THE DOORS
As you enter this place of worship, prayer and reflection, built in 1910, pause and think about God’s presence here.

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.  For the LORD is good and his love endures for ever. (Psalm 100:4-5)

God, thank you that you are here.  Thank you that you know who I am and welcome me.

THE AISLE
As you walk down the centre of the church you might like to imagine all the people who have walked here before you. Some come every week, some come for special festivals such as Christmas and Easter, and others come as occasional visitors.  Some have walked down the aisle to be married, or to have their children baptized, or to say a last goodbye at a funeral. 

Think about all these significant moments in people’s lives, moments that people and God have shared together. 

Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going to work, and walking-around life – and place it before God as an offering.  Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.  (Romans 12:1)

God, thank you that you are interested in me and in my life, both in the important moments and in the day-to-day business of living.  Help me to walk closer with you, and to know you better.  Show me how I can live with you and for you.

THE WINDOWS
Look around at the windows and see the light that fills the church. (Don’t forget those behind you). Read the words about Jesus at the bottom of the St Luke window.

Think about how light allows us to see and reveals colour.  It shows us the obstacles in our path and makes it possible for us to move forward.  The Bible speaks of God’s presence as light, a brightness that illuminates, guides and inspires us.   If you would value that light, ask God to light your path today.

Jesus said, ‘I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’ (John 8:12)

God, be my light today.  Guide me and inspire me. Let me see clearly and show me the way ahead.

THE COMMUNION TABLE
Look at the communion table at the front of the church. People kneel at the rail in front of it to take bread and wine in memory of Jesus’ death and to give thanks for all God’s activity in the past, in the present and in the future. The table is decorated with a cross and clover leaf patterns.  The three leaflets are a symbol of the Trinity, or God the Creator, God in Jesus and God the Holy Spirit. 

At the back of the church is an embroidered picture of a painting by Leonardo da Vinci called ‘The Last Supper’. Can you see the bread and wine on the table there? Which figure is Jesus? Look for the water and towel.  They remind us that Jesus taught us to serve one another.

The empty cross that hangs over the table is a sign of God’s Resurrection of Jesus from the dead after he had been crucified. The forces of evil, hatred and death don’t have the last word.  God’s power of goodness, love and life is stronger.   

Can you see any other crosses or cross patterns in the church?

The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took a piece of bread, gave thanks to God, broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you.  Do this in memory of me’.  In the same way after supper he took the cup and said, ‘This cup is God’s new covenant, sealed with my blood.  Whenever you drink it, do so in memory of me.’ (1 Corinthians 11: 23-25)

God, thank you that Jesus becomes present with us as we share in the sacrament of communion and that we have a foretaste of what it will be like when we all feast together in the kingdom of God.  

THE LECTERN
To the right is a wooden stand where the church’s holy book, the Bible, rests.  People read aloud from it every Sunday.  Through the words of the Bible God speaks to us.

Come to me, all you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest.  Accept my teachings and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit, and you will find rest for your souls. (Matthew 11:28-30)  

God, speak to me today in this place.  I am ready to hear from you and I am listening

THE PULPIT
To the left is the pulpit. This is where the preacher tells people about God and Jesus.  Imagine how many different words have been spoken from this platform. When there is a special festival there will be an appropriate fall hanging from the top.  Is there a special festival today?

Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live…Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. (Isaiah 55: 3,6)

God, help me to share your word with others.

THE BAPTISMAL FONT
Behind the lectern is a wooden font where water is put at baptisms.  Water is a symbol of being washed clean and making a new beginning.  Our church is one of those that baptise, or christen, babies.  Because God loves all people we welcome babies into our church community.  The minister pours water over their heads and marks them with the sign of a cross.  Some churches prefer to wait until a person is old enough to make their own decision to be follower of Jesus.

Jesus said, ‘Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.  And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’ (Matthew 21:19-20)

God, thank you for loving me and accepting me into your church, even before I could do anything to deserve it.  Make my life new and let me be aware of your presence with me always.

OUTWARDS
The church is called God’s House, but God isn’t confined within these walls.  As you go out look for God’s presence in the world around you, in your own home and in other people. 

God, who made the world and everything in it, is Lord of heaven and earth and doesn’t live in temples made by human hands….God has done all this so that we will look for him and reach out and find him. God isn’t far from any of us and gives us the power to live, to move and to be who we are.  (Acts 17:24,27-28)

God, go with me today as I leave this church.  Reveal yourself to me in your world and in my own life.

Check in the porch or at the entrance to the church when the next service takes place here