Sunday 14 June 2026
The Re-Dedication of Church Furnishings
Welcome!
Welcome to excerpts from the worship held within the newly formed Westhills Church of Scotland Congregation. We know that not all members of the congregation are able to be in church on Sunday morning; offering these excerpts from the Sunday morning service might help you feel included. Where we can, we offer parts of the service in text and audio, whichever works best for you.
If this post helps you explore what happens within an act of worship then please read on…
The Psalms
Psalm 24
Live recording
Your Weekly Church Notices
Scripture
Romans 5: 1 – 11
Live recording
Matthew 9: 35 – 10: 10
Live recording
Praise – Heaven shall not wait
Prayers
Live recording
We are hear to look back, here to look forward.
We are here to remember one who died, her to greet one who lives.
We are here to share bread and wine, her to share fellowship together.
We are here in the name of our Lord Jesus Christr who invites us, as he invited his first disciples, to take supper with him.
He shared bread and wine, with the one who would betray him, the wone who would deny him, and those who would abandon him in his hour of need.
He shared bread and wine with those who couldn’t stay awake with him even for an hour, those who for all their enthusiasm couldn’t understand, those who were puzzled and confused, full of doubt and fear.
He invites us to share bread and wine, you and I who are weak and sinful, who daily fail him, who prefer our way to his, who have barely begun to understand the true meaning of discipleship. Though our faith is frail, and our faults are many, though we have many questions, and much to learn, we come now and share bread and wine, here we find life for your souls.
Hear us as we join in the words of the Lord’s Prayer saying…
Our Father who art in Heaven Hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, for thine is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory forever. Amen.
Re-Dedication of Table, Font, Lectern & Flower Pedestal
May the favour of the Lord our God be on us.
Establish for us all that we do. Psalm 90:17
Prayers
Almighty God, with out you nothing is strong, nothing is holy; with you everything is good, and true and beautiful. May your hand rest on us, that all we do may show the honour of your name.
All things have their beginning in your creative power; all things are made perfect in your redeeming love. In your Son Jesus Christ our Saviour, we look with hope to a new heaven and a new earth, when all creation will be free to praise its Maker.
Lord of Heaven and Earth, all good things come from you. All things are your gift to us. Send now your Holy Spirit that the furnishings we re-dedicate this day may continue their witness to the God of Love and in our worship bear witness to the faith, hope and love we have come to know through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Narrative
The coming together of two congregations requires the heritage of both congregations to be present and represented. Sometimes we can exercise discretion in those decisions and sometimes we are obliged to follow the guiding of General Assembly Committees. We exercised our discretion in the matter of seating within the sanctuary. However, in matters of church furnishing which represent both the heritage of congregations and the core expressions of Word and Sacrament we are guided by General Assembly Committees.
The furnishings we re-dedicate today were commissioned at the time the sanctuary of Greenhills church was refurbished. They are modern and unique; hand-crafted by their designer. We are fortunate to have other modern, unique, handcrafted items within this church, in particular the stained glass window commissioned to mark the 40th anniversary of what was then Westwood Church.
The Minister’s and Elders Chairs, directly behind me, were gifted by family in memory of the late Rev Jim Black. They marked a development of this worship space that was not possible during the early days after its construction. The light coloured wood of these furnishings blends with that of the chairs behind me and that of the pulpit; they all offer contrast to the darker panelling behind them. Today, under a different ministry and at a turning point in the life of both congregations we mark a further development of this sanctuary with modern furnishings gracing the chancel of a modern church building.
The Flower pedestal was gifted to Greenhills Church in memory of Margaret Croft. Margaret and her husband Hugh were longstanding members of Greenhills; Hugh served in the eldership. Margaret was very keen on flowers and contributed to the life of the church in that way. Again, it indicates the heritage of the Greenhills congregation within the new Westhills congregation. Likewise, the light coloured wood of its construction blends well within its new surroundings.
Those furnishings which express the heritage of the Westwood congregation are not being disposed of. The table and font are relocated within the Hall of Fellowship opening up the possibility for smaller and informal acts of worship and celebration of the sacraments to be held within the Hall of Fellowship, which from time to time in the past has proved to be a good alternative.
The Dedication
At The Lectern
In the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, I dedicate this Lectern to the Glory of God and for use within this place of worship in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. “Happy are those who hear the Word of God and keep it.”
At The Table
In the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, I dedicate this Communion Table to the Glory of God and for use within this place of worship in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. At Psalm 63, we hear these words: “I am satisfied as with a rich feast and there is a shout of praise on my lips.”
At The Font
In the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, I dedicate this Font to the Glory of God and for use within this place of worship in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. In the Letter of Titus, we hear these words: “Because God our Saviour was merciful, he saved us through the water of rebirth and the renewing power of the Holy Spirit, which he lavished upon us through Jesus Christ.”
At The Flower Pedestal
In the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ I dedicate this Flower Pedestal to the Glory of God and for use within this place of worship in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In Luke 12 we hear these words: “Look how the wild flowers grow: they don’t work or make clothes for themselves. But I tell you that not even King Solomon with all his wealth had clothes as beautiful as one of these flowers.”
Prayers
Gracious God, we love you because you first loved us. Your Word reveals to us Your eternal purposes of love. All of creation sings of Your praise, even the tiniest petal is full of your glory. In the celebration of the Sacrament of Baptism, as in the celebration of the Lord’s supper, we offer you our love and receive of your love for us. Set the sign and seal of your grace upon us now and upon these furnishings which we re-dedicate to you.
May these furnishings be a witness to us of the covenant of grace which we have entered into, and that being upheld by the Holy Spirit we may live day by day as sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father, and be made fit to share the heritage of God’s people, through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN
Address
Live recording
She was without doubt the most vulnerable person I’d ever met. Dorothy had a progressive illness called Huntington’s Chorea. The disease is a type of motor neuron disease which steals away one’s physical ability to move or co-ordinate movement but more than this it steals one’s personality as well. When I first met Dorothy, she was already completely wheelchair bound; she was unable to move any or her limbs.
Yet despite this, Dorothy lived alone, managing to survive with the help of two carers who came first thing in the morning and last thing at night.
Dorothy had a lot of friends who were very kind and helpful to her but in a way this made her even more vulnerable because the front door was never locked, in order that friends might pop in whenever they wished.
I called on her one day unexpectedly, fully thinking she’d be delighted to see me, but when I opened the front door and walked in, I’ll never forget the fear in her voice as she called out, “Who is it?” And when I didn’t reply instantly, again and more urgently, “Who is it?” And then the relief when she discovered it was someone she knew.
It’s a terrifying feeling to be totally at the mercy of others. Dorothy could have been robbed in her own home at any moment, and she well knew that there wasn’t a thing she could do about it; she was totally unable to defend herself.
But despite all that, she was somehow a very attractive personality. The carers poured out all their problems to her. Visitors like the hairdresser or the dentist confided in her. And her friends and neighbours often sought her out for advice and help. Although she was physically vulnerable, she was extremely strong and controlled emotionally and mentally. Dorothy made no bones about the fact that it was her faith, which gave her that inner strength.
We’re all vulnerable in different ways. For some of us like Dorothy, the vulnerability is physical. For others of us the vulnerability is mental or emotional – perhaps we’re easily hurt by others, or perhaps we have low self-esteem or no self-confidence. Being vulnerable is painful, we generally do our best to avoid it whenever possible.
But it seems that the message Jesus was constantly giving was that we should become more vulnerable, not less. “Take up your cross and follow me,” is a central theme of the Gospels. Following Jesus brings the pain of sacrifice, you can’t avoid that pain or discomfort, face it, shoulder it, accept it and walk forwards.
We don’t know how long the disciples had been with Jesus, learning from him, watching him, training on the job, before he sent them out on their own. Luke tells us he sent them out in pairs, but they were to take nothing with them, no money, no food, no sword to defend themselves. They were utterly vulnerable.
In Matthew’s account, which was read today, Jesus says, “You received without being paid; give without payment.” No money was to change hands; without money, people are vulnerable.
The first task Jesus gave to his disciples was relatively easy to carry out. They were told to proclaim the good news that the kingdom was near. After that the tasks appear to be more challenging. They were to heal the sick, cleanse lepers, cast out demons, and even raise the dead.
Healing the sick would be difficult enough even today, but in those days, leprosy was a progressive illness with no cure. And casting out demons, which could be anything from curing epilepsy to curing madness, would surely be almost impossible. As for raising the dead, that really is demanding the impossible for normal human beings.
Impossible demands, no means of defence, no money to get them out of tight corners, the disciples must have been feeling very vulnerable indeed. Both Luke and Matthew described it as being “thrown to the wolves”! (Luke 10:3, Matthew 10:16) They are sent out with nothing but the clothes they are wearing, feeling very uncertain indeed as to whether they have any hope at all of succeeding in their mission, not even knowing where they will sleep or where their next meal will come from. Yet Luke tells us that the disciples returned from their mission with filled with joy. (Luke 10:17). The disciples emerged from their mission with a new inner strength, which was characterised by joy. In the beginning they had every reason not to feel confident. They returned with every reason to feel confident because they had seen people responding to the Good News of Jesus Christ.
The Christian faith is one of paradoxes and contradictions. It puts the first last and the last first. The greatest are the least and the least are the greatest. It is a lesson we are continually learning and re-learning.
Right now, congregations across our Presbytery are preparing their Mission Action Plan. We will be preparing ours soon as well, but I’ll tell you more about that at the AGM. So many congregations are filled with anxiety because they have no resources, no money, no minister by which to conduct their mission to their community. Then mission isn’t about how much money you throw at a project; it’s about getting the Christian Gospel heard, through word and action. Lack of resources should not matter at all; in fact, it may be a good thing because then we only have our Lord to lean upon.
It seems that God is best able to work in our lives when we are utterly vulnerable.; when we have nowhere else to turn, when we’re forced to rely only on him. Paul described it as, “God’s strength being made perfect in our weakness.” (2 Corinthians12: 9) That’s exactly what the disciples experienced and maybe we will experience that too.
Praise – This is my body
Prayers for Others
Live recording
Riots in Northern Ireland (Belfast)
Lord Jesus Christ, that we might boast of peace and hope, that we might make such a noise about Your gracious love, shouting at the top of our lungs about Your great hope for all humanity.
But we have learned, in challenging times such as these, that such peace is fragile, that hope is hard won and that joy can seem like too much to ask for.
Loving and Living God, may Your peace, may Your love, may Your hope, find each of us exactly where we are. May it be real in the hearts and homes of all those in our communities, within our nation in all its parts, and in the faraway places of the world. May Your desire for each and every person to know You and to live in Your love inspire us to work together for that reality.
We pray to you concerned about the riots in Northern Ireland. A nation that has known too many divisions in the past. We pray for those who are opportunists, taking advantage of an horrific crime to spread fear and division with communities. We pray for those who have strived to escape fear and discrimination to now again live in fear of the mob. We remember Police Officers injured in riots and pray for anxious families.
For we believe that all people can live together in mutual respect and peace. That through faith in Christ we can see the face of Christ in another human being and love them as Christ loves them. For the God who is love gave to each of us the gift of life and breath. We are all His children.
Lord hear us in our prayers…
In thanksgiving of the gifts of bread and wine received this day, we acknowledge the calling that Christ has brought to us, to be His people, to speak of love and work for love; word and action hand in hand. May Your Kingdom Come. AMEN
Praise – Blessed assurance
The Grace
And now… May the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you and all whom you love, now and for evermore. AMEN.