Were they filled with expectation
Were they filled with expectation
by Andrew Pratt
November 11th Remembrance HYMN Were they filled with expectation? Were they filled with expectation? Did their minds well up with dreams? Was there pent anticipation; fear and joy, such tense extremes? Now the weary, frightened, broken, find their way to love and life; …
What better way to spend the night
What better way to spend the night
by Andrew Pratt
What better way to spend the night than walking down a city street? Near shuttered shop fronts bodies sleep. Is Christ among the ones we greet? The stars are bright, the frost is sharp, and home will draw us from the cold. Outside the door, beyond the warmth, young people die bef…
What news is good? That Christ will live forever?
What news is good? That Christ will live forever?
by Andrew Pratt
What news is good? That Christ will live forever? Beyond a cruel death an empty grave? And whether this is fact or faith means nothing unless Christ's Spirit gives the means to save. If we endure derision, in this moment, or share communion bread within this place, unless our liv…
What happened to the covenant
What happened to the covenant
by Andrew Pratt
What happened to the covenant, the rainbow in the sky, that signed an end to flood and storm? Still people stand and cry. The floods still come, the waters rage, while homes are swept away, the covenant, of which God spoke, seems of another day. Verses 3-5 follow © Andrew Pratt…
What lies behind the universe
What lies behind the universe
by Andrew Pratt
What lies behind the universe, what power of thought or word, can make some sense of all we see, untangle the absurd? With human eyes we gaze beyond the confines of this earth, in sub-atomic particles we seek creation's birth. Reflecting in this self-same way on Jesus works and w…
What if, within this present age and time
What if, within this present age and time
by Andrew Pratt
What if, within this present age and time, we heard again the prophets' strident call, received afresh the challenge Christ once gave, and sought to give to God our all in all? Verses 2-3 follow Tune: CHILTON FOLIAT Andrew Pratt (born 1948) Words © 23/1/2014 Stainer & Bell Ltd,…
What peace is there for tarnished lives
What peace is there for tarnished lives
by Andrew Pratt
Hymn: What peace is there for tarnished lives Second Sunday of Easter - John 20: 19 – 31 What peace is there for tarnished lives, when love is challenged, hate survives? Remember in that Upper Room, Christ came and offered peace. What peace for Peter who denied his friend who hun…
What waste of Godly grace and love
What waste of Godly grace and love
by Andrew Pratt
'What waste of Godly grace and love, this perfume cast away, what waste of money, see the poor before us everyday'. But Judas, driven by his greed, was filling up his purse; and through inherent selfishness perhaps our ways are worse. Verses 3-4 follow TUNE: ST BERNARD Andrew P…
When all the stars burn out
When all the stars burn out
by Andrew Pratt
Fifth Sunday after Epiphany Year A Matthew 5: 13 – 20 Hymn: When all the stars burn out, When all the stars burn out, or all the seas run dry, God's love and law will still remain, they soar beyond the sky... Andrew Pratt (born 1948) Words © Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, England,…
What news is good? What words give hope?
What news is good? What words give hope?
by Andrew Pratt
What news is good? What words give hope? What sense of value do we feel when meeting with our God in Christ, what gives the sense, provides the seal? This seal of perfect love and faith, this hope of holiness and grace, the knowledge that our path is right, is given in our saviou…
Whats that whisper Hymn
Whats that whisper Hymn
by Andrew Pratt
First Sunday of Advent Year A Matthew 24: 36-44Hymn: What's that whisper (see also dramatic reading: What's that whisper) What's that whisper, just the wind blow? Almost silent, hardly heard. Did you hear a footstep coming; trick of sense? That's just absurd... Andrew Pratt (bo…
When all is lost, there seems no turning back
When all is lost, there seems no turning back
by Andrew Pratt
When all is lost, there seems no turning back; when friends are gone, while gain has turned to lack; when life has left us in a crumpled heap, we slip and slide, we agonise and weep. Sometimes our lives are spun, flipped upside down, the royal are poor, the beggar wears a crown. …
What value can you place on love
What value can you place on love
by Andrew Pratt
What value can you place on love, how can you weigh attention that watches every step you take beyond this world's convention? Verses 2-3 follows Tune: DOMINUS REGIT ME Metre: 8.7.8.7 Andrew Pratt (born 1948) Words © 16/8/2013 Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, England, www.stainer.co…
Whatever gains I once held dear
Whatever gains I once held dear
by Andrew Pratt
Whatever gains I once held dear, the things of earth or heaven above; I now reflect and know their flaws, they fade before abundant love. Verses 2-3 follow Tune: WINCHESTER NEW; WILTON (Stanley) Metre: LM Andrew Pratt (born 1948) Words © 24/2/2013 Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, En…
When in our loneliness, lost without comfort
When in our loneliness, lost without comfort
by Andrew Pratt
When in our loneliness, lost without comfort, homeless, abandoned, when hope has all gone; God speaks through history, the words still disturb us: 'this is your home and you must carry on'. When our depression has mirrored that exile, hope is diminished and love drains away; even…
When Moses uttered, ones who heard