Wellspring@Home         

DECEMBER 20th 2020
​Worship online
​for the 4th Sunday in Advent 

​Wellspring's 'worship-@-home'
​
Kevin Price (our minister) will take us through the
Advent season with a message each week and for today
​the service below has been put together by Sue Watts.


​'WAITING ON THE LORD' 

This is Mary’s day. Imagine three candles already lit on the Advent wreath and now the fourth candle is lit……… for Mary.
(Light your own candle if you have one at home....and 
be careful)
As you watch the flame, think about the Angel's surprise visit, and try to imagine how Mary, a vulnerable teenage girl, must be feeling as she contemplates in that very moment, how her life will change forever.
 
Advent song 1
'Light a candle in a darkened place' 
(Singing the Faith 174. Words and music: © 1996. 2002 Clare Stainsby.
Wellspring CCLI licence no. 571370)   
​



​Bible Reading : Luke 1: 26-38

Mary waiting in humble obedience.... 
Waiting with such fear; what is it like to give birth?
Waiting 9 months - and then wait and see!
Waiting, nervous of what Joseph will think of her.
Waiting to fulfil God’s promise
Waiting with joy, on the Lord .


And Mary sang 'The Magnificat'
My soul glorifies the Lord,
And my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
For he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed:
For the Mighty One has done great things for me holy is His name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
From generation to generation. 
(Luke 1: 46b – 50. NIV)

We could say our lives have changed forever since the coronavirus gripped the world at the beginning of 2020, and this will be a Christmas like no other. I and my family have decided to stay apart on Christmas Day, but meet for a picnic somewhere in the wilds of Derbyshire on Boxing Day. Mad probably, different yes, memorable definitely. So it’s not surprising when the Christmas lights started going up much earlier this time, and decorated trees were in windows way back in November; it’s a way to brighten the mood of the dark days made even darker by the uncertainty of these very difficult times of the pandemic.

PRAYER
As we count down the days of Advent, We pray –
Lord be the light in our dark days
All-powerful God, let the splendour of your glory rise in our hearts like the dawn, that the darkness of the night may be scattered and the coming of your only Son may reveal us as children of the light. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with us, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
(Prayer: © 1999 Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes
The Methodist Worship Book for the 4th Sunday of Advent)

Poem - 'Mary' 

I stand alone.
Alone as the angel
Gives me as task
Of costly obedience
Which my love for God
Will not make any easier.

I stand alone.
Swaying as the first waves,
Contractions
Heralding greater agony to come
Wash over my exhausted body,
Spent already
From the journey.

I stand alone.
Joseph’s encouragement
Somehow not touching my isolation:
As I comprehend
That this is a journey I only can make.

I stand alone.
Seeing the kindness
In the old man’s eyes.
Hearing his words
That a sword would pierce my soul
And knowing It already had.

(© Rev Jeannie Kendall. 2020. Used with permission)
​
 
Kevin’s Message

Picture
​
​
​
​Sometimes Mary is likened to a white rose, a single white rose is a symbol of purity, innocence and youthfulness. But just as the beauty of the rose is tempered by the thorns on it’s stem, we must image that Mary’s joy was tempered by the angel’s message, and what the future would hold.
​
Advent song 2
​
'Since the day the angel came'
(Complete Mission Praise No. 928 Graham Kendrick © 1994 Make Way Music) Wellspring CCLI licence no. 571370  




The waiting is almost over!

​Yes, for children waiting for Christmas morning. For us, trying to work out what is the best way of celebrating Christmas with or without family, while staying safe.

But for Mary, when the trauma of birth was over, she was dealing with the unhealthy conditions of a cowshed, no sanitizer there, she was trying to cope with being homeless, under threat and fear for her life.

She holds the newborn child in her arms, and wonders what it means, why did shepherds come to visit, how did they know that this was a baby like no other. Mary’s precious boy, a boy she would name Jesus, She could never know that one day HE would wear a crown of thorns.

‘Then will the glory of the Lord be revealed and all will see it together.’ 


Prayers for others

Lord, wait with us. As we pray for children and families who will go without this Christmas.
Lord wait with us.
As we pray for people who are homeless this Christmas. Lord wait with us.
As we pray for those who have been made unemployed this Christmas.
Lord wait with us.
As we pray for those who feel unloved, unwanted and worthless this Christmas.
Lord wait with us.
As we pray for so many suffering loneliness this Christmas. Lord wait with us.
As we pray for those who have lost loved ones this Christmas.
Lord wait with us.
As we pray for those who have worked selflessly to care for people who have contracted Covid 19.
Lord wait with us.
As we pray for our Church family, our friends and our own families.
Lord wait with us.

Lord wait with us as we wait for you to be God with us, now and always. Amen!
Shout it out loud - Jesus is coming, let’s get ready!

(Remember to blow out your candle!)
​ ​​​

​'We shall meet'-  a 'song for Covid'.
​
We shall have this link every week for the next
few weeks at least.

Original words and music Hans Olav Mørk (Norway)
© Words: 2020 WGRG, c/o Iona Community, Glasgow, Scotland
© Music: John Bell, WGRG, c/o Iona Community, Glasgow, Scotland
CCLI Song Number: 7153725  Wellspring CCLI licence no. 571370

Other Lectionary readings for 20th

2 Samuel 7.1-11,16; Luke 1.46b-55 (Magnificat); Psalm 89.1-4,19-26; Romans 16.25-27; Luke 1.26-38 
 
Week 5 Dec 27th 
No service online for Wellspring

The next service is on
​January 3rd 2021

​
                     
S O N G S​

There are no lyrics available on this website
any more. It may be that a song booklet will
​be produced before Christmas...

​There will also be very few songs added for December, because we are all familiar with the carols of the season.

But there are a few more STORIES relevant to the Christmas and December...

​
Songs for August

​Additional songs for September


​Additional songs for October


​Additional songs for November

                     
S T O R I E S
​
You can find a brief description of what our stories are about by clicking here.
​
Stories for August

​Additional stories for September

Additional stories and readings for October

​Additional stories and readings for November

​Additional Stories for December
Christmas Card Star (14 mins)
A story from Hoy about a Christmas stranger
​​A story by Harry Berry
Miss Tait...  (5 mins)
The power of Christmas transformation in Rousay
​A story by George Mackay Brown
The box of fish  (6 mins)
Orkney December priorities for four old men and a boy...
​A story by George Mackay Brown
The Christmas Horse  (9 mins)
One peedie boy's Christmas - long ago.
​​A story by George Mackay Brown
The Fourth Wise Man  (3 mins)
An imaginary reminiscence from a Welsh writer
​

​Christmas Children
Christmas priorities of Children and adults - a true story from near Glasgow.