Good morning, and welcome to this week’s worship blog post. I’m beginning to think of my Sunday posts as “IKEA Services,” all the pieces are here, though it requires assembly by you, the participant. That’s not a bad thing, as it makes you more of an active partner in worship, something we ministers are always in favour of encouraging!

First, a little bit of prelude music from our own Eric Medhurst in his own words: Our musical selection this morning is “As the Deer,” by Martin Nystrom, in a thoughtful arrangement by Douglas E. Wagner.  Although the tune is new it has quickly become a favourite in many denominations due to the beautiful tune and its timeless message.

Next, Graceview Elder, Susan Chopp, provides our Scripture reading this week, Luke 24:13-35:

A prayer to use as part of our worship this morning:

O risen Christ,
On the road to Emmaus you were the disciples’ companion.

Be at our side on the journey of faith

on life’s pathways and at every encounter,

engender our compassion,

so that we may welcome others and listen to their stories.
Kindle anew the desire to proclaim your Word.

May it illumine us and may our hearts burn to bear witness to it.
May your Holy Spirit teach us the art of explaining scripture

and open our eyes to recognize you.
Grant us the courage to become vulnerable

so that our sisters and brothers may know you through us

and that we may know you through them. Amen.

— from Resources for The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and throughout the year (2010), jointly prepared and published by The Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and The Commission on Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches.  Posted on the World Council of Churches website.  

This week, Eric and I have been working together to bring you some hymns that you can sing along with at home. First we have hymn #675, Precious Lord, Take My Hand, the words are provided so you might sing along:

Now that you’ve had a good sing-along, here is this week’s video sermon:

And as a response to the sermon, we have Hymn #665, Lord Jesus, You shall be my song. This is fairly new to us at Graceview, but it’s a beautiful tune and the words have been resonating with me all week. Hear are the lyrics:

And finally, a link to the Virtual Vigil for Nova Scotia.

Until tomorrow, dear friends, pray for each other and know that Christ is your faithful companion in these hard times.