STOP PRESS– Grenfell Tower collection after each service today. If you would like to contribute to the relief help which has been offered to the Grenfell Tower survivors please put your contribution in the box/plate after the services today

The OT Apocrapha books can be found online at http://bible.oremus.org
There are 14 books in the OT Apocrapha which the Church o England uses in the lectionary and they are used to edify the people but not derive doctrine.

2018 Annual Meetings Souldrop 7.30pm Tues 17 April Sharnbrook 7.30pm Wed 18 April come along and support the officers elected and have your say about the mission and witness of our churches in the Benefice.

Launde Abbey 2018 Retreat Programmes now in church to take the LENT retreat: Be Radiant is NOW FULL

THANK YOU to the flower team who have decorated church for Eastertide
And thank you to everyone who has helped make our Holy Week and Easter services take place this year—your hard work is appreciated.