Bradford North Circuit

Advent 4: Thinking about BLESSING Service sheet (pdf) Hymn: STF 187 The Angel Gabriel From Heaven Came Introduction Christmas is only days away now. How will you welcome Jesus into your home this year? After last year’s loss and longing, will the blessings of this year’s Christmas celebrations have any extra special meaning for you? Today’s worship is focussed on signs of greeting and blessing. Call to worship Come, greet one another in the name of the Lord. Come, bring all you have and be blessed. Come, and worship the God of the great and the lowly, and share your hopes and fears. Come, young and old – for God is calling you. Collect for today As we light this Advent candle, may its flame be for us a sign of blessing. As Mary and Elizabeth greeted each other, and Mary praised God for the blessings received, may we know God’s blessing in our lives and community, as we offer prayers and praises in Jesus’ name. Amen Hymn: STF166 Christmas Is Coming The Church Is Glad To Sing How do you ...

Advent 3 Service Sheet (pdf) Call to worship:  Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near (Philippians 4.4-5) Song: Joy to the world! the Lord is come; Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare him room, And heaven and nature sing, And heaven and nature sing, And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing. Joy to the world! the Saviour reigns; Let all their songs employ; While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat, repeat the sounding joy. He rules the world with truth and grace, And makes the nations prove The glories of His righteousness, And wonders of His love, And wonders of His love, And wonders, wonders, of His love.  Isaac Watts Opening prayer: Loving God, In the long, dark days of winter, The cold and dismal days of waiting for the spring, You surprise us into life, By the joy of your Good News. You come as the king of the world. Y...

Advent 2  Service Sheet (pdf) Introduction Welcome to worship at Baildon Methodist Church. If you have any sorrow or regret about anything you have done in the recent or far-distant past, or any anger or regrets about how other people have treated you. This service is for you. For us. You are especially welcome on this second Sunday of Advent which is all about John the Baptist and his promise of forgiveness which, as St Luke says in his Gospel, is life-changing. Collect for today Dear God who taught us about forgiveness, forgive us because we have forgotten the lessons that we learned from the life and example of Jesus Christ, who forgave both his tormentors, and his friends. Amen Hymn The theme for the second Sunday in Advent is John the Baptist, and our lesson from the Gospel will tell us something about his ministry. Our first hymn first appeared in Paris at about the time of the restoration in England as a Latin poem by a man called Coffin. This version is a translatio...

Advent 1 Service Sheet (pdf) Hello and welcome to this recorded service, presented by Bradford North Methodist Circuit. I am Martin Bashforth and I am a local preacher in the circuit. Today is Advent Sunday. It marks the beginning of a season when we contemplate the coming of Jesus into the world, to be its Saviour. It is hard for us, who know the full story of Jesus’ coming, his preaching and teaching, his crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, to imagine the expectancy with which his coming was awaited, and to fully appreciate the impact which his coming would have, on those who recognised him as God’s Son and accepted him into their lives. Nevertheless, it is important that we reflect on his coming and understand its relevance for us, living in the 21st Century. The coming of a Messiah had long been foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament. But he did not come in the way the people of Israel expected, as our first hymn tells us: Song STF 169/ HP 81 Come, Thou long-expected J...