A downloadable PDF order of service is available here

Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if
you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your
hope will not be cut off - Proverbs 24:14

Knowledge speaks, wisdom listens - Jimi Hendrix

Led by the Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth, 
and the congregation in church and online

***

AS A DIVERSE PEOPLE, THE CHURCH GATHERS TO WORSHIP ALMIGHTY GOD

Organ Voluntary
Meditation: Love Unknown
Francis Jackson (b. 1917)

Welcome & Church News

The Grace

Preparatory Silence for Worship

Introit Let thy merciful ears, O Lord
Words: Collect for the tenth Sunday after Trinity
Music: Thomas Mudd Born C 1560

Let thy merciful ears. O Lord be opened unto
the prayers of thy humble servants, and that
they may obtain their petitions. Make them to
ask such things as shall please Thee: through
Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen

Call to Worship
Leader: Come now all who thirst
All: and drink the water of life
Leader: Come now all who hunger
All: and be filled with good things
Leader: Come now all who seek
All: and be warmed by the fire of love

Hymn 129    The Lord is King, Lift Up Your Voice!
(t. Church Triumphant) 

The Lord is King! lift up your voice,
O earth, and all the heavens, rejoice!
From world to world the joy shall ring:
The Lord Omnipotent is King.

The Lord is King! who then shall dare
Resist His will, distrust His care,
Or murmur at His wise decrees,
Or doubt His royal promises?

The Lord is King! child of the dust,
The Judge of the all the earth is just.
Holy and true are all His ways:
Let every creature speak His praise.

Come, make your wants, your burdens known;
Christ will present them at the throne;
For He is at the Father’s side;
The Man of Love, the Crucified.

One Lord, one empire, all secures:
He reigns— and life and death are yours.
Through earth and heaven one song shall ring,
‘The Lord Omnipotent is King!’

Prayer of Approach, Praise and Confession
& Lord’s Prayer    Led by Reuben Addis
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, for ever. Amen.

Hymn 154    O Lord My God, When I in Awesome Wonder
(t. How Great Thou Art)

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing;
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on a Cross, my burdens gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin.

When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart.
Then I shall bow, in humble adoration,
And then proclaim: ‘My God, how great Thou art!’

Reading Proverbs 1:20-33   Read by Honey Ballantine

The Call of Wisdom
20 Wisdom cries out in the street;
in the squares she raises her voice.
21 At the busiest corner she cries out;
at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:
22 ‘How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?
How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing
and fools hate knowledge?

23 Give heed to my reproof;
I will pour out my thoughts to you;
I will make my words known to you.
24 Because I have called and you refused,
have stretched out my hand and no one heeded,
25 and because you have ignored all my counsel
and would have none of my reproof,
26 I also will laugh at your calamity;

I will mock when panic strikes you,
27 when panic strikes you like a storm,
and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
when distress and anguish come upon you.
28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;
they will seek me diligently, but will not find me.

29 Because they hated knowledge
and did not choose the fear of the Lord,
30 would have none of my counsel,
and despised all my reproof,
31 therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way
and be sated with their own devices.
32 For waywardness kills the simple,
and the complacency of fools destroys them;
33 but those who listen to me will be secure
and will live at ease, without dread of disaster.’

Anthem For I went with the multitude
Words Psalm 42 vvs 4 -7
Music: Peter Aston (1938 to 2013)

For I went with the multitude, and brought them forth
into the house of God; In the voice of praise and
thanksgiving: among such as keep holy-day. Alleluia.
Why art thou so full of heaviness, O my soul: and why
art thou so disquieted within me? Put thy trust in God:
for I will yet give him thanks for the help of his
countenance. Alleluia

Reading    James 3:1-13     Read by Honey Ballantine

Taming the Tongue
3 Not many of you should become teachers,
my brothers and sisters, for you know that we
who teach will be judged with greater strictness.
2 For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone
who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect,
able to keep the whole body in check with a
bridle. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses
to make them obey us, we guide their whole
bodies. 4 Or look at ships: though they are so
large that it takes strong winds to drive them,
yet they are guided by a very small rudder
wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also
the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of
great exploits.

How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire!
6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed
among our members as a world of iniquity; it
stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of
nature, and is itself set on fire by hell.7 For every
species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea
creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by
the human species, 8 but no one can tame the
tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with
it we curse those who are made in the likeness
of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing
and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought
not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from
the same opening both fresh and brackish water?
12 Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield
olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt
water yield fresh.

13 Who is wise and understanding among you?
Show by your good life that your works are
done with gentleness born of wisdom.

Hymn 567     Focus My Eyes on You, O Lord
(t. Focus My Eyes)

Focus my eyes on You, O Lord,
Focus my eyes on You;
To worship in spirit and in truth,
Focus my eyes on You.

Turn round my life to You, O Lord,
Turn round my life to You;
To know from this time You've made me new,
Turn round my life to You.

Fill up my heart with praise, O Lord,
Fill up my heart with praise;
To speak of Your love in every place,
Fill up my heart with praise.

Sermon
A Word to the Wise
Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth

Hymn 96    You are Before Me Lord, You are Behind
(t. Sursum Corda)

You are before me, Lord, You are behind.
And over me You have spread out Your hand;
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
Too high to grasp, to great to understand.

Then from Your Spirit where, Lord, shall I go;
And from Your presence where, Lord, shall I fly?
If I ascend to heaven You are there,
and still are with me if in hell I lie.

If I should take my flight into the dawn,
If I should dwell on ocean's farthest shore,
Your mighty hand will rest upon me still,
And Your right hand will guard me evermore.

If I should say, ‘Let darkness cover me,
And I shall hide within the veil of night,’
Surely the darkness is not dark to You;
The night is as the day, the darkness light.

Search me, O God, search me and know my heart;
Try me, O God, my mind and spirit try;
Keep me from any path that gives You pain,
And lead me in the everlasting way.

Prayer of Dedication and for Others
Led by Reuben Addis

Hymn 132   Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise
(t. St Denio)

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible, hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might,
thy justice like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all, life thou givest, to both great and small.
In all life thou livest, the true life of all.
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
and wither and perish, but naught changeth thee.

Great Father of glory, great Father of all light,
thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight.
All praise we would render; O help us to see
‘tis only the splendour of light hideth thee.

Closing Responses
Leader: Whoever we are,
All: Wherever we go,
Leader: Whatever our strengths,
All: Whatever our weaknesses,
Leader: God will be with us; to hold and to heal
All: To challenge and to forgive,
Leader: To bless and keep each one of us.
All: Let us go then, in peace, assured of his love

Benediction and Threefold Amen

Organ Voluntary
Fanfare and Processional
Douglas E. Wagner (b. 1952)

THIS MORNING’S CHAMBER GROUP MUSIC    The origins of the introit
are uncertain. It was originally attributed to the madrigal composer,
Thomas Weelkes but is more likely by may be by one of two composers
by the name of Thomas Mudd, one (c.1560 to c.1630) and the other
(1619 – 1667) It is in a late Post Reformation polyphonic style (after an
opening chordal statement) with one note set for each syllable of text.

Peter Aston was appointed as choirmaster of the Aldeburgh Festival
Singers by Benjamin Britten. His influence is clearly heard in this
anthem with its dissonant yet attractive harmonies. The strong influence
of Purcell on both composers is heard in the extended and gently lilting
‘Alleluias’ the rhythmic style of which echo Britten’s ‘Rejoice in the Lamb’.

***

NEWS AND INTIMATIONS

COLLECTION Most of those who attend worship support our work through standing orders, but before the first lockdown we also had a plate collection during the service for visitors and those who preferred that form of offering. Covid restrictions still prevent us passing a plate during the service. Instead we are now inviting those who would have put offerings in the plate during the service to do so at the close of the service. In the halls entrance and in the vestibule you will find a bowl or plate marked ‘Plate Collection’.

Regular and one-off donations, are still possible online through: www.give.net/20311853

MIDWEEK PRAYERS   You are most welcome to attend a time of peace, prayer and reflection in the church sanctuary, this Tuesday at 10.00am.

YOUTH NEWS

Sunday 12 September ALL AGES (P6-S6) from 6:00-7:30pm TONIGHT are invited to the church garden for our youth group kick-off night! (Rain plan will have us in the Bill McDonald Hall) There will be games and activities led by our older teenagers; it will be a great chance for anyone new to get to know each other, and see what we do at youth group! For more information, please contact Hillary at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sunday 19 September (P6-S1 from 6:00-7:00pm; S2-S6 from 7:15pm-8:30pm in the Bill McDonald Hall): Creative Journaling Night - Tonight we will be getting creative as we do some relaxing and creative journaling together! Bring along any craft supplies you may want to use as we reflect on scripture together.

PASTORAL CARE If you or someone you know is going into hospital then please do notify us. If you would like to receive a visit from our pastoral care team or a regular phone call contact Kay, our pastoral assistant, and she will safely organise this for you. Contact Kay McIntosh on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 07503 266 307.

PRAYER CHAIN  Would you like to be a member of the prayer chain, where you receive a list of situations on which prayers have been requested, on a weekly basis by email? Also, if you have someone or something which you would like us to hold in prayer for you, please contact Kay.

THE GUILD   A new joint Church of Scotland Guild is beginning for the churches on much of Edinburgh’s south side, including our own, which you are very welcome to join. Come along to a taster session for the new beginning on Tuesday 14 September at 2pm at Marchmont St Giles, to hear Karen Gillon, The Guild Associate Secretary, talk about the Guild and moving forward into the future

Books for the Journey

Steve Aisthorpe, Re-Wilding the Church (2020)

Richard Frazer, Travels With a Stick: A Pilgrim's Journey to Santiago de Compostela (2019)

Walter Brueggemann, Virus as a Summons to Faith (2020)

Forthcoming Deadlines

Order of service for next week: Thursday at 6.00pm.

Next Grapevine:  Friday 1 October at 6.00pm.

Please send submissions to the Church Manager, William Mearns.

Phone: 0780 801 1234 or email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Copyright Notices

Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the
Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by
permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Mayfield Salisbury Parish Church holds a CCLI Streaming License: #88916

Some images from Pixabay / MotionWorship under licence.

Ecotip: Buy used products whenever possible

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Youth Instagram: the.msyg

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Scottish Charity Number SC000785