Click play below to join in our our live stream...
If you experience any issue with livestream on the day, please email livestream@stcolumbas.org.uk (please note that this address will only be monitored on Sundays).
Our live streaming system is designed to be as reliable as possible and work across a wide range of devices. However, live streaming relies on a lot of things outside of our control. Although we’ll do our best to help you get this working, we cannot accept liability if this service is unavailable.
ST COLUMBA’S, PONT STREET
MORNING WORSHIP FOR TRINITY SUNDAY
SUNDAY 31st MAY 2026, 11AM
Welcome
Call to Worship
Hymn 4 How excellent in all the earth (Psalm 8) (Winchester Old)
1 How excellent in all the earth,
Lord, our Lord, is thy name!
Who hast thy glory far advanced
above the starry frame.
2 When I look up unto the heav’ns,
which thine own fingers framed,
Unto the moon, and to the stars,
which were by thee ordained;
3 Then say I, What is man, that he
remembered is by thee?
Or what the son of man, that thou
so kind to him should’st be?
4 For thou a little lower hast
him than the angels made;
With glory and with dignity
thou crownèd hast his head.
Prayers of Approach and Lords Prayer
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,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen
Theme for the day
Hymn 577 Christ be beside me (Bunessan)
1 Christ be beside me,
Christ be before me,
Christ be behind me,
King of my heart;
Christ be within me,
Christ be below me,
Christ be above me
never to part.
2 Christ on my right hand,
Christ on my left hand,
Christ all around me
shield in the strife;
Christ in my sleeping,
Christ in my sitting,
Christ in my rising
light of my life.
3 Christ be in all hearts
thinking about me,
Christ be in all tongues
telling of me.
Christ be the vision
in eyes that see me,
in ears that hear me,
Christ ever be.
Old Testament Reading: Genesis 1: 1- 2: 1-4a {OT page 1}
Six Days of Creation and the Sabbath
1 In the beginning when God created[a] the heavens and the earth, 2 the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God[b] swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
6 And God said, ‘Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.’ 7 So God made the dome and
separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. 8 God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
9 And God said, ‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, ‘Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.’ And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.
14 And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
20 And God said, ‘Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.’ 21 So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm, and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.’ 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.
24 And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.’ And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind, and the cattle of every kind, and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind[c] in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth,[d] and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’
27 So God created humankind[e] in his image,
in the image of God he created them;[f]
male and female he created them.
28 God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’ 29 God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. 31 God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
2 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. 2 And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation.
4 These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created.
Epistle Reading: 2 Corinthians 13: 11-13 {NT page 173}
Final Greetings and Benediction
11 Finally, brothers and sisters,[a] farewell.[b] Put things in order, listen to my appeal,[c] agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. 12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you.
13 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of[d] the Holy Spirit be with all of you.
Anthem: Holy, holy, holy Tchaikovsky (1840-93)
Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee:
Holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty,
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity.
Holy, holy, holy! all the saints adore thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea:
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before thee,
Which wert, and art, and evermore shalt be.
Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide thee,
Though the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see,
Only thou art holy, there is none beside thee,
Perfect in power, in love and purity.
Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall praise thy name in earth, and sky, and sea:
Holy, holy, holy!merciful and mighty,
God in three Persons, Hallelujah! Blessèd Trinity.
Gospel Testament Reading: Matthew 28:16-20 {NT page 32}
The Commissioning of the Disciples
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’
Hymn 522 The Church is wherever God’s people are praising (The Bard of Armagh)
1 The Church is wherever God’s people are praising,
knowing they’re wanted and loved by their Lord.
The Church is wherever Christ’s followers are trying
to live and to share out the good news of God.
2 The Church is wherever God’s people are loving,
where all are forgiven and start once again,
where all are accepted, whatever their background,
whatever their past and whatever their pain.
3 The Church is wherever God’s people are seeking
to reach out and touch folk wherever they are —
conveying the Gospel, its joy and its comfort,
to challenge, refresh, and excite and inspire.
4 The Church is wherever God’s people are praising,
knowing we’re wanted and loved by our Lord.
The Church is where we as Christ’s followers are trying
to live and to share out the good news of God.
Sermon
Anthem: Te Deum in C Haydn (1732-1809)
We praise thee, O God: we acknowledge thee to be the Lord.
All the earth doth worship thee: the Father everlasting.
To thee all Angels cry aloud: the Heavens, and all the Powers therein.
To thee Cherubim and Seraphim: continually do cry,
Holy, Holy, Holy: Lord God of Sabaoth;
Heaven and earth are full of the Majesty: of thy glory.
The glorious company of the Apostles: praise thee.
The goodly fellowship of the Prophets: praise thee.
The noble army of Martyrs: praise thee.
The holy Church throughout all the world: doth acknowledge thee;
The Father: of an infinite Majesty;
Thine honourable, true: and only Son;
Also the Holy Ghost: the Comforter.
Thou art the King of Glory: O Christ.
Thou art the everlasting Son: of the Father.
When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man:
thou didst not abhor the Virgin’s womb.
When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death:
thou didst open the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers.
Thou sittest at the right hand of God: in the glory of the Father.
We believe that thou shalt come: to be our Judge.
We therefore pray thee, help thy servants:
whom thou hast redeemed with thy precious blood.
Make them to be numbered with thy Saints: in glory everlasting.
O Lord, save thy people: and bless thine heritage.
Govern them: and lift them up for ever.
Day by day: we magnify thee;
And we worship thy Name: ever world without end.
Vouchsafe, O Lord: to keep us this day without sin.
O Lord, have mercy upon us: have mercy upon us.
O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us: as our trust is in thee.
O Lord, in thee have I trusted: let me never be confounded.
Dedication of our Offerings
{If able, please stand as the offering is brought forward and the congregation sings}
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
praise him, all creatures here below;
praise him above, ye heavenly host;
praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. (CH4 807, Old 100th)
Prayer of Dedication:
Minister: Father, Son, and Spirit Holy,
we give you thanks and praise:
Congregation: We dedicate to you
our thoughts, our words, our gifts, our deeds,
the working of our hands,
the thinking of our minds,
the loving of our hearts. Amen.
Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession
Intimations
Hymn 260 Eternal Father, strong to save (Melita)
1 Eternal Father, strong to save,
whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
who bade the mighty ocean deep
its own appointed limits keep:
Oh, hear us when we cry to thee
For those in peril on the sea.
2 O Christ, whose voice the waters heard
and hushed their raging at thy word,
who walked upon the foaming deep,
and calm amid the storm didst sleep;
Oh, hear us when we cry to thee
For those in peril on the sea.
3 O Holy Spirit, who didst brood
upon the waters dark and rude,
and bid their angry tumult cease,
and give, for wild confusion, peace:
Oh, hear us when we cry to thee
For those in peril on the sea.
4 O Trinity of love and power,
shield all of them in danger’s hour;
from rock and tempest, fire and foe,
protect them whereso’er they go:
thus evermore shall rise to thee
glad hymns of praise from land and sea.
Benediction & Choral Amen
Organ Postlude: In dir ist Freude J.S. Bach
Retiring Offering
(It is possible to donate via the website. All offerings towards the ongoing life of St Columba’s are very gratefully received. Thank you.
