#leadership #appreciation #community-building #Elijah

I was recently inducted into a new placement as a congregational minister in Newcastle. It's been nearly two years since JPUC has had a full-time ministry agent, and they have had to think creatively to sustain their worship life, as well as their ministry and mission. 

When we did the maths, there have been 33 retired ministers, preachers, guest speakers, and lay leaders in the pulpit in this time, and we wanted to celebrate their gifts of time, energy, and wisdom while encouraging emerging leaders in our community as well. 

We created a list and sent out invitations to a service of gratitude and thanksgiving, followed by a congregational luncheon. Those who were able to attend received a general order of service for the day, along with the theme and lectionary text, which would form the basis for the sermon. They were then asked to select a part that they wanted to lead.

What follows below is an incomplete "liturgy" - mainly with my linking words, full sermon text, and a "mantle-passing" ritual. These mantles were made from two metre-long strips of green fabric (because we are in Ordinary Time) with a knot in the centre that could be easily placed over people's shoulders. Your service should look very different!

I also created beautiful certificates of appreciation which could be handed out to those present at lunch and posted to those who had other commitments. 

1. Welcome and notices – YG

How wonderful, how marvellous it is to be able to gather here together today to express our gratitude and thanksgiving to preachers, guest speakers, and lay leaders who have sustained us through meaningful worship over the past 18 months. 

When you add it all up, that’s 33 people who have exercised authority and responsibility for preaching, teaching, and community building as they have shared their gifts and passions with us. 

That’s not even counting our musicians, tech team, bible readers, prayer crafters, coffee makers, and cleaner-uppers.

That’s an abundance of blessing in my books!

As the new minister in placement here, I wanted us to pause and appreciate the foundation that we will continue to build upon. So, today, we take up the past to look to the future through the story of the prophet Elijah being taken up into heaven and passing the mantle of his good work on to his student Elisha.

So today, we have a service that will be shaped by the people who have participated in our life by their leadership in our pulpit, as each of them offers yet another gift in this time of worship. 

I know it’s a bit weird, but I’m going to ask that as each one of them comes up to the front to lead their “bit,” one of you who received a mantle at the door will come up and place it around their neck before they begin with a word of thanks or encouragement. 

And, later in the service, there will be a “mantle moment” in which they will pass those mantles on again as a symbol of our sharing in this work of being salt and light and good news to God’s world.      

Let’s begin.

2. Acknowledgment of country – YG 

Whenever we enter this sanctuary, our eyes are drawn to this artwork—Wakool Marai—One Spirit—which tells the story of the Jesmond Park Uniting Church community and our shared commitment to inclusion. It reminds us that we stand on the land of the Awabakal people, whose custodianship and connection to land, sea, and sky are the very fabric of this place now called Australia.

Like the life-giving waters depicted here, the Spirit sustains us and connects us in our circles of community. At the heart of who and whose we are, we recognise the presence of the Creator, as present today as at the beginning.

Soaring above us is the Eagle Totem, a symbol of the One Spirit that unites and celebrates us all. And throughout the artwork, we see the Elders’ symbols – the knowledge keepers, storytellers, and leaders of our community.

We honour these Elders – past, present, and emerging – and in their spirit of nurturing and educating the next generation, we gather today to celebrate the faithful preachers, speakers, and worship leaders who have guided and sustained us through a challenging season.

In the quiet, I invite you to look closely at this artwork and find your place – your connection – within both the painting and our community of faith.

Song – God Version 1.0 – EB

3. Call to worship – YG

We continue our worship by sharing in the words of commissioning that you will have heard at various services for church leaders and lay preachers throughout the years. They remind us that we are all gifted and called by God to serve one another in love as we participate in God’s big dream for peace, justice, and reconciliation in our world.

There are diverse gifts:
but it is the same Spirit who gives them.
There are different ways of serving God:
but it is the same Lord who is served.
God works through people in different ways:
but it is the same God
whose purpose is achieved through them all.
Each one of us is given a gift by the Spirit:
And there is no gift without its corresponding service.
There is one ministry of Christ:
and in this ministry we all share.
Together we are the body of Christ:
and individually members of it. UiW

4. Prayer of adoration and invocation – ND 

5. Prayer of confession and absolution – GP

On this day of thanksgiving, wonderful God, 
we confess in two directions: 

We confess your goodness and glory, the wonder of your works,
the generosity of your love for the whole of this cosmos; 
and we confess that our eyes are dim and our hearts lukewarm
in spite of all you have given and done for us. 

Today we confess with wonder 
the beauty you have made in earth and sea and sky; 
and we confess with shame the mess we have made of it 
through selfish greed, angry warfare, careless exploitation. 
Lord, have mercy on us all. 

Today we confess with thanksgiving 
that you have always raised up leaders for us – 
to speak your word of encouragement and hope,
to visit and care for us in times of need,
to gather us around your table to love each other, 
and chase us off again to love our neighbour.

We confess that we have taken their time and labour for granted;
grumbled over their gifts, disputed their discernment, 
maybe even yawned during their sermons!
Christ, have mercy on us all. 

And still  we confess that you are kind and patient with us.
Forgiving our ingratitude, you spread over us the mantle of the Holy Spirit, 
so that the loving work these leaders have shared with us 
becomes a double portion of the blessing of Christ, 
reminding us of your promise: 
“You will do greater things than these.” 
Lord, have mercy and make us new, 
through Christ our Redeemer. Amen. 

Hear God’s good news: 
For freedom Christ has set us free, 
not the fake freedom of self-indulgence, 
but freedom to love our neighbours as ourselves.

May God set us free from sin and shame 
and give us grace and gratitude for all God’s gifts, 
through the cross and resurrection of Christ. Amen. 

Hymn – How great thou art – GP

6. A memory – EB

7. Scripture reading – 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14 – MB

8. Preaching of the Word – YG

9. Affirmation of faith – HW

From the Iona Abbey Worship Book – Act of Commitment service

We believe in God
who made the sea and the earth, 
the sun and the sky 
who calls us to live responsibly.

We believe in Jesus Christ,
who became human
who healed the sick 
who talked to children,
who made friends with sinners.
He burned brightly and offended many.
His journey was one of life and death and resurrection.
He continues to shine in the darkness.

 We believe in the Holy Spirit  
who inspired the Scriptures  
and whose breath we breathe.

We believe that God calls us to be a community 
committed to one another   
offering a welcome to everyone, 
old and young, 
rich and poor,
strong and weak.

We believe that God calls us to be peacemakers,   
workers for justice, 
brothers and sisters,
a light for our world.

10. A “Mantle moment” – All

In the spirit of Elijah and Elisha, we recognize that leadership is a continuous cycle of learning, serving, and passing on our authority and responsibility for God’s great dream for the world.

Our leaders have inspired us with their gifts, and now it’s time to recognize that those gifts reside in many people within this community. We all have the capacity to serve, to lead, to share God’s love.

I invite you now to pass on the symbolic mantle you received, entrusting it to someone else in the congregation – someone who inspires you, who embodies the spirit of service, or who represents the future of this community. 

As you do, share a word of blessing or encouragement.

11. Prayers of the people – JU

12. Words of mission – LO

Song – Dreams and visions – LO

13. Blessing and dismissal – PM

May God the Father watch over us 
(hands reaching up high above the body)
God the Son walk with us (hands reaching out wide either side of the body)
God the Spirit work through us 
(hands crossed over the body)
Until we meet again.
Amen