Thread by @DisabilityJ

1. Welcome

2. In the name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit

All: AMEN

3. Tonight we begin thinking about Lent.
We are not urging people to give anything up, rather, we are urging people to be more present online. So many isolated people rely on online as a way of staying connected. Be with them this Lent.

4.Don't give up Twitter for Lent

5. Pancake party Tuesday evening here on Twitter

6. Ash Wednesday with Katie at 9pm

7. Good evening and welcome to
our simple online
Sunday evening service.

We hope you find fellowship here
in this virtual space and pray you
will return again and make use of our other
liturgies at

anordinaryoffice.org.uk

8. Dave Lucas has been nominated for the Positive Role Model Award for Disability at The National Diversity Awards 2020 in association with
@itvnews
for the work you do at
@DisabilityJ
You can vote for Dave by visiting nationaldiversityawards.co.uk/nominate #NDA20

9.WE BEGIN

This is a sacred place, holy ground,
as real to us as any church building, our home, a place of welcome to all.
Many of us are unable to access physical church but here we are made welcome, this is our space. Come on in

10. We dedicate this space to those who may feel they have little to look forward to, to those who feel they have nothing to contribute, to those who have been made to feel unworthy.
Father take this place & those gathered here & make this a place of hope & encouragement.

11. Father, thank you that so many of us are finding this place each Sunday, we thank you that more and more people are finding their way here. We pray that the wider church will embrace this initiative and support us.
This is our gift to them.

12.Though we are far apart
Let us feel a closeness
Let us reach out across the ether
Unite us across time and space

13. This is your temple Lord
Although there are no walls.
The web is where we gather
As real to us as any church
Computers, phones and tablets are our prayer books. Our prayers float in the ether like incense across the sanctuary.

14. Father, we give to you the dreams we have for this project and ask you to sift through them gently, discard what is not of you, bless and encourage what is right.

15.So we begin our prayer of welcome, teach us to be an inclusive community, leave no one behind, to be open to all, even to those who make us feel most uncomfortable.

16. To those who feel unwelcome

All respond by
Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

17. To those who are new here.

All respond by
Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

18. To those who feel estranged
from church

All respond by
Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

19. To those who feel abandoned
or adrift

All respond by
Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

20. To those who simply want to be here

All respond by Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

21. To those who join us from church
communities to show us your support.

All respond by Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

22. To those who read this
at a later date or time.

All respond by Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

23. To anyone who feels they have been
overlooked by us, please believe us
when we say, you are welcome!

All respond by Tweeting the reply
WELCOME

24. Above all Jesus, we welcome you in to our presence.

WELCOME

25. Let us take a few moments to consider
How we have failed this week.

26. For the times we have turned away and
excluded the other.

All respond by Tweeting the reply
LORD HAVE MERCY.

27. For the times we have failed to make someone welcome.

All respond by Tweeting the reply
LORD HAVE MERCY

28. For the times we have failed to make someone welcome.

All respond by Tweeting the reply
CHRIST HAVE MERCY

29.For the times we have allowed our prejudice free reign.

All respond by Tweeting the reply
CHRIST HAVE MERCY

30. Unite us with those who stare through the window longing to be allowed in.

All: Unite us with them Lord

31. Unite us with those who find the liturgy we use too complex.

All: Unite us with them Lord

32. Unite us with those who have been so damaged by bad theology they feel unable to return.

All: Unite us with them Lord

33. Open our hearts Lord to the warmth of your love.

34. Lord, tonight we have many reasons to be thankful.

35. For a service we are able to attend easily.

ALL: Thank You

36. For a space where we are not judged.

ALL: Thank You

37. For fellowship we are able to take part in on equal terms.

ALL: Thank You

38. For people who understand

ALL: Thank You

39. For a place where we feel safe.

ALL: Thank You

40. These strangers are my friends
Mark this as holy ground
A virtual sacred space.

41. Staggering, stumbling
Lurching, limping
Whatever the way

All:
Lord we come.

42. Crawling, walking
Falling and then rising
Whatever the way

All:
Lord we come.

43. On stretchers
In wheelchairs
With canes
And with guide dogs
Whatever the way

All:
Lord we come.

44. I’ll carry you
If you’ll carry me
We’ll carry each other
Forward together
Whatever the way.

All:
Lord we come.

45. Lord brand us with your Logo
Write it on our hearts Lord
In letters bright and bold
A logo that says made in heaven
Copyright Jesus the Lord

46. Write it in ink that will not fade
Write it in braille and symbols too
Write it for everyone
Leave no one out

All: Lord, leave no-one out.

47. Let ALL Your people know
Tell them they are precious
Tell them they are yours
One family, equal and true
One people, one body
Made in the image of You

All: Let your people know.

48. Those who cannot see he walks with as guide.
He whispers softly to those who cannot hear.
He soothes those whose minds are troubled.
He rides with those who cannot walk.
He sees the pain of those whose pain cannot be seen & brings insight to those who appear not to understand

49. God of hope, bring us love
that dwells between us.
God of hope, who brought peace into this world, be the peace that dwells between us.
God of hope, who brought joy into this world, be the joy that dwells between us.

All: Be our joy Lord

50. We ask you to teach us a new way of being church, not high church, not evangelical, not charismatic, not pentecostal but a churchmanship accessible to all, a churchmanship prepared to compromise our preferred forms of worship to be open to all, understood by all

51. Take this scattered, rag, tag and bobtail band of pilgrims, each making our own way.
Unite us in this online place, draw us close as we gather here, alone and yet somehow together.

All:
Here we are not alone.

52. Let us take a moment, to compose our thoughts, to shake off the tensions of the week and the emotion that this day has stirred in us and welcome you in to this virtual space, to be right here in the midst of us.

All:
Here we are not alone.

53. We offer all this back to you God as our gift to your wider church, that out of our broken lives we say to your Sunday church, come, see where we live, share our pilgrim journey, travel with us, share this road.

All:
Come see where we live.

54. This Sunday we pray for your whole church, the seen and the invisible, those who are gathered and those who are scattered.
Unite us all in a spirit of community
Bring your broken body back together, not cured but broken yet healed.

55. Even if the only company we’ve had today has been that of those we’ve shared prayer with online, we thank you for bringing us through this day and join with all the others of this community, alone yet together.

All:
Thank you.

56. We pray that as we approach the season of Lent will be able to us this technology to be with the lonely, the isolated and those who feel cut off.

57. We praise You,  Lord,  because we’re ALL fearfully & wonderfully made.
In your house there is room for all, there are no rejects.
There are no able-bodied, no disabled, there are only His beloved children, all made in His image. Beautiful in His eyes.

58. Even in the dark of night,
You leave a light on for me,
and are always watching over me.
 
Lamplighter! lover, friend,
You are the keeper of my dreams.
 be ours this night.

59. When our feeble faith deserts us
and fear runs amuck, lend us yours.

We know that will be enough
As it has been so many times before

60. Add your name as a reply here so we can keep you in our prayers this week.

61. To the one waiting outside unable to get in, we say.

ALL: We will all come outside

62. To the one unable to travel

ALL: We will all come to you

63. To the ones unable to be with us physically during Lent we say we will be with you here.

ALL: We will be with you here.

64. In the midst of our brokenness you give us life and call on us to reflect that life back to your church. Stay close to us, teach us to be satisfied only with your presence. Grant that we may bring healing and light to the broken places we encounter on this journey.

65. Let nothing cause us to fear this night
To send us running
Let no concern overwhelm us
Let all pain be dulled
All nerves be calm
Take us gently in to sleep
Watching over us till dawn’s light

66.Let nothing cause us to fear this night
To send us running
Let no concern overwhelm us
Let all pain be dulled
All nerves be calm
Take us gently in to sleep
Watching over us till dawn’s light

67. May God the creator
Go with us as we embrace life in all its fullness.
May the Son who teaches us to care for stranger & foreigners,
Go with us as we try to be good neighbours.
May the Spirit who breaks down barriers go with us as we find courage to create a place of welcome

68. GO IN PEACE

In the name of the Father
and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit.

All respond by Tweeting the reply AMEN

69. Don’t forget to join Tim for viral house group on Twitter . Wednesday evening 7.30 @Strgl_St_Bible

70. Please could you now go to
anordinaryoffice.org.uk/index.php/nigh……
and click the
AMEN
button to let others know you have
been praying with them tonight.